Are We Crazy?

The short answer is, yes, we probably are, but that is a different story altogether!  I have, through the years since we moved to our country paradise, thought about the pros and cons of living in the country and raising livestock.  

During the winter months the thought crosses my mind many times about how much easier life would be in town.   At times, we get snowed in and when the roads do get plowed sometimes it's only one lane.  The wind is worse in the country which means that everything drifts worse than in town.  And we definitely have more to plow here than we did in town.

It is, in general, more expensive to live in the country.  Everything from electricity and water to our weekly gas budget costs more.  This is a huge downfall if you're not aware or prepared for it.  We have learned to live with it and do what we can to save by growing our own food in the summer and raising our own livestock.  

Country life is tons more work than living in town.  From daily chores to maintenance on equipment, fences and barns the work can take it's toll.  We all pitch in, with my husband and I bearing the brunt of it.  Before we moved I had no idea just how much more work it would be.  Not that I don't like work, but I just had no idea how much it would entail.

The beauty of living in the country is that I can see about 5-10 miles in all directions of our house.  I can see storms coming from the west long before they get here.  I only have one neighbor who really doesn't care what we might be doing.  We can do just about whatever we want with our land.  We can make a garden as large or small as we want.  We can plant trees or bushes without a building permit, yes a building permit was required in the town we came from.  My kids have plenty of room to run or play as they wish.  I love having animals and treat each as a part of our family.  I get so excited when the babies are born and it drives me crazy with anticipation when they are close. I also believe it is good for children to grow up having chores around the farm and caring for animals of their own. 

In the end, the list of pros is endless and the cons only represents a few of the things I don't like about the country.  I wouldn't give it up for anything.  It is our home and everyone knows there's no place like home!

Unbelievable Rules

I wanted to post an update to my recent post about our new adventure that would include being licensed to sell farm-raised meat from our home.  We recently were "inspected" if you want to call it that.  

First of all, a little background on the process: I spoke with the department of inspections and appeals to find out what was required to be able to sell meat from your home.  There is very little to absolutely no info on this available online unless your are actually producing the product yourself.  I was told you have to have a warehouse license and they emailed me an application, which included absolutely no instructions or requirements.

Secondly, in the past few months while attempting to "get everything ready", I made 2 more calls to the department in an attempt to obtain more info on any requirements and both times I was told that the only requirement is a working freezer separate from our own use products.

That was fine, we purchased a small freezer set up in our garage (this is what one gentleman at the dept. said most people do) on our farm and a couple weeks ago sent our application in with the $67.50 fee required for one year.  When I received our letter stating who our inspector was and his number, I called to set up the inspection.  I again asked if there were any specific requirements I should know to have in place for inspection.  He told me there wasn't much to it other than a working freezer.  Ok, fine.

He showed up last Monday, as expected, and was a less than friendly person right off the bat.  Secondly, he looked at the freezer and said his concern was that we use the garage for other uses such as parking cars! No kidding!  Don't most people?  About that time our dog (yellow lab) looked out the door to see who was here and the man said "you have pets?"  I said "yes, we do live on a farm and it's not like the dog will be in the freezer or the car touching the inside of it".  He probably thought I was being rude, but I was flabbergasted!!  He then stated that the freezer has to be in an area free of other activities and pets!!  I was in shock!  I darn near fell on the floor!  No wonder more people don't attempt to do this. 

Needless to say we flunked inspection for the time being and unless we build a "room" for the freezer by itself, will never pass. Don't get me wrong, because I do believe in food safety.  That being said, I think some of the rules are a little outrageous.  Also, if they would have told me the rules on one of the 4 times I spoke with them before sending the application and my fee, I wouldn't have even bothered.  Sounds to me like a way for them to make money without having to do much but show up once to say you are denied.

I am still a little steamed- ok I am a lot steamed- about the whole thing as I have spent $255 to date to get things ready and apply.  We are still mulling over whether or not it would be worth it at all to spend more money on the "room" and risk being denied again for some stupid reason.  And yes, I do think the reasons stated are just plain stupid.  I hate when people are not honest in the first place, which I feel is exactly what has happened here.

Not sure what regulations are like in other states, but I have heard that some don't have any at all for such ventures.  I will not let this setback get us down, but we have some more thinking to do as to what our next step will be.

Hope everyone has a great week as always!