When I started on this journey to live more sustainably, I knew it wouldn't always be easy and conveniet, what I didn't realize was how much I had to learn. I've been reading different blogs and websites, news articles and of course there is always info to be gotten from Facebook!
I find it fascinating how the lives of so many people who want to live a certain can range from one end of the spectrum to another. You have the people who reduce, reuse and recycle to the extent that they generate virtually no garbage. Also, there are quite a few families that plant such extensive gardens that they can feed their families using very little money. There are websites on how to make your own soap, candles, compost bins, birdbaths, raised garden beds and much, much more. I've seen ways to plant strawberries in old rain gutter and plant tomatoes where they will climb up a trellis.
Then there are the people/families that are trying to live more off the grid. When I say "off the grid" I'm not talking about someone living out in the wilderness with no lights or running water, long beards with all sorts of conspiracy theories (not that I don't enjoy a good conspiracy theory every now and then) and who refuse to pay their taxes or use banks. I'm talking about people who want to be more self-reliant, growing a lot of their own food, reducing what they pay for energy by using solar panels and wind, using homeopathic medicine and reducing their consumption of "things". They kind of live "off the gird - lite" if you will.
Now I'm sure you're wondering what Zombies have to do with all this. Well you can blame my friends and neighbors who kept insisting that I needed to watch the TV show "Walking Dead". No, I said, I'm invested in too many shows now, I can't possibly add another one. One Saturday a few weeks ago, I was doing some cooking and couldn't find anything to watch on tv and I came across a "Walking Dead" marathon so I started watching it.....and now I'm hooked. I told my friends that I hated them all for getting me sucked into this show.
Anyway......as I watch this show and try to suspend my logical thinking, I wonder about what would happen if there was a catastrophic event (or Zombie apocalypse) and there was no infrastructure, electricity, running water or grocery stores. Would we be able to take care of ourselves? What if we had to find a way to heat our homes, grow our own food, take care of our own illnesses? Would we be able to work with our neighbors and friends and sustain a civilized community where we had to depend on one another to survive and thrive?
Or are we so tuned into our electronic devices, our fast food, our fast cars? We rush to work, rush home all the while our cell phones are glued to our ears, throw some food in the microwave because we have to hurry up and get the kids to ball practice. I'm not innocent of any of this, I like my laptop and my cell phone and cable tv. I'm not above a quick dinner every now and then. But what if we could slow down and as they say "stop and smell the roses".
I don't plan on giving up my cell, laptop or cable, but I do have a yearning to turn everything off now and then and slow down, get closer to nature. I would like to be more self suffient and stainable at the same time. A few years ago, after a windstorm, I was without power for 7 days and it was horrible. Thankfully it was in the fall so the weather was good, not cold or hot, but I lost all the food in the fridge and freezer, I wasn't prepared with batteries or many candles. Luckily, I have a gas stove and waterheater so I could cook and had hot water. But it did make me think about how unprepared I would be if there was a true emergency...or a Zombie apocalypse! Would I be able to survive?
I like the idea of "off the grid-lite", I could probably keep all my shoes that way!
Kathy
No comments:
Post a Comment