This topic contains 578 replies, has 43 voices, and was last updated by 
Daisy 1 year, 5 months ago.
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Hi! I’d like to invite you to join the December Challenge.
This month, we’re repeating the challenge from last month and asking you to post up the things you do each day to prep. We’re repeating the challenge for 2 reasons:
First of all, it’s the holidays and we really don’t want to cramp your style. Don’t worry. Next month we will cramp your style plenty with our challenge. *wink*
Secondly, it takes an average of 66 days to form a habit. This won’t quite get you to 66 days, but it’ll be close.
I think you all truly enjoyed the November Challenge. I hope that you will be able to participate throughout the holidays too!
The prize this month for those who participate every day will be a PDF of Selco’s book, The SHTF Anthology.
Post up your preps, friends!
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Im totaly in!!
today I cleaned sealing wax for salves, balms and creams. The house smells lovely!
also rebatched a batch of honey soap.
Not much but little things add up.
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This reply was modified 1 year, 6 months ago by
Xant Dewit.
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This reply was modified 1 year, 6 months ago by
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Today we restocked the pet food, and I added in some extra because I like to have as much as possible for them. Our dog is the most finicky eater I’ve ever seen so we have quite a variety of dog food for her, plus cat food for our cat and the stray outside. Since the stray has been hanging around we’ve seen no mice. This is good. We also went to a new-to-us nursery close by and got some pansies, but this nursery may be a good source for native, organic plants come spring. I made banana nut bread to use up some black bananas and it smells so good. I hope to make another loaf tomorrow (I’d do it tonight but we’ve got something to do with DH’s office tonight and getting ready for that will take a while. I’m running off articles that I can add to one of my binders… and that’s about it so far today.
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This reply was modified 1 year, 6 months ago by
RufusJ.
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This reply was modified 1 year, 6 months ago by
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<p style=”text-align: center;”>Vending today. Contacted a propane company about refilling my tanks. Brought all the rain gear. Cozy in the canopy. Picked up some fresh garden lettuce mix for dinner tonight. Got some Christmas gifts from the local crafts people at the market. Love supporting local. So, my grandmother is being harassed by someone that comes around 3 or 4 am banging on her door. We installed a video camera and motion sensor lights. They came by last night and must know about the camera because the light came on as well as the camera, but no one came on the porch. We are going to install s camouflaged camera today the will cover the entire front of the property. Hope we catch this mean person.</p>
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This reply was modified 1 year, 6 months ago by
rd Lucai.
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This reply was modified 1 year, 6 months ago by
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Yeah, I’m in too!!! My little indoor gardening effort hit a bump yesterday…the grow light I ordered wouldn’t work so we had to return it. Well, pooh….however, not to be daunted, I myself began once again a search for the right grow light for my situation. The choices are so confusing and it seems most reviewers on Amazon are buying them to grow “weed.” Hmmmp…not my thing….I just want to grow VEGGIES….anybody in this forum got any suggestions for grow lights? I have lots of space so that’s not a problem at all. And, the space is in a heated area. So, I’ve spent an inordinate amount of time today reading about indoor gardening with grow lights. Gray and rainy led to a fairly nice long nap. Oh, yes, my oldest granddaughter ran in and FINISHED the half-marathon in Memphis today sponsored for St. Jude Hospital. Memphis was expecting something like 26,000 runners from around the world. The most I’ve ever run without stopping in my whole 80 years was one mile, one time….what can I say….but along with others on this forum, I’m going to try committing myself to a bit more “exercise” during this challenge.
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This reply was modified 1 year, 6 months ago by
Muffy1938.
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This reply was modified 1 year, 6 months ago by
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AnonymousIt’s an absolutely gorgeous day here in the Deep East of Texas with sunny, cloudless blue skies and temps in the mid 70’s 🙂 I surely love it here for the winter.
DH and I cleaned out the back seat of our pick-up and found TWO water filters. Hurray! Now I don’t have to buy any for a few months. I just KNEW they had to be hidden somewhere! The local dollar store had good sales on beef jerky, toilet paper and protein bars so I bought those to add to the prep stash.
Watched videos.on how to make DIY baby wipes, shampoo and conditioner.
DH and I started our low-carb, exercise regime today. We’ve both set a goal of losing 50 lbs. each and I’m hoping to be able to get off my B/P meds once and for all. I know both goals are doable.
Until tomorrow! Y’all stay safe and happy prepping 🙂
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Learned about multi-tools, features ect, added a few to my wish list. Purchased a bag to put extra medical supplies. The $2 insulated bags at Walmart were ideal. More practice on situational awareness as I was focusing on details. The swiss gear backpack in someones cart. Is it a purchase or did they bring it here? hmmm The tattoo on a guys arm, and of course the snowbird: Long sleeve red shirt, kaki pants and multi-colored sandals. Kinda reminds me of the Monty Python skit, how not to be seen.
Had an “aha” moment yesterday. What if the SHTF was when the snowbirds were in town.? Bugging out would be out of the question as some of the roads are only 1 lane in each direction. The shelves were empty before the last hurricane, when there were alot fewer people. With the current population, things wont be pretty
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We needed to go back to the Grocery store for a $3.28 adjustment, it made the cost of 8 yogurts only $1 total.
While there were stocked up on reduced meats and picked up loss leads for the pantry, also the newspaper so I can work on cheap stock up prices.
Filled gas tank for 10 cents less per gallon by driving, 2 miles into next county, yes sales tax on gasoline is cheaper there.
Added ceiling fans to bedrooms, to cut down on electrical use in summer and circulate heat better in winter. -
Anonymous12/1/18
Glad we are doing another challenge. November was fun, especially reading what you all are doing.
Today we set up an area in our living room that has bay windows and set up some planters to grow spinach and the other to grow greens for our breakfast smoothies. We do not get a lot of light in Astoria in the winter and these bay windows pick up some light from Southern view but as Muffy1938 asked, does anyone have a recommendation for a cheaper grow light that I could set up?
Thanks
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@OldMansd, nice setup there.
