Who is an anarchist to tell you what to do?

I am sitting here on my front porch at 8:39 on the evening of June 1, 2013.  It is only now truly bearable to be outside, as it was a very hot day.  The third of three hot days.  It was probably only 92 or 93 today e in Harrisburg, PA.  But to me, at 50 years old, that is some of the hottest weather I remember this early in the year.  Especially three days in a row.  It is still getting cold at night, so I have little room to complain, but I do make the observation.

I would like to start out by saying I have a gas mower, I am strongly considering an electric mower.  I am driving to Philadelphia tomorrow.  Our home has two LP gas fireplaces and a heat pump.  We do have a solar hot water heater, we also have an electric back up.  Of course, since we use well water, we need a well pump.  All of that is by way of telling the reader, that my family and I are by no means divorced from society.  We are not "off the grid".  We do not live a no-impact lifestyle.  In fact, my electric bill comes every month telling me I use more energy than 60 or 60 percent of my neighbors (never mind most of them are two person empty nester households and we have a teenage daughter and 9 year old son).

But I am also in the midst of a long term experiment with reel mowers.  First, of all, reel mowers are NOT for everyone.  It is not that they are that difficult to use, per se.  In fact, the 16 pound reel mower is probably easier to push around the hill that is our yard than the self-propelled gas mower.  But it does require a fair amount of raw muscle power in muscles I do not normally use (the shoulders and lower back in particular).  In addition, it requires a fair amount of maintenance to keep it sharp.  Finally, a reel mower requires an investment in time.  It simply takes longer to mow the grass.  Almost directly this is a product of the fact a muscle powered mower is smaller than a gas powered one.  The cutting deck is 16 inches as opposed to 22 inches.  It takes a little over 2 hours instead of a little over one hour to mow the yard.  For those who do not have the time, this investment is not acceptable.  FOR ME, when I do not have the time, this will not be acceptable.  As it gets dark earlier, mowing will become increasingly difficult.

On the up side, it is the best workout I ever got without working out.  I do not go to the gym on the days I mow.  Or the day after.  In addition, it is so quiet, I can actually carry on a conversation or listen to a podcast while I am mowing.  This also means that if I chose to mow in the early morning (when it is not so hot) or at night, I would not annoy the neighbors.  Finally, using a reel mower gives me a chance to think.  Yes, for two hours while mowing, but also NOW.  Right here.  I am still reaping the benefits by recognizing I am not tied to fossil fuels.  I do not HAVE to sit in the air conditioning all the time.  I do not HAVE to drive a car everywhere.

Oh!  I have written before about my days not driving.  Well, today was another.  Not only did I not drive, but I also did not even get IN a car.  I did not sit at home being a hermit and Luddite.  I went and filled a prescription, rode to my office, went to Fort Hunter Park and played with my son and came home.  Nineteen miles in all.  Could have gone more, but I had nowhere to go.

So.....I come to the title of this blog.  I am anarchist in theory.  I like to believe people will take care of people and will do the right things without a government telling them what to do.  Someone recently told me that coercion never makes lasting change, only understanding.  Since governments are inherently coercive, I have little use for them.  I am not AGAINST them, necessarily, just don't really see much point.  Thomas Jefferson is credited with saying "The Revolution was won, before the war began."  Truth is all around us if we know where to look.

So do not listen to me tell you what to do.  I cannot.  Change, if there is to be change, has to come from within.  There have to be more of us sitting at night thinking how it is hotter than it used to be and how good it is to feel a relationship with work, and to feel the happiness of slowing down on a bike or walking.  No there is nothing an anarchist can tell you........

.......but maybe, if you are willing to slow down and look around, I can show you.