Countryside subscribers: I am looking for people in Canada, who are interested in topics that come to us every other month in Countryside. I love the magazine and would enjoy talking to people who are living the lives just like the stories I read. Are there people living like that here??????

-- debbie mulder (mulder.family@sympatico.ca), September 27, 2000

Answers

Hi Debbie - I live on the South Shore of Nova Scotia. We consider ourselves "homesteaders" but I guess there are various shades of grey with that term. We have chickens, turkeys, pig, goats...large veg garden, herbs, pressure canner, handmade soap... general self sufficiency outlook. Oh and I cook on an Enterprise wood cookstove. I just found Countryside and subscribed immediately. It's hard to find info and supplies scaled right for homesteaders. Anyway yes there are a few of us in Canada, and even more who probably don't even think about it, it's just the way they live. A neighbour friend of ours is VERY self sufficient. Off grid, all meat and vegetables, honey produced on farm. He keeps sheep and cards wool etc, and eco forests his property with one of those portable mills. Ran into him at the local co-op yesterday, we agreed that we spend about 1/10th of our previous grocery bills at the feed store and we know what we are eating. I used to be very "city" lived and worked in Halifax, Toronto and Vancouver. I have never been happier.

-- Terri Yeomans (terri@tallships.ca), September 27, 2000.

TERRI!! Where are you???? I am in Lunenburg County!! In response to the thread....I discovered Countryside Magazine 5 yrs ago and then couldn't find another copy until this year (guess I didn't look hard enough!) Th request is in for a Christmas Gift Subscription to my Santa...LOL. We began thinking of the country life when we started discussing marriage and kids etc. We found books and articles on self sufficiency and getting off the grid at libraries etc but haven't gone that way yet. We found our 100 yr old house and its remaining land (only 4.7 acres) and moved in 4 yrs ago. Built a pathetic chicken coop that year and its now up at my neighbors house. The hope is to have some type of barn next year so I can have my sheep and meat rabbits and chickens (to start). We are both former townies so learning as we go. Dh still works in Halifax at an office job and isn't as into the self sufficiency idea as he once was. But I still devour sheep article, rabit and chicken articles and homestead craft articles on how to live with less.

-- Alison in NS (aproteau@istar.ca), September 29, 2000.

Allison: I'm also Lunenburg co! I'll email my landline #.

-- Terri (terri@tallships.ca), September 30, 2000.

Thanks Terri. Got your email this morning! Debbie, you are in Ontario right? What are your favorite Countryside topics? I like the sheep, gardening, poultry and frugal living articles the most but pretty much read it cover to cover. One thing that Countryside and my friend Donna taught me is that ducks are a must have when I get my barn and animals. Excellent fly control!!

-- Alison in NS (aproteau@istar.ca), October 02, 2000.