Today is a regular day working on the my building’s roof, charging my battery. At this moment in the sky I count 5 helicopters, 4 planes, and zero birds. There are almost always more planes and helicopters in view than birds here. Should there be more birds or planes and helicopters? As for sound, I hear, as I always do, my building’s heater/chiller for its heating and air conditioning making[…] Keep reading →

When I talk about not flying, people talk about themselves and what they want, never about the people and wildlife displaced from their land for the minerals, fuel, and airports, nor the people and wildlife who suffer from the pollution. When I talk about drunk driving, they don’t talk about what the driver wants, they talk about people they might hurt. When I talk about smoking indoors, they don’t talk[…] Keep reading →

When I mention shopping at a food coop—a grocery store where the shoppers are the owners and workers—people kept saying not everyone had access to coops. I wondered why they suggested they were a privilege. I know there aren’t as many food coops as supermarkets and bodegas, but I didn’t understand why they acted like people without access were helpless. At last I realized people saying such things didn’t know[…] Keep reading →

Insouciance, colonialism, and sustainability

Longtime readers who Eugene Bible, who hosts This Sustainable Life: Solve for Nature, a sibling podcast to mine. He lives in Hawaii. A while ago he shared a view that helps me simplify and clarify how we affect nature. He suggested viewing Hawaii as a microcosm of Earth. Do you have a proposal you think would help Earth? Ask if it would work with Hawaii. [EDIT: I had planned to[…] Keep reading →

Why people mistakenly think sustainability means deprivation and sacrifice and think not polluting is extreme: I used to party with world famous DJs. Manhattan dance clubs gave me tables and an unlimited guest list back when I made art that a few clubs put in their VIP lounges. Sometimes amid an amazing party, someone would leave early to walk their dog or relieve their baby sitter. From my partying perspective,[…] Keep reading →

Is this image our culture in a nutshell: Sitting on a beach scrolling through social media of images of beaches, wishing we were there instead? IOW, not appreciating what we have, being led to consider it inadequate, being led to crave what we don’t have, fear of missing out, missing nature around us, distracted by technology.