We changed out the shocks on the rear door of my truck as well as the one on the rear window. I say we, hubby did the work while I held up the door/window. I did watch carefully though so I can do it next time. Storms brought tree damage to our area but other than we were fortunate. Took note of what pet items we could use since I found a good sale. Will stock up on additional food, litter and meds. A few cloves of garlic were starting to sprout so I planted them in a pot on the patio.
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Very happy to continue this challenge in December! Today I watched several YouTube videos on Homesteading and BOB’s. All good videos that gave me a lot to think about.
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Great! Happy December, everyone. For Muffy and OldMansd…our basement has zero windows. Total darkness but I used to grow very sturdy seedlings for our extremely short frost-free season. Here’s what I used. I got two shop lights….cheap and available at hardware stores. They have two long florescent tubes (bulbs) each. Now with the advent of LEDs….which I’m in love with….this data might change. I used to run with one regular florescent tube and one garden ( “warm” light spectrum) tube. The special tubes were expensive but they have not yet burned out. [they are fragile tho] At this point, some LED options might be better, depending on which type of lights you use. I’ve found the extra expense of LEDs have been very worth it.
And yes, Muffy…..around here, the term “a grow” means illegal marijuana cultivation – usually indoors since …well, the aforementioned short frost-free season. Refers to the other RockyMt “high”…not just our altitude. 🙁 Wrecks the rented houses if they don’t ventilate for the HIGH levels of moisture needed for those plants. People [who are not from here] pack in thousands of plants sometimes. Rather big, bad connections with these folks too. Scary. And giving the rest of us ordinary GARDENERS a bad rep.
Hey OldMansd, is that aluminum foil? If so, that’s the next thing I’d mention. Seedlings do better with a lot of light. I put down aluminum foil on the table surface and also hung sheets of it down from the shop lights. Encased the tiny things in reflected light ‘box’.
The OTHER tip is to make sure they don’t ever have to STRETCH to reach the light. I set the light [hung shop lites on chains so I could adjust them constantly] so that the tallest plant is just BARELY not touching the light. With florescent or LED there won’t be the heat that other lights produce, but don’t let them touch anyway. If there is any other plants [in other containers] that are shorter, put something under their containers to boost them up to the level of the light as well. What you really don’t want is tall, weak and spindly seedlings. And they will stretch within a couple days so watch them. They are infants that need daily care. But only takes just a few minutes….depending on how many you have. I do enjoy hovering over my babies. LOL
One more tip on keeping them sturdy, not spindly: a fan. Outside they would be growing strong cell walls cuz of being buffeted [esp. on our mt.] by winds. Occasionally blow an oscillating fan across the babies. Doesn’t have to be all the time but daily for a while.
You don’t have to get this complicated but…this is my method. Good strong seedlings will have a better chance of growing into mature plants. Like humans, they need care but also need a bit of adversity to make them strong.
OldMtWoman ….maybe we should have got this into a different thread?
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P.S. Of course if you’re growing micro-plants, most of the above suggestions don’t really apply. You harvest before they can get too tall/spindly.
OK…today I spent a lot of time going thru my Town Ebags. It’s truly winter and things have been jumbled since my stay away from home last month. So now FINALLY, they’re sorted and have winter-appropriate things like wool sox, gloves, hats, etc in case of winter emergencies.
Then all heck broke loose. Dog’s LOUDLY going nuts. Coyotes howling …multiple…and they’re WAY too close! WHERE is my old goat? Did they get her? Aaugh! No, she’s here. Whew. DH went around the road side to check. I caught sight of one coyote slithering up right next to house. Steep hill so I grabbed what I needed and ran out the back door. By then I had no clear shot that wouldn’t [possibly] go right over the hill and beyond. Not safe ENOUGH. So I hurried the critter on his way by firing 2 shots directly into the hillside only. It certainly DID hurry! Just reasserting our “territory”….have to do that from time to time. Closed goat into her house. She was a bit wide-eyed but she hustled up to safety when the dog gave first warning. We back up the dog.
OldMtWoman….guess I’ve got to find something for supper.
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This reply was modified 1 year, 6 months ago by
OldMt Woman.
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This reply was modified 1 year, 6 months ago by
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I went to the Christmas Parade to see my granddaughter, who was performing in her final parade with her high school band. The rain and snow that was forecast held off until after the parade so that was nice. The forecast is for 3-4″ of snow tomorrow with lots of windy conditions, so hubby and I ran through our prep lists to make sure we were prepared for whatever could happen tomorrow. Otherwise a quiet day.
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Oh YAY! I would miss posting my adventures lol mundane as they are! I am totally in!
Got a bag of dog food for the hairy one. I am so used to spending a fortune on Vet special food for Ginger my elderly Basset Hound, it’s just different now that she’s gone. Frankie the Sheltie really doesn’t eat that much. I’m used to feeding Basset Hounds. We are lonely without them. So I bought a 6 lb bag of his food to add to his dog food stash. I enjoy feeding the rooster I now call Chickie Baby, in the mornings. I am surrounded by horses but none of them are mine. I’ve had horses since I moved here in 2001 until last year when my ancient mare colliced just as the Vet got here to treat her sinus infection, and we had to let her go. I loved every minute of having them, and I worked all of the time to support them. I have plastic horses now. Okay. Enough of that before I start crying.
Got my trash and recycling and my neighbor’s out in time this morning. Last week They came early. So yay. Bought many candles, the short 40 hours ones, unscented, from work today (TJ’s) while we still have them, seasonal now. I add them to the stash. They have really come in handy over the years with power outages. Also three packages of tapers, 6 in each package, also to add to the stash. Got many boxes Minty Mallows (chocolate mint covered marshmallows) for Christmas. I don’t like them but everyone else on my list does. Decided to make two more scarves for Christmas presents. Found a super easy and pretty pattern and I have a closet full of yarn. I’ve been inheriting yarn and art supplies for years, and I honor them by using it. Bought a bottle of Prosecco, sparkling wine, so going to enjoy that while knitting tonight. Last weekend of nice weather I am told.
Thank you for continuing this.
