[Uninspired123]

Can use advice from 20 somethings like me and old fogies.

Could someone help me out with one thing? I'm one of those twenty somethings and im past the initial phase as i've known about peak oil for a year now. Has anyone else noticed themselves already giving up in their lives and at work? I find myself just not caring about my schoolwork anymore and thinking "who cares" a lot to myself. I have increased my energy bills and increased the amount of 'fun' im having at the cost of my grades and my education a bit. I'm worried that i've gotten myself into this 'i give up' mindstate already. The whole thing seems so overwhelming that for some reason, someone who has fought a lot academically his whole life (me) is already giving up. This scares me but I can't shake the feeling.

I do research at baylor college of medicine currently but realize just the massive amount of energy all of the things we do in the lab. I just don't get how we can even obtain all the things we need in lab to continue meaningful research unless somehow it is severely subsidized by the government. I just don't understand how it's going to work and already, like i mentioned, i've 'given up' in my head. Can't really convince my family either, they just bought a new house in Socal worth a lot of money and I wonder if it's a good or bad thing. My dad understands peak oil and its implications but he doesn't want to try to think outside of the box or try to think of solutions. His idea is that he really can't do much unless society as a whole changes and it's better to let things fall as they may. I can see the same 'giving up' aspect in my personality. In fact, peak oil has been a huge knock to my confidence itself. I always used to think, I can work through something and get it done, but I question myself on the daily now.

The wait is agonizing too. Any responses are appreciated.

[dinopello]

I think everything you say is both common and natural. But, as I always tell myself - The fun is in the trying. Find a way to make doing something about (or preparing for) peak oil a hobby, or related to your career. Seems like medicine would be a good thing to be in, but you can have other persuits on the side too. Having fun at 20 is highly natural - keep it up, make good friends, stay close to your family, keep learning, questioning. etc.

If you are like me, the fatalism comes in waves. It helps me to laugh about things alone or with friends or with the crazies on forums like this . Things will fall as they may despite any of our preparations, I think its important to be in a robust situation (locationly, physically, mentally, socially, financially etc) when they do fall. Robust means that it is resilient to many possibilities, since there is a lot of uncertainty about what and when and how anything will unfold. I would also emphasize that for me, this means that I will depend upon others as well as expect that others will depend on me. Too much I see people thinking they need to enclose themselves in some isolation bubble of independency. This is also the reason I put a large emphasis on family, friends and community ties.

[Uninspired123]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('Shannymara', '')$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('Uninspired123', 'H')is idea is that he really can't do much unless society as a whole changes and it's better to let things fall as they may. I can see the same 'giving up' aspect in my personality.

[Ibon]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('Shannymara', '
')If you consciously choose to just go with the flow, don't think of it as giving up. Think of it as accepting things as they are.

[Ibon]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('Uninspired123', 'T')he main reason im tied up and torn also has to do with the fact that i still retain hope that whatever im learning is going to be useful to some degree being an engineer.

[Ibon]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('Gideon', 'I') guess I'm lucky.

[killJOY]

You may be on to something: you can't keep beating your head against the universe.

I've "given up" long ago -- on those things outside my power to do anything about.

Politically, I'm "Orlovian."

I'll show you what I said to my students last week, during the last day of class, before they viewed "Crude Awakening." They had already read several essays about peak oil and seen Albert Bartlett's presentation and "End of Suburbia."

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', '
')1. Don't whine, or complain, or pity yourself.

2. Keep your sense of humor.

3. Use your head! Keep reading about the subject.

4. No panic necessary.

5. "ELP" Jeffrey Brown's formula for a post-peak world.
Economize
Localize
Produce

A contracting energy supply = a contracting economy.

6. "Bring It On!" This is an unprecedented challenge.
There will be:

less traffic
fewer ugly subdivisions
a dead stop to the stripmalling of America

The detritus (junk) of culture will be flushed away.

This week I'm having my old bicycle fixed.

[MattSavinar]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('Gideon', '
')
Or check out. I'd recommend CO, which works great and is painless.

