Fun Fact - permies is 19 years old today - what's your story?

When I first visited this site, it was mostly about building and growing stuff.  There were some other topics that came up from time to time, but mostly building and growing.

But I liked it here even if these people didn't talk about yarn enough.  And being the evil yarn-loving creature that I am, I kind of made it my mission to make permies even more my kind of place.  I started making the content I like.  Yarn, cooking, yarn, repair, yarn... and because the community is so cool here, others started joining in.  

I feel an extreme pride that I was a big part in creating and improving the following categories.
fiber arts
kitchen
and my personal favourite (even if there isn't much yarn in it) ungarbage

Of course, I'm not the only person responsible.  It couldn't happen without an amazing community and all the people who helped make permies what it is today.  


It's also very interesting to see how much influence users have on the direction this site goes.  When someone is passionate about a thing they make new threads, answer questions, add words of encouragement, and the like.  Eventually, there's so much stuff on that topic, that we need a whole new forum for it.  I think that's kinda cool.  

Happy birthday to permies, happy birthday to permies, happy birthday dear permies, now give me tacos!

I found this forum less than three years ago--and I just can't believe how long before that the wonderful folks here have been building a better word (and Web)! Permies has changed my life--because of it, a place exists where I can be where people make regenerative choices, go out of their way to be nice (a.k.a. stellar human beings!), and virtually help people around the world in so many brilliant ways. I think my attempts at building more sustainability, resilience and designing with Permaculture principles would have fizzled out after 2021ish if I hadn't found this place. It's more than a website--it truly is a community. Thank you everyone, past and present, that has brought this into being.  

I've been a part of permies for over 10 years now. In that time I have learned SO MUCH, from old threads and new ones. My son was a baby when I first posted, and I became a moderator when my daughter was a baby, and now they're 10 and 7!

I am so grateful that permies is a perennial forum. Just like I hate to get rid of books because I know where certain knowledge is and I want to find it quickly, I am so grateful I can always find old threads full of things I learned. When I want to know about copicing, I know what thread to read. When I want to find info on staple crops, I can find a giant list quickly. When I want to tell people about naturally dying Easter eggs or dead hedge or edible flowers or how to weave a basket, I know what thread to show them.

It's also a place full of memories. I can watch my children grow in their permaculture playground and diner. I can look back at the most chaotic year of my life. I can remember the chaos of trying to figure out how to time growing a family and starting a homestead (which has apparently been viewed 131,173 times! I wonder if that's my most viewed thread?!). Permies is packed full of memories for me.

And it's full of new things I never would have learned otherwise. It's here on permies that I learned about wool and natural fibres though Raven's posts. I discovered that linen wasn't just a fancy word for tableclothes and such, because of reading Raven's book. I learned to spin on a spindle because of her!

It was here on permies that I had my first sale of my fairies (huge thanks to Judith Browning for all of her support in being my first customer and gifting me so many supplies). I have met so many amazing people here on permies. I have made so many friends. I have learned new words like "bricolagier" from Pearl, and been made to laugh by her a million times. I have been supported and encouraged by Jay so much in my time as a parent of young kids. There were so many times she would encourage me to take time with them, and so many times she caught errors in my dailyishes before they went out.

The things I have from my friends on permies make my life so much better. Walking onions (thanks Pearl!), Chinese artichokes (thanks Greg!), flax seeds [thanks Raven!], even the tree I planted on my son's first birthday. My garden is growing with gifts from others, just as my mind is growing from all I've learned.

And these are just some of the people who've made a huge difference in my life!

And don't even get me started on how much I learned through PEP! I carved my first spoon, made a mallet, made shingles, built a grape arbor, mended socks the right way, wove a basket, spun my own twine, made milk paint, woodburned signs, and so much more. These are all things I probably never would have thought of doing, or thought I could do, if not for permies. And now I've taught others how to do these things. It's amazing!

Even as my life has gotten busy in different ways, and I don't have as much time for permies, I know this community of people is here supporting me, helping me, helping others, and spreading permaculture and making the world a better place.

I am so thankful for permies in so many ways!

Happy Birthday, permies!

I have loved the forum since that day years ago when I was IDing some flowers.

