A whole host of Australians are finding out over the next couple of days what it feels like to conserve a bunch of water. The 40-hour drought challenge is this: 40 hours, 40 litres of water per person.
The 40 hours is from 7am Wednesday 21 March to 11pm Thursday 22 March. For those who are keen, here's 91 water saving tips.
If you're name is: Simon Elliott, Fiona Elliott, Chris Marks, Kyla Marks, Bronwyn Rogers, Johari Lanng, Grainne O'Donovan, Irish, Clare O'Neil, Claire Dunjey, Joshua Dunjey, Justine Bettison or Sarah Green...it's you're lucky day or two. You signed up as a cacophonist for 40 litres of water over 40 hours.
If your name isn't any of those names yet you have a hankering to know what it's about, the 40-hour drought website will tell you more. You can also download this pdf to see what those on the drought are having a crack at.
All the best. Let us know how you go: what you discover, how you feel and what you learn. Perhaps how you smell as well. And, whatever you do, don't take a bath - they consume 150 litres of water at a time and that's nearly four times what you've got up your sleeve. Gidiup!
Tuesday, March 20, 2007
The 40-hour drought: One for the stinkers
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25 minutes to go! I'm excited (on the inside). Let's see: hair washed last night - check. Washing done - check.
I admit to feeling a little stressed about the fact that my rental accommodation doesn't have dual flush toilets. I'm not big on the trowel or the fence thing. I'm having to resort to the bucket.
22 minutes - I'd better go weeeeeeeeee
I can't wait to have an excuse for poor hygiene.
Awww, c'mon Sezy, you've never needed a reason 'til now.
I'm kind of wondering how long it will be before I absolutely need to use water. April?
A mate asked me the other day whether I was doing penance for drinking 13 litres of water a few years back.
Stay hydrated!
all this talk of drought and baths.. makes me thirsty.. hmm a bath isnt a bad idea..
I went rugby training last night... and was too tired to get a shower so said i'd just have one in the morning... when i woke up this morning i remebered this darn thing... I officially feel yuck... Simon who am i sitting beside for pizza tonight? preferably someone with a cold...I'll prob just have an Irishmans shower and dose myself in lynx... smell ya later
he he...remember: it's not 0 litres in 40 hours...spare us from that!
Serge_Toughen up!
This is easy ey! no showers, pee in the garden, hold in the number two's. i'm actually drinking more water than i usually do, up to 2 litres so far.
ha ha ha
Dunjey, this is just the excuse you were looking for to bring out your supressed dirty-man persona.
[ps. andrew means 'man' so, that's like YHWH saves/man/faith, pretty neato]
I'm on 18L. With just under 24 hours to go. It was washing my hands that killed me, in the kitchen tonight. Old food handling habits die hard!
ok - here's my discovery. This morning I had cause to flush (or at least I could see that a need to flush was imminent). I had thought I might dig a whole in the backyard, but I've got plenty of the 40 litres up my sleeve so I sat and read in comfort. Anyway, I spied the bucket of water in the shower from Fi's 10 litre effort this morning and thought: what if I flushed, but poured that water into the cistern? Genius! I reckon I used about half a litre of additional water that got out as I was rapidly refilling the half flush.
I'll recover from this shortly - I promise. I just need to have a shower now...
Nice work! Perhaps you could turn the tap off first so that you didn't have to compete with the incoming water?
I decided to use the bucket on the third usage of the equipment. Only because it seemed time. Well, the 4L in the bucket wasn't enough to deal with the super absorbent toilet paper. So I flushed - 11L = disaster!
Thankfully, I had barely used any other water all day.
Current tallies for the stinkers?
I'm on 39.5. Just left a floating, anonymous surprise in the office loo as a testament to yesterday's indulgent use of water.
you filthy sicko...
Maybe I should give you some of mine. I was just at a meeting with a client and the receptionist brought me an unsolicited glass of water. This has taken me to the brink of 5.5L.
I should have known this would end up as a competition, Elliott!
I have spent 17.25L. But almost 2L of that is sitting, clean, in a container awaiting whatever usage I choose for it.
Sez - you rock!
Sorry...I knew I should have shut-up!
Hmmm...68.5L
ha ha ha.. bronno.
that is amazing!!
I'm on 22L and we have 5 hours left.
I'm as happy as a pig in mud, althouggh, still unsure as to why I ended up by myself in class today..
Ahhh...things were going so well until I took a pee and was reminiscing about my genius effort this morning with the grey water and mindlessly flushed. Stimpy, you idiot!
At least it will put a smile on G's face.
At least it will put a smile on G's face.
And how.
hmmm.. im on about 380 L if u dont count the washing of my car today!
mind u.. some of that 380 is from flushing for people on Wed night.. which i may add was quite good...
ok.. I totally forgot about my online chia-pet
does that count?
cause I water him like 50 million times a day. He's a turtle shape.
Clare, dear, that thing's not real.
Sorry, someone had to tell you.
I've discovered on inspection of our combined chart that I'm married to a serial hand washer. Having said that, Fi only marginally busted the goal with 42L...and with the cleanest hands you ever did see.
??
What?
You're lying!
...
I reached the end with 18L to spare. I'm pretty sure Serg used that amount this morning to wash his inflated ego.
Clare_I reckon, if it's not too late, you see how long you can last with the 40 litres. That's what I decided anyway. Pretty sure you could make it through March, probably through to July.
I'm seeing whether the weekend is a possibility...
Harsh Clare!...
but true
I've just come off an unintentional 50-hour coffee drought. Reckon I'd rather go without water...
Although water is pretty useful to swallow the Panadol that you're taking to offset the side-effects of not being able to drink coffee.
A coffee drought? The rest of the world calls it rehab, Elliott!
well I'm out of rehab then...and it feels good.
Having put on the load of washing last night that busted me through the 40 litre barrier, I'm keen to know: has it changed anything for anyone. Do you consume water any differently now than you did a week ago? Is it a pain in the ass? And can you see any of that lasting?
I had already got the bucket in the bathtub, but now I use it to catch water during my shower, not just while the water hots up. I do feel more conscious about every little bit of water, every time I turn on the tap to wash an apple or wash my hands. It is precious.
Will it last? I think mostly it will. I say that because I have always been troubled by leaking taps, or taps left on while teeth are brushed, etc. I've probably just notched up the OCD a little.
Mostly, I enjoyed the opportunity to stand with country people who are doing it tough.
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