My husband and I had long dreamed of the day when we could
afford to forsake our suburban home and live a simpler
back-to-the-land existence. Then one night–armed with pen
and paper–I decided to actually analyze the economics of
the job that I’d hoped (vainly, it seemed) would help us
someday reach our goal. When my computations were finished,
I stared at the hard, cold facts and made a startling
discovery: I couldn’t afford to keep on working full time!
As a teacher, you see, I made $9,000 a year. Yet my actual
spendable income (consisting of net wages minus
work-related expenses) came to only $2,530 annually. I was
truly amazed to learn how much it was costing me to work!
Here’s how my income was being distributed:
Salary $9,000
State and federal taxes $1,500
Car payment ($135/month) 1,620
Gasoline 1,920
Auto repair, tolls, misc 480
Vehicle insurance 350
Working wardrobe 600
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Total work expenses: $6,470
Net spendable income: $2,530
Well, I decided if that was all the further my nine-to-five
routine was getting me, it was time to let go of it.
So with little hesitation I did just that! From then
on I managed to augment my husband’s salary by cashing in
on my love of horses. My years of training in riding,
combined with my teaching experience, blended to produce a
career instructing young horsemen and -women that not
only gave me an income but provided me with lots of outdoor
activity as well. My new “job” also afforded me more
leisure time to develop home and garden skills that helped
to stretch what money I did bring home.
What’s more, my new occupation eliminated our need for a
second family vehicle, so I was able to barter my car for
two acres of remote New Hampshire land. Of course, once we
acquired that property, we immediately wanted to relocate
to it …and upon closer examination of my husband’s
earnings, we realized that the idea of simply packing
up and trying to make do in a rural setting wasn’t too
farfetched at all!
The following list demonstrates how much of his income was
being used each year to do no more than maintain our
(unloved!) lifestyle:
Salary $16,550
State and federal taxes $1,800
Mortgage ($235/mo) 2,820
Property taxes 1,200
Electricity ($75/mo) 900
Telephone ($40/mo) 480
Oil heat 1,000
Truck payment ($107/mo) 1,284
Gasoline 1,200
Truck repair, misc 360
Vehicle insurance 350
Food ($250/mo) 3,000
Dining, local travel 1,200
Clothing 480
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Total work expenses: $16,074
Net spendable income: $476
Faced with those facts, we made the decision to abandon our
suburban way of life, so we sold our house and moved onto
the two wholly owned country acres on which we built a
small, mortgage-free camp. I now cook with bottled gas for
a mere $6.00 a month. Our light is produced by economical kerosene
lanterns. A small barrel stove has taken the place of a
costly oil furnace. Wood obtained through barter provides
all our heat. A brook on our property supplies all
the water we need.
My husband’s financed pickup truck (and its accompanying
payments) has been replaced by a used van (completely paid
for) that we’ve converted into a camper. Soon our annual
budget looked more like this:
Combined income $7,400
Rent/mortgage 0
Car payment 0
Electricity 0
Income taxes $120
Property taxes 75
Telephone (pay phone) 100
Bottled gas 120
Oil heat 1,000
Gasoline 600
Vehicle insurance 300
Food 1,440
Clothing 300
--------
Total work expenses: $3,055
Net spendable income: $4,345
As you can see, our change of lifestyle has resulted in our
having more cash to spend than we did before. Best of all,
however, is the fact that we’re both finally free of the
40-hour week and can devote ourselves full time to
gardening, foraging for wild edibles, fishing, hunting,
writing (which helps pay our bills), and traveling.
In fact, our pleasure expenses have actually increased
since our move to the country. For example, at the moment
our camp is rented (providing us with another source of
cash income) while we spend a year traveling in Alaska.
After three months on the road, with our expenses totaling
$2,900 for 12,000 miles of unforgettable experiences,
we’re now caretaking a remote cabin on the Alaskan coast, enjoying the icy splendor of glaciers and snowcaps, and continuing to expand our knowledge and skills.
We’re living our dream, and all it took was the gumption to
free ourselves of the life we thought we couldn’t
afford to leave. You know, until we faced
the facts, we never realized the astronomical costs
involved in maintaining a suburban lifestyle.
It seems that the solution to money problems sometimes lies
not in earning more, but rather, in simplifying
your way of life … and perhaps even earning
less. Moving from your present dwelling to a dream
farm or camp in the country–to that place where you can
garden and cut your own wood–may be the answer to
your financial dilemma. In fact, you may be able
to eliminate entirely that tedious 40-hour week, and meet
your reduced expenditures by a part-time or seasonal job,
or a home business.
The transition from a life in suburbia to one on the farm
does take time, thought, and money. How much of each you’ll
need will, of course, depend on your skills, level of
determination, hoped-for lifestyle, and current equities.
You may have to “cash in” some assets and deplete your
personal savings …or you may have to devote extra time to
honing a talent that’ll net the in- come you’ll require, or
to learning the skills necessary to live in harmony with
the earth. Whatever method you adopt to rid your self of
those Monday morning blues, rest assured it can be
done. And the entire process will prove to be an exciting
journey, one that may far exceed your original dreams.
