I have posted before about my interest in Peak Oil and how it will impact fuel prices and the flow on effect for basically every product on the planet.

Yesterday I really FELT it!

When I was driving the 7.5 km to work I noticed that the fuel price at the United fuel station was $136.7 ( for the green fuel that I use) while across the road at the Coles Service Station it was $1.47. I suddenly remembered hearing on the ABC news the night before that fuel prices were meant to go to $1.50 for Easter and that fuel had hit a $108 US a barrel. I also remembered that this particular fuel station was often the last one to put up their prices.

I did a quick U -Turn and filled the car up, at the same time calling and texting everyone I thought would be interested to fill up before the price hike. I note that earlier in the week the price had already jumped 9 cents a litre.

So… I filled up my car ($70 gulp~!!) and hubbie filled up his ( $120 ~gulp gulp!!!). Sure enough, on the way home I noticed that it was $1.47. That is a TWENTY CENT LEAP IN SEVEN DAYS !!!!

At present, I budget $30 for my car and $20 for hubbies car a week ( just dropped hubbie’s from $30) I can tell you that $20 at this rate is just JZZZZZTTTTTTT click ! ( meaning it takes NO time at all before you hit 20 bucks !

So….. what to do. I could walk or ride to work… but it’s always about time. Hubbie walked to town today to pick up his new pushbike because he had ridden the other one into the ground, literally, the axel broke beyond repair and he already rebuilt it once. It took him one hour and 10 minutes. I just don’t have that at the start and end of each day. In a couple of weeks it will be dark when I walk home and there are sections that are just road, with no houses and no street lights. I live in a little town, outside a bigger regional centre. He rode the bike home which took about 20 minutes ( he is much fitter than I am. It would probably take me 45mins)

I could ride my bike, something I would really aspire to do. Logistically this is messy. I am a professional. I wear suits. Can I scrunch the suit into a backpack ? Can I shower at work ? Can I cart make – up? Can I do my hair at work ? I know, I know. Dump the societal expectations and not wear make up and don’t do your hair. Unfortunately, the clothes maketh the man in my game, or should I say, the suit, hair and make up maketh the woman in a man’s world ! LOL

Hmmmmm…… thoughts anyone ? ?

I have always loved the idea of ‘being prepared’ as you know, but I have a certain amount of complacency. After all, I tell myself, we don’ t live in a hurricane area, nor a flood area and I often think that I should probably be ready in case the small airport we are close to ever has a terrorist attack or we are evacuated because of an explosive threat, but then I get side tracked and it goes back on the ‘ must do one day ‘ list.

Now my thinking has changed, and no, I am not burying weapons in the backyard or building bomb shelters. I don’t know what the disaster is that I am preparing for which greatly changes the way I prepare.

The biggest disaster we all face is personal. It could be that the breadwinner becomes ill and is no longer able to support the family, it could be a dramatic change is your small business, it could be that family member becomes ill and requires a full time carer. Sometimes you could never have seen the ‘disaster’ coming.
Hubbie and I were talking about this recently with the horse flu virus that has invaded our state. It has meant that all racing has been shut down and no horses are to be transported. I didn’t think too much of it at first, but it had now stretched on and the flow on affects must be terrible. What if you were the man who worked behind the bar at racing events, what if you bake bread for the canteen, what if your charity group runs the coffee stand at the local pony club. The flow on effects are enormous.
My point is….. we never know when disaster will strike, so we always need to be ready. Disaster may be on a large scale like a flood, hurricane, power outage or it could be on a personal level, like losing your job. It may be an instantaneous event or it may be a slow steady change.

Rhonda from Down to Earth recently wrote about the ABC interview she heard on the subject of peak oil http://www.abc.net.au/rn/lifematters/stories/2007/2028694.htm If you tune in, the story starts about half way through this audio programme.
We may not notice the changes too much at first. As they say, drop a frog into boiling water and it will jump out. Drop a frog into cold water and slowly increase the temperature and it stays there, oblivious to the danger, until it is cooked. The moral is be responsive to gradual change.
But wait…… what if I’m wrong ! What if peak oil is a myth, what if climate change is a myth…. what if I make all these positive changes for nothing ? LOL If I’m wrong, we have made our selves healthier wealthier and wiser for nothing ! ( read sarcasm) The reality is that you are a winner, whichever way it goes.
So, on a practical level, how do we make these changes. After all, not all of us are lucky enough to retire to the coast on acreage with just ourselves and our partner (like the lady in the ABC story). Some of us have to still educate our children, pay off houses, work to put food on the table and build a future. So we need practical advice. Stay tuned…. and send this site address to your friends and family so that we can create a network of support, for simple ideas that families can implement easily.

It’s now around three months since we had our family meeting and set down our ideas for our own family eco-challenge. Here is a summary of what we originally wrote down and how we are going.

1. Energy
a) Turn off lights when not in use DOING
b) turn off appliances at the wall – SOME – could improve here
c) Have shorter showers – DOING
d) install energy efficient light bulbs DONE THROUGH WHOLE HOUSE
e) use re-chargeable batteries – not doing this – but minimised use of battery operated things
2. Water
a) shorter showers and water saving showerheads – got flow inhibitors
b) catch cold water when waiting for hot to come through – use this to fill water bottle and kettle – DOING
c) wash up in the small sink DOING
d) flush when necessary DOING ( giggle)
e) install water tanks – not done yet – on list after current reno finished
3. Transport
a) Ride bikes to school and work – H and kids ride to school – I haven’t started riding to work yet as still too dark on way home
b) Limit trips to town – by planning and grouping trips DOING
c) Get Dad to ride motorbike to town for smaller items/ errands DOING
d) Walk DOING
e) Find cheaper fuel, drive more economically DOING
4. Garbage
a) Compost Food Scraps DOING
b) Stop Getting Plastic Bags DOING ( although still have trouble with smaller bags from time to time)
c) Buy items with less packaging TRYING – this one is REALLY hard
5. Consumption
a) Don’t buy unnecessary things DOING – we have cut right back !
b) Work on a cash budget LOVE DOING THIS
c) Use things sparingly- DOING – e.g. less toothpaste on the brush etc
d) Do instead of buy – make it yourself. DOING – lots of cooking.

Overall I think that we are really progressing well as a family. The considerable drop in water usage reflects the changes we are making.
There is always room for improvement. I would still LOVE to be able to ride to work. I will have to do a test run to see if I can make the 7.5 km and how long it will take me.

We have just had an energy assessment through the Enviro Saver programme. This is a free assessment of energy and water usage. During the assessment they change all your light globes over to energy efficient ones and fit water saving shower heads or flow restrictors. They can also give advice about rain water tanks and solar water heaters etc. We already had a few energy efficient bulbs in, but they changed an extra 11 lights for us.
This programme is free because it generated carbon credits which companies then buy. I am looking forward to the savings and will keep you posted.
Check out the site to see if they are working in your area yet ( aussies only sorry). www.envirosaver.com.au