Full Transcript for Ep. 25 Homestead Update & Government Fishing Expedition

--> 00:05:02.160 I want to learn how to use this tool really well. 00:05:02.480 --> 00:05:04.160 I use it a lot anyway. 00:05:04.319 --> 00:05:13.279 I don't want to use it in a lazy way, and I don't want to be fake with it, you know, a way a lot of things just have it write everything for you and generate everything for you. 00:05:13.360 --> 00:05:18.399 I do use it to generate my Dawn on the Farm illustrations that go with my stories. 00:05:18.560 --> 00:05:25.759 I write the stories, but when I upload the story to ChatGBT, I ask it to create an illustration to go with it. 00:05:26.000 --> 00:05:27.519 And it works really well for that. 00:05:27.680 --> 00:05:30.800 I can't draw, so ChatGBT does it for me. 00:05:31.360 --> 00:05:39.680 I want to build something that's stronger than what I could build on my own because whether we like it or not, the world is changing. 00:05:39.920 --> 00:05:44.879 And I don't plan on standing in the driveway barefoot, hollering at progress like an angry rooster. 00:05:45.120 --> 00:05:49.040 I plan to learn it, use it, and make it work for me. 00:05:49.439 --> 00:05:51.680 So that's one of the things that I've got coming up. 00:05:51.759 --> 00:05:53.360 That class starts next Monday. 00:05:53.600 --> 00:05:54.319 Got signed up. 00:05:54.399 --> 00:06:00.480 I was on the, you know, in the in the little waiting area, watching the clock countdown, wondering if I was going to get in. 00:06:00.560 --> 00:06:08.480 And I've got friends that have done this class with Jack, and they all just rave about it, how much it has helped them in their business. 00:06:08.800 --> 00:06:12.720 Letty is in there and she's a big sister in that group. 00:06:12.800 --> 00:06:17.759 And so she, I'm sure that she will be a wealth of information for me. 00:06:17.839 --> 00:06:21.839 And I know that she'll help me, you know, in anything that I have questions about. 00:06:22.000 --> 00:06:28.480 So if you get a chance to take a class like that, it it this one's for entrepreneurs. 00:06:29.199 --> 00:06:35.600 So if you're building a business, a class like Jack is offering would probably really benefit you. 00:06:35.759 --> 00:06:37.120 Um, but there's other ones out there. 00:06:37.199 --> 00:06:39.519 There's it depends on what you're wanting to do with it. 00:06:40.800 --> 00:06:43.600 Another thing that we got, Mother's Day is coming up. 00:06:43.920 --> 00:06:46.480 Mother's Day is coming up this weekend. 00:06:47.040 --> 00:06:48.160 Yeah, this weekend. 00:06:48.879 --> 00:06:51.360 May the 10th, Mother's Day. 00:06:52.240 --> 00:06:58.000 So I have a friend, her name's Angie Watson of Heartland Designs, and she has a freeze-drying business. 00:06:58.079 --> 00:07:18.720 And so we were talking at Nicole's over the weekend, and she came up with this really cute idea of doing a chartreatery box, which is a bunch of really cute, like freeze-dried cheesecake and freeze-dried whipped cream with some like flavors on top, just a bunch of cute little freeze-dried treats. 00:07:19.199 --> 00:07:21.759 And so I ordered those from her. 00:07:22.000 --> 00:07:26.560 It's a fun little treat box and with sweets and goodies, and I thought it was just the cutest thing. 00:07:26.800 --> 00:07:31.519 So I decided that I'm going to send those to my daughters for Mother's Day. 00:07:32.959 --> 00:07:38.160 I don't expect them to send me anything, but they're all, you know, new mothers. 00:07:38.399 --> 00:07:40.480 They're in the, you know, they're in the trenches. 00:07:40.639 --> 00:07:47.519 And so I thought getting something from me, you know, just reminding them that they're doing a good job, I thought that would mean a lot to them. 00:07:47.600 --> 00:07:49.199 So hopefully they'll get those. 00:07:49.439 --> 00:07:51.600 I think Angie said they were mailed out this morning. 