About Me

I am a kaleidoscope of interests and hobbies; an eclectic mix of the mundane and the remarkable.

I’m a child of the ’80s and a teen of the ’90s, someone who spent more time outdoors than playing with Barbies or putting on makeup; who in her youth wouldn’t let her kid brother play in the freshly fallen snow because it would ruin its beauty.

Yea, I was weird.

From the beginning, I had an affinity for the environment and living green.  I followed Captain Planet and the Planeteers, ran my middle school’s recycling program, and did investigative journalism in high school to find out where the the money for it was really being spent.

I grew up in the suburbs of NYC, went to undergrad in the Big Apple, where I minored in environmental science and interned at the Environmental Defense Fund, then went to law school 2000 miles away from everything and everyone I had ever known, to the wide open space of Colorado and the Rocky Mountains. I studied environmental law and worked at the Natural Resources Law Center and the U.S. Department of the Interior, where I researched energy law, coalbed methane regulations and environmental justice. 

I’m back East now, living with my husband in a Little House on the edge of the Great Flats near Schenectady, NY.  I’m a full-time professional who continues to fight the good fight in her day job.

I originally started a blog at Little House on the Great Flats, which developed out of a 2009 New Years resolution to embrace my inner 19th century domestic goddess (usually hiding in the basement, begging to come out) and give into trying out those now crazy and geeky, but formally very common ways living a life closer to the land.

But what started as a resolution has affected every part of my life, as I’ve moved away from “conventional” living and closer towards homesteading as a way of life.  I’ve made the choice to live more consciously, more simply and within my means.  I choose causes that promote my community, by donating my money to various groups, volunteering my time to worthy organizations  and patronizing local businesses.

My husband and I grow much of our own food in an organic community garden, recycle and reuse many materials in our home, dry and preserve foods for the winter and practice traditional homesteading crafts such as butter and cheesemaking, winemaking, and quilting. We hope one day to do even more once we have a nice-sized piece  of land to call our own and expand our ideas to meet our ideals.  For now, we are surrounded by farms, farm stands, and farmers markets which my husband and I frequent often.

The environment and green living is a huge passion of mine, and always has been.  I love having a blog to  connect with like-minded folks everywhere! Have a question or want to know more? I always love hearing from people.   Feel free to send me an email at chelle@crunchychelle.com