kly-vertical

[kly-vertical]

please stand by

Henlo,

I know, I know. The world has been spinning pretty quickly on me right now. Treading upon flowerbeds to try and slow it down.

I didn't think it would be this difficult to come up with something to write or to share a story or to convey a feeling.

I will be back after finals week.

******

[kly-vertical]

excerpt from an interview with Sascha Rijo

Had the opportunity of interviewing the one and only Sascha Rijo. We sat down to talk about a myriad of topics, the crux being energy. Here is something we talked about:

Kly 24:55

Does knowing about renewable energy sources and understanding the dangers surrounding climate change give you any hope for the future that we can maybe pivot from natural oil or coal to instead use cleaner sources? Do you think it's possible that we can fully switch? Do you think it can happen quickly?

Sascha Rijo 25:24

I hope [but I know that the answer is] no, no, no, no, no. Do you know what I mean? Like, yeah, I would 100% want to say yes. I don't know. I think it's also so political. It's really fucking sucks. like I am not into politics. I think it's a dirty business. You know, it's just, it's so emotionally tied to people's preferences, period, you know, and I keep on seeing whatever, like Biden and this green act, and I just see how people will shut it down without even caring to understand. And I remember watching movies like [An Inconvenient Truth], a great documentary, and has a lot to do with climate change. And a lot of people were just like, ‘oh, this is a liberal shit,’ like, that's not true. Trump is like: global warming doesn't exist. And it's like, bro, what are you talking about? All of these–for me, the base impact and why it makes me feel so emotional about it is because so many natural places are disappearing. Can it stop? Can we change it? Is it too far gone? I feel like big, deep, big things need to change. I always had this conversation with my boyfriend. He likes to buy bottled water. And he does it when I'm not at home. So I'll be here and I'll see the case by the door. Don't you want your children to live this amazing life? [He responds with]: Oh, why can't we just recycle? But, Sunrise Florida doesn't have [an efficient] recycling program. Like, but it takes [one] person. It just takes you to make different choices. And he's like: 'Oh, that's not gonna happen.' He's like, 'it's not just one individual, Sasha.' I said, what if you have that mentality? How is it ever going to get better? And I think maybe 70% or 80% of the earth feels that way.

The film industry, I have never in my life. Even [worse] than hotels, I've never seen an industry produce so much waste. Single-use plastic at another level. And every time I go to have breakfast with them or lunch with them, they give me the plastic silverware. You just feel so bad. Because everybody gets a plate and it's like a plastic plate or like then you get your fork and your knife, you eat it in two seconds, and then you throw it out. And I see these bags and bags and bags of trash. It's [the same thing] with energy. How can I change it? How can we make this shift?

Kly 28:10

So, there's like a little bit of a chain when it comes to putting the blame on people. We have corporations that come up with websites: hey, calculate your carbon footprint to see how much you are producing. And then we have governments imposing taxes on corporations who are either emitting a lot of carbon or are forcing corporations to become carbon neutral by certain year. A lot of European countries are already promising to go carbon neutral by 2030, 2040. The United States is sort of in a weird limbo. Right wing politics is like corporations can do whatever they want. Left wing politics is like the government has the right to impose [rules] on corporations to force them. So I'm just curious if we're looking for a viable solution, one that will actually work, do you think it is more on the individual, these free enterprises, these corporations that can promise to become carbon neutral or governments that have the power to actually force lifestyle change? For instance, we're in [somewhat of a war period], where the US actually today just just banned Russian oil imports. So I think Russian oil imports make up about 8% of our oil consumption. So that would hurt the Russian economy as much as it would hurt us. Another thing is that the US would have to negotiate with Venezuela for oil. So it's a little bit weird to think about, but they can really control--if oil prices go up, gas [prices] go up. Majority of people in the United States have a gas powered stove, car, anything like that [and this] might prompt them to resort to something like electric power. You know what I mean?

Sascha Rijo 0:21

Let's get a little Prius. Yeah, a Prius situation. I can do that. Yeah. So my cargo [will fit]..

Kly 0:28

Or, it'll force you to make public transit electric, however expensive that may be.

Sascha Rijo 0:35

I think not so much for me about how expensive it would be about the accessibility, right. So you think about places like Florida, where public transit is close to non-existent? Yeah. It's so bad if I could, like get on the metro, you know, like [here in Chicago or New York] and just [ride public transit] then I wouldn't have a car. Yeah, I would just sell my car. I hope that that would make so many people sell their cars. And I'm always sad about it. If you live in a little town where you could just walk everywhere, why don't we just do that? Yeah. I think in the population is about to freak out in the US because these oil prices like are already going up. And I think that people don't want to sacrifice their comfort or their lifestyles. Especially, I think deep down inside, it really sucks, but ‘out of sight, out of mind,’ with the American population. And to them, it's like: ‘Well, why is my gas going up? Oh, it's because we're, you know, putting sanctions on Russia? Well, I don't give a fuck, I'm not Ukrainian and I'm not Russian. I just want my gas to be low.’ Yeah, I think that's gonna be really tough. And I think that the government will come under a lot of fire because of it. But I support what's happening. Like, if it's gonna make me take a bike, I'll take a bike. But maybe we're helping out on the other side.

