What kind of SS are you?

[bibliophile birds]

To be more SS, this spring I would like to grow my colonies through swarms rather than purchasing packages.

plus, it's a lot more fun! and satisfying. good luck!

Actually, I said that, but when Beekissed realizes her dream of beekeeping, she may very well feel that way, too.

wow, how in the world did i do that? beekissed didn't even have a response near yours... must remember not to post to the forum when i'm working. i've apparently lost my ability to multi-task!

 

[hikerchick]

plus, it's a lot more fun! and satisfying. good luck!

Actually, I said that, but when Beekissed realizes her dream of beekeeping, she may very well feel that way, too.

wow, how in the world did i do that? beekissed didn't even have a response near yours... must remember not to post to the forum when i'm working. i've apparently lost my ability to multi-task!

I was wondering where that quote came from, too, and scanned the thread looking to see where Bee had posted.

My conclusion was that I was losing my mind.

I am so glad it's not me.

 

[2dream]

All good post and interesting. To me SS is about the things we are all doing. Learning to take care of ourselves more sufficiently.
I still grocery shop for lots of things. But because I also grow a lot of things in the garden and freeze and can them I don't have as much to buy. I still drive my car because I still work. I love all the easy convenient things that are available to me. But.....I could do without them if I had to and just make do. As Gina said. Because of all the helping hands here I have knowledge of lots of skills that I would not have had without you folks.

So to the OP - I am probably what you would call a Dedicated Dabbler.

 

[SKR8PN]

I have to consider myself an "experienced dabbler"
We garden and preserve everything we grow. We also purchase beef and pork that is locally grown(very close neighbors) so we can be SURE of what we get. We can and freeze beef and pork. We grind our own sausage and hamburger and chicken. We even make our own ultra low sodium smoked bacon. We have chickens, for now just for eggs, but we are going to grow some boilers in the spring. I hunt and provide venison during the season which we also can or freeze. I smoke anything that will fit in the smoker.
I am very mechanically inclined, so I also rebuild totaled autos(for us and for resale) and repair other peoples "junk". I have not had a car payment since 1978. Our house is paid for and we have no debt other than insurance and utilities.
I would LOVE to have more land so that we could raise our own meat, maybe even milk a goat or two. Going off the grid has been a life long dream, but the older I get, the less I see that ever becoming reality............ So for now we do the best we can with what we have been blessed with.

Peace out.

 

[dacjohns]

Wifezilla, it just goes to show what you can do right in your own back yard. This was in southern Ca. Not the norm thats for sure.

g

I know things change over the years, especially with city ordinances generally becoming more restrictive.

When I lived in Vista, pre 1971, we had a garden in the back yard and rabbits.

 

[dacjohns]

Let me just throw something in here real quick.

Pat said it well.

My thoughts, pretty similar to Pat's are:

The continuum. At one end is totally dependent, picture a newborn baby that cannot do anything for itself. At the other end, totally self sufficient. Does not rely on anyone for anything. Does not buy anything or trade for anything. Produces ALL of own food, clothing, shelter, transportation, everything.

We talk about self sufficiency but we really mean self reliance. To be self sufficient includes growing your own grain if you eat grain based foods. Producing your own salt, sugar, spices, etc.

Being off the grid is not self sufficient. What do you do if you have problems with your solar panels, if you use solar panels?

Now I've lost my train of thought.

I would suggest that most of us are near the middle of the continuum but are striving towards more self reliance.

 

[me&thegals]

I consider it "opting out" or going against "the system." I have decided that the current food system is complete crap, so I have learned how to opt out of it as much as possible and will probably continue to push in that direction.

I think the culture of buying everything new, and lots of it, using it and tossing it is unacceptable, so I'm going against the typical system.

Etc., etc.,

To me, a lot of self sufficiency is about saying, "You know what? Just cuz everybody else does it this way does not mean I have to." The more you do differently, the more you see can be done differently.

I believe that I am seeing around me a real groundswell of people fed up with the status quo and seeking other ways. I think Michael Pollan's books have helped and Food, Inc., King Corn. It's crazy. You start hearing the lingo all over the place, like EVERYbody knows now that corn is in every single thing in America, for one example. People are starting to get it, at least in my tiny corner of Earth.

 

[Beekissed]

How about I actually POST a response on here, just to avoid all confusion!

I too think the term self-sufficient is a pretty stringent definition of even living off-grid. Very few people, I imagine, live totally off the land like the Indians used to do.

I think self-reliance is a more apt term to define what most people of our ilk are striving for....less reliance on systems that are prone to failure, may be unavailable in the future, or are just may be out of price range in this economy.

I used to be in the off-grid faction, which back then didn't mean you had a grid of your own either. I would really have to call it "no-grid"! We did use some propane to fuel an old Servel fridge later on, and gas for chainsaws, tractors and vehicles.

Now I just want to be more prepared for the possibilities of what the future may bring. I also enjoy the lifestyle of needing less of what everyone else seems to need...sort of makes me feel one step ahead of the game~which has not been a big part of my life all these years....I was rather more 10 miles behind the game or, even, what game?? I was so far behind, I thought I was first!

I feel a strong urgency lately to spend less, produce more at home, renew the old skills and the old habits of making do, scaling down, living closer to the earth and the seasons, even to walking on faith instead of running in the rat race.

I don't think it has so much to do with money or the lack thereof anymore. It has more to do with a strong yearning to slow down the time, smell, feel and see the world around me and how I fit into it, to feel a oneness and a purpose that involves just living. Being up to greet the sunrise and having all the work done by nightfall, of sowing the seeds on time and having the harvest in before it's too late. The simple pleasure of making something useful with my hands and eating foods that taste like food used to taste.

I also love the smell, sight and feel of farm animals and the feeling that you can breed them, tend them and produce more food for your family....what a wonderful system!

I don't know if all that even makes sense, as I am slightly giddy tonight....but, to answer the OP question: I am building knowledge, developing my land/resources, gathering materials and tools,and making a general, steady slide towards self-reliance and am hovering on the edge. If push comes to shove, I hope to be, and am willing to be, ready to fly into that old familiar territory.

 

[hikerchick]

I am reading such great answers here. YOu are a very thoughtful group.

 

[Wifezilla]

I still drive my car because I still work.

The economy could completely collapse, civilization could crumble, and I would STILL find a way to take SOMETHING for a drive! I LOVE IT!