[SchroedingersCat]

Still have a BOB and extra food/water (earthquake country).
Probably have a home theater and wide screen tv.
Have purchased a new car in the last 8 years.
Had another child.
Taken a different job.
Not purchased precious metals.
Not strained my relationships with friends and family.
Drank less.
Not had that hernia surgery.
Purchased very different books.
Bought a house.
Never known what tertiary recovery was.
Thought the war in Iraq was about freedom.

You?

[Lumpy]

Still be working toward personal independence from the infrastructure that is bound, in large part, to come down.

Lumpy

[BigTex]

I would probably be focused on bird flu, the deterioration of individual rights in the U.S., the dangers of paper money, and go camping a lot as a rehearsal for bugging out.

Peak oil is perfect for me because I have always been a survival and personal freedom enthusiast, and peak oil is the perfect vehicle for someone who is already predisposed to thinking that something is out of whack with society.

That sounds a little crazy, but anyone who has been camping knows that you typically return to civilization refreshed spiritually and more appreciative of all of the modern conveniences. If sleeping outside leaves you with a clearer head than sleeping in your king size bed in the master suite of a mcmansion, then perhaps that supports my thesis that something is out of whack with our society.

I think Kunstler touches on this a little at the end of The Long Emergency. He says something about when he was a young person he would look around at the traffic and the frantic pace of consumption, and he just knew something was wrong, though he didn't know exactly what it was.

[Nicholai]

I'd probably be trying to start an Air Car company or finish my degree in economics. It's been a love-hate relationship with peak oil. I'm 18, why would I want to destroy all the hopes and ideals I had as a kid? I thought about going into Canadian Politics. I thought of owning my own business and learning several languages. Oh well.

Peak oil has changed me. My friends have changed and so have my habits. I drink more and I work more (trying to save and bugger out). I'll be leaving to Finland in August and I haven't told my family, but I intend to stay.

If I didn't know about peak oil I would still be reading about climate change. I would read about overpopulation and the stupidity of the average person. Without peak oil and all of this doom, I probably would have moved to Montreal. I love Quebec and Les Quebecois, it's a culture I'll always be drawn to. It's too bad.

[Flowerr]

Every trip I see thouusands and thousands of cars on the highway, I wold not be thinking about how much gas each tank holds...

[Grifter]

I would be in debt equal to about 3 - 4 months salary

Unlike others I'd be drinking more not less and I wouldn't be taking exercise.

I'd probably smoke less

I'd still be preoccupied with right / left politics

I would know even less about economics

I wouldn't have come accross some of the interesting worldviews that are displayed here

[shakespear1]

I would have continued to think that in the long run things will be like they were in the past.

In tangible terms peakoil.com helped save my retirement portfolio as it led me to read in many new directions to better understand the financial mess we are in today.

[Ludi]

Gotten in a lot fewer fights on the internet.

[sittinguy]

my wife wouldn't think I was a doomer nut, I would be drinking alot less. I would have a second new motorcycle. I would still be watching star trek instead of cnbc. No silver, No cases of ammo, No food stored,,,, I'm gettin bummed out thinkin of all the money I spent.

[Iaato]

This is a great question. I wasn't going to respond, because I've known about peak oil for a long time, and it has been very formative for my character and behaviors. My first reaction to this question was that there was no way to separate out what was caused by PO knowledge.

On second thought, the knowledge that we are not going to grow forever has caused me to exhibit some serious LBYM behaviors that are only now bearing fruit.

If I had never heard of peak oil I would...

Looked at society without that peak oil lens, and I would have been less of a skeptic.
I might have gone on with that degree in Anthropology, instead of getting practical and cautious and snagging the degree in Nursing.
Have lived beyond my means in many ways, taking my cues from the culture at large. I'd probably be in debt up to my eyeballs.
I would have played the grasshopper instead of the ant.
I might not have made the decision to stay in Alaska--not sure.
I might have had another child, like Gato.

[I_Like_Plants]

Geez.... good thread.

OK I'd probably still be in Silicon Valley, and probably still gearing down because of the economic downturn, but I'd have more hopes for the place so I'd probably be doing my plan of putting stuff in a storage or small office and living in a van or even in the bushes for a bit. I'd probably be suckered into getting some kind of training in programming, since I'd still believe the future was in pushing buttons. And I'd be another $10 an hour tech worker like the rest of 'em over there, making barely enough for food and shelter but dreaming of the Bright Shiny Future.

As it was, I was getting tired of the long hours, high crime, and essentially 3rd world living conditions over in Silly-Con Valley and was already deciding that since the street musicians and such I was starting to hang out with were making better money than I was and having more fun doing it, that I might as well do that. So that's why I was taking music lessons, and hoping to gradually phase out the high tech bullshit and phase in playing at various places. The economic collapse has accelerated the death of high tech greatly though. Or the death of high tech has accelerated the economic collapse, not sure.

I guess even if I didn't know about PO I'd still be doing about the same thing.

[Evltre]

We'd probably be bankrupt about now....seriously! Our mortgage would have unfixed this year and we'd be paying an extra $800 a month on it if we hadn't sold before the market slowed down. Not to mention those credit cards we used to have I would have lost my job a year ago (company I was working for downsized dramatically due to US exchange rate and other economic issues) and I wouldn't have been able to get another with the same pay/benefits as there isn't much work in the line I used to do available here.

Now we live in the country, we work to live instead of living to work, I hang out at home with the kids and bake, garden, sew, knit and generally have a great time! Life is MUCH better....thank you PO

[Pops]

After reading Limits to Growth way back (and ignoring it for a year or two it to buy a few toys), I think we would have cashed out on the California RE Jackpot and moved to Missouri somewhere about the time we did.

One never knows tho…

[mekrob]

have become a Poli Sci Major and stayed a Catholic. *shivers*

[PrairieMule]

Four years ago I was really into kayaking. I would have dropped two grand on a 17' Dagger Halifax touring kayak. Flatwater kayaking is a relaxing and invigorating sport. I use paddle a lot and have "assisted" a grand total of four overconfident swimmers back to shore.

I have to many other things that have a higher priority now.

[RedStateGreen]

... I would still have my pantry stocked, but not as much as I do now.
I wouldn't have my blog, nor my garden, or fruit trees, or my rainwater harvesting set-up.
I would be less cynical about our country and government.
I wouldn't have met all you lovely people.

[Daculling]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('BigTex', '
')That sounds a little crazy, but anyone who has been camping knows that you typically return to civilization refreshed spiritually and more appreciative of all of the modern conveniences. If sleeping outside leaves you with a clearer head than sleeping in your king size bed in the master suite of a mcmansion, then perhaps that supports my thesis that something is out of whack with our society.

[eastbay]

... still be commuting 100 miles/ day to my old job in CA.

... not have seen a series of wonderful frozen waterfalls today.

... not own a 90 mpg scooter.

... not be driving a Civic.

... have the heater turned up to 70 instead of 60.

... not be into vegetable gardening.

... just maybe not have given Buddhism that second look.

... not have met so many awesome folk here at PO.com.

... still be making house payments.

... have my investments anywhere else but not in energy.

... still be riding a really fast motorcycle... really fast.

... maybe have wrecked that motorcycle.

[bonehead]

...be much happier.

[joeltrout]

have a lot more free time.

joeltrout