Degriding

Urban Farm Tour

2011-05-02T10:14:00.003-04:00

Our property was invited to participate in the First Annual Urban Farm Tour, Saturday, May 7 hosted by the Greenville Organic Foods Organization: "Come see fantastic examples of how city residents are practicing sustainability by growing their own food and implementing energy efficiency. The self-guided tour will showcase urban farms, edible gardens and energy efficiency located within 10 miles from downtown Greenville."

We are absolutely thrilled to be a part of it! See below the blurb for our property:

"This urban homestead is where the action is! Urban Acre Farm is truly a site where you can get exposure to a little of everything. The family originally established the Urban Farm with the hope of moving eventually to the country and starting their own farm. At this site you’ll learn about making great compost through vermiculture practices. Three hives of bees along with a multitude of various fruit trees and bushes makes this site perfect for all those aspiring to “give it all up and move to the country,” but don’t want to do it just yet…If you have been looking for economical ways to insulate the roof and reduce summer cooling costs come see their Supertherm white roof. And to top it off on May 7 site owners will be cooking with a solar oven to show folks how easy it is."

The link can be found here: http://www.greenvilleuft.com/tour-sites?page=2

Wood shed

2011-01-23T14:06:00.003-05:00

This past year I began collecting and saving wood. Originally, we were planning to have a few wood stoves. That plan has changed since we may purchase a small farm in Maine, but I'll write more about that later. The second pic is of Olivia and Liam carrying wood to the wood shed!

Stout 13 2010

2011-01-23T13:56:00.008-05:00

My brother Neil has created a really hoppy stout that resembles a Cascadian Dark Ale more than a stout. He called it Stout 13 since it was his 13th batch. On my 13th I also brewed it and it turned out great. Absolutely wonderful stuff and it is only an extract recipe! Here are some pics of the process. I'm using a Bayou burner which really does get the wort to boil fast. It has a really healthy fermentation. The grain bill is pretty large. A batch of stout 13 costs about 60 dollars and it produced a little more than two cases of beer. Not bad!

Brewing Some Honey Wheat 2010

2011-01-23T13:52:00.004-05:00

I've brewed 13 batches of beer since I taught myself to brew about two years ago. This was a honey wheat ale where I used some of my own backyard honey for conditioning. It was good, but I'm really looking forward to beginning all grain when I have the time and equipment together. Also shown is Liam cleaning out some bottles. My kids are incredibly helpful!

Collecting Honey 2010

2011-01-23T13:36:00.005-05:00

We didn't use a fancy extractor when we collected the honey. Basically, we scraped the frames, wax and all, into a strainer and then we used a bottling bucket to get the honey into jars. I can't imagine the amount of honey produced from more than a few good colonies. The honey shown was really only from about 1.5 shallow supers. There were also four smaller jars not photographed. Afterwards, someone at Bee Well Honey Farm told me to leave the scraped supers out to let the bees come clean them off of any left over honey. It was really neat watching them swarm around the supers, taking the honey back to the hive. The picture doesn't quite do it justice.

Painting Supers

2011-01-23T13:35:00.003-05:00

Olivia and Liam helped paint the supers as I bought them. I purchased three extra supers per colony for a total of six. I'll start making them myself now (at least the super but not the frames). You are supposed to paint the supers to protect the wood.

The Bees 2010

2011-01-23T13:27:00.007-05:00

I would say the first year was a semi-success although I think I might have had better luck brewing beer! We did order two nuc colonies each with a queen and 10,000 workers. I set them up in the back yard. The one on the right began looking more active pretty much from the first month or so, and it just went gang busters while the one on the left stayed fairly inactive. At some point the bees just disappeared. The bees on the right did great, though. They produced a decent amount of honey from just a few shallow supers. I think I might have stacked too many shallow supers, but I just didn't know how quickly to stack them and I didn't want the bees to get over crowded. As of right now, the bees are still alive through the winter, so I'm hoping they will hang in there until spring. I have also ordered two more colonies for a total of three.

Orchard Spring 2010

2011-01-23T13:24:00.004-05:00

The trees didn't die this year; in fact, they started growing taller!

Harvesting Peas!

2011-01-23T13:20:00.002-05:00

Here is a picture of the kids prepping peas. Yummy!

Strawberry Patch 2010

2011-01-23T13:17:00.002-05:00

We planted a dozen or so strawberry bushes next to the 16 raised beds, but they ended up getting over run by weeds, and now I'm not quite sure what the status of them is!

The plot out back

2011-01-23T13:15:00.002-05:00

Originally, we had planned on planting some barley or wheat, but after tilling a plot out back by the bees, we just didn't get around to it!

The Garden Grows 2010

2011-01-23T13:07:00.005-05:00

Here are some pics of the garden as it developed during March and April. It turns out I don't have any pics from when the garden was in full swing, unfortunately! One thing I do remember is that we had a ton of greens which we couldn't give away quick enough. The squash had some issues with squash bugs. This was our first year of having so many beds, and I think it was a great success. We went from having three 8'x4' beds to having 16 beds!

Gardening Start 2010

2011-01-23T12:55:00.006-05:00

Our garden this year began with Jen's starts under the light in the Winter of 2010. These racks were set up in our bedroom!

The pic to the right of the garden starts are our garden beds in March 2010. I used string to divide each 8'x4' bed into square foot sections per the book, Square Foot Garden. It was good for our first year, but it turns out we probably won't need to have that visual demarcation this coming year. The kids did a good job helping us. Olivia helped me move the fresh compost that we purchased from the local gardening center into the boxes. Liam also took a hand in in the process as well.

