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Radical homemakers

By April 22, 2013
cozykitchen

Confucius said that the health of a nation could be determined by the integrity of its homes. If we apply that standard, we’re in trouble. Culturally, most Americans don’t even have homes anymore. They have houses, not homes. Homes are something that are made, not bought. And, homes, thus, require homemakers. That’s right, plural: homemakers. I'm not talking about just women. And, I'm not talking about Ozzie and Harriet stereotypical housewives. I am talking about what Dr. Shannon … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Arts, Books, Re-skilling Tagged With: , , , , , ,

Climate change: Obama needs to turn talk into action

By December 5, 2012
OSAKABIKE19

Something's been troubling me ever since I listened to President Obama's first post-reëlection press conference. Perhaps as a result of Hurricane Sandy, the now two-term president was finally asked a question about global warming, a topic conveniently avoided by both sides throughout the seemingly interminable campaign. The question came from New York Times White House correspondent Mark Lander: "What specifically do you plan to do in a second term to tackle the issue of climate … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Climate Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

Everyman’s journey

By November 15, 2012
Pilgrim couple

We're re-running this popular piece from the first year of Transition Voice. Pilgrim's Progress: From This World to That Which Is To Come A Survival Sampler "So, can I ask you a personal question? What do YOU call this whole thing, whatever it is, that's gonna happen?"  I posed this to a man I had just met and who happens to be the largest supplier on the East Coast of long-term food storage and survival items.  He had just given us a tour, complete with samples of dehydrated applesauce … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Spirit Tagged With: , ,

A blanket on every chair

By November 7, 2012
Beg Bicycles Blanket

Time was when Americans used to be frugal. We took great pride in not being wasteful, and taking nothing for granted. Perhaps our pioneering roots and turns into economic depression left a lasting impression on us concerning the relationship between effort and reward. Perhaps that alone caused us to consider more deeply the cost of things — whether with our own labor, or in paying for things from others. But as the 20th century proceeded, and fossil fuels drove production, everything … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Conservation, Energy Tagged With: , ,

Ten low-tech responses to storms and emergencies

By October 30, 2012
Woman on bike in rain

We live in a world dependent on electricity and we forget that being dependent on something — however wonderful that thing is — makes you vulnerable. Even getting a back-up generator isn't a painless solution for household resilience. A medium-size generator can cost $50 or more per day in fuel to run. And just hope that your local gas stations don't lose power or sell out to panic buyers before you get there. In the long run, generators are dependent on fossil fuel inputs and fossil … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Conservation, Energy Tagged With: , , , ,

Getting my pilot’s license

By October 24, 2012
A Letterpress Bike

Ever since we first got together my husband and I have talked about how to respond to one of our key shared interests — peak oil. For us this means, first of all, a conservation-minded approach to life — using less energy, wasting less, and relying on reusable materials such as hankies and eco-cups, carrying our own grocery bags, and growing much of our own food and cooking it ourselves. But after we began to practice aggressive conservation approaches we also wondered what kinds of … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Transition Tagged With: , , , , , ,

Homemade Halloween

By October 18, 2012
costumes

We're running this piece from 2010 again in celebration of the upcoming Halloween. One of my worst parenting memories happened when I took my daughters trick-or-treating on the vaunted Lawn of the University of Virginia campus one year. The girls were about six and four at the time, and the picturesque associations of the annual UVa. Halloween tradition conjured up by friends made it sound incomparable to other activities. This was easy: show up around 4:30pm and go by Lawn dorms to … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Small World Tagged With: , , , , , ,

Yes, you can brew kombucha

By September 5, 2012
Kombucha brewing

I live a pretty spartan existence. Our family doesn't live high on the hog, always out shopping or dining at the most expensive places. We don't vacation much, and when we do, it's all about going local — Virginia inns, wineries, and natural and historic sites. Basically, I'm pretty frugal, do many things DIY style, and otherwise am so into conservation that I don't want to buy much anyway. But I have to confess to what was a serious addiction to GT Dave's Synergy raw … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Arts, Food, Re-skilling Tagged With: , , , , ,

Fruit pickin’

By August 21, 2012
Peaches

The idea of eating locally and in-season just makes sense. Foods that grow locally are produced in the very same environment in which we're nested. Thus it’s quite likely that they contain the essential micro-nutrients which, quite naturally, work well for us. The “in-season” concept, in fact, makes more and more sense when we start to really study nature. Think about it: in the spring, after a long winter’s nap, Mother Nature cranks out voluminous amounts of milk and eggs — … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Arts, Food Tagged With: , , , , , ,

The time for action

By July 5, 2012
Clothes pins

I don’t meet many people these days who still think that “things are fine” with the US economy — or that “recovery is right around the corner." The light-bulbs are coming on for people and they're beginning to realize that the current state of affairs is, as David Wann says, The New Normal. The Emperor really has no clothes. We’ve consumed our way past peak resources and the descent has begun. On the other hand, I don’t meet many people who do much more about this than merely … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Economy, Re-skilling, Transition Tagged With: , , , , , ,