And what kind of home do you live in??

welllll i have my redneck mansion (30 footlong tin can) here on the property that at this point in time is empty due to circumstance and the shack we all be livin in was originally meant to be a barn but hhb's ol man stroked out before he built his house so the barn became the house,,, has been added on to a time or two but has a small kitchen / dinin area, living room ,and two to three bedrooms and bathroom,, also has an outhouse that at one time had heat , phone n electric ... n we are building a small 10 x 12 log cabin from ground up with a small loft n outhouse,,, we dont have a well but use a systern ,,,and for the animals n when water runs low we pump water from the pond into a tank n into the systern...

we have about 15 acres of land in the Ga mtns and have chickens ,goats, a cow, cats, dogs, rabbit , birds, fish n a possum,,, grow gardens, veggies flowers n herbs and have a green house ,,, eventually we will have the earth ovens, smoker n root cellars as well to get even more back to the land .....

 

teepi............we could all live in it ....................ceres..............sounds like you are living in paradise .....................................FREEDOM,,,,,,,neil young=mansion on the hill................................................................................................................................................... .............................................................THIS IS FREEDOM

 

Wasn't going to answer this but what the hell...

Live on 175 a. mostly forest in the glacier carved hills above the valley floor in the SW finger lakes region of NY. Have 2 60'tin cans (mobile homes) used as storage, 5 travel trailers, 1 '70s 30'winnebago and 2 school busses. A real hollow with hills on three sides above where the now tumbled down old homestead, the location soon to be used for shop/community center building. Been putting my money into equipment to do ( old tractors, trucks, backhoe, bulldozer, farm eqipment; generators,and building supplies and tools for all of the aforementioned). Have a 35+' drop from a third acre - soon to be made into 1 acre pond for a water power site; a stream originating on the land going down to the valley floor that I can and will put a series of bunker dams on to back up the water. My nearest neibor is a mile away as the crow flies and closer to 2+ as the car drives.
Hope to be adding more acerage this year to bring it up to 400. Would like to See the entire watershed (about 2000 a.) - which is what is really needed to do a truly organic farm so that there is no run off of chemicals used in the death/farms (kills the bacteria that gives us the needed nutrients and resulting energy) now feeding this culture.
And finally this year we are taking it from sole ownership to legal entity ownership (NP Org. or Co-Op) have 3 members at present and are open to others of like mind - every member has an equal vote regardless of shares (investments) in the community - we operate on the fullest consensus - that of unaminous consent - which means we communicate a lot.
So we daily decide what we create and are free to change how - have many young sapplings that need to be thinned for tipis and wickiups, a old DPW federal program planted grove of pines that need to be harvested as they are starting to break and die for longhouses, pole buildings etc -if for log cabins enough for about 3 2000 squ. footers. South facing hillsides ideal for dug out greenhouses (mean temp. from earth @ 55 F.).
In process - you decide., Nobody overlooking, and on the 175 a. that we at presently own, room for at least 15>20 out of sight and sound from each other ind. dwellings.


Yee haww... dreams do come true

 

{{{{oldwolf}}}}

Oh Yeah Baby!!!!!!!

 

And Paul...I love that pic.
Larry had a pretty big one when i first met him, I loved that old tipi.
It was warm too and I just felt so close to the earth there.

 

I live on a little sandbar out in the middle of no where..actually we live in a small neighborhood that consist of only 4 streets. I'm one block back from the sound and about 1 minute away by car from the ocean. It's a modest 3 bed/2 bath house. I like the living room and kitchen. Has juniper walls and cabinets throughout. Peaceful sound views off the front deck. Nice for watching the sunset over the water. Kinda a quiet neighborhood. That's the best part.

 

Sounds like your community is going well, Old Wolf...I haven't talked to you guys in so long...sounds so beautiful there!

 

http://www.rdrop.com/~glacier/yurtPages/yurt.10.98.001.a.jpghttp://www.rdrop.com/~glacier/yurtPages/yurt.10.98.001.a.jpg



YES, I WISH I LIVED IN A YURT IN THE SIBERIAN TUNDRA!!!!

