@oldmtwoman. I understand your issues with the weather. The last week has been snow with bitter cold periods. Doing it by yourself can certainly be a struggle. I am here by myself and I put in work arounds to make it easier. I have to admit that the wood is close to the house, but I was so tired and it was so cold that I decided to use my electric baseboards. I have solar and I am still up for the year. I budget every month to use the electric baseboards a few days.
@redcarnation. Layers are very important in this weather. Happy to hear that you are getting some good exercise in the cold. Remember to stock extra layers in your vehicles.
@amydixon @littlesister. Thanks for all the info on water BOB.
While it was wicked cold, I reread a few of my favorite self-reliance books. With all the posts about water, I decided it was a good time to brush up on all things water. I went to my favorite “The Prepper’s Water Survival Guide.” I forgot that our Daisy authored it. I shout out to @daisy.
Everyone’s water posts got me to assess my water situation in all the seasons. I also did an “everything water” inventory.
At least in the winter with ALL THIS SNOW, I can boil it down on the wood stove. I like to put all my “plans” into practice, so I went out yesterday and put snow into some containers. I have these side wings on my Vermont Castings Defiant wood stove that are perfect for melting and boiling the snow. If needed I could use this water in case I have an issue with the well. Daisy’s book really got me thinking about multiple water sources. I have my water stores, but I want to save them. In addition to my well, snow, and rain water; I am also less than 1/2 mile from a year round running river. It’s amazing how much water we need to survive, but between all the sources I should be good on sources.
Another thing that the posts and Daisy’s book got me thinking about was my methods of water storage. I like the BOB idea. I have now added it to my “prepper wants” list. For the spring through fall time frame, I have 3 55 gallon water barrels that I collect the rain water run off in. I am adding another rain barrel this summer.
For purification, I have boiling, clorine bleach, iodine, and multiple water filters. After boiling my water on the wood stove, I made it taste better by reoxygenating through pouring it back and forth between two containers.
Water is what I have been up to for the last few days, both literally and figuratively. Lol. It felt good to inventory and assess.
Next week, I am trying out some of my food stores, revewing some books, and looking at my food inventory. @muffy1938 got me thinking about practicing some of my wood stove cooking on my food stores, especially the AF soups etc.