.

Signs of spring

2012-02-22T18:54:00.000-08:00

Even though we really have not had much of a winter, we are finally beginning to see some signs of spring. Little blades of grass are starting to peek through, some fruit trees are beginning to bud out, and one of the geese has started to sit on her eggs.

She has taken to sitting on them more regularly but she does not sit on them all day. We have put the roosters up so they can't bother her and we can leave the pen open. If the roosters are out they like to go into her nest and uncover the eggs. Not to mention that they will try to jump on the female geese as well as the hens!

She doesn't like it when we get too close and tries to hide her head so we can't see her. I have read that not all female geese will sit on the eggs. Usually one or two will lay the eggs and one will sit on them. So far we have only noticed two of the females laying eggs and the one that is sitting appears to be laying more often.

I have finally found a book about domestic geese that I want to get. It is very difficult to find a lot of information about raising geese online so we are trying to let her do what comes naturally until we can learn more. The geese are fun to watch and they do have a certain elegance and grace to them especially when they are on the water.

We did get a little snow recently and it was the first that the birds have seen. The geese did not seem to be bothered by it at all and went about their usual routine of getting breakfast and then heading back to the pond. The chickens however took a little longer to venture out. Geese are pretty hardy birds and don't seem to be bothered by very much. And of course the eggs are great!

One coop down...

2012-02-09T17:04:00.000-08:00

We finally completed another project in the last month or so. The small chicken coop is officially done and useable. It doesn't look very pretty but the chickens seem happy with it. Hopefully I can make it look a little nicer whenever we can get some siding to go on it.

My husband built this using all reclaimed materials. We bought the window but it was from a Habitat for Humanity store. The chickens seem to be happy with the fact that they can sit on their roost and look outside. The door that leads inside is on the end that you can see in the picture. If you look carefully you can see the handle on the door. And yes, he built that too. Not a bad job if I do say so myself!

This is the inside of the coop. The black milk crates sitting on the left are what we use for the chickens nesting boxes. Right now they are sitting on the floor but eventually we will put in a shelf or two to set them on. The stair looking thing is the roost. This is only temporary because we plan on insulating the coop. When that is finished then we will put in a roost that will rest on boards attached to the walls.

The posts are in for the fence but we still have to get the fencing material. So for now the girls are enjoying roaming the yard because the boys have been put in jail. In other words we have separated them and the girls seem very happy about the whole thing. And just for a laugh, here is a picture of one of the girls hitching a ride on my husband's shoulder.

TPH Episode 40

2012-02-08T19:06:00.000-08:00

Welcome back Homesteaders! Today we are going to talk about how to start your own seeds and give you a little history about tomatoes. And for those of you who like paranormal romances, stay tuned at the end of the show for a book review!

Seed Starting

http://www.motherearthnews.com/Organic-Gardening/2005-12-01/Seed-Starting-Basics.aspx

http://www.motherearthnews.com/organic-gardening/seed-starting-zm0z12fmzsto.aspx

Tomatoes

Fresh Salsa

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Total Time: 20 minutes

Yield: Makes 2 to 3 Cups

Ingredients:

4 medium tomatoes, cored, seeds removed, chopped
2 medium cloves garlic, finely minced
2 to 3 tablespoons finely chopped sweet onion or yellow onion
1 to 2 tablespoons minced jalapeno or serrano pepper
2 heaping tablespoons finely chopped cilantro
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
salt and pepper, to taste

Preparation:

In a bowl, combine all ingredients and stir to blend.

Cover and refrigerate until serving time.

http://southernfood.about.com/od/salsarecipes/r/Classic-Salsa.htm

Homemade Ketchup

This homemade ketchup takes time, but the final result is well worth the effort. I start this the day before, then I refrigerate the tomato pulp and liquid mixture to boil down and process the next day.

Ingredients:

1 1/2 teaspoons celery seeds
2 teaspoons whole cloves
1 (3- to 4-inch) cinnamon stick, broken into small pieces
1/2 teaspoon whole allspice berries
1/2 teaspoon mustard seeds
1 1/2 cups cider vinegar
12 pounds tomatoes, cored and coarsely chopped
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
1 large onion, chopped
1 small hot red pepper, finely chopped, or 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/3 cup packed light brown sugar
2 tablespoons pickling salt

Preparation:

Put the celery seeds, cloves, cinnamon, allspice, and mustard seeds in a cheesecloth bag. Tie up and set aside.

In a small stainless steel or enamel-lined saucepan, combine the vinegar and spice bag. Bring to a full boil. Remove from heat and let stand for 25 minutes. Remove the spice bag and discard. Set the vinegar aside.

In a large stainless steel or enamel-lined kettle (at least 8 to 12 quart size), combine the chopped tomatoes, garlic, onion, and red pepper or cayenne. Bring to a boil, stirring frequently. Reduce heat to medium-low and continue at a gently boil, stirring frequently, for 25 minutes. Add the spiced vinegar to the tomato mixture and continue cooking, stirring frequently, for 30 minutes longer.

Drain the tomatoes into a large stainless steel saucepan, then put them through a food mill to extract as much juice and pulp into the saucepan as possible. Discard the solids. Add sugar and salt to the extracted pulp and juices. At this point, you can refrigerate this mixture overnight and finish the next day. Bring the tomato pulp mixture to a boil over medium-high heat, then reduce heat to medium-low and boil for about 2 hours, or until reduced by about 2/3 and thickened to a ketchup consistency.
Meanwhile, prepare the work area, canner, jars, and lids. See Preparing Jars for Canning and Boiling Water Processing.

Fill jars, leaving 1/2-inch headspace. Use a small plastic or stainless steel spatula to remove air bubbles, wipe rims with a damp cloth, and fit with lids and seals.

Transfer to a rack in the canner and lower into the hot water. Add more water, as needed, so you have 1 inch over the jars. Cover, bring to a boil, and continue boiling gently for 15 minutes.

Makes 3 pints.

http://southernfood.about.com/od/tomatoes/r/r90715bb.htm

Book Review

Fire Burn and Cauldron Bubble: The Jolie Wilkins Series, Book 1 by H.P. Mallory

· ISBN-10: 1453812954

· ISBN-13: 978-1453812952

Amazon: Kindle 0.99 Used $3.08

B&N: $21 used Nook 0.99

Toil and Trouble, a Paranormal Romance (Jolie Wilkins Series, Book # 2) by H.P. Mallory

· ISBN-10: 1456428810

· ISBN-13: 978-1456428815

Amazon: Kindle $3.99

B&N: Nook $3.99

Witchful Thinking Release date 2/28/12

$7.99 paperback and Nook and Kindle

· ISBN-10: 0345531450

· ISBN-13: 978-0345531452

http://hpmallory.com/

Growth Zones

http://usnews.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2012/01/26/10234634-new-climate-controversy-us-map-shows-warmer-planting-conditions

http://planthardiness.ars.usda.gov/PHZMWeb/

TPH Episode 39

2012-02-08T19:01:00.000-08:00

Welcome back Homesteaders! Today we will be talking about hedgerows as living fences, squash, and an old west historic figure. Enjoy!

Hedgerows

http://www.britainexpress.com/History/english-hedges.htm

http://www.motherearthnews.com/modern-homesteading/living-fences-z10m0sto.aspx

http://www.motherearthnews.com/Organic-Gardening/2007-06-01/Surefire-Summer-Squash.aspx

Squash

Super Easy Sauted Summer Squash

This simple summer squash sauté is a great way to enjoy fresh summer squash. Feel free to use either yellow summer squash or zucchini in this easy recipe. This is a wonderful and easy side dish to serve with a grilled steak or chicken meal, along with rice, baked potato, or another side vegetable.

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 10 minutes

Total Time: 20 minutes

Yield: Serves 4

Ingredients:

4 small summer squash or 2 to 3 medium
nonstick cooking spray
1/4 cup vegetable broth or chicken broth
1/2 teaspoon crushed garlic
3 or 4 green onions, thinly sliced
about a dozen medium basil leaves, cut chiffonade*
salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Preparation:

*To cut chiffonade, stack the leaves, roll up tightly, and slice thinly.

Spray a large skillet with cooking spray and heat over medium heat . Saute the sliced summer squash, stirring constantly, for about 2 minutes. Add the vegetable broth to the skillet and continue cooking and stirring for a few minutes longer, until almost tender. Add the garlic and green onions and continue cooking and stirring until tender but still a bit firm. Stir in the basil and add salt and pepper to taste.
Serves 4.

http://southernfood.about.com/od/summerrecipes/r/Super-Easy-Sauteed-Summer-Squash.htm

Zucchini and Summer Squash Casserole

This simple casserole is a great way to take advantage of prolific zucchini and summer squash.

Cook Time: 50 minutes

Total Time: 50 minutes

Yield: Serves 6

Ingredients:

3 small zucchini, about 1 1/2 pounds
3 small summer squash, about 1 1/2 pounds
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/4 cup chicken broth or water
1 clove garlic, finely minced
4 tablespoons butter, cut in small pieces
4 tablespoons fine dry bread crumbs
4 tablespoons Parmesan cheese

Preparation:

Heat oven to 350°.

Wash the squash, trim ends, and cut into 1/2-inch pieces. Put squash pieces in a greased 2- to 2 1/2-quart baking dish. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Combine the chicken broth with the garlic and pour over the squash. Dot with butter then sprinkle with the bread crumbs and Parmesan cheese.
Cover and bake for 35 minutes. Uncover and bake for about 15 to 20 minutes longer, until browned and tender.
Serves 6.

http://southernfood.about.com/od/zucchinirecipes/r/r100611a.htm

Blueberry Zucchini Bread

Ingredients

3 eggs, lightly beaten
1 cup vegetable oil
3 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 1/4 cups white sugar
2 cups shredded zucchini
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
1 pint fresh blueberries

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Lightly grease 4 mini-loaf pans.
In a large bowl, beat together the eggs, oil, vanilla, and sugar. Fold in the zucchini. Beat in the flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda, and cinnamon. Gently fold in the blueberries. Transfer to the prepared mini-loaf pans.
Bake 50 minutes in the preheated oven, or until a knife inserted in the center of a loaf comes out clean. Cool 20 minutes in pans, then turn out onto wire racks to cool completely.

http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Blueberry-Zucchini-Bread/

TPH Episode 38

2012-02-08T18:58:00.000-08:00

Welcome back Homesteaders! Sorry for the absence but I'm finally back! Today we discuss Tiny Houses and Runner Ducks in the Ancestral Animals segment. I also have a book review as well as the usual Gardening by the Moon segment. Enjoy!

Tiny House Links

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HXDu2U-CmkI 16 year old builds tiny house

http://lloydkahn-ongoing.blogspot.com/

http://rowdykittens.com/our-tiny-house/

http://www.puresalvageliving.com/

http://tinyhouseblog.com/

Runner Ducks

Book Review

Navigating the Coming Chaos by Carolyn Baker

· ISBN-10: 1450270875

· ISBN-13: 978-1450270878

TPH Episode 37

2012-02-08T18:54:00.000-08:00

Happy Yule everyone! In this episode you will get to enjoy some holiday music and hopefully learn some interesting facts about traditions and songs from times gone by.

The Way To Early Christmas Song by Paul and Storm

The Christmas Song by Calvin Owens

Christmas in the Country by Codie Prevost

The Wassail Song by Jim Goodrich

Carol of the Bells by Inner Splendor Celtic Christmas Music

Christmas in England Wassail Recipe
Ready in: Over 5 hrs ? Difficulty: 2 (1=easiest :: hardest=5)
Serves/Makes: 18

INGREDIENTS:

3/4 cup sugar2 quarts apple juice1 pint cranberry juice1 teaspoon aromatic bitters1 cup rum2 cinnamon sticks1 teaspoon whole allspice1 small orange, studded with cloves

PREPARATION:

Dissolve sugar in juices in crockpot. Add remaining ingredients. Cook on high for 1 hour. Simmer on low for 4 to 8 hours.

NUTRITION:

136 calories, 0 grams fat, 27 grams carbohydrates, 0 grams protein per serving. This recipe is low in sodium. This recipe is low in fat.

This recipe from CDKitchen for Christmas in England Wassail serves/makes 18

http://www.cdkitchen.com/recipes/recs/212/Christmas-in-England-Wassail117252.shtml

Holly and the Ivy by Chuck Stevens

Deck the Halls with Boughs of Holly by Doug Boldt

The 12 Days of Christmas by thehipcola

I Think Monroe Shot Rudolph by Carl Hatmaker

White Christmas by Shauna Burns

TPH Episode 36

2012-02-08T18:51:00.000-08:00

Welcome back everyone! Today I have a guest with me, my son Jack! He will be sharing his point view about homesteading and some of his advice for would be homesteaders. We will also take a look at what is recommended for Gardening by the Moon and today's Folktale. Enjoy!

TPH Episode 35

2012-02-08T18:50:00.000-08:00

Welcome back Homesteaders to Episode 35! Today I will tell you about some of the basics you need to know if you are considering keeping your flock of chickens. We will also look at the heritage breed Leghorn chicken and as usual there is the Gardening by the Moon segment and a story for Thanksgiving.

www.albc-usa.org

www.backyardchickens.com

Storey’s Guide to Raising Chickens by Gail Damerow ISBN 978-1-60342-470-7

Ancestral Animals

American Brown Leghorn ClubBud Blankenship5205 Pundt RoadLewisburg, OH 45338 USAOffice phone: 937-962-4226 Office email: budablc@hotmail.comPersonal email: pearce@whidbey.net http://www.the-coop.org/leghorn/ablc1.html

TPH Episode 34

2012-02-08T18:48:00.000-08:00

Happy Halloween Homesteaders! Today we will look at various burial rituals and enjoy a classic halloween story.

Haunted Highways: Spooky Stories, Strange Happenings, Supernatural Sightings by Tom Ogden

TPH Episode 33

2012-02-08T18:47:00.000-08:00

Welcome back Homesteaders! This is a shorter than usual episode but hopefully you will enjoy the weather lore in today's show until I get back!

TPH Episode 32

2012-02-08T18:46:00.000-08:00

Welcome back to Episode 32! In this episode we will go over the differences in water bath canning and pressure canning and some of the equipment you need for both. You will also be treated to a blog entry written by a Collapse Net member describing their efforts at homesteading and preparing for collapse.

http://www.freshpreserving.com/home.aspx

Ball Blue Book: Guide to Preserving

Ball Complete Book of Home Preserving: 400 Delicious and Creative Recipes for Today

TPH Episode 31

2012-02-08T18:44:00.000-08:00

Green Phallus
http://pncminnesota.wordpress.com/2011/09/14/green-phallus-tours-tc-pagan-pride/

Soil Cube
http://www.soilcube.com/

Alternative Building
http://www.greenhomebuilding.com/index.htm
Adobe House

Cob House

Cob House Interior

Earthbag House

Strawbale House

Hereford Hogs

www.collapsenet.com

Anonymous-Message to Occupy the World

2011-11-20T12:24:00.000-08:00

This is the transcript from the latest video released by Anonymous. For anyone who believes in Occupy Wall Street I would encourage you to watch the video. The transcript is below if you have difficulty understanding the audio.

Transcript of video:
Greetings citizens of the world. We are Anonymous. Since the occupation of Wall Street began we have been watching closely as countless people in cities around the world have taken to the streets in peaceful support of the movement. A show of support for a humanity free from the benefit of the few at the expense of the many. Free from corruption in our political and financial institutions, and free from the injustices caused by corporate personhood and the oppression of others. This is not the Arab Spring, Egypt, Greece, Tunisia, nor The American Autumn.
This, is mass global awakening.
The lies and corruptions that have attached themselves to our system like a parasite have been exposed.
A way to rid our world of this parasite uncovered. The cure lies in all of us.
This is only the first wave of our brothers and sisters to awaken to the lies and corruptions taking place around them. You, my brothers and sisters bear the weight of carrying this message to the masses. You must continue to hold your ground and stand up to help educate others to these injustices. The practice of active non participation in the things we deem evil, peaceful protests, and large scale community education efforts are things each one of us can continue and teach others to help aid in the fight. This will assure us victory against tyranny in our world.
We have already seen signs of this process beginning to take hold. With the successful transfer of 4.5 billion dollars on Bank Transfer Day, and 690,000 new accounts created at credit unions in the U.S. alone, we have taken the first strike against the banks.
This will not be the last.
Occupy protests continue to grow despite the puppet media, who is bought and controlled by politicians and corporations continuing to lie about numbers involved in the protests. They have said there is no clear message and otherwise down played and belittled the protests as a whole. Yet our message has still gotten out.
Political and corporate backed entities continue to try to adopt and corrupt the movement. Trying to turn it into a tool for their own purposes, yet they fail.

Worse yet, incidents of police brutality and the revocation of the rights of our citizens are growing more common place. Corrupt elements hidden within police forces around the world have begun to inflict terror and beat the otherwise peaceful protestors into submission. Mayors, and governing officials in cities around the world have begun to send in their dogs in an effort to stamp out the growth of revolution. They have taken notice of our actions and they are scared!

