Subsistence Farming - Hawaii

while lauren was in taos, she and her friend were invited to an ice cream social. it was held in a church. the two girls had a great conversation with one of the father’s of a child attending. he guessed that they were both homeschooled because they seemed “confident and intelligent!” eventually he asked them […]

with food i notice i am moving towards eating one food group at a time each meal (versus combining starch, protein and greens as i was raised with). with community and friendship i am moving towards being here now with the people i can see, touch immediately.i love seeing the facial expressions, i love the […]

we are hosting a Know Your Farmer Alliance workshop here about chickens. our friend ann is doing a section on ducks.
gearing up for high school and realizing that lauren’s education is going to be something i can feel proud about. i believe i will be able to say that i gave her the best i […]

i know because i can hear the singing coming from the shower
: )

a few nights ago our community neighborhood association (scott and i are on the board) met and on the agenda was our response to our councilperson’s recent letter informing us of upcoming planned and proposed development projects. we wanted to let him know that not everyone wants bigger faster roads everywhere. part of our […]

i often think of your mom. she really helped me out during some difficult times as a teen. she listened to me as if I were someone that mattered and she responded to my sharing with compassion and wisdom. i felt so stuck. your mom told me “karin, to thyne own self be true” and […]

we have been focused on building our main living structure. i am now calling it a cave on stilts based on the most common responses by people we describe it to. it is a cement barrel vault with cement columns and cement ring beam and cement slab.
interns and guests have taken our time lately. we […]

building is 30′ x 30′
sturdy we wanted, especially when you have concrete over your head.
google: flying concrete barrel vault
and you will get the site we used a while ago to find the details on the roof. we have been consulting with steve, the guy who put up the site and makes barrel vaults and domes […]

i ask myself “how can i be so passionate about one idea today and then have it matter so little so quickly?
- today i want to be finished with the structures and infrastructures on the farm, i want to be like tasha tudor and focus on milking my nubian goats, making birthday gifts by my […]

lauren just got back from spending 5 days showing her dad the island and our farm. now we have scott’s father, step mother and two (11yr old) nephews for two weeks. it is fascinating to watch the varied reactions to our farm. to some it is an oasis to others we are living substandard conditions. […]