What Shock?!?!?

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From: 23Rory
Sent: Tuesday, May 01, 2007 1:09 PM
To: wwo@worldwithoutoil.org
Subject: Story Submission

Hello, I am Netizen Hero 23Rory, and this is my story:

A lot of people I know are freaking out this morning. Seriously. Whining about gas prices, wondering how they are going to get to work, contemplating suicide because "It's the end of the world!!!!". Everywhere I turn, it's oil and money, oil and money, oil and money out of everyone's mouths.

Except mine. I am more interested in talking about the practical mechanics building a trebuchet and how fast I can play that Phrygian Scale I've been practicing.

I say what oil shock? Oh wait, you mean the one we've known was coming for awhile? Hmmmm, yeah I started preparing awhile back. You know, about the time I first thought that govt. may end up repressive, or world war 23 might break out, when I was like 16, 12 years ago. Call me crazy for following the boy scout motto of "Be Prepared". Being ready for one natural disaster means by default you are ready for most anything. But hey, call me crazy, if you like.

oh wait, they did call me crazy and paranoid, condescendingly and at length. I don't mind gloating, so here it is. I told you so I told you so I told you so I told you so I told you so I told you so. Thanks for letting me get that out of my system.

Now onto the real dilemma. Preparations for Peak Oil, who did what, who hasn't done jack, and where to go from here.

First off, let me say that I less than impressed with the preparations here. I live outside of Lafayette, LA, sandwiched between the two Gulf Disasters, Hurricane Katrina and the lesser known and equally destructive Hurricane Rita. Most people, rather than doing something intelligent, spent money on diesel generators. A few smarter friends invested in windup
radio/flashlights. I did neither, considering I've had a windup since 2001 and peak oil as a concept has been known to me for awhile. Other than that, all they could think about was how to spend all that federal money and not look corrupt doing it. They haven't even fixed the dykes yet. Idiots.

I finalized preparations about a year ago. My fiancé lives about 0.5 miles from my real job as a paralegal, so I can walk. (as an aside, we are not married so we don't cohabit) But my real preparations are wrapped up in the Bed & Breakfast where I live. It's an 150 year old plantation home, right outside of Lafayette. I could walk to my real job, but it would take me about 2.5-3 hours. We began permaculture onsite about 8 months ago, and are getting ready to invest in a water recycling system and solar energy. At the moment , we cannot feed ourselves. But, we will be able to soon. We became a tribe, and look after one another. If Jonathan loses his job, we'll feed him b/c his ass is working the garden all day. Same for everyone involved. There are 5 of us, and already I have 2 more friends that see the end is nigh and want in on our action. As the shock builds, I expect to have to turn people away. Luckily, we can house and feed(once the garden starts producing) about 12-15(possibly 20) people. A good amount, with enough bodies to keep everything running and scare off any would be marauders. Everyone owns at least one gun, and we all use 9 milli pistols, 12 gauge shotguns, and .308 Rifles so we can trade out ammo. Everyone has some kind of skills to contribute, even if it is only a strong back. But most importantly we are comitted to one another and building a life together.

I "made"(read: pestered until they did it) everyone fill up their cars yesterday. I knew something was coming soon, and I feel really lucky to have been a day ahead of the shock. We carpool a lot, and are homebodies, so we aren't too worried in the near future. I can afford to fill up "my" car(it's on loan to me whilst brother-in-law is in Egypt for a year) once a month, b/c I don't go anywhere. We entertain ourselves through making music, writing and reading books and screenplays, and tons of primitive skills projects.

I am so unafraid of the oil shock that I am traveling across the country in June to Oregon, where I will undergo an intensive 2 month permaculture class. Good thing I bought my tickets in March.

My advice to everyone taken unawares by the oil shock is this: Do something. Almost any way you stop relying on oil is good. Almost any way you become self-sufficient is good. Act now, before it gets to be too late.