00:07:51.759 --> 00:07:54.720 They don't listen to me, so they're not, they're not going to know that it's coming. 00:07:54.959 --> 00:07:57.040 But hopefully it'll be there before Mother's Day. 00:07:57.120 --> 00:08:02.639 And I love being able to support my friends and small businesses whenever I can. 00:08:02.800 --> 00:08:10.000 So it made me feel really good, you know, to be able to order that from Heartland Designs from my friend Angie. 00:08:10.240 --> 00:08:14.160 And I think it's going to be, I think it's going to be something that's really special to him. 00:08:14.240 --> 00:08:17.920 You know, I could have ordered from a big box store. 00:08:18.079 --> 00:08:27.839 I could have clicked two buttons and had some generic things show up in a cardboard box with all the personality of a wet paper towel, but that's just not the same. 00:08:28.079 --> 00:08:37.440 There's something special about buying from somebody you know, somebody who's creating something with their own hands, someone who is trying to build something for their family. 00:08:37.679 --> 00:08:39.120 And that matters to me. 00:08:39.279 --> 00:08:48.879 That is part of the community, and it's part of being a part of the community, is supporting the other people who are also, you know, they're they're in the throes of it. 00:08:48.960 --> 00:08:50.399 They're in the throes of building. 00:08:50.559 --> 00:08:52.320 I think we need more of that. 00:08:52.639 --> 00:08:55.120 We need more people who are supporting each other. 00:08:55.279 --> 00:08:56.799 We need more local business. 00:08:56.960 --> 00:09:04.480 We need more of I know who made this, and less faceless, soulless, mast-produced everything. 00:09:04.720 --> 00:09:09.360 So I'm excited for the girls to get those boxes, and I'm excited to support Angie. 00:09:09.519 --> 00:09:12.320 So hopefully they'll all be really happy. 00:09:12.480 --> 00:09:18.960 I really wanted to send one to my daughter-in-law too, but she's not a mother yet, and I really didn't know how she would take it. 00:09:19.200 --> 00:09:22.480 Like maybe I was trying to overly encourage her. 00:09:22.639 -->

00:09:29.120 So I'll probably send her something later just as a hey, I love you and thinking about you kind of thing. 00:09:29.679 --> 00:09:33.120 Uh so next on the list is the monthly Moose letter. 00:09:33.679 --> 00:09:35.759 And I sent that out today. 00:09:35.919 --> 00:09:44.320 Now, in the in the Moose letter, I had to remind some folks of something that is not always fun to say, but it had to be said. 00:09:44.960 --> 00:09:52.320 I'm not able to pause herd share herd share subscriptions or split months so that people can travel. 00:09:52.480 --> 00:09:56.639 Um, I know that can be frustrating for people, and I understand that people go on vacation. 00:09:56.720 --> 00:10:08.720 I understand life happens, and I understand that schedules get busy, but here's the reality: the cows do not stop eating because somebody went to the beach. 00:10:09.200 --> 00:10:18.480 They don't gather up in the barn and say, Well, the Swiss Smith family's headed to Florida this week, so we'll just skip feed and utilities until they get back. 00:10:18.799 --> 00:10:21.519 No, ma'am, that is not how this works. 00:10:21.759 --> 00:10:35.279 The feed bill still comes, the labor still happens, the milking still happens, the testing still happens, the jars still have to be washed, the chill tank still has to be run, and the dairy still has to be maintained. 00:10:36.000 --> 00:10:39.519 This is a leaving, living, breathing operation. 00:10:40.639 --> 00:10:52.639 And the herd share is not just paying for milk in a bottle, it is helping maintain the herd, the dairy, the infrastructure, and the system that makes milk available every single week. 00:10:53.440 --> 00:10:56.080 So that is why we do the monthly membership. 00:10:56.320 --> 00:11:01.600 That is why it is consistent, that is why we don't pause, split, or prorate months. 