Looking Forward, Moving Backward
Chris Lempa
Black Oak Presents
Autumn 2007

There is a glorification of the old days. What exactly that means depends on who you ask. Sometimes people don't even realize what they are acting out or admiring. Recently I have tried my hand at the time honored tradition of food preservation. While this is currently a hobby, my goal is to make it a way of sustenance. A number of people have commented as to how great this new hobby is and how they would like to start. Other comments haven't been as supportive.
   
People tell me that canning is pointless since it would be much easier to go to the grocery store. “That smells funny” is also common. The most amusing―and amazing―comments are from people who think that this is some sort of new concept. Granted, we now have fancy contraptions to dry and can foods that weren't around even twenty years ago, but many of the most relevant cookbooks were first published during the World War I era. Newer publications simply adapt many of the old recipes!
   
There are other examples of reclaiming our past ways as well. A growing number of my generation are considering homesteading and organic farming. Homesteading in the 21st century is different, in practice, than it was in the 19th century, but the idea behind it remains constant. We are looking towards open spaces for our futures. Cities are crowded, dirty, and downright annoying. Initially, it can be difficult to give up metropolitan conveniences and so called necessities.
   
I've become convinced that we have been duped by the advertising industry, along with others in search of a quick buck, into pursuing our own demise. As theorist and activist El Ray wrote in the late 1960s, we need to:

"Distinguish comforts and conveniences from status games. Some claim they enjoy the “comforts of civilization” too much to opt out. But almost all the free men of whom I have knowledge―land nomads, yachtsmen, and backwoodsmen―have shelter from the rain and cold, nutritious and tasty food, bathing facilities, comfortable bed, books and records, and leisure to enjoy these. Some chores may take more time; cooking with wood instead of gas, for example, but time saved on outside employment more than compensates. What a free man probably DOESN’T have is a house which would impress non-libertarian relatives."1

We are living in a time when people feel as if they “need” fast food or prepared meals. A time when we buy new gadgets to make our lives easier. Upon closer examination we realize that we are really complicating things by adding another addiction, another vice, or another complication to what generally amounts to a complicated existence.
   
In a time when innovation means sonar washing machines and Luxury Pet Beds, our survival depends on something much different. It is pertinent to reduce stress loads and increase our independence rather than looking towards technology that makes us feel more independent and less stressed. Self-cleaning toilets may shave a few minutes from one's cleaning duties, but isn't that going too far? How much time and energy was spent designing such a useless device? Has the human species become so lazy that cleaning the toilet must be automated?
   
Thankfully, a subculture more in line with El Ray is growing while the dominant culture continues to sing its tired ol' anthem of “buy more stuff.”

Chris Lempa is a streetwise professor in search of the perfect cup of coffee
and the perfect glass of water. He is a guest editor at www.Strike-the-root.com.
  You may e-mail him at 8lempa8@gmail.com.

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