It's been nine years since I last posted to this Blog. When I stopped writing, it was because I didn't feel that people were listening. There was a lot of "talk" but not enough "walk". Our whole world has changed in those nine years and I feel like I am going to try speaking out again. I feel like what I have to say is still important and, frankly, at this point I don't even care if anyone listens or not. I'm past that. No validation required. Maybe I'm just writing for my self now....keeping a chronicle of my life. Speaking my Truth and preserving it for my children. But I'll share these essays....put them out there.....in case anyone else is interested.
I have moved back to my roots....to Vermont where this Journey began. I bought a 200 year old farmhouse in Stockbridge where homesteading and voluntary simplicity come naturally. Northern California became untenable for homesteading because it....literally....stopped raining. And, started burning. It's unsettling (and perhaps even unethical) to try to grow a garden when you are dependent upon water from a drilled well. Or to raise livestock whose diet is reduced to brown forage. So, as a Climate Refugee, I came Home.
It was the right move. It rains two or three times a week....every week....here in Vermont. I planted and harvested a really epic garden last Summer and never had to water it artificially. The Mother took care of that for me. My produce was luscious and I canned, froze and dehydrated enough to fill my pantry.
I aligned with a local farmer for milk, dairy and eggs. This is her livelihood and she is a very skilled Milk Maid and animal husband. I can devote my time to my large garden, huge domesticated berry patch and culinary and medicinal herbs.
I keep four 150 gallon rain barrels set up in which I harvest water. I have no drilled well so I am careful with water. My household water comes from an hand dug spring up on the mountain behind the old farmhouse by gravity. I use it sparingly and gratefully as it is only five feet deep. Thus, I do my laundry by hand.....outside in the summer and in the greenhoused porch in the winter.....using rain water. I use a deep old utility sink and multiple scrub boards. My detergent is old fashioned Fels-Naptha which is packaged in recyclable paper. No plastic involved. (I plan to do a whole individual blogpost on this topic in a bit. Stand by!). And, I notice that my clothes are actually cleaner than my peers who use washing machines!
I heat and cook with wood (again, I am planning to do a whole individual blogpost on this topic in a bit, so, stand by!! ). My wood cook stove not only cooks my food, but heats my kitchen and provides my hot water.
The population of Stockbridge is small (population 711) and, thus, deeply networked. People know and care about each other. I live in the old historic village of Gaysville (population 72), which is a part of Stockbridge. I can walk or bicycle to the Post Office, Library and Community Church. Stockbridge Commons is within cycling distance, as well. There are no retail stores or commercial activities of any magnitude. Cottage industry abounds as people work their crafts and small business ventures. The closest supermarket is fourteen miles away and that suits me just fine!
We live quietly with no TV, no landline, no microwaves, no Smart phones, no washer or dryer, and so forth. It is, voluntarily, A Good Life. A very, very Good Life. I make art. I play my instruments. Kealey bakes and cross-country skis. We cook every day. We chop and split wood. And, of course, we play with our Maine Coon Cat constantly!!
I believe in the potential of a Post-Consumer Culture. But, it means a mindset change for many. That's an existential choice and I honor and respect the individuality of worldviews. I've chosen.....and I'm content. This is what I want to share. It is, quite simply, merely My Story.
