Ah the joys and challenges of rural life. I wasn’t overly worried when they said another atmospheric river was headed our way here in California a few weeks ago. Yeah, yeah, I thought. Been there. It’s just hype. Charge up the home power station batteries and get some firewood ready.
Challenging My Resiliency
And sure, the storm came and it didn’t seem like much–just a couple inches of rain, you know. Yes, the power went out. So, I turned on an LED light, got a puzzle, started a wood-fire, and gleaned whatever I could forage from the kitchen cabinets without opening the refrigerator. I had a cozy evening. But, the joke would be on me.
The wind picked up and started getting very expressive with some powerful gusts. I heard things falling over outside and stuff hitting the window panes. Hmmmm… maybe this really was a proper storm. Later I heard that wind gusts in the county to the south of us had reached 102mph. Gads! Isn’t that hurricane level?
I have a combination response to a storm–part excitement for the exquisite drama of Nature, and part anxiety that, I don’t know, the roof may blow off or a tree will fall on the house. (This actually happened to us when I was a teenager.) We’re in a mostly flat spot, so no danger of sliding off a cliff, although I suppose the whole house could sink into a massive gopher hole. 🙂 Nonetheless, I have to admit that the initial comfy feeling of hunkering down during a storm gets old for me after several hours without electricity, even with a back-up battery. It’s a good reminder how dependent I am–many of us are–on the conveniences of post-industrial life.
That storm left about 1.4 million customers in California without electricity. We were lucky that ours got restored in only 24 hours. I spoke to people later who were on their third day without electricity.
But the challenges to my resiliency went on
After that storm a few weeks ago, when the clouds cleared, I went out to see how the garden fared. All was intact (if waterlogged) in the veg patch, but to my horror, water was gushing out of the studio (a small, multi-purpose building where we dry lavender, for example). A water heater had blown up–or at least that is my unprofessional diagnosis–as water was streaming out of every orifice and pouring out of its enclosure like a waterfall and creating a river gorge through the garden path. I couldn’t even think what to do to stop it. I just stared at it for awhile, stumped. Luckily my internet had been restored by then so I googled it and found the shut-offs. 😉
Just for added fun, around the same time our septic tank alarm also went off. I swear it likes to do this at the most inconvenient time, like in the middle of the night. And so it did. The next morning the tank was pumped. Easy solve? Nope. There followed a cluster of other issues and, many days later, they still await resolution. Thankfully, the major drought we just went through here in California a few years ago taught me how to be very efficient with household water. I hope I’m not tempting fate to say that.
Though I’m managing OK, I’m not feeling particularly resilient at the moment. It’s all a good lesson, I suppose.
Climate change and adaptation
I think what has been wearing is having several dysfunctions going on at once or in rapid succession (and these weren’t even major upheavals in the scale of things). Which made me ponder the question, what about us humans, or animals, or plants, adapting to several climate change-related stressors at once? I guess we’ll find out.
I’m grateful for the other garden bloggers I follow who are also discussing energy efficiency, resiliency, ecology or climate change. I’m eager to see how Fred’s new plug-in solar panels work for him, and am enjoying This Simple Life’s nature journaling and inspiration about Citizen Science. Going Batty In Wales also just inspired me with one of the books she’s reading about climate adaptation.
Last years global temperature records were even more concerning than usual and the average ocean temperatures were shocking (BBC; Copernicus). If this were a marathon, it seems like the next several years is the time to sprint towards the goal–to do everything we can to reduce our carbon footprint.
Examples of impactful actions we can take
- choosing a “staycation” over airline travel–enjoy your garden or local nature spot!
- eating a more plant-based diet and reducing food waste
- switching to an 100% renewable energy provider
- switching appliances from methane (natural gas) to electricity if that is possible
- going peat-free in the garden
- avoid palm oil in products
- learn no-till gardening to keep carbon in the soil
- consider the impacts of our glorification of wealth
The richest 1 percent of the world’s population produced as much carbon pollution in 2019 than the five billion people who made up the poorest two-thirds of humanity….
These outsized emissions of the richest 1 percent will cause 1.3 million heat-related excess deaths, roughly equivalent to the population of Dublin, Ireland. Most of these deaths will occur between 2020 and 2030.
https://www.oxfam.org/en/press-releases/richest-1-emit-much-planet-heating-pollution-two-thirds-humanity
There are many actions, big and small that anyone can do. Everyone’s lives are different and we can customize what works for us. It can actually be fun and inspiring! The young people of today will likely see large impacts in their lifetimes. That’s why I’m trying to do more — for them and for the animals and plants, for all of the amazing creation that we are part of.
