i have been doing thought experiments preparing for the possibility of societal restructuring, resulting from a disruption of energy supplies. ---if anything my plan, as i age, is to become like Froley in the film children of men----self-sufficent,bizzare, surrounded by my book and music collection, powered by solar panels, recovering water,trying to be honest to my beliefs in spite of the changes around me----i do believe that we still have a chance as a society but i'm not hopeful that our ruling class will allow anything to be done---..... therefore i am attempting to balance and prepare my own personal world--- to do what i can do---alone...the evidence i have read and studied seems too overwhelming on destructive consumption,climate change, population growth demands and the termination of this cycle with peak oil.... the leadership we have currently is too inept,too corrupt..to create balance. they will, of course, take care of members of their personal and economic strata and leave the rest of us on our own...i cannot help but logically support the belief structure that sometime within the next 5 years the world is going to change...my thoughts are that over the time period when leadership pretends everything will be ok..will be the last of times to prepare --i am going to try and quietly prepare...determined to develop a more self-sufficent life as i create or replace lifestyle forms,objects, techniques and attitudes--at home,at work and in my belief structures as i can, when i can, with technology and with hope....this will result in the new blog element of "planning for children of men times"...if i'm wrong in my evaluation then all i have done is organized, refined and made self-sufficent my life style...and there is nothing at all wrong with that---if i am right, well...

i wish there was more time in life...it seems as if i just became smart enough to actually do something at age 50, previously i was either incredibly stupid or incredibly immature, probably both....and now there does not seem to be enough time to materialize all the things i am capable of thinking about, working on and developing to an end.....not that life crisis stuff---i've done all of that crap at an early age...i've traveled the world...had enough adventures that i don't want additional ones----it's just that i am thinking more clearly than ever before in my life and i seem only now to have the ability to bring my thoughts, my plans, my concepts into form and substance....i'm not speaking of massive theories for helping the world--just being able to actually affect my own life and surroundings for a change...and that's enough---there is so much more to learn and experiment with---so many books i want to read---so much about the computer that i want to learn and put into usage---

I am currently reading several books---- "The Code Book" by Simon Singh (which i just finished) and "Brasyl" by Ian Macdonald (which i just started).
"The Code Book" is an interesting little read. It gives a brief overview of message incription throughout time from middle ages written communications to the ultra machines of World War two finishing up with modern computer orientated crypto operations…including quantum computer incription. My intent was to study the original methods of writing in code from the middle ages for personal usage in my notebooks--to have a sort of a, cut-rate leonardo kinda thing going on----i'm not sure if i have the discipline to carry through with this concept....but at least ways i now know how to construct something...

I was fascinated and absorbed when i read Macdonalds previous book, "river of gods" set in the India of the future. it was one of those books that a reader just wanted to continue and continue---on and on forever---but..... I just received "Brasyl" which is MacDonald’s new book. "Brasyl" takes place in three separate time periods in the nation Brazil’s history-- past, present and future. I have high hopes for "Brasyl" since "river of gods" was almost the perfect post-cyberpunk novel.
i also just received "the renewable energy handbook" by kemp. I have not started into this yet...i've browsed it and it actually seems readable--which is unusual in a 'how-to' book...i am going to crunch my way through this slowly so that i completely understand the basic concepts of everything presented...because basic knowledge is what i need in this subject area to carry out my plans for self-reliance. i'll update on this book as time goes on...

—I am back at the daily commute and the Prius is performing at overall greater than expected levels---I was hoping to break the 50 m.p.g.average commute barrier this week but--- New Mexico is a state of being where one can have a headwind on both the outbound and inbound leg of a daily commute—--- my goal of breaking the 50mpg line was stymied on 47.0 mpg for an average over 320 miles because of head winds this week. I have not however given up on getting 50+mpg---just delayed-----the last two records I made indicate that I averaged 48 and 49 miles per gallon per weekly commute, respectively and therefore my average dropped this recording period…..but---my ongoing average at this point is approximately 48 mpg-