These crimes against our citizens do not go unnoticed, and must not be allowed to quell our efforts in seeking freedom. We must maintain peaceful despite these atrocities and not feed into their efforts to bring us down to their lowly level of existence.

The instigators of these actions are unaware that they are defeating themselves, for we are already at the third act of the famous quote; "First they ignore you, then they ridicule you, then they fight you. then you win."
There has never been a more exciting time to be alive in all our lives.

It is important that we not be bored or let idle time pass, for the seeds of revolution against worldwide injustice have been sewn. Yet without enough nourishment they will not survive and grow to full fruition.

Citizens of the world, the power for change is in our hands. We must continue to expose the truth to the masses.
Know your own power; inform others of the immediate threat of corporations, banking institutions and the growing takeover of world governments. Maintain true to the foundations of the Occupy movement. Fight greed, corruption and corporate control of our democracy.

Continue to denounce the involvement of entities with political and financial affiliations in the movement. Express your free right to assemble via global, large scale peaceful protests.

Our efforts must not simply continue.
Our efforts must grow.

Corrupt governments, police, corporations, banking institutions and those who oppress others. You cannot kill, or buy an idea.

You are the parasite, not our citizens who gather in peaceful protest against injustice in our world.
You are outnumbered, and surrounded.

The revolution has begun, and the end of your reign is near.

We will not stand for your atrocities and injustices any longer.

We are Bradley Manning, we are Scott Olsen. We are your brother, mother, and best friend.

We are people.
We are free.
We are one.
We are Anonymous.
We are legion.
We do not forgive.
We do not forget.
You should have expected us!

Earthquake vs Tornado

2011-11-06T17:06:00.000-08:00

I have always said that I would take a tornado over an earthquake any day and that was before I had experienced one! Now I can absolutely say that that statement is true! Friday night we had an earthquake that measured 4.7. Now, to those of you who live in areas prone to earthquakes this may not seem like a big deal. To us however, it was a very big deal! We have never experienced an earthquake before even though they have happened here before.

The Friday night earthquake was actually early Saturday morning at 2:12 AM. My husband and I sat straight up in bed as the shaking started. We heard a loud boom that sounded a lot like thunder and then the heavy shaking started. He grabbed me to protect me and as soon as the shaking stopped we were out of bed and yelled at the kids to be sure they were ok. Surprisingly enough, they slept through it! Several of the 2 liter water bottles we had put up in the loft fell as well as other items that we had on shelves. Two of the bottles broke when they hit the floor so there was a good bit of water all over the place.

To say the least we were very shaken and scared. We scrambled for some towels to clean up the water and grabbed some clothes so we could go outside and check the animals. The animals were actually handling it very well. The geese were awake and squaking in low tones but they weren't frantic. The chickens didn't seem to bothered either. The poor cat was hiding under the bed however. Everything seemed ok so we tried to go back to bed but to say the least we didn't sleep very well after that.

Last night, which was Saturday, at 11:00 PM we had another quake that registered as a 5.6. This is offically the strongest earthquake ever recorded in the state. The epicenter for this one was about a mile south of us so of course we felt it as well but it didn't seem as strong as the first one. We found out this morning however, that one of our neighbors sustained some significant damage to their house.

At the top of the picture you can see where their chimney broke off and some of it fell on the ground. The rest of it fell through their roof into the living room. Pretty much everything fell out of the cabinets in their kitchen and there are broken items all over the house.

This is the downstairs bathroom. The glass on the floor was the mirror that was glued to the wall. It was a 1/4 inch thick and as you can see, it didn't come through the quake very well. Hopefully we won't have any more. We have felt a few aftershocks but so far no more major quakes. So, its offical, earthquakes suck and I will definitely be looking forward to tornado season.

Finally! A harvest!

2011-10-22T21:12:00.000-07:00

It has been a tough growing season but we finally got a harvest of one of our crops. The weather has been turning colder and we decided it was time to dig up the sweet potatoes. Sweet potatoes thrive in hot weather but should be dug up before the first frost. The colder temperatures can damage the tubers. We were pleasantly surprised by what we found.

The picture above is of all of the potatoes that we dug up. It may not look like much but there is enough there for 2-3 meals. Many of them were larger than we anticipated and they don't seem to spread out like white potatoes do. Even though the plants sent out long roots, the tubers were at the base of the plants. Each plant produced around 3-4 potatoes each.

This was one of the largest potatoes. It had gotten so large that it was already slightly uncovered! You can imagine how excited we were over this one! Sweet potatoes proved pretty easy to grow and definitely something we will do again next year. They are definitely a summer plant so if you live somewhere with high heat, this plant should do well. One thing we did learn was that even though it likes heat, the plants did seem like they were beginning to suffer under the intense summer heat we had this year. When the temps climbed above 100 degrees on a regular basis they did not look to happy. We ended up providing them with a little shade so they didn't cook and they seemed to do better.

One thing I had not really considered before this year was selecting plants that can tolerate drought and heat for a summer garden. Many of the plants that we think of for the garden actually prefer cooler weather. This includes, tomatoes, squash, zucchini, peppers, peas, etc. When the summer temperatures moved in sooner than expected, the plants definitely suffered and affected our potential harvest. Next year I plan on having three garden plans. A spring garden, a summer garden, and a fall garden. The summer garden will be comprised of plants that can tolerate our hot summers and the drought that doesn't seem to be going anywhere.

These summer plants seem to be a little harder to come across than those that we plant in the spring. As I develop my list I will post it here to hopefully give you all some ideas for your own summer gardens.

Eggs!

2011-10-01T20:41:00.000-07:00

Finally! One of the hens has started to lay eggs! She has been laying for a week now and we are hoping the others will begin to lay soon. My youngest was the one to discover the first egg and he was so excited! Now the kids look forward to going out every day to see if we have one yet.

The eggs are a little small but I'm hoping they will get bigger as the chickens get older. Even if they don't, once all of the hens begin to lay we will have plenty of eggs. The chickens are also beginning to develop some interesting personalities.

One of the roosters that we call Big Red is apparently the head rooster. He chases off the other roosters when they try to get frisky with the hens and he does NOT like the geese. If they get to close he will chase them and jump on them trying to pull out their feathers. It's actually quite funny to watch. Of course he doesn't let the fact that they are bigger than him deter him at all. He will often take on all five at once. Of course the funny thing is the geese are scared of him!

One of the funnier things we have observed is that one of the hens looks to my husband as her protector. If he is outside and a rooster is chasing her, she will run to him so the rooster will leave her alone. She also likes to hop up onto the fence when he is there so he can pet her. The funniest thing however, is when he goes out to feed them. They have learned where the food is and what the bucket looks like that we carry it in. When he goes out to feed them she wants him to pick her up so she can eat out of the cup or sit on his lap and eat. Tonight, he was standing up while he was feeding them and since she couldn't sit on his lap she decided to sit on his shoulder instead. Apparently she has decided that she is a pet, not a source of food.

The geese still are not laying eggs but I am not sure when they will start. It will probably be spring before we see them begin to lay eggs. My guess is one day they will come wandering up with some little ones trailing behind. Spring should prove to be very interesting. In the meantime, stay tuned because I'll be putting some pictures up soon of our sweet potato harvest as soon as we dig them up!

TPH Episode 30

2011-09-06T04:00:00.000-07:00

Today we take a look at some products that can help us live a little lighter on the planet. We also take a look at the Belted Galloway Cow in the Ancestral Animal segment and as always there is the Gardening by the Moon segment.

www.reuseit.com

Belted Galloway Cow

American Livestock Breeds Conservancy, PO Box 477, Pittsboro, NC, 27312, (919) 542-5704, albc@albc-usa.org, www.albc-usa.org

Belted Galloway Society, N8603 Zentner Rd, New Glarius, WI 53574, (608) 220-1091, executivedirector@beltie.org, www.beltie.org

TPH Episode 29

2011-09-06T03:59:00.000-07:00

Happy Anniversary to me! I'm back after a few technical difficulties!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=baya8-agPs4 Fukushima Video

http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2011/aug/14/larry-elliott-global-financial-system "We've been warned: The system is ready to blow"

http://www.autoevolution.com/news/concerning-fact-world-vehicle-count-tops-1-billion-38106.html

http://thegazette.com/2011/08/15/for-first-time-more-corn-to-be-used-for-ethanol-than-livestock/

http://www.upi.com/Business_News/2011/08/18/Gold-closes-at-record-182630/UPI-70941313702837/

http://www.startribune.com/business/127801263.html

http://www.zerohedge.com/news/guest-post-%E2%80%9C-sequel%E2%80%9D-how-2011-repeat-2008%E2%80%94only-bigger-longer-and-uncut-bailouts

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/08/20/world/asia/20rice.html?_r=1

What is it?

2011-08-24T19:30:00.000-07:00

Apparently, when I bought the zucchini and squash plants in the spring we got something a little extra. When they are small they are kind of hard to tell apart. Now that this one has grown and spread all over the place it is pretty obvious that it is NOT a zucchini or a squash plant.

At first I thought it might be a cucumber plant but that does not look like a cucumber. It has gotten fatter and is starting to develop a rough exterior similar to a cantaloupe. We suspect it may be a type of melon but to be honest we have no idea. So if anyone has any suggestions as to what it is, let me know!

This is a better picture of the leaves which may help with identification.

Even though we are still having a heat wave we have gotten a little relief. We have gotten a little rain which has helped the garden immensely and the temperatures have backed off of the 110+ mark. We are still having triple digit temps but the plants seem to be doing a little better. The sweet potatoes are doing pretty well and one of the tomato plants has decided to put out more than one tomato. Even though I got the watermelon plants in late, they have started to produce some female flowers and looks like a couple of them have pollinated. Hopefully we'll get at least a couple by the end of the season!

If we are going to have a fall garden I have to get off my duff and get things started. The fall seed potatoes still have not come in at the feed store but I'm hoping to get some of those as soon as they do. I have to admit that this year was not the best year to try your hand at a first time garden but I think we have done as well as we could given the heat and the drought. We have learned a lot this year so I'm sure we'll be able to do better next year. Now, if we can just get that chicken coop finished...

TPH Episode 28

2011-07-26T18:16:00.000-07:00

Welcome back Homesteaders! Today we take a closer look at how we came by the idea of the perfect lawn and how we can change it. Today's Creepy Critter is the Big Eyed Bug and we have a real life tale from the Appalachian Mountains.

http://www.american-lawns.com/history/history_lawn.html

http://organiclawncare101.com/history.html

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/07/21/garden/in-philadelphia-a-garden-grows-wild.html?_r=3&pagewanted=1&ref=todayspaper

Food Not Lawns: How to Turn Your Yard into a Garden And Your Neighborhood into a Community by H. C. Flores

Big Eyed Bug

Hot Hot Hot!

2011-07-26T17:40:00.000-07:00

Can I say that again? Oh my gosh it's hot! We have been suffering with 100+ temperatures since the middle of June and it's really beginning to take its toll. The garden isn't looking to good due to the heat and the lack of rain. The zucchini plants and the squash have given up but the tomatoes are hanging in there.

This time of year it may seem impossible to grow anything but we do have a few plants that seem to be doing well despite the baking temperatures. Being new to gardening we are still learning a lot and one of the big things we learned this year is we need to start earlier and we need to learn which plants do well in the heat so we can still have something growing in the summer. Sweet potatoes do very well in warmer temperatures and ours have taken off. They love the heat and have been growing quite well. Maybe we will get a decent sweet potato crop this year.

Several of the herbs seem to be enjoying the warm weather as well. The sage plant had taken off when it was cooler but its growth seemed to have slowed as the temperatures got warmer. I harvested the taller stalks and now it is growing vigorously again. Despite the temperatures the mint is doing great! One of the plants in particular is well shaded and has been growing like mad. I have already had to harvest some so it can continue to grow. Some of the other herbs that are thriving include the thyme, marjoram, lemon balm, and bee balm.

Recently we went to a feed store that we had not been to previously. We found tendergreen bush bean and wando pea seeds. Both of these are supposed to be heat tolerant so this may be something we go ahead and try this year. If we plant them soon, they could be ready by fall. If we don't try them this year we will definitely put them on our list of summer plants for next year.

I can honestly say that we have learned some valuable lessons this year with our garden. You can read all you want to, but by getting in there and doing it you will learn more than any book can teach you. Hopefully we can take our lessons from the spring and have a more successful fall garden.

TPH-Episode 27

2011-07-11T20:22:00.000-07:00

Welcome back Homesteaders! Have you melted yet? We're doing our best not to but the heat is taking a toll on the garden. In today's show we will be discussing the element of Fire and we cover Tennessee Fainting Goats in the Ancestral Animals segment. To start with though, I touch on the issues with the debt ceiling and rant on for a bit about gardens in the front yard.

Grow veggies = Go to jail
http://www.treehugger.com/files/2011/07/michigan_woman_faces_jail_planting_veggie_garden.php
http://oakparkhatesveggies.wordpress.com/

Wood Cook stoves
http://www.lehmans.com/store/Stoves___Cook_Stoves___Wood_Burning_Cook_Stoves___The_Sweetheart_Wood_Cookstove___2603?Args=

Masonry Heaters
http://mha-net.org/
http://www.grannysstore.com/Do-It-Yourself/masonry_stoves.htm

Rocket Stoves
http://rocketstove.org/

Ancestral Animals

International Fainting Goat Association John Savage 1039 State Route 168 Darlington, PA 16115 USA Office phone: 724-843-2084 Office fax: 724-891-1440 Office email: IFGA@accuRegister.com www.faintinggoat.com

Myotonic Goat Registry Tara Lawrence 3174 Valley Ford Road Adger, AL 35006 USA Office phone: 205-425-5954 Cell: 205-451-9442 Office email: myotonicgoatregistry@yahoo.com www.myotonicgoatregistry.net

Books
Permaculture: A Designers Manual by Bill Mollison www.powells.com

Earthbag Building by Kai Hunter and Donald Kiffmeyer ISBN 978-0-86571-507-3

TPH-Episode 26

2011-07-11T20:14:00.000-07:00

Finally! After getting through some technical difficulties I finally was able to get this episode up. My apologies for being late but hopefully the next one will go a little smoother. In today's show I talk about wind turbines and introduce today's Not So Creep Critter, the Assassin Bug.

Not so Creepy Critters

Book Review
The Foxfire Book: Hog Dressing, Log Cabin Building, Mountain Crafts and Foods, Planting by the Signs, Snake Lore, Hunting Tales, Faith Healing, Moonshining by Inc. Foxfire Fund and Eliot Wigginton

Ball Complete Book of Home Preserving by Judi Kingry and Lauren Devine

TPH-Episode 25

2011-07-11T20:12:00.000-07:00

Life interferes once again! This is another shorter-than-usual show but I plan on recording again this weekend to attempt to get on a better schedule. This week I wax a little philosophical about the Summer Solstice and Pagan values. Also, I did manage to put in the Gardening by the Moon segment. And don't forget to check out the news headlines in the shownotes!

Headlines

http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2010/12/06/america_collapse_2025

http://www.zerohedge.com/article/big-banks-have-sold-us-out-democrats-and-republicans-have-sold-us-out-no-one-defending-our-i

http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2011/jun/06/us-economy-decline-recovery-challenges

http://globaleconomicanalysis.blogspot.com/2011/06/head-of-saudi-electric-company-says-oil.html

http://gregor.us/fossil-fuels/2010-oil-story-drawing-down-the-inventories/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed:+Gregorus+%28Gregor.us%29

http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/06/10/us-opec-idUSTRE75924U20110610

http://planetark.org/wen/62288 Colorado snow pack

http://money.cnn.com/2011/06/10/news/economy/drug_shortages_fda/index.htm?iid=HP_LN

http://www.countercurrents.org/greer290511A.htm

http://www.yahoo.com/?ilc=1 What happens after Greece defaults?

http://blogs.forbes.com/christopherhelman/2011/06/16/could-we-see-a-summer-oil-shortage-this-economist-says-yes/

http://www.dentonrc.com/sharedcontent/dws/drc/localnews/stories/DRC_blotter_0617.3ca001474.html Copper theft

http://www.zerohedge.com/article/trading-over-counter-gold-and-silver-be-illegal-beginning-july-15

http://www.businessinsider.com/nebraska-nuclear-meltdown-2011-6

http://www.businessinsider.com/ron-paul-1970s-stagflation-2011-6

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/business/news/greece-expected-to-default-even-after-a-second-imfeu-bailout-2299570.html

TPH-Episode 24

2011-07-11T20:09:00.000-07:00

Despite the fact I had no shownotes ready I still managed to get a show out! So enjoy today's ramblings about chickens, worms, and whatever else comes to mind!

http://rivenfae-wolfwoods.blogspot.com/

http://www.redwormcomposting.com/buy-composting-worms/

http://whatcom.wsu.edu/ag/compost/Easywormbin.htm

News Links
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/business/news/us-house-price-fall-beats-great-depression-slide-2291491.html

http://www.zerohedge.com/article/berlin-conference-20-russia-bail-out-hyperinflationary-belarus-colonization-scramble-heats

http://www.zerohedge.com/article/spiegel-reports-greek-bailout-2-surpass-%E2%82%AC100-billion

http://www.zerohedge.com/article/20-facts-about-us-inequality-everyone-should-know

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-06-03/crude-oil-declines-as-u-s-jobless-rate-climbs-to-highest-level-this-year.html

http://www.zerohedge.com/article/are-nuclear-chain-reactions-still-occurring-fukushima

http://www.fcnp.com/commentary/national/9335-the-peak-oil-crisis-an-announcement.html

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-06-02/moody-s-says-u-s-may-be-cut-if-no-debt-limit-progres.html

TPH-Episode 23

2011-07-11T20:07:00.000-07:00

Welcome back Homesteaders! Today we will be looking at the Earth element and discuss how to build and use an A Frame Level and a Bunyip Water Level. Today's Ancestral Animal is the African Goose.

