Self-Sufficiency Archives - Page 17 of 24 - Living Off the Grid: Free Yourself

Gardening roundtable

Last Sunday afternoon, I went to a gardening roundtable discussion in my community. I live on a mountain side in the high desert of far west Texas (yes, Texas does have mountains, the Davis Mountains to be exact). It was quite interesting talking to the various gardeners out here. Some were just starting out, some were experienced gardeners but not in this location, and some had gardened out here for many years.

I have been really itching to get out and garden this year, I haven’t gardened much for the last 2 years because of water issues, we didn’t have much of a rainy season those two years. Our rainy season usually starts in July(ish) and ends in September(ish), during those few months we get most of our yearly amount of rainfall. It’s hard to wait for the rainy season to start, typically I would start in spring and hand water.…

March 22, 2013 3 Comments

Growing food to survive

How much land do you need to survive? This is not a theoretical question if, like Carol Deppe, you bellieve the zombie apocalypse is just around the corner.

The author of The Resilient Gardener: Food Production and Self-Reliance in Uncertain Times,Deppe says you need an acre. But others say a quarter acre is enough.

Deppe’s book might help you build a veggie-garden with climate change in mind, but she lives in temperate Corvalis, Oregon, population 54,462. In other parts of the country such as New Mexico, Texas or Nevada, she might have other concerns. As it is, the book is mainly about surviving when the world infrastructure collapses and she has nothing to rely on but herself.…

March 12, 2013 1 Comment

Going off-grid before we went off-grid

Before we moved to our off-grid home, long before, we had begun purchasing the things we would need to live off-grid. This meant solar panels, inverters, charge controllers, lots of wire and much of the other things we would need. Buying these things before we were ready to move meant we could bargain hunt, we could find deals on used items (Craigslist is your friend!) and none of this hit us too hard in the pocketbook.

Little did I know that we would be forced to put our off-grid goodies to the test before we moved off-grid.…

February 28, 2013 2 Comments

Taking care of your feet

Most of us give little thought to our feet, those things we stand on, run on, tread on, but there are so many things that can go wrong, and if something is wrong with your feet, well quite frankly it can be miserable at best and debilitating at worst. So let’s take a look at caring for those tootsies.…

February 24, 2013 1 Comment

Community

Thermal mass rocket heaters

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With it still being winter time, and with many mega-blizzards going on though out the USA, there will always be a need for alternative ways of keeping warm and cooking. Rocket stoves and rocket mass heaters neatly fit the bill here, what is really great about them is they don’t use up loads and loads of wood, in fact you can burn twigs in them quite nicely. Since I first wrote about rocket stoves, there have been many experiments and improvements made by industrious tinkerers, and fortunately for us, these tinkerers also have cameras and are putting up videos of their progress.…

February 9, 2013 2 Comments

Community

Off-Grid lighting

Whether you live off-grid or in a regular home, you need light. With the right number and position of windows, you can get along just fine during the day, but once the sun goes down, you start needing some sort of lighting. Fortunately today there are lots of options for those of us who live off-grid.…

February 3, 2013 12 Comments

How to save money on food

Saving money, everyone talks about it, everyone wants to do it, but it’s hard to do. With most of us on tight budgets, it’s more important than ever to save every penny you can.

The main reason saving money seems hard to do is it usually means having to give up something that you would normally want to buy or do. My hubby and I live off-grid, we budget ourselves tightly, that includes food, but we still eat very well, the trick is to find ways of saving that doesn’t hurt so much. Here are some of the ways I save money. Let’s focus on food, something we all have to have to survive.…

January 25, 2013 4 Comments

People

How to Lose Your Job in 60 Days

“I want to go full nomad and be free, but I need to figure out how to get rid of my job first.” When I say this to people (friends and strangers alike) an almost hysterical look washes over their face, followed by a humorous smirk with a suggestion to just pick up the phone and quit. I wish it could be that simple… or could it be? I have a job with a large car dealership as a Web Administrator/Graphic Designer. I appreciate it, as it’s the best-paying job I’ve ever had (which still isn’t much). Instead of answering phones all day and watching the clock, I get to use my creativity. My days and weeks usually sail by.…

January 23, 2013 5 Comments

Food

Backyard farmers by necessity: self-sufficient and debt-free

Inspiring story about how necessity pushes a young couple to become organic farmers and succeed with it for the rest of their lives with no debt, a business and self sustainable food while enjoying their work instead of waiting for retirement to find happiness.

The video contains interesting home made tools and techniques for farming.…

January 8, 2013 No Comments

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Mobile

Stops Along the Way: Part 2

Five o’clock quickly arrived at my desk on my first night as a full-time RVer. I left my office and walked into the dark parking lot knowing I would be home in less than 30 seconds. No one from work knew it. Since I land acting and print gigs on occasion, they believe my camper is to go on jobs out of town. Half-truths go a long way. I also made it a point for them to know that owning an RV has always been a dream of mine. I considered letting my co-workers know of my new lifestyle, but I’ve grown less trusting with age. My managers may feel less compelled to give me higher raises since I have fewer expenses. My supervisor may look at me with scorn if I come in late on a snowy day. Co-workers may think I’m just plain kooky… and they would be right! Yes, none of these things would be fair, but life isn’t fair and neither are people’s judgments and actions. If the folks at work ever did find out (and some may already suspect), I guess it wouldn’t be a big deal. However, why put myself out there if I don’t have to?

As I approached close to my camper, I visually took it all in. “This is my home!”. Realizing this felt odd, good… and a little scary. I got in the van and drove to my RV friendly parking spot. Like a dog, I instinctively circled the lot twice before parking. There were two big rig trucks settled in for the night, so I parked next to them under a light post.…

January 5, 2013 6 Comments

Community

DIY inspirations

Ever wonder what websites I enjoy visiting (besides this one of course!)? There are quite a few, but I have to tell you about a couple of websites I have recently discovered, the first one is all about dehydrating, EVERYTHING! If it’s possible (or even questionable) to dehydrate it, you will find it here! The second site is all about everything DIY, from homemade cleaning supplies to recipes and lots more. Whether you are living off-grid, or just want to save some $$$s by being frugal, these two sites have the information and instructions you need.…

December 16, 2012 No Comments

Vandwelling

There are many ways of living off the grid, for some it means buying up some land, putting up a small cabin with solar panels and such, growing a garden, hunting and living as close to the land as possible. For others it means something entirely different. There is a whole culture around van living, ie living in a vehicle, usually a van or camper, not setting roots in any one place, being free to move around as they please.…

November 18, 2012 2 Comments

All you need to go off-grid

Self-Sufficiency

Gardening roundtable

Growing food to survive

Going off-grid before we went off-grid

Taking care of your feet

Thermal mass rocket heaters

Off-Grid lighting

How to save money on food

How to Lose Your Job in 60 Days

Backyard farmers by necessity: self-sufficient and debt-free

Stops Along the Way: Part 2

DIY inspirations

Vandwelling

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