What are we doing to be more self-sufficient?

In these uncertain times there is much discussion about becoming self-sufficient.  Not since the Great Depression have we, as a society, had to relearn how to be self-sufficient.  I have heard stories from my family elders about having to eat pickled tumbleweeds because there was nothing else while trying to survive the depression and the Dust Bowl.  We have improved our technology and farming techniques.  The Internet gives us unprecedented access to information and people around the globe.  This will make it easier to become self-sufficient.

I am a member of a number of homesteading groups online.  While most focus on rural living, they contain much good information for us city dwellers who wish to turn our lush lawn into a productive mini-farm.  There are many things other than gardening that are to be learned as well.  Things like soap making, or wine/beer/mead making,  canning and preserving the food that is produced in the garden, and candle making.  There are so many things that can be done to be more self-sufficient.

Here at Wodhof we have taken up many hobbies that are leading us toward a more simple life of self-sufficiency and sustainability.  We have a ways to go, but we have come so far.  It is like that old saying "the more I know, the more I realize how much more there is to learn."  At this point in our lives, I still have to keep my job in the auto glass industry  to pay the bills.  In our spare time we recently have been consumed by getting the garden planted.  This will continue into June, at which point we will switch to maintenance.  Needless to say, the we hope the workload will not be as intense during the heat of summer.  Later this year we will make and bottle beer and mead.  Sy makes jewelery to sell to support our projects.  We have begun making our own bread regularly now instead of only for special occasions.  We have also started growing our own sprouts for our salad habit.  For a few dollars investment you can get sprouting jars and seeds and simply plant on successive days and you can have fresh sprouts all of the time.  We reuse or recycle everything we can.  We have a healthy compost pile going.

There are things we are planning as well, but for various reasons we are not ready to start just yet.  We want to raise rabbits for meat and pelts.  We would like to have a couple of chickens for eggs this year.  Because we live in an unincorporated area of the county we can have rabbits and a couple of chickens, but no roosters.  By next year we hope to have a small greenhouse so that we can grow herbs and such for our use and for sale or barter.  With over 300 days of sunshine a year we can grow year round in a green house.  

A concept worth relearning is thrift.  We are working toward being debt-free and saving where we can.  Thrift does not mean always buying the low price.  Quite often the low price equals low quality.  The goal for us is to find value for a fair price.  Value comes when a company or individual gives you more in quality or service than their competitor.  For instance, in my work, when I install a windshield I also wash all the other windows on the vehicle and vacuum out the vehicle.  My competitors complain that "we are not a detail shop."  My customers know that if they come to me they may pay a little more, but they are getting a job done right and that I am going to go out of my way to create extra value for them.  That is why they keep coming back.  That is why I reward those who give value and quality with my business.

Another way we have worked to become more self sufficient at Wodhof is to take responsibility for our health and consumer habits.  Gone are the cigarettes, the sugar-laden soda, and most of the fast food.  Replaced with organic free-range meat, salads, and natural teas.  Iced tea has taken on a whole new flavor.  I quit smoking in February 2008.  I gave up a two liter a day Mountain Dew habit for Yule 2008.  I have started taking lunch to work instead of going to lunch from work.  Saves on gas and cholesterol.  While I still eat some fast food, I try to find healthier alternatives to McCrap.  It is time for us to take responsibility for our health, because when we consume crap, we cannot help but spew crap.  

I guess it comes down to personal responsibility.  Just as the addict can change by living one day at a time, society can become self-sufficient one person and one family at a time.