Light, heat and much more
All my life I have had the greatest respect for electricity.
As a child we had only one light and a valve radio. Often Mum would turn off the light and use candles or a kerosene lamp. We didn't even have electric lights in the two bedrooms. The dining room door was left ajar for light and warmth.
Mum told me how she and Dad budgeted one shilling (10c)/month for power. If the meter read over this amount, Dad would get on a chair and spin the meter backwards, until it read around nine pence. This would be the day before the meter reader was due.
To them, this wasn't cheating, it was survival.
The next appliance we got was an electric jug. What a lifesaver in the summer - no stoking the hot stove to get a cup of tea.
Luxuries
Within the first year of my working life I bought Mum a toaster, then what she called luxuries (not necessities as we regard them today) - a fridge, hot plate, water heating and a two-bar heater.
I've had a few shocks in my time (apart from looking at my bank statements).
I have had a hooded hairdryer blow up while I was under it and numerous electric jugs, which quite often had a fixed lid.
After one of the aforementioned jugs died I fossicked around under the bed and found a new jug.
That's strange, I thought as I rummaged through the box - there's no cord. Maybe that's why I got it cheaply.
On the boil
I borrowed a cord from the crockpot and boiled up, intending to discard the first lot of hot water. As I was tipping the hot water down the sink, a strange clunking noise indicated that the cord was stored inside.
After a good week in the hot water cupboard it recovered fully and is still going.
I've had numerous electric fence shocks. One day I had a five-year-old with me and asked him to drop down the disconnected fence.
He cautiously went up to it and called to me: "Does it bite, Elaine?"
Realising that you need either wind, sun, water, or tide to generate electricity (all reliant on the weather) I, along with 1000 others, jumped at the opportunity to go through the state-owned Mighty River geothermal progress open day at Kawerau.
In this undertaking costing $300 million, they've drilled six wells 2km into the centre of the earth to supply hot geothermal fluid to the power station, at 220-350° C along 8km of pipeline.
Power for all
Each well cost $6-8m. They will produce 90 megawatts/day, approximately what Norse Skog's Tasman mill in Kawerau uses each day, or power for 100,000 homes. In comparison, Kawerau township uses one megawatt.
I was amazed to hear the turbines were housed in a structure made of plastic imported from the US.
The family's electronics engineer went along with thoughts of future employment, only to hear that 10 people will run the plant, compared with the 400 employed during construction.
So next time the electricity goes off halfway through milking and the cups start sucking up that green matter, spare a thought for those who have mastered the art of harnessing electricity.
Stoked
One day in March it was Earth Day and we were encouraged to use as little electricity as possible from 8pm to 9pm.
I stoked up the wetback fire, switched off the lights and television, lit three candles and luxuriated in a deep, perfumed bubble bath (well, it was Wiggles strawberry bath bubbles).
I felt so thoroughly relaxed and went to bed with two candles intending to read, but slept like a baby until dawn.
I think I'll make it a monthly habit.
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