Comments on Crunchy Chicken: Living like Little House on the Prairie

Well, I don't think it would be too big a stretch ...

2008-10-16T07:05:00.000-07:00

Well, I don't think it would be too big a stretch for me to participate in Pioneer Week....I think I am already living it and didn't know it!

We raise beef cows so know our freezer is full of organic meat. If I didn't cook ALL meals we wouldn't be eating as it's a 100 mile trip to the nearest town that serves food.

I order food once a month from a organic food warehouse and they deliver it on a truck to a stop on the nearest instate highway which only makes my grocery trip 50 miles instead of 100. Any trip to town is well thought out in advance and usually is a whirlwind of stored up stops.

We conserve water like crazy around here. We have been in an 8 year drought so every available drop went to the cattle - thank goodness this year we had that thing called rain! We have to get our drinking and cooking water from a spring fed well 5 miles away - so you sure don't waste any of that.

We live where it can get very cold (sometimes -30 degrees) but that is what I thought sweaters and quilts at night were for. We have had people drive by at night and not think we are home as there might be only one light on in the entire house. I invested in solar lighting for the exterior of my house and that was a wise choice.

On a working ranch you gets lots and lots of walking and the early risers get to enjoy a multitude of sunrises.

I sew and quilt (a new passion)although with the price of fabric I don't know if this is cost saving but still a rewarding activity.

I sure didn't anticipate this being such a long comment ......hmmmm. All in all I have a great life!

I want a pioneer week! I'll definately participat...

2008-10-12T18:51:00.000-07:00

I want a pioneer week! I'll definately participate in the challenge, once it comes out.

Regarding whether keeping chickens is worthwhile, ...

2008-10-12T13:39:00.000-07:00

Regarding whether keeping chickens is worthwhile, I did the sums for my flock recently. Currently it costs me 30 cents a day to feed 4 laying hens (rare breeds) and one freeloading rooster on sprouted organic wheat, organic mash, and shell grit. Free range eggs cost between 50 - 70 cents each here, so I'd only have to get one egg a day to make them self funding. It's spring here now and they're producing around 20 eggs a week, so they're more than paying for themselves. You might want to also factor in things like the manure produced - normally I'd buy several sacks of this a year, and the fact that you can use them for weed control, by penning them on the appropriate area. They're good for making fast compost too - I toss most of the garden waste in their pen and it gets shredded, eaten or trampled and rots down a lot faster than it does in the compost heap. We eat a couple of egg based meals a week, so that is a couple of meals we didn't have to buy meat for, as well.

I am all about pioneer week. I have my bonnet read...

2008-10-11T12:18:00.000-07:00

I am all about pioneer week. I have my bonnet ready. My dream is to live on a farm like the Ingalls. Okay, not exactly like the Ingalls but you get the point.

Oh, Oh, I want to dress the part and wear the prar...

2008-10-11T11:40:00.000-07:00

Oh, Oh, I want to dress the part and wear the prarie dress too!

I do pretty well on all your points except 2 unles...

2008-10-11T09:13:00.000-07:00

I do pretty well on all your points except 2 unless squirrels count :) We live in a town where there are restrictions about keeping 'livestock animals'.
We are currently looking for a house out of town with some land attached (economy willing) but that will put a crimp in 7 for me. I have been walking to work for the past 14 years but if we move I'll have to drive or carpool. J

One of the reasons I called my blog "Little Blog I...

2008-10-11T08:17:00.000-07:00

One of the reasons I called my blog "Little Blog In The Big Woods" is that we live right in Ingalls territory, within easy reach of 4 of the actual sites. So close to one, I'd almost bet Pa walked over my farm in his hunting excursions.

And, of course- we live in a little house; actually smaller than Laura's first cabin, I think.

I've been living that life for 30 some years; and it does make me a little less frightened in the current collapse- we have land and skills that will support us, and chose "simple" long ago.

What's most scary to me is wondering what all the people in cities will do- when it gets really hard.

Not to pick nits or anything- but Pa, in the books...

2008-10-11T08:11:00.000-07:00

Not to pick nits or anything- but Pa, in the books- was often over his ears in debt to the bank. Remember? "On The Banks of Plum Creek"- they were living, free, in a sod dugout- and he mortgaged the beautiful wheat crop- to buy materials to build a (very cold) frame house- and by a reaping machine. Then they lost the wheat to the grasshoppers.

I am so all over this one!

2008-10-11T03:11:00.000-07:00

I am so all over this one!

Great blog! I like your ideas. We've been Mother E...

2008-10-10T22:07:00.000-07:00

Great blog! I like your ideas. We've been Mother Earth News subscribers for many years and gleaned many ideas from them. Hope to get some more from your blog.

You're a working mom so I have no idea how you...

2008-10-10T21:25:00.000-07:00

You're a working mom so I have no idea how you fit all the things you do into your day. Taking care of your family, making your own soap, going to work all day, drying herbs and fruits, preserving foods for winter, knitting, etc. Many of these ideas I know will work, but at some point I have to say to myself, "My time is worth something." Often times I will choose to simply go without, or make due with something else, or buy the thing I need and go without something else. I really value my time that I get with my family and (this is just me speaking) I don't want to spend time doing things that only I can do (because of safety issues - like cooking on a hot stove - or because it's a one-person job, like knitting). I would rather spend time doing things that involve my kids and my husband, so we are all having fun together. Yes, I know many activities can be done together. But our family dynamic is that my husband works many nights, we have 4 kids and the youngest is just 12 months old. So, while we ARE turning off our A/C, conserving water & lights, and trying to use less gas, some things are just not going to go because it would actually make our lives harder if we had to do without.

I am definitely interested in learning more about ...