Composting

2011-01-23T12:52:00.003-05:00

For the past several years we've been composting using two rubber maid bins with holes drilled in the sides and bottom. Jen bought some trout worms at the local bait shop and they've been living happily in the bins for several years. Here's a pic of the kids taking out the worms and larger pieces of food that haven't been composted yet.

Aerial View

2010-02-10T07:29:00.003-05:00

Here is an aerial taken off Google maps of our property. The house is center. You can see the pool and to the northwest of the pool are two outbuildings: a prefabricated shed that is wired for electric and an old barn that I'm going to use for a wood shed. To the northeast of the pool is a "cottage" which has a kitchenette and a bathroom. I use it as my office since I do all my work teaching online from home.

Bees Ordered!

2010-02-10T07:05:00.003-05:00

Yesterday I ordered not one but TWO bee colonies. Each package is $70 and includes a queen and 10,000 bees. Apparently, I will drive to the farm and pick up the bees and then drive home with about 20,000 bees in my car.

I bought the bees at the Honey Well Bee farm which is located here in the Upstate of South Carolina. Here is their website: http://www.beewellhoneyfarm.com/. I am a total beginner, so I'll also be purchasing the bee "buildings" as other sundry equipment with Honey Well. Total cost not including the $140 for the bees is approximately $300. The bees will be ready for pickup April 3. The question is will I be ready?

I need to find a south-east facing site on my 1 acre which is in full sun and which is relatively apart from the main play area of my kids. Apparently, I'll also want to include for the bees some water which is close by or else they will end up in my pool! A bird bath or metal bucket full of rocks and/or wood will do nicely and will be something the bees like.

I'm excited about doing this, but I'm teaching myself most of this!

New Pantry

2010-02-08T20:38:00.003-05:00

Take a look at our pretty new pantry. This doorway used to go into what I think was an old dining room. Jen thought it would be better as a closed off pantry for food storage. It sits right off our kitchen and Jen is already filling it up with food stores!

The old dining room is now closed off and is considered a bedroom, making our homestead a six bedroom domicile with three up and three down. Good for extended families!

2 Cranberry Bushes

2010-01-12T10:06:00.003-05:00

I forgot to write that Jen also planted 2 teeny little cranberry bushes by the front walkway. They are small little guys!

In utero is the project to close off the downstairs den, making a storage pantry on one side and a sixth bedroom on the other. The pantry will be used for the purpose of our goal for 1 year food storage.

Projects to Date

2009-11-25T22:04:00.003-05:00

--2 raspberry bushes planted on south property line

--Planted four dwarf apple, 2 dwarf cherry trees

--Built sixteen 4' by 8' garden boxes along south property line. Jen filled the boxes with leaves, top soil, and compost.

--Built a six foot privacy fence along the front property line facing busy cut through street (where cars frequently speed past at about 60 mph. Fence runs along all of the front and part of the sides of the yard for about 240 feet. A gate was built across the drive way which locks from both the inside and outside.

--Purchased freezer which holds 250 lbs of meat. Filled it with 1/4 of a cow bought from local farmer.

--Set up three 55 gallon water barrels (linked). All filled up in one night of rain!

Projects to Date

2009-09-28T14:27:00.002-04:00

A quick list of completed projects to date (after all of the moving in and unpacking, of course):

--One tree in the front yard was cut down (diseased). A useless plant/bush with a gigantic weed growing in the middle of it was also pulled.

--Bathroom and ceiling in the office/brewery has been painted.

--Clothes line in the backyard has been setup.

--House and office have been blessed!

--2 worm bins have been setup and the worms are doing well.

--1 pineapple sage, 1 Mexican sage, and 1 rosemary bush have been planted in the backyard.

--2 blueberry and 2 black berry bushes have been planted along drive way.

--1 4x4 raised bed box has been built.

--Some muscadines have been picked by friends.

--Someone from Lowe's is coming out to give us an estimate on the front/side gate.

We are excited and busy!

Back yard!

2009-06-27T12:38:00.002-04:00

This is a picture of the backyard with a view of the back of the house in the background, the pool in the foreground (covered) and the front porch of the office/brewery!

Kitchen!

2009-06-27T12:33:00.004-04:00

Here's a pic of the new kitchen. It's so much bigger than our galley kitchen we have now, and it'll be a great central room for our family to cook and eat together!

New House!

2009-06-27T12:22:00.005-04:00

After some searching, we are closing on a new house June 30th! Jen and I couldn't decide whether we wanted to be town or country mice, so we decided on a compromise. Our new house is located on 1 acre (with no restrictions) just 3 miles (about 8 minutes) from downtown Greenville, SC. Jen searched every night on the web for the right place, and we lucked into this. The first buyers financing fell through, and we were next in line of 17 other interested parties! The sellers priced the house at 152, 500, and it's got about 3,000 square feet (if you count the separate office with full bath and kitchenette). If Jen hadn't kept plugging away at this, we would never have found the house.

What's more important is that we can get down to the business of degriding. We have lots of plans for this 1 acre plot, but it's incredibly exciting! It even has a little underground pool (this was a happy happenstance as a pool was not part of our criteria).

Featured above is the front yard and house!

Casa Ti is a Casa for Me!

