→ 2010-06-16 05:10:43 (32 Comments)
March 9, 2010
Wow, ya”ll put up a great bunch of comments/contributions to the Time Management post – check it out if you missed it. Thanks for some great dialogue!
There’s lots happening here on the urban homestead, I can’t even begin to start with details. So I am going to let pictures do the “talking.”
Once again here’s a [...]
July 26, 2009
I just wrote about not being able to work the AC at the last event saying it was good practice for the future.
I picked up that quite a few people were uncomfortable with the room being warm but if only they knew it has hip and trendy now! With this latest article in the NY Times, [...]
March 29, 2009
Earth Hour came and went like just another evening here on the urban homestead – in the dark.
Here’s an entry from last year talking about how we power down
How many of you powered down and unplugged last night and how many of you will continue to incorporate these new habits on a daily/weekly/monthly basis.
Care to [...]
February 6, 2009
Back in 2003, we self installed 12 solar panels on our garage roof. The City of Pasadena solar rebating us 2/3rds of the cost. This was something that we couldn’t pass up! They made solar affordable to common resident. By producing our own green power, it was one more step in making the urban homestead more [...]
December 14, 2008
Headlines like “So Cal braces for winter storm“ have been teasing us for the past few days leave us wondering where this phantom storm is. We haven’t had a lick of rain only dreary and cold temperatures instead.
A chance of rain was predicted Fri, Sat, Sun now they are changing the weather forecast to chance of rain [...]
December 3, 2008
“During World War II many consumer goods were rationed for civilians in order to supply more goods for both American and Allied troops. Among the items rationed were sugar, red meat, gas, oil, coffee, and rubber. In October 1942 fuel oil was rationed. During the especially cold winter of 1942-43 this brought numerous protests from [...]
November 7, 2008
Well, since Justin isn’t here to explain the goings on in the photos (he’s out visiting a local beekeeping supply company with a friend – more on that later) I can share with you photos and all that I know is going on with his latest tinkerings.
He finally figured out the missing part that was [...]
October 4, 2008
click here for more videos like this
Correction: Justin meant to say our energy bill is $15 for per billing cycle which is every TWO months.
September 21, 2008
by Anais in Cooking & Baking, Cooling, Energy, Homestead, Kitchen, Posts by Anais, Solar Oven, Solar Power
FACT: every day the sun shines, an equivalent of 4.25 TRILLION barrels of oil falls on the US alone in the form of solar energy
I have a confession, I been addicted to solar ovens ever since we built our first cardboard, aluminum oven back in the days — 1990 to be exact. Yep, we were [...]
May 29, 2008
It’s been nearly 5 years since we self installed 12 solar panels on top of the garage. A worthwhile investment on our part, thanks to the City of Pasadena. The City generously rebated 2/3rd of the cost of the system. Hey locals! The City’s solar rebate program is still available with even better incentives.
On the [...]
April 21, 2008
I know from past comments, the unplugged kitchen holds a fascination with some our readers. Like I blabbed in the Video the urban homestead’s kitchen has only one plug in appliance and that is our ENERGY STAR (efficient) fridge. Some of the plugless “appliances” featured on the NY TIMES Video can be purchased via our [...]
March 30, 2008
How many of you participated in “Earth Hour” yesterday? Come on, raise your hands, don’t be shy, speak up and share your experiences!
What “power down” methods did you use and how did you spend your time? Also, do you find time to “power down” more than 1 hr a week?
Didn’t know about it?
Earth [...]
March 13, 2008
Justin measuring out the plywood to install a new (sustainable metal) roof (2007) with foregoat Lady Fairlight looking on
QUESTION
Love the new blog! I am curious about tools for the various building projects around the urban homestead. Do you use mostly hand tools, or a combination of hand and power tools, and — [...]
February 20, 2008
12 self installed solar panels sit ontop of the urban homestead’s garage
We were shocked to see that last months power bill was double that of last January. Actually we were downright dumbfounded, how on earth could that be? I mean we hadn’t gotten “power hungry” and purchased any new plug in devices or appliances. I know [...]
February 20, 2008
Salvaged wood & heat
Here on the urban homestead we don’t have central heat, instead we heat our home (well, only three out of the nine rooms) using a small compact (EPA certified) Jotul wood stove. I’ve written many a times before about how we combat the cold by dressing in layers and well, just getting used to a [...]
