Anyone here homestead? IE grow your own food, raise livestock, produce your own energy etc. I've been reading threads at http://www.preparedsociety.com/ and http://zombieforum.net/ and got all these ideas but would love to hear some stories about people doing it.
We do have some members that have what you would call homesteads, but this site is geared more for a SHTF or TEOTWAWKI type situations, whether man made, natural, economic, political, or all of the above mixed into one. We use "The Great Depression" as our main source of motivation, history teacher, and to compare with the current economic/political crisis that we are facing today. Most of us here already do all of what you have asked in your in initial question, it is just that most of us here do not own a plot of land separated from modern civilization in a secure rual setting. Most of us here have educations or skilled trades that earn us too much money to just go and start a homesteading way of life that can take up all of our time. For those that do, they will gladly share their stories with you, as they have shared with the rest of us that have put all good workable advice to practical use.
There's a good forum just on homesteading called "Homesteading Today"...me and my mate belong to it as we are just starting out and need all the ideas we can get. "Our Country Haven" is another good forum on the very subject.