2008-12-29T21:56:00.005-05:00

Okay after looking for what seems like forever, I think I have found a house plan compatible with our needs to start out with. I say start out with, because we have several outbuilding we will need, like an office for John and a Brewhaus/kitchen (more on this one later:). Since we want a smaller house and one built as "green" as possible, yet able to act as a homestead, I've had trouble finding a design that met our budget. I couldn't see hiring an arcitect to draw up a "formal" copy of my plans for a hefty price tag. So I was thrilled to run across Green Modern Kits last week. With a few modifications to the Casa Ti, we need to have the bathroom moved I think, and the addition of a pantry/laundry/mudroom, we will be in business. Um...now we just need to find the perfect piece of land to put it on. Better get back to "Homestead Shopping."

Seed FEST

2008-12-17T14:50:00.004-05:00

Okay I'm SUPER excited about all of the amazing seeds that just came in the mail from Baker's Creek.

We had several raised beds constructed this fall and are turning our current property into an urban homestead. Our oldest daughter will be doing a lot of work with me this spring. The garden will be a main component of our homeschooling. We've spent the fall learning to read and of course will continue this, but turn our focus over to math and science in the new year. I went a bit crazy buying, but hope to grow extra starts for friends and family. We will also likely have some for next year.

Flat Shoals Road Property

2008-12-08T13:38:00.003-05:00

The asking price for this 7.34 acre plot was 107,000. It is very close to my parents (under 30 minutes) and we liked certain aspects of the property see below:

Pros:
--Good size plot which was layed out well with a cleared area that led down to a wooded ravine (which was supposed to have a creek at the bottom).
--A small one bedroom cabin already exists on the plot (the old residence of a single man who had lived there for 30 years, considered a "mad scientist" by his neighbors).
--There is also a smallish garage/storage shed also very solid and well built.
--The previous owner had built an underground "bomb shelter" which was really more of a potential root cellar. Also very solid and well built.

Cons:
--The deal breaker here is that the "creek" which is situated at the bottom of the ravine is actually a barely discernible trickle if not completely dry. The agent said it was a full blown creek last time he showed the property. Right.
--I felt a bit too close to neighbors since the property was on corner lot and easily viewed by folks across the street in the winter.
--Some of the land immediately adjacent had already been parceled out and would require a separate purchase.
--The agent made it sound like there was another offer pending and was indirectly trying to get us to make a decision within 72 hours. No thanks!

Preps

2008-11-02T19:21:00.002-05:00

Funny how my first post is a to-do/buy list. John will laugh at that for sure, since I'm a HUGE list maker. Over the past few months we have begun to get serious about preparing for the future. I will follow up with more posts about the economy, peak oil, and the enviroment, but for now this is a quick list to keep track of what I'm still working on accquiring before the year is out.

*More canning supplies. I have a pressure cooker, but it is missing some parts so I need to get more and increase my mason jar stash.

* seeds. The seed site I want to order from just opened back up so I will likely pick those up this week.

*kill-o-watt meter
* solar battery charger
*more wool stuffing
*start purchasing yarn, my fabric stash is healthy:)
*gravity water filter
* water proof matches
*good sleeping bags
*a tent

A few of my favorite bloggers:)
www.chrismartenson.com
www.sharonastyk.com

Chestnutt Ridge Road in Marietta, SC

2008-11-02T09:51:00.002-05:00

Yesterday we all drove about 45 minutes northwest of Greer and met my parents to take a look at this 12 acres out in Marietta. The view (if you cleared the trees) is excellent. You are really close to the mountains in this area.

The pros:
1) There's alot of land for a decent price (around $60,000).
2) The land is heavily wooded and beautiful. It is rolling and there is a bluff at the end of the property from which you can hear a babbling brook.

The cons:
1) My Dad and I wandered the property for about 20 minutes in heavy brush and trees. We weren't sure whether there were clearings for building or not (the owner said there was).
2) There's very little pasture. There's some open area at the bottleneck of this property.
3) You can't access the land except through that bottleneck. On either side of that narrow pass the neighbors are pretty close. What's the use of moving to the country when your neighbors know exactly when you are leaving and coming?

So--this property will be taken off the list.

Feeble Update

2008-11-02T09:44:00.002-05:00

Since last time I have written an entry I have built a small "compost patio" and have setup some worm composters (made out of plastic bins). We have added a small deck and added that to our new deck. We have also built three 4' x 8' raised garden beds for gardening this spring.

We are out of credit card debt and we have also bought 3 months of food stores.

I have also purchased a revolver (yeehaw)!

We are also going through the process of looking for land. See next entry.

Worm Composting Guide

2008-06-23T18:22:00.002-04:00

This site is a great site which discusses vermiculture, or worm composting. Yummy!

Compost Guide

2008-06-23T18:14:00.002-04:00

This is a good little informative article about composting. We will start the composting process soon in order to begin our garden proper Spring 09. That gives us a good six months to get a good pile of compost ready.

I Tell My Past Self I'm Building a Garden

2008-06-23T17:59:00.003-04:00

My how things change.

If I could go back in time to tell my 20's-self that I was in the process of building a garden--and that I was ENJOYING it, my past self would think one of three things:

1) I had become a victim of indentured servitude.

2) I had become a farmer.

3) I had become possessed.

It might be a function of working at home, but lately it has been very nice to get outside. Perhaps this is what Morris meant by engaging in productive work. I'm not as exhausted from "the office" so I have more energy to engage in physical activity. Working out of the home seems to encourage a lifestyle centered around home-productivity. I sit at my computer; I teach Olivia a reading lesson; I grade some papers; I go and garden. My past self snickers!

