I just finished reading Neal Stephenson’s The Diamond Age - I read it so long ago the plot felt friendly-familiar but I’ve forgotten enough that it all also felt fresh. For a book with so little about my day to day life (it is set in a fairly crazy future after all), there are some powerful and very current quotes. This quote truly bites at government and at digital work:

“Any strategy that involves crossing a valley — accepting short-term losses to reach a higher hill in the distance — will soon be brought to a halt by the demands of a system that celebrates short-term gains and tolerates stagnation, but condemns anything else as failure. In short, a world where big stuff can never get done.”

That’s probably too big a thing to personally solve, but this quote is more manageable on an individual level:

“In an era when everything can be surveiled, all we have left is politeness.”

The book sets a lot of story around Victorian ideals:

  • Standing and saying hello/goodbye to groups (even on train, etc)
  • Introducing with full name and station
  • Making use of shared/public transport and also of vigorous walking
  • Being aware not to intrude on people with loud noises or strong smells
  • Writing letters
  • Maintaining a contacts book

To me, much of what the book balanced against the overwhelming world of futuristic technology was simply structured respect for others. Politeness. The idea of politeness, and some of the themes of big tech/death of the artisan in a time when everything is consumable and replaceable, got me thinking about how I support my own local shops (rather than shopping with tech/shopping giants). I’ve been thinking about pledging to only buy certain things from certain places. I’ve just chucked this list together based one some of my non-standard recent shopping places and on some stuff I’m likely to need to buy in the next 3-6 months.

Pledges:

Supporting small and local companies - such as:

Supporting local Charities - such as:

And a few “don’t do this” pledges:

  • I’m going to remember that I’ve got a limit on travel and accommodation scrimping - multi-bed dorms in London are out, as are long-distance overnight UK bus journeys. Sleeper trains are fine, Premier Inns are great, happy to sleep on a camping mat on a floor. And wherever possible I’m going to try not to use airport/ferry-terminal parking again.
  • I’m not going to by DMs again. Or cheap shoes in general.
  • I’m not going to buy beer from places that are antagonistic to their customers - the foot of Leith Walk has a couple of good bottle shops and they’ll do nicely.
  • Life’s too short to eat in crappy places when I’m out. If I’m solo, a supermarket pack of rolls and some peanut butter will do and if I’m in a group then I’d rather not eat somewhere with less than 3 stars!
  • I’d rather not go than have a rubbish view from a gig or concert.
  • I’m trying hard to dress less slobbily.

I’m likely to come back and revise this a bit, but it’s a starter for ten for being slightly more mindful of what I’m buying and from who. Sustainability of cultural and shopping spaces, of jobs, of the local economy.