The New Pioneers
(Page 6 of 8)
September/October 1971
By David Gumpert
The Colemans have made some concessions to 20th Century technology, however. They have kept a small Jeep, a Volkswagen truck and a portable Zenith AM-FM shortwave radio: all of which they owned prior to moving to Maine. Eliot liken to listen to the news and weather reports once or twice a day, and on Sundays he tunes in classical music.
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The Jeep and truck trouble the Colemans, however, as symbols of modern technology and sources of pollution. Eliot says they're considering selling the truck and hitching a trailer to the Jeep whenever they need to haul things. "At the rate we're going, we'll have an ox and mules in a few years," says. "Who knows, then if I want to go to town, we'll hitch up an oxcart and make a day trip out of it.
HEALTH INSURANCE ON THE TABLE
Otherwise, the Colemans have been able to divest themselves of nearly every sign of middle-class life. They gave two electric blenders and other appliances they had received as wed ding gifts to friends before leaving Franconia College. Eliot discontinued his Blue Cross and Blue Shield coverage as well. "Health insurance is served on the table every meal," he says, expressing the belief of many organic food devotees that food grown without artificial fertilizers and made without chemical additives improves health.
Eliot admits to some misgivings about forsaking insurance. "I had that fear every suburbanite has, but living like this, you get over it," he says. "I figure if anything happens, I'll find a way to cope with it." If he should face a sudden big doctor or hospital bill, he figures, he will pay it off over a period of years.
Eliot and Sue still retain some ties to the money economy. During the spring and summer Eliot does gardening and other odd jobs for local residents three or four mornings a week, for which he is paid $2 to $2.50 an hour. Sue also has done some part-time secretarial work. Together, they were able to earn about $1,400 last year. They earned another $350 from the sale of surplus vegetables from their garden—mostly peas and lettuce—to neighbors and tourists, for a total income of $1,750. The remaining $250 they spent came from the last of the savings they had when they moved to Maine.
Of their $2,000 in expenses, the largest single item—about $750—went for gas, repairs and registration of the truck and Jeep, which is another reason Eliot wants to get rid of one or both vehicles. Another $500 went for food they couldn't produce themselves, such as raisins, vegetable oil, nuts and 100—pound bags of wheat, oats and rice, which together last about a year.
THE GOAT GETS LOOSE
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