Introduce yourselves!

My name is Chris (22) from Arizona. I enjoy the outdoors and don't get to get out nearly as much as I should.  I currently do not have enough for the 15k minimum with my shitty custodial wage, but I have always been fascinated with the rural livestyle and will enjoy spitballing ideas off of you all to keep the conversation going.

I can contribute labor, general shop knowhow, and A get it done additude. Financially Im a bit short, but hope to change that within a couple years. In two years on the homestead I will hopefully have a cozy home with fresh veggies while I go fishing with my dog at the creek.

Copied from another thread to post here for cleanliness:

Ranger wrote:Since everyone else is doing it;

I'm Ranger, you can in fact call me Ranger or Ranger Smith, or Smith, I don't care.
I'm currently residing in Nevada, but I will be moving to Colorado or Utah soon. Hopefully Maine not too long after (!!!)

Right now I work a shitty minimum wage job but hopefully soon I'll be getting a job either with the National Park Service or as a Conservation officer, fingers crossed. Should everything go according to plan, myself and my SO will be up in Maine assisting in development of the commune.

As of now Mainebub, Chris (AZwoodscout), and myself will be administrators/moderators of this forum and more than likely primary source of direction and information. I don't take this to mean "leadership", just organization.

Let's rock and roll.

I'm Alex, age 18. As of right now I am living in East Tennessee. I'd like to join mostly to get away from civilization and live a simpler life.
Now for what I can contribute...not much. Youthfulness maybe?

But all joking aside, I am eager to learn. On top of that, I have experience in small construction projects (done more than my fair share of fence-building) basic carpentry (I make benches/chairs from time to time) and I know a little bit about everything. I'm one of those guys who absorbs any information he comes across. I don't have many skills, but learning is always an option.

Money-wise, things are tight. I have some savings, but no job right now. I have some big opportunities lined up that I hope work out.

Two years in, I don't think we'll be done. In fact, we will probably never be totally "done". There are always improvements to be made. That said, Two years down the road I would hope to be mostly self-sufficient. From what I've read, we can have some nice gardens up in Maine.
I'd also like to have built at least a couple of canoes, provided we have proper water access.

That's about it.

EDIT: I'm also the guy who started and currently runs the Google Doc.

I'm Kim, I'm 22. I would be joined by my S.O, Anthony, who is also 22. We live in New Jersey and really dislike it! I've been dreaming of homesteading for a long time, and I've taken up a few hobbies to learn more about it. I've been gardening for a few years now and I'm pretty confident that I can produce good harvests. I also recently moved into an old house, so I've been doing renovations and repairs here and there, though my skills with it are limited. I know how to raise tilapia, I can birth, raise, and breed animals (my grandparents bred a wide arrange of animals, domestic and farm), and I have a small stockpile of seeds and fruit trees/bushes that could be transported. I'm an artist, so I also have a small collection of saws and other various tools.
In January I graduate from college, and by then I could most likely have the $15k. I'll also have a degree and may be able to use that to bring money into the community.
My S.O and myself are really open about a strong sense of community and giving back and helping each other.
In two years, I would like to be making improvements on my homestead and helping out the other homesteads.

Name:

Mike

Age:

27

Residing:

I'm already living in Maine.

What your reasons for joining the homestead are:

I've been looking for a way to be a modern day subsistence farmer in america and this seems like good way to each that.

What you can contribute:

I have limited experience with both chickens and Nigerian dwarf goats. Along with some half assed gardens over the years. Plus whatever money I can save up as we plan this out.

How do you see yourself two years into completion of the homestead!:

Moving in full time and helping to continue improve our patch of land.

Ian
19
Southern California

I'm certainly not committed to the homestead, yet I am very willing to learn more. I will have to see where this goes, and perhaps I will be convinced to join

I'm no master of any trade, but I feel experienced enough to contribute and develop skills to benefit a community like this. I consider myself to be skilled with crafts such as leatherworking, sewing, etc., I could put together a portfolio later if you’d all like to see. For the most part the only useful skill I will be able to contribute in the beginning is general labor.

If this becomes something that i’d pursue, two years into this adventure I picture myself having a decent looking beard, a livable domicile, a kickass workshop, and 3 toes missing due to frostbite.

Name - Jon
Age - 27
Residing - S. Maine.
What your reasons for joining the homestead:  I have plans of doing this solo [with my SO], however this undertaking would be much more easily accomplished with a group of like minded individuals.
What you can contribute: I have extensive outdoor/survival/camping experience.  I specialize in farming, fishing, navigation and basic structure construction.  I am outdoors in Maine wilderness almost weekly.  I have experience with tracking and small game hunting. I am extremely familiar with IFW legislation, and have a knack for research. I have been researching and somewhat vaguely planning to homestead in the Maine wilderness.
How do you see yourself two years into completion of the homestead!  Log cabin. Sipping coffee by a river with my SO.  Hopefully pursue a Game Warden Career after being settled.

Age:
23
Residing:
Currently live in NY (studying). Normally i live in Denmark.
What your reasons for joining the homestead are:
Right now im more interested in following the progress since I have to be out of the states by feb16. One day I might join you guys are set up my own homestead in Sweden.
What you can contribute:
General knowlegde and happiness. Normally I only go /out/ in the summer but Im used to the Scandinavian cold. I'm also on my last year of my economics bachelor so maybe I can use that for something (or not).
How do you see yourself two years into completion of the homestead!
Done with my bachelor, probably done with my master aswell but lets see. Hopefully one day i can join A homestead.

Name:
Ryan

Age:
18

Residing:
Buffalo, NY

What your reasons for joining the homestead are:
Basically, i get a much greater satisfaction from life knowing just what im doing and not having to worry about all the shit
going on in the world such as the stock market or fucking china or caring whos winning the presidential race. I want to be
simple and life life away from the city and be independent. Currently im fixing up an old 25ft sailboat which i was planning
to sail away from this shitty snowy city.

What you can contribute:
General boating knowledge, gardening/greenhouse plant care, quick learning ability, a fondness for the outdoors and a
personality that likes minimalistic things.

How do you see yourself two years into completion of the homestead!
Who knows? hopefully happy and fishing/hunting in spare time, living simpler.

Name:
Cal

Age:
28

Residing:
Texas. I'm a college student here using the Post 9/11 GI Bill.

What your reasons for joining the homestead are:
When I was a child my mother would take me out camping for days on end, in all kinds of conditions. It always distressed me that, after our time was through, we'd tear down the campsite and remove all traces of our presence. The books of my childhood were things like Robinson Crusoe, the Swiss Family Robinson, The Survivors by Tom Godwin. It's something that I've found myself thinking a great deal about for many years.

What you can contribute:
I like to think that I have extensive knowledge of indigenous plants in North America, for the purposes of both food and medicine. I can brew apple cider, tap sugar maple, and make white cedar tea. I know of a least a dozen plants with useful medicinal applications that grow all over the country, to treat everything from an upset stomach to high cholesterol. I also have CLS (Combat Life Saver) training from my time in the Army. It's rather basic, but has a focus on dealing with physical trauma. This may not be a selling point, but I also know how to make alcohol.

How do you see yourself two years into completion of the homestead!:
Living in a cabin with solar panels on the roof, giving out my knowledge to anyone who needs it. Probably making hard cider on the side, because hard cider is amazing.