00:11:02.000 --> 00:11:03.679 And I don't say that to be mean. 00:11:03.840 --> 00:11:04.639 I'm really not. 00:11:04.799 --> 00:11:06.960 I say it because I have to protect myself. 00:11:07.279 --> 00:11:13.519 And if I don't protect the sustainability of this dairy, then I won't have dairy to offer anybody. 00:11:13.600 --> 00:11:14.879 I'm gonna go out of business. 00:11:15.120 --> 00:11:17.200 And so I have to stick to those rules. 00:11:17.279 --> 00:11:21.440 And sometimes running a business means having boundaries. 00:11:21.679 --> 00:11:25.360 And I'll be honest, that does not always come naturally to me. 00:11:25.519 --> 00:11:37.919 I have a big heart, I want to help people, but I've had to learn that if you let everybody's exception become your responsibility, you will run yourself right into the ground. 00:11:38.559 --> 00:11:39.840 And I'm not doing that. 00:11:40.080 --> 00:11:41.840 I've worked too hard, I can't do it. 00:11:42.000 --> 00:11:42.799 Not anymore. 00:11:43.360 --> 00:11:51.120 This farm has to be sustainable for my family, for the cows, and for all the members who depend on us. 00:11:51.840 --> 00:11:58.720 And I'll just say I still have not taken a single draw off of what comes in from the dairy yet. 00:11:59.120 --> 00:12:10.799 Everything has gone back into infrastructure, to the cows, to things that the the farm needs, that this, you know, for maintaining this building. 00:12:11.679 --> 00:12:14.320 None of it has gone to the house. 00:12:14.720 --> 00:12:19.519 So please understand that I'm running on very thin margins. 00:12:19.679 --> 00:12:27.679 I would have loved to eventually be profitable when I get, you know, the equipment and all of the things that came with this paid off. 00:12:29.120 --> 00:12:33.840 But, you know, as it stands right now, I have to stick to the rules for that reason. 00:12:34.240 --> 00:12:37.919 Another exciting thing that we have going on is chicken processing. 00:12:38.159 --> 00:12:41.120 Chicken processing is coming up this weekend. 00:12:42.080 --> 00:12:43.600 Kale is going to be processing them. 00:12:43.759 --> 00:12:45.360 We'll probably help him if we can. 00:12:45.519 --> 00:12:48.879 It's his first batch since becoming part of the MOO crew. 00:12:49.440 --> 00:12:56.639 And very excited because chicken processing is one of those real homestead skills that teaches you fast. 00:12:56.879 --> 00:13:03.360 You can watch videos all day long, you can read books, you can talk about food systems and self-reliance until the cows come home. 00:13:03.600 --> 00:13:09.120 But when you're standing there processing chickens, you understand food in a whole different way. 00:13:09.440 --> 00:13:11.759 And there is respect that comes with that. 00:13:12.159 --> 00:13:19.120 It's not just a package from the grocery store, it's not just a price tag, it's not just meat wrapped up in plastic. 00:13:19.519 --> 00:13:24.879 It is life, it is work, it is responsibility, and it's stewardship. 00:13:25.120 --> 00:13:29.519 And I think that's one of those things missing in our modern food system. 00:13:29.759 --> 00:13:36.639 People are so far removed from where their food comes from that they don't even think about it anymore. 00:13:37.120 --> 00:13:44.000 They just grab that boneless, skinless breast from the store like they were grown on a styrofoam tree somewhere. 00:13:44.240 --> 00:13:45.759 And that's what they think. 00:13:46.159 --> 00:13:47.840 But out here we know better. 00:13:48.080 --> 00:13:59.919 We know what goes into raising them, we know what goes into feeding them, we know what goes into processing them, and we know what we know what it means to put real food in the freezer. 00:14:00.320 --> 00:14:04.639 So this weekend will be a big one, and we have 150 chickens. 00:14:04.720 --> 00:14:06.960 I don't think we're gonna process all of them this weekend. 00:14:07.039 --> 00:14:09.200 I've sort of letting him drive that bus. 00:14:09.759 --> 00:14:12.799 So whatever he decides to do is what we'll do. 00:14:13.120 --> 00:14:23.840 But I'm excited that he is finally getting his business off the ground because I have

