A serious interlude

Okay, I don't normally like to tackle real issues here on my blog - I do enough of that in conversations with friends, but I did want to bring one to peoples' attention. Peak Oil. To quote one website (and I'll not share the link, because in my opinion, sites on the Peak Oil issue run the gamut from sensationalist to over-conservative, and if the reader is interested, I'd like them to do the research for themselves. It isn't hard. Typing those two words into Google will return tons of hits) "Peak oil is the point in time when extraction of oil from the earth reaches its highest point and then begins to decline. We won't be able to say with certainty when we have reached peak oil until after the fact."
What this means is that it is the point where extracting oil from the earth hits the point of diminishing return - more effort for less oil. This will of course drive the price of oil up. Supply and demand, the simplest of economic theories tells us that. Note, I am not suggesting that the current soaring gas prices are in any way related to this. Nor am I asserting they are not. There are reasons why the prices could increase independently of Peak Oil, but Peak Oil would certainly cause that.
This is an issue we (as a species) have been aware of for 40 years or more, and done fairly little about. There are, of course, places that have (California, for instance uses wind farms at the base of mountains to capture enough power to supply communities with their electricity needs, and of course, hybrid cars are on an upswing of popularity. Sadly, not as much so as SUVs) and continue to do this kind of work, but right now I am asking you to look into this issue and see if there isn't a little more we could all do. I'm not advocating becoming a hermit, or riding your bike to work in the snow up here in Canada, but just think both about what you can do to help delay that point, and also, what you will do when you can no longer afford to put gas in your car.
Estimates on the date when we will hit Peak Oil vary quite a bit. Some people say we have already hit it (potentially as much as 5 years ago, according to some) while others say we have about 30 years left. Either way, most experts seem to agree that we will hit it during my lifetime. To go hand in hand with my last post, by then I hope to be in Florida, where at least the cold will not be an issue.
At any rate, those of you who I know read this blog are all intelligent folks. Do a little research on Peak Oil, and give some thought to preparing yourselves for the future.

And now, I shall try to put my soapbox away and return to my regularly scheduled ranting asshole-itude.

Some Thoughts on Jobs. Or Florida. Or Both.

A funny thing happened on my way to work today - I realized I like my job. Don't get me wrong. There are issues (right now, I'm way too busy to do all the things I have on my plate, for instance) and aspects of it that I do not like, but overall, I enjoy the way I spend my days. Not as much as I'd enjoy all-day orgies with a bevy of beautiful women or anything, but I certainly don't hate my job.

Unlike some friends of mine. I have some friends who really don't like their jobs. They are still working at them, of course, but looking for other work. This is pretty normal. But I have turned down some offers of late, because of how much I like working at my job. Including a repeat of an offer to move to Florida to work for a reputable company down there, and I love Florida.

Going there in August, in fact, which really isn't soon enough. I think I might start planning a camping trip into the Everglades, if that is even possible sometime soon.

Not that I am a metaphysical or even "go with your feelings" kind of guy, but there is something about Florida that speaks to me on a very basic level. I imagine I'll end up down there eventually, and will probably continue to vacation there frequently until then.

I spent some time yesterday talking to someone about moving over to the IT department here, and realized that I think it is a great idea for them. I really like it over here. For those of you who do not enjoy your jobs, I have but one piece of advice: keep looking. The good ones are out there.