[kly-vertical]

remedial chaos theory: greenwashing the world

The International Governmental panel on climate change has envisioned four Representative Concentration Pathways (RCP) to examine the possible range of future climate change. An expert has designed and developed an advanced AI that will interpret the best pathway, RCP2.6, and give a visual history of what the world will look like in 2100 at the Conference of the Parties. This AI aims to show the pathway to achieving the lowest energy imbalance of the Earth System.

“With advancing technology, people’s ideas of how society should be run. We are at the pinnacle of technological progress, here in the ‘Turbulent Thirties,’” opened an ambassador. “With the aid of artificial intelligence, we can envision a clean world, without compromise.”

“Wait,” representative Abed Nadir shook in fear. “Are you going to show us the darkest timeline?”

The program began to virtualize the future world.

2040

The Anthropocene is finally internationally and scientifically recognized as a geological epoch. Large corporations and countries participating in extraction and exploitation of resources are thrust the responsibility for the high carbon emissions, although not well received. Governments pass legislation to impose heavy taxes on corporations to discourage carbon emissions.

The collected taxes are used to reward those with the most effective carbon capture technologies and fund those projects, as agreed by the countries in the Paris Climate Agreement. Although polarizing, initially, governments become increasingly involved in developing these technologies on a large scale basis, creating communal involvement in capturing carbon. Big green companies begin to develop methods to sequester the captured carbon either in the ground or at the bottom of the ocean.

Skeptics of these methods turn their cheek and attempt to refine nuclear energy protocols, including uranium mining with the goal of improving working conditions for miners. Several strikes for all kinds of mineral miners take place and force the hands of companies to develop anti-radiation and anti-carbon environments for workers to extract minerals from the earth.

One of the representatives interrupts: “I thought this was RCP2.6. Can we skip to the part where we reach utopia?”

2050-2090

The AI grants the request and skips through the events leading up to the 22nd century. For some reason, the visual’s color palette becomes dark orange and black. Some of the members of the conference notice violent attacks on civilians, power plants and mining areas. Natural disasters kill millions of people.

“Is that the Green Party symbol on that bomb plane?” asked one of the members in outrage. One of the main title slides that was skipped over read: ‘The 2070 Capitol Insurrection: The Green Party’s Hegemony.’ Awkward silence ensued.

2100

The US has reformed its energetic arsenal. On the east and west coasts, coal and gas have been entirely replaced by biofuel, cultivated in the Pacific and Atlantic coasts, respectively. The biomass is transported through electric trucks, similar to a bullet train system. Seaweed is used for energy, carbon capture, food and even medicine. The nuclear plants are located in the central region, where special shielding technology developed by the French allows the radiation to be sent towards space, with greenhouse gas levels allowing just enough solar radiation to remain trapped in Earth’s atmosphere. As a result, solar panels have become standard for infrastructure globally.

China has completely harnessed the power of the river. An advanced water wheel and Dam system is used to generate hydroelectricity. They are currently experimenting on ionic activity within specific pools of water to develop a new form of battery. The dense population has optimally used communal carbon capture gardens to bring carbon emissions down and collect carbon in a form that can be stored in the ground. Citizens receive tax incentives for collecting carbon.

India has limited the carbon emissions from agriculture and bovine cultivation through the help of the US’s advanced biomass cultivation. There is a specific strand of seaweed that prevents the production of methane in the cows’ digestion, created by a canny organic chemist. While leading the world in meat and dairy production, they have found a way to use sustainable irrigation techniques, thanks to agricultural scientists in China.

One of the members interrupts: “This is all cool and well, but how are we managing waste in 2100?”

The AI continues: With movements toward space, we have developed methods to incinerate waste off-planet. As a result, geothermal energy is projected to–

“Show us the Sankey diagram. I need to see the energetic breakdown,” one of the members interjects.

“Wait, so this is supposed to be the absolute best case scenario? Did none of you see what the AI skipped over? The violent intermediacy of this ‘utopia?’” another demanded.

“Show us RCP 8.5!”

As the AI attempted to render the ‘business as usual’ pathway, the program struggled to leave a message before crashing: ‘time is running out.’

[kly-vertical]

how much more stuff do you need?

A: How much more stuff do you need?

B: Are we talking creatively or materially?

A: The latter first.

B: Well, I sort of have everything that I could need. I mean, considering that for the next couple of months I will be some sort of nomad, I feel like I actually need less stuff.

A: What's bothering you?

B: I got some large items that I am looking to part with. Like this big, floppy mattress topper, this mini fridge and maybe some pillows.

A: What is essential to you?

B: Really only the stuff I can fit in my backpack.

A: Elaborate.

B: I am not a minimalist by any means, although I would like to live like one for the sake of my mentality. I can get all the work I need to get done using all of the items in my backpack. A nice pair of headphones, a computing device, a thin and precise pen, nice paper and some water. Or coffee. A nice cup of coffee definitely has to occupy the second cup.

