ha! I thought that was a cute joke but it does raise the question:
what DO they use for lighting?
Howdy folks and greetings from the Great Plains of North Texas where
we use tons of electricity this time of year in 100 degree weather like
today..again.
I thought I'd just give a short explanation on how the Amish light their
homes, generally speaking. There are many different groups with varying
degrees of strictness of course but for the most part the Amish don't
really like electricity that much and certainly are off grid.
They do use it sparingly in the form of batteries to power their buggy
lights for safety reasons and there ARE more conservative groups
which still use a kerosene lantern hung on both sides.
The other way they use electricity is by generating it with diesel
generators to power clothes washing machines so the women don't
have to do it by hand anymore. Thank God! Their refrigerators are
powered by propane gas.
In their homes they primarily use propane gas powered lighting either
with gas lines running to mounted lights with mantles which have to
be lit or with floor lamps which have a wooden cabinet holding the
propane bottle with wheels on it to roll where it's needed.
all photos are from amishamerica.org
living room with no modern lighting
Amish kitchen with floor lamp
The reason they Amish don't like using power from the public
grid is because they think it ties them in too close to the world
system. Plus having it in the home makes it too much of a
temptation to use for tv, internet and radio.
The Amish businesses we dealt with had computers, internet,
phones and all the things needed to run a modern business
at their place of work but not in their homes, they are very
strict and cautious about what enters their home.
Is that wise or what? Can we learn something here at least in
principle?
Plus, too much reliance on labor-saving devices, Amish feel, may
deprive children of character-building opportunities to work!
lol! don't ya love it?
okay that's all for now folks, I could go on about this but I'm not
tryin to write a book. God bless you all!
-jonboy Texas
gentleman redneck
ps- you might just be a redneck if:
the primary color of your car is bondo!