[syrac818]

Because seriously people, I think I'm going to need it. I don't what else to say besides this sucks...

Since discovering peak oil about three months ago, my life has not been the same. It pretty much dominates my entire outlook on life, and has left me in a whirlwind of anxiety, depression, curiosity, and fear. All in all, not the healthiest combo. I find myself reading many of the posts on here, and wondering, how does that person take such a objective view to the subject?

I would like to know what people do or what thoughts they have to help them move forward. For me, I have become involved in a local group, started organic gardening classes, and speaking to others about what we're facing here. While these things have been helpful, I'm wondering if anyone here has any suggestions.

Please don't make fun of me, and I'm sorry if it sounds like I'm trying to turn this into an online support group, but I really am struggling here...Can we make it out of this?

[bruin]

No problem making alchohol. You just won't be buying as many bottles from the far reaches of the globe.

In fact, I imagine many drugs will do quite well in a PO world. There will still be oil, just less of it. So we will choose what we really want and for many, that would be drugs and alchohol.

[Hiderow]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('syrac818', '
')Please don't make fun of me, and I'm sorry if it sounds like I'm trying to turn this into an online support group, but I really am struggling here...Can we make it out of this?

[Ayoob]

We get a thread like this every couple weeks or so. I think I started about a hundred of them myself. From where we are right now, it looks like we're pretty much Expletive deleted. .

The Powers that Be look forward to your future slavery with baited breath. Assuming you deserve slave status, of course.

The poor have it really really bad in other parts of the world. Hundreds of thousands of people, real human beings, die of starvation every month. The tsunami happens every month, only it's a tsunami of no food that hits those unfortunate enough to be born in the wrong place. Soon, that fate will belong to the poor here in the US. Thanks to our current political structure, we will have fat dogs and cats while children die of malnutrition before your very eyes.

I think the thing to know about this situation is that the people that die of starvation today are just as real as you are. If they could read English and get to a computer, they might post their last words in this thread, you know? This is not an illusion, it's real life and real death.

When I first started reading about this a couple years ago (omg has it really been that long yes it has), it seemed to me that oil would peak in production maybe as early as 2007 or 2008, something like that. As of this spring, it looks like the date of the peak has already passed and we are now on the very first lip of the decline. When will decline be visible? It could be as soon as the next time you refresh your cnn page or wherever you read your news. Could it be Thanksgiving Day 2005? Could be. Could it be not for another year or so? Maybe. Could it be sometime between now and 2008? In my own personal opinion, I think it's pretty damn likely.

If that's true, we have maybe on the outside two and a half years to completely reengineer society to value human life over money. Yeah.

On that note, I gotta say that every single day I live as though it was going to be the last day I spend in the opulent lifestyle to which I have become accustomed. I relish every moment as much as possible like the hedonist I am. Not going to get into the specifics of that here but you can guess.

In closing, prepare to kill your neighbors and steal their food. Also, buy a scooter. That is all.

[syrac818]

Ummmmm....ok, that was really, really depressing. Is this the general feeling on here, that I will be sold into slavery assuming I am that lucky? Oh lord.

[Ayoob]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('syrac818', 'U')mmmmm....ok, that was really, really depressing. Is this the general feeling on here, that I will be sold into slavery assuming I am that lucky? Oh lord.

[MD]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('syrac818', 'I') would like to know what people do or what thoughts they have to help them move forward.

[LadyRuby]

Syrc, I can totally relate. I also just REALLY came to understand oil peaking a few months ago and have also been somewhat obsessed. It feels kind of crazy, and yet I can see that a lot of quite smart people are predicting that things could get pretty ugly (and from what I've read it doesn't seem unreasonable to expect that).

[NEOPO]

Syrac,

decent article on yeast and winemaking:
winemaking

That which is about to be "taken" from us is something we never really had in the first place.
We wanted to believe that the energy to continue our modern unsustainable lifestyles was infinite or that with technology we would find a way to continue unabated.

Wake up neo...the matrix has you

There is only one goal - survival - secondary and yes intertwined with survival is procreation.

Humanity confuses need with want and somehow justifies an upside down list of priorities.

Hmmm its madness one might say.
What to do ....what to do?!?!?!?

Tell your friends and family as if you have suddenly found religion!!!
Yes they will think you are crazy but if you can get them to look and read the facts then the smart ones MAY see and help.
Tell your clients and associates but dont be surprised if they think you are nuts
I havent lost any business yet so I suppose they shrugged PO off well.
Save and plan - make changes that will make the transition easier for you and anyone willing to take this thing on seriously.
Group - have meetings - plan and follow through - this will help you with your "mind" at this time but nothing will ever make PO go away.

I dont think I will feel good until my garden and orchard are around 3-5 years old - in bloom, cut and canned in massive amounts stored inside our village community house where we have plenty of guns, dogs, nightvision goggles and other paramilitary devices weilded by very serious Savarian doomer types !!!

