[Kubotakidd]

Agree.

[RayR]

Totally agree with you….but I would add another level of freedom – Freedom of spirit/heart. Unless people try to be free of entanglements in their heart/mind/soul then there are aspects of homesteading that can be just as limiting and binding to a person as being a wage slave. And when the system implodes, this might just be the most important freedom any of us have, given the potential consequences.

[Barred-Rock-or-Brahma]

Physical and spiritual fitness, and mental resilience.

We can enslave ourselves more completely than any external factors ever could.

[potpourri_of_life]

I would like to learn more about your energy stores

[TagNBee]

I have a solar video on my YouTube page. I will get it posted here

[Barred-Rock-or-Brahma]

https://youtu.be/t3g8P2GLkfchttps://youtu.be/t3g8P2GLkfc

Great video, and your setup looks great too. How long do you expect those batteries and panels to last? Freedom is priceless, but replacing that stuff every 10 years vs every 25 years is definitely a planning/budgeting consideration for me.

[TagNBee]

Panels 25-30 years, batteries 15-20. We add a battery or 2 every year in order to keep a healthy rotation.

[Barred-Rock-or-Brahma]

When I did my napkin math, I broke down the monthly cost of replacing an entire $54k system every 10 and every 25 years ($450 and $180 p/mo). Only changing out the batteries and pannels is significantly less expensive.

If you have 10 batteries that last an average of 17.5 years at $2,500 per, then they cost about $120 per month. Your 10.5kW worth of panels cost a bit under $3,000, and assuming they last an average of 27.5 years, will end up running you less than $10 per month.

So even thought the initial investment looks like a lot of money, when broken down by month and compared to me depending on grid power that could be taken away or double in price at any time, you’re paying much less than I am.

Thanks for the video. I’d still prefer to live where I can have a natural gas well on my property, but I guess solar might be an option if that doesn’t work out.

[TagNBee]

This is a great post. we need to start an alternative energy discussion in forums. I will get one up. I love the way you think

[Jillian]

I’m a literal person and need things spelled out sometimes. I love that you did the math on that. I read it twice and took a picture to show my husband.

[Barred-Rock-or-Brahma]

Happy to help!

[KimC]

Can you please clarify that? When I was researching systems, I was told that all batteries needed to be replaced at once together otherwise the new batteries will be pulled down to the level of the remaining existing batteries and you will never get full life out of them. Perhaps this is not the case for all types of batteries? Or I misunderstood, which is entirely possible. Thanks!

[TagNBee]

Depends on the type of battery. You are correct in regards to a lead acid battery. A lithium battery you could just add another

[potpourri_of_life]

Keeping my focus on looking at a way to move out of the suburbs. That is the final step for my husband and I. We are doing well on our 1/4 acre lot, yet we realize that we need to make steps, in faith and God’s direction. Need to connect with like minded individual to tribe with.

[HomesteadItch]

I’m on a 1/4 of an acre, too. Doing my best. Looking for land so that my family and I can free ourselves from the system. I wish you prayers.

[HoneysGarden]

This is just a thought – but with strong indications of a real estate collapse, probably before the end of the year, my thought would be to sit tight if you can, and look for an opportunity in the aftermath. Also – a youtuber who goes by iAllegedly has a site that lists pending and current foreclosures – http://www.foreclosures.com ; I believe it’s a subscription-type service, but my thinking is . . . you might be able to buy something by paying off the mortgage and giving the owner a bit of their equity, while still getting a steep discount on the actual market value. I’m afraid there WILL be people who have been in their homes for many years, but will be blindsided by inflationary pressures and rising energy costs, to where it’s either eat and keep the heat on, or pay the mortgage.

[TagNBee]

Im afraid your right. the good news is some great opportunity .The bad is innocent people will be devastated.

[Wilburs-Place]

I am the owner of a real estate brokerage and property management company operating in the state of Virginia. I strongly agree with your thoughts. Just a little insight based on decades of experience: typically the fall/winter is the best time to purchase residential real estate/land. Owners who have had their property listed for an extended period of time are more open to negotiations at the end of the year. That being said, in this current economy, unless you are prepared to negotiate with a low cash offer, NOW IS NOT THE TIME TO BUY! For all other buyer prospects that require financing, hold tight! The market is making a turn. The housing market will crash. It will be in your best interest to hold the line where you are until the prices bottom out. While you wait, sell everything you possibly can! Get out of debt! Cut your cable and other subscription services. Adopt a minimalist lifestyle and Bank some cash. Be ready to capitalize on the extraordinary foreclosure market that is on the way! Spend your time preparing now. It will be well worth it.

[Clairvoyant-Countess]

Excellent advice!

