Comments on: Knowing One’s Place

By: Gene Logsdon

Gene Logsdon — Wed, 14 Jan 2009 19:26:58 +0000

Paul, forgot to answer your last question. What I would change in hindsight in Contrary Farmer. I would be more critical of agribusiness and consumerism than I was. Gene

By: Gene Logsdon

Gene Logsdon — Wed, 14 Jan 2009 19:16:59 +0000

Paul: Legitimate question. Relatives don’t believe me either. I wrote that in 1996-98, over ten years ago. There’s been significant inflation since then whether the government will admit it or not, especially in housing, cars and appliances. 25K would go farther then. We paid off our mortgage before that and did not have any outstanding debts. We did not have auto loans to pay off. After our first new car in 1963, I always bought from savings. We did not get a color TV until about 1995 and it was used — young people visiting us before that would searched through our house looking for one, unable to beleive we still had only a mousy little black and white. Our present TV was given to us when my son in law bought a new one. Our radio and music player we bought about 40 years ago. Fortunately, we have had no health problems that insurance didn’t cover. You mention farming stuff. Almost all of mine was used stuff, some of it free. Much of my fencing was used, some of it free. My tractor was built in 1950. I paid $400 for it in 1975 if I remember correctly. It still runs quite well with maybe a couple thousand dollars of repairs over the years. All my equipment was, is, old, some of it given to me. The only thing new I ever bought was lawn mowers and tillers and chain saws and they last me about ten years. I did not count expenses for sending a daughter to college, although she paid much of that herself. I didn’t consider that a regular expense though maybe I should have. I bought three sheep and they increased naturally. I bought two calves and bred them artificially and increased naturally. We built our own barn buildings. We used as much old lumber from other buildings as we could find. Obviously we raise most of our food, but we used to go out to eat at nice restaurants about twice a month and regularly enjoy an evening sip of bourbon, although the latter only after we got out of debt. My pair of good shoes is 20 years old. My only dress up suit nearly that old. Right now I am wearing two boots both of them for the right foot. The left foot ones wore out quicker on the last two pair. We travel to Kentucky about three times a year to visit relatives. What little other travel we do I usually combine with business and get paid expenses. My biggest luxury expense ten years ago was sponsoring a softball team and for awhile that was tax deductible. I have a hunch I did not figure in that expense which was some years around $1500. So that 25K could have been a little off, but about right. Today, my wife and I (no children at home) live on right at $22,000 a year. Other members of our family constantly challenge us on that but my wife used to work in accounting and I think she can add and subtract quite well. We dare not spend much more than that without eating into our savings since our great government lowered interest rates to almost nothing and older people who saved like we did so as to have income from savings in our old age, don’t get enough interest to light a fire with. I have to keep on working but that’s okay with me. I like my work. Our life saver is Medicare now that we are both on social security. But they keep raising the premium on supplemental. Hope that helps you. Gene Logsdon

By: Paul in NC

Paul in NC — Tue, 13 Jan 2009 00:36:12 +0000

Sorry, I meant 2K+ per month.

By: Paul in NC

Paul in NC — Tue, 13 Jan 2009 00:00:41 +0000

Gene,
I recently read “You can go home again” and in it you wrote that for most years your family lived on about 25K a year. Really?? We try to be as independent as possible and we are working to become more so each year. I use you book “The Contrary Farmer” as a manual and learning tool and I still refer to it often. However, it seems that the more we do to become more independent the more cost it takes to get there, ie. the cost of fencing, livestock, maintenance of livestock, seed, equipment etc. We live on more than 25Z and still struggle to make ends meet and even more so now days. So, I really am not just being nosey but I am honestly curious on how one can live on about 1K per month and still have a good quality of life. On a more pleasant note, if you had to rewrite “The Contrary Farmer” today, what would you change significantly with the benefit of hindsite. Thanks so much.
At the risk of being too nosey

By: Mike S.

Mike S. — Thu, 08 Jan 2009 16:52:55 +0000

I enjoyed reading that. I hope I can know a place in a similar way someday. It reminds me of passing off a project to someone else. “Yup, yup, yup”, but you know they are just going to do their own thing and make their own mistakes. The smartest thing I ever did was realize I’m not that smart and start listening to people older than me.