Time to "Put My Money Where My Mouth Is"

It's very easy to make theoretical generalizations. My goal with this Urban-Subsistence-Living blog has been to put heads together in order to figure out a way whereby self-sufficiency is achievable inexpensively in an urban environment. I have been in the enviable position of being able to come up with lots of ideas, without having to see if they really work. Well, the economic slow-down has caused my own income to drop significantly. I hope that I won't be forced to use all of these ideas in order to survive, but what better way to put them to the test, then to have to depend upon them.

Yesterday, I decided to try making a sourdough starter. I thought that this would be a more self-sufficient way to make bread than having to depend on store-bought yeast. First, I did a little research. Then I assessed what I had in the house. I had a few small pieces of cooked potato, salt, sugar, honey, and flour. I wanted to make only a little, so I adapted the recipe suggestions to what I had. I combined about some salt, sugar, honey, flour, two potato pieces, and warm water in a coffee cup and covered it with a saucer. Then I set it in a warm oven (about 90 - 100 degrees), which I have had to rewarm periodically. I see that I am having some success, because it smells a little sour and it is beginning to bubble just like the pictures. It is supposed to grow for two days, so I have one more day to go.
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Both photos are from a great site called "Wild Yeast. The 3 small loaves are from the following post: http://www.wildyeastblog.com/2007/09/29/maintain-starter/. The bubbling starter is from http://www.wildyeastblog.com/2007/07/13/raising-a-starter/
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Here are some links on how to make sourdough starters in various ways.
http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Sourdough-Starter-IV/Detail.aspx
http://http//www.wildyeastblog.com/2007/07/13/raising-a-starter/
http://www.wildyeastblog.com/2007/09/29/maintain-starter/
http://www.recipesource.com/baked-goods/breads/sourdough/sourdough-basics1.html
http://www.recipesource.com/baked-goods/breads/sourdough/sourdough-starter5.html