It’s official. Our first annual preparedness fair will be held at the Village on Sewanee Creek Commons, villager homes and gardens and our nature preserve on July 23-24, 2010. Call in advance to reserve a campsite or exhibitor space.
See the attached printable
flyer for details. Preparedness Fair Flyer
See you here!
We keep pushing the envelope, learning how to live independently. I love the sense of freedom and peace of mind that gives me. Water and food were our first focus. That foundation is feeling pretty solid now.
Our next focus has been energy. We have been seriously researching lots of alternatives for reliable, low cost electricity generation. Most people think of solar PV, wind and, to a lesser extent, micro-hydro for green power. But there are problems with each.
Solar Photo Voltaics are expensive. The costs are beginning to come down, but aren’t there yet. Probably won’t be for some time. I want to power my house without bankrupting the occupants. And I don’t want to have to sacrifice so much on consumption that I give up all the conveniences. Then there are the cloudy days, requiring big battery backup. PV cost per KWh is just way too high.
Wind is nice. Lots of new innovations, especially with vertical axis turbines. They are primarily designed to make wind power acceptable in an urban environment by putting the turbine close to the ground. But that’s where there isn’t much wind. Oh, well. We’re rural, so that’s no advantage. Wind’s disadvantage for me? You need really strong, consistent wind to produce a lot of electricity – like on the plains of Nebraska. We are on a plateau at 2,000 feet with nice breezes, but not gale force winds. We could still do it, but would need multiple windmills to make enough electricity for our needs. Again, the costs become too high relative to the output. Plus, you only get electricity when the wind blows.
Then there’s hydro power. It’s the lowest cost per KWh alternative, but you need either a big river or a perennial creek with lots of head (drop in elevation). We have the latter, but flow varies a lot depending on recent rainfall. Summer flow isn’t enough.
It all comes down to cost and continuous reliability.
We discovered a little-known, low-cost, low-tech and proven alternative. It’s called wood gasification. Surprisingly, over a million cars in Europe were powered with wood during World War II when gas was short. Unlike the other green power sources, we have an abundance of fast growing, renewable, free wood here. So, we are installing a system that converts wood into a gas that can run an internal combustion engine with plenty of horse power to drive a generator. We can run it any time, in any season, independent of the weather. And, best news of all, the cost is competitive with the big utilities on a cost per KWh basis.
The founder of the company that has brought this technology into the 21st century will be here a week from next Saturday installing our new system. Give me a call if you would like to see it or any of our other self-sufficiency systems in action.
While there is some really good news happening at grass-roots levels with thinking people, there is plenty to be concerned about and to prepare for. I always try to stay positive in my communications. Sometimes, that is only possible because I’m feeling well prepared and getting more independent every day.
Prepared for what? Read the articles in the link below.
http://www.lifeaftertheoilcrash.net/BreakingNews.html
So, how have I prepared? My private website, “the friends of Sewanee Creek” chronicles that preparation over the past two years. A long time ago, on our forum, I outlined what I consider to be the key elements of preparedness.
Recently I was told by a prospective Villager that what attracted him to the Village is our “authentic” marketing. I think anyone who visits and witnesses how we have focused our resources will plainly see that our interests are in sustainability over green window-dressing. That’s intentional.
We want neighbors who are intelligent, aware, resourceful and ready to contribute within a community that is ready to roll up their shirtsleeves and create real value – together. I don’t think that happens with slick marketing that glosses over the challenges with an appeal to a cushy, yuppie-luxury lifestyle. We have found from experience that our marketing message doesn’t appeal to the masses whose primary objective is ease and comfort and are in denial about what has already happened in our world. That’s a good thing.
Authentic? You bet. Here’s what my family have accomplished over the past two years:
I started with the absolute essentials to sustain life.
1. WATER:
Secured an independent and renewable water supply using rain water catchment.
2. FOOD:
Secured our independent year-round food supply. We set up an intensive garden, improved the soil, began organic composting, implemented a renewable, independent irrigation system, planted, worked and learned how. Built rabbit hutches and began raising rabbits. Bottom line, we raised about 80% of what we ate this summer in addition to canning and preserving a substantial amount for the winter. We are now completing a greenhouse, roughly twice the size of our garden. This winter, our objective is to learn how to raise all the food we need to sustain our family year round.
3. SHELTER:
Built a comfortable, sustainable home right-sized for our needs that incorporates passive solar heating, good insulation, multiple redundant heat sources and potable, independent water supply.
4. FINANCIAL INDEPENDENCE:
Financially secured our home and personal land and all personal assets, free and clear of all debt. Paid off all bank debt on personal property.
5. ENERGY / TRANSPORTATION
Secured renewable transportation. Purchased an all-electric plug-in vehicle that provides adequate transportation between our home and Tracy City.
6. ENERGY / HEAT & ELECTRICITY
Planning to build and implement low-cost renewable, energy solutions for home and greenhouse heat and electricity generation.
7. COMMUNITY / EXTENDED FAMILY:
Educated my extended family about impending failures of global finance, energy and food supply, social disintegration and opportunities of sustainable living. This resulted in a commitment to gathering of family and co-investment in renewable assets and permaculture living.
8. COMMUNITY / THE MOUNTAIN:
Developed relationships with resourceful people who live a sustainable life style in the larger community to provide opportunities for trade of skills, information and other critical resources.
9. COMMUNITY / THE VILLAGE:
Planned, developed and facilitated government planning approvals for the Village. Built key facilities to promote Villager interaction and appreciation of natural assets – the amphitheater, community garden and trails.
Reduced costs on property and slashed prices to attract the right kind of self-sufficient, independent and responsible people to our community at the lowest possible, sustainable cost.
My family and I are at peace with our preparedness and action plans for the future. It has taken more than two years of concentrated effort to achieve that. Most days if you visit, you will find my wife and I personally on the land working with our own hands, learning, building and growing. It’s a big change in lifestyle from that of a senior executive. It is not without its challenges, but we love it. We have a sense of personal connection and accomplishment with what we are building, not to mention the thrill of living in close connection with the beauty and rhythms of nature.
Are you comfortable about your future? If you are one of the intelligent, resourceful and aware people, not in denial, ready to go to work, aware that it will take time, work and the help of other like-minded people, but confident of your own ability and drive to live sustainably, please don’t delay another day. The time to prepare is now.
Having made the transition, having done it, we can confidently help you make the transition too.
One of the great advantages of living in an intentional community like the village is that you join with can-do people who, instead of just wringing their hands about world conditions, are actively engaged in solving problems. That’s a good feeling, you learn a lot and it’s fun.
Examples:
1. This summer, we lived about 80% on the food we grew in our garden and are planning to extend that winning streak through the winter with a green house.
2. We’re working on a green energy system that utilizes our unique local resources to power our home in the woods where wind and solar aren’t good options.
3. Our rain water collection system now gives us the option of living independent of public water. Our water is soft, pure without chemicals and free.
This week, confidence in our financial systems took a major hit with the Lehman Brothers bankruptcy, AIG bailout, stock market roller coaster ride, etc.
Here is a TED talk that gives us lots of reasons for optimism about the potential for future world stability on many levels, including financial, ecological, social, and geo-political.
Take a look at this video for an injection of optimism.
http://www.ted.com/index.php/talks/amory_lovins_on_winning_the_oil_endgame.html
PS: For those of you who don’t have the capital to tackle the world’s large-scale problems, but are not satisfied with sitting at the sidelines, join us in the village. We’re working on personal sustainability with some very encouraging results.
the Village on Sewanee Creek 