A: Do your items have to be 'nice?'

B: Well, no. I do appreciate a technical fix, but my intent is not always to green grab or pull my hand.

A: Now the former. What's missing?

B: Well, I think I need sparks of creativity. It's tough to think about because most of the creative people I know feel chained to their thoughts. The critic creeps in and hinders their flow. I just don't understand what it means to 'let go' and just create something. How do I stop thinking too hard about something and let my expectations ruin something beautiful? Or, potentially beautiful. My whole life I have been told to 'think outside of the box.' As a consequence, I feel like I have to think about the repercussions. Then, the excuse. Then, the amelioration. I'm just not sure.

A: How does that make you feel?

B: I feel small. Like I cannot come up with something creative. Like I cannot think creatively or critically. Like I am dumb. It confuses me.

A: Keep your head in the past, and you get regret. Keep your head in the future, you get anxiety. Keep your head in the present, what do you get?

B: Life in the moment? Is that what I'm supposed to say?

A: Do you have to be dumb to be happy?

B: Well, if you aren't thinking about anything except what is present, then I guess you could be happy if you're brave enough for that. I don't think that makes you dumb per se.

A: If you are dumb, you fail to see it.

B: Fail to see what?

A: How much more stuff you really need.

[kly-vertical]

bubblegum

SUPPOSED TO BE FOR Friday, March 4th

Greetings,

I know that technically the first day of lent was Ash Wednesday, and that I started on Thursday. By the end of this I will have 40 pieces shared, but hold me accountable because during times like these it can be hard to get to. Thanks.

--

One of my favorite pass times is luckily one of my jobs. I take care of small children in an extended-day program during certain days of the week. It's like a typical nanny job, except I'm like a teacher. I think the old term may have been 'counselor' like in an after school program. So yeah, maybe I'm like a nanny, but everyone calls me Mr. Kly. *flexes on everyone*

I applied to this job for a couple of reasons, but the one that pokes out is one of my personal goals. But, how cool would it be to teach a bunch of four and five year olds how to play 'bubblegum?' Let me tell you, it was a challenge, but it was amazing.

I normally take care of one of two classes. One being a class full of pre-kindergarten kids and the other consisting of kindergarten children. Both of these classes are incredibly smart. None of the children, except maybe one, know how to read yet. It is super interesting to me because, was I even close to being as smart as them when I was that young?

In addition to learning how to read, these kids are learning how to count. Once you cross a certain age, I think you forget that these things have to be learned.

I figured that one of the coolest ways for them to learn how to count, while playing--what I think is--a fun game: bubblegum. "Bubble gum, bubble gum, in a dish, how many pieces do you wish?"

I thought maybe the hard part would be the counting. The hard part for them was actually learning how to say the chant in rhythm and properly pick someone to pick a number.

I would have them count along, and initially I limited the selection of numbers from 1-20, just because I didn't want to count all the way past 50. These kids totally disregarded that boundary, though. They were throwing out numbers like 78, 65, 84, 39. My lazy ass got tired of counting, so I let them do all the work before they all threatened to stop playing unless I counted with them.

So there I was, or have been, I should say, playing bubblegum with the pre-k class. I will be, unfortunately, leaving them next week. I want to see if I can spark a reading strategy in them. Maybe through like popcorn reading, some kind of scrabble game or something.

What if I thought, simply, like a kid, when it comes to my own things? Could I come up with fun ways to trick myself into learning something tedious? Could I maybe control the anxiety that crawls along with the pressure monster? Could I just chill out a bit, by living like the young kid I used to be when there was nothing in the world to worry about except when it was time to go to recess?

Maybe I should just let my inner child self live a little bit.

[kly-vertical]

benevoLENT

Greetings,

Lent has always been a cool period for me. The challenge of giving something up for forty days excited me, albeit depriving me of the things that I love most-- coffee, social media, elevators and music. Sacrifice made me test my self-discipline, but most importantly it taught me to seek new avenues toward peace and nuance my perceptions of patience.

No, I did not run out of things to abstain from. I just thought that I would do something a little different. Besides, what more can I learn from giving up something that's part of my daily life and regain it after forty days? That I can live with or without something?

This time around, I thought that maybe I could learn something from either giving or creating something. If I could accomplish both, then maybe I can inspire someone along the way. The goal here is to grow and elucidate that process through stories, reflections, short prose, etc. for forty days.

I initially created this blog in like late 2019. I wanted a digital platform to express myself privately. I thought that maybe one day I could publicize the project, titling it The Vertical. It was a play on the second half of my name, which is omitted in my nickname. It was meant to convey the part of me that is not widely known while looking up to new heights. I had this thing called 'self-doubt' stop me.

I had other ideas. I thought of daily TikTok vlogs, giving up chicken (really tough) and I even thought of just totally desisting from using my phone (impossible). I want to use a new angle, though. I think it will mean something to me, if not to anyone who gains something from this.

I hope you appreciate the antiquity of Tumblr.

Kly