Hi and welcome to Scablands Homestead! We are the Meyer family, your average city dwellers, currently living west of the cascades in the beautiful Willamette Valley. With $50,000 in our pockets we are currently preparing to purchase and move our family off-grid to the high desert of central Washington, known as the Scablands. Come summer we will all relocate to our new homestead and begin building and developing the land to our final vision of self-sufficiency and a simplistic lifestyle. Follow along with us as we prepare for our move and the adventure that awaits us.
Amber |
Jeremy |
I am in my mid 30's and have dreamed of country life since I was a teenager. Excluding my first five years of life living on a farm outside the city I grew up in the suburbs of a large city in the Willamette Valley of Oregon. I shared my dream with my husband when we first met 15 years ago, he was not so thrilled about living in the sticks or being anywhere away from the city. Over the years my dream grew further away and the reality of staying in the city took over. But, even small, the dream was still there and I had always hoped that one day we would be able to afford to buy a piece of land and build our own little farm. Our family steadily grew child by child and low-wage job after job kept my dream out of reach. I began doing little things that were possible where we were living so that we could be at least a little self sufficient. As fortune, as well as tragedy, would have it my father-in-law suddenly passed and my husband received an unexpected inheritance. With this gift we are finally able to realize the dream, which is now equally shared with my husband who has decided to reject city life. So here we are at the beginning of our journey on a new life path and I am excited to share our experiences with you.
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As I approach my 40's my values are beginning to slowly change. I am not the person I was in my twenties, nor my early thirties. I guess you could say my wife and her love of nature and country has rubbed off on me. Heck, I even enjoy country music now. Until the past few years I never liked being outdoors in the quiet of nature, sure the one or two camping trips a year were fun but I wanted to get back home, to the city. Recently that has changed, now I get annoyed in the city with neighbors right next to us. I can't just walk outside and do what I want without someone complaining. Mind you, I like my neighbors but most of the time I just want it to be quiet and be alone. I understand my wife's desire to help the environment and make a low impact, my motivation for living off-grid is purely selfish. I just want to get away from society, is that wrong? The problems with society, politics, and basic greed of corporations make me want to leave it all behind for the simple life of self sufficiency. Where I no longer have to be told what to do, be forced to behave a specific way, or be judged for my varying opinions. I'm looking forward to this new chapter in our lives and hope it will be everything my wife dreams. There will be several years of hardships, inconveniences and adjustments but once everything gets going it will be worth it.
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