Song: The Earth is My Church by Freedom People from Peace, Love, Music

http://reap-eastafrica.org/blogs.info/reap/AmLeaflets/A%20Frame.pdf

http://www.harvestingrainwater.com/wp-content/uploads/2006/05/Bunyip-Water-Levels-and-A-Frame-Levels-Appendix-2.pdf

Bender, Marjorie; Sponenberg, D. Phillip; Bixby, Donald. 2000. Taking Stock of Waterfowl: The results of the American Livestock Breeds Conservancy's Domestic Duck and Goose Census. American Livestock Breeds Conservancy. Pittsboro, North Carolina.

Holderread, Dave. 1986. Breed Bulletin #8623, "African Geese."

Holderread, Dave. 1981. The Book of Geese: a Complete Guide to Raising the Home Flock. Hen House Publications. Corvallis, Oregon.

Johnson, Willis Grant, and George O. Brown, eds. 1909. The Poultry Book. Doubleday, Page & Company.

Malone, Pat; Donnelly, Gerald; Leonard, Walt. 1998. American Standard of Perfection. American Poultry Association, Inc. Mendon, MA.

Breed clubs and associations:The American Livestock Breeds Conservancy, Box 477, Pittsboro, NC 27312, (919) 542-5704, email albc@albc-usa.org, www.albc-usa.org

American Poultry Association, PO Box 306, Burgettstown, PA15021, email secretaryapa@yahoo.com, www.amerpoultryassn.com

Society for the Preservation of Poultry Antiquities, Dr. Charles R.H. Everett, Secretary, 122 Magnolia Lane, Lugoff, SC, 29078, email crheverett@bellsouth.net

Who needs TV?

2011-05-29T20:45:00.000-07:00

I have said that animals are often more entertaining than TV. The chicks and the geese are proving to be a constant source of entertainment. The chicks are fun to watch as they go about their usual business and I find it amazing at how quickly they are getting their feathers. Being a city girl, this is all very fascinating and the kids are having a blast.

Plymouth Rock about one week old.

Rhode Island Red about one week.

They have now been moved outside into the chicken tractor so they can have more room and get used to being outside. We have started construction on the coop and I plan on buying the fencing this week so we can get one paddock put up. If we can buy materials every payday, then we can have the entire system set up in just a couple of months. They have actually gotten a lot more feathers since I took these pictures so I will have to take new ones soon. They are almost three weeks old now and it is becoming more apparent which ones are the males.

The chicks in the chicken tractor.

Right now it looks like we may have about four male Plymouth Rocks and 2-3 male Rhode Island Reds. It's still hard to tell but they are beginning to challenge each other. One interesting thing I've learned is that 5 goslings can out eat and drink 20 chicks. They are also noisier and smellier. Within the first week the geese were going through as much food in 24 hours as the chicks were in two days. That doesn't count the water! We have gone to letting the chicks out during the day so they can eat grass in addition to their feed and they now have use of the 1 gallon water container. They are going through at least half of that a day plus what we put in a large dish for them to splash around in.

We have also started taking them to the creek once or twice a day to let them take a dip and cool off. The temperatures have been pretty warm the last couple of days and they enjoy being able to get in the water to swim around. We will wait about introducing them to the pond until they are bigger. They actually have done very well about staying by the house when we are not outside with them. As long as they have shade and water, they will stay around the house munching on grass. Of course the funny part is how they will follow us around. We have taken to calling them our fuzzy children.


Let's go for a swim!

The garden is hanging in there and I plan on harvesting the Romain lettuce soon. The potatoes are growing like mad and we added some soil to them today. We are beginning to think about what we may want to plant for a fall garden. It's almost June so we have to start planning now. We are also thinking about ordering some berry bushes so we can get them planted this year. It will be a slow process to get all of the trees and bushes that we want but we just have to take it one step at a time.

As we make progress on the chicken coop I will post pictures and keep you updated on the progress of the chicks and geese. In the meantime, Happy Memorial Day!

Potatoes before we added more soil.

Chicks!

2011-05-13T19:40:00.000-07:00

Finally! The chicks and goslings have arrived! And I have to say...they are so cute! They all arrived safe and sound and have been making plenty of noise since they arrived. We ordered 11 Rhode Island Reds and 9 Plymouth Rocks. We also ordered 5 African geese.

The geese checking out their new home.

All 20 chicks.

Plymouth Rock

Rhode Island Red


African Goose

The cat isn't too sure what to think about the whole thing. So far she has just sat and looked at them so we are keeping the boxes covered with a wire mesh. I just wanted to share the pics and I'll be giving updates as the grow!

They think the blue bowl is a pool.

Garden Update

2011-05-11T04:15:00.000-07:00

Now that the garden has been in for a little while I thought I'd give you guys an update. So far just about everything is doing well. We actually have a few tomatoes and more blooms are coming out everyday. The romaine lettuce is doing pretty well as you can see.

Here is a picture of one of the marigold flowers.

There are four raised beds that we have planted. We have one more that I think we are going to use to experiment with growing corn. The zucchini and bell peppers have started putting out flowers as well so hopefully we will see something developing there as well.

The potatoes are going crazy! They have popped up all over the place and growing by leaps and bounds. Before much longer I will have to add some dirt to them so they can keep going.

The Potato Bed

I planted some garlic about a week ago and it's coming up already. We have some more that can be planted by we may wait and do that as a fall crop. As the garden continues to grow I'll put up some new pics so you can see the progress. Hopefully our chicks will be here tomorrow. I'll post some pics of them soon so you can see how the little fuzz balls are doing!

TPH Episode 22

2011-05-11T03:53:00.000-07:00

Welcome back Homesteaders! This is going to be the first of a 4 episode series centering around the elements and a mundane activity that may help us to develop our relationship with that element. Today's element is water and we will look at rain water harvesting.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MGFDlkJOdaM

http://www.save-the-rain.com/world-bank/

Formula for finding amount of rainwater from a roof:

Multiply the square footage of roof space x 0.6 gallons per square foot per inch of rain.

Not So Creepy Critter

Ambush Bug

The Wonderful World of Poo!

2011-05-02T19:54:00.000-07:00

And no, I'm not talking about Winnie the Pooh.

Before we ever moved here we had discussed getting a composting toilet. I had looked into the commercially available toilets and thought that was what we would end up getting. I liked the idea that the compost bin only needed to be emptied once or twice a year but I knew the cost would keep us from getting one for a while. Once we decided to move here, I knew that we had to come up with another solution that would be much more affordable since we wouldn't have running water for a while. That's when we started to seriously look at sawdust toilets.

For the last several months we have used a sawdust toilet but we had been placing a bag into the bucket and disposing of the bag. A few months ago I finally finished reading The Humanure Handbook and we were inspired to get to work on our humanure composting bin. Using some scavenged lumber, my husband has gotten one bin completed.

And yes, the posts on the left are taller on purpose. Eventually there will be three bins total. The next one to be built is the center bin which will have a roof over it. Hence the taller posts. This bin will store the hay and probably the sawdust as well. The hay is used to cover the humanure so there is no odor. The third bin won't be used for about a year. Deposits will be placed in the first bin for a year and then we will switch to the other bin. The first one will be left to age for a year and then we should have some rich compost that can be used in the garden.

We also dug a hole in the bin and filled it with about 12-18 inches of hay. This forms a biosponge that will absorb liquid and help keep it from running off. We have only been using this for about a month but so far it is working very well. Our clothes line is pretty close to the bin and I have never smelled anything while back there.


The hole before we added the hay

Once there is a roof on the center bin, we will add some guttering that will lead to a rain barrel. This will collect rain water that can be used to clean the buckets every time they are emptied. Overall it is a pretty efficient system and not very hard to manage. We have decided that we will continue to use this system even after we finally get running water. Eventually, I want to build a nice box to encase the bucket so it looks a little prettier and not so obvious.

If you would like to see a well established system, check out this You Tube video. If you do a search I'm sure you will find more. I'm also providing the link to The Humanure Handbook website.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CZTZTVv6kYs

http://humanurehandbook.com/

If you're thinking about a composting toilet don't discount a sawdust toilet. You may find it's your best choice after all!

TPH Episode 21

2011-04-24T19:12:00.000-07:00

Today you will be treated to a topic that you won't hear on any other Pagan podcast. We're going to talk about humanure! That's right, we're going to talk about how to deal with our own waste safely and sustainably!

http://humanurehandbook.com/

The Humanure Handbook by Joseph Jenkins

News headlines

http://www.zerohedge.com/article/it%E2%80%99s-official-china-will-be-dumping-us-dollars

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-04-18/china-crops-in-short-supply-as-fewer-farms-spur-food-futures.html

http://www.businessinsider.com/24-signs-of-economic-decline-in-america-2011-4

http://www.cnbc.com/id/42704213 Killer Combo Gas, Food

http://www.cnbc.com/id/42703813 Weak Dollar

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/8466286/Buddhist-Economics-More-love-and-bikes.html

TPH Episode 20

2011-04-11T04:06:00.000-07:00

Welcome to Episode 20! Today I am going to give you some spring cleaning recipes to help you make your home cleaner and healthier! Today's ancestral animal is the Rhode Island Red chicken and the usual Gardening by the Moon.

Song

Danbury Fair by Dave King

Main Topic

Ancestral Animals

The American Livestock Breeds Conservancy, Box 477, Pittsboro, NC 27312, (919) 542-5704, albc@albc-usa.org,www.albc-usa.org

American Poultry Association, PO Box 306, Burgettstown, PA 15021, secretaryapa@yahoo.com, www.amerpoultryassn.com

Society for the Preservation of Poultry Antiquities, Dr. Charles R.H. Everett, Secretary, 122 Magnolia Lane, Lugoff, SC, 29078, crheverett@bellsouth.net

http://paganpodkin.webs.com/

News Links

http://www.businessinsider.com/systemic-risk-banks-nyu-2011-4 Banks at risk

http://www.liveoilprices.co.uk/oil/oil_prices/04/2011/wti-oil-trading-over-111-imf-joins-the-peak-oilers-party.html Oil prices and Peak Oil

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-04-09/u-s-stocks-drop-as-oil-s-jump-spurs-concern-economy-will-stall.html

http://www.alternet.org/economy/1504
/wall_st._stands_at_the_pinnacle_of_5,000_years_of_human_exploitation/

http://truthout.org/millions-without-power-after-japan-aftershock/1302238800

http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/dy/national/T110409003461.htm

http://www.cnbc.com/id/42455257

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-04-08/toyota-n-a-vehicle-plants-suspended-april-15-18-21-22-25.html

http://www.zerohedge.com/article/system-based-lies-why-would-you-believe-numbers

http://www.businessinsider.com/saudi-arabia-oil-consumption-trends-2011-4

http://www.businessinsider.com/oil-price-economy-2011-4

http://www.businessinsider.com/clsas-chris-wood-on-us-sovereign-debt-crisis-2011-4

http://www.businessinsider.com/water-use-of-foods-2011-4

http://www.cnbc.com/id/42479791 Toxic Dollar

http://www.thewhir.com/web-hosting-news/040811_Japan_Energy_Shortage_Could_Affect_Data_Center_Uptime_in_Summer

TPH Episode 19

2011-03-31T19:36:00.000-07:00

Today's episode is a little free form so I talk about what we have been doing the last couple of weeks, Japan, Nuclear Reactors, Potassium Iodide, and Spiral Herb Gardens. I also give you your two week forecast for Gardening by the Moon.

www.KI4u.com

News Links
http://www.thenation.com/video/159399/lester-brown-planets-scarcest-resource-time Very interesting video, well worth 30 minutes of your time.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/earth/environment/6979611/Human-civilisation-will-collapse-unless-greed-culture-is-stopped-report-warns.html Human Civilization and Consumption

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/northkorea/8406442/North-Koreas-food-stocks-running-dry-UN-warns.html Food issues in Japan

http://www.zerohedge.com/article/googleearth-based-3d-map-real-time-radioactivity-distribution-japan Google maps of radiation

http://www.glgroup.com/News/Fukushimas-Dominant-Impacts-Will-be-Socio-Economic-Dwarfing-the-Health-Effects-53020.html Socioeconomic impacts from Japan

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-03-24/worst-texas-drought-in-44-years-eroding-wheat-beef-supply-as-food-rallies.html Texas Drought

http://commoditybullmarket.blogspot.com/

http://www.zerohedge.com/article/dollar-will-collapse-within-3-4-months

Spiral Herb Garden

2011-03-23T20:25:00.000-07:00

I have finally been able to implement a project that I have wanted to do for some time. I took a Permaculture Design course before we moved here and part of the class was to build a spiral garden. We did this during the class as a group but I have wanted to build my own ever since. When we moved last summer I just didn't have the time or the materials to do it but now that it's getting warmer I have finally been able to build one!

First I placed some hay on the ground to help serve as a weed barrier and it will compost and add to the soil. Then I laid out four bricks in a square that measured one foot square and filled in the rest of the shape to form the spiral.

Once you have the initial shape it is simply a matter of continuing to stack the brick to build the walls. You can start in the middle and build that area up first to get to the height that you want and then finish the walls. As you finish the outside walls, you will want them to taper down allowing sunlight into different areas of the spiral. By doing this you are creating microclimates for various plants.


3 courses of bricks


Getting closer!

It took about 3-4 hours to rake and clear the area and then to build the spiral. I have put some old hay in the spiral that has already begun to compost and will finish it with some fresh straw. Once the new straw is in, all I have to do is move the hay aside to place a couple of good handfuls of soil in a hole and put the plant in place. The idea is that the plants will get the the nutrients that they need from the soil and the roots can spread out into the hay in search of water. As the hay composts I can add more until eventually the entire spiral will be full of soil. I would like to build some more with stone just because I think they look prettier. You also don't have to build them this tall but since I was working with brick I knew this was out it would turn out. Here's a picture of the final product.

If you look on You Tube you can find some videos of various spiral gardens and how they were made. I will put a picture up when I get all of the plants in so you can see how it looks. In the meantime, happy planting!

Spring Fever

2011-03-17T19:43:00.000-07:00

The temperatures are finally getting warmer and we are beginning to see signs of spring. Not only are we seeing signs outside but the garden centers at our local stores are bustling with activity and new shipments. Spring Fever has set in and we are getting busier since it is finally getting warm enough to tackle outside projects again.

In the last couple of weeks my husband has built three raised garden beds and a cold frame. Yes, I finally have my cold frame! And it does look good if I say so myself. We have also been gathering the compost, peat moss, and vermiculite we need to make our soil for the garden. We are going to use the Square Foot Gardening method this year and see what happens. We will probably buy some plants that have already been started from local nurseries and others we will try to start from seed.


One of the garden boxes

I may have mentioned it before, but several months ago we came across a door like the ones that are used on refrigerated cases in convenience stores that had been set out to be thrown away. The door was in excellent shape and that is what we are using on the cold frame instead of windows. I can't wait to really put this thing into use! I'm not sure but I think it is almost 5 feet long. A cold frame is built on a slant to catch the sun and work as a mini greenhouse. It is 18 inches tall in the back and 12 inches tall in the front. I also love that the door has the handle intact so it will be easier to open.

A view of the cold frame from the front.

A side view so you can see the slope.

Our seed potatoes also arrived this week. We ordered German Butterball potatoes and I hope to get them planted soon. Hopefully we will get something from them but we'll see. We ordered these from Seed Savers Exchange and they are certified organic. This particular type is supposed to be a good all purpose potato.

Our bag of seed potatoes

And last but not least, we finally have a grain mill! I am so excited! I know, I'm crazy. It is a manual mill but that was what we wanted. I didn't want to get something that I had to rely on electricity for. It will mill from a coarse consistency to a flour consistency. I can't wait to give it a good try but I still need an oven so I can do some baking! Ah well, everything in time I suppose. From what little we have tested it, it seems to do very well. We wanted to get a mill so we can mainly mill our own flour. To me this is all part of creating a simpler life.

The front of the mill

The back

As we continue to work on our projects here, we are keeping a close eye on what is happening in Japan and the Middle East. To be honest, I don't think things look good but all we can really do is wait to see what happens. If all of this doesn't re-emphasize the need to be prepared, I don't know what does. I hope everyone is getting started with their own spring projects and hopefully I'll be back with some new updates soon!

