Apocalyptic Homesteading (Day 574)

avatar

Hello Everyone!

A few thoughts on the current times, The heatwave arrives, Preparing through routine & Are we good stewards!

I am once again up early in the day, sitting here waking up and more or less beginning my day much like many other days... which is to say that the coffee is strong, my thoughts are slow and sluggish and the morning stillness is per usual quite enjoyable!

My thoughts this morning are mainly circling the drain in regards to the economic scenario in this country as well as the fuel and food supply issues and to be blunt things are looking rather grim. Although I should also be considering the civil unrest factor (or just the civil malcontent factor) that is not a train of thought that I want to hop on board of because I cannot see how my dwelling on it will be helpful.

In regards to the fuel scenario, I tend to believe that 'the price at the pump' is by far the smallest of concerns that folks should be having. Not that the prices do not suck (because they do) but in the grand scheme of things at least there is still fuel to be purchased... which may not be the case over the coming months and years.

Of course the fuel scenario does not have a whole lot of affect upon my life since I do not drive but I am not so silly to think that those rising costs will not effect me somehow. Whether that is by the increased cost of goods due to rising shipping costs or a lack of goods being available because of increased manufacturing costs. In other words I am sure that I will feel the 'pinch' of it one way or another even if it is in ways that I cannot currently imagine.

As far as the food thing goes... I have watched the cost of it steadily rise over the last year and while I have adjusted my buying habits accordingly so far... if things keep going the way they are even that may not be enough to make sure I can get enough supplies at one time to hold me over between my supply runs.

The combination of factors playing out in this country at the moment paints a rather extreme picture of just how bleak things may become down the road... but I keep reminding myself that we are not quite there yet and I still have a wee bit of time before things start to really spiral out of control (which I hope they do not) and empty shelves in the stores becomes the norm. Well, more of 'the norm' than it has already become.

Personally, I think that one way or another I will manage given all my practice at dealing with hardship, scarcity, rationing and being as frugal as I possibly can be along the way. What I am in no way confident about is how others will deal with it because lets face it most folks here are in no way prepared to cope with an era of depression, high costs and massive shortages.

All of which brings me to that 'civil unrest/malcontent' factor that I have been so adamantly side-stepping in my thinking not because I am concerned over folks 'rioting in the streets' but because I tend to think that a massive uptick of crime in general will occur... I mean continue to occur.

In my perspective, folks can and will endure all sorts of stuff but if their children are starving... even the most ethically bound folks will set aside their moral compass and turn to crime if that is the only means available by which to feed them! Heck, given how divided the country's population is I doubt that folks will need much incentive to turn on those they dislike and victimize them to no end.

It is a truly horrific future that I am describing there and although I wish that folks would use the opportunity to set their differences aside and work towards the common good... I not only think that folks have lost sight of their commonalities but what 'good' actually means in that context. So in short I have very little faith in folks working together in an effort to maintain a civil society once that point is reached.

Yes, I am aware that such sentiments fall within the 'alarmist' category but hey at this point we should all be rather frigging alarmed about what is going on, the direction we are heading and what kind of future we are going to be making through our collective choices, actions... or inaction. The times we are in demand that we do something but my faith in folks doing the right something is assuredly at an all time low even for me!

The truth of the matter is that we collectively created the scenario that we are in whether consciously or unconsciously and while sure some parties bear more responsibility than others... we all inhabit the same piece of space junk floating around the same exploding star and regardless of whose 'fault' it is... it lands on all of us to somehow remedy the situation that we have created and/or inherited.

Although I tend to believe that organized politically aligned religions, corporations and the 'uber-wealthy' in general (remember some folks are so poor all they have is money) have lead us into one hell of a blind alley as a species... I do not believe those same entities will be responsible for leading us out of said blind alley. In other words I think that only personal choice with a collective intent can do that.

Believe me I know how myopic the first part of my previous statement sounds but history spells out a very clear story of that being exactly what has happened and sadly what continues to happen no matter what kind of suffering gets caused along the way. While none of those things (religions, corporations, and the uber-wealthy) can foster hate in me they damn sure do not garner any love from me either. Call it a neutral disdain if you will!

