John F Dean

One topic that had not been directly hit on here is that both homesteading and college have bought me options.  In college, I avoided debt. I did take out a $3000.00 loan that had a waiver clause that I immediately used upon graduation from grad school. With the land and the homesteading philosophy and knowledge  I have repeatedly drifted in and out of the mainstream. There were periods where I held  down 3 jobs…and periods where  I had none. My knowledge of homesteading bought me freedom to do as I wanted.

I remember numerous conversations with relatives where we were speaking different languages.  They would ask something like “What time do you have to be at work in the morning? I would reply, “ I don’t have to be at work in the morning or ever.” They could not grasp that by the time I turned 30 I was able to live on my terms.

To be clear, that while the homestead bought me freedom, I grabbed a handful of degrees that didn’t hurt either.  

Hi Lina,

Because I have more than a few grey hairs, I do have a gentleman who works for me on occasion.  Because he does have the skills needed to homestead and is a hard worker, I pay him $25 an hour. To me, that is a living wage, and his income is well above the average in my county.  Between me and others, he seems to have all the work he wants to have.

Good points Jay.  My wife and I are currently sorting through a house (especially basement!) full of gifts and other junk.  Much of this junk was gifts…I can tell because many of the boxes are unopened.  The contents are items that would support us if we were maintaining the givers’ lifestyle …such as the George Foreman Grill.   I am sure someone was bothered when they saw me cooking on a cast iron stove top grill.

I am pretty sure Thomas posted a picture of one he built. Though I am not sure how big the window is.   And, I do agree with you. That is why I keep my wood burning fireplace in the LR.

Hi Joylynn,

A bowl would work.  I place it in a container with an opening .  That way they are less easily accidentally disturbed.

Hi Anne,

To the viewer.  The video is the only product the presently in  motion. I normally don’t watch such things .  I find myself screaming at the screen, “Get to the point!”

He seemed to be selling the meat to the end user. The problem is that it wasn’t clear if any end users were signed on….or even knew if he existed. So I am pretty sure processing costs for him are in there somewhere. He was also vague on depreciation.  I did not hear marketing costs.  He seemed to be relying on his confident knowledge that plenty of people would want and pay a premium price for his product.

I raise Kune Kunes …for myself.  Yes, from time to time I sell one.   I am aware even a good sale price does not offset my costs.

My wife was watching a homesteading video made by an excited homesteader. It seemed to be about all the money he made raising livestock.  My wife commented “ watch this and tell me if it makes sense.”   She restarted the video. The homesteader was talking about the thousands made from a small number of livestock.  I could not follow the numbers he presented. I did notice that he was talking about selling custom ordered meats without considering the butchering costs. Then my wife caught it … the man had not yet sold a single animal processed or not.  He was selling himself as a livestock and marketing expert without having sold a single animal.

Yesterday I tried to hunt down a definition. The FDA has no definition….it does have some vague concepts. Cleveland Clinic and Mayo Clinic refer to ingredients not normally found in a home.  Then they go on against food dyes and breakfast cereals.  I suspect breakfast cereals are normally found in a home. And in the 1950s my mother used food dyes when making frosting for Christmas cookies.  

So, I find myself sort of like the FDA, I have a vague idea as to what they are, but I have no definition I am comfortable with to guide me.

There is no strategy.  We drifted into a holiday routine where we don’t buy gifts.  While we have a couple of special holiday meals, we generally stay within our normal budget.

It has been years since I have bought a side of beef.  I find that I don’t really get the cuts I use. …and the two of us don’t use it fast enough. In brief we use a brisket, ribeye, sirloin, and the rest goes to hamburger. I cut up the brisket myself.