So. I have a dream. I don’t know if I’ll ever achieve it, because it’s a pretty severe lifestyle change. I’d love to live in the country, and be self sufficient. By this I mean having renewable power (such as wind and solar), a large garden so I can grow my own produce, fruit trees and bushes, some animals for meat, eggs, milk and such. I’d also like to be in a position where I can make my own home products, as well, such as soap, candles and also preserving food via canning and other preservation methods. I’d also like it to be a community thing.

See, I have many friends who share a similar, if not the same, dream. And, the best part of all is that one of my friends will be inheriting up to 80 acres of land in the Minnesota wild. Holy shit, right???

I couldn’t believe it when I heard, as that is one of the big hurdles, right there, taken care of. And the thing is, I already have a lot of the knowledge I’d need to live this type of lifestyle. Growing up on a farm I’m familiar with country living. I know how to garden (though I’d have to familiarize myself with gardening in Minnesota) and I already know how to make my own soaps, household cleaners and disinfectants. I’m also learning medicinal herbalism. And I grew up close to Minnesota, so I know how to adapt to the severe climates that one can experience there.

I’d like to work from home, and only have to go “into town” maybe once a month to purchase things we couldn’t make/grow ourselves on the farmstead. I’d like to sell the things I grow and make in a farmer’s market, or even in a little stall on the side of a country road. I’d love to sell things I craft online for income. I’d love to write/blog about my farmsteading adventures. I’d just love to live a life that is what I want; where I can control what I put in my body and be as kind as I possibly can be to the environment.

The kicker of this all is that my boyfriend, whom I moved halfway across the country with, doesn’t necessarily want this type of lifestyle. At least for the whole year. He’d rather live in the country away from society for a couple weeks to a couple months of the year only. So, unless we agree to that type of arrangement (meaning I move there and he just comes to stay with me a few weeks out of the year), I’d have to totally leave my boyfriend to achieve this dream.

As thoroughly happy as I am right now, I now know that this point I am in life is temporary. Except my boyfriend, he doesn’t feel temporary. Maybe he will change his mind? Anything’s possible. Right?

So for the time being I’m simply living life to the fullest and working on learning skills I’d need and want, should my dream ever come true. I’m continuing my apprenticeship in medicinal herbalism, and I’ve decided that once that’s complete, I will begin learning a couple crafts, beginning with candle making. After that, I'll begin learning more about home made household products. Somewhere in there, I plan on getting a sewing machine again so I can, well duh, start sewing again. I have a few ideas in mind of things I can make and sell online.

I also plan on beginning to garden at home now, though I live in an apartment. Living in California we have a variety of growing seasons here so I can experiment with a wide variety of plants, learning the nuances of container gardening. Provided I can get my small apartment garden going, I can learn more about canning and preserving on a small scale, before (hopefully, someday) moving it to a large scale.

It’s really a fine line though. The possibility of having to leave the man I’m in love with to live my dream. Will it happen? I don’t know. Can I do it? I don’t know. Is it possible? I don’t know. And I really don’t like not knowing. I guess we’ll just see, huh.