TPH Episode 18

2011-03-17T18:32:00.000-07:00

In this episode I have the usual bi-weekly update, I discuss urban homesteading otherwise known as citysteading, the tiger beetle, and of course gardening by the moon.

http://stores.curiousgoodsok.com/StoreFront.bok

http://urbanhomestead.org/ Path to Freedom website

http://www.backyardhive.com/

Tiger Beetle

News Links

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-pacific-12722026

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-pacific-12725646

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-pacific-12709856

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/newsbysector/transport/8378249/Japan-shuts-down-as-economic-fears-grow.html Japan Shuts Down

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/asia/were-told-not-to-breathe-the-air-ndash-its-scary-2240509.html We're Told Not to Breath the Air

http://www.cnn.com/2011/WORLD/asiapcf/03/12/japan.quake.scene/index.html?hpt=T1 Concern About Food

http://www.digitaljournal.com/article/304581 Rolling Blackouts to Start Monday

http://ewallstreeter.com/syndicated/30854/according-to-goldman-tsunami-puts-20112012-japanese-rice-crop-at-risk-sees-vicious-snapback-in-crude-prices   Rice Crop at Risk

http://www.allvoices.com/news/8452698-oil-supplies-might-drop-worldwide-opec-says   Oil Supplies Might Drop

http://af.reuters.com/article/energyOilNews/idAFN1130299220110311   Japan Refiners at Risk of Lasting Flood Damage

http://wattsupwiththat.com/2011/03/04/the-empire-strikes-out/   Era of Constant Energy Ending - UK

http://peakoil.com/alternative-energy/hawaii-as-a-microcosm-in-the-study-of-peak-oil/ Hawaii as a Microcosom in the Study of Peak Oil

TPH Episode 17

2011-03-17T18:29:00.000-07:00

Today I respond to some concerns about my show that were voiced to another podcaster, I go over the basics of composting and discuss today's Ancestral Animal which is the Silver Appleyard Duck.

Composting
The Complete Compost Gardening Guide by Barbara Pleasant and Deborah L. Martin
ISBN 978-1-58017-702-3

http://www.composting101.com/what-to-use.html

http://whatcom.wsu.edu/ag/compost/Easywormbin.htm

Ancestral Animal

Book Review

Backyard Medicine: Harvest and Make Your Own Herbal Remedies by Julie Bruton-Seal and Matthew Seal

ISBN-10: 1-60239-701-5

ISBN-13: 978-1-60239-701-9

News Links

http://oilandglory.foreignpolicy.com/posts/2011/

/14/the_coming_misery_that_big_oil_discusses_behind_closed_doors Big Oil discusses future shortages

http://oilprice.com/Energy/Crude-Oil/Peak-Oil-Low-Quality-is-What-is-Killing-Us-Not-Low-Quantity.html Low Quality Oil

http://globaleconomicanalysis.blogspot.com/2011/02/housing-crash-bites-deeper-economic.html Housing Crash

http://www.businessinsider.com/us-debt-unfunded-obligations-2011-2 Our debt vs everyone else

http://www.zerohedge.com/article/disillusioned-99er-shares-his-disappointment-american-dream Disappointment in the American Dream

http://www.businessinsider.com/south-carolina-politico-wants-to-create-state-currency-2011-2?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&

utm_campaign=Feed:+businessinsider+%28Business+Insider%29 South Carolina wants state currency

http://www.businessinsider.com/21-signs-us-economy-gutted-2011-2# 21 signs the US economy is gutted

http://www.zerohedge.com/article/crossing-7-billion-mark Population going over 7 billion

http://community.nasdaq.com/News/2011-02/china-inflation-getting-worse-and-coming-to-a-walmart-near-you.aspx?storyid=57923 China’s inflation going up and coming to us

http://www.zerohedge.com/article/ppi-ex-food-and-energy-jumps-05-expectations-02-fresh-and-dry-vegetable-prices-jump-137 Food and energy going up

http://www.grist.org/article/2011-02-15-the-worlds-one-poor-harvest-away-from-chaos The world is one poor harvest away from chaos

http://www.zerohedge.com/article/surging-gold-demand-%E2%80%9Cglobal-phenomenon%E2%80%9D-chinese-demand-silver-%E2%80%9Cvoracious%E2%80%9D Increasing gold and silver demand

http://www.zerohedge.com/article/cotton-passes-2-parabolic-sailing-ahead Cotton over $2

http://www.businessinsider.com/paper-barrels-peak-oil-2011-2#ixzz1E7WPnGQ0 Peak Oil and Paper Barrels

http://www.commodityonline.com/news/Major-portion-of-China%E2%80%99s-wheat-crop-remains-at-risk-36548-3-1.html China Wheat Crops at Risk

http://www.zerohedge.com/article/guest-post-2011-tipping-points 2011 Tipping Points

http://www.firstenercastfinancial.com/e_news.php?cont=41958 Saudi Arabia Can’t Stop Oil Rise

http://www.zerohedge.com/article/were-rapidly-approaching-crisis-which-2008-was-warm 2008 Warm Up

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2011/02/20/AR2011022003201.html Debt Hitting WWII Levels

http://www.detnews.com/article/20110221/SCHOOLS/102210355/Michigan-orders-DPS-to-make-huge-cuts Detroit Public Schools to make big cuts

http://voices.washingtonpost.com/virginiapolitics/2011/02/post_720.html Virginia’s New Currency

http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2011/feb/23/governor-florida-could-see-wisconsin-style-protest/ Florida Could See Wisconsin Style Protests

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/41755983/ns/world_news-mideastn_africa/ Protests in Iraq

http://oilprice.com/Metals/Commodities/44-Million-People-Driven-Into-Poverty-by-Rising-Food-Prices.html Millions going into poverty due to food prices

http://www.zerohedge.com/article/bofa-expects-libya-oil-production-shut-down-completely Bank of America expects Libya to shut down oil production

http://www.zerohedge.com/article/paul-mylchreests-must-read-february-thunderroad-report-gresham%E2%80%99s-law-squared-%E2%80%93-gearing-game- Paul Mylchreest’s Must Read Report

http://www.canada.com/business/fp/spike+West+harder+than+emerging+economies/4347379/story.html Oil spike will hit West harder

http://www.thenational.ae/thenationalconversation/industry-insights/energy/rising-alarm-over-global-scarcities Global Food Scarcities

TPH Episode 16

2011-03-17T18:21:00.000-07:00

In this episode I share some sad news with the listeners and we discuss bug out bags and storage options. I also talk about the soldier beetle and some Valentine's Day lore.

Bug Out Bag

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bug-out_bag

Storage

www.asamom.org

Pennsylvania Leatherwing

Downy Leatherwing

Book Review and Link

Great Garden Companions: A Companion Planting System for a Beautiful, Chemical Free Vegetable Garden by Sally Jean Cunningham

http://digitaljournal.com/article/303583 Mexico freeze

Song
May the Road Rise by Cross the Border

TPH Episode 15

2011-03-17T18:18:00.000-07:00

Today I prattle on about my thoughts about Collapse and what is bringing us to that point.

News Links

http://seekingalpha.com/article/248089-u-s-treasury-secretary-admits-u-s-default-is-imminent

http://www.culturechange.org/cms/content/view/700/1/ Natural Laws of Collapse

http://af.reuters.com/article/energyOilNews/idAFLDE70M0D620110123 Saudi to cut energy use

http://www.businessinsider.com/real-employment-rate-47-percent-2011-1 47% of Working Americans Have Full Time Jobs

http://globaleconomicanalysis.blogspot.com/2011/01/camden-nj-police-union-rejects-offer-to.html Camden Police

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/earth/earthnews/8275874/Half-a-million-more-homes-lose-weekly-bin-collections.html Trash collection

http://www.greenbang.com/will-smart-energy-future-require-rationing_16031.html Energy rationing

http://oilprice.com/Energy/Crude-Oil/Preparing-for-Life-in-a-Peak-Oil-World.html Life post Peak Oil

http://in.reuters.com/article/idINIndia-54219320110118 Food Crisis?

http://www.energybulletin.net/stories/2011-01-20/population-one-planet-too-many-people-report-jan-21 Population, one planet

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/01/22/gas-prices-will-go-up-thi_n_812579.html Gas Prices

http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE70K6PI20110121 State Bankruptcy

http://www.thesurvivalpodcast.com/

http://www.progressiveradionetwork.com/ Look for The Lifeboat Hour show

www.collapsenet.com

www.pgward.org 52 week food storage plan

Fire and Ice

2011-02-08T19:08:00.000-08:00

We knew there would be challenges when we decided to move to the country but last week we found out it can be a little dangerous too.

We have been in a drought for the last couple of months which lead to a burn ban. Last weekend someone thought it would be a wise idea to burn some trash on a windy day. Well, I'm sure you can imagine what happened. A grass fire started on the far side of the field that is across from our house that quickly spread. We were fortunate that the wind was blowing the fire away from our house but it still got a little too close for comfort.

The local fire department responded pretty quickly but because we live so far out in the county, there are no public water works, therefore no fire hydrants. The fire department has tanker trucks that would go to a nearby lake to fill up and then take that water to the fire. It may not be as efficient but it does work. There was another flair up of the fire that night around 11 PM but again, the fire department was able to get it under control. Fortunately, no homes were damaged but it showed us that we need to examine how we would handle such emergencies in the future.

All of that happened on Saturday with highs in the 70's. Just a couple of days later we were hit with the massive snow storm that was moving across the mid-west. We ended up with about 12 inches of snow and 2-3 foot snow drifts. To say the least, the kids loved it and so did the dog. I'm not sure who was having more fun. The husband wasn't too crazy about it though because he was trying to dig us out.

Enjoying 50 mile per hr wind gusts.

Snow lovin' dog

We discovered rather quickly that we need to invest in a good snow shovel even though we don't normally get this kind of snow. Everyone sold out of snow shovels so we ended up getting a feed shovel which works very well. We would probably still be trying to dig out if the county had not been nice enough to clear our driveway for us due to a family emergency. Now we have buckled down for another snow storm that is supposed to dump as much as the last one. Since we don't really have any livestock we only have to look out for ourselves but this experience shows us that we will need to think a little differently about how we manage things here during these types of events.

Snow drifting against the house.

Now that we have settled in for another round of winter weather, I think I'll sit back and enjoy some hot chocolate and the pretty view outside.

TPH Episode 14

2011-01-09T12:06:00.000-08:00

Welcome back! Today I ramble on a bit about why I talk about the things that I do in response to a listeners e-mail. I also discuss selecting seeds for spring and the Silver Fox rabbit in the Ancestral Animals segment.

Main Topic

http://www.seedsavers.org/

http://www.seedsofchange.com/

Ancestral Animals

The Silver Fox Rabbit

The American Livestock Breeds Conservancy, Box 477, Pittsboro, NC 27312, (919) 542-5704, email albc@albc-usa.org, www.albc-usa.org

National Silver Rabbit Club, Lee A. Nevills, 10772 West State Road 8, La Crosse, IN 46348, (219) 405-4877, email bulletsink@msn.com

American Rabbit Breeders Association, Inc., PO Box 426, Bloomington, IL 61702, (309) 664-7500, Fax (309) 664-0941, email ARBAPOST@aol.com, or visit www.arba.net

Song: Run Runaway by Great Big Sea from the Album Up

Gardening by the Moon

http://www.farmersalmanac.com/

Book

Voices of the Winds: Native American Legends by Margot Edmonds and Ella E. Clark

ISBN-13:978-0-7858-1716-1

ISBN-10:0-7858-1716-6

Links

The American Dream Film http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ExBE651_vOY

TPH Episode 13

2010-12-28T04:43:00.000-08:00

In this episode I will talk about farm dogs, the Great Potato Harvest, and give an update on Senate Bill S 510. There is also the Not So Creepy Critters segment and some links to interesting news articles.

Seed Saver Exchange - http://www.seedsavers.org/

Great Pyrenees - http://www.akc.org/breeds/great_pyrenees/

English Shepherd - http://www.englishshepherd.org/

Rove Beetle

Recommended Reading

http://questioneverything.typepad.com/question_everything/2010/02/what-is-a-feasible-living-situation-for-future-humans.html

http://www.energybulletin.net/stories/2010-11-26/evolution-transition-us Transition US

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2010/12/19/60minutes/main7166220.shtml?tag=contentMain;contentBody 60 Minutes

http://www.cnbc.com/id/40769692 Follow up to the 60 Minutes video

http://www.businessinsider.com/newark-crime-spike-2010-12 Newark Crime

http://www.zerohedge.com/article/crude-passes-91-100-billion-us-gdp-wiped-out-minutes Rising gas prices

http://www.businessinsider.com/amazing-facts-about-china-2010-12# 17 facts about China

http://www.collapsenet.com/

One project down...

2010-12-21T18:57:00.000-08:00

Woohoo! We finally have one project done! Mostly. My hubby finished the storage shed a few weeks ago although it's still not very pretty to look at. We still have to put shingles on the roof and some kind of siding on it but at least it's functional. We spent all day Sunday cleaning out the tent where we have been storing several boxes that we didn't have room for in storage. We ended up throwing a good bit of stuff away and condensed down how many boxes we had. I'm happy to have that stuff in the storage shed but we still have to get everything else out of our paid storage. Hopefully by the end of next month we'll have all of that stuff here.

The great thing about this shed is that almost all of it came from salvaged lumber. We bought the door at a Habitat for Humanity store for $15 and it's solid wood. We also got the felt paper there for the roof. We did have to buy a few 2x4's but that's about it. It is 8x10 feet with 8 foot walls. We also put in two small lofts on either side for storing smaller items.

Now that this is functional the husbandly unit has started on the floor for the bathroom. He has gotten some framing done and dug some of the holes for the support posts for the floor. Hopefully it won't take as long as the shed did but at least we've gotten started on it.

I also forgot to tell you guys about the great potato harvest! A few weeks ago when we got first couple of hard freezes the potato plant started to die so we decided it was time to dig it up. It did make two small potatoes but that was it. I was impressed it did anything at all! Ah well, it was an experiment and a learning experience. We will probably use the tire method again in the spring and hopefully with some good seed potatoes.

The Great Potato Harvest

We have almost finished putting up the drywall. It stays pretty warm with our two little heaters so we have been pretty comfortable. I wish we had the chimney for the wood stove because I hate running the heaters all the time but we are having to do things in baby steps. That may be our next big purchase and then I hope to start putting money back for the pump for the well. I'm hoping that by spring or summer at the latest to have that in. Bringing water home has become an everyday task and I don't think I'd know what to do to not have to do it anymore!

Next on the project list is the bathroom of course, building the raised garden beds and a chicken coop. There are several other projects but those are the top ones for now. Until next time I hope everyone has a wonderful holiday and Happy New Year!

TPH Episode 12

2010-12-12T14:48:00.000-08:00

Happy Yule everyone! In this episode I give an update on Senate Bill 510 and discuss some of the current goings on with oil. I also look at what Yule means to me, Christmas customs from around the world, and I share a Christmas tale in the Folktale segment.

Oil Links

http://www.firstenercastfinancial.com/e_news.php?cont=40776

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2010-12-10/iea-raises-2011-global-oil-demand-forecast-for-a-third-month-citing-china.html

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2010-12-10/iea-may-be-overestimating-2011-non-opec-crude-supply-outlook-nomura-says.html

Songs

Christmas in the Country by Codie Prevost

Grown up Christmas List by Ayla Brown on American Christmas

I Believe in Santa Clause on Christmas Eve by Atomsplit

Deck the Halls by Jim Goodrich from With a voice like this Christmas

Christmas Customs

http://www.santas.net/aroundtheworld.htm

TPH Episode 11

2010-12-12T14:46:00.000-08:00

Happy Thanksgiving! Today we learn how to de-stink a dog after a skunk encounter and how to cook a turkey in a box. We'll also discuss Senate bill S 510, homemade gifts, this week's Ancestral Animal, Gardening by the Moon, and this week's Folktale.

Box Oven

http://safelygatheredin.blogspot.com/2008/10/how-to-make-cardboard-box-oven.html

Senate Bill

http://www.prisonplanet.com/senate-bill-s-510-vote-imminent-procedural-vote-passes-74-25.html

http://www.infowars.com/senate-bill-s510-makes-it-illegal-to-grow-share-trade-or-sell-homegrown-food/

Song

Gary Sundblad Ya You Betcha Christmas from Me and My Drum

Homemade gifts

Apple Spice

3 tbsp dried apple slices (see note) 1/2 cup pink and red carnation petals 1/4 cup dried sweet woodruff leaves 2 tbsp crumbled cinnamon or one 3" cinnamon stick 1 whole nutmeg, grated (1 1/2 tsps) 1 tbsp whole cloves 1 tbsp julienne orange peel 3 drops of cinnamon or vanilla scented oil

Note: To dry apples, slice paper thin and place slices in a single layer on a baking sheet in 150 degree oven for 30 minutes.

Mix dried apple slices with remaining ingredients. Store in a tightly covered glass jar.

