Update

Well, so far I have the intro and methods section done on my paper. I am beginning to write my "answers" section now as I am beginning to see some trends emerge. I think what I am ultimately finding in regards to motivation is that there is not just one but there are a lot of different motivators. Each woman has some sort of catalyst that kick started this journey but eventually each one of the those"motivators" is important/essential to "why" these women homestead.

I am still clueless as to what to use for a visual aid, I guess I am not completely sure I understand what is required and what exactly is expected??

Methods

Methods

The homesteading culture is a little bit different of a culture in that it exists collectively but not in one place. That being said I had to be creative with the methods in which I studied this culture. As previously stated, I happened upon a homesteading blog and from this blog I uncovered a whole world of homesteading blogs. I realized that these blogs were the community, this was where these homesteaders met and discussed. Rather than having a “club” or “meeting” time where they could exchange helpful hints and laughable stories, they could meet virtually in their kitchens over a cup of coffee and on their own time.

With this understanding in mind I realized that I would have to collect, observe and engage with this group entirely online (though I did some face to face interviews with local women who are interested in homesteading or are beginning on their journey). There were three primary methods I used to collect my information: interviews, books and following blogs, one blog specifically.

The original blog I found was by the woman I mentioned earlier and was called New Life on a Homestead. I made a point to go to Kendra's blog a few times a week if not everyday. She was really great at posting at least three new blogs a week and she would also have guest posts from other homesteaders, bee-keepers or preppers, really anyone that she thought would benefit her readers. I also uncovered a section of Kendra's blog called “The Adventures of Butterberry Farms.” Butterberry Farms was the name her friend Ms.Addy gave to her homestead. This section of her blog is kind of “where it all began.” Kendra's very first blog was actually a blog committed to coupon-ing and frugal shopping, it gave tips on how to save money. But as she stated, once she met Ms. Addy she was forever changed. Butterberry Farms is where New Life on a Homestead begins to evolve and come alive. Kendra gives us a glimpse into Ms. Addy's life and how it shaped her, this is where she was introduced to homesteading and this is where the ideas and concepts that support and define this lifestyle begin to unfold.

Kendra has another section on her blog called “Prepping and Politics,” and under this section she has podcasts of a radio show that she hosted for about 6 months on Prepper Podcast. This was the first time in my research that I heard the term “prepper.” The term seems to be almost synonymous with homesteading but could also be defined as a survivalist or someone making preparations in advance in case of a change in normal circumstances or an emergency (i.e. economic crisis). Listening to these podcasts was a huge assest to my research. I transcribed parts of the first two podcasts. I only chose the first two because they were foundational ideas into understanding the homesteading movement and Kendra defines them as such. I also decided only to transcribe these two because these podcasts were anywhere from an hour to two hours and just transcribing 10 minutes took me almost a half hour, so it was tedious work to say the least (not to mention I had an hour interview with Kendra that I still had to transcribe). In her first radio show she actually lists the reasons/motivators of why people chose the homesteading lifestyle. When I heard this I felt like I found a buried treasure.

Apart from, but connected to, Kendra's blog I also conducted interviews. Kendra was kind enough to refer some other homesteaders who could help me with a couple interviews. This was incredibly gracious of her because I found when I contacted homesteaders for an interview I wasn't hearing back from anyone. But the moment I sent emails to the women that she suggested and I mentioned her name I was granted permission to interview them. I wondered if I just happened to email very busy women or if this community was skeptical of outsiders coming around asking questions. To that question, I have not found an answer, but I received some great interviews. I offered the women two ways to do the interview, skype or via email. All the women chose email and Kendra consented to both. I sent an email with a list of questions I formulated after studying Kendra's website and then once I received their responses I sent follow up emails with more questions that I had in connection to their answers. I also interviewed a neighbor of mine who has her own homestead here in the city. She grinds her own wheat, makes her own yogurt, grows her own food, makes her own beauty supplies (shampoo, deodorant, soap, etc) and is a stay at home mom. She seemed to be doing so many of the things that I was seeing on Kendra's and these other ladies websites, so it was a great way to have another interview from a different angle. I made sure to ask questions that were open ended and tried to make sure that they were clear and concise. I didn't want to be confusing or misleading and I really wanted to give them an opportunity to have their voice heard, I wanted this to be their interview. Most of the questions were about them, where they came from and how they got here (homesteading).

The last way that I collected data was from books. A couple of the books I have on hand are ones that really opened my eyes to homesteading in the first place. The Backyard Homestead and The Urban Homestead are two books that I checked out from the library this summer and that I have kept on hand now through this project. While these books didn't necessarily answer my question about motivations, it garnered my understanding of what homesteading is, means and looks like. According to these books, it's anything from raising chickens, to canning, to growing medicinal herbs, solar power, wood cook stoves and so much more. These books also teach about “how” to do these things and how to do them in the city which is a twist on homesteading. The Backyard Homestead even guides you in how to utilize all the space you have to provide food for your family for a year, which is pretty interesting. I did find a book though that was not only thought provoking but also could possibly play a role or maybe just influence or even solidify motivations for homesteading. The book is titled Henry and the Great Society. I found it through Kendra's blog as a recommendation from Ms. Addy and so I checked it out from the library. The library didn't carry it because it seems kind of like an “underground” book but they were able to get it for me through the inter-library loan system. The Cumberland books website describes the book as “the story of Henry, a man living in a cultural cul-de-sac, pursuing a way of life that was perhaps a hundred years behind the times, and what happens to him when modern living suddenly becomes a possibility. A series of seemingly inconsequential decisions, each one apparently beneficial in itself, inexorably destroys the self-sufficient, productive, peaceful, and satisfied Henry, transforming him into a thoroughly modern man—dependent, debt-ridden, unhealthy, overworked, worried. Henry's family is destroyed as his wife and children find lives to live outside the home. Because H.L. Roush (the author) barely fleshes out the characters of Henry, his wife Esther, and his children, it is that much easier for the reader to project himself into the story. Every time Henry takes another step away from agrarianism and towards The Great Society, your heart sinks and you want to shout out a warning—Don't do it, Henry! Don't you see what a high price you'll pay for such a trivial gain?—but all the while you know that you were just as prone as Henry to have chosen the same path.” It's a short read and a heart-wrenching story with a rather bleak ending but I think it resonates with so many of the families who are longing for a more simple and self-sufficient way of life. I think this book has the power to either reinforce belief systems that are already in place or to push those looking on from afar right over the edge, head first into homesteading.

Through these various methods of research I feel like I was able to gain invaluable insight into this virtual yet very tangible community of homesteaders. I was also able to begin to feel like a part of the community and more importantly uncover some of the key motivators that led these women (sorry gentlemen but your presence wasn't felt) to this new yet old type of lifestyle.