 

Another example that I had forgotten to mention in Portland Oregon there is a woman that moved into an old church and fixed it up in somewhat of a gothic style. She lived in Moroco for seventeen years and brought over the influence of the life there. It is awesome! She even brought over Morocan doors that she had installed. There very high doors, but of course they worked, since church ceilings are very high. It's absolutely gorgeous.

 

When I lived on Kauaii I wanted to buy a Yurt so badly. If I could have afforded the land I would have bought a yurt and lived there the rest of my life. Yurts are the coolest thing. You really don't need that much room to live in just enough to get by. Because they are round, there is actually more room that a small house that is square shaped.

 

I'm inspired by, and a little envious of, all of your homes!
We live in an old farm house. Actually it was originally a feed store with living quarters in the back and upstairs. It was moved to this location in the 40's. Our small town use to be a lakeside resort, so there are mostly cottages along our tree lined street. Time has brought the sprawl and the woods are disappearing to make way for huge homes and shopping areas. very sad.

Anyway, the house is four bedrooms, one bath, a large living room, diningroom, and kitchen. We bought it 25 years ago, and it has been good to us. The property use to be bordered by a large wooded area, but that is now developed and we have only a fraction of the yard we use to, but it is enough for a good size garden and room for the kids and dogs to romp.

~mosaic, dreaming of a place in the country and long afternoon rides on horseback.

 

I live in a small one bedroom early 1960s apartment building in an older residential neighborhood in the city with my cat. Ideally, I would love to be living in an old farmhouse, that is done up like G.W.Bush's summer home, with solar panels and eco-friendly heating and such. I hate the man's politics, but that house is an eco-dream, a real hippy's paradise.

-OrangeGypsy

 

My hippie haven is a 9X12 foot cabin in the woods behind my father in law's house that was built woth a hammer and a chainsaw (really) by my husband Bob (KCL04).
It is one room with a bed built into one wall, a woodstove, a desk, a small gas stove, a dresser, one cabinet with a countertop, and one chair.
For showers and bathroom, it is a 100 yard walk down to the main house because there is no running water here except for a hose in warm weather. We do, however, have a phone and a dial up cable connection, cable TV, and electricity. My "luxuries" are my old Frankencomputer made up from MattInVegas' old hard drive in a computer given to me by another friend and a microwave oven.
It's small and smells of woodsmoke all winter, but it is a cozy place, and although I have very little, it is all payment free!
Besides me and Bob, there are two cats, both strays, one who decided to be my friend ten years ago, and the baby, Dusty, who has three legs and is one and a half years old.

 

My husband and I live in a 2 bedroom apartment(one of the rooms acts as our zen room which I do massage in). It is a very nice apartment complex with pool, jacuzzi, and game room. It is also a block away from the beach in San Diego. As nice as it is, we are spending way too much rent $ and we want to buy a house. unfortunately, the house prices in San Diego are becoming outrageous and forcing us average joe locals to move elsewhere. I've been reading all of the replies to this thread so far and have to admit I'm sorta jealous of the treehouses in Kauai and the little log cabins in the woods. Sounds right up my ally. May have to make that dream a reality. Or at least a nice little house in a place that's not so busy and so expensive.

 

Good wishes to you Lotus, that you find the peaceful place that will nourich your soul.

And Angel...right on SISTA!! Our place too is rather small, not as small as your place but still rather small...but while not totally paid off we're only paying 167 a month for the land and we built the house so no actual "house payment".
Our truck is a 1984 Ford Ranger...so its paid for, and still old enough so Larry can still work on it himself.
For anyone wanting to leave the hectics of the rat race, or just have a more homestead "feeling" around the place they are right now, even if it is the city...there is an excellent zine out there called "countryside journal"...it is written by subscribers or anyone who is doing things on their own in a more cost efficient and enviroment friendly way.
There are also suggestions as to areas that offer inexpensive land.
I posted something about it in the enviroment forum with a link and you can get a free issue.
We have it here at our library too.

