Boredom: Just Can't Relate!

The Mountain Farmgirl just overheard someone say “I’m so bored” … and she totally can’t relate!! Despite the long week of rainy weather up here in the Northeast, come see why real Farmgirls just plumb don’t have this phrase in their vocabularies in “Boredom: Just Can’t Relate!!!”

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Not An Option

The second of The Mountain Farmgirl’s sons is getting married in 3 weeks, 3 days, 12 hours and 45 minutes!!!!!!! (But who’s counting?!). As she prepares for her part in the festivities, she’s also been thinking a lot about love, marriage and relationships in general. There is SO much joy … but nobody said it’s always going to be easy …

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Buyer Beware

Caveat Emptor … Buyer Beware. The Mountain Farmgirl believes in doing her due diligence when it comes to purchasing big-ticket items, but no matter how much academic research we do, sometimes manufacturers and retail stores prey on our fears by selling us empty protection plans that give us a false sense of security. Join her as she tells how she purchased one against her better judgment and got burned (NOT by the product … but by the insurance!) in Buyer, Beware…!

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Democracy in Action: The Time-Honored Tradition of New England Town Meetings

As sure as the snows melt, maple sap flows and the birds fly north to build their nests, the coming of spring in New England wouldn’t be complete without the annual Town Meeting. Join the Mountain Farmgirl for some old-fashioned Democracy in Action …

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Too Close for Comfort

Do you believe in Destiny? …that things happen for a reason … and that there is a higher power controlling the events in our lives? The Mountain Farmgirl surely does … and was never more convinced that sometimes our Guardian Angels fly MIGHTY close to keep us out of harm’s way.  Read about a very close call in Too Close for Comfort …


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Theres an 'App' for That!

It seems that whatever we choose to do these days, there is some sort of 'App' for it to make life easier and more informative. But whether or not we choose to go the ‘high-tech’ route, The Mountain Farmgirl knows of an ‘app’ that’s totally free, absolutely awesome and one that everyone can instantly use. Download it now in ... “There’s an App for That!”…

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You Just Never Know ...

We’ve all heard the adage, “Life is uncertain … eat dessert first”.  This week the Mountain Farmgirl got an all-too-vivid glimpse of how true this actually is. Join her as she considers how we all impact the world – for better or for worse -- and how brief some of our journeys might turn out to be, in “You Just Never Know…”


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The Queen of Winter Sports

The Mountain Farmgirl loves the change of seasons, even (inexplicably!) the New Hampshire-style winters that bring the mercury down to -20o. Join her as she partakes in the Queen of Winter Sports … even though it can sometimes be a Royal Pain …

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From Democracy to Idiocracy

It has been said that ‘Three generations away from the family farm leads to the end of common sense as we know it’. The Mountain Farmgirl fears this is all too true. Take a peek at some modern day examples of our national decline in rational thinking, and why the Farmgirl sisterhood is such a refreshing antidote to contemporary incompetence in ‘From Democracy to Idiocracy’ …

WARNING: Reading this blog may cause serious doubts as to the intelligence and the future of   the human race.

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Ask and Ye Shall Receive ... Eventually!

So many questions, so many answers left unsaid … The Mountain Farmgirl delights in reading all the responses to her blogs from kindred spirits throughout the land. However, there never seemed to be enough time to answer the questions sometimes asked of her. She has habitually set them on the backburner to answer “later” when she can address them properly … (and we all know what can happen to even the best of intentions). Join her as she fires up that back burner, puts some closure to those old and probably long-forgotten questions, and promises more timely responses in the future… in Ask and Ye Shall Receive … Eventually!

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Cathi Belcher

Cathi Belcher,
an old-fashioned farmgirl with a pioneer spirit, lives in the White Mountains of New Hampshire. As a “lifelong learner” in the “Live-Free-or-Die” state, she fiercely values self-reliance, independence, freedom, and fresh mountain air. Married to her childhood sweetheart of 40+ years (a few of them “uphill climbs”), she’s had plenty of time to reinvent herself. From museum curator, restaurant owner, homeschool mom/conference speaker, to post-and-beam house builder and entrepreneur, she’s also a multi-media artist, with an obsession for off-grid living and alternative housing. Cathi owns and operates a 32-room mountain lodge. Her specialty has evolved to include “hermit hospitality” at her rustic cabin in the mountains, where she offers weekend workshops of special interest to women.

“Mountains speak to my soul, and farming is an important part of my heritage. I want to pass on my love of these things to others through my writing. Living in the mountains has its own particular challenges, but I delight in turning them into opportunities from which we can all learn and grow.”

Column content copyright © 2010– Cathi Belcher. All rights reserved.

Mountain Bounty

“Keep close to Nature’s heart ... and break clear away once in awhile to climb a mountain or spend a week in the woods, to wash your spirit clean.”
– John Muir