rodeogirl's journey to being self-sufficient

[rodeogirl]

I will tell you this master tonic burns but it's gone in a few seconds. My little man hates me now I had him take some. Just half an ounce and I diluted it but it still took him a few minutes to drink it.

 

[sumi]

Mine doesn't thank me for pouring strange things down his throat either! At least yours got it down, mine runs off lol

 

[rodeogirl]

The way I got him to drink it was telling him that if he didn't he would get sick and have to stay home from school. He loves school so that got some of it down.

 

[rodeogirl]

So this is what happens when I'm bored at work.

 

[rodeogirl]

Let's see what has changed in a year my new answers are in red

1. What state/Province/country are you in and what is your climate like?
From Lovell, Wyoming. We have a population of about 3000 so not that small of a town. I'm is pretty much on the foot of the big horn mountains and it also a desert so in the summer it's hot and dry the times we don't get rain and when we do its not that bad. On the winter it's cold and normally we get a good amount of snow but the last 2 years have been unusually warm and dry.
Still in Lovell wyoming but this year we have had a lot more rain and snow.

2. How many people are in your family? Marital status?
I'm a single mother of a "helpful" little boy
Still just me and my little man

3. How would you define self sufficiency?
Being able to support your family through the best and worst times.
Being able to support your family throughthe best and worst times and I also want to be able to help my friends

4. What would you do with your spare time if you had any resources you needed?
Build my Self-sufficient ranch.
Build my Self-sufficient ranch although it's leaning more towards a homestead now

5. Have you ever built a house , or other types of building? Do you want to?
I have helped my family build a huge garage and shed. My plan is to buy land and build mu own house.
I still want to build all of my buildings but now I'm thinking of starting off with a tiny house.

6. Can you weld? Steel, aluminum, MiG, TiG, stick, Oxy-Acet?
nope not at all but I want to learn.
Still can't but I still want to learn.

7. Who or what inspired you to become more self sufficient?
I was raised to be Self-sufficient But having my son got the ball rolling.

8 Cloth or paper?
cloth

9. In what ways are you self sufficient now and in what ways would you like to learn more?
I have my own garden for the amount of room I have. I am getting my hunters safety (yes I'm a 22 year old that grew up in Wyoming and I don't have my hunters safety) so next year I can get meat. I'm also doing my research on raising my own animals for meat.
I still have a garden although it's at a friends house because I don't have the room at my house. And I still don't have my hunters safety things kept coming up and I never got around to it but hopefully this year.

10. In what way(s) will you never choose to become self sufficient?
None that I can think of

11. Are you interested in stocking up for future needs?
I was raised on food storage
I'm also the kind of person that would stock up on feed and hay to help people who need it. I've seen a friend about have to sell his horses because no one would sell him hay.

12. Where do you end up when you sink into yourself, away from the outside world?
The Mountains

13. Can you drive a farm tractor or a semi?
No but I want to learn
I can kinda drive a backhoe now and my little man knows how.

14. Do you make crafts or useful items? Would you want to teach others how to do these?
I make a few things and I will teach anyone that asks.

15. Can you have legally livestock where you are at? Do you have any? What kinds?
I believe we can have chickens in town but I can't at my house.

16. Can you operate a lathe? Metal, wood?
Ya wood
I'm not the best but I can manage.

17. Do you like to garden? If so, what do you enjoy growing?
I love gardening and I will grow anything I can.
I may love gardening and I try to grow everything but I will admit somethings i try to grow don't like me

18. Do you fish? Bait or explosives?
I love fishing but I use bait I'm pretty sure explosive is illegal here.

19. How much space/land do you have or rent? City? Country?
I live in town with about 20 Sq feet of yard and can only use planters.
I still live in town and I still rent but I do have a friend that let me turn about a 12 by 12 foot area of his yard into a garden.

20. Are you a Novice, Technician, General, Advanced? ARRL?
Nope

21. What is your self sufficient specialty? Or what one would you like to learn?
Don't have one and don't know at this point.
Oddly enough I'm actually really good at tracking

22. If you could create a degree and curriculum, what would you major in and what classes would you take?
I dropped out of college it was a waste of my time and money.
I should expand on this the college I went to had the corse I wanted to take but I was learning things that I learned when I was 6 so I didn't see the point. But I might go back and take some business classes.

23. Do you do wood work? framing, finish, cabinet?
I can do some wood work but my step dad has his own company and douse about everything.

24. Are you interested in herbal medicine?
YES YES I AM.
I still am vary interested and am slowly working my way into herbal medicine especially with my son

25. If you could live any place you chose, where would it be?
Up north fork just outside of Yellowstone but I will never be able to afford it.
I still want to live up north fork but I will settle for the big horn mountains

26. Do you use a wood stove for heating or cooking?
I don't right now but I will use it for both.

27. What would your ideal super hero/villain be?
No idea

28. Are your family or friends also interested in self sufficiency?
Yes
I'm actually helping one of my friends get in to self-sufficiency.

29. Do you like to cook? Are you interested in whole foods and natural foods? raw milk? farm fresh eggs?
Yes and yes
I love t ok cook and I try to stay as close to raw foods as I can.

30. What was your MOS?
No idea.

31. Do you forage or hunt for part of your food needs?
I would like to.

32. What skills do you have that help you be more self sufficient?
I can cook make my own blankets I know how to survive up in the mountains and make shelters.
Cooking making my own things survival skills some animal husbandry.

33. In which fictional universe would you most like to live?
I don't know I need to think about it.

34. Do you have solar panels? Plans to use solar energy?
Not now but maybe down the road.
I'm planning on having solar, Hydro and wind energy eventually.

35 What is the mass/weight ratio of a European swallow carrying a coconut from the tropics to England?
Um

36. Have you ever lived completely off grid? Would you like to?
I would love to but I'm dealing with child custody so I can't go off grid yet
I still want to live off grid and now I almost have the lovely child custody stuff taken care of so it's getting closer.

37. In what do you trust?
In god I trust and my guns
In god and my guns but let's be honest mostly my guns

38. Do you make things yourself to save money?
Yes I do

39. Has trying to be more self-sufficient changed your attitude or habits about money/spending
Yep people I work with don't know how I have a savings account.

 

[rodeogirl]

So this is going to be one busy week or month for that matter. With the 2 jobs I'm working most days I go straight from one job to the other. As of right now I have one night off a week and if I'm lucky I don't have to work that day. But I just have to keep telling myself I'm doing this for my little man.

So this Saturday my little man and I are going to a Halloween party with a chili cook off and here is the issue the chili I'm making takes 8 hours to cook and I work all day Friday and till 2 on Saturday. So I'm going to have to stay up late Friday and get it ready for Saturday or wake up early Saturday morning and start it.

 

[sumi]

All your hard work is going to pay off for you in the long run

 

[rodeogirl]

I really should not be left alone. I got bored waiting to go to work after I took my little man to school and this was the outcome

not my best work but it kept me busy for a few hours and I needed a door mat

 

[frustratedearthmother]

That's pretty cool. Is it sewn together or glued or...?

 

[rodeogirl]

This is my next project

I need shelves