For a really easy-to-use, empowering and educational way to take action, I like the Earth Hero app. Or, if you are not an app person, visit the UN’s Climate page Act Now. For a deeper dive while still being very readable, I like the book Drawdown, edited by Paul Hawken. To see the updated table of actions rated by impact, visit their website here. (Note: I couldn’t get their sort feature to work until I agreed to the privacy policy.)
Do what you can, then chill out
It can be easy to get overwhelmed and worried about it all and I’m not sure that helps anyone or anything. My feeling is: we can only do what we can do, and how that plays out isn’t really in our hands.
Meditation and the garden are the best de-stressors for me. Both seem to welcome me out of mental concerns and into the aliveness that is, that we are. And that’s peace right there.
Inspired by the Japanese practice of shinrin-yoku, or “forest bathing,” forest therapy is a guided outdoor healing practice. Unlike a hike or guided nature walk aimed at identifying trees or birds, forest therapy relies on trained guides, who set a deliberately slow pace and invite people to experience the pleasures of nature through all of their senses. It encourages people to be present in the body, enjoying the sensation of being alive and deriving profound benefits from the relationship between ourselves and the rest of the natural world.
https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/can-forest-therapy-enhance-health-and-well-being-2020052919948
So, even on a soggy, slog of a day, the garden is full of wonder:
I always love seeing what’s going on in everyone else’s garden or your nature explorations. I usually manage to sit down and read through posts about once or twice a month, and hope you gardening bloggers that I follow forgive me for replying late sometimes. For those who post daily or many times a week, I try to keep up, but that’s a harder task with all that is on my plate. Thank you to those who follow me here and give me encouragement. Occasionally I bump into an acquaintance or friend, or even a stranger, who tells me how much they enjoy these posts. That makes me so happy.
Inspiring each other–I’d love to hear what any of you do to enjoy life when your power is out, especially in the evenings! I do puzzles, using an LED light powered by a backup battery. 🙂 Take care, all of you! -lisa
Visit The-Compulsive-Gardener.com garden blog — a chat over the garden fence
I know I’m way late commenting on this post, Lisa, but I hope the problems caused by too much rain, wind, and a malfunctioning septic tank have been solved in the meantime. And that you are still deriving pleasure, strength, and hope from your miraculous garden.
Best,
Tanja
Thank you for your kind wishes, Tanja! Yes, thankfully, things have settled down somewhat. Whew! And, I never mind a reply that comes later. I do that myself because how could I be an actual gardener and spend all my time at the computer? So, I catch up periodically and so completely understand when others do the same. And that’s what I’m up to this weekend. 🙂
For everything there is a season. 🙂
Thank you so much Lisa. Just read your blog and as usual Im glad to give myself time to have a good ol’ read! Thoroughly enjoyed your adventures with the sky river! …And picturing your lovely garden.Though not comfortable so helpful to hear of your issues and their resolution.
After a super hot and humid summer (no droughts and fires as previously forecast at the beginning of spring here, in Oz!) Im surrounded by wetness and very long grass but enjoying the masses of bees that come in the evening to the tiny grass flowers that have been allowed to flourish for once. The variety of frogs are delightful in the dam and we had the privilege of watching cicadas coming out of their shell with fluid filling their pearlescent wings as we watched! Stunning!
Thanks so much for your climate support suggestions too Lisa. I find them very inspiring.
Hi Sue! Great to hear from you! I like your term “sky river”–a poetic image I shall keep in my minds pocket. How delightful about your frogs and the cicadas and the new grass flowers! There is such an intimacy with the garden that happens when we are with it over many seasons, yes? And we participate as part of nature and nudge some growth one way or another… like a dance we do along with, and as, the trees, the plants, the creatures big and small–all of it. This dance with and as nature is such a joy. I’m saying this to you because I think you get it. 🙂 Love to you and bountiful wishes! lisa
Dear Lisa, what a story and what experiences you have had.
These are circumstances that we do not experience in the Netherlands.
At least not yet…..!
Not yet, because we are also dealing with the consequences of climate change.
What I, and many others with me, am increasingly concerned about is the water.
