In response to yesterday's financial markets post, my mother (an artist and teacher by trade) helpfully—but a little disconcertingly—emailed me a list of survival skills she's taught herself over the years. Apparently these include, but are not limited to:
- pottery
- weaving
- gardening
- slaughtering chickens
- sewing
- making paper
- blowing glass
- welding
- carving and building with stone and wood
- recycling
- cutting down and planting trees
- canning fruits and vegetables
- solar collection and electricity generation
- building a compost bin
- basketry
- foraging plants for natural fabric dye
- growing medicinal herbs
- making soap
- silk-screening
- lithography
- tending a fire
- casting metal
Then she mentioned last week's Suburban Journal story about a Festus family that lives in a cave—and how they're selling it due to financial difficulties. It seems even cave-dwellers are ending up underwater (!) on the mortgage.
So um...exactly which part of that was supposed to be reassuring? —Margaret Bauer, Associate Editor
