The Walden Effect: Farming, simple living, permaculture, and invention.

Homesteading Qualities, Part 2

Lifting cinderblocks.One of the most basic qualities you need to be a successful homesteader is moderate strength.  You should be able to:

Don't be tempted to assume your partner can do all of the heavy lifting for you.  I'd be sunk if I had to ask Mark to help me every time I needed to lift a bag of chicken feed from the golf cart into the trashcan by the tractors.  He wouldn't mind, but it'd drive me crazy!

If you live in the city and dream of being a homesteader but have no other way of moving toward your goal, it can't hurt to try to achieve those four abilities.  Step outside your climate-controlled office and gym this summer and build up a bit of tolerance to heat.  Take a walk around the block every evening.  You'd be surprised how easy it is to achieve this level of physical fitness, putting you one step closer to your goal!


This post is part of our Homesteading Qualities lunchtime series.  Read all of the entries:





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About us: Anna Hess and Mark Hamilton spent over a decade living self-sufficiently in the mountains of Virginia before moving north to start over from scratch in the foothills of Ohio. They've experimented with permaculture, no-till gardening, trailersteading, home-based microbusinesses and much more, writing about their adventures in both blogs and books.



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I can totally relate to not wanting to ask my man for help every time i wanted to do something, yes he would help he's a good man but i oo enjoy doing things myself it feels good to know you accomplished what u set out to do with no help except of course the abilities the good Lord gave us. I stumbled upon your blog recently and enjoy it i look forward to more of t my boyfriend and i have gotten our place and are embarking on our own homesteading journey, God bless
Comment by ditty Thu Apr 30 10:27:46 2009
It's good to meet you! I'm glad someone understands the need to do things myself --- I feel a bit like a two year old sometimes. :-) Where's your farm?
Comment by anna Thu Apr 30 13:16:59 2009





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