The world is becoming greener and greener. Not the green of foliage, not the green of millions of trees in a forest but the green of the human world becoming more conscious of their impact on the environment. Part of this move to be 'greener' has been the organising of recycling bins – this has been very successful and the more convenient it becomes to recycle the more people will do it.

Another way that we have become 'green' is by keeping a closer watch on the electricity that we use. Instead of the old bulbs we now use energy saving bulbs. They do not cast the same warm light as the older ones, but they are more energy efficient.

Because of the increased use of electricity we have all been encouraged to make 'greener' choices, but even so there are still power outages. During these times glow sticks can be an easy and invaluable way of keeping your home illuminated.

We use electricity for everything. It has gotten to the point that we completely take it for granted. When there is a power outage we completely panic and have no idea what to do.

Some homes rely on gas for heating, but even that can be turned off. We take this simple luxury of convenience for granted, and yet they are what make our lives so much simpler and warmer.