Environmentalists are de-fridging, reports The New York Times. More people are deciding to get rid of the kitchen’s biggest energy hog in an attempt to reduce their carbon footprint — though quite a few greenies, including myself, still rely on their refrigerators — EnergyStar model refrigerators, that is.
De-fridgers cope by getting coolers, storing perishables outside in the winter, and when desperate, getting a mini-fridge. Many, as you can imagine, have had to change their cooking and eating habits to adabt — though these new habits, like cooking from scratch more often, sound like healthy ones for the most part.
That New York Times article reminded me of an older Wall Street Journal article about Manhattanites getting rid of their kitchens altogether. WSJ didn’t have an eco-angle — the article was published in 2001, before going green went mainstream — and instead focused on people who just wanted more space and didn’t care to cook. My favorite quote from one de-kitchened New Yorker: “How much room does it take to store a bottle of vodka?”
Quite a lot, actually, if you live in an eco-mansion like the Wired LivingHome, below. The top shelf’s lined with bottles of eco-friendly 360 Vodka –
Top photo by alexmuse
Sounds kind of crazy to me, really, and I tend to take a lot of food home when I eat out, which would all be wasted without a refrigerator.
Comment by Aaron — February 6, 2009 @ 2:52 pm
Living alone I get by easily with a tiny mini-fridge. Of course, living directly across from a grocery store doesn’t help.
It’s worth noting that this was a fad as far back as the 70s — remember when Annie Hall was drinking Chardonnay with ice cubes in it?
Comment by FilmFemme — February 7, 2009 @ 6:17 pm
I meant “living across from a grocery store doesn’t HURT” of course. Dang.
Comment by FilmFemme — February 7, 2009 @ 6:17 pm
FilmFemme — I’d kinda like to switch to a mini-fridge — Living alone, this’d be a good idea for me too. Plus, when friends visit and happen to open my fridge, they often say they’re “concerned” that there’s “no” food in there — when really, there’s quite enough food for one person who goes to the farmers market and shops twice a week. A minifridge would make less look like more :)
Comment by Siel — February 9, 2009 @ 6:45 pm