Getting quite frightened...

rexxz · Tar Sands Joined: Jun 27, 2006 Posts: 29

Thank you for your replies, all of you. EnergyUnlimited, I am considering yours mostly. About the credit thing, I didn't really intendt to mean that I wanted it, but was stating that because I had none, it would be harder for me to perhaps purchase the things that I may need to prepare for this(housing, land, etc.).

Oh, and I have nothing to worry about my girlfriend or myself getting into debt. I am educating her on PO while I educate myself on it, and she is being open minded to ideas and information. I think the worst part though will be finding a place to live that has what you mentioned. I don't know how to measure if a community has a strong local economy and self-relience...

Windmills · Posted: Tue Jun 27, 2006 9:49 am Post subject: Re: Getting quite frightened...

If your girlfriend embraces the idea of Peak Oil, then you've just found a great asset. Having a partner that shares your understanding and vision of the future crises will greatly aid you. If she is with you in this, then you have reason to be more hopeful about your future. The two of you can do more and do better together than either of you could do alone. Right now, Americans lead what they think are very independent lives, apart from their families and friends. I believe we'll all find out just how valuable our families, friends, and communities will become; we'll depend on them for our very survival.

Sleepybag · Posted: Tue Jun 27, 2006 9:54 am Post subject: Re: Getting quite frightened...

This may seem contradictionary, but the best jobs in the next decades will be in oil-related businesses. A shortage will result in increased need for workers in exploration, platforms, refineries and alternative fuels. Also, Houston might actually be a good place to get a degree in oil related engineering. So, I would advise you to go to Houston, move in with your girlfriend, and learn about geology, drilling and refining.

Off course, I don't know anything about your schooling level or skills, so if you don't understand anything about high school physics you might consider my advice useless. However, try to understand the problem and then figure out how to be part of the solution.

Aimrehtopyh · Posted: Tue Jun 27, 2006 10:47 am Post subject: Re: Getting quite frightened...

...and don't ever forget where your towel is.

Seriously, seeing the Hitchhikers Guide movie with peak oil in mind helped me to relax ALOT. I still drive my friends and family crazy with my anxiety and everpresent obsession with the subject, but much about that movie makes the fellings of loss and hopelessness more bearable.

Regardless, form here on out it will be a rollercoaster ride like garden-variety depression. The lows can last days or months and even the highs will be marred by your unshakable feeling that something just isn't right.

There is a slight possibility that your girlfriend will trust you or understand the problem well enough to tolerate the oddball behavior you will soon be exhibiting. If your survival strategy includes working out I'm sure she'll be thrilled. If your only response is hours of daily forum scanning and the stockpiling of ammo and canned goods she'll probably split. I was fortunate enough to have hooked up with the daughter of an Air Force cold warrior, so the paranoid survivalist mindset was second nature for her.

Remember that even a few tiny changes in your life will vastly increase your odds of survival during any crisis. (Having a fake canadian I.D. on hand in order to dodge the draft for example.) Those who relocate and make massive leveraged investments based on peak oil theory are rare even around here. Most of us do little more than adjust our lifestyles and find out who within our social network we can really trust when TSHTF.

Congratulations, just by understanding the problem you are miles ahead of 98% of your countrymen.
_________________
"He who makes no mistakes isn't trying hard enough" Genghis Khan
"Everyone here is bribed not to kill each other." foodnotlawns
Coinflation.com

rexxz · Tar Sands Joined: Jun 27, 2006 Posts: 29

ah, thanks y'all. You know, I am trying to inform friends and family about this, but I have a very verrry bad presumption that my parents(and their siblings) will be very un-open to this reality. It's something I don't want, but what can I do about it?

Oh also, what do you recommend is the best way for someone straight out of highschool to begin their plans for this? Because, as soon as I get over there I will be working, but I won't be making an unbelievably high amount of money(more like bare minimum or something). Jeeeze, just trying to figure all of this out is making me go crazy.

Fergus · Heavy Crude Joined: Jun 13, 2006 Posts: 409

rexxz · Tar Sands Joined: Jun 27, 2006 Posts: 29

I don't want to invest much in the economical system here, I'll try to cut down on that as much as possible. What I WOULD like however, is to buy a house. That is something very important to me. I need to work out where I am going to buy one, how we can both work in the area that I DO buy one at, and then build my plans around that. It seems to be the wisest choice right now to decide a long term location to live, and to begin planning around that home as soon as possible.

catbox · Posted: Tue Jun 27, 2006 4:25 pm Post subject: Re: Getting quite frightened...

If I may Chime in here for a few words.....I am down with what you are feeling. I started watching oil 3 years back and after about a year I started getting worried....I almost felt like Chicken Little! Once I would learn something new about PO or the price would go up, I would inform others. I was lucky to have been working with open minded folks at the time and they were willing to here my spiel, but there were also college kids working in our school that were like, "No way! Alternativ fuels will take care of everything!" Some were also pretty sure our government was going to make it all better if it gets bad enough.

Anyway, I simmered down after a bit and started to focus on what my little 3 person family could do at home to prepare for the onset of Peak Oil as well as any economic breakdown that would come with it. It took almost a year before we really got around to dumping the second car, expanding the garden to the point that we can actually harvest and can enough food this summer/fall to survive if need be also at the same time keeping our food costs down, upping our bicycle commuting (we were already avid cyclists thank goodness), put in rain barrels for watering purposes and have been utilizing our irrigation well too, and next will be taking down the skate ramp and recycling the wood and screws to build a fairly sizable green house. We can't afford solar at this point but maybe sooner than later.....that has been our year of prep and change.

