Addicted to cheap power - continued

I was not trying to say that we should get rid of electricity completely. I like my computer, stove and washing machine and life would be tedious without them. Since we should not run out of renewable energy sources it is totally fine to use the electricity produced from these sources. We should reconsider human power though. I think that the cheap power from fossil fuels prompted a development of too many tools making lots of activities too easy, inventing even new ones and making people lazy. Physical exertion now derives from heaving one's own body over-weight in and out of the car seat. My husband, a keen reader of newspapers (on-line) read an article to me the other day that claimed that the treatment to reverse the ageing process has been found: exercise. Who would have guessed! Exercise used to come automatically with whatever one did during the day. Think alone of staircases versus escalators or elevators. Gardening was such an activity, certainly more fun than running around the block or worse on a tread mill, until power tools took a lot of physical effort out of it. Household chores were such thing before bread machines and food processors. Shorter distances were once covered by foot, bike and horse wagon - now conveniently replaced by cars. Long-haul is a different story although I insist it should be mostly trains as long as no water crossing is involved. When flying within Europe is cheaper than the train there's something wrong. Entertainment is were things totally escalated - Radio, TV, Video-, DVD-, MP3-players, game consoles, Wii, home theatre, sound systems for car & home ... there's so many options that seem to have made conversation obsolete. And socializing seems to die out - when my grandma is keener on watching a soap opera than talking to her family  I wonder what's wrong. Personally, I think people like her have a boring life. If you don't, you shouldn't need soap operas. 
Two weeks ago we went to the Festival of Trees. It's a display of Christmas trees, wreaths, gingerbread houses and such which get rated by visitors. There's also games and crafts for kids, a show and shops. All proceeds go to the hospital foundation - so far so good. Considering the number of Christmas lights on the trees and other items though we did not understand why they had to have disco lighting on top of that. It's not only a waste of energy, it was an overload for the senses as well.