Category Archives: Journal

General Ramblings

Journal

… Sitting Around, Eating Bonbons All Day

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Three years ago, I applied for a civilian job with the Sheriff’s Department. I have not held a paying job since 2003. So, imagine my surprise when I was called for an interview!

I got all gussied up, went in, and had a wonderful time. I thought it went well but I really didn’t care because I enjoyed it. Then, I was called for my next round of interviews. To say I was shocked would be an understatement.

Unfortunately, these interviews did not go as well. They started out fine, then got confusing. On my resume, I listed my current occupation as caretaker. My duties are everything I do on the property:

Caretaker: Utilize Word, Outlook, PowerPoint, Zoom and Quickbooks daily. Maintain budget, and evaluate vendors, when required. Landscape design, implementation, and maintenance. Structural maintenance, such as replacing and reglazing window glass, repairing dry rot, repairing/replacing concrete and leveling structures. Designed, built, and painted outbuildings. Scraped, sanded and painted the interior and exterior of buildings. Safe operation of belt and orbital sanders, circular saws, reciprocation saw, impact drivers, air compressors, lawn mowers, rototillers, string trimmers, leaf blowers, Oxy-acetylene torch, welder/generator, chain saw, plus various hand tools from crescent wrenches to pickaxes.

I need to rewrite that up there but, as of the past two weeks, I can officially add plumbing!

I was called in for two follow-up interviews and a voice stress analyzer test. That was the first time I had taken any sort of lie detector test and was thrilled when I passed! The two interviews, on the other hand, did not go as well.

Both interviewers kept questioning my role as caretaker. This was when we lived with my in-laws, and despite what I wrote on my resume (and told them during the interview) they kept asking about my in-laws: how often do they go to the store and doctor appointments (and how many times do I drive them). When I told them rarely, one asked,

“Well, what do you do? Why are you there? Are you sitting around, eating bonbons all day?”

I had this knee-jerk reaction of offense that I stifled, and repeated all of the things I do. I was so frustrated! Why weren’t they understanding? What I didn’t realize until a few days later was those two interviewers mistook my position as caretaker for CAREGIVER! That isn’t what I was (yet). If I would have realized it during the interview, things may have gone differently. Who knows.

When I finally heard back from the Sheriff’s Department, I was not offered the job. I don’t know if it was due to the interviewers not recommending me, my sister-in-law not even responding to the interviewers, or if I had made a mistake on my job history (they required ALL of my past employment … I ordered my full job history report from the Social Security office and am waiting for that to arrive). I know it doesn’t help that the majority of businesses I have worked for have closed.

Despite the outcome, I am grateful. I am grateful that, without a continual job history, I was called in for multiple interviews. I am grateful that I have more time to tweak and fine tune my resume (and correct any mistakes I have made). I am grateful that, now that I do not have a full time job, I am able to put all of my time and focus on the necessary projects that need to turn this from a house we sleep in into our home.

Journal

What Is Yours To Do?

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This question is central to Gordon White’s teachings (of Rune Soup) , and something I ask myself every day when I am beginning to feel the weight of everything (from physical, real-world tasks to news headlines to all of this *waves my hands around in a circle*). Asking myself, “What is mine to do?” grounds me in a way nothing else has. This simple question centers me, draws me inward, and helps me focus on my true goals and desires.

I set some goals this year, and was doing pretty good. In March, I began slacking on them when some health news shook me. It set me back but I think I needed that time to just stop, think, regroup, and plan. That’s when I started (and finished, I hope) fixing my website. I went through every page, replaced pictures, fixed links, prettied up the recipes, deleted a ton of posts that did not need to be posts, and as of 4 hours ago, I am done! Having said that, if you see anything wrong, just let me know.

Then today, I repaired my ugly potato planter (I used wood that we had gotten free and it warped even more once water was introduced to its environment, so I put in some corner brackets), and removed some conduit that wasn’t being used by anyone but some carpenter bees (I still don’t know why they chose conduit over the abundant amount of wood). I cleaned up the mess (me AND the yard), then sat down here.

You see, Gordon White passed away. He was so much younger than me (he’ll always be 27 in my eyes) and his passing has left a gaping hole in my life. I didn’t realize just how many times throughout the day I thought about him until there were no more posts, stories, photos, observations, Buffy or Lord of the Rings references from him.

