tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1528521735436082423.post2525959353258894507..comments2024-02-03T06:58:02.859-04:00Comments on My Face Is On Fire: Peak Oil and being single -- some ramblingsUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1528521735436082423.post-39378793449249690222008-05-25T08:32:00.000-03:002008-05-25T08:32:00.000-03:00The idea of jumping into a sustainable intentional...The idea of jumping into a sustainable intentional community is something that I'd been thinking of years ago when I was actually in a relationship with someone who was on a completely different page about that.<BR/><BR/>The dear friend who recently reintroduced me to the idea has repeatedly said to me since we've discussed it that it's the sort of thing that's easier to consider the less things you have bogging you down. House, car, kids, loans -- they make the consideration less feasible because it complicates things. It's still uprooting your life and starting from scratch, though, and if you don't have a good security net of social ties and assets in case things don't work out, it turns the whole prospect into something a bit more scary. (Never mind the unnerving prospect of transitioning to a more rural area with a lower pool of single potential partners -- yikes!)<BR/><BR/>As for making changes "at home", it's just a question of changing habits and spending money in a more planned manner. Growing a vegetable garden is a good start, leaving the car at home, weather-proofing, learning to fix things rather than replace them... It just becomes a matter of how far you're willing to take it.Mhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15800153451645970774noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1528521735436082423.post-65606349248586974202008-05-25T05:08:00.000-03:002008-05-25T05:08:00.000-03:00Ha! I love that imagined first-date conversation. ...Ha! I love that imagined first-date conversation. Now I can't stop giggling! <BR/><BR/>Lately my fiance and I have been reading more and more about sustainable living and the idea of starting a completely different way of life is becoming undeniably tempting.The Voracious Veganhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13509936161614394899noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1528521735436082423.post-76904359916315694032008-05-24T22:33:00.000-03:002008-05-24T22:33:00.000-03:00Hi! Please don't apologize for comment length. I...Hi! Please don't apologize for comment length. I love getting the chance to discuss some of these topics with people in-the-know who are interested in them (and am really grateful for feedback on the posts themselves).<BR/> <BR/>It's unnerving the wide range of takes that there are on how things will turn out. Nobody can really predict how dire it'll get since it's never happened before. Plus, the bottom line is that we really have no idea of how much affordable oil there's actually left at this point. Experts come up with estimates, but they're all over the place (and the oil companies sure as heck wouldn't want to spill the beans). We're getting just a small taste of the potential implications now with rising gas and home heating oil prices (e.g. I rent and have oil heat and have seen my heating costs literally double over the past 6-7 years) and rising food costs. I'm not much of a "doomer", but do think that we're in for much harder times than those to which we've been accustomed.<BR/> <BR/>In my earlier post about the community land trust I visited this past weekend, I was amazed at how the couple who are starting it have managed to completely wean themselves off the electrical grid. They're running on solar power, growing a decent amount of their own food, living in a straw-bale house they built themselves using earth-friendly materials -- and now they want to take it further and get others involved. I've mentioned the project to a few friends who describe themselves as environmentalists and the responses I've gotten have ranged from ''but where would I be able to order pizza??'' to ''god, that sounds so incredibly time-consuming and unnecessary''. The downside of being born into a cheap oil society is that we've never known it any other way; we're literally born consumers and it's work to get out of that mentality. Even the widespread acceptance of the causes of global warming hasn't persuaded most to change their habits. I guess that for some, as long as they can keep filling their gas tanks, everything's kosher.<BR/> <BR/>You're lucky to have a partner who shares your concerns. Especially if you're sharing a home together, since the types of lifestyle choices involved in living "green" can't be made in a bubble. I was pretty much introduced to the idea of peak oil by someone I got to know online over the course of several months and with whom contact was recently severed and I'm really going to miss being able to discuss a lot of this stuff with him.Mhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15800153451645970774noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1528521735436082423.post-58197577238121447232008-05-23T11:28:00.000-03:002008-05-23T11:28:00.000-03:00Sometimes I think peak oil is seen as the end of t...Sometimes I think peak oil is seen as the end of the world, which I suppose it could end up being, but it's not a singular event. Peak oil isn't when we run out, but when we can no longer pump anymore out of the ground than we are currently pumping and that figure will go into decline. Granted, the decline could be quite quick if we want it to be.<BR/><BR/>It truly is very scary though because we've lost a lot of knowledge about how to do basic things (growing food, transporting ourselves without internal combustion, etc), that are vital to our survival.<BR/><BR/>I myself kind of go back and forth, there are times that I am hopeful and times when I truly despair. It seems lately I feel the despair more than the hope though.<BR/><BR/>But, the increase in farmer's markets, community gardens, and people interested in things like being 'locavores' or the 'slow food movement' show me that some understand that the current way of doing things doesn't work.<BR/><BR/>I do understand what you mean about the difficulty finding those who know about this important topic and want to do something about it. I'm lucky that my partner has a quasi-obsession with the topic, so anything we can do to learn how to live without most fossil fuels, we both do happily. My family, however, is a different story. Take my mom for instance, I've told her about peak oil, she seems to get it (it makes sense, you know) and understand that it means things could get bad, but is she actually willing to change anything she does? No. Therein lies the rub I suppose.<BR/><BR/>I know a few people who live in intentional communities here in Mid-Missouri, I think it's a great idea and it works really well for them.<BR/><BR/>I apologize for the length of my comment, especially this being my first one, but this and many of the other topics you write about are of great interest to me!Jhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01760009169211682230noreply@blogger.com