February 6, 2008
Plugless appliances
Answers From the Urban Homestead – Unplugged Kitchen
Promised you! I didn’t forget. It may take me like a hundred years, but I will (hopefully) answer everyone’s questions. And if I haven’t, don’t take it personally because it could have gotten lost in all my computer files.
Q. I liked reading about your unplugged kitchen. I [...]
December 2, 2007
Newflash: Storm Watch!!!
It’s the storm of the century! Ok, a bit too dramatic… Trying again, it’s the storm of the year, well, how about the month? actually that’s more like it and it’s the truth. The first measurable rain in over 7 weeks rolled in on Friday. The local news station sent reporters to [...]
November 28, 2007
by Anais in Ammendments & Fertilizers, Barnyard, Energy, Fertilizers, Garden, Homestead, Journey Reflections, Posts by Anais, Simple Living
New digs
Organized Chaos
Every year at this time chaos erupts here on the urban homestead as a new year winds down and another looms over the horizon. A flurry of activites and assorted projects begin: plantings, composting, organizing, planning, scheming, dreaming– and more –all start now.. The months of Nov & Dec are vital in the [...]
November 9, 2007
by Anais in Barnyard, Community, Cooking & Baking, DIY Projects, Energy, Garden, Garden, Highlights, Homestead, Journey Reflections, Kitchen, News, Outreach, Posts by Anais, Videos, Water
Homegrown Revolution™
When UCLA professor Peter Sellars invited PTF to come and speak to his class, we were honored at such an opportunity. Since it was such a short notice, we had to scramble to get something that would get the students’ attention about the homegrown message of PTF. Since the class focus was on [...]
October 22, 2007
by Anais in Clothing, Energy, Garden, Homestead, Kitchen, News, Posts by Anais, Powering Down, Simple Living, Weather
Guerrilla farmer in an urban jungle
Urban Camo
If you have noticed, in many photos taken of urban farmer, Justin, he’s wearing camouflaged pants and shirts. It’s not that he has eyes on the latest fashion (what’s in style anyway) or that he’s joined some underground militia movement. We can’t afford organic hemp or cotton clothes, [...]
August 31, 2007
by Anais in Compost, Energy, Garden, Homestead, Kitchen, News, Posts by Anais, Solar Oven, Supplies, Water, Water, Weather
Conscious cooking
Hot & Muggy
Whew, it feels as if we are living in a sauna. Temperatures and humidity levels are insane and there’s no relief in relief in sight
The power companies are asking (should be mandatory!) folks to conserve energy and of course, we do our part here on the urban homestead.
Opening doors and windows just [...]
June 26, 2007
by Anais in Community, Energy, Garden, Homestead, Kitchen, News, Outreach, Posts by Anais, Simple Living, Solar Oven, Supplies, Water
Green driveway strip, kombucha mother, this year’s wine crop
- made apricot fruit sauce with homegrown apricots
- bought a few 1 gallon glass jars wholesale so can start kombucha and rejuvalac cultures (have to find ways to use 800 lbs of grain that were given to us by a friend). After sprouting and fermenting the grains [...]
January 25, 2007
by Anais in Cooking & Baking, DIY Projects, Energy, Garden, Highlights, Homestead, Journey Reflections, Kitchen, News, Posts by Anais, Simple Living
Eco pioneers
Path to Freedom’s urban homestead is featured in 3 page spread in today’s (Thursday) “HOME” Section of the LA Times – pick up a copy!
O, pioneers in Pasadena {LATimes}
One family unplugs from technology and lives off the land. Even the blender is pedal-powered.
JULES DERVAES can’t help it. He’s afflicted by a condition for which [...]
January 4, 2007
Glowing wood stove
Wood Stove = Family Togetherness
We really like our little wood Jotul stove, one of the best investments we’ve made. For its small size it puts out some serious heat. What’s even better is that we can use scrap [non native eucalyptus] wood that would have otherwise gone to the dump.
The stove does a [...]
January 3, 2007
Orange crush
Orange Harvest
I get the feeling that I know what I’ll be doing for a few days. Juicing!
New Year
“Thank you” to all of you, new readers and old, that have been constant readers of the PTF journal. As always, we are indeed very grateful for your continued support as there are many choices in journal’s [...]