I have been using my libretto in the prius as a recording system for gasoline costs, total mileage, long term mileage-- etc…just random bookkeeping that the prius on board computer does not keep a record of….i Placed a strip of male Velcro across the bottom of the mini-laptop to keep it in place on the transmission tunnel and it is working beautifully for this particular function. The internal battery keeps a charge well enough to allow for the required length between gas entries, and i have a wireless card in it in case i wish to bring it into a coffee shop and work the net on impulse....I was desperately seeking a method of putting this excellent little laptop to work…i'm so happy to have found a special purpose for it!

something i thought of just noting in the chronograph catagory--when i was working oversea's one of the reasons to buy cheap rolex knock-offs and wear them was that in an emergency they might get you by as a bribe or a way out of a problem.....so--we'd buy-em--wear--em and allow them to be taken---strange eh? but............

i've broken down and started bidding on an omega speedmaster, chronograph on ebay---i'm probably too cheap for this item even used but---the hunt is fun!

and with this i publish

As i've mentioned my wife and i have become attached to the Millennium series on DVD...neither of us owned a TV during the show's original broadcast run---in the first season dvd episodes Frank Black, the focal point of Millennium storyline wore what i believed to be a Citizen Dive watch of some model---at the time i thought this somewhat strange since Millennium and the X-FILES were both written & produced by Chris Carter. Mr. Carter in both shows, makes time,(and often combinations of numbers) a very specific and a very important element to the plot line and therefore the characters are always consulting a clock or their watch. Watches seem to be important in Carter's projects---Mulder- the central character in his show, the X-FILES (discussed in previous otaku watch blogs) wore a gold dress Omega wristwatch.....the choice of this particular Scuba diving watch for the Frank Black character never seemed correct to me, the character is a thinker--and it is interesting that now in the second broadcast year---(first shown in the episode "the curse of frank black")The Character, Frank Black is wearing, consulting & displaying for the camera a blackface, black leather banded, Omega Speedmaster chronograph. This is a much, much better choice for the character's personality, personal style and the texture of Millennium itself. I enjoy looking for a movie or tv character's watch, since as with real people the watch speaks much about the person--even if you are not a watch otaku the concept of matching personality to wristwatch is interesting nonetheless eh?

the british government has announced and advised it's citizens that they are planning on building additional nuclear power plants---the interesting element is the phraseology of "at this time there is no alternative". I applaud the total lack of GOV-speak since this announcement is basically saying: no matter what groups conduct protests, lobbying efforts, sit-ins--- what have you..that the construction of proposed nuclear plants will go ahead for the good of the nation........this is unique. The first government to advise their populace that nuclear power has got to happen and is in reality something that should have been worked into the power supply system for years..and this is Great Britain--home of north sea oil remember--- power supply problems now exist to the point that there is "no alternative" to nuclear energy for assisting standard producers of electricity...the french are actually in the best nuclear position for energy of any country at the moment...with 70 reactors producing 80% of the power demands within france..they at least are able to hold their own supply wise, probably with minor reductions, on a national basis. All french reactors are based on the same design and construction --there are no "one off" plants as is the case in the united states....so parts, testing, technicans,operations, plans etc... are interchangeable...smart guys eh? How you may ask can i be for alternative energy,and a saner world and still be a supporter of nuclear power?...i believe that nuclear power is the only viable alternative we have...that accidents have happened due to human stupidity and society has not been enabled to pursue nuclear power technology to it's logical result due to misaligned social interference....i believe that nuclear power production is mankind's only original power source that can support us into the future...combined with solar and wind power generation----nuclear energy may be the one hope for a future that's not a dim bulb...in more ways than one

my two week time off period is just about completed...i am usually extremely tough on myself about myself but this time i must even admit that i've gotten a large listing of items completed...and i feel better about myself having accomplished taskings at home ... it's just that often the world seems out of balance....that tasks at home due to the shorter nature of time there seemingly take forever to accomplish..that work at home is piecemeal and therefore difficult to focus and solve. This extended time frame at home, without demands....has allowed me to actually do constructive, creative work on my home...and my life. and with this i publish....