Even so--there is indeed something rewarding about it all, especially since Olivia really loves to help.

Harvesting Rainwater

2008-05-30T21:38:00.004-04:00

This article, "A Better Way to Harvest Rainwater" by Cheryl Long in the May 20, 2008 edition of Mother Earth News discusses water catchment systems. In short, you use your house to collect water, and there is quite a bit to collect: "During an inch of rainfall, more than 900 gallons flows off of a house with a 30-by-50 foot roof. Why not make use of all 900 gallons?"

The article ends with some good beginning books as resources. I've paraphrased below:

Water Storage by Art Ludwig focuses on tank storage design.

Create An Oasis with Greywater by Art Ludwig discusses how to recycle greywater (water that has drained from house appliances and showers).

Rainwater Harvesting for Drylands by Brad Lancaster comprises Vol I (basics of rainwater harvesting) Vol II (collection of water in earthworks, swales, ponds, and terraces) and Vol III (roof catchment and cisterns).

Rainwater Catchment Systems for Domestic Supply by John Gould and Erik Nissen-Petersen discusses the technical, social and economic factors in water catchment for your home. It discusses roof and ground systems with a variety of photos, illustrations and case studies. Very detailed and thorough.

Orwell Rolls In His Grave

2008-04-27T20:21:00.002-04:00

The documentary Orwell Rolls in His Grave features interviews with a variety of experts, journalists, and politicians who comment on the flagging state of affairs in the media news industry. The main thrust to this documentary is simply that the major news outlets, because of their deeply interdependent relationships with both big business and government, are failing in their prime responsibility as public watch dog. As more and more radio, television, and news paper outlets are bought up by fewer and fewer companies, journalism becomes an exercise in political spin and big business cheer leader.

The documentary is done very well, features a bevy of articulate, interesting interviews, and is definitely worth a watch.

Electric Cars on Earth Day

2008-04-22T12:02:00.002-04:00

The Energy Blog features this, an article about two electric cars, the Tesla, and the Th!nk Car. The Tesla is available right now, and you only have to shell out $100,000 for it!

If that's a bit too pricey, the Th!nk Car is much more reasonable, coming to North America in 2009 and only putting you out 20,000 Euros. Featured above is a yellow Th!nk Car.

Peak Oil: Life After the Oil Crash

2008-04-21T20:31:00.003-04:00

Whether you are a conspiracy theorist, a post-apocalyptic guru, or obsessed with peak oil, this is a great site that Jen found which I'm adding to the Resources and Links sidebar. It is a link to books, to survival gear, as well as to breaking news associated with the demise of the middle class. Fun, fun, fun!

Mrs. Survival

2008-04-21T19:41:00.002-04:00

Jen found Mrs. Survival, a link that I have added to our Resources and Links sidebar. It is an incredibly useful resource with a nice set of survival-type links as well as a very informative group of discussion threads.

Prefab Workspace

2008-04-01T21:06:00.004-04:00

To enhance my productivity Jen came up with the idea of building a small, one-room, prefab study where I could set up wall to wall bookshelves, a desk, and a daybed (for naps!) With a wireless network and electrical hookups, it would make for a nice, quiet getaway considering I do all my work from home now. These can be fairly cheap to build, anywhere between $5,000-$10,000. The April/May 2008 issue of Readymade has a great article. Below are some of the websites of companies that sell prefab work spaces.

Modern-Shed

Modern Cabana

M Finity

Firstdaycottage.com

2008-03-31T22:36:00.002-04:00

Go to www.firstdaycottage.com to find a selection of do it yourself houses which are modular and affordable! I don't know if we'll go this path, but the houses look cute and there is something rewarding about erecting the frame of your home yourself (at least the idea of it). Realistically, it might even be possible to hire an expert who could guide and help an amateur through the process. It might still be cheaper than buying your own home.

Credit Cards PAID

2008-03-31T11:37:00.003-04:00

We have finally eliminated debt on both of our credit cards. The Master Card "Apple Loan" credit card had raised their APR to about 30%. This was after we had made a late payment of 1 day because they had changed the pay period (unannounced of course).

We are thrilled to be out of debt with these loan sharks!

Additionally, I have been working for about six weeks from the home teaching English for The Art Institute of Pittsburgh. I guess I'm somewhat of an online artisan, working and living in the same building!

"Useful Work Versus Useless Toil" by William Morris

2007-10-07T14:41:00.001-04:00

I’ve been reading through a collection of essays about the nature of work in a book called Why Work? In this post I’ll summarize a very interesting piece called “Useful Work Versus Useless Toil” by William Morris. It says some really interesting things.

This essay, like so many in this collection, assumes that work in its unexploitive state is pleasurable. The kind of work which is pleasurable offers three kinds of hope: “hope of rest, hope of product, and hope of pleasure in the work itself” (36). The good kind of work offers the promise of a break; even the good kind of work can be painful at times! It also offers a product which the worker has the satisfaction and fulfillment of completing; that is, the worker is not one tiny cog in a vast process of which he or she is not aware and of which he or she never sees the final product. Lastly, the good kind of work is good because it exercises our faculties and complete selves as humans. We are not reduced to machines.

As Morris so succinctly states, “All other work but this is worthless; it is slaves’ work—mere toiling to live, that we may live to toil” (37).

