Prepare the Way....

I was inspired to write this tonight by a friend who calls me Lady A. How cute! I will call her Lady A too, because our names start with the same letter.

I don't know if I have mentioned on this blog, so many reading may not know that my ultimate goal in life is to live off grid If you are unfamiliar with this term it basically means living without any government provided utilities. I have two pieces of land I have toyed with beginning this lifestyle on, but due to a couple of recent events, I was forced to delay the move by a couple of years (until my son graduates college). If I happen to locate a more local piece of land to live off grid on, than great, but if not, a move is in the future.

In preparation for this move, I have taken the past several years to develop new skills. This past year has been the most educational for me. A couple of things I have learned over the years are these:

living with a wood stove as your sole source of heat
cooking on a wood stove
sewing clothing, pillow cases
crocheting afghans, scarves, hats
learning to make mittens out of old wool sweaters
raising chickens
starting a garden
learning to compost
using oil lamps for light
using rechargeable batteries for flashlights (charging in the car as I drive)
using a hand crank radio for music/news
charging laptop in car and finding sources of free WiFi (McDonald's, Libraries, Motels)
baking all my own bread for a year
decreasing my dependence on electricity
decreasing my dependnce on the refrigerator

As a primer, I'd like to encourage anyone interested in living off grid to PRACTICE.
Take a weekend, and shutoff the power at your meter, and see how you do living without electricity for a week. You HAVE to stay home that weekend, no cheating by eating out, or staying somewhere else. You have to learn at home with what you have, using no electricity. I will allow you running water but no hot water, unless you heat yourself outside using a propane grill or regular grill, or coleman stove. NOTE: NEVER USE A PROPANE DEVICE INSIDE THE HOUSE KEEP THESE OUTSIDE TO AVOID KILLING YOURSELF AND FAMILY

We had personal first hand knowledge of this working this past winter when we had an ice storm. Many people in town were suffering here in South Texas without power and/or alternate heat sources. Oh, a couple have fire places around here, but as far as we know (according to the local police) we were the only ones with a wood stove, and enough wood to heat the house, a way to make food, and enough food.) So, it can be done, prepare now, just in case you need to know how to live this upcoming winter when a power outage strikes.

Events like these help you to find out what other items you may need during an emergency or if you actually lived full time off grid. It's pretty satisfying, let me tell you, to be able to be so self sufficient that even the local police are impressed.

For myself, I am not preparing to live totally off the land. Just mostly....I'd like to be able to purchase staples, supplement with food that I raise (goat milk, eggs, chickens for food, deer meat, pigs), and garden produce, when possible. So, I concentrated my learning skills in learning how to shoot a gun this year, getting chickens, hatching eggs (ok the chickens did this part, but I bought the eggs!) and growing my first major garden.

I branched out into a homestead business. Meaning I sell items that I make and prepare on my homestead. You can go to my website at www.geocities.com/queensedgefarm to see what I am talking about.

I am studying and using herbal medicine to treat my illnesses, and sometimes the kids.

I am studying to receive my ham radio license.

I am learning to knit.

My son is studying horticulture in college to help with the planting side of things.

I already know how to sew by hand, bake, and cook on a wood stove. I have friends who are in various levels of off grid living, so I am learning a lot from their experiences.

I have learned to not be "as picky" with my food choices from two friends. Candi tells me constantly how picky my family is, backed up with more evidence from Tammy. I have eaten beans and survived to tell the tale. LOL!

So, if you are interested in moving off grid, stop thinking about it. Make an active plan, list the things you will need to survive, research, start learning and do it. Don't let life discourage you, steal your dream and your joy. Start learning, and moving forward. Just because you aren't on your land by now doesn't mean it won't happen in the future. Learn, always learn! Everything is a baby step on the path to your own Oasis.