I have been a fan-girl of his for many moons (was amongst the first Rune Soup Premium Members), although most of his teachings flew right over my head in the beginning. To be brutally honest, some of them still do. However, I have learned that my learning style is “in my own time.” When I am ready to truly learn, something will click and then I am off to the races! I will eat and breathe nothing but that subject until I am dreaming about it. I absolutely love it when it happens!

I promise, there is a point to this post. I used to be completely obsessive about everything else going on in the world. EVERYTHING! I would be on the computer for 14 hours a day, reading this news story, or verifying that report. This took a toll on my health and my relationships with my children and husband. I slowly started pulling back and was almost living a “normal” life when I stumbled onto Gordon White. He helped me to see how a life can be lead while not hiding my head in the sand about all of the current events. I learned how to observe them without internalizing them. I learned how to control my knee-jerk reactions and overinflated ego: exactly how was I going to affect global crises?

Through Gordon White, and with the wider Rune Soup community, I learned to live in this tumultuous world without letting it consume me. I learned to take accountability for the things I was truly responsible for and learned what I truly had to ability to change. My focus became similar to the Jewish tradition of charity (Tzedakah (צְדָקָה): Charity starts with you, then your immediate family, then extended family, then local community, and ever widening from there. This charity doesn’t simply revolve around money. It’s so much more than that. It’s allowing your focus and attention (or intention) to be on something you can do to improve circumstances.

In other words, I learned what is mine to do. I learned that stressing or raging over current events was only feeding the energies surrounding those events, while depriving myself and my family of the simple, enjoyable things in life like an attentive mother and wife, real food to eat instead of fast food, general repairs around the house actually finished, plants thriving instead of barely surviving, healthier lives, happier lives, and that is all thanks to my favorite perpetually 27 year old wizard shaman friend (and our little RSPM Scooby gang).

Now, amongst all of the wars (and rumors of wars) out there currently, ask yourself:

What Is Mine To Do?

Journal

Transforming Our House into a Home: A Journey of Growth

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When I first started this website, it was to have an outlet for sharing the things I have learned. I wanted to share my triumphs and failures, all while being as brutally honest as I was comfortable being. This was also a way for me to share my wisdom (that may not come up in your typical conversation) with my children.

No one knows everything that has happened in our lives. Sharing ALL of our trials and tribulations always felt too much like complaining. I wanted to share HOW I got through them. This website, YouTube channel, and Instagram account have always been a way for me to get out of my own head and do something productive (and maybe have a little fun in the process). I wanted you (and me) to see that no matter what was happening in our lives, there were things we could do to either work out that tension (hand tilling an entire yard) or allow us to focus on something positive (cooking has always helped me).

Transitioning back into our house has been interesting. When we moved out, this was just a house we slept in (basically). We had no interest in changing much. Our main focus was making sure the roof didn’t cave in. However, this changed over the past two years (that’s when we moved back). We had to relearn what it means to be us: to learn who we are. It amazes me, still, that only two years in another living situation can transform your soul.

We are slowly learning we can say or do whatever we want without the constant question of “Will this offend/irritate/confuse any of them?” There is no longer a “them” in our lives. Choices/decisions were made and now, we can live our authentic selves. Before our decision to move, there was always the nagging question: What will we do if help is needed from us? Now, we know our help was offered and ultimately rejected. Neither of us have any regrets.

So, now what?

Our focus is on making this house our home. This will be a very slow process but we are taking it step by step. First, we worked on the yard (still so much we want to do with the backyard but that will have to wait). Inside the house, we have to do this before we can do that, so we can do the next thing. This house, no matter what we end up doing to it, is our home. I didn’t fix my health issues overnight and it will be the same with the repairs/updates to this 100 year old home. The majority of the things we are planning, we have never done on this scale but we are so excited! We will have so many new things to learn and I will do my best to bring you along for the ride.

Food Storage, Garden, Health And Wellness, Journal

Why I Chose Convenience Over Preparation in Life

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I made my first Substack post and who knows if I will make another one. I barely remember (or don’t know what to share) to post here.

So, here’s the link if you want to read it there, or just scroll down and read the pasted text here.

https://open.substack.com/pub/brendanolen587563/p/it-isnt-prepping-its-laziness?r=cg71s&utm_medium=ios

I used to be a prepper. I used to have a full inventory of everything we would need to survive whatever catastrophe could befall us. I live in California, so my disaster plans included drought, earthquakes, and flooding but mostly civil unrest. Then, through a mind shift that changed my focus from lack to plenty, I reverted back to my original way of thinking: I’m lazy.

