Lately I’ve noticed that with all the war and greed and disillusion in the world that people are starting to not only contemplate but return their lives to simpler times.

With gas prices soaring, unemployment seeing no end and people struggling to keep their homes, some are beginning to realize that life can’t be what it once was.  Everyone is cutting back.  No more trips to the Bahamas, it’s all about “staycations” now.  People don’t have the money to hire contractors so they are spending their nights and weekends watching DIY programs and fixing things around the house themselves.

I’m no different.  I’ve had to cut back on so much that I don’t remember what a vacation is.  I think the last time I went was about six years ago.  Weekends are spent close to home, cleaning or fixing the yard.  I’ve started to use coupons and wonder if it’s really possible to be one of these extreme couponers who can buy $800 worth of food for nothing.  It’s tempting.  We’ve already started our seedlings for the Spring, though with the late, harsh winter here on the East coast, we’ve had to start them late and aren’t able to put them in the ground yet since it’s still hovering in the 40s at night.  But I’ve noticed that our usual couple of pots of tomatoes has turned into a huge planter of mixed greens, herbs, beans and other vegetables that we hope will help sustain our food supply when we can’t afford the groceries that we need.

We’re also getting chickens soon.  That’s both funny and comforting to me.  I haven’t dealt with chickens since I was a kid and my grandparents had a farm.  “Back then” that’s what people did, kept chickens, and gardens and made things for themselves with what they had… much like people did in the eras that I write about, which made me think that this was even a better idea.  “Back then”, most people had little choice.  If you didn’t have chickens and a garden, you didn’t eat much.  Not like there was a supermarket on every corner to be able to buy from.  You ate what you had or you brought your goods to market and traded for what you needed.

I’ll be moving to a more rural area shortly where the idea of fresh food barter and trade is a given.  There’s a farmers market co-op where they allow you to get what you need and trade for what else is there and I think it’s a fabulous idea.  The way things are going with the economy, there will come a time when no one can afford to buy the gas to get them to the market and they will have to rely on the bounty that they made for themselves.  I find pride in that.  My grandparents and great-grandparents lived off the land and they managed quite nicely and had comfortable lives.  There’s no need to empty your bank account to be able to purchase Kobe beef and organic vegetables when you can have fresh vegetables and local meats that will cost next to nothing.

And in a way, going back to living a simpler life will allow me, as a historical writer, to experience all the joys and pains of living off the land, just like those in my stories had done and it will give what  I write a more personable feel so that my readers can not only relate, but experience it along with me.