Homestead mailing list

[bob ford <bobford79 AT yahoo.com>]

Man, I thought deer hunting in the high 20's for a half a day was rough.  I 
have lived, for periods of time where it snowed, not much , but enough for me 
to know that I belong in warm weather.  I think I could live again as cold as 
VA; but would never want to be colder than that.....

------------------------------------------------------------------------


--- On Fri, 12/5/08, Lynn Wigglesworth <lynnw1366 AT hotmail.com> wrote:

> From: Lynn Wigglesworth <lynnw1366 AT hotmail.com>
> Subject: Re: [Homestead] A slang question
> To: homestead AT lists.ibiblio.org
> Date: Friday, December 5, 2008, 6:41 AM
> Coastal Maine is the same 4-5 USDA zone as northern PA
> (where I am). And we 
> have 48 hour periods where the temperature never rises
> above ZERO.
> 
> Lynn Wigglesworth
> Tioga Co. PA
> 
> ----- Original Message ----- 
> From: "bob ford" <bobford79 AT yahoo.com>
> To: <homestead AT lists.ibiblio.org>
> Sent: Friday, December 05, 2008 8:23 AM
> Subject: Re: [Homestead] A slang question
> 
> 
> > But Lynn, do you know how cold it gets in Maine.  They
> have entire 48 hour 
> > periods where the temperature never rises above
> freezing.  And from 
> > reading Stephen King in my youth, ME sounds like an
> altogether spooky 
> > place; with strnage people with histories full of
> ghosts and goblins  ;-) 
> > .........................
> >
> >
> ------------------------------------------------------------------------
> >
> >
> > --- On Thu, 12/4/08, Lynn Wigglesworth
> <lynnw1366 AT hotmail.com> wrote:
> >
> >> From: Lynn Wigglesworth
> <lynnw1366 AT hotmail.com>
> >> Subject: Re: [Homestead] A slang question
> >> To: homestead AT lists.ibiblio.org
> >> Date: Thursday, December 4, 2008, 6:01 PM
> >> Susan Jane; Maine is a very special place. If I
> ever leave
> >> here, that's
> >> where I'm heading. My sister lives on Mt.
> Desert
> >> Island, but owns land in
> >> Belfast, and plans to build her dream house there
> very
> >> soon. And she know
> >> Peter, the orchard ladder hippie guy :-)
> >>
> >> Lynn Wigglesworth
> >> Tioga Co. PA
> >>
> >> ----- Original Message ----- 
> >> From: "sjc"
> <indexer AT fairpoint.net>
> >> To: <homestead AT lists.ibiblio.org>
> >> Sent: Thursday, December 04, 2008 7:50 PM
> >> Subject: Re: [Homestead] A slang question
> >>
> >>
> >> > rayzentz AT aim.com wrote:
> >> >
> >> >> Really? How did they do that? And when?
> Are you
> >> referring to a particular
> >> >> event?
> >> >>
> >> >>
> >> >
> >> > Late in the 50s and early in the 60s many
> people left
> >> this area for jobs
> >> > elsewhere; the only real jobs left here for
> many years
> >> thereafter were
> >> > 'factory' chicken operations, huge
> processing
> >> plants down on the
> >> > Penobscot Bay (which had waste chutes 8'
> across
> >> where waste was shovel
> >> > straight into the Bay), and a smattering of
> leftover
> >> lobstermen and
> >> > fishers.  The fisherman were at the beginning
> of the
> >> overfishing and
> >> > couldn't make a living, a lot of them
> turned to
> >> lobstering.  That still
> >> > survives; they took it upon themselves to set
> limits
> >> after having
> >> > watched what happened to the fisheries.  Just
> about
> >> everything else was
> >> > chickens.  Most everybody else took off for
> >> 'greener pastures' (I guess
> >> > that means where the snow in July in the
> gutter
> >> isn't actually white
> >> > chicken feathers), largely Boston and beyond.
>  A lot
> >> of farmers, having
> >> > bought the 'can't make any money
> farming
> >> anymore' walked off and left
> >> > land, houses, whatever.
> >> >
> >> > People were happy to sell some large tracts
> to
> >> incoming
> >> > back-to0-the-lander, hippie types.  There
> were
> >> hundreds at one time.
> >> > So, they were pretty well-educated, willing
> to take a
> >> risk, supported
> >> > through the initial stages, not afraid to be
> doing
> >> something new.  Now
> >> > they're old hippies, but it turned out
> they were
> >> well educated (Daddy's
> >> > money), and had enough of the same money
> (trust funds)
> >> to buy land and
> >> > actually get it going.  MOFGA was in its
> infancy then
> >> but there were a
> >> > couple of people there who helped them off to
> a decent
> >> organic start,
> >> > information-wise, and a few of the old
> farmers left
> >> here helped them.
> >> >
> >> > Just about the time they got a toehold, the
> chicken
> >> business in Maine
> >> > fell apart (disease) and more people left,
> leaving
> >> more ground, some of
> >> > which was occupied by said folks, mostly by
> then in
> >> family groups.  They
> >> > all had kids, which they homeschooled, county
> was too
> >> broke so they
> >> > looked the other way.  Eventually Pop's
> money ran
> >> out, and everybody
> >> > buckled down to work.  The kids were reared
> to be
> >> polite, to work with
> >> > their hands and backs, to be respectful,
> curious,
> >> hardworking,
> >> > goal-oriented, independent, contributing
> members of
> >> their community.
> >> > They learned in many cases to take care of
> the old
> >> farmers and their
> >> > wives who'd helped them when they first
> came.  Now
> >> those kids have grown
> >> > up to be some real decent folks, with a good
> sense of
> >> who they are, who
