Book 2 Unit 1 Transcript

I heard about a couple who moved to the woods to live in a tiny home without electricity. They are private people and had turned down TV interviews, but they invited me for a visit with my camera.
“Innermost house is about 12 feet square. There is no electricity, no hot water, and yet my husband and I lead a life of luxury here.”
When I first saw Michael and Diana’s northern California home, I felt I had stepped back in time. But the longer I stayed, the more I felt the place really defied time. Diana says you enter timeless time here, and without the distractions of modern life, it’s easy to forget about everything but the moment.
Fire is a necessity. It heats the home and bathing water. And it’s the couple’s only stove or oven. It also provides a sound track to the day. No refrigerator means no meat, no ice-cream, but vegetables taste like the sun and earth without a hint of cold storage. With just one pot, meals are simple.
“This pot is this size for a reason. I can fill the whole thing up and we can still eat every bite, but it’s also enough for 3 people if we eat more moderately. So this way I never have to keep track of how much we need to eat. I just put in as much as I can possibly squeeze and we eat the whole of it. … Here we are …”
“What do you think is that draws people to simplify their lives?”
“I never did simplify my life. I was always saying no. As a child, I couldn’t understand the pleasure that people took in things.”
I asked Diana why she came here seven years ago. She said she was looking for emptiness. But over time that has changed. Now she is here, like her husband, in search of completeness.
Diana calls her quest the conversation. She writes, “What is the conversation? It is what found me. It’s the marriage between the moving word and the waiting silence. It’s waking into the silent emptiness before dawn and feeling a question formed within you that only reason can answer. It’s listening for the soft sounds of the woods and the murmur of the spirit of the waters. It’s forever the first morning again and again.”

The video suggests some ways to conserve energy, such as starting recycling, cleaning up your community, turning off your lights and water. Work in groups and brainstorm together to come up with more energy-saving ideas.
Replace your light bulbs with LEDs.
Purchase energy efficient appliances.
Install energy efficient windows.
Close the curtains during the day.
Always use the cold water faucet, unless you really want hot water.
Unplug the appliances when they’re not in use.
Upgrade your water heater.
Use solar energy products.
Set your air conditioner a bit down in winter and up in summer.
Install water-saving shower heads or flow restrictors.
使用节能灯泡 use energy efficient light bulbs
临睡前关掉开关 switch off before going to sleep
停止使用一次性购物袋 stop using throw-away shopping bags
使用可再生能源，比如太阳能 use renewable energy such as solar power
选择步行、骑自行车或乘公交车/地铁 choose to walk, ride a bike, or take a bus / subway