Using these two kinds of work as a value system, Morris levels a critique on our economic system. First of all, it is no surprise that work is unevenly distributed among the classes. The rich (even though they may work hard) produce very little, but they consume very much and are dependent upon the work of those below them. The middle class also produces more than they consume and are comprised of whole sectors of purportedly useful professions which serve “the system of folly, fraud, and tyranny of which they form a part” (38). The middle class, much like the rich, are also invested in acquiring wealth and assets to the effect of not having to work anymore in the future. Work is something for the lower classes. Both the rich and the middle class are supported by the production of the poor who are in an inferior position. The poor produce real wealth but they also produce waste.

As Morris says, “Wealth is what Nature gives us and what a reasonable man can make out of the gifts of Nature for his reasonable use. The sunlight, the fresh air, the unspoiled face of the earth, food, raiment, and housing necessary and decent; the storing up of knowledge of all kinds, and the power of disseminating it; means of free communication between man and man; works of art, the beauty which man creates when he is most a man, most aspiring and thoughtful—all things which serve the pleasure of people, free, manly, and uncorrupted” (39).

All the rest is waste and is part of a system committed to producing only waste in a circular process which perpetuates the inferiority of those who produce. The poor, in addition to supporting the needs and wants of the upper classes, also produces cheap wares and goods of which the poor itself consumes, but these goods are only “miserable makeshifts” of what the rich and middle classes can afford, “with coarse food that does not nourish, with rotten raiment which does not shelter, with wretched houses which may well make a town-dweller in civilization look back with regret to the tent of the nomad tribe, or the cave of the pre-historic savage” (40). Because of this massive waste of human potential and work, Morris argues that our civilization wastes its own resources.

With the advent of machinery and technology which significantly decreases the amount of labor needed to complete a task, as well as all manner of conveniences, we should all living a lifestyle which is significantly better than all those before us. But it’s obviously not this way. What to do?

Morris’ answer is no less than abolishing the class system which allows for a higher class that doesn’t produce wealth as Morris has defined it. This unleashes a vast potential of human resources to produce REAL wealth. This would result in the creation of more wealth of which more could have a part. Effort could even be made to ensure that the work which is necessary is made to be pleasant.

But here’s the rub: those in power don’t want this to happen and this speaks more directly to the nature of capitalism. What follows is a fairly standard Marxist critique of capitalism. Essentially, the capitalist is not interested in allowing for a “good” kind of work; he wants a profit. Since he is a monopolist and owns the means of production, he can more or less dictate the terms under which he hires labor. He can compel cheap labor out of the working classes because they have no where else to go. All markets have been monopolized. The means of production must be distributed evenly among every man and woman, not to a select few.

The rest of the essay is a very interesting piece of speculation about what a society without class, capitalist monopoly, and exploitation might look like. First of all, the work day would be short. Given the fact that more people would be working, and given the fact that the goal of work would be only to produce wealth, not waste, there wouldn’t be a need for as much work as is demanded by the system now. Second of all, there would be variety of work. Since a man or woman wouldn’t have to devote all of their time to one job, a person could devote a smaller amount of time to a variety of different kinds of work, with the emphasis on developing the WHOLE person. You might vary more sedentary work with more physically active, for example.

Education could be more concerned with drawing out the talents and skills of a person instead of stamping onto a person what the market needs. Doing this would unleash untold creative potential. All men would have time to create and engage intellectually and artistically with the world around them.

Morris believes that we should live and work in surroundings which are pleasant, and in this way he begins to sound like Chesterton, emphasizing the value in beautiful surroundings. The chaos and ugliness of our modern living and work conditions are simply a result of an economic system which values profit: “For all our crowded town and bewildering factories are simply the outcome of the profit system. Capitalistic manufacture, capitalistic land-owning, and capitalistic exchange force men into big cities in order to manipulate them in the interests of capital; the same tyranny contracts the due space of the factory so much that (for instance) the interior of a great weaving-shed is almost as ridiculous a spectacle as it is a horrible one” (48). In many ways the labyrinthine structure to our society and the spaces in which we live are a result and product of an economic system driven by profit. The modern labyrinth is a function and product of capitalism!

Morris’ speculation turns the prison-like factory, devoid of inspiration and creativity, to a center of intellectual and social work where products are created but where also the factory worker would engage in other activities as well such as gardening, or the study of art and science. Workers in this kind of factory are masters of their own time and energies, serving only themselves and their community.

As Morris concludes, “So you see, I claim that work in a duly ordered community should be made attractive by the consciousness of usefulness, by its being carried on with intelligent interest, by variety, and by its being exercised amidst pleasurable surroundings” (49).

America: Freedom to Fascism

2007-09-13T19:41:00.000-04:00

This documentary by recently deceased filmaker Aaron Russo crysallized some fears of ours concerning the abuses of big capital and our public government. Essentially, the documentary tracks exactly how economic forces have warped and perverted how our government operates and what it does. Guess who suffers?

There's some really shocking stuff here and the arguments are very persusasive. Many of the legal cases cited are public record and easily verifiable. It's truly scary! Mainly, the documentary tracks specific abuses of power which are perpetuated to maintain the ever increasing distance between the rich and the poor. One of the most disturbing is how the Federal Reserve system was created. Did you know it's a private institution beholden to a group of unnamed banking clans? Did you know that it is this private organization (and not our own government) who mints the money? Did you know that there has not been an accounting of the bullion in Fort Knox, leaving many to believe that there isn't gold backing to our dollars. Think about that for a second!