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Today I took natural remedies to keep me well after my illness. I also used natural remedies to keep my nose from running all day. 🙂
I did a load of laundry, and my husband hung it up to dry.
Last night I made bread in the bread machine. Yes, I know it’s somewhat “cheating,” but at least we are not eating store-bought bread that has no substance to it!
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Thanks for continuing! Keeps me on my toes and more aware of what we’ve done and not done!
We got the Big Berkey up & running – now it leaks! We’re going to try to figure that out tomorrow. Picked up some staples that are on sale “for the holidays”. Seems to me they’ll taste just as good in May or July as they will now. Also got 2 small boneless turkey breasts, both went into the freezer. No family in the area so we had a turkey (boneless) for Thanksgiving. Made three meals out of it for each of us. Picked up toothpaste & denture adhesive with the latest P&G coupons. Finally got started on the scrapbook for the granddaughter’s boyfriend for his Christmas present. Now I know exactly how many photos I’ve got of her! (first grandchild, first greatgrandchild!)
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Glad a new Challenge has started! I hope I’ll be able to keep up my daily prepping efforts despite the upcoming holidays. Yesterday, December 1st, I drove to a nearby town to pick up the 15 yards of unbleached cotton muslin I’d ordered for 60% off during Joann Fabric’s cyber week sale. I’m going to wash it well, then cut most of it into squares suitable to use when straining homemade cheeses and yogurts, and making sourdough starters, etc.. I’m also going to cut and sew some of it into a long casing to snugly cover a narrow telescoping pole I have. Once the pole is fully extended and covered with the muslin casing, I plan to rest the ends of the pole on two chair backs and use it as an improvised rack on which to drape lots of homemade strands of pasta to dry. I saw an “Italian Grandma” do that in a YouTube video – although she used what looked like a long broom handle covered with a cloth casing.
While I was out shopping, I also picked up a big tub of Siggi’s plain Icelandic Yogurt (Skyr). I froze half of it to use as a starter culture later on and shared the rest with a friend so we could both have a yummy afternoon snack!
Later today, December 2nd, I am going to work on reorganizing some of my prepping supplies, including my Sun Oven and the various accessories and thin granite-ware pots I have to use in it. I want to try to find a place near the kitchen to store the Sun Oven so I can easily use it in the winter to, for example, insulate bread dough while it’s rising in my rather cold kitchen.
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Yeah! I am so glad that we are continuing this challenge. I can’t wait to read more posts.
Yesterday, I decided to do an exercise on Sunday. I am selling my Philadelphia PA area house this spring. I already have my UpState NY house built. I have highlighted various routes and driven a couple. On Saturday, I reviewed the routes and decided to do an exercise on Sunday. When I hear a certain word on the TV, I will have 30 minutes to pack and leave the house. I will then drive to Up State NY. About halfway through, I will not be able to use major highways and will have to reroute and navigate with maps.
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@Loving Life,
That is a great idea!
Note: I just posted about a EMP report from the Air Force University. Reading it now, but based off what I have read and other reporting, KNOWING routes to get home may be essential. GPS is not guaranteed to survive a EMP event or the signal degraded for a time, rendering GPS useless.
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I bought a wooden box for essential oil storage the other day. I put a couple of layers lime seed oil on it. Now I have to colour code the bottles. I bought little round stickers to do so. It will be nice and a time saver when I don’t have ace to look in a big mess of bottles for the right one.
I froze the last avocados and made some guacamole for an easy lunch.
Made a batch of liquid laundry soap.
every Sunday I make pizza from scratch with home canned tomato grilled eggplant sauce I can every year. While the oven was on For the pizza I roasted some spaghetti pumpkin and chicken all for easy lunch this week
I will purée the last persimmons to make jam and some fruit leathers
also packed my soaps and put them away
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Headed up in a bit to spend some time with the kids. First, though, the banana nut bread has to finish cooking– bananas were on the hairy edge of being alcoholic so it was either make bread today or toss them to the worms. Fed the worms the banana skins and moved some worms from one bin to another. Watered some plants outside– it was supposed to stay warmish last night but the cold front came in early. Now we may not freeze tonight; I’ll keep an eye on the spiders and see what they do tonight when I take the dog out for her last potty trip. (The giant black and gold garden spiders are long gone, but the little brown orb weavers are still hanging in there — no pun intended.)
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Organized hurricane supplies, relocating, purging and putting items in a donation pile.
Learned more about riots also.
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Rufus, I’m going to add your banana description to things that make me laugh: “bananas on the hairy edge of being alcoholic.” I don’t think I’ll ever look at an overripe banana the same way again without laughing. Thanks!
<span style=”font-size: 100%;”>So appreciated OldMt’Woman’s suggestions for lighting! And love the bay window set up OldMansd showed us….based on suggestions I found a fairly inexpensive 4 ft. LED shop light at local Lowes so hopefully handyman neighbor can come over tomorrow to get it installed…..going to also hang some aluminum foil all around as suggested. My celery plant on the kitchen counter is nearly 5 inches tall….so cool, started it from cut off base of celery stalk purchased at grocery store. Picked up a big roll of Gorilla tape today along with a 10 X 50′ 3 mil plastic sheeting roll….it’s been suggested that one might need to tape off windows and doors in a nuclear incident. I pulled up the map that shows where all the active nuclear power plants are located in America. Wow…I’m sorta sitting in the middle of a bunch of them so I guess it makes sense to be prepared for an event where a power plant maybe has a melt-down. Whatever, it’s a topic I’ve not researched or thought much about but clearly one that’s relevant to prepping I think. It’s the radioactive stuff that gets pick up in the wind one must protect against. Fascinating reading about the top 10 nuclear disasters world-wide in the past 50 of so years. A close friend works with first responders of the 9/11 Trade Center tragedy who continue to experience health issues related to breathing the air at that time. So many of them have now died. She says its so very sad most folks don’t realize the extent of the fall-out from that event. I think Loving Life’s practice run is a great idea. Waiting for a random signal and then allowing oneself 30 minutes to get ready to go. PS GRANDPARENT ALERT: (I can’t help myself): my granddaughter placed in the top 5% of the total half-marathon runners (10,145) at St Jude event in Memphis yesterday. And in her age group females 20-24 yrs. she place #25 out 755 (top 3%). </span>
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This reply was modified 1 year, 6 months ago by
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This reply was modified 1 year, 6 months ago by
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Hi All. Here we go again!! Today I took advantage of the mild and mostly dry weather to do some more outdoor winter preps. Actually we had a few flurries this morning, but nothing to talk about. So I put up the driveway paddle markers so we can find it when the snow finally comes. They give me the “lines” to stay within with the snow thrower. I also put the last of the outdoor furniture under cover. I actually thought I’d leave this stuff out, but I had the time to take care of it so I did.