For simmering potpourri, use a teaspoon potpourri per one cup of water. Place potpourri in water, bring to a boil and simmer on low until the whole house is perfumed; turn off heat. Strain and let dry if you wish to save and reuse the potpourri.

http://notmadeofmoney.com/blog/2006/11/50-homemade-gift-ideas-from-around-the-web.html

Stepping Stones - http://familycrafts.about.com/cs/steppingstones/a/040201a.htm

Fleece Blanket - http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/62838/fleece_blanket_craft_project.html

Altered Lunch Box -http://reviews.ebay.com/How-to-Make-an-Altered-Lunch-Box_W0QQugidZ10000000000729818

Gifts in a jar -http://familycrafts.about.com/od/giftsinajar/GiftsInAJar.htm

Bronze Turkey

American Livestock Breeds Conservancy, PO Box 477, Pittsboro, NC 27312, (919) 542-5704, email albc@albc-usa.org, www.albc-usa.org

All American Turkey Growers Association, Danny Williamson, secretary-treasurer, 3441 Mustang, Tampa, KS 67483, (785)-965-2628, email brahmabrahma@hotmail.com

American Poultry Association, PO Box 306, Burgettstown, PA15021, email secretaryapa@yahoo.com, www.amerpoultryassn.com

Society for the Preservation of Poultry Antiquities, Dr. Charles R.H. Everett, secretary, 122 Magnolia Lane, Lugoff, SC 29078, email crheverett@bellsouth.net

Book Review

Magical Crafts by Kristin Madden and Liz Roberts

The Great Turkey Experiment of 2010

2010-11-25T11:38:00.000-08:00

Happy Thanksgiving!

Well, the holiday season is upon us and we are getting ready to celebrate our first Thanksgiving on our homestead. We planned on having a traditional dinner but as you may or may not know, we haven't had an oven since we moved. This hasn't been to much of an issue because we have been making do with the camp stove, microwave, and grill. Unfortunately, none of these are very conducive to cooking a turkey.

Originally we thought about getting a spit and cooking it over an open fire. The cheapest one I could find was around $50 dollars and used a motor to turn the food. We actually wanted something that we could turn manually and I really didn't want to spend $50 on this thing, so we went back to the drawing board. As I thought about it I finally came up with a plan B.

Recently I saw a blog that talked about making an oven out of a box. The instructions said to get a box like the type that office paper comes in. Line the box with tinfoil and poke holes in the side of the box for ventilation and to place straightened coat hangers through. This will make your rack. Prepare your charcoal and place it in a pie tin. This goes underneath your rack. Place whatever you are going to bake on the rack and then put the lid in place. Here is a link to the site for those who may want to try this method. http://safelygatheredin.blogspot.com/2008/10/how-to-make-cardboard-box-oven.html

I actually brought a box home to do this, but as I was thinking about it, I didn't think this box would be big enough for a turkey or that the wire coat hangers would be strong enough to hold it so I decided to make a different one. We bought a sheet of foam insulation that is used behind drywall. We bought this kind because it has a shiny surface on one side and apparently this could also be used in making a solar oven. I figured if you could use it for that I could use it to make an oven.

We measured the turkey pan to be sure we cut it large enough and set to work. I cut the sides to be 2 feet tall to be sure it would be tall enough for the turkey. Once I had all of the pieces cut, I covered one side of each piece with tin foil. Then we used small nails to put all of the pieces together.

The finished oven

For our oven rack we used a camp grill that is designed to go over an open fire pit. It has fold out legs and was perfect for placing the coals underneath. Of course because it's metal we also knew it would hold the turkey.

Our first experiment was to try baking some cookies. It took longer than baking them in a real oven but it worked! We also discovered where we were losing heat and used some duct tape to give it a better seal. Since we weren't sure how long it would take to cook the turkey we decided to cook it yesterday. My hubby put it in around 8 AM and by lunch it was done! It took about 4 1/2 - 5 hours to cook. Below is a picture of the turkey in the oven bag while it was still in the oven and one after we had taken it out and placed it on a platter.

As far as preparation, this has to be our most original Thanksgiving. Hopefully next year most, if not all, of our Thanksgiving meal will come from what we grow or from local growers. Below is a picture of the oven while I was baking brownies in it. You can see the duct tape that we added to it and the bricks were placed on top so the lid would get a better seal. The bricks were put underneath to give it a fireproof surface to sit on. I don't expect this to be a permanent fix but it works in a pinch!

So that was the Great Turkey Experiment and I hope everyone has a Happy Homesteading Thanksgiving!

Episode 10

2010-11-15T18:12:00.000-08:00

Today I talk about gas prices....again. Homeschool, the creepy critter of the day and lots of talking issues.

IEA articles

http://nextbigfuture.com/2010/11/iea-world-energy-outlook-2010-2035.html IEA Link

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703848204575608310204939950.html OPEC increases world demand forecast

Homeschool Resources

http://www.homeschool.com/

http://www.hslda.org/default.asp

http://www.brainpop.com/

http://www.easygrammar.com/index2.html

http://www.internet4classrooms.com/

http://www.spellingcity.com/

http://www.aleks.com/

http://www.starfall.com/ For early readers

Song

Pagan Ways by Damh the Bard from The Cauldron Born

Correction

http://www.ravelry.com/

Books

First Aid

2010-11-07T17:41:00.000-08:00

It is inevitable that we get hurt on occassion. A misplaced slice of the knife in the kitchen or a stumble outside and out comes the bandaids and Neosporin. But should we have more on hand than just these basics? Several years ago after a major tornado, I decided that I wanted to have more than your basic first aid kit on hand. Fortunately I was not involved this particular storm, but given the level of destruction I felt it would be foolish to not have more than bandaids sitting around in case of an emergency. Now that we are homesteading and it would take us a nice little drive to get to a hospital, I think it's more important that ever to keep a well supplied First Aid kit.

First, I felt that your standard little First Aid box wasn't going to do. Nope, I wanted a Super First Aid kit. So, I went out and bought a large tackle box. As you can see in the picture, the box has a clear lid and small compartments where you can place smaller items such as Q-tips, antibiotic ointments, and small bottles of medicine.

One of the things I liked about this tackle box was that it opens in the center and has large compartments instead of the trays that lift out. This is where I keep the bulk of my first aid supplies. In here I keep gloves, bandage tape, bandage scissors, saline wound wash, bandaids in various sizes, ace wraps, Kerlix bandage rolls, tourniqets, and gauze pads in a couple of different sizes. We also have a snake bite kit but it's too big to fit in the box.

You can get all of these things at your local store on the first aid aisle. The snake bit kit is with the camping supplies. These are just basics and of course you can add anything that you might need for your own personal needs in a pinch. We take this kit with us whenever we go on a trip so in those cases I will add any medicines that we might need such as pain relievers, Pepto, allergy medicine, etc. Of course you could always leave this stuff in there for a take and go situation.

Anytime I come across something useful I may add it to my kit. Hopefully this will give you some ideas of how you can put together your own kit.

TPH Episode 9

2010-11-07T16:52:00.000-08:00

Happy Samhain! In this episode I go on a little rant about CNN and I discuss being prepared and what you need to think about storing for that rainy day. Today's Ancestral Animal is the Lincoln Sheep and there are two folk tales for your enjoyment.

Being Prepared

http://pgward.org/ep/ The Latter Day Saints site

http://www.providentliving.org/location/display/1,12568,2026-1-4-39315,00.html Another LDS site to locations where you can buy and can certain dry goods

http://www.providentliving.org/location/map/0,12566,2026-1-1,00.html Same site but for the Western US

Song

Gerard Smith The Ghost of the Irish Brigade

Ancestral Animals

http://www.lincolnsheep.com/ - The National Lincoln Sheep Breeders Association

http://www.lincolnlongwools.co.uk/ - Lincoln Longwool Sheep Breeders Association (UK)

Book Review

Hesperian Foundation http://www.hesperian.org/index.php

TPH Episode 8

2010-10-26T04:05:00.000-07:00

Happy Halloween homesteaders! Welcome to The Pagan Homesteader Halloween Special! In this episode I have some music for you as well as a couple of Halloween stories. I also talk about a couple of more serious topics in addition to all this fun.

Intro Music - Ghost Town by Adventures of Leonid

Beer, Beer, Beer by Brobdingnagian Bards from The Holy Grail of Irish Drinking Songs

Halloween by Fishing for Comets from Scattered Among the Archipelago

PC Halloween by Devo Spice

Links

http://rivenfae-wolfwoods.blogspot.com/ RivenFae’s Blog

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=msw6jWhJocw Victorian Farm

Submitted by Amethyst Star
about.quilting.com - learn to quilt
www.threadbanger.com - sewing and crafts with quite a few vids featuring recycled materials and repurposing
www.knittyspin.com - learn how to spin wool www.raverly.com - social site plus bazillions of free kntting and crochet patterns. spinners and tatters are welcome
www.theanticraft.net - crafting for the slightly sinister - I love their books
www.knittinghelp.com - a website with vids on how to knit.

TPH Episode 7

2010-10-26T04:02:00.000-07:00

In this episode I will discuss current gas prices, hyperinflation, my thoughts on fall, disappearing skills, the ground beetle, and I have another Halloween folktale for you.
Creepy Critters

The Ground Beetle

News

http://digitaljournal.com/article/299030 Man who lived without money for 18 months to start community

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-11542840 Iran to hold OPEC presidency

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2010-10-16/china-says-its-medium-heavy-rare-earth-reserves-may-last-only-15-20-years.html Limited Rare Earth Minerals

http://digitaljournal.com/article/298981 Households in UK live in fuel poverty

http://www.marketoracle.co.uk/Article23522.html Mortgagate could crush economy

http://www.wired.com/inspiredbyyou/2010/10/peak-everything/?ibypid=13 Peak Everything

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704300604575554210569885910.html Increased Cotton Prices

http://www.treehugger.com/files/2010/10/is-the-us-already-past-the-point-of-peak-water.php?campaign=daily_nl Peak water?

http://www.red-alerts.com/ Dollar collapse accelerating
http://www.businessweek.com/news/2010-10-15/opec-members-seek-100-oil-to-counter-dollar-weakness.html OPEC seeks $100 oil

Making adjustments

2010-10-11T20:44:00.000-07:00

Life is full of adjustments and that is never more evident than when you are attempting to make a change in lifestyle. So far we have had to downsize, give up a lot of privacy, and try to learn a little more patience. Overall however, we do not regret our decision. Making adjustments has also meant becoming a little more creative. I have mentioned before about the outside shower situation. Well, as you can tell by looking outside, fall has arrived so now it's a little too cold in the mornings for me to take a shower outside. Once again an adjustment has to be made and here is the solution we have come up with so far.

Since the bathroom isn't built yet we had to come up with another solution to the shower situation. I was thinking about it one day and it occured to me that if we could find some sort of basin we could stand in that to catch the water. So we headed over to the farm store and bought a 16.5 gallon galvanized tub. We plan on placing a board between two of the rafters to suspend the solar shower from and place tarps behind and under the basin. This way we can take a shower, catch the water, and protect the wall. It's not the ultimate solution but it will do for now.

The kids have already had the privelge of taking a bath in it. Hopefully we can get the shower set up inside soon so that I can actually use it.

We also got some worms for the worm bin. We went to a local bait shop and bought some red wigglers. So far they seem to be doing well and the bin doesn't smell. We have been slowly adding food so we don't overwhelm them. Below is a picture of the worms before we put them in the bin.

We shredded some newspaper to make a bed for them and then added them to the bin. Initially we gave them some coffee grounds, tea bags, and a chopped up potato to eat. The potatoes seem to be slowly disapearing and they haven't died on me yet so we must be doing something right!

Our neighbor was also nice enough to give us a bathtub! Ok, so it's not much to look at now but I think it will clean up fairly well. I'm not going to complain because it didn't cost us anything and it's one less thing we have to worry about for now.

It's baby steps but we are making progress. Slow progress is better than no progress and for now it keeps life from getting boring!

TPH Episode 6

2010-10-05T19:05:00.000-07:00

This week I have some listener feedback, a shoutout to my Podkin and some updates from the homestead. I discuss some herbs used for the treatment of colds and flu and the featured animal on Ancestral Animals is the Buckeye chicken. And this month will feature Halloween folktales.

Worm Bin Instructions - http://whatcom.wsu.edu/ag/compost/Easywormbin.htm

Prince Valiant Comic Strip - http://www.kingfeatures.com/features/comics/pvaliant/about.htm

Fabric Softner

4 cups water
2 cups white vinegar
2 cups baking soda

Place water and vinegar in a container. Slowly add the baking soda being careful not to let the mixture overflow. Stir when finished. Use about a 1/4 cup per load. The baking soda will settle at the bottom but just give it a good shake and it will be ready in no time.

Buckeye Chicken

The American Livestock Breeds Conservancy, Box 477, Pittsboro, NC 27312, (919) 542-5704, email albc@albc-usa.org, www.albc-usa.org

American Buckeye Poultry Club, Laura Haggarty Secretary/Treasurer P.O. Box 35 Williamstown, KY 41097 (859) 801-6081, laura@americanbuckeyepoultryclub.com, www.americanbuckeyepoultryclub.com

American Poultry Association, PO Box 306, Burgettstown, PA15021, email secretaryapa@yahoo.com, www.amerpoultryassn.com

Society for the Preservation of Poultry Antiquities, Dr. Charles R.H. Everett, Secretary, 122 Magnolia Lane, Lugoff, SC, 29078, email crheverett@bellsouth.net

The American Buckeye Club, Jeffrey Lay, 4686 Crains Run Rd, Miamisburg, OH 45342, (937) 470-2888, jefflay@woh.rr.com, www.americanbuckeyeclub.org.

Books

Worms, worms, worms!

2010-09-24T19:44:00.000-07:00

Happy belated Mabon! I hope everyone had a great Mabon and got to spend some time with those you love. We had a nice evening here at home. My hubby built a small fire in the firepit and we sat around drumming for a bit while the kids played. It was nice to just be outside and observe the moon and stars while spending a little quality time together.

Things have been a little busy for us lately. Last weekend we took the kids to the State Fair. Even though they didn't get to ride as many rides as they would have liked, they still had a good time. We took them through the petting zoo and through an exhibit where they got to see live farm animals and learn about them. I told them we may have to start a Fair Fund for next year so we can get the wrist bands and stuff.

The husbandly unit has been working on building a shed so we can eventually get our stuff out of storage. He has managed to get the framing up for three of the walls so he is making some progress. I will take some pictures as we go along and get them up at some point. So far we have used reclaimed wood that we have gotten off of Craigslist. We will eventually have to buy some OSB and perhaps some more 4x4's to get it finished but so far we are trying reclaim as much as possible.

So one of our latest projects was building a worm bin. I found the directions for this at http://whatcom.wsu.edu/ag/compost/Easywormbin.htm. It was very easy to do but now we have to get some worms! I haven't been able to find any locally so it looks like I will have to order them from online. We bought two 10 gallon containers for about $5 each.

We followed the directions and drilled the holes in the bottoms of the containers and one of the lids.

With this system, once the first container is full of compost you set the second directly on top. The worms will work their way up through the holes to get to the new food. Once most of the worms have moved into the second bin you can harvest the compost. I like this system because the containers are not that big so they can be kept pretty easily inside. Also, the cost is minimal for the supplies. The worms will be the biggest expense. Once we get some worms I'll let you guys know how it goes.

We haven't started construction on the bathroom yet and the low's are supposed to get down into the 50's this next week. I get the feeling that's where they are going to stay for a while so I may have to resort to sponge baths again. Ah well, hopefully soon I'll have a somewhat real bathroom.

Stay tuned and I'll try to post a little more often than what I have been!

TPH Episode 5

2010-09-20T19:39:00.000-07:00

First let me apologize for the audio quality. Hopefully it will be better next week. This week I will give a brief introduction to Permaculture and how it can be used in human landscapes. Here are some links that you may find useful.

http://permaculture.org.au/what-is-permaculture/

http://sacredearthinstitute.org/

http://dfwnetmall.com/earth/permaculture-classes.htm

http://www.permaculture.org/nm/index.php/site/index/

http://www.oaec.org/permaculture-design

http://omvalleypermaculture.wordpress.com/category/permaculture-classes/

Arcus Arcanum Tarot

Foktales

http://americanfolklore.net/

Blogs

http://blog.greenearthstones.com/

TPH Episode 4

2010-09-05T20:37:00.000-07:00

In this episode I ramble about cold showers, growing potatoes, and fall gardens. I also introduce a new segment titled Ancestral Animals where I discuss the American Mammoth Jackstock. As always, there is the Gardening by the Moon segment. I also review a new to me blog and a great little film titled Farms of the Future.

Article: http://theemergencyfoodsupply.com/archives/the-coming-global-food-shortage

Fall Garden: http://www.humeseeds.com/falwint.htm

American Mammoth Jackstock:
American Livestock Breeds Conservancy, PO Box 477, Pittsboro, NC 27312, (919) 542-5704, email albc@albc-usa.org, www.albc-usa.org

American Mammoth Jackstock Registry, Linda Coffman, Registrar, PO Box 1723, Johnson City, TN 78013, (830) 330-0499, email register@amjr.us

American Donkey and Mule Society, PO Box 1210, Lewisville TX 75067, (972) 219-0781, email adms@juno.com, www.lovelongears.com

Homesteading Pagan Style - http://angelg5159.wordpress.com/

Farms of the Future: http://www.thetinylife.com/farms-of-the-future/

Cold showers and recycled tires

2010-09-02T18:41:00.000-07:00

The thing I have always marveled about the changing of the seasons is how one day you can fry an egg on the hood of your car and then suddenly the switch is flipped and the 100 degree temps go away. Well, last week that switch was flipped.