Russo makes a good point: as individuals we used to have autonomy, privacy, and tangible assets. Now we live in a semi-police state which can take your assets at any time, which will spy on you if it wants (this is legal!), and which wants you to become mired and dependent. The new national ID card coming in May 2008 is one of many attempts to localize our identities in very easy to track databases where every single financial transaction can be monitored and controlled. What's scary about this is that given the electronic nature of how money circulates, it's very possible that undesirables could be X'd from the system if they irritate the wrong people. Sounds a little like Revelations to me!

But beyond the worst case scenerios, the documentary argues persuasively what happens when money and power are centered in elitist and unaccountable agencies. And it ain't good for the rest of us!

Let's Be Idle!

2007-09-09T20:59:00.000-04:00

“In Praise of Idleness” By Bertrand Russell

Now before you go out and buy yourself a Lazyboy chair with refrigerated, beer holding armflaps, know that Russell demands we actually DO something worthwhile with our time!

I bought a book called Why Work? at a used bookstore in Asheville, NC one weekend. It’s a real gem: it’s a collection of essays about work, capitalism, and consumerism. The introductory essay is called “In Praise of Idleness” written by philosopher Bertrand Russell, originally published in Harper’s Magazine in 1932. I’d like to take a few moments to summarize his argument below.

Russell begins by explaining that there are three classes: the first works, the second works mostly by telling the first what to do, and the third lives by owning land and capital, forcing the others to pay him while he does just about absolutely nothing. Although this creates a space for leisure, it is not desirable. See below.

Essentially, according to Russell, the history of man up until the Industrial Revolution has been one whereby the peasant class has worked just enough to be able to subsist. Any surplus has gone to the warrior and priest class. Russell states that the peasant class—to further perpetuate the idleness of the warriors and priests—is fed a certain amount of ideological persuasion in the form of the value and benefit of WORK (or toil). This justifies the peasant’s suffering while others idle. He can comfort himself with the knowledge he is being ethical. It is his duty to work hard. This has been the primary economic situation for just about all of pre-industrial history. As Russell states, “The conception of duty, speaking historically, has been a means used by the holders of power to induce others to live for the interests of their masters rather than for their own” (26). The peasants toil, and the warrior and priest classes leisure.

Here’s the rub: a civilization actually NEEDS a certain amount of leisure to advance itself. As Russell states, Athenian slave owners used their time in a way which would not have been possible without slaves. It opened up time for philosophy, the arts, and debate, all at the expense of a toiling, suffering working class. But certainly this state of affairs is not desirable. What to do?

Answer: “By the scientific organization of production, it is possible to keep modern populations in fair comfort on a small part of the working capacity of the modern world” (27). Because of modern technology, we are able to produce more by working less, so why don’t we work less? The answer to that is above: our pre-industrial attitudes about work persist. We MUST work because it is our duty to our nation and our government. To add to Russell’s explanation one might add we work to continue the consumption cycle that we have unwittingly entered into. Our desires immediately fill any kind of surplus state that is opened up when we make more money. We make more money; we expand, stretching ourselves like some monstrous balloon.

Russell proposes: “If the ordinary wage-earner worked four hours a day, there would be enough for everybody, and no unemployment—assuming a certain very moderate amount of sensible organization” (28-29). “Moving matter about” just isn’t the point to our lives, argues Russell. It is unjust that so few should idle while so many toil. It is also less productive, paradoxically.

If we worked less, we would become more active. Russell states that the reason we are so passive in our leisurely pursuits is that we are so drained and active during our work. If we worked less, we could be more active in our leisure pursuits, pursuing all forms of leisure which make a civilization civilized; after all, it was the leisure class which “cultivated the arts and discovered the sciences; it wrote the books, invented the philosophies, and refined social relations. Even the liberation of the oppressed has usually been inaugurated [by the leisure class]” (33).

Above all, an individual could be more happy and joyful, leading interesting, fulfilling lives instead of dreary, depressing ones.

To put it simply: To be idle is to have the freedom to work hard at what makes us most human.

Works Cited

Russell, Bertrand. “In Praise of Idleness.” Why Work? London: Aldgate Press, 1983.
25-32.

Master Card PAID

2007-07-28T20:19:00.000-04:00

This little number had been with us since we bought our new Imac. Basically, I applied for what was called an "Apple Loan" and was given instead a Master Card. It was one of those deals that started you with a low interest rate which slowly got larger and larger over time. Jen and I used it more than we should have--it became a kind of safety net when I wasn't making as much money. After a few late payments, we realized that they had raised our APR to 30%!

You know the story. High interest rate equals high finance charges which means you have problems paying off the balance. We were a case study in the kind of consumers whom the credit card company loves.

Well, that has changed now!! Burn to you "Apple Loan"!!! Burn to you fake loan which is actually a credit card with incredibly and insanely and wickedly high APR! We have now paid you OFF!! This happened yesterday. Quite the momentous occasion for us. Now we only have one more credit card to pay.

One step closer to our independence!

Easy Credit

2007-07-21T09:04:00.000-04:00

The following was written by Dr. Peter Chojnowski on The ChesterBelloc Mandate from an article “Distributism: Economics as if People Mattered.” Footnotes refer to Schumacher's Good Work.

