Beautifully said. Thank you for articulating a posture which, if shared and expressed, would go some way to avoid being (saying it with you now), totally, irrevocably, and unequivocally fucked. Deep thinking, great writing.
This is a great piece. I feel so many in our generation see the fork in the road and the distance to the utopian destination where everything is fixed, then rather than just starting to walk the road they know they should walk down, they give up and doomscroll instead.
"Oh my god the Amazon is on fire ~ oh what a beautiful dog ~ those floods in Spain are horrendous..." Etc
I'm grateful to see another person who's putting one foot Infront of the other and joining the small bands walking down that fork in the road. As dougald talks about, that road will splinter into uncountable small paths that weave across the landscape, meet and join for a while and then splinter again.
We've been growing food 6 years now. First on an allotment in Nuneaton, then we moved to Kenilworth and could afford a garden with a decent sized veg patch. There are ups and downs, and so much to learn! But don't let failures get you down, the rewards are worth it!
If you're ever need to ask a question, or want some advice about gardening from a fellow adventurer, don't hesitate to DM me.
Digging the ‘no Doomer’ angle ID, and the two-sided ‘TIUF’ coin. :D
Per you “trying to create a better world” and “(building) a community to enjoy life” <Love those and the Cats> I want to share positives:
6 of our last 10 projects are redevelopment/repurposing (3 corporate campus conversions – 1 transit-oriented):
This is super cool!
1) Infrastructure, public services, and jobs are already in place and accessible.
2) We’re proposing the removal of loads of impervious (e.g., parking lots) improving groundwater recharge and attenuating issues lower in the watershed (e.g., flooding).
3) We’re NOT cutting down trees in the hinterland for ‘new build’.
4) We’re providing options to ‘commuting long distance from the hinterland’ to secure diversity of housing/more affordable housing.
Getting these designs approved and moving can take a looong time < I call it the ‘wall of wait’ and it does get me down > but I’m happy to be aligning with these projects, and hopeful the trend continues…
The housing crisis exacerbates the sustainability crisis. Long(er) commutes hurt community well-being on sooo many levels. Have ya’ll encountered the term ‘planetary polycrisis’ recently?? Solving it here on Finding Sanity. :)
Thank you for kindly sharing your struggles and finding meaningful ways forward. May we all…
I've been thinking a lot about learning to grow my own food now, despite never having grown more than a carrot top in my life. Following your not-totally-f***ed approach, when I daydream about the community I want to live in, it would have a walled garden. I think walled gardens are the way to go. If you think about it in pre-industrial times, there would be vagrants and vagabonds wondering around who would steal your carrots if they saw them, but if you've got a walled garden, they won't. Obviously if people with guns come after you, you're stuffed, but for anything less than that, a walled garden is definitely a major deterrent, and of course it keeps the rabbits off the lettuce.
I'm the same w/ my growing skills but i've just got a new allotment so wish me luck!!!
Haha! I see what you mean. I do like to think if we grew enough food it'd be ok if someone stole a little bit as I hope I have enough, but I'll have to see how I feel after i put al the effort into growing it. ;)
You should read up about crime in medieval England - I used to room with a history student 😆 Good luck with the allotment. And then of course there's the dilemma of whether to keep chickens or not....
Aww yay 🙌 happy for your shift. I’d love to see more folks land there. It’s worth creating a more beautiful life with the ones we love however we can. Excited for what will emerge within this new frame, Isabelle! 🕊️
A great piece, thank you. I wish more people expressed these feelings as we need to recognise them in each other so we can work together more easily. Keep at it!
Also thatch cats. MROW! Very fun 😹
😸
*purrs*
That cat roof is everything... enough to keep me sane for the moment!
We all need a cat roof in our lives. Another roof had a FOX on. :)
Stop it! That's amazing!!!!
i will get a photo for u next time :)
Beautifully said. Thank you for articulating a posture which, if shared and expressed, would go some way to avoid being (saying it with you now), totally, irrevocably, and unequivocally fucked. Deep thinking, great writing.
Hehehe! thank you Graeme. :)
May I recommend Jonathan Rowson on this subject. Find him on substack and Bluesky, he is brilliant
Thanks!! I'll check him out!!
This is a great piece. I feel so many in our generation see the fork in the road and the distance to the utopian destination where everything is fixed, then rather than just starting to walk the road they know they should walk down, they give up and doomscroll instead.
