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Homemaking, gardening, and self-sufficiency resources that won't radicalize you into a hate group
It seems like self-sufficiency and homemaking skills are blowing up right now. With the COVID-19 pandemic and the current economic crisis, a lot of folks, especially young people, are looking to develop skills that will help them be a little bit less dependent on our consumerist economy. And I think that's generally a good thing. I think more of us should know how to cook a meal from scratch, grow our own vegetables, and mend our own clothes. Those are good skills to have.
Unfortunately, these "self-sufficiency" skills are often used as a recruiting tactic by white supremacists, TERFs, and other hate groups. They become a way to reconnect to or relive the "good old days," a romanticized (false) past before modern society and civil rights. And for a lot of people, these skills are inseparably connected to their politics and may even be used as a tool to indoctrinate new people.
In the spirit of building safe communities, here's a complete list of the safe resources I've found for learning homemaking, gardening, and related skills. Safe for me means queer- and trans-friendly, inclusive of different races and cultures, does not contain Christian preaching, and does not contain white supremacist or TERF dog whistles.
Homemaking/Housekeeping/Caring for your home:
Making It by Kelly Coyne and Erik Knutzen [book] (The big crunchy household DIY book; includes every level of self-sufficiency from making your own toothpaste and laundry soap to setting up raised beds to butchering a chicken. Authors are explicitly left-leaning.)
Safe and Sound: A Renter-Friendly Guide to Home Repair by Mercury Stardust [book] (A guide to simple home repair tasks, written with rentals in mind; very compassionate and accessible language.)
How To Keep House While Drowning by KC Davis [book] (The book about cleaning and housework for people who get overwhelmed by cleaning and housework, based on the premise that messiness is not a moral failing; disability and neurodivergence friendly; genuinely changed how I approach cleaning tasks.)
Gardening
Rebel Gardening by Alessandro Vitale [book] (Really great introduction to urban gardening; explicitly discusses renter-friendly garden designs in small spaces; lots of DIY solutions using recycled materials; note that the author lives in England, so check if plants are invasive in your area before putting them in the ground.)
Country/Rural Living:
Woodsqueer by Gretchen Legler [book] (Memoir of a lesbian who lives and works on a rural farm in Maine with her wife; does a good job of showing what it's like to be queer in a rural space; CW for mentions of domestic violence, infidelity/cheating, and internalized homophobia)
"Debunking the Off-Grid Fantasy" by Maggie Mae Fish [video essay] (Deconstructs the off-grid lifestyle and the myth of self-reliance)
Sewing/Mending:
Annika Victoria [YouTube channel] (No longer active, but their videos are still a great resource for anyone learning to sew; check out the beginner project playlist to start. This is where I learned a lot of what I know about sewing.)
Make, Sew, and Mend by Bernadette Banner [book] (A very thorough written introduction to hand-sewing, written by a clothing historian; lots of fun garment history facts; explicitly inclusive of BIPOC, queer, and trans sewists.)
Sustainability/Land Stewardship
Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer [book] (Most of you have probably already read this one or had it recommended to you, but it really is that good; excellent example of how traditional animist beliefs -- in this case, indigenous American beliefs -- can exist in healthy symbiosis with science; more philosophy than how-to, but a great foundational resource.)
Wild Witchcraft by Rebecca Beyer [book] (This one is for my fellow witches; one of my favorite witchcraft books, and an excellent example of a place-based practice deeply rooted in the land.)
Avoiding the "Crunchy to Alt Right Pipeline"
Note: the "crunchy to alt-right pipeline" is a term used to describe how white supremacists and other far right groups use "crunchy" spaces (i.e., spaces dedicated to farming, homemaking, alternative medicine, simple living/slow living, etc.) to recruit and indoctrinate people into their movements. Knowing how this recruitment works can help you recognize it when you do encounter it and avoid being influenced by it.
"The Crunchy-to-Alt-Right Pipeline" by Kathleen Belew [magazine article] (Good, short introduction to this issue and its history.)
Sisters in Hate by Seyward Darby (I feel like I need to give a content warning: this book contains explicit descriptions of racism, white supremacy, and Neo Nazis, and it's a very difficult read, but it really is a great, in-depth breakdown of the role women play in the alt-right; also explicitly addresses the crunchy to alt-right pipeline.)
These are just the resources I've personally found helpful, so if anyone else has any they want to add, please, please do!
The spices are also important:
1. Poultry seasoning
2. Celery seed
3. Ground mustard
4. White pepper (or black)
5. A dusting of sweet paprika (not enough to taste it separately)
I finally got a chicken soup to turn out delicious and my kids are like, "Way to go, Mom, it tastes like canned soup." 🥴
The key, by the way, is cooking organic onions, celery, and carrots in separate water till very soft, then adding some of the veggie cooking water to the bone broth. Changes the whole flavor.
