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59 comments on Weekend Open Thread

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Twilight on October 23, 2005 - 11:45am Permalink | Subthread | Parent | Comments top
I tend to view the economic, political, and environmental problems we face as all related, with the root cause a way of life that requires an unsustainable amount of energy.  It doesn't really matter in the end which symptom manifests itself first, although the details of which preparations to make first might.

I also like the rural life, but I'm not under any illusions about how hard it will be to get by with significantly less energy.  I'm working first on heat and food.  Electricity will be one of the harder issues to solve (PV is out of my price range at present).  I will be exploring the feasibility of wood fired steam generation at some point, but I expect to find the amount of wood required to be too large to be practical.

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mountainfirekeeper on October 23, 2005 - 12:32pm Permalink | Subthread | Parent | Comments top
Heat and food first-----now that's the most practical statement I've heard from these comments. I agree with you completely. I've been working on these basic principles for many years along with my 'normal' job and raising a family.

I can proudly say that I'm about 80% locally food self-sufficient---you can't do it alone. I've learned that we need to network with others in our local communities to develop sustainable and varied food supplies. I'm about 60% locally energy self-sufficient. Friends and I are slowly accumulating the items necessary to convert waste cooking oil into biodiesel but I figure biodiesel is just a temporary measure because of all the outside inputs required. We are also planning to purchase a team of pregnant Belgian mares. Horses may not be practical for most people but I've worked with them for years and they fit well in my personal situation.

Other important things to consider are:
--local and natural health care in case the modern medical systems become overloaded or inaccessible. Improving our personal immune systems thru improved nutrition, exercise and reduced stress.

--eatable and medicinal herbs, wild foraging and wilderness skills.

--networking with local neighbors for mutually benefical assistance including developing a system of trading and bartering with neighbors to save money and increase community bonds.

--developing 'low tech' skills and facilities that can last for generations regardless of 'peak oil' and other changes to our society i.e: solar greenhouses & season extenders, root cellars, skills like knife sharpening, food processing, woodlot management and on and on.

---And ultimately to teach these basic skills to our children and grandchildren because it is within their lifetimes that extreme changes will occur.

I'm not saying that you 'Urbanites' need to immediately 'head for the hills'. But you do need to start considering what you would do JUST IN CASE............

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Twilight on October 23, 2005 - 1:01pm Permalink | Subthread | Parent | Comments top
My wife is establishing the connections with the rural community we live in, mostly through the people we deal with in regards to horses, goats, chickens etc. we've got running around.  Through these connections we have met several great people knowledgeable in sustainable organic farming techniques.  I leave everyday to return to the dying end of another lifestyle - because I need the money and it is still available there.  For now.

As for health care, well the medical community is excellent in fixing us when we are broken (I would be long dead otherwise), but not so useful in dealing with illness and with keeping us fit.  Mostly they serve as a distribution network for pharmaceuticals.  And the cost of this is astronomical, so I wonder how it can possibly be sustained.  We are already well versed in homeopathic remedies, but they have not always been powerful enough (i.e. the Lyme epidemic in these parts).  So I assume that for those who do not have large amounts of money, the future will often be difficult when it comes to health issues, as it always was up to very recently.

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