Life on the Homestead

Realist,
there was nothing in this article that required such venom, the author works. this lifestyle means that they are not government supported as they are producing thier own food. they are showing the rest of us how to return to the same, something america has gotten away from. i work ad make decent money in the military, my wife works and makes decent money, w both pay our share of taxes. at home we are slowely transforming our 1/3 acrea to an urban farm. i do this not because i nessesarily need to, i do it because i am uncomfortable with the rising price of food, and the quality has steadily gone down. the amount of added "stuff" is being found to give us cancer, make us sick, or make us fat. if all i can do is grow a lot of veggies, fruit, and chickens for eggs, even if it costs more its safer and healthier for my family. and when i see stuff like katrina happen, i feel a little better if im stocked up on canned food that came from my own backyard. unfortunately the comments you made are the norm from people to lazy to look up what they are talking about. far easier to skip the reading part and run your mouth, and sound like an idiot

It's encouraging to read something from the middle ground. Like many of us, Jenna is working at home and away from home. It is a gradual process to peel back the layers of dependency on others to produce our food, clothing and energy-This is a great look at a sustained effort to become more self-sufficient and aware. 'Working' and 'steading can be a difficult balance to maintain. Thanks for a great article.

To the 'Realists' out there: Live and let live. That much anger could literally make you sick.

Thanks for the great article. I read it in the magazine and went the same day to buy Jenna's book. It was so good! I working on living more sustainably and can't wait to have land so I can have chickens and goats. Her book is wonderful!
To PL: Jenna keeps the Angora Rabbits for their fur (you can make it into yarn or sell it to someone else to do it.)
To Realist: Why are you even on this website? This is not a life for everyone, but you really have no idea what you are talking about. First of all, the women who wrote the book has a full time job and she works very hard at home (as do many people trying to live more sustainably). And I think you are kind of missing the point of most people who want to be homesteaders--we want to be able to support ourselves and our families without help from society and the government. We want to grow our own healthy food, produce our own electricty, etc.. and not rely on society and the government to support us! When everything goes to $#@# who do you think will be able to survive??? I'm pretty sure it will be the people who actually know how to fend for themselves--not people who can only buy their food, electricty, and everything else! Just something to think about!

Realist are you my father? You sound just like he does. This way of life is not for everyone and just because some people choose to go off the grid does not mean that they are mooching off the government or tax payers. If you want to be a realist listen to this Wal-mart encourages their employees to get government assistance for everything. So here they are working people and a major company like Wal-mart will not A). pay them enough or B). provide health insurance for them. By the way have you looked at what health insurace cost are now these days. I was working a job that paid me $11 an hour for 30 hours a week and they want $150.00 a payday for family coverage. That leaves $510 before taxes and all the other bills we had to pay to sustain our family. If you can live off the land and become self-sufficent: 1.you will not be placing all those chemicals that are in the foods that you pay your hard earned money for and in turn have to go to the doctor because of what they are doing to your body. You will eat healthier and live better and get off all the meds they have you on. 2. Hey, we are contributing to society by letting you have more gas to run around town with because we are not using it. Have you noticed that when you try to cut back on electicity use the electric company jacks up the rate? Catch 22? Don't be so hard on a way of life that us fat, lazy, wasteful, glutton Americans have gotten away from. Hey do you get off the sofa to turn the channel on the TV or do you use the remote?
Are you sure you are not my dad? Learn more about that way of life before knocking it. You might even be surprised.

Relax Realist! It's definately not a lifestyle for all, but for the folks who do pull it off, I applaud them!

thanks for the article, i dream of an off the grid lifestyle as well although i couldn't give up society completely. i like the though of being self sufficient especially if any disasters come up.

realist you may wish to take a laxative, you come across as a mite bitt...um i mean tense.

"Homesteading" sounds lovely, but are you prepared to handle your medical expenses when you're old? Are you saving for retirement? For that matter, are you contributing anything at all to society at large, or are you withdrawing into a little circle of identically-minded rejectionist friends and giving up on the rest of the world?

Where I live, there are lots of "homesteaders". There are also people who work for a living, and the latter generally end up supporting the former.

Can't afford healthcare? No problem, as long as you keep your reported income low enough, you can get help from the state (in other words, the working 1/3 of the population) - they'll pay your way for you. Can't afford to heat your house in the winter? Don't take another job - just apply to HeatShare and let some other poor sucker's work pay to keep you warm.

What a lovely article, I am just sitting here enjoying the the sokothing thought of the sustainable life.
Six years ago I moved to my own house all by myself at the age of 57, I wanted something better than sitting in my fancy condo watching the world go by. It was the best move I ever made.
I had been a vegan and now am a Vegetarian (Veganism is very tough) I love eating vegetables I grow and freeze, can from my garden. I weave, knit, crochet and sew most of my clothes. My electricity has a problem half my house is in the dark but I never got it fixed since I like it this way.
I have several chickens in my backyard in the coop I built myself and I gather the eggs every day and share many with my new friends.
With all that said, I am very sick right now, I am not saying I am going to eat meat but there is a downside to vegetarianism and eating pure foods. You do not always get all the nutrients from beign a veg, that is why I have chickens, for their eggs, but that was still not enough. I am almost homebound. then I went on line, since my doctor is paying no attention to me, and found my problem.
After taking a few Centrum vitamins and a few meals that contained some meat I am getting better. My weight is already returning to normal, after only a few days is dropping and my mood has changed.
Now I will be able to enjoy my beautiful "farm like" life in good health.

Thank you for such joy in your written voice. Over the years living in my one-bedroom apartment in the Los Angeles area I have been slowly adding what my mother calls "Home Production" skills one by one. Most people that meet me have no concept of a city dweller who makes her own bread, soap, candles, yogurt, cheese, jam, etc. I consider it good living. Thank you for the nice article.

Are the Angora rabbits there to make rabbit pellets for fertilizer, for the fur, or for meat? They look kind of tiny for meat... I wondered, because aren't Angoras kind of expensive?