ysabetwordsmith | Dangers of Luxury

Here's an article about the dangers of luxury that connects the past with the present.

Luxury can be a very real trap. Here are some things you can do about that.

* Use the Amish rule: "Before adopting a new piece of technology, first determine if it will do more harm than good. If so, do not adopt it." You don't have to draw the line in the same place they do, but you really should think about this before adding more tech to your life. Also, they're a great source of inert tools that won't spy on you and are built like a brick shithouse. If you don't live near Amish territory, Lehman's catalog is available in paper or PDF.

* Check your life skills and survival skills. Can you meet your basic needs with little or no tech? Grow and cook food? Mend or make clothing? Start a fire? Build at least a temporary shelter? Do you have backups for flimsy, failure-prone conveniences like a woodstove or oil lamps for when the power goes out? The more you can do for yourself, the less dependent you are on others.

* Know the major hazards in your area. What luxuries or necessities would each hazard take out? How can you prevent or compensate for those losses?

* Make contingency plans. Have at least a Plan A, B, and C. More is better. The more ways you can do a thing, solve a problem, etc. the less chance they will all fail. Always have an exit plan! Not having a diversity of plans, including an exit plan, is a leading reason why people get hurt or pressured into hurting others.

* Know how to handle hardships. Equip yourself with distress tolerance skills. Here are some Stoic exercises and ways to develop your grit. However, it is crucial to apply these only for enduring hardships you choose or cannot escape. Never confuse a clay problem with a rock problem. Most problems are things you can and should act to solve, not just ignore.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

All of this is really useful - and makes me anxious, because I know I lack the discipline to get down and learn how to fix a simple faucet leak, or relearn how to fix a flat or replace the oil in my car (I long ago was taught those things by my Best Beloved, but have never thought to keep up the knowledge with practice. I also haven't had to replace the car's points and plugs because cars just don't have those much anymore, but I digress ....)

I am capable of simple sewing (hems, buttons, adding simple darts to things like maska) although I long ago gave my sewing machine to the Goodwill. Cooking and baking I can do. Not panicking when the electricity goes out is not too much of a problem; I also keep candles and oil lamps (and oil) around.

The medical things - first aid, etc. - are the toughest things for me, other than helping someone put on a bandaid or a simple gauze bandage, and of course cleaning the wound. Before my mother died I had the horrendous occasion to change a large bandage over a very large open wound, and I barely kept it together. Nor did I do a good job.

So much to chew on here. I'll say thank you, though, even if it does make me anxious!

>> All of this is really useful <<

Yay!

>> and makes me anxious, because I know I lack the discipline <<

Contextual anxiety is something you can deal with, if you choose to. You can either live with the anxiety or do the work to develop skills to lower it. You don't have to do everything at once -- baby steps are best.

>> to get down and learn how to fix a simple faucet leak, or relearn how to fix a flat or replace the oil in my car (I long ago was taught those things by my Best Beloved, but have never thought to keep up the knowledge with practice. I also haven't had to replace the car's points and plugs because cars just don't have those much anymore, but I digress ....) <<

Most modern cars and other products are not really designed to be repaired, let alone by ordinary people rather than experts. This is a problem, but it is difficult to solve. You could ...

* Learn about the right to repair. Support repair-friendly companies.

* Find a toolshare near you.

* Find a makerspace near you.

* Many places offer classes in how to fix various things. You can find some online, at local colleges, community centers, home improvement stores, libraries, etc.

* If you like reading, there are good books on home repair, car repair, and so on.

>>I am capable of simple sewing (hems, buttons, adding simple darts to things like maska) although I long ago gave my sewing machine to the Goodwill. Cooking and baking I can do. Not panicking when the electricity goes out is not too much of a problem; I also keep candles and oil lamps (and oil) around.<<

Okay, great. Those are things you can trade with people who can do things you can't. Nobody is good at everything. Play to your strengths. What could you add in these areas of skill that would be more useful? Can you make basic garments if necessary? What about campfire cooking?

>> The medical things - first aid, etc. - are the toughest things for me <<

Okay, here you need to compare the costs/risks against the benefits. I'm not great at medical stuff either. It is infuriating to me that I'm so smart, I routinely exceed the skill of "experts" in my worst subject areas. If you are neither happy with nor good at first aid, then you are probably better off selecting different tasks in an emergency. You could stock a good kit to hand off to someone else. You could make friends with people who are better at medical stuff, trading things they can't do that you enjoy and do well. You could practice staying calm and out of the way while others resolve the problem.

>> So much to chew on here. I'll say thank you, though, even if it does make me anxious! <<

If you're anxious about things you can change, like emergency preparation, pick just one small thing to do. Fixing a faucet leak or a flat tire isn't small. (I am the only writer who has been told not to be a plumber. For cause.) Check your car. Does it have a sticker telling when the next oil change should be? Keeping an eye on that is a responsible thing to do. Do you know where to find the water shutoffs in your home? If not, locate those; they're very helpful in spurting-water emergencies. Do you have a siphon? Very handy for removing water from unwanted places.

Emergencies are much less nerve-wracking if "Oh gosh, what if ...?" can be answered with "Then I have tools A, B, and C and contingency plans X, Y, and Z."

I just thought I'd let you know that I've put this thread into my memories so that I can reread it whenever I feel helpless, to kickstart me on becoming less helpless. Thank you.

Thank you. I'm happy I could help. There are usually things that can be done to boost skills and confidence. I wish you luck with it.

Focus on expanding the skills you have and improving on what you are good at.

If the car stuff concerns you, print out (and possibly laminate) instructions for basic repairs - with pictures! Keep 'em in a folder or binder next to whatever tools you've got in the car.

Medical stuff...I'd say keep a decent first aid kit around, if that is within your budget. Someone else can always use the tools.

If you are still concerned about first aider skills, brush up on other common adjacent tasks. Off the top of my head, I'll suggest:

- familiarize yourself with the asses the scene [Check-Call-Care] and call-it-in protocols [1 location, 2 help needed, 3 details],

- be the person to go outside and flag down / meet the ambulance,

- be the person who gets the kit / AED,

- learn how to distract distressed or helpy bystanders...

- deal with hazards, or do damage control (keeping people away from ice or downed power lines)

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