Frugal living
Self-Sufficient Living: Advice from Nine Modern Homesteaders
Mother Earth News / Vicki Mattern / February/March 2012
Homesteading experts share their wisdom about seeking self-reliance in rural, suburban and even urban settings. No matter where you live or where you are in your own journey for more sustainable living, these experts’ real-world advice on simple living will give you the inspiration to jump-start your own quest for change.
A growing number of us are shifting our focus homeward, making our homesteads the heart of our life’s work. A desire for job security, concern for the environment, demand for quality food, escalating food and gas prices, hands-on work, and cool things we can learn to do — many or all of these factors are driving the search for more sustainable, self-sufficient living.
Make an Onion Bag Dish Scrubby
Mooberry Farm Homesteading Journal
I've been making these simple little onion bag scrubbies for quite some time. This time, I took some pictures so I could show you the simple process step-by-step.
The recycled onion bag scrubbies are very effective at cleaning, and they are durable, too. I especially love mine for washing up my cast iron pans. A scrubby can last for months! When one gets grungy, I just toss it in the washer with my towels, and then let it air dry. And, I think they are kind of cute!
Cut Cost, Not Quality: How to Afford Better Food
Mother Earth News / Tabitha Alterman / December 2011/January 2012
There’s growing evidence that industrial food just ain’t what it oughta be. Lucky for us, the path to super-nutritious food at affordable prices offers many entry points. We’ll pilot you through the diverse options in this guide to shopping smart and eating better food.
Peak Oil, Energy Descent, and the Fate of Consumerism
Simplicity Institute / Dr. Samuel Alexander / 11 January 2012
This paper reviews the current energy supply situation and considers the fate of consumer lifestyles in the context of an imminent stagnation and eventual decline in oil supplies. The primary purpose of this paper is to outline why the global consumer class should at once begin preparing itself for a significant downscaling of the highly energy and resource intensive lifestyles that are widely celebrated today. Such downscaling is desirable for environmental and social justice reasons, but the present focus will be on how oil supply may soon enforce such downscaling, whether it is desirable or not. While this externally imposed downscaling of lifestyles will be a great and unpleasant cultural shock for all those who do not anticipate it, this paper concludes by considering whether members of the global consumer class could actually benefit from voluntarily embracing a ‘simpler life’ of reduced energy and resource consumption.
Although energy supply issues have the very real potential to cause unprecedented human suffering, it will be argued that, if handled wisely, the forced transition away from energy -- intensive consumer lifestyles (whether due to peak oil, climate change, or broader resource constraints) could actually lead humanity down a more meaningful, just, and sustainable path, such that we should want to choose this path even if it were not to be forced upon us in coming decades. But it is important to understand that we must leave consumer lifestyles before they leave us, for if we wait for them to be taken from us by force of circumstances, the transition beyond them will not be a blessing but a curse.
Save a Million Dollars With a Sustainable Lifestyle
Mother Earth News / David Wann / 21 December 2011
Rather than consumer units, our homes can be units of creativity and productivity that provide a higher percentage of what we need. For example, we can produce rather than consume entertainment, with house concerts or poker games in our own living rooms and backyards. We can be as bold as the current First Family, replacing a chunk of lawn with miniature fruit trees and rows of vegetables. The food we eat can supply both vitality and monetary savings from avoided drugs and expensive medical treatments. (Forty percent of the most prevalent diseases are related to diet, including heart disease, cancer, diabetes, allergies, and depression). Some of our transportation needs can be fueled by carbohydrates from the garden rather than by hydrocarbons from Middle East oil wells. By making a few well-researched choices about energy and water efficiency, we can cut our utility bills by a third. With this new, more sensible way of thinking, we can easily imagine avoiding a million dollars of expenses per household over the course of a lifetime, and enjoying many more hours of leisure.
Home-based Business Opportunities
Mother Earth News
Home-based businesses in the town, suburbs or on the farm can be just as lucrative as office or factory jobs. Whether you are interested in gardening, crafts, DIY projects or personal service jobs, home based businesses offer the freedom to work from home at your own pace and to be your own boss.
In the articles below are stories of home business successes in many fields – gardening, home repair, office work, teaching, and arts and crafts of all kinds. There are also a few tales of home business failures and bumps in the road to learn from. And the advent of the Internet age has ushered in a whole new niche for online home-based jobs.
With a modest investment in time, energy and money, you can work from home and own your own business.
Less Chewing Equals More Eating (And Other Food Industry Secrets)
Mother Earth News / David A. Kessler, M.D. / 02 November 2011
U.S. Department of Agriculture data show that today we're eating more of everything, and the prevalence of cheap, processed foods is the prime culprit. In addition to their paltry nutritional value, processed foods disappear down our throats so quickly that they fail to leave us feeling satisfied. The result? More eating. Here are just a few of the ways the savvy, profit-hungry food industry has tapped the science of eating to exploit our appetite and, ultimately, harm our health.
