A peek of peak

by **Aaron** » Thu 24 Jun 2004, 11:07:00

Big thunderstorms down here in Southern Texas today.

I just now came back on-line after a power outage... and it got me thinking.

The lights flickered for a moment, and the power was gone. "Great, Oil really has peaked, and now I'm screwed," I chuckled.

No lights, no TV, no computer, & slowly rotting food in the fridge. And very quiet. Only the storm could be heard. No commercial jingles, or incoming mail... nothing.

I looked around my home at the valuable stuff I have worked so hard to acquire, now a useless pile of expensive paperweights. All the sleek black units, and clever computer devices, even my big TV sat mute, in an almost deafening roar of silence.

I'd make some breakfast, but the microwave and electric stove won't work. No bother... I'll grill some steaks on my barbecue grill and all is well. A little charcoal and lighter fluid, and poof! I'm on my way. Breakfast is served.

So I'm crouched over my grill, listening to the sounds of the storm across the lake when it hits me. This image of myself, huddled around a burning pile of coal, grilling raw meat as the storm rages all around me. The street lights are off. I hear sirens in the distance. No news... No phone... I forgot to get gas yesterday, but now the pumps won't run. Up & down the coast where we live, no lights burn, no music plays. People wait in anticipation for the power to return. No one stirs.

I went from techno-crusader, to coal burning savage in about 1 second flat.

How unique and insignificant, and strange and precious this life we live. Balanced on a knife's edge between two such extremes.

"I once had a dream; but that dream is now gone from me."

And then the lights came on...

http://members.home.nl/peakoil/ · by **Aldert** » Thu 24 Jun 2004, 11:22:33

Great story Aaron...

it's these moments when we start fully appreciating our electric grid and realise how utterly dependent we are.

by **MadScientist** » Thu 24 Jun 2004, 11:52:14

Great story

You can shut off your power at the breaker anytime for practice. Its good for getting you into ActiOn

http://www.peakoil.com/postt213.html

by **hymalaia** » Thu 24 Jun 2004, 13:04:59

Yeah but you need to put it on some kinda random timer. Don't think that's possible, but in the real world, we won't know just when to say "peak time baby!"

The other thing is that while the lights can go out any time, they will almost always come back on. By the time they don't, we'll be a bit more used to living without them then we are today. Maybe not that much, but our decent into the post-oil age is likely not to happen overnight.

by **Barbara** » Thu 24 Jun 2004, 15:59:19

Aaron!
It happened to me this morning!
And know what? I've found myself thanking God for the gas stove and for the old wired telephone I saved somewhere. I could cook and call... wonderful! LOL!
But... nothing more. Everything was off, and I thought "I saved a lot of useful stuff in the PC, and now I can't even read it"!

by **Licho** » Thu 24 Jun 2004, 16:12:39

It's a nice story, but we really don't face peak "electric power" :-)

Just peak oil..
Power grid will be ok :-)

by **Philbiker** » Thu 24 Jun 2004, 16:29:51

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', 'I')t's a nice story, but we really don't face peak "electric power" Just peak oil..
Power grid will be ok

by **Licho** » Thu 24 Jun 2004, 16:38:22

Ahh.. not really, coal is mined with electricity (it's really not safe to run combustion engine in mine filled with methane :-)

and usually transported with trains, so peak oil is really not so big problem for electricity generation ..

by **Guest** » Thu 24 Jun 2004, 16:54:10

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('Licho', 'I')t's a nice story, but we really don't face peak "electric power" :-)

Just peak oil..
Power grid will be ok :-)

by **Aaron** » Thu 24 Jun 2004, 17:10:43

lol

I knew I could count on Licho to derail my post (he he).

If you think I posted that to show peak electricity... you missed it.

It's the economic hit from serious oil depletion which is the problem. Maybe there will be a functioning electric grid. And maybe I can afford that service & maybe not.

by **Matt Savinar** » Thu 24 Jun 2004, 17:47:02

Don't worry, Aaron, technology will solve the problem of blackouts.
After all, whoever comes up with a solution for blackouts would become a gazillionaire! That's the beuaty of captialism, don't you know?

If only the enviromentalists would get out of the way, the market could have solved the problem and you wouldn't have had to deal with that nasty situation this morning.

Matt

by **Specop_007** » Sun 31 Oct 2004, 10:10:14

Look into an alcohol stove. Least you can get some water boilin and heat some food. For the truly thrifty, you can make an at home alcohol stove out of 2 soda cans. Google Pepsi stove or soda can alcohol stove or some such adn you'll get the instructions. You can also buy "professional" versions as well. Made for lightweight backpacking, but an excellent little resource to keep in the closet for just those occasions.

by **Specop_007** » Sun 31 Oct 2004, 10:23:01

Forgot to add, look into a Lightwave 3000/4000. Its a flashlight, not the brightest out there but it has a runtime of 1 month. (720 hours actual advertised).
While obviously its of minimal use if the power grid fails forver, it will keep you with some light at night in a power outage, even of extended duration. Cost is about 50 bucks or so.

http://flashlightreviews.com/reviews/lightwave_4000.htm

by **dmtu** » Sun 31 Oct 2004, 15:00:08

When I lived in Ely, NV we had a storm that knocked out the main sub station for the whole community. Ely is one of the most isolated communities in the lower 48 states, about 3.5 hours from anywhere. You can imagine the consternation of tourist as they lined up for gas in this shitty little town, along with the huge sucking sound at the few local hotels and motels where people had to lodge to wait out the artificially imposed gas shortage. It wasn't long before the local gas stations got the news that this was going to take a while, and with the help of electricians with a few generators in tow, the gas was flowing again. As for the locals that didn't own a gas station, we were relegated to living without power for about 72 hours. Outside of the first Iraq war it was probably the most surreal experience I have ever had. There was no fast food, you couldn't see to shop in the grocery stores, no electric range. My only modern convenience was the gas water heater and tap water.

by **Specop_007** » Mon 01 Nov 2004, 02:34:37

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('dmtu', 'W')hen I lived in Ely, NV we had a storm that knocked out the main sub station for the whole community. Ely is one of the most isolated communities in the lower 48 states, about 3.5 hours from anywhere. You can imagine the consternation of tourist as they lined up for gas in this shitty little town, along with the huge sucking sound at the few local hotels and motels where people had to lodge to wait out the artificially imposed gas shortage. It wasn't long before the local gas stations got the news that this was going to take a while, and with the help of electricians with a few generators in tow, the gas was flowing again. As for the locals that didn't own a gas station, we were relegated to living without power for about 72 hours. Outside of the first Iraq war it was probably the most surreal experience I have ever had. There was no fast food, you couldn't see to shop in the grocery stores, no electric range. My only modern convenience was the gas water heater and tap water.

by **ararboin** » Mon 01 Nov 2004, 22:46:16

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', 'O')utside of the first Iraq war it was probably the most surreal experience I have ever had.

A peek of peak

A peek of peak

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