Yesterday I remounted my 2 meter/40cm antenna on the roof over my new shop. I also took measurements and ordered several coax assemblies to get the antenna lead into the shop to my base station. They should arrive sometime this week along with the through-wall connector. Should be a “clean” set up if it comes out as I hope.
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Wow it is december lol. Installed WiFi booster yesterday, so I can obsess on eddy minimum. Cleaned seed from one carrot plant I had hanging upside down until it was convenient to do. 2 oz seed total. Made chicken stock for canning tomorrow. Gonna start smoking my bacon tonight. Have two hams to do next week.
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Yesterday and today have been organization and cooking from scratch.
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Well, I just didn’t make it in the November challenge, so trying again. I got the worst cold I’ve had in about 10 years, and my daughter’s cancer situation got much more dramatic, so I flaked out at the end of November.
December 1: Researched natural cancer treatments/prevention with daughter. The plan is to use a combination of full fasting and intermittent fasting along a ketogenic diet to starve the cancer (cancer loves sugar), along with lots and lots of greens and other alkaline veggies to keep the body slightly alkaline (juicing if necessary in order to get these down her). Also found out what kind of herbs and teas are “anti-angiogenic” (i.e. inhibit blood supply to tumors), and found out what to buy. Sent husband shopping to make sure we have what we need for the week in order to do this. Will shop more on-line and at stores to make sure we have enough to get through Christmas during the next week. Helped husband set up a mini-trampoline/rebounder to start our indoor fitness program starting Monday.
December 2: Still sick as a dog. When I wasn’t sleeping/resting, I worked in my bullet journal and tried to set some priorities for the coming weeks, especially with Christmas coming up and daughter’s surgery still in limbo 🙁 Signed up for a free course on gray water recycling and a greens growing system that uses a worm bin system. After going through it, I will decide whether to use that or to use another indoor system I have plans for.
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Cleaning out the old to get ready for the new, This is hard for me.
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@Muffy1938 congrats to the granddaughter! That’s really impressive.
@Lovin Life, excellent idea. Can’t wait to hear how it turns out.
Been very windy the last couple of days. Brought the house plants back in. Really, really need a greenhouse. Moved more leaves to the compost pile. A tree, well the 1/2 that was left of him, toppled over during the storm. Decided to leave him there and try the hugelkultur method of gardening this spring. If nothing else, the woodpeckers will continue to enjoy the bugs. Gathered up the remaining seed pods from the moonflowers. Prolific things they are.
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@HieronymaTextor, wishing you and your family all the best.
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@peppy P – Thank you for the encouragement you give others!
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Well, I got a few preps completed. Stored some more water away and made chicken stock for freezing from a whole chicken I made. The kids and I painted some ornaments for the Christmas tree. I also cut some herbs from my garden to dehydrate. I will work on dehydrating the herbs and making dough for the week for bread. I use the artisian bread in 5 minutes method so we have easy fresh french style bread a few times a week.
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My son and his family came for lunch today, homemade chili. He and his wife went shopping while my husband and I made 3 batches of Christmas cookies with our 12 year old grandson. He especially wanted to make pizzelles, which makes me hopeful for the future. I made pizzelles with my grandma many years ago.
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Anonymous12/2/18
Got my grow light bulb today for my indoor planting of spinach and greens. Thanks for the replies I got about making that work. Very fun to try and be a little bit more self reliant and eat better as well.
We also put out our lights and some decorations. Did not take long since the house has been set up to hang quickly with hooks in place etc. Kinda fits with be prepared in other far more important things. I got the book of lists downloaded and will be looking through it and print some off tomorrow.
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Actually put up a wee little tree, pre lit, started putting on a few ornaments then realized they were some of Mother’s old ones. That took care of working on the tree for the day.
On the other hand our Estate agent came to pick up all our donations for her Christmas charities. 18 pairs of gloves, 5 mittens, 13 scarves (12 of which I knit), 3 fleece jackets, 4 winter coats that Husband shrunk out of (368 lbs. down to 189 lbs.) and 5 lap robes (I crocheted these). We picked up 3 rolls of duct tape, 4 6volt batteries, Coleman propane cans (still $3.12 each in a set of four at Wal Mart.
Muffy 1938 – congratulate the granddaughter from us and give her extra hugs! She must have really worked hard to get to that point!
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Tuned up the chickens and the coop for winter, worked in the growing dome
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Straightened up the house, did the laundry and dishes. Started the menus for the month. My daughter gave me all the gift bags she found when she cleaned her basement. I have enough now that I shouldn’t have to buy any more gift wrap for years.
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Well I am already behind the curve 🙂 Yesterday we had tornados. My emergency radio worked like a charm. Batteries lasted until the electricity came back on. I will replace my stash. Today I bought the supplies I need to finish my Christmas ornaments.
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Rushing in here between stuff…gotta go sweep snow from steps when DH arrives home soon. Today was more sorting/cleaning/organizing/throwing stuff OUT. Sheesh, haven’t been in some of these corners for a while. 🙁 But I’m skipping all over…from bedroom to living room to a corner of kitchen today. Oh well, it’s all needing..