put him in charge of poultry, and that's one of the things that's gonna be his money maker. 00:14:23.919 --> 00:14:28.320 So I'm I'm happy that we are finally to that first processing weekend. 00:14:29.120 --> 00:14:33.440 The other things that we have going on, we have garden projects that we must finish. 00:14:33.679 --> 00:14:35.360 Oh Lord, we must finish. 00:14:35.600 --> 00:14:37.200 We're working on the garden this week. 00:14:37.360 --> 00:14:39.919 We're finally healing and planting the garden. 00:14:40.320 --> 00:14:45.519 And yes, I'm a little bit later than I wanted to be, but I'm not gonna sweat it too much. 00:14:45.840 --> 00:15:01.120 At some point, you just kind of have to accept that real life does not always line up with the pretty little garden calendar that you made when you were sitting inside in January drinking coffee and feeling really optimistic. 00:15:01.919 --> 00:15:12.000 January, January me, the me who is sitting there with my coffee and my seed catalogs and my garden planner, is always very ambitious. 00:15:12.240 --> 00:15:13.279 Very ambitious. 00:15:14.159 --> 00:15:24.080 January me thinks that Mamie is going to be organized, rested, and wearing a cute little apron while gently placing seeds into perfect soil. 00:15:25.279 --> 00:15:37.679 Mamie is out here sweating, running behind, looking for tools, answering customer messages, checking milk, dealing with animals, and wondering who moved my gloves, and blaming everybody, including Kale. 00:15:39.440 --> 00:15:42.080 So we're planting now, and that's just fine. 00:15:42.320 --> 00:15:43.600 It is what it is. 00:15:43.919 --> 00:15:47.039 My kitchen garden is planted and ready to roll. 00:15:47.279 --> 00:15:48.320 I'm happy about that. 00:15:48.480 --> 00:15:49.360 That feels good. 00:15:49.600 --> 00:15:51.919 The kitchen garden is the one that's close to the house. 00:15:52.080 --> 00:15:55.840 It's the one for fresh eating, for herbs, for quick harvests. 00:15:56.000 --> 00:16:00.399 You know, those things that I want to just run out and grab while I'm cooking. 00:16:00.639 --> 00:16:05.120 But the preservation garden, the big garden, is still a work in progress. 00:16:05.279 --> 00:16:08.159 And those are two very different animals. 00:16:08.639 --> 00:16:13.679 A kitchen garden feeds your table, a preservation garden feeds your pantry. 00:16:14.000 --> 00:16:28.399 So the preservation garden is the one that matters when you are thinking about jars on the shelf, freezer space, freeze drying, canning, dehydrating, and getting through the winter with the food that you grew yourself. 00:16:28.879 --> 00:16:33.679 That garden takes planning, it takes volume, and it takes intention. 00:16:34.080 --> 00:16:35.039 So we're working on it. 00:16:35.120 --> 00:16:35.679 We're getting there. 00:16:36.320 --> 00:16:39.120 It might not be as early as I wanted, but it is happening. 00:16:40.080 --> 00:16:41.919 And that's the thing about homesteading. 00:16:42.240 --> 00:16:44.639 You don't get to wait for perfect conditions. 00:16:45.120 --> 00:16:49.120 You just do the next right thing, and you do it when you can. 00:16:49.919 --> 00:16:52.480 So that is we're working on that. 00:16:52.559 --> 00:16:58.000 And hopefully, T's going to get home early today, and that is going to be on our docket. 00:16:58.080 --> 00:17:07.359 We are all going to be over there, Chase, T, Kale, and trying to get those heels, you know, or get everything healed up, get the plastic down, and all that good stuff. 00:17:07.680 --> 00:17:12.000 We are finally installing the Flow Jack well pump. 00:17:12.880 --> 00:17:26.480 I have been wanting the Flowjack since I met them at Self-Reliance Festival and kind of got that on my radar, that it was a manual way to get water up out of the ground when other things aren't working. 