And we're off!

Christy and I departed Charlotte this morning and arrived in Check, Virginia, in Floyd County, by mid-afternoon.

Although this blog is titled "Rick & Christy's Sustainability Adventure", the real adventure begins today. Everything leading up to this point has been in preparation for us living on this land. This is an attempt to live as sustainably as possible. And for the cynics out there - the qualifier is "as possible". When one talks about living sustainably, it's hopefully with the understanding that it's impossible to truly live that way. However, we can live with the intention to be more sustainable or to be more precise - minimize our impact on our environment.

By growing as much of our food, building with sustainable (there's that word again) materials, minimizing our consumption of fossil fuels, and minimizing our waste stream, we hope to achieve this concept of "treading lightly".

After unloading the majority of our belongings in a nearby storage unit we headed for the property where we pitched our tent before nightfall. It was a fairly cool, windy, and rainy day. And so it was quite fortuitous for us that our neighbors, Annie and David, invited us over for a bowl of hot soup. Their presence, as well as other neighbors - Ed, Randy, Ben, and Jay - will certainly be a big help in the coming years. Everyone has been so hospitable and friendly to Christy and me. We're very lucky to have found this community.

With the heavy wind and rain, Christy and I didn't get much sleep. But after a cup of fresh-brewed coffee (french press, of course) and bread with jam we were ready for our first full day.