New Years Resolutions

Happy New Year 2011!

I can hardly believe another year has gone by. With a new year, I feel new excitement for the possibilities ahead to do more with local food, to get to know my community better, and to live a more sustainable life for the planet, for my pocket book, and for my well being. I find it a daily challenge that I meet with eager motivation. In the past several months, I've been reading a Barbara Kingsolver book called, Animal Vegetable Miracle. It is about a woman and her family who try and grow their own food for one whole year and their adventures along the way. As I read, most of the time I am pleasantly envious of their return-to-the-land experience. They garden, raise chickens and turkeys, make cheese, and can and preserve their food. Their evenings are spend as a family making dinner or during the day they are active and outside. Their connection to the land leaves me wondering how I can have that feeling in a city? It is possible. So here I begin with a renewal in the new year to find my way toward this way of life. Here are a few ways I plan on creating this urban homestead experience throughout the year.

• Cook meals (so I eat out less)
• Buy food, when possible, from local sources (farmers market, produce stands, etc).
• Buy local, seasonal foods in bulk and preserve (so local food can be eaten throughout the year).
• Start a garden.
• Visit local farms.
• Go berry picking.
• Get involved in community groups.
• Start potlucks with friends or neighbors.
• Budget money (so I spend less and save more).
• Buy staple foods in bulk (rice, beans, pasta, grains, etc) so pantry is home cooking ready.
• Learn how to make cheese and bread.
• Ride my bike more
• Buy more clothes at thrift stores
• Make my own beauty and cleaning products
• Learn local flora and fauna
• Go urban foraging
• Listen to food and farming podcasts
• Read more
• Have canning parties
• Compost food scraps

If any of these interest you too, take the journey with me. Cheers!