We were lucky to catch up with Haley Buckalew recently and have shared our conversation below.
Haley, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Can you talk to us about a project that’s meant a lot to you?
My husband and I recently moved into a home with a story. The gentleman that lived here before, Steven Gibbs, had passed away a year before and the house had sat virtually untouched since then. We also came to find out that Steven Gibbs was an inventor of Time Travel Machines or HDR units. Our house was filled with all of his time travel belongings, an HDR unit, an oscilloscope with a story, cassette tapes and so much more. Steven also left books he had written and others about any topic you can imagine. He was the “Rainman” of Time Travel and is famous in circles pertaining to time travel and pretty much any subject you can think of. This man had lived in my home town and I didn’t even know until I took over residency of his house. So I have made it my mission to preserve all of Steven’s belongings and his legacy and I want to make sure his story is heard. He was somewhat of a mystery and I want to shed a little light on the amazing human that was Steven Gibbs. My husband and I have slowly been working on fixing up the house with the gracious help of our amazing landlord who none of this would be possible without, and restoring it to its proper Time Travel Glory. Eventually I would love to start a mini Time Travel Museum but we are in early stages here so who knows where we will go from here. I have been placed in this home and been given an adventure of a lifetime and I mean to share the gift of Steven Gibbs to all who are willing to listen.
As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?
I was a Cosmetologist/Hairstylist for 6 years. I went to Kstate for a year, was instantly bored, and was reminded by a friend that I loved to create and I loved beauty. We had gone to school together and I had prepped her for proms and homecomings and crownings alike. So I took her advice and ran and thrived for 6 years in the beauty industry. It was insanely creative, fast paced and challenging, It was also extremely competitive and my body and soul quickly tired of the constant chaos and lack of self care and nourishment. After a 12 year fight with a foe finally discovered to be Endometriosis and pushing my body to its limit, I broke and it was soul enlightening. I chose to walk away from my career to start taking better care of my body and my soul, I had always found myself drawn to plants and nature and healing the body through natural medicine, So I applied at Nurseries and Tree Farms and finally found my home in myself and my work and now my husband jokes I only come home because the sun can’t shine 24 hours a day but I am happy and healing and so much healthier than I have been in so long and I can’t wait to see what this journey of life has to offer. At this point I am mainly just trying to create natural medicine and alternatives for those around me. I am also busy just living and creating art with my husband and dogs when I can. I would like to say I do my best to advocate for those around them that cannot, the birds, the bees, anyone who is too scared or tired to stand up and fight their own fight. I want to always provide a loving and safe space for anyone who needs it and maybe provide them with some goofy entertainment and art while I do. I try to keep my mind open to anything because you never know where you may find your peace and when your adventure may shift. I will enjoy the ride wherever it takes me for whatever amount of time I am allowed to live and create and love on this beautiful planet.
We’d love to hear your thoughts on NFTs. (Note: this is for education/entertainment purposes only, readers should not construe this as advice)
Truthfully, I know very little about them. I tried my hand when they first came out but after having to trade currencies for about the 3rd time, I gave up and deleted all apps. So I probably have no right to an opinion because my knowledge is next to none, but I believe that the deeper we immerse ourselves into a world and money that we cannot truly touch or is real, the farther from Nature we become as a society. That in turn hurts us all. We are living and breathing and we need to trade what is tangible and real in front of us. Fish for bread. Veggies for Eggs. I know, very old school but I said what I said. It’s called Hippie Dippie Wonderland for a reason. Nature nurtures us and in turn we should nurture her by listening and loving her in the present world we have.
Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?
I mentioned earlier a battle with Endometriosis. I should call it a war I guess. That was started when I was 12. I wasn’t given a diagnosis until I was 24. I spent all of my teens and early twenties constantly changing birth control, going to doctors after having excruciating bouts of pain and bleeding for weeks on end. You had a cyst rupture they would say, and send me on my way until the next time. Through it all I managed to live a normal life full of activity. I played almost every sport, I went dancing constantly, I ran and I worked 15 hour days with little to no breaks sometimes which was on me because I refused to slow down. Until it became apparent that if I didn’t, my body would shut down for me. So after 12 years of living with the pain mostly in silence, I told the hospital if they didn’t cut my uterus out I would myself and they finally chose to listen and do surgery. One Laparoscopic Ablation and 3 small incisions later, the Endometriosis had been burned out and I was set to heal. My children will most likely always have fur but I will have time to love everyone in my life to the fullest and thats all I need. 2 weeks later I was back to work working almost full time and realized if I kept up I would end up in the same spot again in a few years. I was already unhappy in the industry, no matter how much money I was making I was still miserable. So after 6 years I walked away from a cosmetology career and started working at a Nursery and haven’t looked back since. I am happy, I am healthy, and I have time to enjoy my life with my family no matter what that family looks like or how odd of a group we may be. 
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.etsy.com/shop/BucknBeeHomestead?load_webview=1&bid=-kvY-t34eF3l_r56nKoLB-rDMbtx
- Instagram: haley_buckalew
- Facebook: Hippie Dippie Wonderland or Haley Buckalew
- Twitter: @Hgettman13
- Tik Tok: hippiedippie_wonderland