Lights Out, Knives Out

Three nights ago, A asked if I wanted to participate in Earth Hour:

• "What is it?"
• "Oh you just turn your electricity off for an hour to promote energy conservation."
• "Sure. When is it?"
• "Tonight. 8 to 9pm."
• "Hmmm. Ok. Wait, all the electricity?"
• "Nah not all, the laptop can stay on." (we're computer junkies)
• "What? That's cheating!"

Technically that could have been construed as playing by the rules, but we felt if we were to turn the lights out, might as well go cold turkey. While A occupied his electricity-free hour with meditation, I was left sitting in the dark, blind as a bat and hungry as a horse. I'm not one for meditating, especially not on an empty stomach. So I lit a couple of candles and began to prepare dinner... well, as much of it as I could sans electricity. Equipped only with a knife, I shaped my way through the ingredients. By the end of the hour, I was starting to like this therapeutic time so much I wanted more.

So in light of my tranquil experience, I thought it would be nice to host a regular event on the foodblogosphere. Instead of basking in serenity on my own, I would like to invite everyone to participate: once a month, turn off all your unnecessary electrical appliances and your lights. Pull out some candles and a knife and engage in electricity-free "cooking". It may sound like a nightmare not being able to use the blender to dice the onions, or the mixer to knead the dough, but these are all very doable tasks, and the processes can be extremely invigorating.

That said, participation in this event does not have to be about finding peace, serenity or restoration, nor does it have to be about Earth Hour. One could use this "Hour" to get used to becoming less dependent on electricity, or as a time to prepare the week's frozen dinners, or simply a time in the month to catch up with neighbours over a home-cooked meal. The possibilities are endless, and the benefits abundant.

If you're interested, the rules are as such:

1. 1. Your preparation environment should be as electricity-free as possible. Music or TV in the background are discouraged, unless they are self-winding.
2. 2. Create a recipe that requires no electrical tools to prepare, except when cooking. (ie you can use an electrical stove to cook the food, but electrical blenders and handmixers during preparation is against the rules)
3. 3. Your "Earth Hour" does not have to be an hour, nor does it have to be at night. You can start with half hour or even 15 minutes and work your way up.
4. 4. In your entry, add a link to this event's URL.
5. 5. Submit your entry to blackcealt[at]gmail[dot]com. The email should have the following:
   
   • Subject line: LOKO [Month][Year] eg. LOKO April 08
   • In the body of the email:
   • - Your name
   • - Your city, state, country location
   • - Your food blog name
   • - Link to your event entry
   • - Name of your recipe
   • - The duration of your "Earth Hour" aka prep time
   • - Picture of your entry attached
   You don't need a blog to participate; non-bloggers can still email the above information and I will include it in the round-up.
6. 6. There is no limit to the number of entries you wish to submit.
7. 7. The deadline for 'LOKO April 08' is midnight April 28th 29th, 2008. I will post the round-up by April 30th, 2008.
   Please click here to read about the change in deadline.
   

And no, this is no April Fool's joke.

This event has also been posted at . Click here to see the event.

All Writing and Images © Celine Asril 2008

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