The Netherlands, as you know, is below the sea level and due to warming this level is rising, but our country is not.
Moreover, we also receive more and more water from our neighboring countries (such as Germany, France and Belgium).
This is due to more rain and more fast ice.
In short, we also do as much as possible to prevent worse, but this is not always easy.
We enjoy what the day brings and fortunately that is quite a lot.
Good luck with your wonderful hobby,
Greeting,
Hans
Hi Hans! Thanks for mentioning the climate change issue of the Netherlands and rising water. That’s a big one! I remember you referring to that in one of your recent posts. I think it’s important to talk about these things. I notice that in my circles, we often talk about politics and world events, but rarely discuss climate change. I don’t know why.
I always enjoy your exquisite nature photography, and use Google Translate to read your posts. What a good attitude: “We enjoy what the day brings and fortunately that is quite a lot.”
Here too we had this atmospheric river such were the words spoken by the specialists. Lots of rain and wind gusts (in my area around 100 km/h ), but my solar panels resisted! You will be able to get some news this morning in my new post. I really liked the photo of droplets on the cobweb and those of the lichens.
Oh goodness! Glad your solar panels came through OK. I just saw that you posted about them…will be reading later today to hear the update!! RE the lichens and cobweb–sometimes it’s such a trip to notice the tiny lifeforms going on all around us, right?! Thanks for reading and commenting Fred. 🙂 -lisa
Thanks for this post. It’s given me food for blog post thought. I’ve missed opportunities of such challenges when blogging from my personal pov because I feel often feel I’m preaching to the converted. However, your post reminds me of the relevance of sharing our circumstances.
Hi! Thanks for reading and for your comment. I like your inquiry about this. Yes, I personally like it when people share their circumstances, as I often can learn something from them, and it also feels like a connection–in our communal ways of adapting. I need to get over to your blog and catch up! Thanks commenting here which has served as a reminder! Gratitude, lisa
Thanks for the “Do what you can, then chill out.” quote… I needed that. And I think the blog post I’m trying to write does to. I’ll ascribe it to you.
Thank you for the mention Lisa. I always like to have a plan for when the sh*t hits the fan (as the saying goes) – food I can eat without needing to open the fridge or freezer, a back-up heat source (my woodstove which will also heat food) a wind-up torch as well as the rechargeable one and plenty of candles, books and yarn to crochet or knit to keep me occupied. But perhaps the most important thing is to have good neighbours who will have the things I don’t have, will check I am OK and give me a bed for the night or a lift to Hospital if I need it. Being resilient for myself is important but so is being part of a supportive community.
These are excellent suggestions for resiliency! Thank you. Very good point about being part of a supportive community. Just now, we noticed a large tree has just fallen over part of the garden, breaking a deer fence I’d just put up and about to snap some important fruit trees. So, the drama goes on. I’m just now re-reading your chainsaw safety recommendations you mentioned in a comment on one of your recent posts, and getting some safety gear for myself. The tree care place we usually call is busy for several weeks, even for just a bid, so I’m going to have to handle some of this myself, and am grateful for your tips. Thx! -lisa
You are very welcome. I’m sorry to hear about the damage the fallen tree is causing. The more jobs we can do for ourselves the better. Even if we then choose to pay someone else to do them it is not out of necessity and we can. if needs be, tackle them straight away.
Quite right, as you say. Better to be able to do them ourselves. I don’t know about where you live, but in my area, it seems like there are fewer and fewer people doing blue collar jobs. Perhaps it’s the continually rising housing prices. Or maybe it’s the aging population. In any case, it’s harder and harder to find assistance with physical work. And it’s very expensive (but I support people getting paid well for hard work). But we can’t always afford it. It seems like, despite the fact that we are getting older and having some physical limitations, that we are doing more and more very physical work. On the other hand, it’s liberating and empowering. So, as of today, I now own a (small) electric chainsaw! And safety wear is on the way, as per your suggestions. Thanks for helping me with this and being the example! -lisa
I am finding the same issue with getting help Lisa. I live in SW Wales UK – a very rural area. The builder I used to use has retired, the electrician has gone full time onto solar panel installation with a friend. Where I am lucky is having very helpful neighbours including one who manages a farm but can also do small jobs for me if he can find time. And I have a cabin in the garden which was originally a home office but I had done up as a living space. A younger (mid 30s) woman laura lives there and instead of paying rent she helps me 2 days a week. Recently a friend of hers, also 30ish moved into what used to be the garage and does 1 day a week plus the cost of her utilities. But I still work hard! I tell myself that it is good for me – use it or lose it! Good luck with all your efforts.