Alternatively, I'd recommend a large caliber weapon - just don't make the mistake of not centering the shot. Every few years you read about some dumbass who puts the shot gun under his chin and blows off his face. The part I never get about that is why, after 40 surgeries to get him back to the point where he can live independently with a shredded face, does he THEN want to live?

Anyway, if you're female you probably won't like the head blasted out all over the wall thing - women want to be found looking beautiful but tormented - not with bits of their brain in their hair. Definitely go with the CO if you're a woman. And don't do the garage thing, especially with a new car.

Get an old car in a garage, run a hose from the tailpipe to the interior of the car, and get in. Should be done in less than an hour. Do it at 3AM when there's no chance someone will find you and revive you and then you have brain damage.

[PrairieMule]

Well the good news about your situation is that unlike most in America you are dealing with and will eventually overcome the shock of our predicament while the pumps are still on. I know how you feel about "chucking it all away". This week I got very close saying good-bye to corporate america and become a full time cattle ranch hand for a salary just above the line of poverty. I figured that way I could at least keep the bullshit below the ankle level. The scary part is my wife said she would actually support me in that choice!

You mentioned a double life, I think everyone here can identify with have a secret identity. On the surface we are a broad spectrum of every day people yet we quietly deal, plan and prep for a completely different tomorrow. To us it's not a matter of if but when. Whenever I pontificate on what peak oil is about, people look at me like I have 2 heads draped in tinfoil. At the very least places like this exist for comradery and sharing information. In the near future we will only see a lot more of this, the cool part about this is by then you will have become part of the solution or at least part of a partial jury rigged solution. So enjoy life today but don't piss away the time you have-we have much to do.

[mgibbons19]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('Uninspired123', 'H')ave you noticed yourself personally giving up in advance? The main reason im tied up and torn also has to do with the fact that i still retain hope that whatever im learning is going to be useful to some degree being an engineer

[MattSavinar]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('mgibbons19', '
')Plus the doomers here may not be right. It might not happen at all. It might be a slow decline that takes 15 years during which you might like a decent job. It might turn out to be the impetus for a tech-topia where engineers are the most sought after ppl.

[mmasters]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('Gideon', 'I') find humans to be dirty, ignoble, lying, self-deceptive, disgusting parasites.

[threadbear]

Gideon, Considered doing volunteer work for your local welcome wagon? You could present new neighbours with a basket full of dog excrement and a card that says "fu** off and die"! How about a Walmart greeter? "Hi, Welcome to WalMart, and DROP DEAD!"

A funeral home attendant?--"I'm so sorry for your loss, but the bitch deserved it"

To the new poster---As Margaret Thatcher said--"This is no time to go wobbly!" Really! None of us here or anywhere else know precisely how all of this unfolds, so for god's sakes--do your best. The problem with extreme doom scenarios, is they never work out as quite as predicted. There are always wild cards that impact the future, and usually from an oblique angle. The best thing you can do is stay out of debt and encourage your parents to do the same.

[PrairieMule]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('threadbear', ':')lol: How about a Walmart greeter? "Hi, Welcome to WalMart, and DROP DEAD!"

[Pops]

An Old Fogie here:

Buck up young man (or woman)! It sounds to me like you live at the tippity-top of the richest country in the richest time the world has ever seen!

The whole angst thing seems really strange to me, especially from someone with as good a handle on the situation and such a leg-up as you. If your (our) peephole into the future is showing anything, it is that we are in for big changes and that always means opportunity. Now if you were studying art history I wouldn’t be so optimistic but you are in a place to make a difference – at least to yourself and family.

In addition to the (mostly) great comments already offered let me add one thing – btw, I have no degree and little time in at the college level so take this advice however you please:

Get real-life, hands on experience in as many different skills as possible. Volunteer with Habitat for Humanity; work a month on second cousin franks dairy (or your roommates second cousins); help a buddy rebuild his engine, whatever you can to gain experience in the real world.

And while you are humpin 2x4s, pushing cows and looking for a 9/16s open-end, learn everything you can about how everything around you works.

