Collabrative Consumption-Our story

babysteps · #1 10/28/10, 01:56 PM

Homesteaders have been collabratively working together for years. Now its a huge social trend. See Collaborative Consumption on Youtube or go to the Collaborative Consumption website at www.collaborativeconsumption.com.

In the spirit of trying to practice as much permaculture as possible my husband and I have developed a collaborative relationship with our nearest neighbor. Read our story at my blog site www.christinemccreedy.blogspot.com.

I am not blogging to make money just trying to get green ideas in the head of as many people as possible. Post your collabrative relationships here or leave a comment at my site.

The idea of sharing is BACK and I for one hope it is here to stay for many reasons.

Christine, taking babysteps in all kinds of directions.

Jerngen · #2 10/28/10, 03:48 PM

I enjoyed your blog post and the one immediately afterwards

MO_cows · #3 10/28/10, 05:15 PM

That old cliche is true - "Everything old is new again."

The concept of collaborative consumption is nothing new. Neighbors, friends and families have established such arrangements for as long as there have been families, friends and neighbors. The only thing different today seems to be how the people connect with each other - using the Internet and today's technology versus word of mouth or the good old grapevine.

It cracks me up how every generation thinks they have invented something new - but it's usually just a new twist on an old idea.

It is still a good concept, don't mean to imply otherwise, it just tickled me how "the next big thing" has actually been around forever.

melissa78 · #4 10/28/10, 06:15 PM

Haha, I was just thinking the same thing...things that my grandparents used to do don't seem quite so square to me today, lol!

Alice In TX/MO · #5 10/28/10, 07:08 PM

We've got several folks along our country road here in Missouri that are doing the same thing. If I've got it and you need to use it, come get it. Ditto, likewise, in reverse.

Wolf mom · #6 10/28/10, 07:12 PM

Boy, I must really be old (fashioned). To me it's just called friendship or being neighborly.

But then, the IN thing is to re-name everything, isn't it?

Takes about 20 years for the old to become new again.

Trixie · #7 10/28/10, 09:10 PM

That's nice. I agree, though, it sounds like what country people have been doing for all my life.

My daughter, Texas girl, and her husband, New Jersey boy, bought a house in Utah with 1.5 acres and it's an area where everyone has either horses, cows, chickens, whatever.

They have what I call, mountain water. From April to October, they have unlimited water for irrigation, watering stock, etc. It isn't drinkable as it is from a basin where they catch snow run off - as I understand.

A couple of ladies own a similar size property next door, with no house, and they have no 'culinary (city) water'. That means from Oct to April, they have no water for their horses - they rescue horses. The week my daughter and SIL moved in, they met the ladies and one informed him they would be using his culinary water to water their horses during the time mountain water was off.

My SIL was a little put off by being 'informed' and was talking to my daughter about it - she told him not worry about it, that that's what neighbors did - share.

The next week, SIL was talking to the ladies across the fence about the fact they were going to plant some fruit trees, but were going to have to rent a trailer to get them home. The next morning, there was a horse trailer parked in their driveway - with a note to use it to transport trees.

He said, 'So, that's how it works!'

geo in mi · #8 10/29/10, 08:59 AM

We were always taught to "share and share alike." Boy, that "alike" part was the toughest--and there's where it usually broke down........

geo

babysteps · #9 10/29/10, 09:01 AM

So true that country folks have practiced this for years. It's also true when there was the big move to the city by the hundreds of thousands of millions and the age of individualisam ruled from about the 1950's until now that the skills of barter, share trade were lost on so many people. Not just those skills, but simple self sufficeny. Now that we are in a huge economic down turn, people are rethinking. So glad we adopted a diffrent life style a while back. It just make sense. I knew I was pretching to the chior here, but as a city girl who has slowly sought out this life over 20 years I enjoy hereing you-alls stories too. I still think many people are slow to come to the realization that self sufficent life is a better life.

jwal10 · #10 10/29/10, 12:24 PM

I grew up in a small valley of farmers here. We traded everything. Us kids did chores for the "new city folks" that moved out here on their 5 acre "farms". We were given all sorts of "city" things and their "extras". Some of the new folks took a while to come around. I left home at 12 and started farming on my own, if it hadn't been for the old timers it would have been tough. I was given and lent a lot of equipment. As I got older I was able to give back. I lived in town for 18 years but was always a part of this little community, even still vote at the old schoolhouse. I am now an old timer, we help the elderly, the newcomers and share what we have. Collabrative consumption, pffftt!!! just being neighborly....James

Qhorseman · #11 10/29/10, 06:40 PM

I cut firewood for a few seniors, they are still able to live on their own but can't get in the woods to cut any longer. I am all the time coming home and finding this or that on the front porch.