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Thursday, May 13, 2010

The Dream and Paying the Bills

I'm a full-time employee working at a fabulous and popular boutique and at the moment that's what pays the bills. It's so easy to get wrapped up in the dream of watching rolling hills dotted with white sheep grazing on lush pasture whilst my man and I sit on the front porch drinking ice cold home brew (probably an IPA because Justin is such a beer snob) as our dogs sleep by our sides. After slapping myself back to reality many times I realized that I need to focus on taking the next step in front of me and ask myself: what do I have control over right now and what can I fit into the budget to get me a tiny bit closer to my dream? Right now that is raising Charlotte , propagating a booming organic garden, and renting a portion of a homestead, which is actually quite a lot of work when you really think about it.

I am slowly getting in touch with the long lost farmer in me. To know where my food came from and take pride in the fact that my work put it on my plate is rewarding because it makes me feel more in control of my life.

Here's a quote from the introduction of Jenna Woginrich's book Made from Scratch. She writes a blog called Cold Antler Farm that I have been following. She helps me keep my farm lust in check, while getting me appropriately excited about living a self-sufficient life:

"Accepting where you are today and working toward what's ahead, is the best you can do. But the starting point is to take control of what you can and smile with how things are. Find your happiness and dance with it."

2 comments:

  1. I was reading this and thinking about the long lost farmer in all of us. For too long in this country we have been living the purchasing life style. I was talking to one of my students today about what our family is doing to become more self sufficient and she indicated that her father also had a large garden going. I am heartened by this in that we are not alone in the life we are seeking and the freedom and control it will bring. I know to some these ideas fly in the face of relatively new established norms but I can't help but feel that in returning our roots, a true happiness can be found that is not linked to the next purchase.

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  2. I totally agree Dad. There's something to be said about being able to tell someone where your food came from, and I mean specific (i.e. the third bed on the right). Its refreshing to hear that many urbanites are trying to revert back to growing their own produce and even raising a small flock of laying hens. With meat and produce prices rising fast, we are going to have to raise our own livestock close to home or eat processed foods and die early. I just watched Food Inc. and was absolutely horrified to see families choosing a Big Mac for dinner over fresh veggies because it was cheaper or more "bang for the buck". All i have to saw is that I cannot wait for the harvest!

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