Why Be Normal?

I wanted to buy a Tshirt with just that slogan printed on the front when I was a kid. My mom took a long look at me and said "Well, that pretty much sums you up..." I took it as a compliment :)

My husband and I have a running joke. He'll look at me and say "You're weird...I mean, special! And then he laughs, and I laugh, too, say to him "You meant weird. You got it right the first time." And then he says he likes me this way and that must mean he loves Weird. Ha!

What IS normal, anyway? What's abnormal? Maybe it's a way of thinking and living as an original...outside the box? If that's the case, vive l'abnormale !

I enjoy the momentum of people who value creating their own world and filling it with meaning -- their way -- beyond the hype of the escalating mono-culture of the mainstream. I think it's a more comfortable place to be. They will often ask questions, experiment, think, and appreciate others who do the same. They do not define life by the number of good or bad hair days.

I'm among those who march to their own beat, I guess, and it's where I'm most comfortable. It's not what I chose, it's where I found myself, so whatever it's called, I'm happy...as are most of the many unconventional folks I know. It's impossible to categorize us, because we don't define ourselves by comparing ourselves with others, and we tend to be deliberate problem-solvers, have strong independent streaks, and may have some things (relationships, politics, values, freedoms) we tenaciously hold dear.

Maybe the mainstream is an aberrance of our collective perception, because I've found that when you get someone one-on-one, nearly every individual I've ever met is a surprising mix of wonderfully varied and conflicting qualities. Maybe we've assumed there IS such a thing as normal...

Not so in the homesteading community! We embrace uniqueness and that questing forward motion...which many times is the art of surviving and thriving our way.

This online homesteading community is replete with originals, rather than clones, and it's so enjoyable to peruse the many blogs and see how so many diverse people live their lives and problem-solve. Despite our differences, there are usually many things that end up overlapping, and those of us who are off the beaten path, so to say, find a real kinship. What a find :)

There's a new blog on the horizon now, conceived and authored by Kathie at TwoFrogHome, who has pulled together some additional ladies to contribute their unique perspectives collaboratively in blog entitled "Women Not Dabbling in Normal." This group includes some recognizable and much-loved greats from homesteading blogland, such as Jessica from Practical Nourishment, Gina from Cauldron Ridge Farm, Kristine from Dancing in a Field of Tansy, and Phelan from A Homesteading Neophyte. I've been asked to contribute, too, and I'm so honored! Our writings will be varied and will celebrate being far beyond the bounds of "Normal." Each lady will post on a designated day of the week, and Fridays will be left open to answering reader questions.

The new blog kicks off tomorrow (Sunday) with Kathie's introductory post, and throughout the initial week each of the other contributors will introduce themselves.

Be sure and stop in to share in the fun, where we can all enjoy each others' company and just be ourselves!

Photo: http://mrpotatohead.net/wearables/whynormal.jpg