Like the illusion of Wall Street, with its vast and powerful investment banks, now shuttered, China too is an illusion perpetuated by the Globalists that gave us the 15,000 mile Caesar salad, poisoned cat food and lead based paint on babies' pacifiers. Like the illusion that money would come from thin air to always push housing prices higher, China has spent a generation pursuing its illusion. Pursuing an unattainable dream to be like the West, while 6000 years of its carefully shepherded top soil blows into the sea.
Joined: Mar 12, 2007 Posts: 1009 Location: As close as I can get to the beginning of the pipe.
Posted: Tue Apr 08, 2008 11:53 am Post subject: Re: PO Changed My Life; Now I …
edit: too many tabs open in Safari _________________ "When fascism comes to America it will be wrapped in a flag and carrying a cross." --Sinclair Lewis
Last edited by Iaato on Tue Apr 08, 2008 12:14 pm; edited 1 time in total
Joined: Aug 03, 2006 Posts: 4337 Location: Graceland
Posted: Tue Apr 08, 2008 12:05 pm Post subject: Re: PO Changed My Life; Now I …
...joined a gym and attended a flexibility class with the goal of ACTUALLY being able to kiss my ass goodbye. Got tired of being sore all the time. Never got that close to success.
...lived in denial for a while.
...buried my dad, which distracted me from everything for about a year.
...went through technology goo-goo eyes period, got tired of not being loved back (or even having a store to buy all of the stuff that is supposed to be saving us).
...read some peak oil books.
...talked to people about peak oil with limited success.
...read some non-peak oil books that touched on broad themes about the problems with our civilization.
...began to integrate peak oil into a broader worldview, including my own vague sense of wrongness about a consumption-based lifestyle. Realized I had been thinking about those themes since way before I discovered peak oil.
...began to share my new outlook with my friends at this site to refine my understanding of peak oil and the ripple effect it will have across our society.
...I have been interested in self-reliance and planning for rainy days since I was a kid, so I really did very little different in the way of preps, other than adding a big reason at the end of my list of reasons for doing what I had been doing all along.
...focus on enjoying my days without being harrassed by fear, dread, worry, angst or other intrusions from an uncertain future. _________________
Joined: Dec 18, 2004 Posts: 4948 Location: One Mile From the Columbia River
Posted: Tue Apr 08, 2008 1:04 pm Post subject: Re: PO Changed My Life; Now I …
Planted a dozen fruit trees.
Started vegetable gardening.
Volunteer around town picking causes I'm comfy with.
Retired early taking a much smaller check for a longer period (hopefully).
Paid off everything and decided to learn to live on way less. Two years into this now and it's working very nicely!
Walk, bike, and scooter more than drive. I could probably walk, bike, and scooter 100% of the time and would if gasoline wasn't so cheap...
Read tons on our common topic.
Shared PO with others with almost no success. Receiving mostly harsh resistance, but still do it anyhow.
Advised many people to get with nature and work with environmental causes as much as possible and failed completely. Receiving mostly harsh resistance, but still do it anyhow.
Sharing my idealistic beliefs with others (kept them to myself for a few decades) without fear of getting fired... there is no way to properly describe how nice that is!
Following Five Precepts and sharing Buddhism whenever I can.
My once-simmering anger and temper is nearly extinguished only rarely arising these days.
Joined: Jun 13, 2007 Posts: 3894 Location: Minniesotuh
Posted: Tue Apr 08, 2008 2:20 pm Post subject: Re: PO Changed My Life; Now I …
-am deeply suspicious of Anything remotely connected to our government;
-worry more about family members that are not 'on-board' with PO or anything else that is coming down that dreaded pike;
-will continue buying canning jars, because the 11 dozen I have are not nearly enough; _________________ "RRrrruuuunnnn!!!" ~Apocalypto
Joined: Aug 03, 2006 Posts: 4337 Location: Graceland
Posted: Tue Apr 08, 2008 5:37 pm Post subject: Re: PO Changed My Life; Now I …
eastbay wrote:
Planted a dozen fruit trees.
Started vegetable gardening.
Volunteer around town picking causes I'm comfy with.
Retired early taking a much smaller check for a longer period (hopefully).
Paid off everything and decided to learn to live on way less. Two years into this now and it's working very nicely!
Walk, bike, and scooter more than drive. I could probably walk, bike, and scooter 100% of the time and would if gasoline wasn't so cheap...
Read tons on our common topic.
Shared PO with others with almost no success. Receiving mostly harsh resistance, but still do it anyhow.
Advised many people to get with nature and work with environmental causes as much as possible and failed completely. Receiving mostly harsh resistance, but still do it anyhow.
Sharing my idealistic beliefs with others (kept them to myself for a few decades) without fear of getting fired... there is no way to properly describe how nice that is!
Following Five Precepts and sharing Buddhism whenever I can.
My once-simmering anger and temper is nearly extinguished only rarely arising these days.
HUGE changes. Huge.
Eastbay, where is your family in relation to you on the peak oil journey?
