We were hooked. 16acres of fields and trees, sheep and chickens, fishing and hunting and farming. It was an absurd decision. We're not farmers. I raised rabbits for 4-H as a kid, and Melanie grows flowers, but otherwise we've got very little experience. On paper the decision was very difficult to make. Financially the added commute pretty much washed away the cost savings. But something just felt like it was the decision that needed to be made.
In the last few months there have been three shootings in our neighborhood. In May my Jeep was stolen and used in an attempted bank robbery. When we were in our 20's living in crime ridden poor neighborhoods had cache'. Melanie and I first moved in together in a 500 sq foot converted garage apartment in the heart of the avenues in Los Angeles. The Avenidas is one of the oldest and most established Mexican gangs in Los Angeles and at times one of the most violent. Joe, an older gang member lived across the street from us. He has a 6" scar on his abdomen from when he was shot right in the driveway to our house some years before we met him. Living on our block we had a sort of de-facto gang protection. Several of the older members lived there, throat tattoos and all, and it was understood that trouble was to stay away from them. "Anybody gives you a problem man, you tell me first. We take care of each other around here" Joe would say. At that age it was like being a war corespondent. Helicopters with spotlights hovered over our house at night. I'd tell people at parties about the time I walked out of the taco place on Glendale and Alvarado into a shootout. Diving under a car while guys emptied magazines of 9mm at each other not more than 20 feet on either side of me. But looking at 35 I'm tired of being lucky to survive with a good story. What used to feel like Robert Duvall stepping off a helicopter in Apocalypse now is turning into Mark Lee in a trench in Galipoli.
Maybe it's not a huge money saving decision. We're going to move out to the country, raise livestock, plant tomatoes, can things, hunt and fish and do farm stuff. It might be just for a year, it might be longer. But we're excited again. We're moving instead of holding fast. I've decided to chronicle the experience here. I'm planning on using the time to teach myself all sorts of subsistence skills and learn all about how to make all kinds of stuff. So check in from time to time, you can learn with us. I'll post projects and recipes as we go and updates on all the things we're doing. It's bound to be an adventure, no matter what.
