So. Climate Change is happening. There are maps showing the zone hardiness maps (zones across the country to help gardeners know what grows in their climates) changing over the next ten years as the country gets warmer. There are people talking about the twelve years number, and how climate change is actually probably going to happen faster than that. Articles on sea level rise, and temperature rise, and projected food shortages and mass extinctions.

And my low-grade general anxiety is sitting over here making me research permaculture and edible gardening. Because I like to eat. And we just bought this house, with almost half an acre of good, south-facing land. So I’m learning. I’m reading about swales and rain gardens and water collection, and food forests and tree guilds and helpful species. I’m paying attention to what species will continue to be hardy in this area as the climate changes, and how to provide shelter and food for beneficial insects and animals.

I feel a little bit like a Doomsday prepper. Which is…uncomfortable. But like – I’m not planning on building a bomb shelter, or having shelves upon shelves of food in cans and crates of MREs. I’d just like to be a little more self-sustaining. I’m really sad we don’t have the roof space to put in solar power; Baltimore County laws mandate setting the panels in three feet from any edge, and we have several small sections of roof so there’s nowhere big enough to put more than a couple of panels. Baltimore County laws are also preventing me from getting chickens – no chickens on less than an acre of land. People are lobbying to get that changed, so I’ll keep an eye on it.

All this is to say, I’m reading a lot about permaculture, native plants, and edible gardening, so I’ve made a new book list to keep track of Homesteading books. I’ll try to get more reviews up of the ones I own, since I’ve only reviewed a few of those here on the blog. If anyone has suggestions, I’d love to hear them.

Even going by the original twelve-year number – I’m going to be 49 in twelve years. And the science says our whole world is about to go to shit. We’re already seeing effects in the number and severity of storms. I’m lucky to be in the position I am – in a fairly well-off country, owning enough land to grow food on. Being chronically ill could really suck, if my medicine supply gets disturbed, but other than that, I’m not in a bad situation to be facing this. A lot of people are going to be a lot worse off. It’d sure be nice if our government took steps to help instead of actively making things worse….