Kemp's super awesome, fabulous self reliant journal and stuffs!

[kemps]

Name: Kemps or geek, nerd, hey you or various cuss words I'll save you all from!
Birthday: August 30th

Hometown: St Paul,MN

Current Residence: same as above but soon moving to North St Paul
Relationship Status: technically engaged but me and my honey consider each other married all ready. We call each other husband and wife. We just need to blooming papers! Eventually.

Political Views: Not something I can put in a category. I am what I call a recovering progressive democrat. Now if I had to put myself in a box it would be libertarian. However I'd rather not limit myself and focus on what the candidates say instead of their labels.

Religious Views: I'd put it as spiritual. I was raised Christian and ended up in a Christian based cult for almost 2 years. After that I just needed to walk away from organized religion. I don't hate anyone's faith I just feel more comfortable being solo. My father is native so I learned a lot about native spirituality. I incorporate a lot of that in my life.

Activities: Writing, drawing and painting, other arts and crafts like scrapbooking and collage making (mixed media), gaming (mainly Minecraft but I love other things too), movies (almost anything), cooking and baking when I can, learning.

Interests: Self sufficiency interests or others? Well to do with self sufficiency I am interested in starting a homestead. I wanna get as much land as I can because we are hoping to open it up to family. My husband and I are both German and have a love of German culture. Family is very important to us. I cut contact with my relatives many years ago due to dysfunction so his family is mine too (cause he's so sweet he shares ). I am currently researching gardening as I've always had some problem keeping green things green (apparently it really ISN'T easy being green). I'm also researching more about livestock and care. I'm a born and raised city girl so that is totally new to me. It's kind of overwhelming but I am also enjoying stepping out of my comfort zone. My hope for us is that we can grow/care for roughly 75% of our food and maybe even have extra to sell at farmers markets or something. I am also interested in learning canning, knitting/crocheting and anything else that will help us lead a self sufficient life!

Favorite Music: I like all kinds of stuff. I am a major fan of The Beatles. I grew up on 80s and 90s alternative. I also enjoy Johnny Cash, Sarah Brightman and classical. One of my favorite CDs is called Native American Flute. The music is so powerful and amazing. I swear it pierces through your soul, in a good way of course.

Favorite TV Shows: I tend to like older tv shows but there is a few I enjoy that are current. As said above I am a major geek. I LOVE Doctor Who, BBC Sherlock, The I.T Crowd and enjoyed the first season of Mr. Robot. I tend to watch a ton of documentaries too. Besides that my "guilty" pleasure is tiny house shows. I love tiny houses so I get all excited watching the episodes and tend to get a lot of ideas too.

Favorite Movies: I like a lot of classics. The 1940s Little Women with June Allison is one of my favorites. I also love Phantom of the Opera, The Avengers, The Mighty Ducks (I actually met a ton of the cast when they were filming the third one. Sadly I didn't get to meet Emilio but I got to meet the director). I do also have a major love of early horror up to 80s horror. Alfred Hitchcock for the win.

Favorite Books: I love books about history, science, Egyptian culture and art, medical books, things that cause me to learn and think. I have a lot of books that would probably creep people out. I love psych books and things about analyzing people's thoughts and dreams. I have a lot of books about serial killers and murders/crimes. I also have a few anatomy books. But on the flip side I enjoy books about love, happiness and fulfilling your dreams. Pretty much if it is well written I am interested.

Well, here is the super awesome intro to me. Cheers peoples, Kemps!

 

[Britesea]

Sounds like fun! I used to be a gamer also; in fact, my husband and I met during a Runequest campaign that mutual friends put together just so we could meet, lol. Sadly, real life tends to get in the way of gaming after a while and neither of us play much anymore, except for the occasional solo game of Civilization (and then I kick myself because I didn't get as much done as I wanted during the day)

Your best bet with gardening is to find other gardeners in your area and talk to them. Book learning only takes you so far, but those local gardeners will help you understand what your particular area needs in the way of TLC and such. If there is a local agricultural extension office you could get a LOT of help from them.

 

[goatgurl]

britesea said it best about gardening, find local gardeners and your agg extension office. they will know the ends and outs of growing in your area. books are great for learning the basic how to but people will help you fine tune things.
i built my own tiny house a couple of years ago and really like it. kitchen living room combo, one bedroom and bath with a small pantry for the water heater and washer and dryer. works well for me.
if you like native American flute music look for a guy named R Carlos Nakai. he is awesome. his flute lulls me to sleep every night.
my biggest piece of advise is to not bite off more than you can chew. take things slow and prioritize. don't try to do it all at once because that can doom you to fail. good luck and we will be waiting to hear about your adventures.

 

[Denim Deb]

Ditto to taking things slow. I've seem people try to do it all and more often than not, they fail epically.

 

[Mini Horses]

Even NOW -- 30 + yrs into this, I always want more than I need. So, yesterday the first of the "garden porn" catalogs came. Just shoot me! Thankfully, I have almost all that I want/need for seeds.

Yep, slow is what works better. PLUS, even tho it is more fun and motivating for more than one to do this, often family will be there to begin and not when you need them! So be ready for pep talks among all.

 

[Britesea]

First time I heard R Carlos Nakai was in a small gift shop in Santa Clara. The reason I remember it is because my DS had been acting up and refusing to calm down; I was about to haul him outside and give him a smack. That gorgeous flute came floating out and he calmed right down. You can bet I bought that CD right then and there!

 

[Denim Deb]

Can't say I blame you. I would have done the same thing.

 

[sumi]

Your plans sound wonderful, but like the above said, baby steps and one thing at a time Gardening is is a wonderfully rewarding pastime and the food produced compares to nothing you can buy in the shops. It's just wonderful. Asking local gardeners and also at your local centres will give you great advice and tips for your region. And maybe some seed contacts as well. Plus, if you haven't already, pop in and connect with some local gardeners on our sister site, TheEasyGarden.com

 

[kemps]

Everyone-a quick reply before the individual ones. I am so sorry it took me forever to read and reply. I had a procedure done on Wednesday and I have spent the last few days now either at the doctors, sleeping or packing for our move early December. Thanks everyone for reading and replying. I already know, even before reading what everyone wrote that ya'll gave me awesome advice. You guys are so helpful. I really appreciate it!

 

[Denim Deb]

Hope you're OK, and that your recovery is w/out problems.