I could use terms with a more positive connotation: frugal, thrifty, organized, budget-friendly, etc. I could pretend it’s for health reasons but that would be a lie. My base feeling towards all-things-storage is laziness.

I can’t stand leaving my house every day to purchase food or supplies. I can’t stand planning every meal months ahead of time so I know what I need for the future. I know people who shop every day for that night’s meal and it drives me crazy! They actually love it and I just don’t understand how!


Do you know what I love? Knowing that I can just walk over there and grab whatever I need off of the shelf without getting dressed and driving through “shouldn’t all of you be at work or something?” traffic. That was the only good thing about the Covid lockdowns: everyone was so paranoid that virtually no one was out shopping!

That’s why I grow food, too. It isn’t to control what goes into my body or to save money (because anyone who has grown food knows it is cheaper to buy a crate of tomatoes from Mexico than grow tomatoes while dealing with the “what is wrong with this plant now?” issues. I grow food so I only have to walk 10 feet to get food and only have to wear enough clothing to not scare the neighbors.
Technically, we are healthier. Before we moved back into our house (we lived with my in-laws for 2 ½ years), we ate out a lot (there simply was no room for us there). Since moving back and building up our supplies, we have lost weight, become stronger, and are so much happier. Whoever said laziness was a bad thing obviously didn’t know us!

Breakfast, Journal, Recipe

Easy Baked French Toast: The Perfect Breakfast Treat

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I have just posted my first video since we moved back to town. It’s quick and dirty (no tripods or proper lights) but to say we are happy with our move is an understatement. First, I will post the recipe and video. Then, I will give you a life update.

Print Recipe

Baked French Toast

Author: brendanolen Cuisine: Courses:
Difficulty: Beginner
Estimated Cost: $ 1

Description

A simple, busy-night, macro friendly French toast.

Ingredients

Instructions

  1. Slice your bread into one inch slices. Lay on a baking sheet and let dry out completely (one to three days, depending on your temperature and humidity).

  2. Oil your baking dish (spread with butter or spray with Pam). Place your dried bread in your baking dish.

  3. Crack your eggs into a bowl, add a little liquid and any other optional ingredients. Beat well, then pour as evenly as possible over each piece of bread. Cover and place in the refrigerator for an hour or two. Remove from refrigerator, flip your bread, ensuring each piece gets coated with the egg mixture. Cover and place back in your refrigerator until all of the egg mixture is absorbed (3 to 5 hours).

  4. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Remove your bread from the refrigerator, uncover, then place in the oven. Bake for 25 to 40 minutes.

Note

This is a highly adaptable recipe. You can make one to 20 slices of French toast at once. This is why my amounts are not specific. The most important factor is allowing one egg per slice of bread and adding your chosen liquid to help the egg absorb.

Keywords: breakfast, dinner, bake, French, toast

This year has been filled with so many endings (and beginnings) that I wouldn’t want to sit here and list them all. The most impactful were our decision to move back to town and the unexpected loss of my sister.

When I posted the last time, I did not anticipate the affect that would have on our lives. Yes, we were frustrated and felt like we were going in circles and had no options. Our situation (and a possible solution) were still coalescing, hadn’t quite completed, when I made that post. However, the reaction we got from the family was … we were gobsmacked. I’m pretty sure once my jaw dropped, it stayed there for a few weeks as the reactions kept getting worse (and more dramatic) by the day.

After looking at real estate prices, we came to the conclusion that we had no alternative but to move back to our house. That meant kicking my sons out, which took time. One decided New Jersey was the place to be (we are in California) and he’s making great progress there. The other moved in with his aunt until he can get some things taken care of and join my other son in New Jersey. He wasn’t able to make this move until July. So, for 7 months, our lives were very stressed. There were a few months solid that no one in the family would even acknowledge my existence (seriously, they would turn their head or look away if I tried to speak to them). I am grateful this was only my husband’s family and not mine.

During this prolonged death, we were dealt with the blow of my sister’s unexpected passing. In the grand scheme of things, it was gratefully quick but … she’s my big sister and it’s still (she passed May 22 of this year) just too raw.

I spent my time going through all of our belongings, packing, catching up on yard work at the house and getting it ready for us to move back in. We are still not officially all moved in but we are getting there. It will just take some time (we will be lucky to be able to clean out our cargo containers by the end of the year). We are actually fixing (not just coping with) our property.

