Merry Christmas! The whole company just folded and we are all out of a job in 2 weeks....Ugh.

I am so glad I garden and put up food and prepare to survive for this crap to happen.  I've been a geologist for the same small Natural Gas production/operating company for 15 years, having been laid off for 2 years in the middle of that.  We are closing our doors as of this morning, according to the Board of directors.  I'm the youngest in management at 60 years old. The rest can retire. I cannot.  I feel so badly for the field guys though. We just hired 2 younger guys and our two compression/pipeline guys have families like me.  My 27 year old special needs son lives with me. My biggest hurdle is debt so I am looking around and making a list of what to sell to pay off more debt.  I do have some equity in the house....

I kind of feel like I'm supposed to sell the house (on half an acre) and get a little more land with less house outside of this area.  My property taxes keep going up and are over $2k/year and the city is trying to annex our little 'addition' into the city's boundaries to get even more money from us. However, I bought this place to age in place. I have built and fixed fixed fixed.... We have chickens and gardens and a hidden, deeper well at about 250 feet.  I planted fruit trees a few years ago so they should bear fruit soon.  I started growing nut trees and berry bushes and finally have elderberries in the right place.  It is not a pretty place, but the view is amazing.  

What do you think?  

Running with my background, are you getting funding for providing Adult Foster Care for your son?  

John F Dean wrote:Running with my background, are you getting funding for providing Adult Foster Care for your son?  

My son has a job at our local grocery store and he makes more than the allowable 'max' for SSI or SSD, for which I am so proud of him.  He pays a little rent and for some groceries and loves to help me garden and preserve food.  He was on those programs for a few years as he worked his way up to a full time position, but then his rent tripled at Easter Seals housing due to his income, so he moved back in with me.  

Hello,

it looks like you want to stay there, but it is going to be difficult to pay. Have you considered alternative income sources? Maybe renting a part of your house?

So, let me go sideways with this.  Obviously, I have never seen your home or property. Worse yet, while I have been to Wyoming, I was never there is a working capacity.  But, in North Carolina for example, I have been at a number of homesteads that were providing adult foster care for 2 to 4 people .  You obviously have experience. So, the real question is if your state has such a program and the level of funding.

Sorry to hear that Re'.  If I may offer a couple of thoughts....

1) property taxes are going up everywhere, moving won't change this.

2) moving is expensive.

Personally, I'd hedge my bets and reduce clutter in your free time and make your property as "sellable" as possible (in other words, prepare for a move should you find a better option).

The other part is not as easy ( believe me, I know)  but I'd advise trying to develop various 'independent' income streams. Maybe you can try growing culinary mushrooms indoors during the winter and start a CSA if successfull (or sell to local restaurants/supermarkets)?  Also, you might be able to use your free time and organize the community to challenge the impending takeover by the City and keep your (and others) outlays to a minimum.

Wishing you the best of success in this time of transition.

Wow! Great replies everyone.  These are the times in my life when I really miss my dad. Of course there have been many of those times since he died at 56 when I was 28, but I love having a community of experience around me at this time.  Thank you so much!  

My house is not big enough for more people to live here but I may look into adult day care, if that is a possibility.  Personally, after raising 2 special needs kids while running 3 of my own businesses, I am exhausted, but  I may be able to get certified for that.  Infrastructure is all I lack. Thanks for the great idea!

I guess you're right that I cannot outrun property taxes and I am really hoping to stay small in my homesteading after having done the big and bigger, as well as the micro in the past.  I have a somewhat manageable mortgage and a screaming great 3.25% interest on it, so moving would probably never 'wash'.  The other debt was for repairs, replacement and remodeling materials.  Those projects are always ongoing. I've erased a whole lot more than I have now but I hate debt. I will sell everything to not have it again.  Well, not really, since that will freak out my son, but I will be selling a lot.

We have a local mushroom company that is going out of business but maybe I can pick up those pieces. I love that idea!  I have had multilevel marketing businesses, engineering, environmental, drilling, consulting, and mudlogging businesses, I ran 4H, Girl Scouts, raised market swine, trained colts, detailed cars, worked at a million restaurants, etc.... and I am a licensed Professional Geologist. LOL. I am even a certified proofreader, if you can imagine. It was easy, but now there are so many apps for that.

My air prune boxes are in process of getting built by my son and me and we will be ready to start our American Hazelnut tree "farming" soon.  There is not one nut tree to be found in any nursery or tree farm in our part of Wyoming.  This is my new passion.  I follow Sean at Edible Acres so I am hoping to get that rolling like he did.