Favorite Moment from Writing This Morning: Getting to write about romanticizing the ordinary. It's one of my favorite things about being alive.
Favorite Line Crafted: One of my great joys in life is when you read a book that leaves a gossamer blanket of magic over ordinary life. When trees become a little unsafe, white flowers become the graves of ancient kings, and autumn is summoned by the witch of seasons.
@alana-k-asby This is something I love about our book too! It gives life a little twist and shifts the perspective so that apples are more than apples and winter is more than winter, and a small part of my heart waits to catch a glimpse of a white stag through the trees.
One of the most important things I learned about respiratory illness, specifically COVID-19, I got from an Indian pharmacist who also knew her Ayurvedic remedies. She told me the most important thing was to keep the stuff in the throat from getting down into the chest. She said the way to do this was to drink beverages as hot as you could tolerate them, containing garlic, ginger, and turmeric.
From this I figured out that you could take bone broth and put the three remedies in, along with some healthy mineral-rich salt, then get it as hot as you could tolerate it and serve it to everybody who is sick.
If you can get fresh turmeric and make a tea from it, that is more powerful than dried turmeric.
Excerpt: We can’t be tenders of our people without being engaged in the mental, emotional, physical, and spiritual healthcare of our people. This doesn’t apply only to your children but also to your spouse, if so blessed, (grown men need tending, too) your friends, and yourself. It’s hard to tend others when you are overdrawn on your energy-budget, just like you can’t expect to clean your home if you’re covered in mud. You have to be relatively clean to clean your house. Proper healthcare takes care of you and your people.
Let's help each other out! Share some of the must haves in your medicine cabinet, apothecary, and first aid kit. Also, share some of your favorite books, podcasts, or resources for home health management.
When we garden, we create a protected and nurturing space for plants to flourish… Unlike a good chair, a good garden is constantly changing, as it adapts to the changing circumstances of weather and the seasons. And in the long run, that kind of varied, flexible, complex, dynamic system will be more robust and adaptable than the most carefully tended hothouse bloom.
-Alison Gopnik, The Gardener and the Carpenter
"Childhood is not a race to accumulate all of the consumer goods and stresses of adulthood in record time. By simplifying, we protect the environment for childhood's slow, essential unfolding of self."
-Kim John Payne, Simplicity Parenting
✨ veggie garden year 3 ✨ made almost entirely of recycled & upcycled materials. So far, lots of leafy greens and baby bunnies!
'The Cult of Family Vloggers' by Sounds Like A Cult on Amazon Music.
This was a very interesting and extremely informative episode. Certainly has made me rethink the way I approach social media as a parent.
Harvested my first green pepper this week along with a neverending supply of salad greens and herbs. Originally mistaken for basil, bell pepper ended up being the most fruitful plant in my garden thus far.
Archie's pumpkin patch has really shot up, so I upcycled a couple of old ladders to trellis the vines alongside the house. It's funny how well certain plants do with little to no attention, while my meticulously maintained greenhouse has produced one glorious green pepper. Nature seems to have its own plan.
"Teach your children to appreciate the unique qualities and strengths of each sibling, fostering a sense of unity and support."
-Adele Faber, Siblings Without Rivalry
Third year Instagram-free;
I've had two babies
Taken up gardening
Reading more
Unbecoming who I thought I was
Becoming who I'm meant to be
10/10 would recommend
First day since deleting Instagram;
I did a lot more laundry
I also sat in grass/clover and made a little flower crown🌼
10/10
DIY toddler crayons using a silicone mould at 250° for ten minutes (Use liners if using a muffin tin).
Tuesdays and Thursdays are for sensory play! My 5 month old had much more fun with whipped cream while my 16 month old currently prefers to tinker in the garden.
LIFE GOAL UNLOCKED 🔓
It finally happened.. my garden was chosen. Our very own greenhouse fren 🥹ðŸ˜
I've already built a toad abode next to a water feature and left a large earthworm as an offering. Oh how I hope he/she isn't traumatized by my unwavering love and chooses to stay!
🌼humble brag🌼 my homemade two-ingredient bagels have been getting progressively more stunning every week.
1 cup flour of choice (+ 2tsp baking powder)
1 cup nonfat Greek yogurt
Egg wash tops & add seeds/topping of choice
Bake at 350 for 18 minutes then broil for an added two minutes.
First time canning! Made 100% home-grown "Chow Chow" relish. It's not much, but I'm very proud.
I've attached the recipe I used below:
Summer harvest is winding down and fall harvest is taking off! Broccoli, cauliflower, eggplant and brussel sprouts are exploding in the greenhouse. Using grow bags for the first time as I haven't had a ton of success using five-gallon buckets.
A little floral arrangement to admire while I wash bottles 🌼🌸🌿