When we were lucky enough to buy this house, we just lived here. There were so many things wrong/things we would love to change, but this was just a temporary place to live. Now? We are actively making this our home. We are repairing the garage floor, will be replacing the kitchen cabinets, will be tearing out some walls, installing new flooring, etc. We might even build a large shed/gym, too!

We are SO happy to be here and SO excited for our future together!

Journal, What I'm Doing Now

Two Years In: Lessons From Living With In-Laws

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In January of 2024, it will be 2 years since we moved in with my in-laws! It has been one wild roller coaster ride that seems to not be slowing down any time soon! I am unable, due to our current living condition, to be brutally explicit about everything but I just want to give an update on life.

Initially, my in-laws wanted to sell their property, buy a house closer to town, and have us live either with them or have a modular home built on the property for them. However, due to the high real estate prices (and low valuation of farm land), this was not financially feasible. So, we moved from a less-than-one-quarter-acre downtown house onto roughly 23 acres. We had such high hopes and plans!

We knew it would be a challenge, adjusting to living with other people after living alone for so long. We had no idea just how challenging it would be. You never really know someone until you live with them. I know this door swings both ways, since I am not an easy person to get along with, but I knew I could make it work. The main issue was there was no room for us here.

We moved from a roughly 800 sq. ft., 2 bedroom home with a garage to a bedroom. We were without any internet for almost a year, having the worst cell phone reception (I never understood the term “Internet Desert” until we move out here, and we only live two miles outside of the city limits). Despite a barn, there was no spare room for our things. “We’ll just get some cargo containers.” We bought two 20-foot cargo containers, yet we still have things at our old house (which is why I am truly thankful my sons are living there).

If this was one of those old homes in Utah, with two kitchens, that would help immensely. However, sharing a completely stocked kitchen (including refrigerator) with another family is difficult. We bought a second freezer … there still isn’t enough room. We have considered buying a mini-fridge and having that in our bedroom, but our space is already so limited.

As for my animals and farming, I had to give all of that up. Thankfully, my former neighbor bought my pheasants from me. My quail came out here and were fed to the land and air spirits (predators fed well for a week while we were moving). I am unable to farm because there are already plans in place for this area or that area.

We began this journey thinking we were finally going to have the space we needed and the ability to help wherever we could. Our hopes got raised, then shot down without a second thought. Now, we have notched that back to being merely caretakers. We are here to fix up the property, “getting it ready to sell.” There were so many projects my in-laws could not keep up with that we still have not completed. We are also here to take care of them if they need it (there have been two health scares that justify our move out here).

What have we learned from this experience so far?

  • We LOVE living alone
  • We LOVE having our own dog (they have two)
  • We LOVE cooking (we never realized how much we loved to cook until we could not)
  • We LOVE being able to plant whatever plants we want
  • We LOVE living in the country, on small country roads (this property borders a rather busy highway that used to be a small country road)
  • We LOVE having neighbors way over there
  • We LOVE raising animals that may end up on our table
  • We LOVE our drama-free life
  • And we still LOVE each other, through all that life has given us over these 25 years together.

Stay tuned for our next chapter, which will be a few years from now. Until then, I have a few other bits of my life to share (I am SO HAPPY to have decent internet)!

Health, Health And Wellness, Journal

Ivy Bromius’ Journey: Cancer and Spirituality

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Last year, I learned about a cancer diagnosis of an online friend. We (our little group) prayed and intended for her. After all of her treatments, she let us know she was cancer free. That was the extent of the information I was privy to. This year, I received my own scare. I had her email address ready for me to pick her brain. A week after I received my benign diagnosis, Ivy Bromius released, free for all (you do not even have to give her your email address), “The Cancer Grimoire – Magic on the Poison Path.”

Ivy’s Grimoire is beautifully written and she didn’t hold back, fearing her descriptions of what she went through would scare people away. I love, too, that no matter what your spirituality is, you can take the basic framework of her method and mold it into your spiritual path. After reading this grimoire, I realized this magical/spiritual journey could be applied to so many more maladies. Especially when you really look at what cancer is: it is you. Cancer is not some foreign invader that needs to be destroyed. Cancer is your body destroying itself. As much as I want to continue writing about Ivy’s process, my words will never do justice to hers. Here’s her first interview after the release of “The Cancer Grimoire“:

https://runesoup.com/2021/09/talking-health-crises-as-initiations-with-ivy-bromius/

And here is the link for Ivy Bromius’ “The Cancer Grimoire – Magic on the Poison Path.”