00:17:26.640 --> 00:17:30.079 And I like to have backups to my backups. 00:17:30.240 --> 00:17:33.200 I mean, we do have the generac generator. 00:17:33.759 --> 00:17:37.039 So that'll run our well pump if we don't have electricity. 00:17:37.759 --> 00:17:39.839 But what happens if that's not working? 00:17:40.000 --> 00:17:42.960 So, and and the well is up on a hill. 00:17:43.119 --> 00:17:50.720 So if we could crank some water out of that thing with the hand crank, then we can get water going downhill and we would be in really good shape. 00:17:50.880 --> 00:17:54.480 So my neighbor Brent, I love him, he's coming over. 00:17:54.559 --> 00:18:00.480 He's a plumber by trade, although I don't think he's more in management now, but he still knows how to do all the stuff. 00:18:00.640 --> 00:18:06.880 But he's coming over and we're gonna get that put together and drop down into the well this evening. 00:18:07.440 --> 00:18:10.480 And I cannot even tell you what peace of mind that gives me. 00:18:10.720 --> 00:18:23.599 Water has been one of my main focuses this year because you can have freezers full of food, shelves full of jars, you know, gardens planted, animals out on pasture, all the good intentions of the world. 00:18:23.839 --> 00:18:27.839 But if you don't have water, you've got a serious problem. 00:18:28.000 --> 00:18:31.920 And we realize that even more during the ice storm this year. 00:18:32.079 --> 00:18:33.839 Water is not optional. 00:18:34.000 --> 00:18:47.440 You can skip a lot of things, you can make do without a lot of comforts, you can cook outside, you can light candles, you can wear extra clothes, you can eat simple, but you cannot go without water. 00:18:48.000 --> 00:18:52.319 And I just don't have myself to think about. 00:18:52.400 --> 00:18:58.880 You know, I have cows and I have chickens and poultry, I have animals, I have a garden, I have a dairy, I have a household. 00:18:59.200 --> 00:19:07.920 So having a manual well pump gives me a level of peace that is worthy of every last bit of effort that we're putting into it. 00:19:08.240 --> 00:19:12.000 And I don't want to be completely

dependent on power to access water. 00:19:12.160 --> 00:19:14.160 That just doesn't sit well with me. 00:19:14.480 --> 00:19:24.559 And this year we're working on adding some additional water storage, some water catchment, and some water access in as many areas as possible. 00:19:24.720 --> 00:19:30.079 I want options, I want backup systems, I want redundancy. 00:19:30.559 --> 00:19:33.920 Because as Jack always says, one is none, two is one. 00:19:34.000 --> 00:19:39.519 And when it comes to water, I prefer three, four, five, six, if possible. 00:19:40.000 --> 00:19:42.720 We're also looking at our spring-fed pond. 00:19:42.880 --> 00:19:46.799 We would really like to find someone who can help revitalize it. 00:19:47.039 --> 00:19:51.920 The springhead needs some love, and I know there's some really good potential there. 00:19:52.079 --> 00:20:00.400 It used to be a pretty full spring-fed pond, and over the years, I think just some sediment has gotten in the spring head. 00:20:00.880 --> 00:20:02.960 So it just doesn't feel like it did. 00:20:03.200 --> 00:20:10.559 But that pond could be such a valuable resource if we can get it cleaned up and get it functioning the way that it should. 00:20:10.960 --> 00:20:12.000 Excuse me. 00:20:12.240 --> 00:20:14.480 So water is a big theme around here this year. 00:20:14.720 --> 00:20:19.759 Wells, pumps, storage, catchment, ponds, access points, like all of it. 00:20:20.319 --> 00:20:24.880 Anything that I can do to install more water options, I'm doing it this year. 00:20:25.599 --> 00:20:29.440 Because for me, peace of mind is not built by accident. 