"There is one fact which separates our day from the days of the 30s and 40s, however. The concentration of wealth and capital, the inadequacy of a man's pay to provide the basics of life and to provide for savings for the future, the lack of real property generously and broadly distributed, is masked by the reality of easy credit. Easy credit, which is not ultimately "easy" at all on the borrower, anesthetizes the populace to the grim facts of capitalist monopoly. Since we seem to be able to get all the things that we want, the reality of real money being increasingly unavailable to the average man is lost in the delusionary state of the consumerist utopia. Only when the "benefit" of usurious credit is cut off, do we realize the full extent of the problem. The greatest problem with liberal capitalism, however, is not the concentration of wealth or real property, the greatest "existential" problem created by capitalism is the problem of the very meaning and reality of work. To work is essential to what it means to be a human being. Next to the family, it is work and the relationships established by work that are the true foundations of society.6 In modern capitalism, however, it is productivity and profit which are the basic aims, not the providing of satisfying work. Moreover, since "labor saving" devices are the proudest accomplishments of industrial capitalism, labor itself is stamped with the mark of undesirability. But what is undesirable cannot confer dignity.7"

The entire article can be found here.

Land Ownership By Families

2007-07-19T10:58:00.000-04:00

The following was written by Dr. Peter Chojnowski on The ChesterBelloc Mandate from an article “Distributism: Economics as if People Mattered.” The article explains why and how Distributism circulated as a concept by a group of English thinkers and writers, among them G.K. Chesterton and Hillaire Belloc:

"Being Englishmen, the idea that the land meant wealth was inevitably ingrained in their conception of economics. Ownership of the land by the families who themselves worked the land would also mean financial stability, no fear of unemployment, a family enterprise which could engage, in some measure, all members, an ability to put aside food and supplies to create a hedge against destitution, a way of providing not only for one's children but for one's children's children, along with creating an economic structure which is not oriented towards corporate profits but towards providing for familial subsistence and a local market. Belloc speaks of this type of Distributist economy as the one most general throughout the history of mankind, with the possible exception of the slave economy. Capitalism and Socialism are certainly recent interlopers on the human economic scene."

The article in its entirety can be found here.

Sustainable Is Good

2007-07-16T16:42:00.001-04:00

Jen found this blog which I have now added to the Resources and Link section.

"Sustainable is Good covers products, trends and developments in the green marketplace. Focusing on marketing, branding, PR and packaging & materials related to green products and services."

Article About Solar Power

2007-07-16T16:33:00.000-04:00

Jen found this which is an article titled "Harnessing the Sun: Facts and Myths About Solar Power." It's a kind of Solar Power 101. Good read.

Love Your Work

2007-07-16T16:21:00.000-04:00

Men always work harder and more readily when they work on that which is their own; nay, they learn to love the very soil which yields in response to the labor of their hands, not only food to eat, but an abundance of the good things for themselves and those that are dear to them.

That is a famous passage from the encyclical of Leo XIII, Rerum Novarum (1891) which is a Catholic argument indicting capitalism and socialism. The "third way" which was being discussed by men such as Chesteron and Belloc was called Distributism, a system which navigates between the two. Distributism allows for ownership but it is distributed equitably among families.

Off the Grid

2007-07-14T23:00:00.000-04:00

Off the Grid is a site which follows innovations in off the grid technologies world-wide. I have added it to our Resources and Links.

Homesteading Article from Get Rich Slowly

2007-07-14T21:42:00.000-04:00

This is a link from a non-homsteading website which argues the frugality of homesteading. It serves as a nice, little "how do you do" for someone who might be thinking about it.

Manufacturing Consent: Noam Chomsky and the Media

2007-07-02T11:19:00.000-04:00

Neil and I just watched Manufacturing Consent: Noam Chomsky and the Media yesterday and it was very good and definitely worth the time (it runs about three hours). Mostly what Chomsky aruges is a fairly standard structural approach which leans heavily on Marx and Althusser: Marx for the economic critique and Althusser for the ideological one. Mostly, what Chomsky does is to argue how institutions mask reality by feeding the public watered-down or more pleasurable instances of events so that the public remains diverted. A democracy must deceive in this way because (in theory at least) political decisions must be made with public approval. A dictator just goes to war. A president must "manufacture consent" and this requires sophisticated and deceptive methods. Although this doc was produced in 1992, it has obvious applications for today.

Chomsky takes a specific intance in the media, that of East Timor, and aruges that the media downplays this particular instance of genocide for the more poltically favorable Cambodia.

I think there can be obvious parrallels with how big business affects and produces desire in certain products and convinces us to favor some over others. It also makes me think about the line in Brave New World: "ending is better than mending." Big Business doesn't necessarily want us to be independent. They want us in a circle of consumption, endlessly toiling on the wheel like rodents, always diverted and never independent, locked into this prison of consumerism.

Strawbale House

2007-07-01T21:08:00.001-04:00

Jen and I are fond of this strawbale home. It is a beautiful 1800 square foot house with four bedrooms and two baths. It has a great open kitchen/living area with walled bookshelves. It also has an indoor/outdoor fireplace. Really beautiful. It may be a bit large for us, but we're really leaning toward the strawbale style. In addition to being energy efficient, there's something very cozy about them. Here is the link: http://www.architecturalhouseplans.com/home_plans/44 as well as the site which has plans of all shapes and sizes.

Documentaries

2007-06-30T17:42:00.000-04:00

If you're anything like Jen and me, you love Netflix because of their documentary selection! We just recently subscribed and we have been working our way through. I've posted a few that we think are particularly relevent to our plans and our rationale for making the kinds of decisions we're making. Mostly, if you read alot of Harper's (especially Lewis Lapham) and the Utne Reader, you're already informed, but these documentaries are good for their entertainment value and work as a refresher!

The End of Suburbia
This gives a good history of our dependence on oil and what will happen to those who are still living high on the hog in a consumer lifestyle. It is a critique of consumerism and the suburbs.

