This morning I managed to wash my hair, shave and make a cup of coffee
with about 5 cups of hot water I boiled on the stove-top. You see, on
account of the solar-only, roof-mounted hot water heater we have here,
it's more timely to do things this way. It's not something I'd want to
do all the time, but it's interesting for the time being.
We have a plastic bowl that fits in the bathroom sink, which I pour some
hot water into, and then mix with cold from the faucet until I get a
good temperature. I use just enough to wet and shampoo my hair, and I
don't mind a final cold rinse.
To shave, I fill a small cup halfway with hot water and mix with cold
again, and use a safety razor. I've always done it this way, actually,
so it's no big change.
Finally, I have a "french press" style coffee mug, so I put some coffee
grounds directly in the mug, pour in hot water, and then, after letting
it seep for a couple minutes, push a screen down to keep the grounds at
the bottom of the mug.
I'm so used to having "all the hot water I need" that I never really
think about it. The same goes for electricity and other amenities, such
as internet. When I've gone to developing countries, I remember being
surprised by the frequent blackouts (sometimes--such as in
Ethiopia--planned during certain hours on a neighborhood basis due to
seasonal shortages), the occasional lack of running water and going back
to using dial-up on occasion. Here in China, the electricity and water
is always available, wi-fi is more of a rarity, but internet is readily
available. The lack of constant hot water during these winter months
(for reasons I outlined in more detail previously) has reminded me, once
again, that until we develop our infrastructure and utilities to run
efficiently (and year-round) on renewable sources, that we need to be
more conscious consumers both when out shopping and at home.
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