00:20:29.680 --> 00:20:32.799 We build it around here one system at a time. 00:20:34.720 --> 00:20:36.799 May is strawberry month. 00:20:37.279 --> 00:20:38.319 My favorite month. 00:20:38.480 --> 00:20:40.640 Um a strawberry nut. 00:20:41.359 --> 00:20:47.119 My mother says I was cooked on strawberries because she ate strawberry ice cream the entire time she was pregnant with me. 00:20:47.440 --> 00:20:51.920 Strawberry whatever, whatever she could get her hands on that was strawberries, she ate it. 00:20:52.480 --> 00:20:55.599 And I have been a strawberry fiend my whole life. 00:20:56.559 --> 00:21:03.200 So over the next two weeks, I'm going to be preserving strawberries in as many forms as possible. 00:21:03.680 --> 00:21:12.559 I'm talking strawberry jam, freeze-dried strawberries, strawberries for yogurt, strawberries for ice cream, frozen berries, whatever else I can come up with. 00:21:12.799 --> 00:21:23.920 And once I'm knee deep in flats and questioning my life choices, I will be thinking, I love this life because that's how preserving works. 00:21:24.240 --> 00:21:28.400 You start out all excited, like, oh, look at these beautiful strawberries. 00:21:28.559 --> 00:21:34.480 And then three hours, three hours later, your kitchen looks like a crime scene from jam-related incident. 00:21:34.960 --> 00:21:41.680 Every towel is sticky, your feet hurt, and you're wondering why you thought 10 flats was a reasonable number. 00:21:41.920 --> 00:21:43.759 I do it to myself every year. 00:21:44.079 --> 00:21:58.799 But then winter comes and you open a jar of homemade strawberry jam, or you pull out freeze dried strawberries, or you make ice cream with berries that you preserved yourself, and suddenly you're like, oh yeah, that's why I did this. 00:21:58.960 --> 00:21:59.759 This is pretty awesome. 00:22:01.039 --> 00:22:04.799 I did plant strawberries in my raised bed this year up by my kitchen garden. 00:22:04.960 --> 00:22:06.880 And I'm happy that I did that. 00:22:07.119 --> 00:22:08.480 It's the first year for them. 00:22:08.640 --> 00:22:11.759 They're not going to produce anywhere near what I need for preserving. 00:22:12.000 --> 00:22:15.279 Not for jam, not for freeze drying, any of that stuff. 00:22:15.440 --> 00:22:17.599 All the things that we use strawberries for. 00:22:17.920 --> 00:22:24.160 So I will be going to my local strawberry farmer and purchasing about 10 flats. 00:22:24.319 --> 00:22:25.519 And I love that. 00:22:26.000 --> 00:22:29.920 I love to support other farmers whenever possible. 00:22:30.880 --> 00:22:38.319 There is this idea sometimes that if you're a homesteader, you should like grow every single thing yourself. 00:22:38.559 --> 00:22:41.680 And I just don't think that that's realistic for most people. 00:22:42.079 --> 00:22:44.559 I mean, could I eventually grow more strawberries? 00:22:44.799 --> 00:22:45.440 Sure. 00:22:46.160 --> 00:22:52.559 But right now, I know a local farmer who's already growing beautiful strawberries and growing them the way that I would grow them. 00:22:52.720 --> 00:22:54.640 And I'm happy to support them. 00:22:55.440 --> 00:22:58.160 Again, eventually I'm going to have my own strawberries. 00:22:58.400 --> 00:23:01.599 But this is part of building a local food system. 00:23:01.759 --> 00:23:11.440 It's not just about me growing food, it's about our neighbors, our other local farmers, producers, and families who support each other. 00:23:11.680 --> 00:23:18.079 I grow what I can, I preserve what I can, and when I need more, I support another farmer. 00:23:18.160 --> 00:23:20.000 And that's how it should be. 00:23:21.519 --> 00:23:30.480 Now, after all these updates, I want to shift gears just one last little bit because I want to talk about something that's been weighing on me. 00:23:30.720 --> 00:23:43.119 And I'm not going to go super deep into detail about it right now, but I do want to talk just a hair about the day that the Department of Agriculture showed up on my property and what happened. 00:23:43.680 --> 00:23:47.920 I'm going to be careful how I say this because I want to be clear and factual. 00:23:48.319 --> 00:23:57.200 But from my perspective, they trespassed on my property when they showed up without a warrant and searched my property. 00:23:57.680 --> 00:24:03.119 There was no warrant, there was no administrative

