Several conversations lately have ended up on the topic of not having any practical skills that would be useful in an apocalypse (or climate disaster, or collapse of capitalism, or general societal/infrastructure breakdown).
Yes, I could hand-write the daily news of the survivors’ commune nicely onto a tree, but basically I’m getting eaten first.
So, I’ve been thinking about turning this rather precarious position around and learn how to do useful stuff.
Which led me to this (literal) 2am idea: Get (Apocalypse) Ready With Me (G(A)RWM)
It’s an early idea, so the curriculum hasn’t yet been fully formed, but I’m think skills like more advanced first aid, bike mechanics (because cars will be so pre-collapse), conflict resolution / mediation / diplomacy and managing disinformation (for obvious reasons), rescue / storm recovery (for the more likely climate related extreme weather situations), and some version of ‘building’ stuff (which also includes basic house DIY like putting up shelves etc). Plus the usual outdoor survival-esq skills like lighting a fire, building a shelter etc.
Ideally, I’ll learn most of these skills with friends, so we’re all prepared. (Which is the best kind of prepared). In the spirit of the current online trend of having a personal curriculum, this might be quite a fun 2026 project, and could involve some other kinds of activities and initiatives other than just skill building (eg bartering some of my new* skills for other skills, or doing more swapping and borrowing of books/clothes/hardware etc).
*or existing skills. I can cook, which feels pretty useful and barter-able.
Despite the work I do, and the fact I spend quite a lot of time immersed in some pretty dystopian possibilities of what might play out over the next decade, I do find myself equal parts repelled by overly-dramatic chatter about collapse, whilst also quite worried about everyone’s (and my own) lack of preparation for things getting worse. So the ‘apocalypse’ element is approximately 78% tongue in cheek, 22% serious.
And of the many possible futures that might play out over the next decade or so, it seems almost certain that these sorts of skills will always be useful in some way. And our ability to support each other is going to be increasingly important, because despite all its sycophancy and apparitions of ‘support’, your pal ChatGPT is not going to show up and sandbag your house in a flood.
One of the books that has had the biggest impact on me in the last couple of years is Imaginable by Jane McGonigal. Jane lives in California, and a particularly fire-prone area of California. In the book, she talks about the fact that her and her family have a conversation at least once a year about how many days of fire/smoke they’re prepared to live through per year in their current home before they’d consider moving, either permanently or just during fire season.
Jane is a futurist, so this behaviour makes sense. The thing I like about it in particular is that this isn’t just a hypothetical, floaty ‘what if’ conversation, but one that they have actual trigger points (number of days they can’t go outside / open the windows etc) and plans (alternative options of places to live) for.
So, here’s what I’m going to do before the end of the year in preparation for next year’s curriculum…
Start to populate the curriculum
Start to look up good places to learn these skills
See if Bunnings want to sponsor it (jokes… but also…. 👀)
Find interested friends
Sign up for a volunteering position that might help build these skills (I’ve already put in an EOI to volunteer with my local SES crew)
🧟♀️ What would you add to my GARWM curriculum? Have you done (or thought about) anything like this, or have a running ‘what if’ conversation with thresholds in your household, like Jane has?
🔥 The it list
Listening - Swimming Pool Toe Tappers Sunday Evening: A ridiculously titled daylist that reached the dizzying heights of being saved and has been listened to A LOT. Think funky house disco vibes.
Listening - The Return by Sampa the Great: I’m really enjoying this 2019 album (yes yes, late to the party) by Zambian artist Sampa the Great. One of the tracks popped up on another playlist I was listening to, and I went down the rabbit hole. With this and the previous playlist, I did start to wonder if the Spotify algorithm was finally getting better at showing me new music again.
Podcast - Gary’s Economics: I’ve been aware of Gary for a while, but hadn’t listened to his podcast until very recently. This episode with the co-leader of the NZ Greens, Chlöe Swarbrick, was definitely a somewhat hopeful insight into the fact that there are some actual humans left in politics. They talk about how everyone loses when the ultra-rich aren’t taxed, the growing cycle of wealth inequality, the impact of NZ (and Australia)’s economies being so dependant on their housing market, the left struggling to capture people’s imagination by ignoring/avoiding the collective anger, the fact most people actually want the same things, and some ideas for all of these big problems.
Related: I’m also keen to listen to the new leader of the UK Greens party, Zack Polanski’s podcast Bold Politics.
Audiobook - Meditations for Mortals by Oliver Burkeman: My friend Jules put me onto this, which was good as I hadn’t realised that Oliver had a new book out. It’s very similar in ethos to 4,000 Weeks, a book I still think about and talk about regularly, but broken down into daily ‘doses’ of ways to reconnect with what’s important and disconnect from the busy-cycle. Overall it’s pretty good so far, some daily doses have felt more profound than others, but ultimately it’s useful a reminder to enjoy life and not get sucked into the noise.
Film - The Lobster: It’s a modern day dystopia where single people have to move into a hotel, where they have 45 days to find a partner, otherwise they are turned into an animal of their choosing. An on-brand very weird, awkward, and darkly beautiful watch from Yorgos Lanthimos. Olivia Colman is at her quirky best too.
Board game - Modern Art: I’ve been getting quite into games this year, and recently played Modern Art. It’s a really beautiful game, and it’s pretty fun to play the role of an art dealer for a famous gallery. The mechanics reminded me a bit of Monopoly (buying/selling and trying to end up with the most money), and a bit of Wingspan (multiple rounds). The added drama of some auctions and trying to trick each other is always fun, but I did wonder how many times you’d be able to play the game without it getting a bit repetitive and predictable though.
👩🏻🏫 Personal curriculum
A little look at what I’m learning at the moment, and how.
Game design
As I’ve been playing more board/card games this year, I’ve been enjoying learning different styles of rules and formats and trying to understand what works and what doesn’t, along with what I like and what I don’t. I’d also like to build more formats like this into more of my work. All of which brought me to start learning how games are made.
This month’s goal:
Finish the second Brenda Romero course - Game Design Foundations: 2 Systems, Chance, and Strategy
Mock up a basic game using some of the concepts from these courses
Have a follow up chat with a panel member from a games talk I went to at SXSW Sydney last week
☀️ Summer reading list
This is a growing list of the books I’m saving for the summer break (and who recommended them). Anything else I should put on the list?
Arborescence by Rhett Davis (via Sian)
Butter by Asako Yuzuki (via Megan and Olivia)
Snake Talk by Tyson Yunkaporta and Megan Kelleher
A Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel García Márquez (via Michael)
🗓️ Events worth watching
Brain Futures Summit (Melbourne, 13 November)
You know that I like an interesting event, and when Bonnie Shaw is involved in something, you know it's worth taking a serious look at. This one sounds *fascinating*, with sessions and conversations from neuroscientists, health professionals, policymakers, researchers, designers, resilience practitioners, leadership experts, and entrepreneurs on the future of brain health.
It's an interesting time for brains. Everyone's either learning new things about how theirs works, outsourcing it, or trying to hack it. Or all of the above.
Click the link to find out more about the themes of the event and grab your ticket.