Rethinking Lifestyle

According to a recent survey, 78% of Canadians know their driving has a negative environmental impact, but they are not likely to give up their vehicles even when they could easily use other forms of transportation.

Recently I was reading a book written in the 1950s but set in the 1980s. The author was imagining the political situation 30 years into his future.

I recently became aware of an old word that is rarely used these days. The word is “chrematistics”. It refers to the art of getting rich; of accumulating wealth.

Friends of mine were engaged in an argument on social media about drink bottles and the merits of reusing a PET (polyethylene terephthalate) single use plastic bottle you bought bottled water in versus recycling it.

If you’re worried about the environment, it can be frustrating to be around people who aren’t. Even among friends and family, the fate of the next and all future generations can be treated like a pet topic or hobby.

Readers may recall my recent article about resilience and the huge personal debts most people seem to have. Manitoba Hydro has taken on huge debts as well such that it is having difficulty servicing those debts and as a result Hydro says it will need to raise rates.

An acorn when it’s born wants to be an oaken tree, though oft this drive is met with scorn and is not always meant to be.

The fuel that drove economies in the 19th century was mostly coal. In the 20th century it was oil. What will it be in the 21st century?

Remember the winds of the May long weekend? I was driving east across the province, near Gladstone, and found myself almost unable to see my way through a dust storm.

The pioneers that populated Canada were resilient and self-sufficient people. They had to make all their own bread at a time before dehydrated fast acting commercial yeast was available, so they took a small quantity of starter with them.