order, and there was no consent. 00:24:03.680 --> 00:24:06.559 I did not invite them to come and search my property. 00:24:06.640 --> 00:24:08.960 And I don't believe that what they did was right. 00:24:10.319 --> 00:24:14.000 Now listen, I am not saying this because I want to be dramatic. 00:24:14.160 --> 00:24:18.000 I'm not trying to stir up trouble just for the sake of stirring up trouble. 00:24:18.240 --> 00:24:27.680 I've got enough trouble around here just trying to keep animals fed and milk cold and gardens planted and chickens from acting like little tiny feathered criminals. 00:24:28.160 --> 00:24:30.400 But I do think this matters. 00:24:31.359 --> 00:24:34.160 It matters because property rights matter. 00:24:34.480 --> 00:24:36.640 It matters because boundaries matter. 00:24:37.039 --> 00:24:39.599 It matters because small farms matter. 00:24:40.480 --> 00:24:48.480 And it matters because people have a right to know what is happening when government agencies show up and act like they can just do whatever they want. 00:24:50.400 --> 00:24:56.240 There's a difference between lawful oversight and government overreach. 00:24:57.119 --> 00:25:03.839 There is a difference between asking questions and unlawfully searching a person's property. 00:25:04.960 --> 00:25:10.240 There is a difference between doing your job and crossing a line. 00:25:10.720 --> 00:25:15.200 And I believe wholeheartedly that the line was crossed. 00:25:16.640 --> 00:25:21.519 Now I'm not telling people to be hateful and I'm not telling people to go out and be confrontational. 00:25:22.319 --> 00:25:27.279 I'm not saying you need to act like a wet hen every time someone with a clipboard shows up. 00:25:27.920 --> 00:25:31.519 But I am saying that you need to know your rights. 00:25:32.240 --> 00:25:36.880 You need to know what you are required to do and what you are not required to do. 00:25:37.759 --> 00:25:48.000 You need to understand where your property begins, where your consent matters, and what the government can and cannot do. 00:25:49.440 --> 00:25:53.039 Because authority does not automatically equal permission. 00:25:54.160 --> 00:25:56.960 And a title does not erase your rights. 00:25:58.240 --> 00:26:00.880 There is something more people need to understand. 00:26:01.200 --> 00:26:07.200 We have gotten so used to assuming that if someone from an agency says something, then it must be law. 00:26:08.240 --> 00:26:09.599 That's not always the case. 00:26:10.000 --> 00:26:14.960 Sometimes it's policy, sometimes it's interpretation, sometimes it's intimidation. 00:26:15.839 --> 00:26:18.000 Sometimes those people are just on a power trip. 00:26:18.640 --> 00:26:24.079 And sometimes it's just somebody hoping that you don't know the difference, that you don't know what your rights are. 00:26:25.039 --> 00:26:26.880 That's why education matters. 00:26:27.039 --> 00:26:29.119 That's why documentation matters. 00:26:29.759 --> 00:26:31.759 That's why staying calm matters. 00:26:32.559 --> 00:26:39.200 You don't have to be rude, you don't have to be ugly, and you don't have to lose your head, but you do need to be firm. 00:26:40.160 --> 00:26:46.079 Because if you don't know where your boundaries are, somebody else will be more than happy to move them for you. 00:26:46.400 --> 00:26:48.640 And this connects to something bigger for me. 00:26:48.799 --> 00:26:52.000 It connects to people's right to choose their food. 00:26:52.240 --> 00:26:53.920 It connects to raw milk. 00:26:54.079 --> 00:26:55.680 It connects to small farms. 