All that said it is worth noting that there has been tremendous pushback against the direction those things have lead us for a very long time and often 'might makes right' is the only thing that has kept the status quo being what it is. In other words we have chosen to allow the violence (and harm) done by those entities to dictate our course to the point where it has become impossible (or just exceedingly unlikely) to shift the power dynamic in the opposite direction.

Which leads us to where we are today. It is ugly, brutal and absolutely irresponsible that we allowed it all to become what it is but denying it all does not make it less than what it is... and ignoring said brutality has never made it go away and only emboldened those willing to engage in it. Even if it means the possible extinction of our species and the planet itself becoming largely uninhabitable.

Okay, I had to break away from the text editor for a bit, do some hiking and knock out my routine chores before the sweltering heat kicks in for the day. I also just had to derail myself from that line of thought so that I could get at what I was first driving at once I returned later in the day to finish this entry. WHich I will do here in short order.

As everything is (and is becoming) I have to maintain the perspective that hardship is nothing new to me and just because it may be new to many others and that they will more than likely behave poorly because of it... nothing really needs to change for me personally aside from being more vigilant than usual and buckling down on some of my pending projects like water storage, food production, compost management and generating energy.

Unlike many folks I have serious doubts that civilization is going to come to a screeching and utter halt (sans a massive global nuclear war between large nation states) but I absolutely believe that it is on the cusp of changing in some rather radical ways.

I assuredly subscribe to the premise that we are in a sort of 'slow motion apocalypse' but I think that what the outcome of that is has yet to be seen. To be clear, yes I prefer not to project a bunch of my personal fears and/or insecurities all over it to the point where I become consumed by those things. Furthermore I think that those whom are doing that should take a very deliberate step backwards from doing so.

Alright, it is much later in the day now and although I usually change the topic by now in these entries I feel like I should try to wrap up what I was driving at earlier in some reasonable kind of manner. It is not exactly that I want to do so but I feel rather compelled to for the sake of clarity.

By far my overall attitude is that whatever is coming down the pipeline I am in it for the long haul and dicking around now getting all worked up about stuff that I cannot do anything about is just a flat out waste of time. There are an incredible amount of actions each day that myself (and other folks included) can to if not turn the tide on what is happening... at least get better positioned on some 'higher ground' so to speak.

Whether it is changing my consumption habits, or being more pragmatic with what I purchase, or throw away (or whatever) are things worth doing now. Lately I keep thinking how in a truly appended society almost everything has value one way or another even if it is just in the form of empty jars or plastic bottles.

In other words I have seriously begun looking at things that I might be taking for granted and how to either prolong their lifespan, reuse them, re-purpose them or whatever the case may be. At this point it is more than fair to say that I have fully embraced a 'waste nothing' perspective and while I am hit or miss in a few departments I think that I am beginning to really buckle down on it.

Or to put it more aptly: I see the need to buckle down on it. As an example to that I have some good routines with say the dog waste compost and some further honing in on those routines (for the worm and soil farming) and actually using the soil would be a huge step forward. I assuredly 'use it in place' a lot but working in some of the finished soil under the nut and fruit trees is not a bad idea.

My point with all of that is to say that I have all these many things in my life that I am already doing and need to focus on taking the next steps with them and given the times perhaps above and beyond what I have been working towards and anticipating doing. Believe me I feel the extreme pressure of the times just as much as everyone else and although I am slightly ahead of the curve... it is after all only slightly and I am by no stretch of the imagination a prepper.

All that jazz aside that heatwave kicked in early and we are looking at triple digit temperatures (in fahrenheit) for the next five days straight. Today was insanely hot and dry and so much so that pretty much everything (vegetation-wise) is now showing signs of wilt. Even the wildlife has grown very still and there are even less horse and deer flies buzzing around so that is really saying something!

My main concern over the coming days is of course going to be lighting caused fire. Oh yeah I forgot to mention the inbound thunderstorms! I have already hiked around and looked at where all the shovels and rakes are staged, which spigots already have water hoses attached to them and which need them by tomorrow and basically did several 'safety and planning walks' the last few days.