I had told my husband that when the low temperatuers dipped into the 60's I was NOT taking a shower outside. Last week we had a couple of nights where the temperatures got down into the low 60's so we had to figure out something else. I ended up taking a sponge bath inside and my hubby was gracious enough to help me wash my hair. I hung my head over the side of the bed while he washed it. I can't see us doing this everyday so things are going to have to get under way quickly to build a bathroom that is enclosed.

Things have warmed back up for now, but we have entered the cycle of cooling trends and from here on out we will gradually see the signs of fall.

In other news, my husband and the kids planted a potato a few weeks ago. It was one of those that we let sit for too long and it started to sprout. Well, to my surprise, it's growing! It likes the compost we have been putting on it so well, we have actually seen it grow a half inch in one day. We had it planted in a 5 gallon bucket that we had turned into a planter but since it is doing so well we decided we needed to do something a little different.

The other day I had stopped at a gas station and noticed some used tires behind a tire business next door. There were two that were the same size so I picked them up and tossed them in the back of the van. I brought them home and we put down some weed barrier and transferred the plant to its new home. As you can see in the pics, the plant had gotten fairly tall. We covered it mostly with dirt and put on the second tire to give it more room to grow. I've got two more tires to add as it grows and hopefully we'll have some potates soon! We've got several weeks before first frost so hopefully we'll have something to harvest by then. If not, it has been a fun experiment.

Despite the fact that everything has not gone as we would have liked, there are certain things that I really like about living in the country. This evening we have a cold front pushing through and there are some impressive storms. We have't really gotten any rain, but we did get a spectacular sunset. I walked outside to check the skies and I was greeted by a brilliant gold sky. The clouds were in such a position that the sun was reflecting off of them to create a sky of pure gold. It was absolutely breathtaking. Even the kids were impressed. Then the wind started to pick up and we were greeted by the first cool breezes of the cold front.

It's for moments like this that we came to the country. Well, one of the reasons anyway. These are the things that can't be traded or bought and unfortunately so many people just don't understand. But for those of us that do, we know how wonderful it is.

TPH Episode 3

2010-09-02T17:23:00.000-07:00

I'm a slacker...I know. I forgot to post the show notes here! Sorry! I plan on putting out a show this weekend and I'm adding some stuff to the show so stay tuned!

Today I discuss Peak Oil some more and I go on a bit of rant. I'll try to control myself a little more next time.

http://lifeaftertheoilcrash.net/

http://oilcrashmovie.com/index2.html

Things that are just on my mind.

2010-08-21T21:00:00.000-07:00

I had thought about writing about fall gardens but my mind keeps coming back around to another issue so I think I will save that for later. When I get stuck on something, I tend to be a little obessive compulsive so perhaps if I share what I am thinking with you, it will help me to turn my thoughts somewhere else.

As I'm sure many of you know, Isaac Bonewits passed away recently. Right after his death, I listened to a lecture that he gave, probably his last, on a podcast by Brendan Myers. If you haven't listened to Standing Stone and Garden Gate, you really should. Anyway, Isaac was talking about magical ethics, the Law of Three, and that sort of thing. Toward the end of the lecture he made some statements about how many Pagans use these magical ethics as an excuse to not do anything to take care of the environment.

Now, I'm not going to debate magical ethics. I personally do not follow the Law of Three. If it works for someone else, then great. But for me, it just really doesn't fit. My concern is this, if we are going to call ourselves Pagan, then why are Pagans not at the forefront of environmental activisim? What are we doing?

If you are reading this blog, then I am going to assume that it is because you have an interest in living off the land, getting back to nature, and are probably aware of the many problems we are facing. For those of us who understand and realize the magnitiude of our problems, why are we not shouting it from the rooftops within our Pagan communities? Now, I'm as guilty as anyone else. I suffer the same problems as everyone else of worrying about how I'm going to pay all the bills, spending time with my family, trying to find some quiet time for myself, much less trying to work in a little activisim here and there.

We are only human and we all have fininacial and time constraints. We do what we can right? I recycle, use CFL light bulbs, and try to educate my children in how we should take care of the earth. But at some point I began to think, is that really enough? Am I really doing everything I can for the Mother? In my head I hear a resounding, No. But I rationalize why I cannot do more.

Lately, I have been giving some serious thought to what it means to be Pagan and why do I feel so strongly about environmental issues. If we say we are Pagan, then we are saying that we worship the Earth and everything that is in it. We hold everything around us as sacred. If we hold the world around us as sacred, then should we not treat it with reverence even when we are not in Circle? Shouldn't we be saying, "Hey! The world is my church! Don't trash it!" But I sit here and wonder, where are all the Pagans? Why are there not more Pagans working diligently to help create a world that will be tolerable for our children?

Now, don't get me wrong. I know there are many Pagans out there who are doing everything they can to foster awareness and work in programs that are trying to make things better. But for the rest of us, for those who think it is someone else's problem. That someone else will fix it, here's what I have to say to you. You have a responsibility to the Mother. She is not here to baby you and protect you. She provides for your needs yes, but it is our responisiblity to take care of Her. Without Her, we do not exist. So what is your excuse for not doing what you know is right? Are you afraid that the Law of Three is going to bite you in the butt for doing a spell to protect what needs to be protected? Stop using excuses! You have no right to call yourself a Pagan if you are not willing to be a warrior, a protector, a guardian for what you claim to hold dear. Our time is now and if you are not willing to help then get out of the way.

If the influence of the Pagan community was ever needed it is now. We are running out of time and the Mother is calling for those who are willing to fight for Her cause. Personally, I do not feel I am doing enough. I am trying to remedy that. I am not perfect nor do I claim to be. But I feel that I have been called. What my role will be I still do not know. What I do know is this, if I do not answer her call, if I do not do everything I can to create a better world for my children, how can I possibly go into the next life knowing that I failed to honor my promise to the Mother. To love Her, to worship Her, and most importantly, to take care of all that She is. So now the question is this, where does everyone else stand?

TPH-Episode 2

2010-08-17T07:23:00.001-07:00

In this episode I share a present we got for my oldest for his birthday since he is showing more interest in spell work and I share my thoughts on simple living. There is also a book review of the “All New Square Foot Gardening” book by Mel Bartholomew and the Gardening by the Moon segment.

www.tumbleweedhouses.com
www.tinyhouseblog.com
www.coolspringspress.com

TPH Episode 1

2010-08-12T04:25:00.000-07:00

I just wanted to let everyone know I took the plunge and created a podcast! It is availabe on iTunes under The Pagan Homesteader. The website is http://www.thepaganhomesteader.podbean.com/. I will have to see if there is a way to add the podcast to the blog. If I can't you can go to the website to download if you don't have iTunes.

So take a listen and let me know what you think! I hope to improve the show as I go along but I'm always interested in what others have to say. Have a good rest of the week!

Store for the winter

2010-08-06T19:33:00.000-07:00

This may be a short post but I wanted to bring something to everyone's attention. Today on Collapsenet.com Michael Ruppert put up a video update about the possibility of food prices taking a significant jump in the next week or so. He says this because in the last 24-36 hours there have been several news articles from major news outlets about Russia and the Ukraine not having enough wheat. These countries have been major exporters of wheat and if they are not able to export then we will feel the effects in our pocket books. There is also a fungus that has been devestating wheat crops in China. This is a brief of synopsis of what he said but he is encouraging everyone to begin stockpiling a 3 month supply of food for everyone in your home.

This may sound alarmist but this man is often right and if the major news outlets are talking about it then there is probably something to it. If nothing else keep a close eye on the food prices in your area. If you see prices suddenly starting to rise then I would take that as a sign that food prices are going to continue to go up. Also, be thinking about what you can store that will get you through in a pinch. If you can buy some things in bulk, now may be the time to start shopping with that friend who has a Sam's or Costco card.

On a lighter note, I am giving some serious thought to starting a podcast based on the homesteader theme. If and when I get an episode out I will let you guys know. I would love to hear some of your thoughts on topics for this podcast so feel free to let me know! I will try to post again soon with a lighter subject next time!

Making Progress

2010-07-26T20:13:00.000-07:00

I promised I would put up another post about the progress we have made so far and here it is! Thus far we have gotten the flooring down and it actually looks pretty good. We used peel and stick tile that we found for 29 cents a square foot. It was cheap and it actually turned out great. Hubby did a good job putting it down. It's a wood grain pattern and improves the looks of the shed greatly.

Here's hubby with a little helper putting down the flooring. As you can see we are still dealing with bare walls but hopefully we will be able to start buying the insulation for the walls in a few weeks. So far we have put up reflective barrier insulation against the ceiling which has helped. It looks kind of like we have tin foil over our heads but if it works I don't care.

I don't believe I mentioned this before but when we first moved it had rained right before we got here. Did I also mention that Oklahoma is made of nothing but red clay? Well, our red clay has a good bit of sand in it so it gets very mushy when it rains. To say the least, when we drove up the truck we made some nice ruts in the yard. Fortunately, it also dries quickly and the ruts can be fixed later.

We also have put together a make shift shower. There isn't exactly a lot of privacy right now but it works. Hubby fixed up a pulley system so we can raise and lower the shower to fill it. We have also discovered that even though the solar shower works very well when the sun it out, it can actually get too warm. When it's pushing 100 degrees outside and you would like a cool shower, having to use 100+ degree water isn't the greatest thing in the world. So we have figured out that if we lower the shower during the day it gets to just the right temperature. Now that I am working during the day again I have taken to heating water in a tea kettle in the morning and adding this to the shower so the water is at least luke warm. Taking a cold shower first thing in the morning isn't exactly my idea of a good time.

Hubby didn't square it up so we will probably take it apart and redo it so it looks a little better. There is also something liberating about taking a shower outside and if you've never done so I encourage anyone to give it a try just once.

We have also acquired two new fur babies. We now have an English Shepard named Indy after Indiana Jones. I let the kids name him and they are stuck on the Indiana Jones movies right now. We also have a new kitty named Sabrina. She's a little shy but very loving.

And now for the latest news and then I'll shut up. See, this is what happens when I don't get to post for a month. Anyway, the hubby recently got the idea that we needed to have a path back to the pond. Now after working on this for most of the week we finally have a fairly clear path to the pond. Of course now the kids want to go fishing every day. We honestly didn't think anything was in there since it is a man made pond but low and behold we have baby Big Mouth Bass! The kids both caught their first fish the other day and were so excited! We may still need to stock the pond with a few fish but at least we know there's something back there!

And last but not least I have to brag about my Craigslist find today. At some point we plan on building a green house and I want to find some old windows that we can use. While looking over the free section I saw where a listing had been made for a picture window. He simply wanted to get rid of it and was giving it away. To say the least I jumped on it! As you can see in the picture the side windows open and the frame is made of metal. I can't wait until we build a greenhouse so we can put this in place. It's going to look great and this was just the type of window I was hoping to find.

So this should pretty much have us caught up to date. Now that I have internet again I will try to get back to posting on a regular basis. Everyone try to stay cool in these baking temps and I'll be back soon!

The longest move in history

2010-07-22T19:40:00.000-07:00

Finally! I'm back online and connected to the civilized world again!

Outside of when we crossed the land bridge, this has to have been the longest move in history. I will attempt to give you the short version. Originally the plan was we would pick up the truck on Saturday and leave on Sunday. Well, on the Saturday of our move we picked up the truck as planned and began loading. We loaded all afternoon and realized we weren't going to get everything loaded that day. So bright and early Sunday morning we got up and resumed the process of finishing packing and loading. About mid day we realized that we had underestimated the size of the truck and needed to get a trailer. The only thing I could find on a Sunday was a 4x8 trailer so we got it and packed it as full as possible as well as the cars. Unfortunately, we still couldn't get everything.

Monday morning we get up before sunrise and hit the road. We get here around lunch time and began to unload and my hubby starts working on getting the electricity hooked up. Yes, we had not power yet. We end up staying in a hotel that night simply because it is too hot and we still don't have power. The next morning I go to a job interview while my hubby finishes unloading what we are going to keep here. After I change clothes we head back into town to get a storage building and turn in the truck and trailer. We finally get back on the road late that afternoon to head back to Texas to get the rest of our stuff. We arrive around 1:30 in the morning and stay in a hotel yet again. The next morning we get a larger trailer, get the rest of our stuff and head back. We get back home around 10 PM and finish unloading the next day. To say the least, we were all exhausted.

Since then we have gotten a little better organized and gotten the flooring down. Slowly things are beginning to come together. When I have more time this weekend I will try to put up another post with some pics of what we have gotten done. Thank you all for being patient while we got this move over with. Hopefully now I will be able to post regularly again. Stay tuned!

Quick update

2010-07-01T12:03:00.000-07:00

Just wanted to put up a quick update. We have moved in the sense that all of our stuff is out of our old place. Right now we still have a few things sitting on a trailer and I haven't been able to make heads or tails out of the stuff that we didn't put in storage. We are still trying to get the power on so hopefully that will happen today. Otherwise it will be another warm night with no AC. At this point I think all of the food has gone bad.

I don't know when we will be getting phone and internet. The phone company came out the other day and couldn't hook up the phone because a new box needs to be put in. Ah, the joys of living in the country. The engineer was by today so hopefully in no longer than two weeks we'll be in business. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that it will take less time than that.

No one ever said that achieving your dreams was easy but does it have to be so hot?? I guess I shouldn't complain too much. I am convinced that the Goddess loves me now. Lately it has been well into the high 90's but this week we are looking at highs in the upper 80's here and when we went back down to Texas to get the rest of our stuff it was overcast with a nice breeze. Much better than the almost 100 degree temps we've been having. It's still hot but at least I don't quite feel like I may die of a heat stroke. Anyway, there is more to tell to this story but I will have to save that for later. Everyone have a great Fourth of July and I will try to post soon!

Getting closer!

2010-06-22T15:17:00.000-07:00

So this weekend was fairly productive even if it was unbearably hot. We managed to get the wiring done and my neighbor was kind enough to call today and let us know that the meter has been put in. Now all we have to do is hook up to it!

It's amazing how much heat these buildings hold with no insulation. Here is my poor hubby tolerating the heat to get the wiring done. The kids of course wanted to help to so he let them use the drill to make the holes bigger. I'm not sure how I feel about them using power tools already but we all know how boys are with their toys.

We also bought a reel mower so we could mow some of the grass. This one cost us about $120 at Lowe's. It has an 18 inch mowing width and comes with a bag to catch the grass which is nice if want to try and compost some of it. Of course I wouldn't try to mow a very large area with this, but it does mow pretty well even if it is slow. The nice thing is it doesn't use any gas. We may invest in a gas mower later but for now this will do the job. Our neighbor was also nice enough to come over before we left and used his riding mower to finish mowing the grass for us. We have such nice neighbors!

The funny thing is the kids were actually arguing over who got to mow. I'm sure this is something that will never happen again but it was fun to watch. The mower is easy enough to push that even Baby Bit could do it. Overall the kids actually did pretty well with it.

So as of now the move is on for this weekend. I will post as soon as I can after the move so you guys stay tuned!

Pieces of the puzzle

2010-06-18T06:48:00.000-07:00

Every move has its challenges and this one has been no exception. We have hit plenty of hiccups in our plans, but slowly things may be coming together.

As much as I don't want to be on the grid, that is what we have to do for now. Hopefully the meter will be in before we move. If not, well, that's another issue that will have to be dealt with. Arrangements have been made for the phone and internet to be hooked up and this weekend we hope to get the wiring done.

Even though I am doing things I never thought I would do, I also realize that we are facing issues that we never thought would come. At least I didn't. Sometimes I think about what the future may be like for the generations to come and what are they going to think about us? There is no chance that those who come after us will enjoy the same level of comfort that we have. Will they think we were arrogant? Foolish? Conceited? I don't know, only history can be the judge. What I hope, is that the choices that we make from here on out are what we will truly be judged on.

I keep hoping that when the public realizes that the chips are down, that the American grit and ingenuity that we have become known for will kick in. That, as we have done in the past, we will dig in and do what must be done. My concern however, is that the apathy and need for instant gratification that has been developed will hamper people's ability to function in a meaningful way.

The answers to the problems that we are facing are at our fingertips, we just have to be willing to change and embrace what needs to be done. Change is never easy and many of us don't like change, especially when things are changing in a way we don't like. Unfortunately, change is coming. This is why I strongly support the use of permaculture and relocalizing our communities. Start preparing your lifeboat and thinking of ways that you might deal with changes that may be coming. Also, keep an eye on what is happening in the world. We are connected to everyone else and events that may seem remote from us could have impacts that we can't even imagine now. Talk to your friends and family. Try to make as many people aware as possible. The more people that understand what is happening, the better prepared our society will be. Let's face it, we can't count on the government to do anything useful.

As Pagans, we know change is a part of nature and like anything else in nature, if we want to survive we must learn how to change with it.