00:26:55.839 --> 00:26:57.680 It connects to herd shares. 00:26:57.839 --> 00:27:03.920 It connects to whether families have the right to decide what they put in their own bodies. 00:27:04.319 --> 00:27:09.599 Because at the end of the day, I believe people have the right to eat the foods of their choosing. 00:27:09.920 --> 00:27:13.680 I believe people have the right to seek out real food. 00:27:14.000 --> 00:27:23.119 I believe people have the right to know their farmers, shake their hand, walk the land, ask questions, and make informed decisions for their own families. 00:27:23.359 --> 00:27:30.960 And I believe that right should not disappear just because the food doesn't fit neatly into the industrial food system. 00:27:31.920 --> 00:27:40.079 Now I'd probably be diving more into all of this in an upcoming episode because there is a lot to say and a lot to unpack. 00:27:40.400 --> 00:27:47.599 Government overreach, food freedom, property rights, small farms, herd shares, those are big topics. 00:27:47.920 --> 00:27:51.039 And they are very controversial and very hot topics. 00:27:51.200 --> 00:27:52.079 And they matter. 00:27:52.240 --> 00:27:53.599 They matter for us. 00:27:53.920 --> 00:27:55.440 They matter for our children. 00:27:55.599 --> 00:27:57.680 They matter for our grandchildren. 00:27:58.160 --> 00:28:01.759 They matter for the future of food in this country. 00:28:02.079 --> 00:28:10.160 Because if we lose the right to choose our food, we lose a whole lot more than what's just what's on the dinner plate. 00:28:11.200 --> 00:28:16.319 So when I look at this week, it really does show what life on this homestead is all about. 00:28:16.720 --> 00:28:18.960 We are learning new skills with AI. 00:28:19.119 --> 00:28:22.240 We are supporting small businesses and local farmers. 00:28:22.480 --> 00:28:24.559 We're setting boundaries. 00:28:24.799 --> 00:28:28.400 We are processing chickens and putting real food in the freezer. 00:28:28.640 --> 00:28:31.839 We are planting gardens, even if we're a little bit behind. 00:28:32.160 --> 00:28:37.519 We are building water resilience with the Flowjack Pump as our starter for this week. 00:28:37.759 --> 00:28:44.559 We are preparing for strawberry preservation season, and we are standing firm on property rights and food freedom. 00:28:45.359 --> 00:28:46.559 That's real life. 00:28:47.039 --> 00:28:48.480 It's not always pretty. 00:28:49.119 --> 00:28:51.119 And it's certainly not always easy. 00:28:51.839 --> 00:28:54.640 It's not always wrapped up with a pretty little bow. 00:28:54.960 --> 00:29:05.119 Sometimes it's muddy boots, sticky counters, hard conversations, government agencies, chicken processing, and trying to remember where you set your coffee down. 00:29:06.079 --> 00:29:07.039 But it's real. 00:29:07.519 --> 00:29:10.079 And that is what this podcast is supposed to be. 00:29:10.559 --> 00:29:11.680 That's what I want it to be. 00:29:11.839 --> 00:29:18.880 I want it to be about real food, about real natural living and real life out here on our Tennessee homestead. 00:29:19.440 --> 00:29:21.359 All right, so we're gonna wrap this up. 00:29:21.440 --> 00:29:24.480 I hope that you have enjoyed our topic for today. 00:29:26.880 --> 00:29:34.160 I will probably be diving more into the government overreach and people's right to eat foods of their choosing in an upcoming episode. 00:29:34.799 --> 00:29:38.559 But to my babies and grandbabies, I love you big. 00:29:38.720 --> 00:29:40.400 I hope you hear this someday. 00:29:40.640 --> 00:29:45.279 Whatever y'all have on the docket today, guys, just remember to keep it real. 00:29:45.440 --> 00:29:47.039 I'll see you next week. 00:30:00.319 --> 00:30:05.200 My daddy was a carpet playing all the local clubs. 00:30:05.440 --> 00:30:10.240 And my mama was a woman with a puppet making with a cup. 00:30:12.559 --> 00:30:14.799 We didn't have much money.