Who Killed the Electric Car?
This doc examines the heterogenous forces which caused the electric car to go belly up in the seventies. Discusses how big oil manipulates the market to keep our dependence high.

A Crude Awakening: The Oil Crash
Another good doc about peak oil theory: what this means and what are the consequences.

Maxed Out and In Debt We Trust
These two work well together as a critique of how companies encourage debt in the consumer and how they take advantage of those who need money. Maxed Out focuses on the debt collections business and In Debt We Trust is more historical.

The Corporation
This documentary discusses how the corporation begins as a chartered organization for the public good and tracks how it develops into a capitalist leviathan with rights and a personality all of its own.

The Big One
One of Michael Moore's docs which would be a good pairing with The Corporation. This one is funnier as you watch Moore torment PR staff in the lobbies of their companies.

Iraq for Sale: The War Profiteers
Corruption 101. Shows how big business affects how and why we make war.

Outfoxed: Rupert Murdoch's War on Journalism
Shows how Fox News is a puppet station with a specific political agenda. A good doc which shows how big business affects journalism.

The Persuaders: Frontline
This is a great documentary about the business of advertising and how big business convinces us to buy the things we don't need.

The Urge to Homestead

2007-06-27T15:42:00.000-04:00

I can't remember what page or the exact wording, but G.K. Chesterton writes about the importance of owning a home in his book What's Wrong With the World. His sensibility is more Catholic: our urge to protect, and nurture, and build comes from a divine urge and mandate to be stewards. I felt something like this when we bought our house. It's only 1400 square feet with a small backyard, but I felt fulfilled knowing that we owned this fenced in plot and that it was ours.

Or if you're more into cultural constructivism, you might say that the older versions of masculinity always relied on ownership of some sort whether it be an aristocratic, genteel, patriarchal ownership or an artisnal one where a shop was owned and the craftsperson could build something from start to finish without being alienated and fragmented during the process.

I'm not sure when it was that I started to kid my wife about becoming Mars colonists! I think it started when I began to feel controlled by the market and forced to be apart from my nuclear family (not my wife and kids, but my parents and brothers). Oddly, it made me think that if I couldn't be close to my family, I might as well own a homestead far away somewhere where Jen and I could build and nurture and grow. Jen is exactly the kind of woman you'd want out there on Mars! She is resourceful, beautiful, and tough!

But the homesteading impulse must be a national solution as well. It seems natural that a country whose citizens are colonists and explorers might have it in the blood. I've wondered if homesteading as a social solution is something which is mostly American. Perhaps because we have room enough to run off to?

Mostly I want to divorce myself from the corporate forces which surround me like a matrix. I know it's impossible to do this completely--unless you block yourself completely off from the market, but I think there are degrees of dependency and I'd like to decrease my dependency immensely!

But there's also something to owning a plot of land, building a house to your family's specifications, having a garden, being responsible for goats, chickens, dogs, and cats. I think stewardship as a concept describes this feeling for me well. It fits. In some ways I think owning a house and a plot I can call my own has made me feel more masculine, or at least more responsible, more myself, more in control. Perhaps decreasing one's dependency increases the others?

Kill Debt

2007-06-26T16:18:00.000-04:00

That seems to be one of the biggest problems. The best way to get yourself off the grid is to actually decrease your dependency on all of those things that we are expected to buy which includes the bigger house, the bigger car, the better electronics, etc., etc. Don't ask me why, but for the longest time I just assumed that I would go from my Camry, to the Avalon, to the Lexus! And am I really getting more performance out of the car? A better engine? Better gas mileage? Or just better branding and fancier leather seats?

So Jen and I have been blessed with an increasing income the past few years. Instead of immediately filling that vacuum with more desire, we are trying to stay at the same standard of living, paying off the heavy credit card debt, and then saving the rest for higher up-front costs which we will have to incur for the land, the house, and all of the rest (solar panels, energy efficient appliances, etc).

I think it was Thomas Veblen who coined the term "conspicuous consumption." It seeks to describe that kind of consumption which doesn't arise from utility. It is wanting a Lexus not because you need it, but because it holds a certain amount of status. I suppose getting out of debt has alot to do with decreasing one's conspciuous consumption.

John

Homesteading Today

2007-06-25T22:42:00.001-04:00

The first link to our Resources and Links list is already one of my favorites: this forum discusses everything from alternative energy, to goat cheese recipes, to how to prevent varmints from devouring your garden. A great source with some knowledgeable folks.

John

John's Introduction

2007-06-25T22:25:00.000-04:00

Hello cyberworld!

Just a quick rationale for the blog: Jen and I after some years of discussion have decided to pursue a dream of getting "off the grid." As this is quite a process which requires tons of research, discussion, and thought, we thought this blog might be a good place to work through the material that we are collecting as well as make posts which theorize about the reasons and rationale for making our decision.

For me, I've gone from wanting to own a 3,000 square foot house and a Lexus to wanting to be self-sufficient by living a homesteading lifestyle. My antipathy toward my dependence on oil and my growing distaste for corporations, suburbia, and consumerism has led me to believe that going off the grid is the best option for me and my family. To be honest, it'd be nice to get the whole family involved and Jen and I have talked to my brother, Neil, who also shares the same sentiments regarding excessive living. So who knows, it might be a compound!

So where is this blog going? I don't know. Jen and I will both post as we make discoveries and find information. We'll also make posts when major life decisions are made that bring us closer to "degriding"!

John