The other thing that I have been doing is steadily filling everything that I can with water because with the heatwave the state is anticipating power outages due to high demand. Which would leave the site without water aside from the water I already have stored away or collected in various locations.

Writing it out makes it sound more impressive than it is on the actual volume of water but I always keep 'enough' around even if its only for the wildlife or my domestic critters! Suffice it to say that I try not to go overboard with the water storage but I also do not 'under do' it either.

Anyway, the days ahead are going to be a bit wonky because with the intense heatwave and all the other conditions I need to be outside a lot and also paying attention to what is going on outdoors at night. I was even thinking to help the grid load by leaving the window open at night, opening the attic door and letting the high heat pull cool air through the building instead of using the air-conditioner.

I am also going to go around and make sure that anything that does not need to be plugged in is unplugged because although it wont add up to a big power draw by any one item (say a phone charger) collectively they will add up to something. The only other thing that I can see to do is to use more natural lighting and even at night turning off one of my lights. Once I finish writing for the evening of course!

Over the coming days I think that it will be kind of touch and go with where I spend my time and what I spend my time thinking about because my alertness really does matter in scenarios like this. I guess that it could be said that it 'keeps the blood pumping' or it is 'what I live for' but honestly at this point in my life I can get the same from playing a video game with friends!

Seriously though, there is a lot going on and yeah there is plenty of direct correlation between what I am reading about 'going on in the world' and experiencing directly in my own life. Whether that is the cost of goods, potential grid instability, having to watch for hazardous conditions or whatever ad infinitum.

Or the value of my own assets (which is where most folks feel it) and I am like: How long has this rock been spinning around that exploding star for... oh... and yup there is still life here so I better keep living it!

In my perspective adopting any other attitude about things going on and our response to them is just irresponsible even just considering how many other critters there are. Aside from self-preservation as a species should we not be so noble as to care for the continued existence of other critters as well even if they outlive us.

I think the answer to that tells the validity of our stewardship of the planet... or what should be our stewardship... because that part is really questionable at this juncture! I firmly believe we have it in us to rise to the occasion at hand (because that spirit has gotten folks this far) but whether we actually will is yet to be determined.

Being open minded is not easy but hey after the levels of hardship my life has fluctuated through thus far I am just like: Oh yeah, tighten the belt, grow more food, forage more edibles, consume less, waste less, store more... and here are all those old habits you used before to do that... and all the things you learned the last time that you did them... go!

Which I have been doing for an extended period of time already going back nearly half a year now so like I said before I am 'slightly' ahead on getting those routines in place and especially so with the rationing of food and water. Those two I dialed into a near science over the last six months and have no regrets in doing so because at this point it is all just a habit or the more pleasant term: A daily routine.

I know that I have repeatedly repeated through great repetition the significance of daily routines... but getting them into muscle memory early on in a non-stressful environment alone makes a big difference when facing changes to day to day life involving hardship. Consider it preparation for the journey ahead out into the wilds of the bush... or for when the bush comes to you!

Because on the those kinds of journeys a little familiarity and some sound routines and habits go a long frigging way towards helping ourselves, other folks and critters make it through intact. I think that most of the times folks miss the significance of their own routines and habits and the role they play in shaping how well they do in a difficult or challenging scenario but viewed as a 'muscle' it can be exercised... and know its job well when the time comes to do it!

Well, I have to wrap this entry up now and get on with the editing because the sun is setting and after all the hiking (and extra chores) that I did today I am fading fast. I sincerely hope that everyone is doing well and has a nice day/night and are well to both yourselves and each other.

IMG_20220613_210418.jpg

I had just enough light to catch the sunset!

Thanks for reading!

woodbanner.png

Please check out the Homesteading Community:
https://peakd.com/c/hive-114308/created

hive-banner.png

That Is All For Now!

Cheers! & Hive On!



0
0
0.000
2 comments
avatar

You are probably one of the most prepared people I've run into if the worst case scenario hits us. If that actually hits us, the skills that society values will shift quite a bit.

0
0
0.000
avatar

I definitely hope that time never comes! I constantly feel unprepared which may be what drives me so hard to make preparations!

0
0
0.000