I had never heard the word permaculture and had to look up the meaning though this is what I have been about my whole life.

And thanks to Paul Wheaton who made all this possible.

Three or four years ago, I came across an ad in a magazine or almanac for some goofball, claiming to have a wood stove design that would burn less wood and produce almost no smoke!  And I said sureeee, pull my other finger and I'll play a tune for ya.  I did write the name in my someday notebook.

After several months of reading the forums, I signed in so I could send some hugs to a few folks. ( I really like that you can roam the site without joining)

Thanks for sharing your vision Paul.  Happy birthday to all goofballs and Permies.

Peace

I discovered Permies last year in August while doing some research on how to improve my land.

I didn't really have a great grasp on what I was doing, or the process in how I was going to do it. All I knew is that I wanted to work WITH nature and not against it. It would be a constant losing battle on my end! I really got swept up in the forums quickly with all the knowledge that is contained inside of it but the best thing that I discovered hands down has to be the SKIP program. It is like scouts for adults! It gives you the knowledge to be able to complete a task. You record either by photos or video you doing that task and it is then reviewed by people with the knowledge to say if you did a sufficient enough job or not.

I think its great!

I first discovered Permies from searches for my homestead research projects. It didn't take long before I discovered that the best answers to my questions almost always came from Permies. One of the first things that impressed me about the forum was the quality of the discussions. People shared their experiences rather than their speculations. And even the speculations were based on experience.

Another thing that impressed me was the overall friendliness of the forums. People were kind and respectful, and willing to help. That made the conversations both constructive and had a very welcoming feel to them.

Eventually I signed up and began to participate. What I discovered was my community. A community of like-minded folks from different backgrounds and philosophies, but all interested in promoting permaculture. I began to ask my own questions, share my own experiences, and eventually began to participate in SKIP. I wasn't so much interested in inheriting property, as i was in learning new skills. And I've learned a lot!

Happy Birthday to Permies.com, and congratulations to not only the leadership, but to the entire Permies community for creating and maintaining the best forum on the internet.

I joined Permies in late 2020. The world was a bit strange but coming here was a safe refuge. Then Gir asked me to do a scavenger hunt and suddenly (as it seemed) I became staff and now master steward, yet I feel I still have so much still to learn about Permies.

Although the other side of the Atlantic than Paul, and so unlikely to meet in person, I respect what he has achieved. I think that spreading the word about little ways that anyone can make the world better, rather than just moaning about how bad things are getting, is great. My climate is so different to much of the US, so I especially appreciate that 'the truth' and 'the facts' don't really exist here, but depend very much on context.

Thank you Paul for making Permies what it is, and thanks to all the members that have contributed to the knowledge base over the years. Thanks as well to all the volunteer staff for gently steering conversations when needed to protect us from trolls and spammers

Happy Birthday Permies!

Look what I found............

Birthday Pie!


source

Time to begin planning the big 20 year anniversary bash!

j

r ranson wrote:The first post on permies is on the First of April, 2005
https://permies.com/t/3/set#3

Looking at our site history, this thread has data about our growth over the years.

10 years ago

permies: 1,000,053 visits 7,453,363 pageviews

Paul Wheaton wrote:So this is one million people that were either already permaculture enthusiasts, or through permies they have learned about permaculture for the first time.

I'm gonna pretend that this is changing the world for the better.  

10 Years later (aka now) this march, 2,005,241 visitors.


Happy Birthday, permies.

I can't wait to see what we do next.

I agree with Jim. 20 years coming up deserves something special. Happy 19th birthday permies!

I have learned so much from practical advice often including pictures, illustrations and patterns. My farming background was good preparation for doing my first permaculture course with Bill Mollison here in Australia, it so opened my mind to how demonstrating this way of life by reaching out to others and actually showing what can be achieved can literally start to change others' lives  for the better too, especially with recessions about to hit many.

I believe permies.com is providing a global service in bringing all the most knowledgeable, respected permaculturists from all over the world through this site at one time or another and sharing their talents to all of us members. Books and videos can only do so much. I have found by reaching out through the forums, step by step info in photos and instruction is freely given so that permies.com is way ahead of other groups because of the Forums, videos, podcasts, and ebooks, they're the biggest asset to everyone for what to do and how to go about it.