But I realized a couple things in the past 24 hrs. 1) I seriously need to update my EVAC plans. 2) I don’t even remember WHERE I put them. ACK! So part of the shuffle was looking for that. Yes, I did finally reason it out and find it, finally. This ‘brainless’ thing is so annoying! But I’m pleased I have the old plan to start with. I began earlier today with a new spiral notebook and began to list certain categories…what and WHERE …for things that need to be taken out, if we have more time than a Rip N Run situation. I already have that type of quick EVAC sorted now. 🙂
Gotta run sweep…. see y’all tomorrow.
OldMtWoman …love being productive; even just part-time!!!
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Went to church and took a very nice nap after. Had my folks over for dinner and made spaghetti. Cleaned out my grandmother’s refrigerator so she wouldn’t eat any bad food. We made a plan to try and be more patient with one another and to focus more on our physical and mental health.
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This reply was modified 1 year, 6 months ago by
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This reply was modified 1 year, 6 months ago by
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Popping back in for a sec…
Aww, Cheryl Greene. Christmas is going to be hard…often in unexpected moments like that. Hugs to you and yours.
Definitely anxious to hear how Lovin’ Life’s routing is going. A verrrry good idea for anyone who might have to BO or EVAC. I liked the way you set yourself up for: SURPRISE….GO NOW! I’ve set a timer and done that sort of exercise…but not a big project like you’re doing! Good for you!
Y’all are making me hungry with your wonderful food descriptions! Breads and Pizza and Jams…….Pizzelle cookies look wonderful…I had to look them up. Curiosity, y’know.
Honors to Muffy’s GrDaughter! Good luck with your grow lights.
Prayer for Hieronyma and family. Another who has a challenge during this holiday season.
OldMtWoman….ok, I’m outta here
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So, I”m late to the game. My new job started this past week-end, so between that and the pulled muscle (which is still a royal pain!) I didn’t get much done for 12/1 and 12/2. I’m exhausted, but it was my choice to go back to work. I put away harvest and Thanksgiving decor’ and had the hubby pull the Christmas stuff out of the attic. Today, 12/3, I’m going through the Christmas things and getting rid of the excess. I only have one small granddaugher that visits, so a lot of the stuff geared for small children can be re-homed. I miss the time when I did home day-care and the other grandkids were small. Christmas just seemed more magical. Oh well!! I will also be filling more water jugs. We had use up all but three gallons. Once a year, we drain our hot water tank and our pressure tank and sanitize the plumbing in the house, by chlorinating our well. We had a bacteria problem once, years ago, and the agent from County Health advised doing this to prevent a recurrence. It has worked really well. Test it every year and no problems since. But I don’t like the taste of the water for a couple of days, so we use up the stored water every year. Rotation at it’s best.
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This morning I watched a YouTube video of a lady (Gina Petitti) preparing Pasta e Fagioli. I’ve begun trying to convert the recipe to work with all shelf-stable ingredients. Her recipe called for dry Cannellini beans, Garlic Cloves, Bay Leaves, Celery, Carrots, Onion, Salt, Italian Parsley, home-canned Peeled Plum Tomatoes, Extra Virgin Olive Oil, and grated Pecorino Romano Cheese. If you don’t wax hard cheeses for storage, you could get some of the freeze-dried parmesan cheese instead that I believe is available online these days. If you wanted to add a little wine, it’s possible to buy wine powder online if you don’t store bottles of wine in your pantry. If you wanted to add pancetta though, that could be difficult. I don’t think that keeps well. Perhaps you could substitute diced Dak canned ham, or maybe some chunks of Summer Sausage or Country Sausage in place of the pancetta? Has anyone tried doing that? If so, how did it taste?
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Yesterday the 2nd- Filled 7 gallons of water, got large Pyrex mixing bowl and muffin pan, made blueberry muffins. Watched YouTube tutorials on various subjects, listened to a podcast while working on an afghan I started a couple Christmases ago. Still too much work to be done to finish it in time for this Christmas but getting there, and therapeutic, bright beautiful colors and different textures of yarn. It’s the Traveler’s Life afghan from the Yarn Harlot’s Guide to Knitting. A great way to use leftover yarn from other projects, rows and rows of some of the scarves I’ve made over the years. It’s big and bulky, worked on it while I was in the art room with the cat in front of the heater. Later in the evening finished the little cowl scarf for Christmas present in the living room with the Sheltie. It came out super pretty. I’m making another in the same pattern same yarn for another present.
Order from Amazon came Emergency flashlight Blackout Buddy, got package of two from a Flash sale.
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@Amy Dixon,
Pancetta use and storage can vary.
If you are planning on longer term storage, then Prag Powder, or pink salt #2 is used. It can then be sealed and stored at room temp.
Back in the old days they used to dry cure whole pork belly, muscle groups and even hams in the open air. Some hams will cure for an entire year.
However they also use a whole lot of salt for curing. The salt prohibits bacterial growth and that is how they could keep bacon, sausages, pancetta around for months.
For safety it is better to keep refrigerated. But post SHTF, a cool cellar, spring room, or even sealing it and burying it might be the only option.
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Hi Crow Bar, thanks for the information! From what I’ve been reading, even uncooked but cured country hams don’t last as long unrefrigerated as they used to since they are not cured with as much of an outer fat layer as was done years ago. However, it sounds as though they’d last at least a few months if hung in a cool basement, for example. I wonder if soaking some sliced pieces of country ham in water overnight would reduce the saltiness so they could then be used in more recipes? (I know that works for corned beef but I’ve never tried it with country ham).
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@Amy Dixon,
IF you over salt a meat you have cured, then, yes, soaking it over night with a few to several fresh water changes will get some to most of the saltness out of it.
Back in the day, I once salted fresh cod. I leached out so much of the moisture it would not freeze. It was in the freezer for two weeks, but never froze, remained pliable the whole time.
Then, put it in the fresh water baths a few times. Cook it with potatoes. Add olive oil, garlic, thyme, cream and pepper and presto! The French dish Brandade de Morue!