Big ideas don’t come from memorizing the big ideas of the past; they come from understanding the way things are, seeing things in a totally different way and applying them to the problems of today – and that takes perspective.

So get to it Buck (or Buckette, as the case may be), your decendants are depending on you!

[magician]

yeah you should find your own way. this whole resigned-to-the-path-others-have-assigned-to-me thing is crap because you obviously have defeat written over all of your feelings about it. drink, smoke, be merry for tommorow someone may slit your throat for that last MRE. in the meantime between now and fighting off surburban zombies, learn real skills. i started in my early 20's after i dropped out of college. i am a seriously learned alchemist, herbalist, shooter, (well i AM an eagle scout), gardener, tailor, soapmaker, cook, ect. at 27 i have a real sense of accomplishment without credit card bills. it is really a boon for your emotional state. when you go out from old age or fighting over the MRE penut butter or whatever you can look back and say i had a great time, pulled my weight and lived by my code of honor. or you can get that four year degre,e the job that pays great before its gone forever with your future and the economy, and think back that your sense of fatalism, over-contemplation of your own importance and the wishes of others who dont get how reality actually works held you back and now instead of being a post peak warlord like frater_coyote, you are just cold hungry and defeated. fatalism indeed.

-without prejudice ucc 1-207,
frater coyote

[Baldwin]

Knowing area plants, marksmanship, and carpentry are good. Depending on the climate, you might also want to learn how to make a fire without a modern apparatus.

[BigTex]

PO at its worst equals present knowledge of future events which may lead to civilization and much of mankind disappearing--in other words death at the macro level.

But this is not really so different from the knowledge and certainty that each of us has at the micro level that we will die one day. Somehow, though, most of us get past the despair of knowing we will die one day and find a way to make life enjoyable, challenging, exciting, whatever you want it to be.

There is absolutely no point in letting PO render you hopeless. If you have gotten over the shock of knowing you will die one day, you will see that coping with knowledge of PO is not so different.

Lighten up and enjoy the prosperity today. Educate yourself and prepare for tomorrow. Don't look for meaning in the jobs you and others do to support themselves. Just look at it as a challenge and try to find things that bring out your competitiveness. If you happen to find a job that does help give meaning to your life, that's a bonus and be thankful.

The one thing that will absolutely be needed in the future is leadership skills. People will be scared, confused and disoriented. The ability to bring people together, get them focused and accomplish something useful will be critically important. A lot of people on these kinds of boards imagine Lone Ranger scenarios, but it will be the extent to which people can work together that will determine the severity of the PO shock. People who can lead in those environments will find much opportunity.

Just my opinion.

[mmasters]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('BigTex', 'P')O at its worst equals present knowledge of future events which may lead to civilization and much of mankind disappearing--in other words death at the macro level.

But this is not really so different from the knowledge and certainty that each of us has at the micro level that we will die one day. Somehow, though, most of us get past the despair of knowing we will die one day and find a way to make life enjoyable, challenging, exciting, whatever you want it to be.

There is absolutely no point in letting PO render you hopeless. If you have gotten over the shock of knowing you will die one day, you will see that coping with knowledge of PO is not so different.

Lighten up and enjoy the prosperity today. Educate yourself and prepare for tomorrow. Don't look for meaning in the jobs you and others do to support themselves. Just look at it as a challenge and try to find things that bring out your competitiveness. If you happen to find a job that does help give meaning to your life, that's a bonus and be thankful.

The one thing that will absolutely be needed in the future is leadership skills. People will be scared, confused and disoriented. The ability to bring people together, get them focused and accomplish something useful will be critically important. A lot of people on these kinds of boards imagine Lone Ranger scenarios, but it will be the extent to which people can work together that will determine the severity of the PO shock. People who can lead in those environments will find much opportunity.

Just my opinion.

[Uninspired123]

THanks for the replies everyone it's all good stuff. I think part of the issue is a lot of us forget we still have to live in this world before we can transition to the next and i'm getting all caught up into planning for the next world while i forget about the short time i'll still spend in this one.