It is so important also to get out of debt before you make a move. Or carry as little as possible.
Larry and I can live totally on 450.00 a month, that is for landpayment,pc server, elec. phone, land taxes, truck insurance, gas, and food. It goes down in the summer when I have a bit more food from the garden.
He only works 7 and a half months of the year so we save during that time to carry us through the leaner times. This gives us more time together when he's home.
I have worked part time in town when we were already here for a year, while he was laid off I worked when he went back to work I quit.
But now that I am selling my artwork we'll see what happens....my dream is to keep him OUT of that dump truck. And home with me...
He'll get early SS in 3 years and that will cover all our living expenses so whatever we make selling art and auction stuff will be free and clear.

But again, that zine and Backwoods Home have ideas on how to make your way in the country.....

Debt free...the only way to be.
love,
teepi

 

From "Walden" by Henry David Thoreau

I have thus a tight shingled and plastered house, ten feet wide
by fifteen long, and eight-feet posts, with a garret and a closet, a
large window on each side, two trap doors, one door at the end, and
a brick fireplace opposite. The exact cost of my house, paying the
usual price for such materials as I used, but not counting the work,
all of which was done by myself, was as follows; and I give the
details because very few are able to tell exactly what their houses
cost, and fewer still, if any, the separate cost of the various
materials which compose them:--

Boards .................................. $ 8.03+, mostly shanty boards.
Refuse shingles for roof sides ... 4.00
Laths ...................................... 1.25
Two second-hand windows
with glass ................................ 2.43
One thousand old brick ........... 4.00
Two casks of lime ................... 2.40 That was high.
Hair ........................................ 0.31 More than I needed.
Mantle-tree iron ...................... 0.15
Nails ....................................... 3.90
Hinges and screws ................... 0.14
Latch ...................................... 0.10
Chalk ...................................... 0.01
Transportation ........................ 1.40 I carried a good part on my back.
-------
In all ................................... $28.12+

These are all the materials, excepting the timber, stones, and
sand, which I claimed by squatter's right. I have also a small
woodshed adjoining, made chiefly of the stuff which was left after
building the house.
I intend to build me a house which will surpass any on the main
street in Concord in grandeur and luxury, as soon as it pleases me
as much and will cost me no more than my present one.

Thoreau - one of the first hippies.

Peace, from poor_old_dad

 

MMMMMM Now thats my kinda man!!

 

Yea, as you can tell from my signature, I'm a fan of Henry David Thoreau. I got a ;ittle long winded about him over next door, in the "Young Hippies" section.

The Wikipedia list some famous hippies, included are: Allen Ginsberg, Abbie Hoffman, Ken Kesey, Timothy Leary, Merry Pranksters, and Henry David Thoreau.

http://www.hipforums.com/forums/showpost.php?p=723114&postcount=11

Peace, from poor_old_dad

 

You all have such wonderful ideas and lives to share. I'm a true believer in staying debt free also. My husband and I will be completely debt free in two and a half years. No payments, whats so ever. We were debt free once years ago and messed it up, but not ever again. Were much older and much wiser and want our lives to be completely debt free. We buy at second hand stores and when we buy new it's either on clearance or on sale. That is, if we have to buy retail. We believe in living a voluntary simplicity for the rest of our lives. Again I say, I love all of your input, it's wonderful getting ideas and suggestions from you all. And it shows me what interesting lives we all lead and want. Thank you all again.

Daharma

 

a nursaryman i wanted to be
the price of land
an acre ten grand
my father not rich
my mother neither she
couldnt get a mortgage
so it was down to me
working hard for a cold man
to get my warm dream
got off at the bank from that fast pased stream
and with everything at steak i said
'for that land shaved from your estate
take all my money saved'
'healthy soil for all your toil
make no mistake'
so i planted cuttings and seeds to cover my needs
raised my house of straw and mud
in fear all the while
and upon the door i heard a thud
and there bringing a summonds to my very owne trial
id no permission for the home on my land
they work for the rich mans pound
because i work by hand
id not money to fight
so for a romanys caravan or crome
i swapped the land right
and decide to rome...