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We are giving ourselves the present of no Holiday pressure this year. Instead of decorating the house, we are redoing our dining room and enjoying decorations and festivities elsewhere. Because it will be under construction, nobody expects us to entertain!! I can cook and take things elsewhere for a change. Plus, I always secretly hate folks poking around my house. We have a hundred-year-old Cape Cod farmhouse that has a small kitchen and giant dining room. We are splitting our dining room to create a small dining room and a large pantry. My large cooking appliances and pots will no longer have to live in an outbuilding. We will also have more space to stack JarBoxes, close to where we use them. So, for the next week or so, we are deconstructing the room, inventorying supplies and appliances, and boxing what we will keep, while we prepare for the real work.
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Crow Bar, that Brandade de Morue sounds delicious!
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@Earth Chick,
While the deconstruction sounds like it could be a little stressful, the end result sounds like it will be amazing!
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I made a huge pot of chili. Since there are only two of us I will can most of it. My kids LOVE it so they might get some too.
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Downloaded and printed a book today that deals with prepping and security. With my old laptop and printer it took a big chunk out of the afternoon. Did the usual Monday cleanings, plus chunked the old take home food out of the fridge. It’s supposed to freeze tonight– we’ll see.
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One of those days…..started listening to the book ONE SECOND AFTER by William R Forstchen (sorry for the caps but I can’t figure out how to underline) last night and have been finishing it today. Wow! I’m too far in not to finish it, but emotionally it has put me in a hard place. I pray this sort of thing might never be something my grandchildren would have to endure while at the same time recognizing the real threat of some sort of EMP event occurring. I think I may even have seen some reference to a recent military report once again urging the powers that be to do more to protect our electric grid. That’s why I decided to read this particular book. But, I’ve found it a real “downer;” so for me, it’s acknowledging my personal limitations, considering some of the ethical questions raised by the book, and continuing on with my common sense prepping activities. And, continuing on with my indoor gardening efforts which make me happy! I talk to my plants….but then I’m 80 years old and we are known to even wear purple. 🙂
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This reply was modified 1 year, 6 months ago by
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This reply was modified 1 year, 6 months ago by
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Today was organize the shop day. After hiking and camping a bunch the summer/fall and also collecting a bunch of related gear, I decide to go through it and put like items together and label them either hiking or camping. A lot of the gear is also survival gear, such as space blankets, disposable ponchos, camp stoves, etc. Have a much better idea of what gear I have and where it now lives.
Ordered a set of heavy-duty clear plastic containers for storing various types of rice in our pantry. Get it out of the plastic bags it comes in before the little critters decide to move inside for the winter.
Lastly, doggo and I did our 3.5 mile hike. A little icy today, but got through it at a fairly good clip.
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@muffy1938 thank you for the book referral I will look it up.
Today I put my saved seeds from the spaghetti squash to dry so I can use it next month.
I prepared for my course of examinator honey products which starts this Saturday. I can’t wait. It is a two year course but it will be so interesting to learn more about propolis, honey, wax pollen etc.
I also signed up for a basic course ecological vegetable gardening. I’m a member of a eco gardening club to support gardening without too many heavy chemicals (for the bees!). I read up about weed control. I didn’t know that even vinegar use can hurt the bee population… I’m particular interested in planning a veggie garden (I only have a small garden).
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Anonymous12/3/18
Read up on making a rocket stove. Watched a YouTube on it…Still deciding which style to go with. I also made 18 fire starters to add to my supply. Cleaned the house while my wife caught up a little on sewing.
Would like to make a rocket stove without spending anything. Open to any ideas.
OldMansd
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December 3:
Got compounded medicines from doctor to help daughter eat and sleep.
Read some more in one of Selco’s books.
Got some herbs to try – will buy in bulk if they appear to work.
Going to bed early to try to get over this horrible cold.
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@Earth Chick, while I do love a finished remodel I don’t care for the household disruption. Hope yours goes smoothly and quickly. A nice big pantry will be a wonderful addition.
We went into town today to run errands. We try to get everything done in one trip. We usually go twice a month. Lots of people out and about and for the most part they seemed to be a tad cranky. Not sure if it’s the weather, the holidays or just their basic nature.
Cold weather has settled in. Made a big pot of veggie soup and baked herb biscuits. Ordered marshmallow root. Made tea for the dog’s allergies.
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Oh Muffy, I’m sorry “One Second After’ is hitting you that way but it did the same to me. It is a good book, I learned a few things, but so many parts of it can be profoundly depressing. It also made me look at some of our preps in different ways. Husband is Type 2 diabetic but he is not on any medications. He loves to tell people, especially every Dr. we see “I control my diabetes with diet, exercise, and a B*t%y wife!”. On the flip side he has gone from 368 lbs. down to 189 lbs. and he’s been keeping the weight off – therefore NO meds, so at least that isn’t a worry.
As far as accomplishments today we picked up more Coleman propane cans, N95 masks (40), aspirin, Neosporin, Immodium, and a few canning jars. Made some extra freezer jam. But that was it. Starting to get things a little more ready for winter.
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Yesterday I dressed more warmly than needed when I left the house. We also ate two sets of leftovers.
Today I refilled a water container and took a long walk with a friend.
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Worked on my budget.Went to the dermatologist with hubby to have a spot looked at on his face. He had to have the spot removed as the doctor felt it looked suspiciously like skin cancer. Next we went grocery shopping and found milk on sale for 79 cents a gallon so stocked up. Stocked up on canned vegetables and evaporated milk to take advantage of a $5 off coupon for spending $30. And after supper we attended our granddaughter’s last holiday band concert where she performed a solo on her flute and with her piccolo.
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I listened to One Second After and the two sequels last year, from the online audio book part of the library here. It certainly effects you.
Listened to Fleetwood Mac all morning working on a painting. It will be finished tomorrow evening and packed up to mail. Made overnight oatmeal, haven’t done that in a while. Did laundry and had dinner with my daughter.
Will put on my fuzzy socks and add some rows onto this afghan before I go to bed.
