@mt: Good question; if you figure out an answer, please share it with me.
Right now, I'm just reading what I can. I'm currently reading Peter Kalmus's "Being the Change" book, which I learned about somewhere on this forum, and which I hope will provide some answers. And I'm planning on reading everything Kingsnorth wrote in the last 15 years or so (i.e., once he became a defeatist). Also planning on doing a very deep dive into Wendell Berry, both his fiction and his essays (someone who probably "gets me" better than I get myself gifted me his 2-volume collection of essays a year ago and, shamefully, I've not actually cracked them open yet). Other than that, likely lots of dystopian collapsist fiction, like probably re-reading Dune and Fight Club, reading Parable of the Sower once it arrives at the library (your recommendation!), probably finally reading Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, and likely reading more of Heinlein. Certainly interested in any other recommendations.
Work is becoming borderline absurd for me at this point; and I'm quickly moving towards a place where I'm ready to reevaluate and perhaps set up some sort of "eat what you kill" arrangement (leave it to lawyers to refer to revenue generation in this manner), as opposed to a salary-based compensation approach; so that I can have more control over when and how much I work, and who I work for and what work I take on. I think this is part of me finally starting to move past WL4. If I had to guess our daily consumption spending likely will decrease pretty drastically in the next few months, though there also will be some bigger purchases related to up-front costs for things like long-term food storage, vegetable gardening, water storage, home repair/maintenance, etc. Both DW and I are realizing the importance of teaching our kids to live happily and comfortably with less and with making less of an ecological impact.
Also becoming absurd for me is any interest in this election; which is probably a good thing because lots of folks in my various circles seem very on edge at the moment--DW keeps commenting on how many laughable "self care in times of stress" stories have shown up in the news the past couple days.
I'm certainly even more interested lately in spending time with DW and the kids, not in front of the TV. And also more time with my church community.
Also getting more and more nervous about the fact that so much of our net worth is invested in a manner that is so dependent on society continuing to progress;* though I haven't figured out exactly what to do with that at this point, apart from the fact that DW and I stopped making any additional investments into retirement accounts a few months ago, beyond employer match. That might end up screwing us in terms of taxes, but at the moment I feel better about that than I do sticking $39K/yr in some sort of stocks/bonds index retirement account that we won't be able to touch without penalty until about 2040 (
https://yaleclimateconnections.org/2019 ... -2040-a-d/).
A good friend, who falls into the renaissance man category, wants me to invest with him in some rural property further north in the mountains (though still in the South), where we can build some off-grid cabins and have a place to take our kids hunting, fishing, camping, etc. I'm inclined to do it, but I'm cognizant of the frustration and disappointment that can (will) happen when I "purchase" my rural Eden and then find that a chicken battery farm moves next door (or the meth-head ne'er-do-wells, @ffj). Also, not sure if I shouldn't be buying property a bit (a lot) more north.**
I'm also not sleeping much.
Sorry, this has turned into a long journal post.
*ETA: I mean, our net worth increased something like $20K just over the past couple days BECAUSE OF all the gridlock and confusion with the election. I mean, I get that it's good from a Wall Street perspective to have a Dem. pres with a Rep. senate (i.e., nothing will get done); but there's just something off that I have to root for division and gridlock, from a net worth perspective, because a decisive victory (even short of a landslide) either way--representing that as a country we're somewhat unified--is a BAD thing for our economy?!
**ETA ETA: Bear in mind that I'm only a month or so removed from reading Kaczynski's manifesto, and I'm cognizant of what happened when his own rural Eden was encroached upon by industrialized society. I think there's a lot of wisdom in JMG's thinking that perhaps for a lot of folks being in a more densely populated, walkable neighborhood/town, with good relations with your neighbors and community, and with pretty much everything you need within easy walking/biking distance, might make more sense in the world to come. That's what I've got now, and I certainly see the benefits. BUT, I also have to step around homeless folks sleeping on the sidewalk on my way to work, not to mention urine spots and empty food containers--so I see the appeal of escaping to the country, but I also get that there's power in density. I don't know; we can afford to do both, and so perhaps that makes sense--give ourselves options, and sooner rather than later.