frustratedearthmother
Sustainability Master
I've been a lurker here long enough! I think it's time to start my own journal because I've gotten to the age where if I don't write it down - it didn't happen! 
I love reading other folks journals - I glean great ideas and inspiration from you folks!
1. What state/province/country are you in and what is your climate like? Gulf Coast of Texas
2. How many people are in your family? Marital status? Hubbie and I have three kids between us and five grandkids!
3. How would you define self sufficiency? Simply put - The ability to take care of yourself/family by means of your own preparation, skills and abilities.
4. What would you do with your spare time if you had any resources you needed? Would love to be a modern day Johnny Appleseed, would like to preserve natural areas (trees = oxygen!).
5. Have you ever built a house , or other types of building? Do you want to? I built a house for my water well and helped build a small barn.
6. Can you weld? Steel, aluminum, MiG, TiG, stick, Oxy-Acet? I welded once, just to say that I did.
7. Who or what inspired you to become more self sufficient? I think it started with my grandmother. She was an organic gardener all her life.
8 Cloth or paper? A little of both.
9. In what ways are you self-sufficient now and in what ways would you like to learn more? Goats for meat/milk, chickens for meat/eggs, big ol garden (some years better than others) canning/drying/freezing the bounty. Would love to learn more about alternative energy sources.
10. In what way(s) will you never choose to become self sufficient? Would prefer to never live without toilet paper!
11. Are you interested in stocking up for future needs? I am interested and I do. Recently a family member stayed with us for a short while and she mentioned yall have a LOT of food here!
12. Where do you end up when you sink into yourself, away from the outside world? On the back porch in the hot tub looking out to the pasture, or actually out in the pasture.
13. Can you drive a farm tractor or a semi? I can drive a tractor.
14. Do you make crafts or useful items? Would you want to teach others how to do these? Love to be crafty when I have time.
15. Can you have legally livestock where you are at? Do you have any? What kinds? I can and do have lots of livestock will probably get more. I have mini-horses, Nubian goats, Pygmy goats, chickens, geese and piggies.
16. Can you operate a lathe? Metal, wood? Not yet, but, I can run a band saw and a drill press.
17. Do you like to garden? If so, what do you enjoy growing? I have a garden. I grow as many veggies as I can. Tomatoes, squash, pumpkins, herbs, beans, peas, corn, greens, radishes, beets, okra.
18. Do you fish? Bait or explosives? Bait, so far
19. How much space/land do you have or rent? City? Country? Definitely rural - 2.5 acres of our own about 3.5 more we borrow from the neighbors.
20. Are you a Novice, Technician, General, Advanced? ARRL? HUH?
21. What is your self-sufficient specialty? Or what one would you like to learn? Not sure if these things are a specialty, but - Animal husbandry, gardening, preserving food
22. If you could create a degree and curriculum, what would you major in and what classes would you take? I would love to be a master gardener think there is already a curriculum for that!
23. Do you do wood work? framing, finish, cabinet? Can build simple things, and have refinished wood furniture pieces.
24. Are you interested in herbal medicine? Yep!
25. If you could live any place you chose, where would it be? Right where I am but without hurricanes, humidity and mosquitos.
26. Do you use a wood stove for heating or cooking? No
27. What would your ideal super hero/villain be? A super hero that could heal all the damage weve done to our planet.
28. Are your family or friends also interested in self sufficiency? Some of them
29. Do you like to cook? Are you interested in whole foods and natural foods? raw milk? farm fresh eggs? Loooove to cook. Use organic food from our gardens, raw milk from our goats, and eggs from the chickens.
30. What was your MOS? HUH?
31. Do you forage or hunt for part of your food needs? No further than my own back yard.
32. Do you have solar panels? Plans to use solar energy? No, but would love to.
35 What is the mass/weight ratio of a European swallow carrying a coconut from the tropics to England? Thats confidential information.
36. Have you ever lived completely off grid? Would you like to? No, yes.
37. In what do you trust? God first (!), myself and my family
38. Do you make things yourself to save money? Yes.
39. Has trying to be more self-sufficient changed your attitude or habits about money/spending? Ive always been frugal, but my city-boy husband is learning and succeeding!
