Becoming completely self sufficient has the following benefits:

Reduce Expenses - Initially you have to outlay some money, but afterward you can dramatically reduce or completely eliminate monthly bills for greater freedom without financial inflow concerns.

Immunity- Local support infrastructure failures such as electrical power etc. due to national disasters etc.

Self-Reliance - When you put together everything yourself you learn how how it works and therefore how to maintain it, saving outside servicing bills most of the time.

Helps Environment - Besides the above benefits, you also contribute to not destroying the planet by using non ecologically destructive resources.

Expense Reduction Areas

FOOD
This can be sometimes the largest monthly expense. You can reduce this and improve your health by growing your own food. A large greenhouse will pay for itself. People in the US eat too much food and the wrong kinds of food. Eat a mostly raw diet and you will have the vital life force in the food sustain you, and you feel better and live longer.

RENT or MORGAGE
Being a land owner leaves you with only property taxes for your residential expense. Find some land and build an alternative house that efficiently uses less costly resources.

INTERNET
Dialup is the cheapest, and the most painful to use. If you want to take advantage of VOIP phone services then you need broadband. If you live remote and can't get cheap $25 mo DSL then the next best thing for $35-45 mo is wireless broadband such as Applegate Broadband which does outstanding service in this area. If you live on a strategic mountain peak you can be a relay station like we are and get your internet for free in exchange.

TRANSPORTATION
Still running on the oil company supported internal combustion engine. Technology is out there to convert your vehicle from gas to water running on HHO supplementation. A more efficient approach would be all electric using new battery/capacitor technology with onboard power generation. Still working on this one. If you work from home using the internet you can shop via the web and if you grow your own food you will find you need to commute less for supplies.

TELEPHONE
With a broadband connection you can go VOIP such as Skype account and cut your bill to $60 a year with free long distance and all the phone features the local phone company offers at no extra cost. You don't even need a computer on like you do with magicjack with a skype phone and you can have an incoming number with phone service with no long distance and a voice mail.

TELEVISION
With a broadband connection a lot of TV shows can be delivered to your computer and then to a big screen TV. Another option is free to air satellite recievers pick up a lot of free satellite broadcasts to complement the free over the air digital transmissions of your local stations.

COOKING
Using LPG is expensive but a lot less than electric, but since cooking usually doesn't require much fuel it shouldn't be a concern, especially if you are on a raw food diet. Alternatives that are free are solar ovens and wood fire ovens.

ELECTRICITY
Solar Photovoltaic panels give several kilowatts to supply all your electrical needs if you size your system and loads appropriately. If you have a running stream hydroelectric is very economical or if you have a constant wind then wind generators are also economical.

WATER
Put in a well, the well we have is 550 feet deep runs on a few solar panels using a GrunFos solar pump system that pumps it up from the well and then up the hillside 800 feet to fill a 2000 gal cement holding tank underneath a pump house which supplies the water pressure.

SEWER
A Septic or Sand Trap Filter if you live on a hill, takes care of the sewage. The only expense is pumping it out every 5 or so years. Using a composter for the garden rather than a Garbage Disposal doesn't fill up the tank and creates nutrients for your garden.

HEATING
If you have a lot of wood around for a fuel source a Wood Boiler consumes free wood and solar tubes free sunlight which can feed a hot water storage tank to feed a radiant floor system for the best type of home heating system. Passive solar air heating on a south facing wall can also supply heat. A more economical approach would be a wood stove but indoor air quality can suffer.

COOLING
If your area humidity in the summer is low you can get an evaporator cooler which runs on a small amount of solar power to cool your entire home for free. The unit we use provides 4600 CFM using only 150 watts of power, and when it's hot and the sun is shining that's nothing for power. Plus you get fresh filtered air pouring in. We also during summer irrigation divert the cold well water through the cement slab and it assists in keeping the house cool and of course bypass the floor during the winter.

MOBILE PHONE
For keeping in touch with your mate and others amateur radio allows you to have your own private radio stations without any fees other than initial radio equipment cost. You can talk as long as you want. With an Autopatch you can connect to your phone system when you are on the road. The limitation is you can not conduct business calls, but If you have a Skype mobile WiFi phone you can also make free calls when in a WiFi hot spot anywhere in the world, and there are lots of them everywhere.

So let's see what the monthly bill adds up to after you've established a self sufficient structure:

$200 mo Food & Supplies supplemented by growing your own

$70 mo Property Tax ($800 yr + -)

$35 mo Internet wireless broadband

$30 mo Transportation using HHO or EV for maint & insur

$6 mo Telephone using Skype

$5 mo Cooking with LPG

$0 mo Electricity from Solar

$0 mo Water from well

$0 mo Sewer with septic

$0 mo Heating with wood & solar

$0 mo Cooling with Evaporator cooler running on solar

$0 mo Television

$0 mo Mobile Phone with Ham Radio/Autopatch & Wifi Phone

$350 approximate total monthly living expenses

So living in the new millennium you could live with the low overhead of our pioneering ancestors only with the current technological conveniences we enjoy.