Homesteading for 3000 dollars | General Homesteading Discussion | Forums

when i read this, i immediately got the mental picture of hugh jackman living in the texas desert in the movie swordfish. hot, dusty, alone, and in desperate need of a shower. i have to be honest, though. i only read 30 of the 38 page article. between the typos, the disorganization of the article, and the author's tone, i couldn't finish the whole thing.

i can't figure out if this guy is really trying to push the boundaries of living frugally, or if he wrote this to rationalize why he lives one step above the third world. i really get the impression that he lives on so little so he doesn't have to pay much child support or lives like a hermit because he just doesn't like people in general.

i think if you're a hermit, interested in self sufficiency, then the author has some good ideas. i would have a hard time getting my wife on board with this lifestyle. i think i know why the author is divorced.

also, i enjoy some creature comforts and i don't see that as a character flaw, but i suspect the author would see them as frivolous. i probably don't NEED running water, but i enjoy a hot shower now and then. i've planned for contingencies if our source of fresh water is interrupted, but i don't care to live that way every day.

i guess at the core, i don't agree with the author's definition of homesteading or self-sufficiency. i agree that we should be able to provide food, water and shelter for ourselves, but i think his definition lacks any sense of community. i can't make everything i need for myself. i need a network of other like-minded people to barter with, purchase from, or learn new skills. at the end of the day i enjoy sitting on the back deck with friends and family, not sitting alone in the dark counting the pennies i've saved or snickering at all the sheeple who don't live like me. the other night was a perfect example of my definition of HOMEsteading. i was sitting on the deck with my wife and in-laws watching the sun go down, a chill in the air, sipping a brown ale i brewed myself, with my lab keeping my feet warm, while the sounds of my daughter playing the piano wafted from the living room. i think at the end of the day living well is just as important as living frugally, and i don't see the author as someone who lives well.