Long time

All of my time and energy is now taken up with t h i s.

So until I can be sure that Esme and Rebecca have a future, this site will be quiet.

Reason why.


bye

As you do...

So there I was sitting on the toilet playing the Argos Catalogue Game ("guess how much this fabulous pink Teflon-coated steam iron is?"*) with Thebazile while she had a shower, as you do, when I noticed a 'future-proof' 10-in-1 TV/satellite/audio system etc remote control. I started to imagine a world of floods and eco-armageddon whilst the lucky purchaser sat smugly inside a magical protective bubble beamed from his 10-in-1. What an intelligent purchase he made back in 2009. Unless, of course he forgot the batteries (not included). On that theme I've always found it odd that most 4x4s are fitted with Climate Control. 'Fire-storms getting a little intense today dear, shall we turn up the climate control a little?'

I was all set to get on my high-horse about green-wash, Organics shampoo, Nescafe fair-trade, David Cameron etc when Thebazile found an item (I won't tell you what) with the small-print warning 'dwarf not included'.

What? No dwarf? I'm not buying that then.


* £148.99

Stupid post

Every so often I hear a new piece of music that goes straight to the top of my desert island discs pile. The same is true for films. If I were to choose 10 films I would like to take with me to a desert isle it would be a tough choice - I think Baghdad Cafe would be in there, possibly both Bill and Ted movies and Mystery Men and The Big Labowski. All of these are whimsical, take-it-or-leave-it choices. The only two films I know I'd definitely take (until this afternoon) were I've Heard The Mermaid Singing and Koyaanisqatski. But now I can add a third.

It is The Age of Stupid. Yes, it is handicapped by an unpopular title and by a limited budget but sometimes imperfect things are made perfect for other reasons. This is the single most powerful and compelling film I have ever seen - and I will see it again.

Empty vessels

OK, I am a bit of a philistine and usually a couple of years behind the vogue but I tried visiting Twitter for the first time today and didn't think very much of it.


Have I missed something?

And

Last night was the launch of Transition Stratford. And it was fun! And I managed to dig the whole of my new raised bed which this year will be for rainbow chard and red cabbage. And we got a tank full of steamy hot water from the solar panels. And a very good friend is coming to see us. And I got some paid work.

Every so often it is good to remember how 'sunny spells' can become 'glorious summer', even in February.

And so to bed.

.

...

If a man is in the garden and speaks, and there is no woman to hear him, is he still wrong?

Peak Expectations

So last night I spoke to a group of environmental volunteers about Transition Towns and peak oil. And I have to say it was tougher than I expected. Having examined the science, read the books, seen the films and documentaries I have yet to hear a good argument against peak oil.

But of course not many others in the room had done the same amount of research. Rob Hopkins in his book on Transition Towns says that when first introduced to the idea people often go through the five stages of grief before acceptance - denial, anger, bargaining, depression and, eventually, acceptance. There was all of the above in the room last night.

In short the fear that we have reached peak oil is based on the findings of the Hirsch Report commissioned by the American government in 2005. Oil is a finite resource and we have used about half of the worlds resources (according to BP, Exxon-Mobil and others). This is where the problem lies - the oil that is left is the hardest to get and the most dirty and expensive to refine. Add to this a growing population and the global demand for higher living standards and greater amounts of food in an era of uncertain weather and you have a looming crisis. Some (about half) of the studies into this say that oil prices will start to rise sharply from about 2012.

No big problem. Unless you consider what we use oil for. Our whole way of life is based on the cheap power provided by oil. Electricity, transport, technology, plastics, fibres, drugs - even our GDP has gone up along exactly the same curve as oil availability.

As an environmentalist, the solution to the looming peak oil crisis and climate change is the same - develop ways in which communities can continue without over-reliance on fossil fuels. We need to become more co-sufficient. It has been done before, (war-time Britain, Cuba etc) and it can be done again.

That was my message last night.

Hopefully the denial, anger, bargaining and depression are just the first stages for my town. In the meantime I'll continue chopping wood, cycling, growing potatoes and feeding the chickens.

Anyone fancy some oil-free beetroot?