the absolute best thing to me about having this time off work is the ability to think. To run a complete concept through my brain without interruption...work confuses me...i think best when the process is 'natural'--a eureka moment, flowing like a small stream-- rather than an 'edison' style system of a machine hammering away at a problem or concept until it is solved. i believe that's the reason i make large, varied, to-do lists so that i can work on the project that i can accomplish the most on that day rather than forcing myself to work on a job that i realize i am not suited for at that particular time.....this appears to be the system that accomplishes the max, but this 'natural thinking man' process also requires the utmost free time to put into accurate effect.

i've just about completely finished restoring my land rover. Now this is a series three land rover---from the "i once had a farm in africa" land rover days, not the "look at me i am rich" land rover of today---I was driving it around town and it is remarkable how this vehicle makes passing drivers and pedestrians just, well just smile--it was extremely interesting to watch--of course the truck's (and my matching) age has a great deal to do with the smiling. i believe it is because it's a real truck--and there are no more real trucks...it's slow, economical (with a small 4 cylinder engine) very, very, very british looking and covered with my opinionated stickers for peace, tibet freedom,save the earth and so forth....it is nice to drive it about, remind people of another time and distant places, smiling back and waving...very strange.......

I have been reading "Bowling alone". it will probably rank out as a book which will have a tremendous impact on the way i think. Now i can't necessarily recommend it to everyone---most people glaze over at the sight of a single bar graph, there are pages and pages of them in bowling alone---but to me this book is incredibly interesting. Im not finished with it yet, but I'll still give it an A+ and recommend it if you like to think about society and where we might be headed and why------The basic question asked by "bowling alone" is why did society change at some point in the mid 1960's from social groups being very highly attended by private citizens---- to now where only 20 some% of americans are involved in any kind of private, outside of work group endeavor? This means all groups across all boundries---- political parties, PTA,Habitat for humanity, civic groups, reading groups, sewing circles, blahblahblah you name it---in the early 60's the graph lines for participation in anything outside of the home just went down,down, down......and have not yet stopped falling.....along with this decline, comes a decline in social capital between individual americans-----how we do business on a daily basis and how we interact as people. Putnam covers an incredible range of possibilities as to the why of it---- from generational attitude changes to television to increased work requirements to women in the workplace---the book advises that we are becoming a social state of reduced human contact, where "officals" must provide direction where agreement used to, very individualistic and fluid with others,and demonstrating a lack of overall purpose with large groups of individuals merely inhabiting the same physical location----but as i am reading this there is one issue i thought of that he has not covered yet...actually a very simple thing--- because americans used to do something, does not mean they actually liked doing it....for example peer pressure made americans of the 1930's and 1940's accept many,many social requirements, must do's, that my generation immediately blew off-----alot of things that were done previously due to the "man in the gray flannel suit syndrome" just because society overall agreed, does not imply that people wanted this item or thought process.... my great great great grandmother may not have wanted to attend the annual village festival in the old homeland, but if she did'nt show at the demanded,appointed time in the village square she may have been accused of witchcraft and had to go through that whole monty python, village judgement thing---about floating...or not floating? What we as a people may have done, does not indicate at all what we like, or want to do----interesting---

These the greatest---- Terraplana shoes...http://www.terraplana.com/home.aspx made of recycled materials including cargo ship container covers, recycled rubber & kelvar vests for soles...Terraplana has their own very, very interesting physical shoe design concept. I've written about these shoes previously...but they are so really very unique and...the most comfortable shoe i've ever had on my feet, in ordering a second pair i had to write about the company and the shoe again..people love commenting on them---a type of ninja elf,urban attack shoe.....i just ordered my second pair of terraplana's lace up's this time, in brown from http://www.zappos.com/n/p/p/7216571.html if you are into something different foot wise and want to put recycling into some kind of actual,viable useage, you need to look at this company and their shoes.. wearing my recycled shoes, driving my hybrid, i therefore publish..............