[coyotech]

My mom is asking me to look for property here, near me. I started looking at the listings today … wow. I sure bought my land at a good time, 3 years ago. I bought 10 acres of raw land in an area where property prices were fairly low. I was able to pay it off in a year, on social security, and move and start building my place on the land. Now I see small lots selling for twice as much as mine, and raw land like mine selling for 3 times as much. However, my place isn’t far enough along to move mom in. My mom is in her 80s and wants a small house that’s already set up and livable, although not fancy. There’s nothing below $120,000 so far. So if these predictions are true about the property prices tanking by the end of the year, maybe it’s worthwhile holding off on buying something.

[SLINGSHOT]

Would it be possible to maybe set up a nice camper on your property for your mother. I don’t know her physical or mental condition but someone in their 80’s paying a lot of money for a house might be little much. Unless you would maybe inherit said property later. I just don’t know all the variables involved.

[coyotech]

Mom is in pretty good physical health, although she has trouble walking in rough terrain and more than a couple of stairs would be hard. What’s bothering her is her memory and focus – alzheimers. She’s better some days than others, and can still drive when she’s feeling sharp and the traffic isn’t heavy. I suspect it would be beneficial to move to a more peaceful area and a less stressful situation, where she could get out and meet people and do some things. She lives in southern California with her husband and his son now, and
with her husband’s failing health, she’s feeling like a 3rd wheel there. It’s hard on her. Unlike me, she is outgoing!

I would need to take care of her business, paying the bills, keeping things fixed and all that. It should be in easy reach for me, but where she could still get out and about pretty easily, or at least have some good neighbors close by for socializing. My place is still a little rugged. If it were here, I’d need to find something like a small mobile home and move it in, and get propane, power, water etc to her, and build a fence where she could have a dog of her own, and passing creatures (and my dogs) wouldn’t bother her. We were hoping for something already set up and comfortable, but not elaborate. We would both own it, although it would be her place. I would inherit it.

I don’t yet know the details of what she could afford or not afford, what price range she needs and all that. So while $120,000 for a little old place in a poor county seems way too much to me, she might be expecting that.

[Toni]

Great topic to discuss, I agree! I like your list, although I think you forgot to list the actual first thing you did in terms of actually moving in the direction of living as a free man; owning your own power to think and decide for yourself was the first actual action you took. It’s not a trivial point either. In my opinion, slavery is a state of mind long before it becomes a state of being in the tangible world. Same goes for freedom. “As a man thinks, so is he.” I also think a person’s mindset is one of the very hardest things to change in terms of actionable items.

All men and women have four basic powers that few are ever aware of. The power to think. The power to feel. The power to speak. The power to act. To the best of my knowledge, these are the essential and only powers we have and/or need to take responsibility for and own in order to live a life done free. It often seems so much easier to pin the blame on others, however, doing so comes at a high price.

There is a famous saying (roughly paraphrasing here)- A man is as happy as he makes up his mind to be. Was it Mark Twain who said that? I suggest the same is true of being free – a man is as free as he makes his mind up to be. You’ve obviously made up your mind to be, and now look what you’ve gone and done… Made it possible for me and all the rest of us here to ponder the same ideal.

Thank you. Thank you for that.

[Jypsy19]

Wow Toni, that response was so true and awesome. Rock on The Freedom train.

Thanks for sharing

[Squashmania]

I can totally get behind that with an AMEN brother! Well said Tony

[PetraTilling]

Amen!

[NewDayFarm]

Beautiful and Powerful answer!

[TagNBee]

Toni, you’re a rock star. Couldn’t agree more. I guess once I made the decision I just drove on. I haven’t looked back to enjoy that memory. Thank you

[Toni]

Funny how that works, isn’t it?

[TagNBee]

To Toni’s point, The mental part of being free is the first step. Taking control of your own life and taking accountability for your own needs. The decision was hard but once I made it , I didn’t look back. For me the hardest part was the fear that I could do it. How would I pay the bills? how would I provide health insurance for my family? Would I be successful?

What are some of your fears?

[Squashmania]

My fears are being a basically single steader, and getting myself out of a jam. If I fall or get hurt on the property and no one knows to look for me. I’d rather not be fitted for low jack. I almost put the very big ZT mower in the pond, and when I called the husband (on the other side of town with the keys to the 4×4 truck in the driveway with him). I said I needed HELP right now. He swore at me and hung up. So I blocked the mower’s tires with firewood and went to the hardware store and some compound ratchet straps, a cable with hooks on both ends, and two come alongs attached to some walnut trees later, and the mower came right up the hill and away from the pond. Booyah! Sisters are doin’ it for themselves. And when you are hateful to your mate, be ye male or female, you have to sleep sometime. Choose wisely.