"Gooks in the garden!"
"God I love the smell of cow manure in the morning."

I cant wait for the first suit and tie type to come up our "holler" begging for food

"Nice rolex pilgrim" I will say


The world wont change until it is forced to.
I think the story of the Ant and the Grasshopper is very relevant

[ONeil]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('syrac818', 'B')ecause seriously people, I think I'm going to need it. I don't what else to say besides this sucks...

[LadyRuby]

Yes, but isn't there some agreement that it could be very tough for a while (years, a couple of decades), but that in the end the planet will be better off, and hopefully society as well?

[aldente]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('Ayoob', '
')If that's true, we have maybe on the outside two and a half years to completely reengineer society to value human life over money.

[ONeil]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('LadyRuby', 'Y')es, but isn't there some agreement that it could be very tough for a while (years, a couple of decades), but that in the end the planet will be better off, and hopefully society as well?

[syrac818]

Well, first off I appreciate all your responses. I can't say I'm comforted by them, but they are honest. Like some others on here, I'm surrounded by people who think I'm pretty much crazy. I find myself trying to prepare with fairly limited tools, though in the end it makes me feel better. With each day I become more committed to act, as the above post mentioned.

Finally, one thing that gives me a sense of hope comes suprisingly from both Simmons and Campbell. They both have said that humans tend to respond best when their backs are truly against the wall. We have not reached that point yet, and as a result many are either unaware or just don't care. For me, the scariest aspect of all of this is having to watch industrialized society head straight into a brick wall. We see it everyday and this tremendous ignorance leaves me left wondering how horrible it will be.

However, the word is beginning to spread, and I have watched this issue go from "fringe paranoia" to headline news in a very short period of time. With this I have seen actual dialogue and ideas start to emerge, which is vital in shifting the focus from "how bad will this be?" to "what do we need to do to prepare". Don't get me wrong, I know we are headed for a very hard road and that the world will never be the same. And I know there will be suffering. But I also know that discovering this has caused a tremendous shift for myself in terms of what I view as important. My hope is that our greater conciousness can shift as well.

And with that, I'm going to have a beer. I honestly pray for everyone here, and hope that we can somehow make it out of this with some joy in our lives. Take care.

[ONeil]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('albente', '')$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('Ayoob', '
')

As far as alcohol is concerned: Don't try to distill in you kitchen. The last time I did so it was a heck of an effort to get things cleaned up again...

[aldente]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('syrac818', ' ')For me, the scariest aspect of all of this is having to watch industrialized society head straight into a brick wall.

[ace]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('ONeil', '')$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('syrac818', 'B')ecause seriously people, I think I'm going to need it. I don't what else to say besides this sucks...

[JB2]

There are plenty of apples where I live, so this is my plan:

Steps in Making Hard Cider

Secure apple cider without preservative. Most apple cider for hard cider should be a blend of 3 or more varieties.
Fresh cider should be in clean containers. Wooden barrels make the best hard cider as the wood breathes and gives the cider proper aging.
To the cider add 1lb. of sugar per gallon for a dry hard cider (not sweet) or 1 1/2 lbs. for a sweet drink. Honey can be substituted for sugar on a pound per pound basis. Sugar and honey should be dissolved by warming some cider and mixing the sugar and honey until completely dissolved; then mix with the cider.
Natural yeast in the juice will ferment the sugar to alcohol. Yeast need not be added, although it can without any problem. Some fermentation processes call for killing all the yeast in the pure cider with sulfur dioxide, waiting 24 hours and then adding wine yeast. For the homeowner this is not necessary.
Put air lock on container and keep at 60-70F for a couple of months. Lower temperatures take longer for product to change from sugar to alcohol.
After 2 months the juice should be decanted off (siphoned out of the container), the container washed, and the juice put back into the container. Do not use siphon hose closer than 4" from bottom of container as this is where all the sediment is resting.
After decanting, store at 40 - 60F in a wooden barrel and wait for proper aging -- 6 months to 6 years, depending upon desires.

[Eli]

Making alcohol requires a lot of energy to distill.

But I make my own beer all the time and it is easy to do.
You just take any grain most typically malted barley steep it in hot water to mash out the sugars boil it with hops for an hour cool it down put some in beer yeast and two weeks later you have beer.

My beer is as good as what I can buy commercially but better because I made it.

If your town doesn't have a local brewery you should make one that will be a very important job. It is hands on and people will always until the last day want to drink beer.

[I_Like_Plants]

Yeah it's easy to make all kinds of alcoholic stuff, whee! Sugar + yeast is the basic equation, and you'd be amazed what has sugar in it. I even tried some pine sap, no not tried brewing with it, just took some fresh dribble off the side of the tree, and put it in my mouth. It was good, sweet, although it will give you a mean pine-breath. But it's easy to see why birds like sapsuckers eat it. There will be no shortage of ways to make alcohol, although when people get really hungry, they're more interested in a full belly than extra fun.