author-image Patrice Lewis Patrice Lewis is a freelance writer whose latest book is "The Simplicity Primer: 365 Ideas for Making Life more Livable." She is co-founder (with her husband) of a home woodcraft business. The Lewises live on 20 acres in north Idaho with their two homeschooled children, assorted livestock, and a shop that overflows into the house with depressing regularity. Visit her blog

A candy store for preppers

by Patrice Lewis -- I had a most extraordinary experience last weekend. I was invited to attend the Self-Reliance Expo in Colorado Springs as a speaker on a panel discussion called "The more…

PATRICE LEWIS: The 7 sins of socialism

by Patrice Lewis -- "What has been will be again, what has been done will be done again; there is nothing new under the sun." – Ecclesiastes 1:9 As homeschooling parents, my more…

PATRICE LEWIS: Stupid mothers

by Patrice Lewis -- Ah, Mother's Day. The most sentimental and mushy day of the year, the day when mothers everywhere are smothered in a suffocating layer of syrup and treacle and more…

PATRICE LEWIS: Occupy this

by Patrice Lewis -- (Yawn) Another Occupy "Whatever" day – May 1 – has come and gone with hardly a headline. Oh, there were a few pathetic attempts to blow up bridges more…

PATRICE LEWIS: The anti-teens

by Patrice Lewis -- Our older daughter (age 16) was helping me make a fruit salad one morning after drinking a cup of tea from a delicate china teacup and saucer. While more…

P. LEWIS: My green is greener than your green

by Patrice Lewis -- As we approach this year's Earth Day – the international celebration in which progressive politicians and celebrities exempt themselves from the green legislation they helped create – the more…

PATRICE LEWIS: Rendering unto Caesar

by Patrice Lewis -- I've had a grueling week. I spent much of it huddling over our kitchen table, preparing our taxes. When you're self-employed as we are, taxes are a complicated more…

PATRICE LEWIS: Treason from within

by Patrice Lewis -- Many years ago in college, I took a required psychology class. One day we were told by our professor we had to divvy ourselves up into two groups more…

PATRICE LEWIS: Omnipotent moral busybodies

by Patrice Lewis -- Thinking on donating food to a city-run homeless shelter? If you're in New York City, forget it. It seems Mayor Michael Bloomberg is a man on a mission: more…