being human-powered

I still have that little dream inside me that longs to open up a human-powered shop somewhere like Charleston, that might sustain it... or maybe online... Where we would sell all locally made products like surfboards, SUPs, skateboards, bicycles, and kayaks; including related gear and t-shirts (etc) created by local artists. Products made for a lifestyle that embraces both recreation and utility, and a community that understands its importance. I have no clue as to how to have this shop actually make a profit, but know instinctively that it could by building active and involved communities around it. I can see the shop, events & marketing in my head so clearly, and know that this could be something amazing. I even know what I want to call it (but I'll keep that to myself for now) and who would work with me.

But where to begin? And where to get the money to start this? Thats always my problem. I want to jump right into the deep end, whoopin' & hollerin'. I just know that it can't be run on a normal business model, which puts the local craftsmen that create the beautiful products at a disadvantage. And I know that, while the ultimate goal is to make money, slow & sustained growth is always better than making a quick profit but over-reaching.

I've talked before about creating a sustainable life/community, so how does this play into that plan? Is there a plan; a method to the madness? At what point do I say, "that was just a dream of something fun to do"? Am I even capable of letting something go?

call me ishmael

So what? Maybe I AM a luddite? It's not that I don't love & need technology... I do! But I can't shake the feeling that the way things are going isn't going to last. I was listening to NPR today and there was a interview with the guy that wrote a series of essays called "Peak Everything". In it, he mentioned a scientific study from the late 70s which predicted that, given our (then) current pace of growth and consumption, industrialized society would collapse at some point in the mid-21st century. Right wing politicians scoffed and released a team of their own economists to prove that growth would never stop... essentially proving through clever manipulation of numbers, that we didn't live on a finite planet. Go figure.

So now I'm thinking: where the hell can we live & what can we do that will survive some sort of economic collapse, and what does that look like? Do I start a victory garden? Do I become an urban organic farmer, selling produce at local farmers' markets? Do I abandon commercial work and rehab an unused warehouse or commercial space to house workshops for local craftsmen and artisans, as well as a community farm? Or I could start a school that teaches people how to be self reliant; learning agricultural, wood & metal working, and other skills? Do we abandon large cities for smaller towns? Do we live off the grid altogether, eeking out a frontier existence?

And how the hell do I do any of that? I have next to no money. I'm not a farmer. My woodworking skills are rudimentary (metal working, non-existent) at best, and I'm trained as a visual artist. All I know is that there are choices which need to be made, and now is the time to make them. and I WANT to know how to do these things. I'm not sure what makes us want these things, but I know I'm not the only one. I want to be a responsible citizen in a sustainable society. I want to be able to farm, build furniture, fix an engine, shape a surfboard, hunt game, build a bicycle from scratch, eat/cook sustainably, create art, and all those myriad other things that I feel like will help me live fully as a human being, while at the same time embracing modern technology in a positive, helpful way. I'm tired of living with my fingers in my ears, ignoring the environmental, social, and economic problems mounting all around us... but here I am, lost in the wood.

Do I have the strength & courage to see this through? Do I do this alone? And can I step away from a life that has been made so easy, expedient, & comfortable, but not at all sustainable, before its too late for me? Can I set aside what dreams I have that involve living like we've been taught? And what does that mean? What does it look like? How does that change us, our community?

one foot out the door

As most of you out there know, I make my living as a commercial photographer. I love my work! I often have a hard time imagining doing anything else with my life. I find the creative challenges of this line of work very sustaining in a way. But something has been troubling me now for some time: is my line of work actually sustainable? Socially? Economically? Environmentally?

As a visual artist, I know that this medium has value. But looking at the commercial industry as a whole, I'm not so sure. We're throwing away our tools for the sake of expedience & creating work that has very little chance of surviving the test of time. We're buying what they're selling and we're not questioning it at all.

But this is probably just the tip of the iceberg for me...