"Oh my god the Amazon is on fire ~ oh what a beautiful dog ~ those floods in Spain are horrendous..." Etc
I'm grateful to see another person who's putting one foot Infront of the other and joining the small bands walking down that fork in the road. As dougald talks about, that road will splinter into uncountable small paths that weave across the landscape, meet and join for a while and then splinter again.
We've been growing food 6 years now. First on an allotment in Nuneaton, then we moved to Kenilworth and could afford a garden with a decent sized veg patch. There are ups and downs, and so much to learn! But don't let failures get you down, the rewards are worth it!
If you're ever need to ask a question, or want some advice about gardening from a fellow adventurer, don't hesitate to DM me.
Love to hear your story, Gareth. Its lovely to know theres other out there trying, bracing for, and achieving this weird new life. :)
Thank you so much for this. I flow between this exact state and the “we are fucked” state. I so appreciate how you articulated this.
Thanks Jessi!! I am glad you found it helpful. :)
Digging the ‘no Doomer’ angle ID, and the two-sided ‘TIUF’ coin. :D
Per you “trying to create a better world” and “(building) a community to enjoy life” <Love those and the Cats> I want to share positives:
6 of our last 10 projects are redevelopment/repurposing (3 corporate campus conversions – 1 transit-oriented):
This is super cool!
1) Infrastructure, public services, and jobs are already in place and accessible.
2) We’re proposing the removal of loads of impervious (e.g., parking lots) improving groundwater recharge and attenuating issues lower in the watershed (e.g., flooding).
3) We’re NOT cutting down trees in the hinterland for ‘new build’.
4) We’re providing options to ‘commuting long distance from the hinterland’ to secure diversity of housing/more affordable housing.
Getting these designs approved and moving can take a looong time < I call it the ‘wall of wait’ and it does get me down > but I’m happy to be aligning with these projects, and hopeful the trend continues…
The housing crisis exacerbates the sustainability crisis. Long(er) commutes hurt community well-being on sooo many levels. Have ya’ll encountered the term ‘planetary polycrisis’ recently?? Solving it here on Finding Sanity. :)
Thank you for kindly sharing your struggles and finding meaningful ways forward. May we all…
LOVE to hear about the redevelopment/repurposing!! it's so important!!! The wall of wait! We're always bumping up against bureaucracy arent we?
Yes! Re: planetary polycrisis. Recently picked up Thinking in Systems by Donella Meadows and am eager to explore it deeper.
Thanks Sidney :)
Yes. And awesome! Just got 'Building Tomorrow' by Paddy Le Flufy - thanks for the reco - and an advance copy of 'The 15-Minute City' by Carlos Moreno.
Oooooh I love the 15 min city concept!! Youll have to fill me in
I've been thinking a lot about learning to grow my own food now, despite never having grown more than a carrot top in my life. Following your not-totally-f***ed approach, when I daydream about the community I want to live in, it would have a walled garden. I think walled gardens are the way to go. If you think about it in pre-industrial times, there would be vagrants and vagabonds wondering around who would steal your carrots if they saw them, but if you've got a walled garden, they won't. Obviously if people with guns come after you, you're stuffed, but for anything less than that, a walled garden is definitely a major deterrent, and of course it keeps the rabbits off the lettuce.
I'm the same w/ my growing skills but i've just got a new allotment so wish me luck!!!
Haha! I see what you mean. I do like to think if we grew enough food it'd be ok if someone stole a little bit as I hope I have enough, but I'll have to see how I feel after i put al the effort into growing it. ;)
You should read up about crime in medieval England - I used to room with a history student 😆 Good luck with the allotment. And then of course there's the dilemma of whether to keep chickens or not....
Haha! I think I do. Oh gosh don't get me started on trying to decide xD
Aww yay 🙌 happy for your shift. I’d love to see more folks land there. It’s worth creating a more beautiful life with the ones we love however we can. Excited for what will emerge within this new frame, Isabelle! 🕊️
Thanks Charles! I 100000% agree. :D
Wow that’s one hundred thousand percent. Did you just become an influence ripple of a thousand persons with this shift?
A great piece, thank you. I wish more people expressed these feelings as we need to recognise them in each other so we can work together more easily. Keep at it!
Thanks so much, Sue. 100% agree. :)