How interesting that finding assistance there is also challenging. How lovely that you have helpful neighbors. And, you’ve created a good way to have some on-property help too. Yes, I can tell from your posts how hard you work! You are a good example and I feel encouraged. Thanks!
I hope things have sorted themselves out now but I have always found that these domestic trials do not arrive singly and muliple appliances have a habit of breaking down together. At least you have your lovely garden as solace and I do appreciate the gems that you pass on in your blog. Amelia
Right? Do appliances talk to each other and plan these revolts? 😉 Thanks for your sweet comment. Hope all is going well in your garden Amelia. I love reading your blog about your garden and your bees.
An excellent post! Not travelling so much is so important! I know what a hypocrite I am after working abroad for a lot of my life, but now I know better and stay close to home.
We have to stop consuming travel like it is a right and think more about the effect such travel has on fragile environment.
Hi Cathy, Thank you so much! I’m glad you liked it. Yes, air travel is a big issue and I don’t hear people talk about it much, which surprises me. You described it well. There are surely some trips that aren’t necessary to fly, where a person could choose to travel by train, travel by electric vehicle, or stay closer to home, or just fly much less often. With the pandemic getting everyone familiar to online meetings, I hope that business air travel has diminished greatly. I like what you said about thinking more about the effect such travel has on a fragile environment. So well said. I like connecting with people from around the world here, for a bit of armchair travel, as it were. 🙂 Thanks again for commenting. -lisa
Another wonderful and inspiring post, Lisa ~ thanks for sharing your experiences and thoughts. Thanks, too, for the mention! I find so much comfort and hope in being part of a community of like-minded bloggers, all different and scattered across the globe but with a shared love of nature and deep concerns about the future. I love tapping into others’ ideas because often even the smallest suggestion can lead to positive (often life-changing) action and I’d rather be doing something than nothing. I agree totally that there is still much healing and peace to be found through spending time with nature, we are no good to anyone if we run ourselves ragged with anxiety. Your photos are very beautiful and perfectly convey the atmosphere of your garden in this season. I hope you have managed to solve all your problems now, it is what we Brits call ‘Sod’s Law’ when things go wrong, especially several at a time. Building resilience is something I feel very passionate about and I believe everyone in first world societies will need to do so increasingly: when we rely on others to supply all our needs (food, water, energy, shelter, clothing, medicine . . . ) we become completely vulnerable when those supply chains fail. As rural folk, we have always made sure our home offers alternatives to a complete reliance on electricity so we have woodstoves for warmth, cooking and heating water and keep a supply of good candles to hand. Western society is obsessed with daily shower and bath routines but I’m happy with a stand up soap-and-flannel ‘bath’ using a kettle heated on the stove at the best of times . . . if we can make shifts in our lives to simpler ways, we automatically become more resilient. The biggest problem for us with a prolonged power outage is the freezer, we dry and bottle as much of our produce as we can but still freeze the bulk so we have a generator for emergencies. We don’t have a television so we are used to having quiet evenings entertaining ourselves reading, doing puzzles, playing music or various wool-related handicrafts. A simple life, maybe, but a happy one ! 😊
Hi Lis! I love this comment. So many valuable contributions. Yes, I love that we all have a community of like-minded, nature-loving bloggers around the world! Ah yes, Sod’s Law… I’ve heard that phrase in some of my favorite Brit shows. 🙂 Our issues are still ongoing but making slight progress. I’m with you on the bathing routine. I’m also being very creative with other hygiene, shall we say. 😉 I like what you said about you’d rather be doing something than nothing. I know there are so many feelings about climate change, and I can relate to the one that says it’s too late, that small individual actions don’t make a difference. But I feel that just doing them has a kind of internal empowerment energy. And maybe that little spark of energy has an impact in some important way on the whole. In any case, it just feels good. And talking about it with other kind, like-minded people feels good too. I love sharing, getting inspired, and learning from one another.