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Corsaire…I’ve seen those kinds of patches…for rodents! I’ve saved a bunch of lids from frozen juice cans…cuz no sharp edges. Used for various things/crafts, but this use would work too. On another note, we have an ANCIENT old log cabin in our area. Stories told about it… Anyway, I could swear that the roof shingles are from old tin cans. Split up a side and flattened and pounded up there like regular shingles. Takes more cuz they’re thin and irregular length. I think sometimes I’ll actually stop and have a closer look!
Dear Muffy! Y’know…it would be hard to overestimate the emotional impact for nearly all of us….if the Stuff does Hit The Fan in any long-lasting way. 🙁 Such a large portion of our population is only alive because of modern devices/medicines. And ALL of us will be scrambling to keep up if we get whacked back to the 1800’s technology. But yes! Take time away and digest this slowly. Pamper your growing things. I read HappilyEverAfter fiction a lot to BALANCE myself with all the prepper-minded things I do.
Xant Dewit….vinegar? Didn’t know that one. My friend has bees and I’ve helped her when I visit. In these high mts, we have bears so having hives would have to involve some high voltage fences, I’d think. 😮
OldMansd….if you want a rocket stove in your backyard….not mobile…there are easy plans for making that same concept with cement bricks. Google should get you to something. Not even mortared. I think you merely have to break one in half to have it square up right. Also not mobile…cob as a building material? Not sure on that tho. Manufactured ones are pretty, and mobile and expensive!
OK…I stayed up until 2 A.M. today so I could download Daisy’s Lists book during the ‘free usage’ hours of our Internet plan. Perused it for a while….of course…then I went to bed. The rest of today has seemed chaotic….for some reason. I keep trying to catch up and get stuff done so I can begin the rewrite of my EVAC plans. Ha! Did a lot of things but that wasn’t one of them.
Read an article about people buying land in high elevation and northern regions due to what they expect Climate Change will do. Well, I’m not sure we’re going to lose FL to the ocean or heat, but perhaps we will. Those interviewed also worried about continued and increasing hurricanes/ tornadoes/ drought-wildfires/ winter storms, etc. Again, weather does change for long periods of time….and then may switch back. I’m not going to speculate. But anyone who is now carefully not calling themselves “doomsday preppers” and yet they are collecting land, supplies and skills……for whatever reason, I’m in favor. None of us can say for sure but we all have that uneasy feeling that this prosperity ride can’t last forever….for what ever reason(s).
OldMtWoman …kinda got an “itch” today {shrug}
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Busy, busy day. Can’t keep up with orders for business. Burning the midnight oil. Read through a few lists and made notes of things I want to get. I’ve never considered buying rice that is cooked and packaged. I think I’ll get some and add to BOB’S. Took care of some banking and cooked a casserole using leftover cornbread and chicken. Also. Used brown bananas to make bread. The pups keep getting into the compost bin, never thought that would be the problem, got to fix that.
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We are taking the train across the country in January to spend the month helping my husband’s 88 year old uncle in San Diego. We went to UPS yesterday to send 2 boxes of clothes for the warmer weather. We are stopping at the Grand Canyon and Flagstaff for a few days and cannot take all of the luggage we would need for winter and summer weather. Long story to get to my prepping for today. The UPS clerk asked me I needed stamps. When I asked for 20 Christmas stamps, she said that stamps are going up 5 cents in January! So I bought a roll of 100 Forever flag stamps. They just might last me forever!
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I didn’t post yesterday, so I will bring everyone up to speed on what I learned from my “Exercise”, where I practiced a bugout. I was waiting to hear a random word on the Sunday morning news programs. The word was “Hillary”. I didn’t hear it until 1214 and I then had 30 minutes to get out of the house.
The first part went pretty smothly. I was running through the house throwing things into the SUV. Fortunately, I have the critical items in go bags. I was still packing extras at 30 minutes and stopped loading at that point. Depending on the level of emergency, I would prefer more time, but you can do a lot in 30 minutes. — if you have lists and have some items ready to go (bug out bags etc).
I hit the road. I try to keep the vehicles at least half a tank full. I had 3/4 tank, which is sufficient to get me away from Philadelphia.
I had planned a route using highways that kept me further away from the major cities, Philly, Trenton, NYC, etc. I went west and used only my maps. I had highlighted several routes using bright highlighters — this was key especially as it got darker.
Halfway through I quit using the major intersates and used more local roads. This proved interesting as I encountered road maintenance and one accident that I had to navigate around using my maps. Thankfully I didn’t get lost, but it was close. I pulled over a couple times to consult the maps. Also key was my compass as I needed to keep heading north.
Everytime my tank was at a third, i started looking for a gas station. There are a lot less gas stations on local highways and roads. I also found that travelling at night would be tricky to find open gas stations. I have changed my thinking that I would stop at the next open gas station any time my fuel guage was half or less. I used cash for everything.
The trip took about 30% longer. Upon arrival I was tired. I was very happy that I have someone plowing my driveway as my area had about 12 inches on the ground.
On Monday, I rested and thought about what I learned. I was happy that I have lists in a binder and that I have various bugout bags. I was in a hurry so I did forget a few things but nothing major. Also, I am glad that I have a little of extra items in both houses. One is none and two is one. For the road trip, maps and compass are key. Highlighting prior helps but accidents and road maintenance will cause rerouting. We have all gotten so use to GPS. Also remember good will want to take you back to the major interstate. It pays to do a route study and if possible have an extra person to navigate. I was glad to have plenty of cash on hand. Also keeping the gas tank at least half full at home was key. If something bdoes happen, you want to he able to get as much distance as possible from the big cities. I do keep some gas cans of fuel. Next time I do this exercise I am going to try using the gas cans and refilling. From my calculations, I have just about the right amount in extra gasoline to get me to my Up State house with the local rerouting etc (and arrive with about a third tank).
I had lots of little ideas too. The big thing is actually practicing. I am going between my two houses for the next few months, until I hopefully sell the other house in late Spring. I will definitely do this exercise another time or two. Practice
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Awesome post Loving Life!!! Thank you so much for sharing your experience.
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Today we are going to visit our son so no canning today. I did empty my kitchen composter into the mulch pile. I will can the chili tomorrow-less to can as it will probably be dinner tonight.
