Monday, February 25, 2008

Today's rude awakening

I've known for a while that eventually the oil would run out. Today as I pumped my $50 tank of gas into my car, I really "got it". I mean, I GET it. I know we are entering a new phase of life where we will have to learn how to do things w/o oil, and I've thought a lot about it. But today was different. Today I really dove deep into my thoughts on it.

I thought... well, I can sew our clothes, so I won't need to buy clothing imported in elsewhere. And then I realized- what about the fabric? I can't make fabric. It has to come from SOMEWHERE. Which led me to think about all the other little things that we take for granted. So, so many of our things are trucked in from elsewhere. In my house we use a lot of cloth products, but what about those who don't? How will they conceive of not having things like toilet paper? Will they actually pay a premium price for it? And what about food? Most people don't even know how to buy fresh food or where to get it even. Myself included. I know about the local markets, but they are very limited in selection. I would have to learn an entire new way of cooking to cook seasonally and regionally. I would *like* to do it, and I have a true admiration for all of those people out there on the "100 mile diet", but man, that would be HARD! Especially with kids.

For a while I've wanted to be more sustainable and self-sufficient, but really- it's a necessity at this point. Maybe not today, maybe not 10 years from now, but ONE DAY we will all need to be more self-sufficient. I don't think most people realize this.

A few weeks ago I was talking to a friend and made some comment about how the oil is running out. She actually said to me "yeah right, whatever!". UH..... yeah..... WHATEVER! It's a fact, honey!!! I think that's a common mindset today- that everything will remain.

But some of us know that everything changes.

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