Real Happiness

Once you decide to live the simple life there is something you need to ponder. Here it is... There is a difference between pleasure and happiness. Pleasure is tricky and here's why. A drug addict gets pleasure when he or she is doing the drug, but is definitely not happy trying to find more money to get the next fix.

Spending too much on the credit card brings pleasure when shopping, but when the bill comes in the mail you won't be happy nor will you be happy working to pay that bill for a long time to come. Happiness on the other hand doesn't seen to come as quickly as pleasure , but it brings more satisfaction. Moving to our land and starting our homestead which includes building our log cabin by ourselves, that has taken 3 years so far, but I can say we have never been happier. It's like we figured it out for ourselves that stuff doesn't make a person happy. You know you have heard it before and so had we, but until we put it into practice we had no idea how it really feels.

Now my husband and I would take happiness and satisfaction over pleasure any day. I think a lot of good people have gotten caught up in the pursuit of pleasure which is so fleeting and have lost their way. We should all get back to the basics and find joy and happiness in our lives again.If you need a little encouragement and would like to see some of the projects taking place on our homestead. We would love to encourage everyone to pursue the homesteading lifestyle.

Happy Homesteading

Becky's Homestead 18: How To Build a Log Cabin Part 2

In part two of this two part series, Becky talks about how to build a log cabin yourself. She discusses the roof, framing, electrical and plumbing.

Becky's Homestead 17: How To Build a Log Cabin Part 1

In part one of this two part series, Becky talks about how to build a log cabin yourself. She discusses the foundation and logs.

Becky's Homestead 16: Garden Tips

In this episode, Becky shows you how to grow a successful garden, including tomatoes, squash and flowers. She talks about fertilizer, pest control, and seeds.

(Here is a good Heirloom Seed website. -Scott)

Becky's Homestead 15: Flowers and Feedback

In this episode Becky has a special report from John Flowers of www.LifeZero.org. John gives us a tour of his Life Zero apartment. Becky also reads your letters.

THIS IS SHOW #: 115

Having skills and ability are valuable.

Moving to the country and starting a homestead means we will be learning new skills.

Develop a healthy sense of humor. I really mean that because it's hard to do things you have never done before. Let me tell you from experience you don't develop a new skill from one try. That's where the sense of humor will be handy. Skills as simple as growing vegetables, Cooking all home cooked meals, Keeping a few chickens for eggs and heating with a wood stove and care of that stove all seem simple but require skills largely lost in today's society. These are simple skills that add great value because they make us more self sufficient.

Here is one silly little test to see how self sufficient you are. I use cooking because we all need to eat. OK pretend POOF no more electricity. How would you cook? What would you cook in? Could you build a camp fire and cook outside? Do you have cast iron and enamelware pots and pans? or is everything plastic microwavable and dishwasher safe? Good question. Maybe we can balance that out. It couldn't hurt. If you couldn't buy everything, What could you make? Bread? Soap? Butter? Do you have the tools required to make these simple things? Do you have the skills? I like to think about water also. What would your water source be? Would you have to depend on someone else? I don't want to come across as crazy, but these are questions a self sufficient homesteader has to ask. This doesn't mean anti social because homesteaders are friendly and neighborly.

Happy Homesteading.

-Becky

Starting Your Home Garden

In this episode Becky visits the library and speaks to the Librarian and Master Gardener, Patty. Becky and Patty talk about books for the homesteader, starting seeds, and they answer questions from the audience.

#114