Oil prices shoot up..... I start to buy bags of grain and run for the hills.... now they've gone down again.

Now I'm not denying peak oil at all, and btw chaps i'm a doomer, but what im saying is, what if what we are waiting for is 25 years away?

Peak oil has already changed my life completely. It has now got to the point where everyplace I go, I look at buildings and I look at people and imagine what would be there without cheap oil.

I know that the luxuries I enjoy today will have to come to an end. But I dont know when and how they will go.

Man, I wish i'd never heard about peak oil.

The worse bit is the wait and having no idea how things will pan out. Eats you up inside. Knowing the collapse of modern civilisation could be round the corner, 25 years away or many more years away.

I'm doing with my life what I would be doing anyway, peak oil or not, so I'm not wasting my time. I think many, possibly most, folks here in the Planning forum are changing their lives to the way they want them to be, because they want to or think it is the appropriate thing to do, not necessarily because of peak oil. Though peak oil may light a fire under us now and then!

I feel the same way!

We are seriously thinking of completely relocating to a rural area (we have started to look for a job, selling the house etc!), a place where we might not necessarily go w/o peak oil, and starting a big garden etc - that probably means I have to give up my career...

So I keep thinking, will I feel very, very stupid in a few years when PO has not happened yet? Or if it happens, but nothing drastic happens and it was all unnecessary?

But then again, what if I do *nothing* and it does get as bad as I am afraid it will?

I think doing something (for nothing) is not as bad as doing nothing and be totally screwed...

But PO has totally change our life, view of live, values etc - you name it. It's scary in a way.. I feel like "wakinig up" in a matrix...

Yes, I'd say im doing the things I want to do. I have great interests in organic agriculture, forestry, sustainable energy and appropriate technology, but recently my expenditure towards PO goods has risen to very high levels. My worry is, that i'm focusing on PO too much because although it is happening it may be a far slower process than I think it will be.

Exactly the same thing for me.
Life changing decissions based on something I dont know whether will be serious (SHTF), a gradual change, non existent and not knowing when- 1,2,5,10,20,30 years?

I can relate to the 'matrix' feeling. It's hard for me to go to malls anymore, or watch commercials. It's like watching the world drive off a cliff and shouting from the side of the road at them to stop, but they can't hear you.

I think there are several reasons for this .. disconnect.

Logically I always come to the same conclusion: that PO is a serious issue that is likely to cause major problems very soon (next few years). Every time I think about it in detail, I get the same answer.
I cannot come up with a "good" scenario where live can continue as it is.

But emotionally, things seem different. First of all, live is so good right now, we have plenty of food, fuel etc, and so planning for such doom seems so weird. Also, I know *nobody* personally except my husband (I am so glad we think the same on this!) who thinks like we do (most of our friends and family see no problem at all..)

Also, our fight and flight response is suited for short-term problems, but not something a long time in the future.

Chantal

Two things to keep in mind;

"Hope for the best, but prepare for the worst"

&

"The only thing worse than peak oil is no peak oil" (Darwinian @ TOD)

If I am wasting my time and effort, at least I am only wasting 1/2...

I try to consider each expenditure of effort or cash in light of What If and What If Not.


If I turn out half right I hope to be ahead.

YMMV.

Exactly. It all seems like a huge Disney land - and the worst is that I have to keep playing my role in this play, "pretending" that all is well. I have to make a living in this fantasy world, yet at the same time plan for a post PO world... very odd...

(I've tried talking to people about it, but most are in denial or don't want to talk about it)

Chantal

I'm with Ludi on this. I'm at or heading to where I've wanted to be for many years. I've left the megalopolis and put down roots in a peaceful country valley. If PO does not come aboiut the way we think/fear then I have a beautiful farm to live on for the rest of my days and something worth real value to pass on to my children.

I'm that much closer to heaven.

I am trying to tell that to myself too. I am trying to make it my goal no matter if PO comes tomorrow or in 10 years. That way I won't have to resent my decision . I guess you could call it a form of denial . And I *do* like the idea of such a life even w/o PO, but to be honest I would never have the courage to change my life so completely if there were no PO.

Chantal

We made serious life changes - moved out of the city, given up a prosperous career (well I did, hubby still has his for the time being!). We started growing veges - this year is looking like a bumper crop, but we are still learning a lot along the way! The first couple of years the gardens were a disaster so I'm glad we have a head start!

In short, we're prepping, and our life is better than it has ever been. We're not stressed, commuting stupid distances in our cars while our kids suffer in day care / after school care so we can keep up with every increasing mortgage payments and rising interest rates. Nor are struggling with keeping up with any 'Joneses' anymore. In fact 'discovering' peak oil has been the best thing that ever happened to us in terms of life quality, health and happiness....well - ok, in the longer term it might get a bit tougher - but hey - we're living the life and loving it in the meantime!

In the meantime, the company I left nearly two years ago has almost gone under completely, due to work drying up out of the US and the high NZ$, I probably would have lost that well paid job I used to hate so much anyway, but would have still had a huge city mortgage to contend with We might has missed out on a little capital gain by selling our house - but then people trying to sell now are having trouble, so maybe we didn't lose anything afterall!

Friends who thought we were bonkers at the time now sigh in jealousy when I send updates with pictures of happy children frolicking in the garden with plump chickens and wearing home knitted jumpers and snacking on locally grown apples..... I wouldn't change what we've done over the last couple of years for the world!

So far it looks like we're not wasting one moment. Things are fucked.
In the off chance it doesn't all go down hill real quick like, I, like many of the others here, are making changes that will benefit us and others down the line. Plus, I always wanted a bicycle for everyday of the week!

cb

Evltre, your post makes me feel better! And I envy you, I wish we were as far as you are. We are just starting!

In fact, we haven't been able to sell our house in 6 months for one thing... so this might get a bit tricky... and I have no experience with gardening yet, I just read a lot of books about it!

But it's good to hear that you like it, even though you gave up your job. I also have kids (2 little ones), and have a very good job right now. But, like you, I guess my husband will be the one working mainly, and I will probably stay home (at least for a while and see how it goes...).