destabee | Sunday morning musings (potential disasters, hope versus fear, local foods

Today is a very good day and my brain is running high speed so apologies in advance for cluttering up your FL

Preparedness and potential crisis thoughts

In general my approach is to expect the best but prepare for the worst. I have following several debates about very big issues that could come to pass in the next few years (war with Iran, natural disasters, Bush dirty tricks that further threaten democracy, economic crisis, etc.) and others that may unfold over the next couple decades (climate change, oil shortages). When I lived in hurricane country, I understood how to be prepared for less than optimal outcomes; I am not sure anyone can truly prepare for the worst case scenario. I understand how to prepare for an ice storm or being stranded on the road in winter. For the bigger "what ifs" I am at a loss. If a pandemic was to spread throughout the US, I am in what I would predict would be a hot spot thanks to the proximity of Chicago and the flow of people back and forth from Chicago to the local communities where I live and work. Still trying to wrap my head around how one can prepare for a modern plague baffles me. I would hope that they would close campus if a serious problem developed. Would they close it in time to do any good? Who knows.

Setting aside the argument of how likely/unlikely a war with Iran or Bush postponing election might be, I ask myself what I would do if it did happen. However improbable it might seem, it is possible. I wonder what other people would do. Given my values and my history, I believe I would be among the first to take to the streets in protest. For me the question is how much am I willing to risk simply because it is the right thing to do. Physical safety -- that I will risk. Discomfort and inconvenience -- no problem. For me the question comes with could I risk doing things that might endanger my job and means of support. I honestly don't know. Spending non-teaching months in a Code Pink Camp or even jail, I would do. If there was a critical mass or I somehow believed I would have the forgiveness of administrators on campus those things could also happen during academic terms. I would pay the piper if it were a matter of being written up for missing a class or two. I would like to think that if push came to shove I would lose my job for what is right. I was willing to do that with Katrina relief operations. I suppose it says something about how much I like the job I have that I am unsure what I would do now. I ask myself would I say to an administrator here what I said to Sam at FSU (I have to do what I have to do; you have to do what you have to do. Just let me know if I don't have a job to come back to.) The bottom line at this point is that it would depend on what was happening and the local climate of response. I am not proud of that.

With regard to less politically charged potential crisis, I some how feel more vulnerable that I have at most points in the past. Part of it is lacking a local community. I know only a couple dozen people here and to be honest when it comes to practical knowledge I am near the top of the food chain among them. There is more to it though. Unfortunately what that more might be is unclear and until I figure it out I can't work to make corrections. At this point, I am unprepared for even relatively small scale situations (serious storms resulting in prolonged power outages). Part of my decluttering urge is to have spaced to be better organized and better prepared. The desire to decrease my vulnerability is also affecting how I look at my budget; paying down debt is becoming increasingly important to me. As an aside, have you ever noticed how unrealistic some of the preparedness is for apartment dwellers, singles, those with disabilities, etc.

Some of the longer term situations are harder to imagine because there are more unknowns. I currently drive twelve or so miles to campus (each way) and many of our students drive further. I would hope that at some point some mass transit systems/bike paths will be developed. For part of the year, I could bike back and forth to campus if there were shoulders or bike routes along highway 421. As things stand now it is possible but very, very dangerous.

I have no idea where I was headed with this but a link by

siliconshaman, the current issue of Backpacker magazine, reading Plenty and a dream last night has me thinking.

These thoughts have me asking myself why I am not doing more now to work for positive social change. These thoughts also have me considering the relative virtue of hope versus fear as motivating forces. I personally think that hope motivates far better than fear. What I hear missing from many discussions of the future is hope. Fear as a motivating force is reactive. Changing based on the avoidance the of negative consequences can result in positive changes but the experience of changing is likely to be experienced in terms of loss and deprivation.

Changes based on hope are proactive. They can also result in positive outcomes and have a much better chance of being positive experiences in and of themselves. (I should look up the research related to this topic it would be an interesting idea to flesh out in an article/essay (what I would do with said essay, I have no idea but it would be interesting and might lead to something useful). I wish I could find a way to construct classes built on positive motivation rather than avoidance of an undesired grade.

Local foods and fun in the kitchen. I don't do much that could be called cooking these days. However, this morning the nesting bug has hit and a cooking fool am I. I went to the kitchen to find something for breakfast/brunch. The next thing I knew I had a ummm . . . well let's just call it a frittata . . .( approximates one at least) in the oven and a crock pot filled with chicken and half a pheasant and assorted veggies stewing. These dishes were a combination of local goodness and use it before it goes bad ingredients. These two dishes will provide several lunches this week.

The fritta with some sauteed veggies left over for other uses (I'll be freezing most of this)
-- eggs (localish, cage-free, and organic fed chickens),
--a couple of zuichinni squash that needed to be used, they are from the Produce Tent (local farm sets up seasonal shop in a tent down the road from me)
--Creole Red garlic (one of 10 types I purchased from a local man at the market yesterday he is a September fixture at the European Market)
--Red bell pepper (also from the Produce Tent and in need of being used)
--Dried mushrooms (neither local nor organic :( )
--Broccolli (not local nor organic but needed to be used NOW)
--Basil, oregano, and thyme (from the containers on my deck)
--Tomatoes (from the containers around me deck)
--Cheese (organic but not local)
--Red onion (purchased at the Valpo farmer's market and supposedly local)

Crockpot includes
--chicken and 1/2 a pheasant bought from Farm Direct Meat folks and raised within the county where I live
--half a sweet potato that had a soft spot
--carrots and celery (not local but organic) that needed to be used
--local organic potatoes that were starting to sprout
--Red bell pepper (also from the Produce Tent and in need of being used)

later I'll add some fresh herbs from my deck

Next up is cooking up a head of local cabbage, garlic, fresh corn, another red pepper or two to freeze for making cabbage pies and eating as a side dish and cooking down some of my surplus of tomatoes for sauce or soup base