I encourage everyone to download this and read it.

Breakfast, Journal, Low Carb, Recipe

Basic Egg Loaf

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For those who don’t know, this is keto/low carb french toast! Today, I made french toast dippers in my corn stick cast iron pans (and they turned out better than I have ever made them).

This is one of the easiest recipes! It’s full fat cream cheese, eggs, and melted butter in a ratio is 2:2:1. That means it can easily be adjusted up or down!

Print Recipe

Basic Egg Loaf

Author: brendanolen Cuisine: Courses:
Difficulty: Beginner
Estimated Cost: $ 1

Ingredients

Instructions

  1. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F.

  2. Once all of the ingredients are at room temperature, place them all in a bowl and blend until smooth. You can use a Kitchen Aid, a food processor, a blender, a stick blender, etc.

  3. Pour into a greased baking dish (just about any will work: loaf pan, 13×9 casserole, muffin tins, etc.) and bake 30 to 45 minutes (or until brown).

Keywords: egg, keto, low,

Here’s the link to my meal prep containers:
https://amzn.to/31czIBI

Fitness, Health, Journal

Do Not Wait For The Middle Finger

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white haired man in jacket with watch
Photo by Life Of Pix on Pexels.com

Young ones (well, anyone younger than me, aka 50 and younger), please don’t be like me.

I treated my body like it was immortal: nothing I did or didn’t do would have a lasting effect. Despite the little things (which just kept building up) I felt when I turned 30 years old, I kept right on rolling, downing that Crunch Berry cereal while doing virtually no physical activity. The scale didn’t matter, how my body felt didn’t matter, all I cared about was what goody I was going to put in my mouth next to drown out my emotions. I told myself I didn’t care what anyone else thought and I didn’t. The problem was, I just didn’t care, period.

I only looked in the mirror with “tunnel vision”, seeing only my face to put on tons of makeup (to cover up my blotchy skin and apply contour to my double chin) and fix my highly damaged hair but never looking at my body. I cannot remember ever looking at my body just out of the shower.

The year I turned 42 years old, after YEARS of warning signs, was the year my body stuck up its middle finger at me and said, “I’m done”. Thankfully, I have never had high blood pressure or high cholesterol but I became allergic to just about everything, I got sick if anyone looked at me funny, and I was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes. Through diet and exercise over the past 8 years, I have reduced my A1C from 9.0 to 5.7 (my first ever fasting blood sugar was 400). I am very proud to officially no longer have type 2 diabetes and did it on my own.

Unfortunately, there is only so much proper (for me) diet and exercise can do after 42 years of neglect and abuse. Here is a partial list of the issues I am dealing with:

  • Allergy shots for the next 5 years
  • Gallbladder removal 7 months ago
  • Severe intestinal issues that were not resolved by removing the gallbladder. I am still undergoing testing to figure out what is causing this (upper endoscopy, MRI, so much blood work the technician knows me by name). Next will probably be scheduled for a colonoscopy (if none of the current tests reveal anything).
  • Just had a TIA (mini-stroke) in my eye last week. There was no permanent damage but this means more tests (went to the lab two days in a row this week and have 2 MRI scans next week), more doctors (in addition to my allergist, dermatologist, ophthalmologist, primary care, and gastroenterologist, I have an appointment with a neurologist and am waiting for a referral to a cardiologist) AND I had to stop exercising because that TIA could possibly lead to a full-blown stroke (can you say stress?).

To be brutally honest, I have no idea how much of what is still wrong with me could have been avoided if I had cared about myself earlier in life but now, I will never know. All I can do is hang on, say a few prayers, and do whatever I can to get through this so I can (once again) start over on my fitness journey. As soon as I am given some sort of clearance, I am hitting the weights and my neglected exercise bike (there will also be some digging in the yard going on, too, since I was not able to finish planting before this all happened).

So, you young whipper snappers, please. Take a good, hard look at your lifestyle. Take into account that you will not be in your 20’s forever. Our bodies age, whether we want them to or not. How old do you want to feel when you are 30, 40, or 50? Do you want to be able to do whatever you enjoy or would you prefer to get out of breath walking to the mail box? Do what is best (not easiest) for your health now so you do not end up like me.

