Final Reflection Post

Since I last opened the book many things have happened, important things like how their diet works and how they planned it. Also they talk about how they intend to plant their garden.

“Our practice is quite different. It closely approaches the Japanese way of gardening… When they take out a radish, they replant a lettuce seed or other seed in the vacated spot…we plant in the spring, we plant in the summer; we plant in the fall… harvesting early summer greens and roots. ”

Pg. 240 The Good Life

“ Where do we turn for good, healthy, nourishing, unadulterated food? To our own gardens, of course, and our own kitchens… The best and simplest food in the world is unprocessed… As for food preparation, the less and the simpler the better.”

Pg. 369 The Good Life

They also talked about staying away from store food, as much as possible.

The way they garden interests me the way they do it is better than we normally garden in the U.S. but they took on the Japanese style which seemed to work a lot better.

When I finished this book it showed me that we could do as much as we plan to if we put our time into it, like they did back then. So that proves that we can do something that incredible.

My favorite part has to be the way they eat if we did that now Americans would be in a lot better shape. There would be no obesity and our environment would thrive at peak performance.

Discussion questions

1.     As I restated that if we made cooking simpler and easier if we planted our own garden, would you do this if the benefits were what I said they were?

2.     If you lived by these moral rules that they did how long do you think you could last and what would make you stop?

3.     What would you have to change about their rules to live like them if you lived in a big city?

Spice cake

During the making of this cake we faced some difficulties making it. One of the problems was at first the sweet potatoes were to hot to handle, so the recipe should have a longer time in the directions. another problem was our white chocolate frosting which didn't start to form so we borrowed the left over vanilla frosting and blended it together with our liquid form of ours.
The overall appearance of the cake was awesome but at the end of the cake I was starting to run out of nuts on the top. Besides the nuts everything was crafted using a frosting bag using multiple tips which include writing tip and a miniature star tip. The petals of the flower i put pecans to make them look like they were flower petals then outlined them with frosting.
In the batter we used cinnamon and nutmeg. These ingredients magnifies or intensify the flavor of the sweet potatoes  If we could edit and experiment with the recipe and made it bigger and had a whole we week to edit and tweak the appearance and composition. Maybe in the making the frosting thicker we could add the white chocolate to a butter-cream frosting then add a little nutmeg and cinnamon to it also. If I could edit the appearance i would but whole anise on top of the small flowers on the side. Another thing would be to experiment and know what each frosting tip actually looked like before starting. Then finally add more frosting on sides to make it look nice instead of a rush job and add small flowers using star tip around the bottom edges on the sides.
The finished product was magnificent for me being a beginner the sweet potatoes in the batter and the cinnamon added a bite to the cake the frosting is a little runny but it did have some volume to it. Another factor includes the bake time which we were running out of time so middle was sunk in a little bit. 

entry 2

So far in the next part of the book the family explains what rules they live by now, like:

“1. We wish to set up a semi-self-contained household unit, based largely on a use economy, and, as far as possible, independent of the price-profit economy, which surrounds us.

2. We have no intention of making money, nor do we seek wages or profits. Rather we aim to earn a livelihood, as far as possible on a use economy basis. When enough bread labor has been performed to secure the year's living, we will stop earning until the next crop season.

3. All of our operations will be kept on a cash and carry basis. No bank loans. No slavery to interest on mortgages, notes and I.O.U's.

4. We will make our cash crop from maple syrup and will work out a cooperative arrangement wherever possible.

5. We will put syrup production on an efficient basis, replace the old Hoard sugarhouse with modern building and equip it with new tools.

6. So long as the income from the sale of maple syrup and sugar covers our needs we will not sell anything else from the place. Any garden or other surpluses will be shared with neighbors and friends in terms of their needs.

7. We will keep no animals.

8. We will not waste time making over old buildings.

9. We will pick out site for permanent house.

10. We will build of natural stone and rock.

11. Get lumber from own forest.

12. Use gravel as necessary trying not to use more than needed.”

They put these into effect when they have to make a gravel road. These rules were also put into affect when they had to figure how were going to get things from other people and not seem greedy.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Helen_and_Scott_Nearing

Discussion questions 

1. would you follow these guidelines when you are doing the thing that they are?

2. If you could edit these rules what would you change and why?

The Good LIfe: a book review by Jacob W

Authors: Helen and Scott Nearing
Publication date: 1954
Published by: Schocken books, New York

From reading the insert that is in the front cover of the book it said that it was when Helen and Scott having abandoned the city in 1932 for a rural life based on real life living, good health, and a minimum of cash try to live on little as possible surviving the growing world around them.
In the first twenty-five pages they are looking for the ideal place to live this life that they want for themselfs. The location that they want has to be isolated place were there ideals and ideas can flow wild.
So far i don't think the book is overly exciting in the way that i thought but as the challenges they face might be interesting. The ways that they make their self-substaining life like composting practicle ways that they sufficient for 60 years.
1. Think and discuss about what challenges they will face in rest of book?
2. If you were them what would you do to be sufficient for as long as they have?
3. If this book took blace now days what do you think would change?
Link to their charity: http://www.goodlife.org/

Hello