> >> > else is here, a good bit of wisdom for a
> group of
> >> young people.  They're
> >> > teaching, some abroad, in the military,
> taking care of
> >> grandparents.....
> >> >
> >> > The adults who came here as kids are  now
> mayors/town
> >> managers in many
> >> > of our small towns here, and enthusiastic
> still about
> >> the area, willing
> >> > to work hard for it.  Most of the staff of
> Unity
> >> College got their start
> >> > right here on Stovepipe Alley (one of the
> communes
> >> which is now a
> >> > cohousing unit under I-forget-the-name). 
> Most of the
> >> staff of College
> >> > of the Atlantic came from here, same
> circumstances.
> >> Not a few are
> >> > professors at UMO and UMA.  We have a
> reasonable tax
> >> base. They started
> >> > and still own a newspaper.  They redeemed
> many old
> >> buildings and built
> >> > many new ones which one can be pleased to
> see.  They
> >> have been at the
> >> > forefront of alternative energy in Maine, and
> some of
> >> them, on a
> >> > national basis.  There are no 6000sq foot
> boxes here,
> >> nor nasty
> >> > mortgages to pull us into the fray to the
> south.  We
> >> have libraries now,
> >> > parks and other public places, beach access
> in many
> >> places, and many
> >> > small businesses which employ our residents. 
> they
> >> still don't poke into
> >> > anybody else's business, and I've
> never heard
> >> of a one of them
> >> > bellyaching about what services they
> don't have or
> >> can't get here (my
> >> > personal gripe; if ya want it, stay where ya
> have it).
> >> >
> >> > We do have 2 stoplights here now, but
> that's due
> >> to the  old  yuppie
> >> > (Crowley, MBNA) who thought he'd make a
> killing
> >> off the dumb  Mainers
> >> > and  installed a huge call center where he
> soon found
> >> out that the dumb
> >> > Mainers here don't like to lie to
> consumers, even
> >> on the phone, and so
> >> > won't sell bad interest rates without
> telling
> >> people what they're
> >> > getting into.  I think they were here 4
> years.
> >> Didn't take everybody
> >> > long to decide they'd rather have the
> >> hippies......
> >> >
> >> > The sense of community is outstanding here;
> when my
> >> house burned in '01
> >> > I told 6 people to please spread the word (on
> Wed, too
> >> late to get it in
> >> > paper) that I planned to have a house-raising
> on Fri
> >> & Sat (Thanksgiving
> >> > weekend) and to please come, and bring any
> tool you
> >> don't mind others
> >> > using, and any materials you may have that
> you
> >> don't otherwise want.
> >> > Fri there were well over 60 people (plus
> children who
> >> could actually be
> >> > trusted to operate a tape, carry cheerfully,
> whatever)
> >> and on Saturday
> >> > over 100 folks, plus a lot more who came by
> but would
> >> have had to park
> >> > too far down the muddy road (over a mile). 
> Little
> >> kids restacked my
> >> > half-burned firewood to a new spot, picked up
> trash,
> >> dragged magnets,
> >> > corraled dogs (strict leash law here backed
> by 410s).
> >> A rousing good
> >> > time and much good food was had by all, and
> by Sat
> >> dark (about 4:00 that
> >> > time of year) the shell was up except for the
> roofing,
> >> which hadn't come
> >> > in yet.  About half the materials were
> donated.  Peter
> >> (old hippie,
> >> > probably still count himself one, who makes
> apple
> >> ladders brought the
> >> > rafters he'd cut in the woods that
> morning.
> >> Donald, one of the few
> >> > farmers who welcomed new people to the land
> even if
> >> they were hippies,
> >> > was in the woods logging Fri and came Sat and
> cut
> >> those logs right in
> >> > the driveway into the flooring, with the
> measuring and
> >> toting help of
> >> > two hippies' grandchildren.  The next
> Saturday the
> >> roofing went on in
> >> > four hours.  We like (treasure, actually)
> that sense
> >> of community and we
> >> > all know and acknowledge that had Waldo
> County driven
> >> off the hippies,
> >> > as did many surrounding places, we'd now
> not have
> >> what we do, in many
> >> > ways.  Their children, after living all over
> the
> >> world, are now coming
> >> > home to be teachers in our schools,
> administrator at
> >> our hospital,
> >> > manager at the credit union....and so it
> marches on.
> >> >
> >> > The counties adjacent to us, with the
> exception of
> >> Knox County (Camden,
> >> > old money and established tourism), were in
> similar
> >> shape to our county
> >> > at the beginning of 1960.  They were just
> beginning to
> >> get their heads
> >> > above water when things slowed down this
> time, and now
> >> who knows; they
> >> > are already in trouble in 3 of the 4
> >> counties....meanwhile we are in
> >> > reasonably good shape here.
> >> >
> >> > So even though nobody really wanted them to
> come, or
> >> so I'm told, it's
> >> > not been tooooo bad.  I doubt if you'd
> find anyone
> >> complaining here,
> >> > now.  I can't think when I heard the last
> person
> >> grumble about 'them
> >> > hippies', maybe about 1990?
> >> >
> >> > They did OK by us.
> >> >
> >> > SJ
> >> >
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> >> >
> >>
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> >
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> 
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