Reach exceeding grasp…

For a variety of reasons unrelated to this experiment, I was planning to make tonight one of celebration. But, I quickly realized that a party with alcohol and near-certain insomnia was not in my best interests. It would be comparable to running a marathon after being out late the night before. (Note: I’ve done this and though it was funny, it was a terrible idea. Don’t try it at home. I was very very sore.)

Instead, I chose for a solitary evening of reading and went to Sparky’s (best all night diner in SF) for my last meal before I break the fast. Great choice. You might be curious what someone choses to eat before going off food for a while. Double pattied fake chicken sandwich, curly fries, a Diet Coke, and a giant mint chocolate milkshake. It was a much bigger meal than I usually have, and again I’m pretty sure it was the right choice. My only relative who has gone for the Aththai recommended a big meal regardless of the shock that would come afterwards.

The book was also a good call: I imagine I had better be excited to read and write for the majority of this week as it will occupy a considerable portion of my time. I’m re-reading Blood Meridian and Cormac McCarthy seemed to validate my views on not going out with the two best quotes on bars I’ve ever read: “They were in good spirits, scrubbed and combed, clean shirts all. Each forseeing a night of drink, perhaps of love. How many youths have come home cold and dead from just such nights and just plans.” and “There is no such joy in the tavern as upon the road thereto, said the Mennonite.” Cormac clearly knows of what he speaks.

I could put this into a FAQ, but that’s a farce, right? These questions aren’t asked frequently and not by anyone but me. So, we’ll play it like one of those pretentious McSweeny or Mark Leyner-esque dialogues.

Interviewer (me): Why are you doing this?

Me: Because I was bored and needed to make next week interesting?

Interviewer: Don’t get clever here. It’s annoying and only one of us can take that tone.

Me: Fine. I’m doing it because it seems like it’s time. The notion of the Aththai and my sense of ethics seems to demand a better picture of our connection to the world market and the consumption of energy. And if I think and read about the damages caused by my place as a participant while I go in its absence, I might learn a thing or three.

Interviewer: Is there a risk you’ll go all survivalist on us like Ted Kaczynski?

Me: Unlikely. I didn’t go to Harvard.

Interviewer: Fine. So, the title of this blog… you ripped off Gandhi there and then Browning in the header. A bit pretentious, yeah?

Me: About as pretentious as this interview.

Interviewer: Moving along, quickly. So, why should anyone care about this?

Me: Honestly, I don’t know. I don’t know why people read blogs in general, but I’m hoping this at least makes one or two people think a little bit more about the excesses of consumption and what they mean.

Interviewer: Are you going to get all preachy on us about going off-the-grid?

Me: The chances of a guy like me going off-the-grid approach zero. That’s the real point. I’m a very average person; I’m not an ascetic. So, I want to know this: Can we get to a sustainable place in our existence and not hurt others by our mere presence on this planet?

Interviewer: Is the whole experiment’s blog going to be written in this tone?

Me: Probably not. I honestly hate excessive irony, but it seems popular. I’m more of a DF Wallace guy with regard to its usage.

Interviewer: Thank God. There’s only room enough for one of us to be that self-indulgent.

From Saturday, September 8th at opening midnight until Saturday, September 15th at the closing midnight, I am going to steadily try to reduce my attachments to the normal world. The original idea was to finally take on a tradition of my religion known as Aththai. This is an 8 day fast (no food of any kind for 8 days) that is meant to accomplish several tasks:

1. Reduce one’s violence in the world by preventing consumption

2. Understand that our bodies and egos can be conquered by a fast

3. Gain spiritual purity by transcending the body (see 2)

I’d venture to say that several million people in Jainism attempt a fast of this nature at some point. And, certainly it is a known tradition in other cultures as well (although 8 days with no food is somewhat uncommon). But, in getting close to this, I realized I wanted to take this more seriously and deal with a much more specific violence: energy and consumption dependence.

When most religions were developed a few millenia ago, the world was a remarkably different place. We had a fairly clear understanding of our impact on the world in front of us. Capital systems were rudimentary, the notions of investments were not present, and most of all, interdependence was minimized. This made us insular at times, but simultaneously keenly aware of all the good and bad we did in the world. Back then, most people cooked their own food and were aware of how that food was generated. This persisted more or less until approximately 1500. Trading certainly developed earlier, but most people did not enjoy the greatest luxuries of trading. And in a flash, we had capital systems, increasingly rapid transit and communication, and the beginnings of the concept of division of labor. Add in innovation, the Enlightenment, and several hundred years and we are here.

I’m a person who is preoccupied with the changes that occur in society that we don’t acknowledge. There are many, and many recent ones to tackle. Two big ones occupy my mind right now – one is the changing nature of gender and family and the other is the issue of interdependence in the modern economy.

All of which is a precursor to my biggest concern: we’re crazy for oil. One of my literary heroes, Kurt Vonnegut, died this year. But before he did, he wrote a truly excellent essay called “Cold Turkey“. In that essay, he talks at length about how very dependent we are on this crazy need of energy. John Galt and his ilk may not want us to pay attention, but this is a serious concern. Most people reading this paragraph are probably commenting on how cliche this position is. No doubt. Yet, any sensible person of any political persuasion (or indifference) sees that many of our most serious problems are a byproduct of this dependency.

But I thought, why don’t I try going without it? No electricity, no commerce, nothing for four days. I’m guessing here half of you are saying “big deal” and the other half are intrigued. As point of fact, I’m not a survivalist, nor a hippie. I simply am an ordinary young professional who realizes he is crazily tied to a system that has monstrous externalities in its operation. Externalities to future generations, to the ecosystem, to other nations and peoples. And, as with the food, I want to figure out what I really need.

That’s why I’m doing this.

The rules are:

All 8 days, no food. Water is permitted but attempting to stay minimal.

All 8 days, no commerce. No purchases nor investments of any kind will be made.

For the first 5 days, only minimal usage of electricity.

The final 3 days will have no electricity usage (including telephones, text messages, etc.), no commerce, and no food. There will be minimal communication to others.

The final day will have no communication of any kind to others.

For practical purposes, this means the blog will be very regularly updated for the first four days and then go dead on Wednesday. I’ll journal my thoughts fairly often online until then; afterwards, I will write with pen and paper and post when the event commences.

Maybe this is intriguing to you. Maybe it isn’t. I only am hopeful that you consider the purpose here and whether you might one day try something similar. I am in every aspect a lay person. But, I am hopeful that I can at least understand who I am and what I am better by these sorts of experiments.

While I do this, I believe a few other friends will be attempting similar tests of varying lengths. I hope to write about them or include their thoughts as well.