Cover of The Backyard Homestead
I may be moving soon.
My new job at NASA (squeeee!) requires a minimum 75-minute commute twice daily, usually in heavy traffic. While I’m okay with the drive itself–having grown up in this area, I have to be–I’m losing too much time. Even with audio books, three hours a day on the road is too much.
So I’ve been looking at houses near Goddard. One is a small house on 3/4 of an acre. That sounds small as I type it, but when I walked the property it felt huge.
Coincidentally, a few days ago I bought The Backyard Homestead, which purports to be a primer on self-sufficiency within a small urban or suburban plot of land.
It’s fantastic. With clear, concise language the authors describe a wide range of activities, from canning and preserving to owning chickens, goats, and cattle.
This is not a complete encyclopedia to caring for goats, of course. Instead, it’s a solid foundation in self-sufficiency. It’s a perfect balance of breadth and depth.