2008-10-10T19:21:00.000-07:00

I am definitely interested in learning more about growing vegetables in an apartment setting. I am always jealous when I hear about people growing their own produce:) I do not eat nearly as many vegetables as I should mostly because I am dissatisfied with the poor quality of produce in my grocery store.

Crunchy's thoughts about hauling water for Number ...

2008-10-10T15:50:00.000-07:00

Crunchy's thoughts about hauling water for Number 4, "Conserve Water" is correct--I do use a LOT less than I ever have since I have to haul my own.

I live in a small cabin in rural Alaska and I have to haul my water from my boss's house that has a pumped well/running water. My cabin is only about 100 yards away, but dang, carrying 6 gallons in each hand, each trip, down a narrow path and up steps is hard. I will say, I do have better arm muscles now!

A sustainable lifestyle is very attractive to many Alaskans--the high cost of food and goods that are obviously shipped here is too great for much of the population. Being somewhat independent typically costs less up here.

Landed at your site via a search which led to your...

2008-10-10T15:27:00.000-07:00

Landed at your site via a search which led to your home sugaring post (about to try it; wish me luck). I loved reading these tips, and am always looking for ways to save a bit of $. Unfortunately, I don't have a whole lot of time to do some of the more time-intensive things such as raising my own critters - and my plant garden pretty much died on me despite everything I did to keep it alive. I did LOVE making meals from scratch until my stove stopped working, though!

I agree that a lot can be learned from the "olden ...

2008-10-10T14:36:00.000-07:00

I agree that a lot can be learned from the "olden days." I know of one person who uses the example of Amish communities to illustrate the viability of sustainable systems. I especially like the idea of rising and setting with the sun. It's so commonsense and natural.

Where is your chlothesline or clothesrack? I have...

2008-10-10T12:09:00.000-07:00

Where is your chlothesline or clothesrack? I haven't owned or used an electric drier in about 20 years (and I am only 39). Someday I will try to figure out how much money I have saved by not using the electricity or buying a mechanical dryer.

Gosh, people have tried to force old dryers on me over the years...they think I am strange, and have dubbed me Laura Ingalls Wilder.

As pa also said, "don't ever mortgage the family f...

2008-10-10T10:36:00.000-07:00

As pa also said, "don't ever mortgage the family farm." This is one of the worst practices I see now. Some people refinance and borrow against their home yearly.

I grew up poor raised by depression era grandparen...

2008-10-10T09:40:00.000-07:00

I grew up poor raised by depression era grandparents and hippie musician parents. This morning, I told my dad, who has lived on less than 10K a year the last few years, that I was eternally grateful for growing up poor, since I know how to simply make do. I know he has had guilt about not giving us more, but today, I was able to convince him that he has given me so much by teaching me how to live frugally.

This post made me smile. With everything going on...

2008-10-10T09:32:00.000-07:00

This post made me smile. With everything going on in the market and knee deep into Sharon's book, I am indeed feeling very Little House on the Prairie. Bring on Pioneer Week! I'm ready (mostly).

I've been calling myself a "neo-pioneer" ever sinc...

2008-10-10T08:27:00.000-07:00

I've been calling myself a "neo-pioneer" ever since I started growing my own food and raising chickens! My friends think I'm crazy, but I definitely feel Little House on the Prairie...

As for the hens, I find mine to be cost effective. We spent very little on their coop (and you can build one for nothing if you really do the pioneer thing and use scrap lumber), and even the organic feed I use only costs me $8/month. My 3 hens lay 20 eggs a week, which is a little over 7 dozen a month. Since farmer's market eggs cost $3.50/dozen here, I've already re-cooped (sorry about the pun) the cost of their house. I even have enough eggs to share with friends and neighbors... a very neo-pioneery thing to do!

We had a discussion about this very thing at dinne...

2008-10-10T08:21:00.000-07:00

We had a discussion about this very thing at dinner last night. The zucchini bread I froze came out soggy so I couldn't use it to go with the homemade tomato soup I made and local greens salad. I tried making my own biscuits, which came out like flavorless hockey pucks, but we ate them anyway. The pears I used for apple ad pear sauce weren't ripe enough and didn't cook down so they made sort of hard chunks in the apple-pear sauce. And the pumpkin I tried to bake and process yesterday was an absolute disaster. I imagine Ma had days like that, too but, they sure are frustrating! I told my family that if we were true pioneers they would get one thing on the table for dinner. Two if they were lucky!
I do want to keep a beehive. I made all my jam and jelly with honey this year and it was great.

By the way, I would absolutley love to participate...

2008-10-10T07:38:00.000-07:00

By the way, I would absolutley love to participate in a Pioneer Week. Ever since I was a little girl I've felt like I was born 100 years too late. But now I realize that it was maybe more like 200 years too late.

Even for those of us who do have a team of horses ...

2008-10-10T07:32:00.000-07:00

Even for those of us who do have a team of horses (like my family) using them for transportation on busy roads and going places like work is very unrealistic. Unless hitching posts start to reappear, and my trip to work can become an overnight trip.

But wow would that cut down on the number of trips people make and do a lot to contribute to self-sufficiency!

I have always wanted to live like that. Amish are ...

2008-10-10T07:24:00.000-07:00

I have always wanted to live like that. Amish are the other ones that I long to live like (without the clothes please). So simple...

I have a question for anyone with hens, hope you d...

2008-10-10T06:42:00.000-07:00

I have a question for anyone with hens, hope you don't mind. I want to get 3 hens for fresh eggs but we live in a wooded area and although I haven't seen any I know there are coyotes around. I'm nervous that a chicken coop and hens will attract them to my yard. Any feedback anyone? ma3sea@yahoo.com