Announcing - Collpasenet.com

2010-06-08T07:14:00.000-07:00

Because I feel so strongly about this and I feel it is very important to get this out to as many people as possible, I wanted to announce the start of Michael Ruppert's new website collapsenet.com. I mentioned him a couple of posts back and I wanted you guys to know his website is up.

You may not believe in Peak Oil, or if you were like me, you're not ready to wrap your head around the idea yet. Unfortunately, I think we are running out of time. Mr. Ruppert feels that we are at the beginning of the end of industrial civilization. No matter how you feel about what he says, you have to admit that the things that are happening in our world are pretty scary. So for those that are interested, please visit his site and start making plans for your own lifeboat.

How far are you willing to go?

2010-06-07T07:46:00.000-07:00

As we continue to prepare for our move and I have to meet the electric company's engineer this week, I have been thinking about how much electricity we use. We have discussed at some length about getting solar panels or going on the grid. I would love to get solar panels right away and not even have to go on the grid but to get a full blown system would be very expensive. Depending on what the engineer tells me however, that may still be something we have to look at.

As we seriously discussed getting solar panels instead of getting on the grid, I wondered how much electricity we use on a monthly basis. Of course this is essential to know if you want to figure out how big of a system you need. So I found our most recent electric bill and I was a little surprised. On average, we use 1500 kWh a month. Last summer when we were having those unbearable 100 degree days for days on end we topped out at around 3000. This is for a 1500 sq ft dwelling with two central A/C units, not enough insulation, and windows that are not energy efficient (We rent so none of these features were my idea). To give you an idea of how much it would cost to get us completely off the grid, here are some numbers. A 1500 kWh system, based on where we live, would cost about $82,715.00 or $40,680.00 after incentives. Hmmm....can we see why it is cost prohibitive for most of us to go solar, at least in the way we would like? These numbers were based on one solar calculator and of course the numbers will be different for each area of the country.

Depending on how much it will cost to have a meter placed on our property we may still go with solar panels. The question is, how can we reduce how much electricity we use? I would like to cut our current energy usage at least in half, if not more. Initially however, we cannot afford a large system so we would have to start out very small and then add to it.

I would love to get a refrigerator that uses propane but those are expensive and I haven't been able to find a used RV one. Instead, I'm going to try and sell my current fridge and get one that is smaller and energy star rated. We have a window unit that we plan on using but we have also considered getting a swamp cooler instead. One we looked at uses about 140 watts of power versus our window unit that uses over 1000. The washing machine has been a bit of dilemma. If we have to get a small solar panel system we simply won't be able to use the washer unless it is on a generator as well as the fridge. I have looked at a small hand washer that costs about $50 which could be used for small loads but we would still have to go to a laundromat from time to time. Here is a picture of the washer that I found through Lehman's.

As for lights, there are always candles and oil lamps to reduce how much electricity we use there. TV watching would be limited, much to my children's chagrin I'm sure.

Even though I knew that choosing this path would be difficult, I did not realize how hard it would be for me to let go of this idea of how we are supposed to live. I told my husband that we are trying to hold onto this idea of middle class living that is just not sustainable. I have to admit, I feel like a junkie trying to get off of drugs. I am used to living a certain way and even though I know that choosing a simpler lifestyle is better for my family and the world around us, it doesn't mean it isn't difficult. So if it is this hard for me, someone who is very aware that we have to change how we live as a society, how much more difficult is it going to be for everyone else?

We all have to make our own choices as to how we want to live. Some of us are willing to make greater changes than others. If you are reading this, then you have at least given some thought to greening your lifestyle and are hopefully taking steps to that end. I suppose the big question is, how far are we willing to go now and far will we be forced to go in the future?

Finally! Progress!

2010-05-27T07:24:00.001-07:00

So, after a couple of not very productive trips to our property and fighting off ticks the last few days, we finally have something accomplished! The 12x30' storage building that we bought was delivered and is now waiting for us to make it livable. Even though it is a large shed, it's not very big when you consider we will be living in this while we build a house. It still has to be wired, have plumbing run to it, and insulated but at least I know we'll have a roof over our heads! I jokingly tell everyone that it will be like living in a camper minus the wheels. I am becoming more stressed however over pulling all of this together. There is still so much to be done and finding the time to complete it all is a challenge.

Since the tick population is getting worse we will likely get a few guineas and hopefully some chickens. This will allow us to naturally control the pest population and hopefully get some eggs as well! Hopefully this will only be home for a few months but I'm not going to expect things to go any more smoothly after we move than it has already.

As always, we enjoyed our time while we were there. The wind wasn't nearly as strong as it has been and we are becoming more familiar with the character of the land. As we look at how the water flows across the property we have begun to discuss where we may need to place swales and how we want to channel the water. Hopefully I will be able to begin creating our Permaculture design soon so that we have a road map to what we want to do.

Our target date to move is the last week of June so stay tuned and we'll see what we get accomplished between now and then!


Looking across our future home site to enjoy a sunset.

Lifeboats

2010-05-22T11:50:00.000-07:00

I want to discuss an idea that some of you may not have heard of before. Creating a lifeboat. Now we all know what a lifeboat is...it's that little boat that we run for when the big boat that we are on is in danger of sinking or some other disaster. The lifeboat is designed to keep you alive through the immediate emergency until you can be rescued or reach safety. So why, you may ask, do we need to create a lifeboat? Well, let's think about that one for a minute.

In the last couple of years we have seen a lot of economic turmoil here in the U.S. and in other countries as well. Greece is on the brink of financial collapse and Spain, France, Italy, the UK and others are not far behind. Despite what all of these well paid economists on CNN may be saying, we are on pretty shaky ground as well. Things are not as stable as they would like for us to believe. Our economy is based on a model of perpetual energy growth. We depend on increased amounts of available energy to support and increase our growth. Most of that energy comes from oil and as I hope you are aware, oil is on the decline. We have reached the peak and are now on the downhill slide. This is not good news for the economy.

Now I am not an economist nor do I work in the oil industry. I am just an ordinary person trying to piece together the information that is out there. I had hoped that we had at least another 5-10 years before we began to feel significant effects of Peak Oil but I am now beginning to think that we have much less time than that. So the need to create a lifeboat is becoming imperative.There are a lot of resources out there that can go into much more detail than I about what is happening and what we will probably be facing so I will leave that to those who are more qualified.

Everyone's lifeboat will look different based on where you live. There are basic needs that we all must meet which include water, food, and shelter. I would suggest starting there. Look around where you live and begin to think of what you would need to get you through an emergency that lasted a few days, weeks, or months. What plans do you need to put in place that will benefit you in the long term? What networks and community bonds can you strengthen or build so that you're not alone in your lifeboat? How will you and your family function if the things that we have become used to are not available or are only available in limited quantities?

I watched a film the other day of Michael Ruppert talking about Peak Oil and the coming collapse. One thing he said was to make your lifeboat where you feel most comfortable. Where you know the streets, the people, the customs, etc. You don't have to be out in the country surrounded by acres of farm land, but you do have to know your area and where your resources are. This makes a lot of sense to me and is why we are going back to Oklahoma. It's where we are comfortable and where we are choosing to make our stand.

The ship is sinking and unfortunately many people don't see it. An analogy that I like to use is that of a coming storm. If you know a storm is coming are you going to wait until it hits to make sure you have everything you need? The smart person is going to make sure there is adequate food, batteries, flashlights, blankets, etc. If you are not prepared when you have been warned, you have no one to blame but yourself.

Unfortunately I haven't been able to find a way to embed Michael Ruppert's video in this text but I have included the link so you can visit the website and watch it for yourself. He doesn't sugar coat anything, which I personally like, but his message is a little scary. So watch the video, look at your own situation, and decide how best you can prepare your own lifeboat.

http://www.cctv.org/watch-tv/programs/author-and-peak-oil-activist-michael-ruppert

Permaculture Ethics Lesson #3

2010-05-15T08:35:00.000-07:00

When we were children one of the first things we were taught was to share what we have with our friends. As we got older we learned how to share many things with our friends. Good times, bad times, clothes, and food. As we became adults we noticed that we may not share as often as we used to. We get caught up in providing for ourselves and our families. Often, we may not have enough to share with others because it takes everything we have just to meet our own needs. This is where the concept of Fair Share, which is the third ethic of Permaculture, comes in.

When we produce abundance we are able to share the surplus with those who are not as able. When we share with others then everyone's needs can be met. Of course we usually think of the physical things that can be shared such as food and water. But we can also share things such as time and knowledge.

This is how communities used to f unction. We respected our elders and they continued to contribute to the community by sharing their knowledge and helping to take care of the children. Everyone else provided the tasks that were needed for the community to survive. In this way everyone was doing their part. Permaculture seeks to rebuild community on those same principles. If we begin to incorporate Permaculture into how we live it will not only help the environment but our communities as well.

The ethics of Permaculture are simple but they are practices that we have largely gotten away from. These three things are at the core of Permaculture and everything we do will revolve around them. In the future I will discuss some of the principles of Permaculture and how they may be incorporated into your own living space. In the meantime I have put some links below to books that you may find useful as an introduction to Permaculture.

Permaculture Ethics Lesson #2

2010-05-09T10:47:00.000-07:00

The second ethic at the center of Permaculture is Care of People. Ok, so this may seem like another no brainer but let's look at this concept a little closer.

When we talk about caring for people what images does that bring to mind? For most of us the first thing we may think about is helping our neighbors, looking after the elderly, and helping those in need. All of these things are correct, but let's see what else this can mean. When we are helping those around us, it can be more than just helping to put up a fence or making sure someone has a meal. How about teaching others how to grow some of their own food? How to install a rain barrel so the water can be reused on their landscaping? And how to utilize native plants and food bearing plants within the landscape so it not only looks nice but serves a purpose?

When we talk about caring for people we need to think about how to help people meet their needs beyond a handout. By establishing community gardens, educating others about the problems we will soon be facing, and how to live sustainably to deal with those problems we are going beyond short term needs and giving them long term solutions. This also helps to build community and create an environment of support.

In my next post I'll discuss the third and final permaculture ethic. In the meantime, look around your own communities to see what may be happening that falls under the ethic of Care for People. Maybe you will be inspired to start something that will follow this ethic.

Permaculture Ethics Lesson #1

2010-05-01T14:45:00.000-07:00

If you have been anywhere near a radio or TV in the last few days I am sure you have heard about the oil spill that is happening in the Gulf. I say "is happening" because it is an on going event. To date, they still have not been able to cap this thing and stop the thousands of gallons of oil that is pouring into the ocean every day. To say the least, I am more than a little annoyed at this situation. I am annoyed for more than one reason. Not only is this an environmental disaster but it stands to affect my home state for which I am not very happy.

As irritating as all of this is, it is not the core of what I wanted to talk about today. As we make our preparations for creating a simpler life and I focus on using Permaculture to create a harmonious living environment, recent events have made me think about the ethics behind Permaculture. For those who are not familiar with Permaculture I thought I would discuss the three ethics that lie at the heart of Permaculture and how these ethics translate into our everyday lives.

Care of the Earth

This is the first ethic in Permaculture. It is a fairly obvious statement, but it means our first priority is to take care of the planet and not damage the systems that we depend on. So what does this mean? Does it mean we should recycle, compost, and conserve water? Of course, but we have to go a little deeper to find the true value of this ethic.

For a person to have a deep concern for the Earth, we must have a relationship with it. This relationship must be developed over time and it also needs to have a healthy dose of respect thrown in. We develop this relationship by spending time in nature. Listening to its rhythms and watching the changing of the seasons. Unfortunately, the majority of people in our society have become disconnected from the world around us. I am no exception but I am slowly correcting this problem and working on my own relationship with nature.

Because of this disconnect, many people do not respect the world around them and have trouble fully comprehending the damage we do to our environment and what this means for us. As we gain an understanding of how the world around us functions, then we can understand how we fit within the grand scheme of things. We cannot count on some government agency or our children's schools to take us by the hand and show us how to have this relationship with nature either. This is something personal that we all must take the time to explore and discover. Then, we can teach our children so that this pattern of consumerism and abuse is broken.

So the next time you spend some time outside, think about our connection to the earth and the ethic of Care for the Earth. What does it mean to you and how you interact with the world around you?

Blue skies and water worries

2010-04-27T08:58:00.001-07:00

Most people love spring and fall because of the more seasonable temperatures and the fact that it signals the changing of the seasons. I love spring and fall for these reasons as well, but this weekend while we were in Oklahoma, I remembered why I like the Oklahoma countryside so well. If you've never been to Oklahoma it is really quite pretty. There's nothing like driving down the highway to see wide open spaces of green dotted with varying shades of green from the trees. And all of this against the backdrop of a vivid blue sky that is often dotted with puffy white clouds. To me, this is beautiful scenery but I'm also fond of the open spaces.

I also love a cold glass of water on a hot day, but I read an article about how Oklahoma City wants to meet its water needs for the next several years and it concerns me. The city would like to buy the rights to a reservoir about a hundred miles away to supply the city and surrounding areas with water. The reason for this is that demand is expected to exceed supply within the next 20 years. The price tag for this little endeavor is around $42 million.

Apparently someone is not looking at some better ways to conserve water. I understand the need to meet the water demands for a large city, especially considering that within the next 20 years we may see more people migrating into large metropolitan areas due to the effects of Peak Oil. As those who commute to work find it more difficult to maintain their current suburban lifestyle, I am sure we will see more people either finding ways to work from home or moving closer to their places of employment. Naturally, this could put an increased strain on any city's resources.

I don't understand why the city is looking at this as the only way to supply the city with all of its water needs. The amount of rainwater runoff in a city is enormous due to the decreased amounts of green surfaces that can absorb and transfer that water back into the water tables. It would seem to me that the city should begin looking at ways to retain some of that rain water. Why not look at using some of that money to establish a city wide rain water catchment program? Offer some incentives for home owners to implement their own rain water catchment systems. If they expect there to be water shortages in the next 20 years, then how long do they think that reservoir will last? What will they do when that resource is no longer available?

Unfortunately, this just goes to show how little forward thinking there is. I'm sure this type of problem is happening all over the U.S. and as usual our leaders are looking for the quick fix and worry about the bigger problems when they happen. This course of action may be inevitable but I hope the city leaders will be looking at other alternatives to help solve this looming problem. In the meantime, I'll continue with my plans to set up our own rainwater catchment system in the future to hopefully meet most of our water needs.

The best laid plans

2010-04-25T19:27:00.000-07:00

I hope everyone had an enjoyable Earth Day last week and is looking at new ways to enhance your lives by being greener and living more simply. Unfortunately, I was not able to post Thursday or Friday like I had hoped and like so many other things, our best laid plans often do not work out like we had hoped.

Well, first for the bad news. This weekend we paid another visit to our future homestead and discovered that while we were gone someone else apparently enjoyed our home site as well. The last time we were there we had bought a small storage unit to leave our camping gear in so wouldn't have to haul it back and forth every time. So what did we find we got there? Nothing. The storage unit and all of our stuff was gone. To say the least we were not very happy. We filed a report with the Sheriff's department but I would say it's a safe bet that we will never see any of that stuff again. Because of this event we felt we had to change our plans yet again.

Originally we had planned on building our temporary house on the weekends until time for us to move. However, with this theft we did not feel safe in leaving any construction work unattended for a couple of weeks at a time. Now, we plan on buying a storage building that we can live in while we build the house. This was not what I had wanted to do but compromises have to be made.

We still had an enjoyable weekend camping out and meeting some of our neighbors. We were also able to put the Permaculture principle of observation into action by putting up the prerequisite hammock. As you can see, my husband and son did very well at putting this principle into action.

The kids also picked some pretty wild flowers for me that we found growing at the back of our property. I have no idea what they are so if anyone knows please let me know!

So in a way we are back to square one but we are more anxious than ever to make the move and really get things going. The process is slow but we will get there eventually. Anything worth having is worth working for and this will definitely be a lot of work!

The Water of Life

2010-04-21T20:04:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I posted some Earth Day facts which included some facts about water. One of those facts is that the Earth is composed of 2/3 water but only one hundredth of one percent is fresh water. So what does this mean to us?

Water is essential to our survival. We can go about a week without food but we can only survive three days without water. We drink it, cook with it, and bath in it. Water is an intricate part to our quality of life. Without clean water we face numerous health and sanitation issues. So why do we misuse our water resources so badly?

There are numerous things that we need to be concerned about getting into the water table and contaminating our water supply. The majority of these dangers come from us, not terrorists. So we need to be more aware of not only how we dispose of toxic substances such as oil and paint but also what chemicals are being sent through our treatment systems from soaps, shampoos, and cleaners.

Believe it or not there are several things that we can do to help conserve the fresh water that we have available to us. One of the biggest things that can be done is to set up a rain water catchment system. It can require a significant investment of money if you plan on having large holding tanks but it can also be as simple as having a couple of rain barrels sitting beneath your gutters downspout. With a smaller system, enough water can be collected to water your yard or garden for a few days depending on how much you need. With a larger system the water could also be used within the home as well as outside. Depending on what your goals are a filtration system may also be needed for household use.

