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  • From: "Lynn Wigglesworth" <lynnw1366 AT hotmail.com>
  • To: <homestead AT lists.ibiblio.org>
  • Subject: Re: [Homestead] A slang question
  • Date: Fri, 5 Dec 2008 09:01:50 -0500

I don't mind the cold; if you are outside a lot, you gradually get used to it. I had a bit of an adjustment problem this year because it warmed up into the 70 for a while in November, then suddenly got cold. It's the heat I can't stand. I could never live where you do. It's nice that the world is diverse enough to suit everyone.

Lynn Wigglesworth, in northern PA, where it's currently 21, heading to the upper 20's for a high today, and a low of 14 tonight.

----- Original Message ----- From: "bob ford" <bobford79 AT yahoo.com>
To: <homestead AT lists.ibiblio.org>
Sent: Friday, December 05, 2008 8:46 AM
Subject: Re: [Homestead] A slang question


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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