December 26, 2006
by Anais in DIY Projects, Energy, Garden, Homestead, Metal Roofing, News, Posts by Anais, Stocking Up & Storing
Grateful
To EB for his continued support of our site. We are touched and humbled by your gift.
Roof Report
The roofing guys are back again this morning; however with a chance of rain on Wednesday they may have to skip a day and resume work on Thursday.
Busy
Yesterday, with the help of a friend, we spent the [...]
December 19, 2006
Harnessing Human Energy
‘Bike based machines leave a light imprint on the earth and are a great way to harness human energy.’ ~ Nate Byerley (The Juice Peddler)~
The other day we received a flyer from the cycle-lutionary group of NoCal cycler’s informing us that the stationary bike blender kit is now available. Guess what that means? [...]
December 18, 2006
It’s a Cat’s Life: Best seat in the house
Sunday was a perfect day to break in the new wood stove. Since new stoves emit a smell we figured on taking advantage of the beautiful afternoon (crisp, sunny and cool) to break in the Jotul. The first break in procedure is to heat the stove up [...]
December 3, 2006
A local tree trimmer, and friend of ours, brought over some dry eucalyptus (a non native tree) firewood on Friday so we can crank up the new wood stove soon. In lieu of payment we bartered a few homemade preserves and item from the Peddler’s Wagon. Not a bad trade, especially when a cord of [...]
December 1, 2006
‘The old Lakota was wise. He knew that man’s heart, away from nature, becomes hard; he knew that lack of respect for growing, living things soon led to lack of respect for humans too.’ – Luther Standing Bear
Mixed edible flower boxes, meyer lemons
Winter Garden
With the holiday’s approaching our orders for mixed edible flower boxes pick [...]
November 2, 2006
by Anais in Community, Cooking & Baking, Energy, Heating, Homestead, Kitchen, Laundry, News, Outreach, Posts by Anais, Solar Oven, Updates, Water
De-Cluttering
There are so many draft journal postings it’s becoming a cluttered, disorganized mess. So, before the year is out I am going to try to a bit of “cyber cleaning.” Anyhow, feeling a bit posting fatigue at the moment so, the less said/written, the better.
Here are a few new posts with some exciting developments (did [...]
October 29, 2006
by Anais in Barnyard, Community, Ducks, Energy, Goats, Heating, Homestead, Journey Reflections, Posts by Anais, Soil & Mulch
Gals and Goats
Hike
We took the goats on a short hike to the Upper Arroyo. The afternoon was quite warm (for the goats) so we stopped at shady “Teddy’s Outpost” and let the goats climb the hillsides, rocks and Jordanne even gave them a lesson in crossing streams. Fairlight didn’t have a problem crossing the stream; [...]
October 15, 2006
by Anais in Barnyard, Community, Compost, Energy, Goats, Heating, Highlights, Homestead, News, Posts by Anais, Simple Living
Jordanne & Lady Fairlight, Anais & Blackberry / Goats at Latino Festival
Goats in LA
The above photo was taken byDiego Chamorro at the recentC.I.C.L.E event ‘Life Can Be So Car Free’ on September 30th (which we rode our bikes to). Realizing that I had forgotten to check the batteries on my camera, I approached this man [...]
October 3, 2006
by Anais in Barnyard, Community, DIY Projects, Energy, Garden, Goats, Homestead, Metal Roofing, News, Pedal Power, Posts by Anais, Soil & Mulch, Updates, Weather
Bike Ride to LA
On Saturday we joined the celebration and many bike loving folks from the LA area for theLife Can Be So Car-Free event at the new Los Angeles State Historic Park (previously was the site for the“Not A Cornfield” project). Justin, Jordanne and I along with a friend rode our bikes the 9 [...]
September 28, 2006
Bike blender in the making
Harnessing Human Energy
Justin’s been busy tinkering away – he loves fixing bikes. In no time he’d disassembled one of the many salvaged bikes, sanded and painted it, put on the bike blender attachment and pieced the bike back together – adding wheels from this bike, seat from another and so [...]
September 27, 2006
by Anais in Ammendments & Fertilizers, Barnyard, Community, Compost, DIY Projects, Depaving, Energy, Garden, Homestead, Journey Reflections, Metal Roofing, Pedal Power, Posts by Anais, Powering Down, Water
Roof update
The guys spent most of the past couple days trying to finish the last bit of plywood on the roof eaves. First, they lifted up and leveled the eaves with some 2″‘x3″ lumber and then put down the plywood. So now, the front porch and northwest side of the house are finally finished!!! My [...]