[Jillian]

That’s awesome! Good for you. I have similar fears as I do a lot more homesteading than my husband. Our land has no cell phone signal for 5 miles. When I’m about to go down there, I call a friend and say where I’m going to be and if they haven’t from me in the next couple hours to call 911. (Totally serious about that) I have forgotten to check in and she shows up yelling that she though I was dead in a ditch. It helps me feel more settled. My husband doesn’t understand and I often get the eye roll as well.

[Squashmania]

I could do that and tell my 84 yr old one legged neighbor …really. I think i am headed to a lawyer this week to possibly begin dissolution proceedings. I am so torn.

[Jillian]

I’m sorry to hear that.I would totally help you if I were near you.

Although, my husband used to not help at all and now he helps when I ask. I have to celebrate the wins. He was laid off last week. The one thing I wasn’t worried about was feeding my kids. He sleeps in and spends hours on his phone on FB. Meanwhile, I haven’t stopped. He looked up from his phone Thursday wanting to know what was wrong. I blinked because there was nothing wrong. He just never realized how much I did in a day. His excuse to not clear our home/ garden site at our new property was he didn’t have a tractor. We went down there together and he looked at all the wood I had cleared and asked how I did it. I had moved a little bit at a time by hand each time I drove down there.

Now, he’s a bit more motivated. I think it was a mindset thing. Sometimes we simply have to lead by example. It just takes longer for some people to get there than others. Hang in there. You’ve got this.

[JulieDogmom]

At least your husband woke up and got motivated. That’s a win any day. My ex has been and still is like your husband use to be. I’m done trying with him. I’ve done everything for over two years. When he is in town he sleeps and plays on his phone. When he on the road (when he’s even working) he doesn’t even act like I exist. I haven’t gotten an alimony payment in over 4 months and had to liquidate 99% of my physical assets to keep the bills paid while he was out of work for 3 months and got fired after only 2 weeks at a new company. I’ve had more than I can handle with the narcissistic victim mentality. Since he’s already an ex, I don’t have the same concern as @Squashmania about the decision for dissolution. I just have to spend the time and effort taking him back to court to get my $10k back + future alimony payments for the next year (that’s when it’s due to end)

[Squashmania]

I really feel for you Julie. He sounds like he was and is a real challenge. I came to this site looking for a tribe. I don’t make friends easily and have a busy job with lots of on-call. Still hoping for a mag in my area. Take good care of yourself.

[JulieDogmom]

I commented to also let you know that you’re not alone. I understand what you’re going through and I feel for you too.

He’s definitely been a real challenge for more than 5 years, but he wasn’t always like this. For over 20 years he was a decent caring human being. The only advice I can offer based on experience is 1. take care of yourself and your needs first. Especially now, self care is extremely important. 2. Don’t dwell on what was. Forgive the harm that was done, let it go/give it to God and move forward (this was a particular challenge I had to overcome) 3. You’ve already proven to yourself that you can do this. You’ve made some great accomplishments in the face of difficult challenges. You’ve got this. And you’re on this platform too, so you’re definitely not alone. The support available is amazing.

[Squashmania]

I am leading by example as well, for septic clean out, cistern clean out, new roof, new chimney liner , new gutters. All me. All cash. I am charging him rent, and he has a good job, and usually gets a check to me by the 15th ( my requested date).

[JulieDogmom]

Oh. my. goodness. I can relate to this on SOOOO many levels. Thank you!

[Unknown Member]

Like Toni, I believe you missing some things for Freedom. It does however depend on what your definition of freedom is. If your definition of Freedom included any version of self-reliance (from the American philosopher Ralph Emerson) it would mean the ability to speak and act freely without outside influence. Another thought of freedom, if you wish, would use the declaration of independence where the founders broadly defined unalienable rights: Life, Liberty and the pursuit of happiness and further defined by the bill of rights.

Most people even here think freedom is “stuff” based but are (even as they read this) most are less then 10ft from their phone. A phone which acts as a personal tracking device for both commercial and governmental purposes. One of my friends in this area had a 13-year-old girl who was grounded for her phone last month by her mom and committed suicide over it. The addiction and control these things have on your life is real and being independent of the grid or water system doesn’t change this. People self-censor their thoughts and now shunning someone by turning off their main communications means is right their waiting for your enemy to be in the position to do it to you (both government and private). Additionally, shutting off ones ability to spend money using similar control is right there too and growing more intrusive all the time (think Canadian truckers, max US account withdrawal and cash transport limits, etc). I bring this up because it is not the money that is gone, it is your ability to communicate that it is yours and is transferable that was killed. If you choose to ignore these topics you’re just a slave with some momentary physical sheltering (or open-air cage) still feeding the very system, you say your escaping from. One told me “but I am using the system against itself” as they are making their daily purchases at the Home Depot, amazon, and Tractor supply and using google to search for raw milk laws. You invited the devil for dinner and do not even know his name. He knows where you been, who your friends are, that you prefer black panties and Glocks. What would Sun Tzu say (Art of War)? The thing is when the system thinks you are more than the gnat you are they will flick you off like a Cliven Bundy or Lavoy Finicum. My guess is that is when they need a scapegoat for economic or other reasons. Remember they control the narrative so do not expect to be dealing with charges like child molester or wife beater not something with public sympathy or GoFundMe policy worthy.