You have all helped me so much!!! My head was spinning with panic but now I just need to get rid of stuff and debt, like you said, and stick to it.  Thank you again!

Late to the party. Phew, that's harsh news.

Upstream operations are vulnerable to this sort of thing. The upstream guys I know have some sense of this hypothetical possibility, but when it actually happens it hits hard.

Don't panic. You are a multi-talented fellow person. I'd bet real money that once the shock wears off you will land on your feet.

Have a merry Christmas notwithstanding!

Thanks Douglas.  Our midstream guys are taking it pretty hard as well.  I'm a single mom at 60 in the industry (well, maybe not anymore again). But this, too, shall pass.  Merry Christmas!!

Hello, Ré. No advice to give. Have been in your situation. Simply wanted to applaud you for all you've invested in your family and home. You sound talented, innovative, adaptable, and resilient. Best wishes for a delightfully, surprisingly quick and successful rebound.

Hi Holly,

Welcome to Permies.

Thanks for your welcome to permies, John. As you can see, this is my first post; however, I've been lurking here intermittently since 2018. Time to get both feet wet.

Its never nice to hear of the situation you are in.
I am not a religious person and if you have the capacity to turn the situation to a benefit it may help.
I am an experienced Civil Engineer with a wide range of experience built up over many years, outside Civil Engineering.
Picture Framing, building, farming, welding etc and have always created a new business when I wanted a change.
I have been fortunate thus far.
Believing in yourself and being flexible may be the secret, I dont know but I rarely worry about what to do.
When I broke my neck and had to learn to walk again, I started a lawn mowing business, then a short fence business until I got going again.
I have done teaching, designing, managing and manufacturing.
I was sacked as an Engineer ay the time because of my injury, but I kept going with many activities and ideas in business.
Today I still do a wide mix of work at 74 years young.
As a 'rocky ' can you teach or carry out consultive work.
Are you fit and healthy, could you sell rock collections or run Geology excursions?

Hi Re',
It is a tough call.  How are your computer skills?
Here in rural NSW there is an organisation called "Virtual Cooee"  which was set up by a group of women to help women to get online work.  The women advertise on this organisations webpage and others buy time or contract the person to be a virtual assistant.
Permies has a forum called digital market: https://permies.com/c/29
There may be an opportunity here on Permies to develop an income, and earn badge bits as well, just to put some icing on the cake.  SkIP is a great way to build your property up at little expense so you will have money for property taxes and pay the home.  The other think that comes to mind is selling vegetables at the markets.
Best wishes.

Wow! So many great ideas and words of support!  Thank you all!  I am healthy and have 'wintered well' this far, so I have that!  I have a few resume's in and am supposedly being paid hourly to help close up shop.  We shall see.  There is so much here that nobody wants to deal with, so I will take it all and sell it. Many filing cabinets, equipment, computers, office supplies, etc.  The boss wants it all to go to the dump.  Oh heck no!  LOL. Of course I can always flip burgers but my time is better spent on selling stuff and cleaning out storages in case I get a job in another state, etc.  I am thinking of hiring the neighbor to manage my place as a rental this time, if it comes to that. It was a disaster hiring a local real estate company/property manager last time I left for work.  Destruction occurred and they never once checked my property which was turned into a zoo and childcare and dump site.  I am only looking at states with jobs where there are like-minded people and no state income tax, as it will probably be my last move, but I love Wyoming. I could go anywhere but I am thinking of my son, as well.  I'm learning about the many bennies of NW Washington state.  They seem to have the similar groups that my son would love to join. Almost everything I have for gardening is mobile. Poly tunnels and a never-built 6x8 greenhouse kit..I can be up and running fast wherever I go.  I started an online publishing gig at Publishing.com with the Twins, but just starting it now. It will be a blast once I get rolling and can do it from anywhere. I am pretty computer savvy and teach myself all the things:  I'll be taking home the CADD and GIS computer systems to teach myself. I have taught myself PETRA and Rockworks and "Wellsight" so hoping to get a few minutes a day to dig into that.  There were no personal computers when I went to Purdue so I'm self-taught. A friend has a virtual assistant and really loves her help.  I still do their technical reviews on reports at this point, and I'm a PG so can sign off on some of the reclamation plans.... Every little bit counts!  I'd rather just homestead, of course, but once again, it's not in the cards for now. Thank you all again! So many great ideas! Have a wonderful week!