September 24, 2006
by Anais in Barnyard, Community, DIY Projects, Energy, Garden, Goats, Health & Beauty, Heating, Homestead, Journey Reflections, Kitchen, Metal Roofing, News, Pedal Power, Posts by Anais, Powering Down, Simple Living, Spiritual Path
Waterfall, natural pool. Justin, Anais relax.
Sabbath-Rosh Hashanah Hike
Yesterday was an absolutely lovely day for a hike – blue skies and nice breeze. We, along, with a friend hiked the upper Arroyo Seco to the dam (about 6 miles round trip)
What a great (free and natural) way to relax and de-stress after a hard weeks work [...]
September 7, 2006
by Anais in DIY Projects, Energy, Garden, Heating, Highlights, Homestead, Journey Reflections, Kitchen, Metal Roofing, News, Posts by Anais, Powering Down, Simple Living
In the News
Path to Freedom and Pasadena spotlighted in the newHope Dance magazine pg 28.
Issue #58 ~ How Cities are Preparing for Global Warming & Peak Oil
Walking the Talk on the Path to Freedom {Hope Dance}
by Brian von Dedenroth
Inching along the 210 freeway in Pasadena,I can’t help notice other drivers carry the same vapid [...]
September 6, 2006
by Anais in Community, DIY Projects, Energy, Garden, Homestead, Kitchen, Metal Roofing, News, Outreach, Posts by Anais, Powering Down, Updates, Weather
The revolution continues to spread. In August the PTF website received over 3.8 million hits (nearly 400,000 unique visitors). Since April, when the site hit an all time high of 3.9 million hits, the site has continued to maintain slightly over 3 million hits / 350 thousand unique visitors monthly average.
We are a little frustrated [...]
September 5, 2006
by Anais in DIY Projects, Energy, Homestead, Kitchen, Pickling & Preservation, Posts by Anais, Solar Power
Late summer garden
Labor Day
Monday was just like a typical day here on the urban homestead – “labor” in the garden, in the kitchen, on the computer, and on the roof. Well, except for taking a break for a few hours when a LA Times staff writer was here doing a story for an upcoming issue [...]
September 4, 2006
by Anais in Clay Pot Irrigation, DIY Projects, Energy, Garden, Homestead, News, Posts by Anais, Water
Up on the roof once again
The heat and humidity has descended on the Southland once again (see huge white cumulous clouds over the San Gabriel mountain range in bottom right photo). We are not one to complain, but this weather is just horrible and very uncomfortable especially if you have to work outside. You expect [...]
July 25, 2006
by Anais in Beneficials & Pests, Cooling, DIY Projects, Energy, Garden, Greywater Reclamation, Health & Beauty, Homestead, Kitchen, Laundry, News, Pickling & Preservation, Posts by Anais, Powering Down, Simple Living, Water
Nitty gritty
Another sweaty, dirty, dusty, filthy day for the guys. This awful humidity makes an already dirty job even worse – the dust just sticks to the skin and becomes muddy. We are all certainly thankful for the sun shower – we are certainly using it a lot these days. As for me, last [...]
July 12, 2006
Toilet lid sink. “Spanky” inspects the job (yep that’s handmade soap you see.)
This past weekend the guys installed the new toilet lid sink (on one of two low flush toilets) in the back service bathroom. Remember, it’s the bathroom where we ran into trouble trying to install the compost toilet… we think we figured out [...]
July 4, 2006
by Anais in Ammendments & Fertilizers, Barnyard, Beneficials & Pests, Cooling, Ducks, Energy, Garden, Homestead, Posts by Anais, Powering Down, Weather
It’s another hot and humid day – yuck! Let me see now, we are going on over a week of this hot and sticky weather.
Sorry for the lack of postings lately, things have been busy as you may have guessed and besides it’s just to darn hot to sit in front of a computer.
In the [...]
June 18, 2006
Strawbales
Straw!
One of our clients was having a big shin-dig Texas BBQ on Friday, we happened to be delivering the same time the guy pulled in with a truck full of bales – 20 straw bales as a matter of fact! Of course, I asked the chef what would be done with the bales after [...]
