New year, same old
Saturday afternoon, I
was itching for a walk, so I put on my hiking shoes and followed their
lead. They told me that it was too muddy to go down into the
floodplain without my muck boots, and wouldn't it be fun to chase the
sun up over the hill?
Eventually, the sun
angled me around onto the other hill, which overlooks our
homestead. As trashy as it may appear to most folks, this view of
our trailer and addition are pure beauty in my eyes
--- freedom for a grand total of $3,000. People keep asking me
when we're going to build a house and I look at them like they're
nuts. Why would I want to spend masses of money and/or time
building a larger space to keep clean (and use up prime growing
area?) Now, porches, a summer kitchen, a better roof, and perhaps
strawbale walls for additional insulation might make the cut...someday
when my gardening and writing projects get boring. (Ha!)
I got tired looking at
our trailer after a while and zoomed in on the garden. Here's the
shady front garden, half of it mulched with straw and the other half
with nearly dead oat
cover crops.
Perhaps you don't get the same pure joy I do out of watching things rot?
The mule garden was
still in nearly full sun, making the quick
hoops shine.
Our whole homestead is encircled by the protective arms of trees ---
young but beautiful. I'm looking forward to watching them grow up.
No New Year's
resolutions here. Just more of the same --- beauty, nourishment,
and most of all fun!
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About us: Anna Hess and Mark Hamilton spent over a decade living self-sufficiently in the mountains of Virginia before moving north to start over from scratch in the foothills of Ohio. They've experimented with permaculture, no-till gardening, trailersteading, home-based microbusinesses and much more, writing about their adventures in both blogs and books.
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If it is possible, May GOD grant you guys more peace and contentment than you have found in your homestead this year, I have been watching you, somewhat envious on what you have found, while we are unable or unwilling to take the plunge, your success fuels my williness to make what I currently have the best it can be.
Thank you, and GOD Bless you both.
Danny --- At this time of year, we mostly use the sunny area for our dwarf citrus.
J --- My new philosophy --- I like dirt. Dirt outside is good. Dirt inside is bad. Clearly, I need more outside space than inside space.
I doubt you agree with Objectivists about much, but this post is a really good example of one thing that I think they're right about: Your aesthetics are significantly influenced by your ethics. Where other people see trash and rot, you see simplicity and fecundity. And not just because you're looking at things from a particular perspective, but because of your own core values. Very cool. :^)
Happy New Year!
Compared to HGTV where people insist on granite countertops and get rid of appliances because they don't like their color, your home is a breath of fresh air. Anyone who wants to create independence on a limited budget needs to spend significant thought on what their home should be. I know at least three families who have dreamed of leaving jobs in the city and creating a homestead in the country. In all three cases, many years later, they are still working jobs they don't like, no closer to that dream, but still talking about that perfect (and expensive) cabin they want to move to one day. For most, the cost of that cabin is the difference between living a dream and just dreaming.
Your home reminds me of a bird's nest, uniquely put together from available materials to fit its environment and protect its inhabitants. Happy nesting in 2012.