Anthropocene logbook entry 20231223: "Crisis Mode Year 2023” vs. "Be(come) a NM(Sc)R"

"Crisis Mode" is THE "German Keyword of the Year 2023" - how sad ...

Without wanting to appear ignorant about the current mood in the country and the world situation, but: If you ask around in our industry ( geotechnical infrastructure projects | groundwater exploration | soil remediation, etc. ), you get clearly different signals. "Our place is really buzzing!" | "If you're not in business right now, you're doing something wrong." | etc.

Yes, humanity is inevitably heading for the next greatest possible catastrophe. You can assume that. Or we're already in the middle of it. „Worse-is-always-possible“ the German Angst soul proclaims. But the counter question may be: "Has it really ever been any different?" Or is it more like an "ebb and flow" phenomenon?

Despite all the gloom and doom, we are reaching the end of an outstanding year in "crisis mode country" Germany - with many impressions from international work assignments, visiting friends and beautiful locations in Europe, plus the positive resonance of these experiences in everyday life.

Instead of succumbing to the dilemma of "crisis mode", we prefer to follow a hardy role model, perfectly embodied in "Scrat", the ice-age skip-jack squirrel, on his incessant "nut hunt" - his goal always in sight, constantly chasing, constantly in action, constantly being overwhelmed, and constantly on the verge of having it all and yet losing it all again. But never stopping or giving up. The absolute super-example of maximum resilience.

Fig.1: "Scrat on the go! Always, constantly. Without a break. Always after the nut. No matter what comes along. No matter where in the world - like here, for example, in Ismaning, where hazelnuts are abundant. An excellent counter-example to the "German key-buzzword of the year 2023". I'd rather be a quasi-crazy "Scrat" than a "crisis mode believer" condemned to pessimism.

In this spirit: Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays, plus wishing you an outstanding 2024!

Carpe Diem | Be(come) a Nut-Mad-(Sc)Rat!