How aware are they?
Do they share your concern?
Do they agree/disagree with you regarding what consequences will flow from the peak oil problem? _________________
Joined: Dec 18, 2004 Posts: 4948 Location: One Mile From the Columbia River
Posted: Tue Apr 08, 2008 6:03 pm Post subject: Re: PO Changed My Life; Now I …
BigTex wrote:
eastbay wrote:
Planted a dozen fruit trees.
Started vegetable gardening.
Volunteer around town picking causes I'm comfy with.
Retired early taking a much smaller check for a longer period (hopefully).
Paid off everything and decided to learn to live on way less. Two years into this now and it's working very nicely!
Walk, bike, and scooter more than drive. I could probably walk, bike, and scooter 100% of the time and would if gasoline wasn't so cheap...
Read tons on our common topic.
Shared PO with others with almost no success. Receiving mostly harsh resistance, but still do it anyhow.
Advised many people to get with nature and work with environmental causes as much as possible and failed completely. Receiving mostly harsh resistance, but still do it anyhow.
Sharing my idealistic beliefs with others (kept them to myself for a few decades) without fear of getting fired... there is no way to properly describe how nice that is!
Following Five Precepts and sharing Buddhism whenever I can.
My once-simmering anger and temper is nearly extinguished only rarely arising these days.
HUGE changes. Huge.
Eastbay, where is your family in relation to you on the peak oil journey?
How aware are they?
Do they share your concern?
Do they agree/disagree with you regarding what consequences will flow from the peak oil problem?
Family? Some on and some not. Wife is on, mostly, and taking on a substantial portion of the gardening duties, for example and understanding the need to learn more and more.
None are as 'on' as I am meaning most still have generally quite optimistic long-term perspectives whereas mine are quite the opposite for society as a whole. I tell them the reason we've begun burning food is there's simply not enough oil to make enough gas. I remind them prices of food and gas will increase and shortages will appear and will worsen until more and more are priced out of everything and are forced to grow increasing percentages of their food. I think they're tired of hearing it... increasingly we read news and comment articles supporting our perspective so I'm no longer perceived as such a doomeristic eco-wacko as before.
How about you? Others? _________________ Got Dharma?
Posted: Tue Apr 08, 2008 6:37 pm Post subject: Re: PO Changed My Life; Now I …
PO Changed My Life; Now I...
Actually, it was 9/11 that changed my life. PO just reinforced the changes I started after 9/11.
I figured that if there was a group of people that wanted to send us back to the dark ages, maybe some of us should attempt to re-learn some of the skills needed to live in that sort of an environment.
I haven't been able to fully develop my plans (I still live in suburbia instead of on a farm). I'm thinking that I won't be able to extricate myself from PTSD until I can do something more positive.
Some stuff I have been able to do:
I've accumulated quite a survival, farming and skills library. I've even read some of it.
I've read quite a few books about peak oil, society and culture as well as gloom and doom fiction. (I gotta have something to do to cheer me up).
I've become a news junkie. It's quite an eye opening experience to view the world without the lens of the MSM. It's also like watching a train wreck in slow motion(very addictive).
I have become somewhat paranoid. Fascist government? Naw, not in this country.
I picked up a course in blacksmithing. I really enjoyed it. I now have a forge and many of the tools to set up a shop but I don't have a good place for it.
I've purchased a bunch of hand operated tools and food processing equipment. Haven't used them much.
I've expanded my garden. I've been a gardener since I've been married. This has always been something that I don't mind doing.
My wife and I have been canning stuff. So far, we've made pickles, pickled okra, salsa and hot sauce. I need a lot more room to do more.
I've pretty much given up on my former hobby - muscle car restoration. I still need to liquidate some projects that I've started. I can't bring myself to finishing these(66 GTO Convertible, 68 GTO Convertible, 68 GTO HO, 69 Judge).
I've taken a few wilderness survival courses. I haven't practiced much of it but it has given me a better connection with nature.
My wife and I have been camping more. We have always enjoyed a good trail to a high payoff view. (lots to see here in WNC).
I've pretty much alienated friends and family with talk of gloom and doom.
I haven't changed my doomer perspective. I'm thinking greater depression by the end of 2009. Massive die-offs, Olduvai Gorge starting to kick in by the end 2012. (this is my opinion after reading lots of news and spending a lot of time contemplating).
I agree with Pops and Richard Heinberg. If you aren't actually doing something about PO(besides buying stuff or sitting in front of a computer) you are likely to be very miserable.
regards,
mark _________________ “It is only through labor and painful effort, by grim energy and resolute courage, that we move on to better things.” —Theodore Roosevelt
Posted: Tue Apr 08, 2008 7:10 pm Post subject: Re: PO Changed My Life; Now I …
MarkL wrote:
PO Changed My Life; Now I...
Actually, it was 9/11 that changed my life. PO just reinforced the changes I started after 9/11.
regards,
mark
It was the neo-con takeover of govt, 2000 that was a life changing event for me. 911 just further entrenched my pov. Started planning to leave the country at that point, am back in Canada now, have been for 5 years. Preps pretty much ready since then.