The people on here are amazingly kind in sharing what they know, just look at what comes out of the Wheaton laboratories thanks to the woofers and those doing PDC's and PEPs, surely 20 years deserves some serious consideration.

Alas, here I am, late for the party again! Happy Birthday Permies! There are so many things I'm doing better because of Permies and so many things I'd like to do better yet. But mostly, I hang around because of the wonderful people.

One thing permies has *not* helped with is my ToDo list. Too many good ideas, too many things I'd like to try, too many things I *need* to try (here's looking at a pair of pants that just got me a Badge Bit for adding a gusset to the back so they would fit - I've never done that before) and alas, too many things I fear will only ever be a hope or a dream.  That's OK - dreams are what make the future brighter.

I think what I hope for the most, is that permies will keep growing, and members will keep spreading the word, and that all of us working together, will help Mother Nature heal the land one piece at a time. Like building a crazy quilt from all the left-over scraps and ending up with something unique and beautiful.

Keep up the good work, everybody! (Including you Gir the Bot, the most taco-loving Bot I've ever not met!)

Wow - I love this site! I have received SO MUCH from this site, in general - moral support, education, new(to me) ideas, laughter, tears, and even vindication - all just from reading and sharing. But, I've also been blessed with amazing friends, all around the world, many of whom have gifted me with an abundance of their generosity to enhance my life in tangible, 'spoiling Carla rotten' ways! I won't name names (because I am not sure who is ok with their names being known for their generous gift giving), but some of these gifts include hand made potholders and wildcrafted, hand-winnowed wild rice(so INCREDIBLY YUMMY!); not one but two packages bursting with amazing chocolate from NZ; a BEAUTIFUL painting of one of my first sweet hens, on our farm; sunchokes, an arm-load of seeds, house plants (including a lovely Thanksgiving cactus & several other beautiful succulents & an African violet!); a serger sewing machine; more seeds; and most recently, a VERY COOL (HOT?) Tshirt...

There is one person in specific, though. This woman is the first permie I met in person - we went to a flea market and laughed and talked, the whole day. She has worked on my farm and in my kitchen, helped me host a pizza party with another permie(the one who brought his family & the wild rice,  all the way from WI), gifted John and me with flatware that I use every day, plants, seeds, wreaths, foods, her time, and a deep friendship that I'll always cherish. She brought me into her home and took care of me, when I was dangerously overheated, and wouldn't let me get back on my motorcycle until I was back to my normal. We've broken bread together, laughed, cried, ranted, and even just been quiet, together. She has become my best friend - and I found her here.

Over the last 10.5 years, permies has changed my life - and helped me change my life - DRASTICALLY, and for the better.  I can't say that about any other site.

Happy Birthday, Permies! And thank you, from the bottom of my heart!

I can't quite remember when or how I discovered Permies.  I know that I lurked for a very long time before plunging and making my first post.  What held me back was the fear I had to encounter judgement, nasty, demeaning comments, and other crappy "I know it all" stuff that goes on on some other websites.  It took me that long to realise that this was a site like no other.  As I kept lurking and reading, I became aware that this was a safe place to be.  A place of sharing and learning, a place that I wanted to come back to.

Sometimes, I get too busy to be on it on a regular basis, but when I get back to it, it's just like an old friend and we can play catch up!

Many, many happy returns of the day dear Permies!  But most of all, thank you so much Mr Wheaton!!!

Fifteen months after Permies started, I had to leave a beautiful island that had been discovered by the rich.  I was looking for a roof with better 'net access, and found it just a block from the middle of a small town with hardware stores, etc.  This was just as Facebonk ruined most of the listservs, so my "electronic cottage" wound up in the boondocks of popular culture as well as location.  I've been looking at off-grid options ever since, but the locals who try it are as badly off as tenants back home, living at the mercy of their neighbours because of zoning laws, etc.  I always want to build something that pushes the envelope, and does not fit existing regulations.   I had almost bought a farm big enough for many people, but even the one old friend who came to look at the area left, due to the redneck majority.  I had good hopes of finding an heir through Permies, but even that has fizzled .  Old farmhouses are still falling into ruin around here due to amalgamation, but the area is definitely one of the better choices in a changing climate.