I love reading other folks journals - I glean great ideas and inspiration from you folks! 1. What state/province/country are you in and what is your climate like? Gulf Coast of Texas
2. How many people are in your family? Marital status? Hubbie and I have three kids between us and five grandkids!
3. How would you define self sufficiency? Simply put - The ability to take care of yourself/family by means of your own preparation, skills and abilities.
4. What would you do with your spare time if you had any resources you needed? Would love to be a modern day Johnny Appleseed, would like to preserve natural areas (trees = oxygen!).
5. Have you ever built a house , or other types of building? Do you want to? I built a house for my water well and helped build a small barn.
6. Can you weld? Steel, aluminum, MiG, TiG, stick, Oxy-Acet? I welded once, just to say that I did.
7. Who or what inspired you to become more self sufficient? I think it started with my grandmother. She was an organic gardener all her life.
8 Cloth or paper? A little of both.
9. In what ways are you self-sufficient now and in what ways would you like to learn more? Goats for meat/milk, chickens for meat/eggs, big ol garden (some years better than others) canning/drying/freezing the bounty. Would love to learn more about alternative energy sources.
10. In what way(s) will you never choose to become self sufficient? Would prefer to never live without toilet paper!
11. Are you interested in stocking up for future needs? I am interested and I do. Recently a family member stayed with us for a short while and she mentioned yall have a LOT of food here!
12. Where do you end up when you sink into yourself, away from the outside world? On the back porch in the hot tub looking out to the pasture, or actually out in the pasture.
13. Can you drive a farm tractor or a semi? I can drive a tractor.
14. Do you make crafts or useful items? Would you want to teach others how to do these? Love to be crafty when I have time.
15. Can you have legally livestock where you are at? Do you have any? What kinds? I can and do have lots of livestock will probably get more. I have mini-horses, Nubian goats, Pygmy goats, chickens, geese and piggies.
16. Can you operate a lathe? Metal, wood? Not yet, but, I can run a band saw and a drill press.
17. Do you like to garden? If so, what do you enjoy growing? I have a garden. I grow as many veggies as I can. Tomatoes, squash, pumpkins, herbs, beans, peas, corn, greens, radishes, beets, okra.
18. Do you fish? Bait or explosives? Bait, so far
19. How much space/land do you have or rent? City? Country? Definitely rural - 2.5 acres of our own about 3.5 more we borrow from the neighbors.
20. Are you a Novice, Technician, General, Advanced? ARRL? HUH?
21. What is your self-sufficient specialty? Or what one would you like to learn? Not sure if these things are a specialty, but - Animal husbandry, gardening, preserving food
22. If you could create a degree and curriculum, what would you major in and what classes would you take? I would love to be a master gardener think there is already a curriculum for that!
23. Do you do wood work? framing, finish, cabinet? Can build simple things, and have refinished wood furniture pieces.
24. Are you interested in herbal medicine? Yep!
25. If you could live any place you chose, where would it be? Right where I am but without hurricanes, humidity and mosquitos.
26. Do you use a wood stove for heating or cooking? No
27. What would your ideal super hero/villain be? A super hero that could heal all the damage weve done to our planet.
28. Are your family or friends also interested in self sufficiency? Some of them
29. Do you like to cook? Are you interested in whole foods and natural foods? raw milk? farm fresh eggs? Loooove to cook. Use organic food from our gardens, raw milk from our goats, and eggs from the chickens.
30. What was your MOS? HUH?
31. Do you forage or hunt for part of your food needs? No further than my own back yard.
32. Do you have solar panels? Plans to use solar energy? No, but would love to.
35 What is the mass/weight ratio of a European swallow carrying a coconut from the tropics to England? Thats confidential information.
36. Have you ever lived completely off grid? Would you like to? No, yes.
37. In what do you trust? God first (!), myself and my family
38. Do you make things yourself to save money? Yes.
39. Has trying to be more self-sufficient changed your attitude or habits about money/spending? Ive always been frugal, but my city-boy husband is learning and succeeding!