If collecting rain water is not an option for you, there are things you can do within your home that can help conserve water and in turn decrease your water bill. Aerators can be placed on your sinks to limit the amount of water that is coming through but give you the same amount of pressure. If you don't feel like replacing your toilet just because it's getting a little old, place a brick or a bag filled with air in the tank. This will displace water so the tank is actually not holding as much water therefore you use less with each flush. Installing a low flow shower head will also reduce the amount of water that is being used.

Water is a critical resource that we cannot afford to lose. If we are not careful the lack of fresh water will be the next global crisis. So look around and take those small steps that can make a big difference.

Earth Day facts

2010-04-20T15:53:00.000-07:00

Here are a few Earth Day facts that I thought I would share and I hope you find interesting. Happy Earth Day!

The garbage in a landfill stays for about thirty years
In 1995 about 200 of the world's landfills were full
Each person throws away approximately four pounds of garbage a day
Most families throw away about 88 pounds of plastic every year
We each use about 12,000 gallons of water every year
1/3 of all water is used to flush the toilet
The 500 million cars on the planet burn an average of 2 gallons of fuel a day
Each gallon of fuel release 20 pounds of carbon dioxide into the air
Approximately 5 million tons of oil produced in the world ends up in the ocean
Every ton of paper recycled saves 17 trees
The amount of wood and paper we throw away is enough to heat 50 million homes for 20 years
Earth is 2/3 water but all the fresh water streams only represent on hundredth of one percent
14 billion pounds of trash are dumped into the ocean every year
84% of all household waste can be recycled
One gallon of motor oil can contaminate up to 2 million gallons of water

Finding our way to sustainability

2010-04-19T16:04:00.000-07:00

Happy Earth Day week! Since Earth Day is this week I am going to make the effort to put up a post every day regarding an environmental topic. Earth Day is a time to look at not only what environmental problems we are facing but how our everyday actions affect the world around us.

In the last few years the word green has come to mean more than just a color. But what does "going green" mean? Unfortunately, much of the public perception of going green means changing your light bulbs to CFL's, buying energy star appliances, and recycling. All of these things are helpful and if everyone did them it would help considerably but there is more to being green. So what else can be done? Well, let's look at a new word that is being used more and that is sustainability.

From an environmental point of view, sustainability means that an action can be continued with little impact on the environment. When you take a look at how we live every day, it becomes pretty obvious that how we currently live is not only not good for the environment but it is not sustainable. We are consuming resources at an incredible pace and at some point those resources will give out. So how can we live sustainably so that we can make those resources last longer and continue with the same level of comfort we have come to expect?

First, let's start with where we actually live. Increase the amount of insulation in your house so that you are conserving energy. If replacing your windows is not an option, then look at placing solar film on your windows. It will increase the efficiency and is a more affordable option for many people. Go ahead and change those light bulbs and consider placing an aerator on your sinks so that you are using less water. These are just a few simple things that we can do that will make a big difference when put together.

Now, let's look outside. If you have room, one of the obvious options is to start a small garden to provide some of your food. Did you know that on average, food travels 1,500 miles to reach your plate? How sustainable is that? It's much more efficient and healthy if it comes from your own back yard. Instead of having expansive lawns, replace them with drought tolerant plants and rock gardens. Grow plants that serve multiple purposes and create areas that provide habitat for our non-human neighbors.

This may not seem like monumental steps, but who said it had to be? Make what changes you can and do what is effective for your family. Take time this week to decide what changes you can make that you can stick with and see how much better your home and your environment is for it.

Green Blogger Event

2010-04-18T18:48:00.000-07:00

Happy Earth Day Celebration Week!

This is the 40th Earth Day!! What does Earth Day mean to you? We will be exploring that during our week long Celebrate Earth Day All Week 2010 Blogging Event.

Each Day will hosted by a different blog with green interests. Each blog will discuss green tips, green experiences, and/or green reflections. Each blog will also be hosting a green giveaway(s) that will run through our week long blogging event.

Monday- Hosted by Moms Wear Your Tees Blog with giveaways sponsored by SprigToys and Shaklee
Tuesday- Hosted by Tales of the Wife with giveaway sponsored by ArtsyFarstyFooFoo
Wednesday- Hosted by Once Upon a Baby with giveaway sponsored by Bagnesia
Thursday- Hosted by Retro House Wife Goes Green with giveaway sponsored by The Soft Landing
Friday- Hosted by The Crunchy Wife with giveaway sponsored by SodaStream
Saturday- Hosted by The Eco-Friendly Family with giveaway sponsored by Greenzys

Earth Day 2010 can be a turning point to advance climate policy, energy efficiency, renewable energy and green jobs.

Earth Day 2010 is a pivotal opportunity for individuals, corporations and governments to join together and create a global green economy.

Please visit EarthDay.org to take action, sign petitions, and join events in your area.

I would love for you to leave us a comment with something special you are doing for Earth Day!

To read these posts please visit www.theecofriendlyfamily.com

Ring ring...that's your Mother calling

2010-04-12T18:41:00.000-07:00

We often can't see the connections in our lives until there is some distance between the event and the outcome. Then we can look back and see how one choice or chance encounter brought us to where we are today. As we embark on a dream that we have had for some time, I can't help but look back at my own life and wonder at how I have gotten to this stage in my life.

We all change as we gain life experience and I can see that I am a much different person now than I was 13 years ago. That was when I discovered Paganism and started on the path that has led me here. I firmly believe that if I had not become aware of the Pagan Path I would have continued to be oblivious to the needs of the environment. Those first few steps have led me to a greater understanding of the world around me and how we affect it.

I know many of us often feel that we have some purpose in this life and we are searching for what that purpose is. I don't want to sound grandiose, but I feel that I have finally found mine. Our purpose should be something that drives us, that we are passionate about. For me, I am passionate about not only living lighter on the earth but helping others to do so as well. I hope to lead by example and gain the skills to teach others. I also hope to help our local Pagans become more aware and work toward lifestyles of sustainability.

There is a song by Michelle Mays called "The Promise". This song talks about the promise we made to take care of the earth and that once the Mother calls you, you can't ignore it. It's a call that must be answered. I am sure many of you feel that you have been called to your path but are we answering Her call? It is up to each of us to recognize it and then find a way to answer it.

The Green Clean

2010-04-09T16:02:00.001-07:00

You know, in the last few years we have begun to see more and more "green" products on our store shelves. Not that this is a bad thing, on the contrary, I have been very happy to be able to find some products that help me to live more lightly on the planet. However, I do think we have to be careful and not buy something just because it says it's green.

Recently I took a stroll down the cleaning aisle at a local store. I don't go down the cleaning aisle that much anymore because I have found other more natural products to use. Out of curiosity I stopped to look at some of these so called "green" cleaning products to see if they meet the claim of being green and my own standards for a green product. Now, I expect that if I am going to use a product that is good for the environment that it will be safe for my children and pets. That is if someone happens to chew on a bottle, get some in their eyes, or in their mouth that I won't have to call Poison Control. Not surprisingly, these products all had the same warnings we are all familiar with. You know the ones, don't get in your eyes, avoid contact with skin, etc. So here is my question, what did they do to make these products green and if they are so green why are these warnings on the packages?

I have used some truly safe cleaning products that clean just as well as the commercial stuff if not better. These products are made from natural substances that pose no threat to myself, my family, or any pets that I may have. Not mention they are non-toxic so they are safe to use in a gray water system. Most of these products are available by mail order although some can be found at your local health food store.

So what are these companies doing when they are promoting "green" cleaning products? Yes, they are trying to take advantage of a growing demand for products that are good for the environment but how much of an effort are they really making? Personally, I think it's more green washing than actually trying to create a product that will work and not pollute our ground water. I think many of these companies are counting on the fact that most people will not explore beyond the flashy label whether or not these products are truly safe and good for us. So the next time you need to buy some glass cleaner or bathroom cleaner read your labels and consider if this product really meets the standards you want for yourself and your family. Hold these companies to a higher standard, yours.

And so it begins

2010-04-02T11:01:00.001-07:00

Well, we have signed the papers and written the check...the first of many. Yes, we have purchased 6 acres of land to call our own and now the fun begins. What seems to be the monumental effort of trying to carve out a homestead and create something that we can be proud of. Our dilemma however, is that we live about 6 hours away from the property that we have purchased. A long distance move is a big enough pain, much less when you are trying to build something to live in. We are hoping to have something ready to live in by the end of June. If not, I may be shopping for a new tent!

We did go to the property this past weekend and at least got to spend a night in what is to be our new home. As much as we enjoyed that, the weather decided to not be very cooperative. It was cold and windy for two days. Even though we didn't get as much done as we would have liked, we did at least get the mailbox put up and discovered that the ground is much rockier than we had hoped. We thought we would be able to dig the trench for the water line from the well to the house site by hand but now we see that we will have to rent a mini excavator to complete this task.

Since we were able to spend more time on the property we were able to get a better feel for the lay of the land and where we want to put certain structures. I have not begun to create a Permaculture design yet but I will list some of the elements that we want to include in the overall plan.

1. Veggie and herb gardens
2. Greenhouse
3. Barn
4. Outside shower
5. Education center
6. Outdoor kitchen
7. Meditation area
8. Chicken coop
9. Fruit trees
10. Berry bushes
11. Composting

This is only a short list that I am sure will grow and be refined. Hopefully it will give you an idea of what we want to accomplish. Now if I can just find some good windows, cheap.

Have bag, will shop

2010-03-21T08:56:00.000-07:00

So, a few days ago I did my bi-weekly shopping expedition. In everyday life this is not overly exciting but I was thinking about how much simpler my shopping life has been made by using re-usable shopping bags. Even though re-usable bags have become more available in stores, it still has not become a routine for many people. I actually see more of these bags being used to carry people's stuff in other situations and not their groceries. Although I am happy to see large companies offering shopping bags in their stores, I have not been overly impressed with the quality of these bags. So, I thought I would share what I use and how much space these bags save in the back of my car.

So here is the back of my vehicle after a usual grocery shopping day. I drive a Saturn Vue which is considered a mini SUV so the storage in the back probably is not much different that the average mid-size car. The brown bags are my reusable shopping bags. I purchased these from reusablebags.com a couple of years ago. I absolutely love these bags! They are the same size as a standard brown paper bag and fold up the same. They have black straps for carrying your bags and are very sturdy. I have probably stuffed these bags with 10 pounds of groceries and have never had a problem with breakage. I actually have six of these bags but only needed four on this particular day. I have found on average that 4-6 bags will adequately carry all of my groceries. Now compare this to how many plastic bags it would take. These bags stack neatly in the back of your car, they look nice, and you are helping the environment.

Now some of you may be wondering just how much am I buying in the way of groceries. Well, we are feeding two adults and two boys so you can imagine how much food we pack away. Because of this, we like to buy in bulk on certain items. So the brown bags are the grocery items we buy at the regular store. The rest are things we buy at the warehouse store.

On the right behind the Sunkist boxes are more sodas, (mostly for my husband), but on the left are two large thermal bags. I love these bags because they will hold some of the bulkier frozen things that we buy at Sam's and they come in real handy in the summer time. As you can see, these bags are big and work very well at keeping things cold. When you are finished, they fold down to a compact size and secure with velcro. I found these bags at Sam's Club for about $8 each. They have been a wonderful addition to my re-usable bag arsenal.

By using re-usable bags, I am able to keep the back of my vehicle fairly organized on grocery shopping day and I am helping to keep those obnoxious plastic bags out of the environment. Many people may say, why bother with re-usable bags when you can recycle the plastic ones? Well, to be honest, I suck at remembering to take back those plastic bags. The re-usable bags don't roll all around in the back of my car letting everything spill out and they have come in handy for other uses as well. Yes, it takes some time to get used to remembering your bags, but in my opinion it is well worth the effort. I hope that by seeing how we utilize our bags it will inspire you to do the same.

On the upside

2010-03-17T18:18:00.000-07:00

Ok, so now that you have had your world view rattled a little by the thoughts of Peak Oil, let's look at what's going on out there to help us come off of our addiction to oil. Believe it or not, not all is lost. If we truly believe that we can live in tune with nature, then it is time to walk the talk.

There are two movements that I am aware of that I will put out there as food for thought. The first is the Transition Town movement. This started as a grass roots movement in the UK where small towns began looking at what they could do to re-localize and prepare for a world with less abundant oil. It has spread beyond the borders of our cousins across the sea to become a practical and viable way of helping our communities learn how to be more self reliant and prepare for the inevitable decline. There have actually been several towns that have adopted suggestions from their local Transition Town committees into their long term city plans.

Another trend that is gaining in recognition is the use of permaculture. Permaculture is a system for designing sustainable living spaces. This system lends itself very well to the Transition Town movement because it can serve as a framework for designing our own personal living space to the entire community as a self sufficient and sustainable environment. Permaculture looks at using redundant systems, mimicking nature, and finding multiple uses for different elements. As we develop our homestead we will be putting Permaculture principles into use so hopefully we can show how this system works in action. If you have never heard of Permaculture I strongly urge you to read about it for yourself. It is a great system and fits in well with the Pagan way of thinking.

*Living roof on a bus shelter*

Of course there are many other elements that fit in with living lighter on the planet and dealing with the future reality of Peak Oil. There is alternative energy, alternative building techniques, organic gardening, living with less chemicals in our lives, living roofs and many others. I simply encourage everyone to explore what's out there. It's going to take a lot of creativity and ingenuity to deal with the challenges in our future but if we start taking steps now we can have a significant impact on how that future looks.

Peak Oil

2010-03-14T19:39:00.000-07:00

Pagans love nature and observe the turning of the Wheel of the Year with the respect due the Mother. Stating the obvious here right? Well, while we are observing and venerating nature we are burning gas in our cars to get to that Circle that is across town, we made a dish for the potluck with food that was trucked thousands of miles to get to us, and as we retire inside we are burning electricity that is likely coming from a coal fueled power plant. As much as we respect the natural world around us, we are just as dependent on oil and oil based products as everyone else. This doesn't mean that we don't try to live lighter on the planet, however, we will be in the same boat as everyone else as the effects of Peak Oil begin to be felt. If you haven't heard of Peak Oil, it really is something you should begin to educate yourself about. The story of Peak Oil goes something like this...

There once was a guy named Dr. Marion King Hubbert who was a Shell geologist. Dr. Hubbert predicted that American oil production would peak in 1970. Well, it just so happened it did. Now most people thought he was a little off his rocker at first, until folks were waiting in gas lines in the early 70's. So how did he figure out that our oil production would peak and never recover here in the U.S.? Basically, he noticed that oil fields would peak in production around 40 years after drilling began. This proved true for all oil fields. Now, fast forward to present day.

Oil seems to be in a never ending supply. Not only do our cars run on it but just about everything we use in our everyday lives comes from it. We depend on it to transport our food and clothing, we make toys, computers, appliances, lights, etc. from it. It has become such a part of our lives that we cannot imagine living without it. Remember that bit about oil fields peaking around the 40 year mark? Guess when the last major oil fields were discovered? A little over 40 years ago. So if the last major oil fields were found over 40 years ago, how much global oil is left?

The graph that I have included will give you an idea of where most experts think we are. Granted, there are always those out there that will argue that Peak Oil is way off base, but that's what a lot of people have been saying about Global Warming and we see how well that is working out. No matter how you look at it, oil is a finite resource. It won't last forever. Just like coal and natural gas have their limits also. Weather we experience the effects of decreased global production in 100 years or in the next 5 years, it really doesn't matter. We need to begin to prepare our communities for living without oil. And as for the decrease in gas prices from a year ago? Well, look how many people began to cut back on their driving. The demand went down but I can still see the price increases when I go to the grocery store. Gas prices fluctuate and sooner or later demand will go back up and so will the price.

So what does all of this mean for us? Well, to be honest no one is really sure. It is very possible our economy will collapse. It will only take a 5% decrease in global oil production for our economy to fall apart. There could be mass layoffs, people losing their homes, food scarcity, and price hikes. Hmmm....sound familiar? It is a bleak picture and not one that most of us care to envision. The future may not look that bright right now but it may not be as bleak as what we first think. First, consider what a life without oil availability may be like, then we will look at what is being done to help cushion the decent off of oil.

Life....simplified

2010-03-08T19:17:00.000-08:00

You would think that making the decision to live more simply would not be that complicated. Obviously you don't know me very well. When I make major life decisions it never seems to be simple. So when I say life simplified, what does that mean?

For some people living a simplified life may mean spending more time with the family and cutting out stress. For us it means changing how we live. We are planning a move to the country, raising our own food and in general are going to learn how to live with less.

There are various reasons for this choice. It started with our desire to have some land and establish a homestead. We wanted to live healthier and know where our food is coming from. Then it evolved into not only wanting to know what is going into our food but to live more lightly on the planet for environmental reasons. Now we have added a third reason, Peak Oil. I will go into Peak Oil more later, but basically we are facing an inevitable decline in the amount of global oil that is available. I don't know when we will begin to feel the effects of this decline, but adjustments will be needed to live in a world that no longer has an endless supply of oil, energy, and oil based products.

So, to all those who are interested in climate change, Peak Oil, sustainability, and changing the world, stay tuned! I hope to keep posting updates of our adventures into the world of sustainability and how it applies to Pagans and the spiritual path that we have chosen.