Tuesday, December 15, 2009





The US will add around 100 million so-called "super-emitters" in the next 40 years. 20-tons of carbon a year is what the average American adds to the atmosphere. So depressing.
I like to sit around and imagine the tipping points switching-off one after another like a set of dominoes. Eat my breakfast and fantasize about the apocalypse.

My friend Jen consoles me by saying that humans have always suffered throughout history. They die or adapt.

What are you going to do, you know? I've been trying to eat meat only once or twice a week. I'm getting up now to turn off some lights. Sigh.

What do you think?

28 comments:

harrietta henderson said...

Vegan? I am, and it's pretty much as carbon free as a diet gets, but what i really wanted to say is I LOVE your flowers, they are so delicate!

sarah said...

pretty sad alright. the funny thing is we kind of pretend it isn't happening!

Anonymous said...

i think that floor is gorgeous. that's what i think.

Anonymous said...

What are we going to do? Not an easy question to answer but I guess the first thing is to not buy in. As in don't buy cars, don't buy stuff, don't buy into the idea that we need so many things to either make us happy or to help us survive. The production of "stuff" costs so much, environmentally and otherwise. Heck, people cost so much. Why are we having children when so many in the world starve to death every day? I do not understand our choices.

However, it's 2:30 and I've had a few pints of beer, so what do I know.

Sincerely,

Another Sara

P.S. Your flower arrangements RULE.

What Possessed Me said...

The environment makes my head hurt. So does soy cheese.

kyli said...

I got a new pup (I guess at 1 1/2 she's not really a puppy) and (wastefully) leave the lights on so she doesn't eat the apartment while I'm gone. At least I don't want children, so I don't worry too much about the future beyond my generation.

laughtrack said...

learn to play fiddle.

--dhj

shellie said...

we should do what we can and are able to do and if one has kids teach them the same...thats what my parents did...i wish i could have those flowers though...thats what i want for the holiday!

Jo said...

In my own humble little opinion, I believe that the government is a much bigger worry than the carbon footprint of a steak. They are going to destroy us way before we destroy ourselves.

Liane said...

yah. it's a problem. i just heard no more polar ice caps in the summer starting in a couple years or something. jeezus. wtf. makes me want to throw up.
your flowers are pretty though.

Susan said...

see yesterday's ny times, front page, we're all going to be competing for water pretty soon...

don't mean to scare you more, Sarah...but Dad always said water would be the real issue.

We just do our best and keep going.

But...could we PLEASE stop buying plastic holiday blow up decorations for the front yard!?!....what a waste!

M.

Anonymous said...

i ride my bike, but still have a car. we can't be perfect but there's plenty we can do and hell if we all don't know it. this year I finally stopped eating meat.. for the animals, for my health and for the environment. way easier than I anticipated too.

If it wasn't for the insane Chile Relleno at Chavella's I would no doubt be vegan. My new years resolution is to be completely liberated from industrialized farmers. which, by the way, seriously influence government decisions.
That steak has more gravity than a carbon footprint. Just like my gallon of diesel effects more than air quality. it's all connected.

maybe make a resolution to liberate yourself from one thing, activity, habit, whatever.. that you know doesn't 'help' the situation. Trade it in for some peace of mind.

vanessa rutter said...

grow as much of my own food as possible, even if it means using other people's land. preserve or share what i can't eat...and compost! it's so easy and saves so much waste. i guess those are my biggest personal missions.

susan, i just don't understand how we justify things like NASA spending hundreds of millions of dollars on finding water on the moon when there are hundreds of millions of people here on earth without clean water to begin with...

btw, those floors are ridiculously beautiful.

Sarah Ryhanen said...

love your thoughts on this everyone...

i wish i could compost here in nyc in the winter it's near impossible unless you trek to Union Square with your bucket. tough...but not impossible i suppose.

Hummingbird said...

Flowers make me happy but yep the greed & need for more more more is depressing. Ditto with the NASA thing too - I often think about that. At the moment I'm reading a great book called Depletion and Abundance by Sharon Astyk (from your top of the world actually) & it is about cutting back & understanding this very thing (climate change, peak oil & other crises). A good, daunting but very interesting read!

sk said...

Sarah- what about worm composting? It's meant to be an indoor operation, and if you do it right there is NO SMELL! I'm sure you could find a use for those nutrient-rich worm castings in your shop...heck, you could even sell them as fertilizer to your customers with potted plants/gardens.
I think moving more towards eating locally and seasonally, as we seem to be doing, will help a lot with the carbon issues. That and making gas $10 a gallon!!!

Liane said...

what about vermicomposting, sarah? you can do that in an apartment. you like worms don't you? :) we are in the coutry so i have a couple compost piles outside but i may get a worm bucket for the cellar in the winter.

Liane said...

oh. dur. did not read comment before mine.

erin said...

i think thinking is scary. but necessary. so good. glad to read this post. gladder you tempered it with flowers.

Anonymous said...

I think the real problem is the irresponsible actions of industry not so much of individuals. we can eat less meat, use less water and energy simply for our own consciousness but it's important to point the finger at the industrial section- if we can't influence or manipulate that through policies then we have to through boycotting certain types of mass consumerism and media... that's where I am at now, but it's so depressing. indigenous people all over the world and other countries like the maldives are suffering from the actions of western world (mostly the u.s.)- it's important I think to just be conscious of the political decisions being made often without much attention, call them into question and try to make your actions reflect that? It's a tough one, just being one individual with other conflicts in life sadly makes it difficult to inspire change

vanessa rutter said...

worm composting rules!

sarah, if you're interested, you can get a small closed system for under your sink and it won't smell. the worms eat all of the organic matter up and leave the amazing fertilizer behind!

MargaretJ said...

Folks, global warming is a another hoax where we're all going to die...like avian flu, killer bees, Y2K, nuclear winter. Follow the $$ (incluing Al Gore's millions) and you'll discover the truth of all this.

count buckula said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
count buckula said...

re: NASA
Whether spending money on NASA is worth doing is personal and debatable. That said, the implication that eliminating NASA's budget could substantially solve other problems is misleading.

NASA is 0.5% of the federal budget, foreign aid is about 0.65%. Both are small compared to defense at 21%.

**

sarah with regards to your original post I think people are crazy. always have been, always will be. society has always been a mutual agreement and as such there's no reason to think it can't collapse. so just be prepared to adapt like jen says.

Anonymous said...

Still is a lot of meat, healthwise. I'm no vegetarian but meat=once a month for me.

We as a culture have too much stuff because of over production for profit. "They" all but force it into our homes and we're left with clutter and an uphill battle agains too much stuff.

I believe in Jesus AND I admire your arrangements.

Jen

Nick Heywood said...

We're all fucked, but I'll add praise to the heap and say your encaustic tilework is exquisite.

Pretty, most definitely recycled and clearly durable, as it still looks lovely after at least a hundred years ... these are the virtues to which we should aspire.

Nick Heywood said...

ps. Also, that dog looks heavenly, and reminds me of my own dearly departed Matthias when he was grown up:

http://www.nickhaus.com/2009/12/honest-scrap-award-10-things-i-like.html

Striking.

Anonymous said...

unique sbo
sbo เข้าไม่ได้bouquets, thrilling gift hampers, amazing fresh flowers, exclusive birthday