Tuesday, December 1, 2015

Favorite blogs, websites, books etc

Lets get a good list going!

33 comments:

  1. Anonymous has left a new comment on your post "Favorite blogs, websites, books etc":

    New reader here. Found you thru Google after a wisening up about a situation. Anyway, my fave book is Women Who Run With The Wolves by Clarissa Pinkola Estrs, PhD. Required reading for women! Thanks -K



    Posted by Anonymous to Meredith et al. at December 1, 2015 at 8:40 PM

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    1. Yes! Need to find my copy and reread.

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    2. Love that book. Read it so many times my copy is in awful shape.

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  3. Is this a general list or more farm/homestead related?

    I really enjoy Michael Perry. Especially his books Population 485, Truck: A Love Story, and Coop. His writing is funny and genuine.

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  4. There is a kind thank you to any of you who may have recently made your way to Heart of the Home blog, whose author commented here the other day after realizing who jw is.

    Check out her remarks. I am not she but have been going to her lovely blog for some time now after finding her on CAF.

    http://heartofhomefarm.blogspot.com/

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    1. Thanks for bringing this message to us. I read her blog too and love it. She is a very kind and thoughtful woman who has a lot of good information out there for homesteaders.

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    2. I'm really enjoying going through her posts as well. She has a sweet genuine spirit about her that conveys in her writing.

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    3. You all honor me. Thank you. I am beside myself with gratitude.

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  5. I loved Coop. My favorite books this past year were- Chickens in the Road by Suzanne McMinn (she has a blog too), Growing a Farmer by Kurt Timmermeister and Growing a Feast by Kurt Timmermeister. I would love to meet Kurt in real life. I also found Robin Mathers book The Feast Nearby to be not only educational but also empowering for women. Blogs- The Elliott Homestead, The Easy Homestead, Attainable Sustainable, and Esther Emery (her and her family live in a yurt and also homestead).

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    1. Oooh...yurt living. Very interested in that one.

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    2. Have read and enjoyed the books you recommended. Glad to be reminded I'd love to read them again from.

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    3. I will never again read Suzanne McMinn. She once had a donkey (or mule?) go missing on her farm and NEVER looked for him or found him, that I know of. She pretty much said he must have gone down somewhere in her 20 acre field and it was too large to search, but she'd probably find him (his body) come spring. Pathetic!

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    4. Is chickens in the road ohiofarmgirl?

      I think I looked at her blog before and was dismayed by the lack of care her animals receive.

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    5. No, Chickens in the Road is Suzanne McMinn. Ohiofarmgirl's blog is Adventures in the Goodland (or something like that). OFG takes good care of her animals. Suzanne's animals are always dirty, muddy, and pens are unkempt. She is lazy about their care and tries to say that's how it is on farms. Um, no. No decent farmer would EVER be missing an animal and not go find it. What a disgusting thing to do.

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    6. Got it. Ok. Yes...I totally agree about chickens in this road. Not sure why I connected the two.

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  6. You Tube Appalachia's Homestead. Blog Assortment

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    1. I love the Appalachian mountains. I'll Check it out!

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  7. Two of my favorite blogs (both Australian!) are milkwood.net and littleecofootprints.com

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  8. Well I have spoken a bunch of times about

    The Elliott Homestead

    Appalachia's Homestead

    Starry Hilder..You tube

    Another one:

    Our Half Acre Homestead..You-tube..tons and tons and tons of videos on harvesting,canning,cooking,baking..kind of the old school method on a lot of things.

    The American Homestead..You-tube..They live totally off grind and their set up is amazing.

    Hope that helps!

    Sonya

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  9. http://wholelarderlove.com - Aussie Organic veg ethical meat guy doesn't blog as often any more though..

    and I love milkwood as well :)

    http://cityhippyfarmgirl.com ( eyeroll name but recipes galore I wish I could bake as well as she does)





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  10. Books: Gaining Ground
    Stronger Than Dirt
    The Improbable Shepherd
    First, Second and Third Person Rural
    Gladys Taber's Stillmeadow books (oldies, but goodies)

    Website: (not really a blog, a collection of essays) Sylvia Jorrin who runs a large sheep farm in upstate New York.

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  11. A Very Small Farm by William Paul Winchester. Would make a charming gift.

    Highly recommend the extraordinary farm and CSA building
    memoir by Kristin Kimball in case anyone isn't familiar with it: The Dirty Life.

    She also blogs more or less weekly about their Essex Farm at http://www.kristinkimball.com/

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    1. Oh I loved that book! Forgot about her.

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  12. I was googling the definition of "homestead" and came across this: http://www.theeasyhomestead.com/what-is-homesteading/ I have no idea if the blog content is good (looked interesting at first glance) and she has a list of blogs that doesn't include CAF - so, thumbs up in my book!

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  13. Suburbanhomesteading(dot)com

    Solid info from a woman with decades of experience. Hasn't posted in a while because her dad has been ill. She lives in my area.

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  14. Books:
    The Encyclopedia of Country Living
    A lot of the Storey publications
    The New Self-Sufficient Gardener (John Seymour)
    Anything by Seymour, really
    The Backyard Homestead
    The Contrary Farmer (anything by Logsdon. Good writer)
    Animal, Vegetable, Miracle (Kingsolver)

    Websites:

    BYC Backyard Chickens very extensive, active forums
    Homesteadingtoday.com Homesteading forum, lots of info

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  15. The Shepherd's Life by James Rebanks is a pretty new book for anyone interested in sheep farming in the UK.

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  16. I like Ben Hewitt's blog although he doesn't blog regularly anymore. (He edited his archives too) Still check him out to see the progress he is making on his house--less than 1000 sq ft made with boards he cut from his own woodlot and all used windows (see the attached greenhouse room). He and his family produce like 90-95% of all their food and he maintains a writing and speaking career (I haven't read his books but I liked his articles in Yankee magazine) while doing so. He also started with some partners Lazy Mills Living Arts in Vt to teach homesteading skills(for different ages)and also is starting to offer online courses (He did one on food preservation recently). He cut down on his blogging partly to maintain more privacy and spend more time in the physical world (he was getting alot of comments and hard to keep up with them) but is trying to find a balance because he appreciates his readers.
    I also like Hot Flash Homestead--offers a look into homesteading challenges in a different climate (southern CA) than mine and some interesting personal insights into life.
    I also like Heart of Home--Finding my Homestead - it's gentle and lyrical tone. I was concerned at first as she seemed to see JW as a role model, as she was a fan of her books, and I just didn't want to see others make the same mistakes JW has (esp jumping into buying the first piece of land - with that lousy infrastructure- that came along), but it is clear that Heart of Home is a wise soul with a lot of common sense and is very cognizant of the challenges of homesteading and is a hard worker- it's part of her motto. Although she yearns for her own land for her clan, she realizes she can do so much in her present situation and is always learning and appreciative of the present moment and little things.
    These 3 bloggers have different styles but are all great writers with interesting content and an honest, self-aware outlook.

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    1. He has a beautiful book out about his farm/homestead, yes a very interesting Vermonter. I like James Kuntslers blog, sort of end of the world get ready for the end but he is very witty and entertaining. His books about small town are set in the same place as she who cannot be named.

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  17. I learned about the Walden Effect from someone on this blog, and it's fantastic - talk about self-sufficient! And with a really great scientific bent too

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  18. Common Sense Homesteading, http://commonsensehome.com, is a favorite of mine.

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