Step one is admit there is a problem of Freedom in control or continue enjoying the light chains that have you bound until the day they tighten. Step two find alternate ways for your communications that are less visible to people that don’t want you to be a success. Although it could be helpful in this, I am not talking amateur radio. Think physical meetups and writing letters (like US postal service or friend delivered stuff). Step three, recognize and limit your data trail. Step four, well that is for later because this is too long already… 😊

[Squashmania]

Never deal your enemy a minor blow. My fav Sun Tzu

[TagNBee]

There are many things missing, exactly why I wanted the discussion. You have so much to contribute moe. Happy you are here.

[Unknown Member]

Thanks Tag. 🙂

[SilverLining]

Lots of wisdom in your words Moe. Definitely words to be earnestly considered.

[Andrew-Lisa]

I really like the idea of the alternative energy discussion, there is a lot of knowledge here for that. Getting ready to tackle a fairly large solar system myself.

[Toni]

Okay, so now to answer the actual question you asked, what else can we do to live a life done free…

This might be a controversial topic, however, it is true for me in terms of being part of my journey in becoming more free each day to the best of my ability. It’s not going to be for everyone and I understand that. For me, and many others actually, taking responsibility for my own and my family’s health care was perhaps the most freeing aspect of all. I do not personally have health care insurance anymore because I do not choose to participate in the current paradigm of what ‘healthcare’ actually consists of.

It took many hours and much research, not to mention fair chunk of change, to learn how to maintain a healthy physical body. What I learned challenged to the core of my being everything I once believed on the topic. I ultimately came to reject germ theory entirely (the THEORY the current mainstream medical cartel was built upon ) and to embrace what is loosely called terrain theory instead. The Bible also has a fair bit to say about this. As a result, the whole rona production hasn’t caused so much as a flinch for me or my family. This well researched decision has spared my family all the fear that so many have experienced for the most recent few years. I haven’t taken any synthetic pharmaceuticals for at least ten years now, to include aspirin or tylenol and can’t imagine ever doing so again for any reason at all whatsoever. To me, that is freedom.

So, listed in short form as your original list was, mine would look like this

1) Thought

2) Debt

3) Energy

4) Water

5) Health

Like you guys, also, our list will, no doubt, expand.

[Jillian]

I love that Thought is at the top of your list. Until I saw it, it hadn’t occurred to me that freedom of thought would even need to be mentioned. But we as a society are constantly bombarded with shiny new everything with easy monthly payments so you can buy more.

My biggest obstacle is getting other people to acknowledge that there is another way. I have so many people tell me, I can’t live without debt. My answer is there must be a way. It’s in the Bible, The debtor is a slave to the lender. Yet it is the very people beside me on the pew, telling me they love my ambition, but debt is inevitable. Why do more people not realize it is a choice?

It’s mentally and emotionally exhausting explaining to people why I refuse to get a construction loan and why I spend so much time in my garden when it would be faster to just go to the store. It’s a choice one has to make freely for his/herself.

[PetraTilling]

I agree 100% Toni. This is very high on my list as I have been “chronically ill” for more than a decade and am only now really understanding my ability to heal myself using the gifts all around me. The belief is the freedom and thus, all things follow.

I would like to connect and hear more about how you transitioned yourself off of pharmaceuticals as this is something I’d like to do.

[coyotech]

Health care does seem to be a sticking point for many people. We grew up thinking only doctors, hospitals and modern medicine could save us. I don’t have health insurance or a doctor, either. I’ve used herbs, supplements, various home cures, etc for me and all my animals for many years. We’re all much healthier that way. I have a couple of fairly serious problems carried over from my misspent youth and middle age, and even those I can fix up quickly myself. I know almost everyone here who does their own medicine could say the same.

[Mottshillhomestead]

i started trading 20 dozen eggs a week with 2 local large you-pick-it farms in exchange for produce, totally eliminated the need to plant afall garden tis year.the rewards are awsome.

[Farm-Ranch-Homestead]

This philosophy could also be used for their scrap/unsalable produce. This could be turned into compost or fertilizer by way of feeding animals, such as chickens or pigs. Feed the scraps to the animals, and they provide the fertilizer!

[Mottshillhomestead]

they give it to me to feed my pigs,and goats .