Joined: Aug 03, 2006 Posts: 4337 Location: Graceland
Posted: Tue Apr 08, 2008 10:49 pm Post subject: Re: PO Changed My Life; Now I …
eastbay wrote:
BigTex wrote:
Eastbay, where is your family in relation to you on the peak oil journey?
How aware are they?
Do they share your concern?
Do they agree/disagree with you regarding what consequences will flow from the peak oil problem?
Family? Some on and some not. Wife is on, mostly, and taking on a substantial portion of the gardening duties, for example and understanding the need to learn more and more.
None are as 'on' as I am meaning most still have generally quite optimistic long-term perspectives whereas mine are quite the opposite for society as a whole. I tell them the reason we've begun burning food is there's simply not enough oil to make enough gas. I remind them prices of food and gas will increase and shortages will appear and will worsen until more and more are priced out of everything and are forced to grow increasing percentages of their food. I think they're tired of hearing it... increasingly we read news and comment articles supporting our perspective so I'm no longer perceived as such a doomeristic eco-wacko as before.
How about you? Others?
I have not had good luck at all sharing the message. People don't want to hear it, and if they do want to hear it they don't want to spend the time to drill down to the bottom of it and really think about it.
I work with a guy who is tuned in and it's fun talking to him about it. My wife listens to me talk about these things, but she doesn't see the same things I see. It's better that way, to a degree--less chance of going off the deep end if your partner is seeing things from a different perspective. I think there is a lot of value in that. Sitting around continuously agreeing with someone would get boring. _________________
Posted: Thu Apr 10, 2008 3:25 pm Post subject: Re: PO Changed My Life; Now I …
I....
Am an engineer in the UK gas industry, 30 odd years, but not many others within the industry seem to know, (or care) about peak oil.
Knew about peak oil about 10 years ago, (well, peak north sea gas in the UK) - 'twas coming then, its here now.
Agree with those that say were just seeing the start. Real crap starts in 15-20 years.
Am a cornucopian (though didn't know that till studying this site)
Technology will prevail. (if allowed)
Think ALL leaders, politicians, bankers, financers, are completley and utterly USELESS PARASITES. These wankers will be tho ones who will block the above technology aspect - why ? - no money to be made for them that way. In that respect alone i'm a doomer.
Think this site is 51% brilliant, 49% utter crap, so worthwhile.
Think the USA / WEST is doomed unless you get / we get off your / our arses and sort things (China) out. Not militarily though. Other ways to skin a cat.
Have started a "peak oil phrases" file. I find some posts, phrases, signatures etc extremely interesting / humourous/ too good to lose, etc, so I copy & paste them to a wordpad document. 3 pages long now !!!!!.
Am glad I dont live in the USA, purely because of the threads re stocking up of guns & ammo !! - really boys, calm down a bit. However just in case, better buy extra tea tomorrow !!
Am slowly down sizing, down comsuming, down energy using, slimming, walking, cycling. GREAT - getting fitter & saving money, though uncle gordon wants more & more.
Will call it a day now, time for a Guinness.
Best regards, GASMON _________________ Been there, Done that, Bought the tee-shirt
Posted: Fri Apr 11, 2008 3:44 pm Post subject: Re: PO Changed My Life; Now I …
PO Changed My Life; Now I...
... have relocated from Arizona and Nevada to Oregon with my young son. I've been breathing sighs of relief! There is so much wonderful land here and interesting people.
...buy and save seeds
...am growing a garden
...am starting a scapbook each for my son, my neice and nephew and my best friend, containing PO information and how-to skills with pictures
Joined: Sep 09, 2004 Posts: 415 Location: Upstate New York, U.S.A.
Posted: Thu May 22, 2008 12:34 pm Post subject: Re: PO Changed My Life; Now I …
There are so many little things that are too numerous to mention, and it is an ever changing list, but here are some:
...got divorced...
...got accepted, but didn't go, to law school.
Thought about joining an intentional community.
...readjusted life goals and thought processes after much research, pouting and denial.
Got married.
Started hunting and began more in depth research and practice of certain survival/useful skill sets (such as forging/blacksmithing). Always looking to learn how to do new things.
Quit smoking. Exercise more.
I am now into my 4th year of gardening. From last years crop my wife and I began canning experimenting with stewed tomatoes, pickled beans and cucs, and apples (off the top of my head). Grew way more stuff than that, but that is primarily what we tried to preserve. Everything came out well but the cucumbers (pickles). Not good ones for pickling (mushy), and didn't care fo the recipe flavor.
Worked to get out of debt and looked to a much more simplistic lifestyle. Still working on it.
Purchased just under 50 acres of partially wooded land with plans to start building a home(stead) next year. A select group of people will be welcome should things go south quickly.
Planted 500 trees on new property.
Decided Devin is an asshole.
Olaf _________________ "I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not learn what it had to teach, and not, when I came to die, discover that I had not lived." - Henry David Thoreau
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