I think slowing down is the best part of the new economy. If people can’t drive somewhere, or buy a house that they can’t afford, perhaps they’ll find something better to do with their time.
After six months in South America living day to day, our arrival was marred by the anxiety of being home, making lists, setting goals, making money, and what the hell were we going to do now? Did we change? Are we the same? What did we learn? Will life go back to “normal?” What is normal? Do we want normal?
The basis of modern society is the pursuit of a faster, better way to do everything. The premise is simple; if we can find faster ways to do things, we can do more things. Now, I will never argue that water spritzers, or a self-timing underground irrigation system for that matter, are not brilliant inventions. But somehow in the process we have exceeded the speed limit.
The weather, the ranch, my husband, Christian’s extended family, and the hard work oscillate between chaos and calm. We have come to Southern Patagonia to Estancia Rio Verde to slow down, simplify, to learn, to eat, and to understand our roots.
Here are some entertaining, inspirational January reads to help you determine what really is important in your life. They all jest at what’s gone crazy in the modern world while making practical recommendations for how to live life to it’s fullest without returning to the dark ages.
It’s with twenty years of experience multitasking and dealing with the ups and downs of the aforementioned JDD (job deficit disorder) that I embark on a mission to see if a making a living in a sustainable food society is really possible.
Thoughts that I might, along with Jed, have gone crazy entered my mind periodically. They were quickly brushed away by a firm belief that modern chemical agriculture is destroying the planet and there has to be a better way.