You are a good example about your entertainment not being TV based. Part of me wishes I would do that. But, I do love watching shows from around the world when I’m relaxing. I guess the draw for me is, as an introverted home-body that rarely goes anywhere, I do like the stimulation of, say, a good detective show, with scenery from various places in the world and other languages. I am mixing in more audio books though. I can listen to those while watering my houseplants or crocheting or sewing.
You present a good question about the freezer and the need for a generator during outages. Most people in our area also use generators when the power goes out. It’s a difficult conundrum.
I love a simple, happy life and enjoy reading your blog Lis!
When I lived in the US, power outages from storms were a seasonal occurrence. Whether from tornados in the north, or hurricanes in the south, destruction from wind and water increased the further south I lived in the country. An outage of three weeks from a hurricane has been my longest duration without power/hot water. Service restoration was slow.
Having lived more than 10 years in Finland, I think the power has flickered three times and been out for at most 30 minutes.
Hurricanes inspire you. A full gamut of emotional and physical outpouring ensues. Whether it’s hours or days of man vs nature psyche hype, or getting gritty with heavy plywood sheathing, eventually a sort of manic panic to PREPARE takes over.
After all the preparation, the intensity, anxiety and anticipation of what is coming next is overwhelming, and quite exhausting. And unfortunately, depending upon how quickly your preparations are in place before the storm actually arrives, you then have to just sit idly by and WAIT. At about the moment when the wind and rain starts to really get your whiskers up is when you start to question how well you prepared. Maybe you didn’t lash something down, or bring it into the garage, or did you latch that gate, or shut that window. So begins a swirl of nervous tension as you realize it’s too late to do anything about anything. Staring out through the sheathing gaps covering your windows, trying to see what’s coming for you. –Human:Prey::Nature:Beast –Fun times. Not a great time for games of any kind. Sleep was impossible with the increasing voracity of howling wind. Combined with the overall sense of urgency that you cannot relax or let your guard down for a second. Wind that never ceased to surprise with tones of screeching terror, for hours never-ending. At some point, while staring wide-eyed at the ceiling, you might actually see your ceiling and walls ‘breathing’ from the air pressure. Others have gotten the full effect, and watched in horror as the roof just flies away.
Hopefully, no trees have fallen on your humble abode, nor have any of the power cables, and god-forbid, the electrical transformer box been too close to anything flammable when it undoubtedly explodes in a fireball in your backyard. You can hear them systematically exploding all over town, one by one, as they succumb to the forces of nature.
Then the storm eye arrives, bringing luscious rays of sunshine and a cease to the wind and rain. It’s glorious. A true DAWNING – in a sense, a beatification. Everything is cast in a strange light. Poking your head out to survey the damage and also to affirm, to however is watching, that you’ve made it…is both a wonderful and a pretty short-lived euphoria. Because now you get to relive all the horror again as the backside of the eye wall draws nearer. Strap in. Still a very long time until this nightmare is over.
As I lived only 100m from the ocean, storm surge was a real and present danger in any hurricane. Which is amped up with the category rating. Between the wind, and the rain, the fires, the outages, sheer destruction and total devastation, for me hurricanes are the ultimate worst.
Were we unlucky or is there a greater message to be learned as after this storm and life seemed just be eking towards something resembling normalcy when another storm hit the coast again. Back-to-back hurricanes. https://www.noaa.gov/stories/4-hurricanes-in-6-weeks-it-happened-to-one-state-in-2004
P.S. we love puzzles too. Our current one is 6000 pieces. Our usual size is 3500. We’ve been working this big one since mid-December. It currently resides on a full sheet of plywood sitting in our living room!
Hi Kate! I responded to this amazing comment yesterday, but it seems to have disappeared, so I’ll do it again. Your description of living through a hurricane is AMAZING! I was on the edge of my seat reading it, like the climax part of a great book. Wow. I’m going to read that several times. That must have been intense! And no power for 3 weeks. I bet you learned some great skills during that time. And that’s an interesting note that in Finland, you’ve never lost power for more than 30 minutes. Why is that do you think? I grew up in the tornado zone of the U.S. and though there were many that occurred nearby, during which we had to shelter in the basement, luckily I never had to live through one.
6000 piece puzzle?! I didn’t know they even made ones that large. I would love to see a photo of it and your setup if you want to add it to one of your blog posts. I don’t have room for that but wish I did! That would be so fun! Thanks so much for reading and commenting. I always love hearing from you and reading your posts from the beautiful garden you have created in Finland. Warmly, lisa