Hello! My name is Mame and I'm new here. I found this website through TheEasyGarden, which I'm a very inactive member but occasional lurker on. I live in Boulder, Colorado. I've loved plants, animals, and gardening as far back as I can remember. Unfortunately, I'm one of the "born a farmer, but not born on a farm" types. I grew up in the Colorado mountains, where the summer is short, the yards are steep hills and huge herds of deer eat everything you plant. Since we moved to Boulder a couple of years ago, I've lived in a rental with a very strict landlord and HOA, so my gardening has been kept to a minimum. My garden at the moment is mostly indoor houseplants, plus a few pots of lettuce and radishes in the summer. The only animals I have are two wonderful pet house rabbits and two domestic mice. 
Fortunately, my family and I are buying a nice house with 5 acres that's just a few miles from the city. It's not certain that we're getting it yet, but we've been told that we have a very good chance of getting it. Even if we don't, we have two other similar homes we've looked at nearby that also have acreage. So, I'm trying not to get too exited, but I can't help it.
My current plan is to grow as much of my family's food as possible. I'm hoping to have a huge vegetable garden, free range chickens, possibly a horse and/or some goats at some point, and I may try growing some hay or wheat as well.
I'm not sure what else to say at the moment. This thread will hopefully be my journal for a long time to come. I guess I'll let this list of questions say the rest!
1. What state/province/country are you in and what is your climate like? Colorado. 4 seasons with hot, dry summers.
2. How many people are in your family? Marital status? - 4 people in my house - my mother, father, brother, and myself.
3. How woul d you define self sufficiency? - Being able to provide for many or all of your basic daily needs.
4. What would you do with your spare time if you had any resources you needed? - Not entirely sure.
5. Have you ever built a house , or other types of building? Do you want to? - No, I haven't. I'd like to, though. I may need to build a chicken coop and stables in the near future.
6. Can you weld? Steel, aluminum, MiG, TiG, stick, Oxy-Acet? - No.
7. Who or what inspired you to become more self sufficient? - My love of animals and gardening, plus concerns about the economy and our energy situation.
8 Cloth or paper? Depends on what I'm using it for.
9. In what ways are you self sufficient now and in what ways would you like to learn more? Unfortunately I'm not really self sufficient in any ways right now. I'd like to learn more about everything, really...but especially solar energy and growing food.
10. In what way(s) will you never choose to become self sufficient? A lot of ways. I will never be self sufficient in some ways...for example, I can't really produce my own salt, paper, or metal. And I doubt I could live without any help from other people.
11. Are you interested in stocking up for future needs? - Yes, very interested.
12. Where do you end up when you sink into yourself, away from the outside world? - I've created whole worlds in my head. My favorite one is a little cabin in the woods by a river that I like visiting in my mind.
13. Can you drive a farm tractor or a semi? - Nope.
14. Do you make crafts or useful items? Would you want to teach others how to do these? - I do like sewing and doing various craft projects. Not sure if I'm good enough at anything to teach other people.
15. Can you have legally livestock where you are at? Do you have any? What kinds? Currently I can't have any, but they're allowed at our new home. I'm hoping to start wih chickens.
16. Can you operate a lathe? Metal, wood? - No.
17. Do you like to garden? If so, what do you enjoy growing? I love gardening. I grow a variety of things - lettuce, radishes, tomatoes, raspberries, carrots, strawberries, flowers, houseplants, etc.
18. Do you fish? Bait or explosives? - I'm vegetarian, so I have no reason to fish.
19. How much space/land do you have or rent? City? Country? - I'm hoping to soon live on 5 acres that we'll own.
20. Are you a Novice, Technician, General, Advanced? ARRL? - At what now?
21. What is your self sufficient specialty? Or what one would you like to learn? - As I said before, I'd like to learn more about everything.
22. If you could create a degree and curriculum, what would you major in and what classes would you take? - I'm actually going to start college soon. I'm planning to major in business.
23. Do you do wood work? framing, finish, cabinet? - Do popsicle stick houses for my mice count?
24. Are you interested in herbal medicine? - Yes.
25. If you could live any place you chose, where would it be? - Right here in Colorado.
26. Do you use a wood stove for heating or cooking? - No. We have an electric stove.
27. What would your ideal super hero/villain be? - I'm not really interested in superheroes/villains.
28. Are your family or friends also interested in self sufficiency? - My father is.
29. Do you like to cook? Are you interested in whole foods and natural foods? raw milk? farm fresh eggs? - Yes, yes, yes, and yes.
30. What was your MOS? - My what now?
31. Do you forage or hunt for part of your food needs? - I like picking edible flowers, berries and plants whenever I see them.
32. What skills do you have that help you be more self sufficient? - Some knowledge of animal care and gardening.
33. In which fictional universe would you most like to live? - One which I create.
34. Do you have solar panels? Plans to use solar energy? - I don't have any, but I'm interested in them.
35 What is the mass/weight ratio of a European swallow carrying a coconut from the tropics to England? - I feel like you're making some sort of reference that I'm not getting here.
