Weird Showers

Our small group is currently looking at a DVD series from Matthew Sleeth called "Hope for Creation/Hope For Humanity." It is a Christian-based view of environmental and social justice issues, and how we are called to respond as followers of Jesus. So far it has been really good. I'll likely share some of the experiences and findings from our group on this blog, but in the meantime, I thought I would share a little of personal experience.

In an effort to improve our water conservation, one project I have undertaken this week is to take "weird showers." That is, I get in, wet myself down, turn the water off, soap up, turn the water back on, and rinse off. You can save an awful lot of water this way. In many parts of the world, this is how the majority of people shower [if they shower at all--in many parts of the world, showers are still too wasteful].

So I've been doing these showers this week, and here's what I have learned:

1. Your skin dries more quickly than you think, so you must soap up quickly.

2. It's not as cold as you would think.

3. It's difficult to turn the shower back on without blasting yourself with really hot or really cold water.

4. The shower time is shortened considerably.

5. I now feel guilty about taking a regular shower. So I'll probably be doing the weird shower more often.

Go ahead, give it a try.