It seems as if once we started to put our anxiety into action things got better mentally. I still go through times of anxiety over this...much having to do with the debt we have...and other ignorant humans continuing to go about business like nothings wrong. It's also hard being in the minority of folks who are aware and trying to do something. My own personal goal is to come out of my rather anti-social shell and meet other PO and Permaculture folks this year here in Eugene....this is the toughest one because even though we have the same worries and concerns...and goals...much of the crowed in Eugene's permaculture scene is rather hippy like....At 40, I've been a punk since I was 11 and hippies always bugged me! I know, grow up!
But that's the way I am and i'll have to change and become more community based!

I guess another thing for me as with others, where jobs are concerned...will my job be there? Our business is 80% internet sales (of snow/skate/surf related goods) and we depend on the shipping co's and postal service to get and deliver our goods. I often toy with going back into early childhood education but I left that from burnout. I do have the summer off to hang out with our daughter before kindergarten so I can watch things pretty closely before heading back to my position in the company. So many things!

So, I do understand where you are coming from and it's rough at first but as I said, turning that anxiety into action helped me a whole lot!
This board has helped too. I may not post as much as others but it does feel like a community here and I feel welcome. As someone also mentioned, having a partner who understands PO as well as what is going on in the world is an asset! I have that, it took a while but my wife knows there are hard times on the way.

Overall, I believe where I live is key...Eugene, Oregon. Many folks are progressive people here. Organic farming is part of the culture of this area as well. You can cycle anywhere, housing is still affordable.

Sorry about this being so much about us...but we were where you are today....!

Good luck!

catbox

SeasonOfPain · Posted: Tue Jun 27, 2006 6:21 pm Post subject: Re: Getting quite frightened...

Good replies all around.

If I were to offer a single piece of advice, it would be "stay flexible."

There is no surety whatsoever how this is going to shake out. If you keep looking for "The Sign" you're going to drive yourself nuts. I can't count the number of times I thought "this is it, now the excrement will hit the turbine," and found that the system stretched even further.

There's absolutely no doubt in my mind that a massive economic depression is coming (which may make the actual problem of oil supply a moot point). It will not get better; it will get steadily worse.

To survive through this, you need to be quick on your feet, and not indebted, either monetarily or emotionally to a specific outcome.

Try to get yourself in a situation where you could roll with either a sudden catastrophe (note that there will be lots of local catastrophes as the infrastructure falls apart... think of New Orleans) or a slow spiral of economic hardship (a more classic Great Depression scenario).

It's also okay to occasionally stop and enjoy this lifestyle before it's gone. Stop and recharge. This is best done with a feeling of detachment, of enjoying the moment, rather than becoming attached to what's around you (and trying to preserve it). The less attachment you have to things that cannot last, the less overwhelmed you will be.

rexxz · Tar Sands Joined: Jun 27, 2006 Posts: 29

Oh, thank you all for the advice and warm words. I'll take each thing said into consideration! HOwever, what seems to be tourbling me more than anything else about this, is exactly how long it will take for me to even be able to do anything about it. In a month or so, I will be moving to Houston. There I will look for a job. I had originally planned to go to school for audio engineering, now I am thinking it won't be that great of an idea. It's a shame too because that is what I do, it's my life.

I talked to my girlfriend briefly today and she says that her father owns some land in Illinois, and that he has lived on farms his whole life. I am thinking of possibly moving up there, and seeing what we can do. I have absolutely zero idea on how to run an agricultural lifestyle, really. I need to learn as much as I can about doing things like growing my own food, having some live stock, and such.

Also on the subject of buying a house... I have no money! As pathetic as it sounds, I am absolutely clueless on how I would go about even purchasing one, I'm not very practical when it comes to money; I don't know much about it. I know how to spend it, and conserve it but that's about it.

I have hope for good things, and I am constantly thinking on ways to make our future better. But my main issue is; Will I be able to?

Wednesday · Posted: Tue Jun 27, 2006 7:33 pm Post subject: Re: Getting quite frightened...

I was born and raised in Houston. I do not believe that the Houston I know will survive the effects of Peak Oil.

I'd find a safer place to live. Marry your sweetheart and live a simple and happy life in a safer place. I've been slowly convincing my family to move back to central Texas where our mother was raised.

rexxz · Tar Sands Joined: Jun 27, 2006 Posts: 29

Ah yeah, the move there will be temporary. I am only going there because she has a stable job there, and I WAS going to go to college there. But now, looks like that ain't happenin'. I desperately need to find somewhere else to relocate.

catbox · Posted: Tue Jun 27, 2006 8:11 pm Post subject: Re: Getting quite frightened...

Maybe these can be of help in the connection dept. up in Houston?
I am not sure that you will find anything, but maybe some networking
could take place for you.

http://www.relocalize.net/
http://houstonpeakoil.org/

As a music nut and novice recording engineer, I was thinking about doing the audio thing back in the day and decided to get into an early childhood education program. My friend went for the horticulture degree and uses it... and will use it in the future for sure, now I wish I would have done the same.

catbox