Unite 1After years of frustrations with city and suburban living, my wife Sandy and I have finally found contentment in the country.Its a self-reliant sort of life.We cut enough wood to just about make it through the heating season.Its a satisfying life.But the good life can get pretty tough.Three months ago when it was 30 below,we spent two miserable【悲惨的，痛苦的，卑鄙的】 days hauling【用车搬运】 firewood【木柴】 up the river on a sled【雪橇】.cultivate corn 种植谷物 weed strawberries 除草Our children will help me make some long-overdue【拖了很久的】 improvements on the outdoor toilet that supplements【补充，增补】 our indoor plumbing【铅工业，铅管品制造】 when we are working outside.spray the orchard 果园 paint the barn plant the garden do reporting for the freelance articles 为自由撰稿文章做报道pursue her own demanding schedulethe usual household routine 日常家务There is, as the old saying goes, no rest for the wicked【邪恶的】,on a place like this - and not much for the virtuous【善良的，有道德的】 either. 正如俗话说的那样，在这种情形之下，坏人闲不着好人也歇不了。while one storm after another blasted huge drifts up against the house and barn, we kept warm inside burning our own wood, eating our own apples and loving every minute of it. 一场接一场的暴风雪肆虐，使积雪覆盖了房屋和谷仓，我们在室内用木材取暖，吃着苹果，并且享受着它的每一分钟。Then the growing season began, swaping us under wave after wave of produce. 【喻指丰收】manage to get through the winter on firewood 用木材设法成功度过这个冬天With my employers blessing and half a years pay in accumulated【积累的】 benefits【津贴】 in my pocket off I went.Im not making anywhere near as much money as I did when I was employed full time, but now we dont need as much either.I generate enough income to handle our 600-a-month mortgage payments plus the usual expenses for a family like ours. 房屋按揭贷款， 日常花销When it comes to insurance,we have a poor mans major-medical policy.Although we are stuck with paying minor expenses, our premium【保险金，奖金】is low.We are covered aginst catastrophe. 我们给重大灾难投了保。Weve been able to make up the difference in income by cutting back without appreciably lowering our standard of living. 通过削减开支我们拉弥补收入方面的差额，但却没有降低我们的生活水准。Extravagant【奢侈的，浪费的】Christmases are a memory, and we combine vacations with story assignments.It takes a couple of special qualities.One is tolerance for solitude【孤独，独居】.on such a tight budget 在这样紧张的一个预算下The way to make self-sufficrency【自给自足】 work on a small scale【小规模地】 is to resist the temptation to【抵制.的诱惑】 buy a tractor and other expensive laborsaving devices【节省劳力的设备】.When the time comes, well leave with a feeling of sorrow【悲伤感】but aslo with a sense pride【自豪感】 at what weve been able to accomplish. Once economic conditions improve, however, demand for farms like ours should be strong again.