36. Have you ever lived completely off grid? Would you like to? - I haven't, but I'd like to.
37. In what do you trust? - Myself, sometimes.
38. Do you make things yourself to save money? - Sometimes.
39. Has trying to be more self-sufficient changed your attitude or habits about money/spending? - Yes, in some ways.
Fortunately, my family and I are buying a nice house with 5 acres that's just a few miles from the city. It's not certain that we're getting it yet, but we've been told that we have a very good chance of getting it. Even if we don't, we have two other similar homes we've looked at nearby that also have acreage. So, I'm trying not to get too exited, but I can't help it.
My current plan is to grow as much of my family's food as possible. I'm hoping to have a huge vegetable garden, free range chickens, possibly a horse and/or some goats at some point, and I may try growing some hay or wheat as well.
I'm not sure what else to say at the moment. This thread will hopefully be my journal for a long time to come. I guess I'll let this list of questions say the rest!
1. What state/province/country are you in and what is your climate like? Colorado. 4 seasons with hot, dry summers.
2. How many people are in your family? Marital status? - 4 people in my house - my mother, father, brother, and myself.
3. How woul d you define self sufficiency? - Being able to provide for many or all of your basic daily needs.
4. What would you do with your spare time if you had any resources you needed? - Not entirely sure.
5. Have you ever built a house , or other types of building? Do you want to? - No, I haven't. I'd like to, though. I may need to build a chicken coop and stables in the near future.
6. Can you weld? Steel, aluminum, MiG, TiG, stick, Oxy-Acet? - No.
7. Who or what inspired you to become more self sufficient? - My love of animals and gardening, plus concerns about the economy and our energy situation.
8 Cloth or paper? Depends on what I'm using it for.
9. In what ways are you self sufficient now and in what ways would you like to learn more? Unfortunately I'm not really self sufficient in any ways right now. I'd like to learn more about everything, really...but especially solar energy and growing food.
10. In what way(s) will you never choose to become self sufficient? A lot of ways. I will never be self sufficient in some ways...for example, I can't really produce my own salt, paper, or metal. And I doubt I could live without any help from other people.
11. Are you interested in stocking up for future needs? - Yes, very interested.
12. Where do you end up when you sink into yourself, away from the outside world? - I've created whole worlds in my head. My favorite one is a little cabin in the woods by a river that I like visiting in my mind.
13. Can you drive a farm tractor or a semi? - Nope.
14. Do you make crafts or useful items? Would you want to teach others how to do these? - I do like sewing and doing various craft projects. Not sure if I'm good enough at anything to teach other people.
15. Can you have legally livestock where you are at? Do you have any? What kinds? Currently I can't have any, but they're allowed at our new home. I'm hoping to start wih chickens.
16. Can you operate a lathe? Metal, wood? - No.
17. Do you like to garden? If so, what do you enjoy growing? I love gardening. I grow a variety of things - lettuce, radishes, tomatoes, raspberries, carrots, strawberries, flowers, houseplants, etc.
18. Do you fish? Bait or explosives? - I'm vegetarian, so I have no reason to fish.
19. How much space/land do you have or rent? City? Country? - I'm hoping to soon live on 5 acres that we'll own.
20. Are you a Novice, Technician, General, Advanced? ARRL? - At what now?
21. What is your self sufficient specialty? Or what one would you like to learn? - As I said before, I'd like to learn more about everything.
22. If you could create a degree and curriculum, what would you major in and what classes would you take? - I'm actually going to start college soon. I'm planning to major in business.
23. Do you do wood work? framing, finish, cabinet? - Do popsicle stick houses for my mice count?
24. Are you interested in herbal medicine? - Yes.
25. If you could live any place you chose, where would it be? - Right here in Colorado.
26. Do you use a wood stove for heating or cooking? - No. We have an electric stove.
27. What would your ideal super hero/villain be? - I'm not really interested in superheroes/villains.
28. Are your family or friends also interested in self sufficiency? - My father is.
29. Do you like to cook? Are you interested in whole foods and natural foods? raw milk? farm fresh eggs? - Yes, yes, yes, and yes.
30. What was your MOS? - My what now?
31. Do you forage or hunt for part of your food needs? - I like picking edible flowers, berries and plants whenever I see them.
32. What skills do you have that help you be more self sufficient? - Some knowledge of animal care and gardening.
33. In which fictional universe would you most like to live? - One which I create.
34. Do you have solar panels? Plans to use solar energy? - I don't have any, but I'm interested in them.
35 What is the mass/weight ratio of a European swallow carrying a coconut from the tropics to England? - I feel like you're making some sort of reference that I'm not getting here.
36. Have you ever lived completely off grid? Would you like to? - I haven't, but I'd like to.
37. In what do you trust? - Myself, sometimes.
38. Do you make things yourself to save money? - Sometimes.
39. Has trying to be more self-sufficient changed your attitude or habits about money/spending? - Yes, in some ways.
from South Jersey. Now I know who the person I keep bumping into in my (fictional) cabin in the woods next to a stream is. 