Current Events, Goals, Journal

To Learn, You Must Do

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It’s rare when I am surprised by anything I read online. The last time I was truly shocked about anything in the public domain was when Trump won the Presidential election. Watching the election night coverage (yes, we watched all night) was true “shock and awe.” That was the best reality show we have ever watched and the reactions were priceless (and gloriously genuine). Virtually no one expected that outcome, especially me. I didn’t vote for Clinton or Trump. I can’t stand any of the Clintons but figured Hillary was going to win no matter who she was running against. See? “Shock and Awe.”

Most of the online election aftermath has caused my eyes to roll way too much. Both sides, with their diehard supporters who never really paid attention to what their candidates actually believed, just irritate me. As much as I love the MAGAs’ dread when they realize Trump isn’t the ultraconservative they assumed he was, I really loathe those Hillary supporters who assumed, because I did not support her (and definitely did not support Obama), that I was a Trump supporter. I knew some of these people for over 20 years, yet they lashed out at me like I had suggested someone needed to start drowning puppies. They chose to ignore the fact that I had never supported any of the chosen Republican candidates that ran against Obama in both elections. All logic and reason left their overly emotional brains and (from what I have seen) has never returned.

This has never been more evident than what has actually surprised me online: they are scared and talking about arming themselves and either advocating for (or anticipating) a civil war. I have even read some hoping for a military coup. It feels like a really bad episode of the Twilight Zone since this is the same talk I saw from ultra-conservatives when Obama was elected to office except then, the “fight” was to preserve the Constitution and now the “fight” is to dismantle it (despite the calls to arm themselves). They just aren’t thinking this through. Why would they want to give up control of their lives (and their right to protect their lives) to the very people they are protesting against?

This is new territory for me. I knew what to ignore when Obama was first elected as mostly grandstanding (or in my off-line words, idiots being keyboard commandos) but I don’t know this new crop of people. I am not sure how serious they are or are they just typing all of that to make others think they are serious.What I do know is there are too many people within society who do not understand that just because they think (or say) something doesn’t mean they will always win. These people also do not understand that with every loss, there is a lesson that can be learned if they are willing to remove emotion from the equation.

I do know that, outside of the anti-Trump groups, I have noticed an uptick in worry and a desire to begin preparing for … something. I am not sure exactly what the impetus to prepare is. I do not think it really matters. Whether people are preparing for some sort of civil war, civil unrest, disruption in the food chain, nuclear war, natural disasters, or any other imagined scenario, the path toward independence and security is the same:

To Learn Must Do

You can have all the books in the world but if you have never grown a tomato plant, you will never be able to grow all the fruits and vegetables you need to sustain your family. This also applies to splitting your own firewood or baking bread (you know, actually cooking) or sewing a shirt or repairing your appliances or any number of skills you think you will need to survive any of the disastrous scenarios people can imagine.

This also goes for life in general (which was the original intention of this post). If all you do is read books without putting into practice what you read, you have learned nothing. Online marketing, SEO optimization, building your email list, writing (and publishing) a book, improving your health, losing weight, increasing your strength … none of the knowledge you acquire from any book, course, or video will do you any good if you don’t physically DO anything!

So, where do you begin? Go through everything you have learned over the course of the last year and figure out what one activity you can do today, right now. Choose just one. Then tomorrow, choose another. Slowly build up until you are practicing what you were taught (and learning what will work and what won’t). Not everything you have been taught will lead you to your ultimate goal (or end up working the way you intended). So, you set aside those things that are not working for you and move onto another activity.

The most important thing to know is you cannot control everything. You will not get everything you think you want (or things will not go the way you have planned). This is called life. You either embrace that fact or you will end up just spinning around in circles, blaming others for life not going the way you intended.

Even if you believe that the climate changing is caused by humans, what can you really do about that? Can you, personally, eliminate all excess carbon emissions from the planet, allowing your tomatoes to grow better this year? No, and even if you could, what would happen if the climate didn’t change back? What if all the scientists who support human caused climate change are proven wrong? What would you do with your life then?

We all need to focus on what we can personally change: our sphere of influence. Plant a tree, get your yard equipment serviced so it burns fuel more efficiently, stop using so many weed killers or bug sprays, pick up the garbage on your street (then the next street, then your entire neighborhood), dig up your lawn and plant food, vote for a city councilperson who embraces your way of thinking, etc. These are the types of acts that will ultimately change the world, not blocking traffic or hiding in your house waiting for the end of the world.