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@Loving Life,
That is a great exercise! Thank you for sharing!
Just out of curiosity, what kind of compass do you use? I am kinda a compass freak, and have a Silva, a Suunto, and a GI NSN.
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@loving life: that is such a smart excerise! I’m going to think about my routes as well once I had to flee from my house and I was totally unprepared, that got me into prepping and such. Even though I don’t consider myself a prepper
Today I made 2 excerises From the bloom course. Love love love the course. I did found out that my biggest threat is job loss and financial stability (even though I received extra hours on my contract so I work full time now).
I also received the just add water book from England today. Pretty happy with that.
Tomorrow is Sinterklaas a tradition for children where they get gifts. I tried to make some cool mini-in-the-bus bobs for my children but I didn’t receive my orders yet … guess that will be Christmas presents.
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Along with the fat rendering and maybe pork confit, mixing a new batch of dough with a preferment. Will likely let it rise in the fridge over night and then bake tomorrow.
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Still fighting this nasty flu bug so not doing too much other than reading gardening (especially herb gardening) books.
Finally finished my daughters fingerless mitts and starting on a pair for myself.
Making a couple of loaves of bread today, thank goodness for a breadmaker.
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Inventory on my essential oils; After doing research made a list of some oils that I need. I missed the build your own set sale from Plant Therapy. Hopefully they will run something similar again soon.
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I did 2 loads of laundry and hung them all on drying racks and hangers instead of using the dryer. Last year we turned a 4th bedroom into a laundry room so I have a lot of nice space. Next time I’ll try to hang 3 loads at one time.
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Oh happy day….the grow light is installed and working properly!!! I put it on a timer so the light will run from 6 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.That’s a bit over 10 hours so I’ll see how that works. Tomorrow I’m thinking to maybe thin the spinach sprouts out a bit and replant them in rows. Need to keep researching for best practices while trying to do indoor gardening. I’m definitely going to plant a couple of rows of lettuce seed and see what happens. Watching the mail box every day for seed catalog I’ve ordered from an Heirloom seed company. Talked with my handyman neighbor about building me some raised beds for next Spring. I can’t get up and down very well anymore, so I think raised beds and some vertical gardening might be just what I need. Making a cabbage and potato soup today which I plan to can tomorrow. Has the house smelling lovely. Made some cornbread muffins that freeze well. I think I’m going to focus more on canned goods rather than freezer things as in a long-term outage I might lose too many things. Reading about the possibility of an EMP has me really thinking in new ways. Someone else mentioned that as a senior citizens we may not need to be so concerned with 25 years shelf life concerns for our food. I’m thinking about where best to put my prepper efforts and dollars at my age. My next research effort is going to be about communication needs during a possible long-term electrical outage. Apparently there are some Ham radio devices that are legal for use by non-licensed Ham radio operators. Loving Life made me think about other items I might want to have ready for a quick evacuation need, outside of my BOB. Keep on posting my friends – I’m learning so much from you!
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Looking into grow light/vertical / indoor gardening as well. I’ve got a place in one of my flower beds that I stuck some garlic in years ago– and it’s still coming up and doing its thing. I’d have a better eye on it but that part of the bed is overgrown with incredibly invasive rough-leafed dogwoods and spiders love it. Being majorly arachnophobic I don’t want to poke my arm in there during the summer and get a surprise. But the garlic shoots are still coming up even now and the spiders have gone to sleep (mostly). Anyway, I could still put garlic in the indoor garden as well as shallots and celery and carrots… anything that I’ve used the tops of and maybe get another crop. I’m amazed at how much produce and meat is now contaminated. It’s like– what CAN we buy to eat? “Here, have this GMOed, Round Up Ready, corn hybrid!” Hmmm…
Found some places in oldest daughter’s room that I can use for storage. Just combine this and that and I’ll have several empty shelves. (She had the old in-laws apartment which had a kitchenette.) I’ll need to make a map so I can find the stuff I’ve stored but at least there’s room for supplies. -
Loving Life, thanks for updating us on your exercise!
Today, I ran some errands, then came home and read the CIDRAP Bioterrorism Roundup sent out by the U. of Minnesota. I was interested to learn about the design improvements being made to the Personal Protective Equipment coveralls worn by health care workers treating patients with very dangerous infectious diseases such as Ebola. It will be awhile before the changes are approved and “trickle” down to models non-medical professionals can buy but when they do, I’m going to try to get some of the new PPE coveralls for my medical preps.
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December 4: Reading some more in Selco’s book. Juggling work and cooking and making sure everyone has what they need. Cancer treatment plan is beginning to coalesce, and the patient DOES need a little pushing because she’s tired. Even came up with an acronym – doesn’t make much sense, but here it is: SKRAASH: <span style=”text-decoration: underline;”>S</span>piritual/emotional/psychological issues (take care of them), <span style=”text-decoration: underline;”>K</span>etogenic diet (75% of calories from fat, 20% from protein, 5% from carbs), <span style=”text-decoration: underline;”>R</span>est, <span style=”text-decoration: underline;”>A</span>utophagy (induced by fasting), <span style=”text-decoration: underline;”>A</span>lkalinity (slight), <span style=”text-decoration: underline;”>A</span>nti-angiogenesis, <span style=”text-decoration: underline;”>S</span>uper nutrition, <span style=”text-decoration: underline;”>H</span>igh-intensity interval training (HIIT). Fresh air and sunshine should be in there, too, I guess.
Also thinking about how we would manage this if there was a collapse and certain things weren’t available, or we suddenly fell into poverty. The ketogenic diet might have to go, but there’s no reason the rest of it couldn’t work IF we have foraging skills and knowledge of the plants around us and what they do. Working on that.
Looking for ketogenic meal plans. Had shrimp and red-pepper omelets with spinach on the side tonight.
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@Lovin Life, thanks for sharing. Definitely something to think about.
@Muffy1938 glad to hear your grow light has arrived. While age/health/abilities should never be a deterrent it can change your approach. I know it has in our household.
@hieronyma Textor glad to hear that things are coming along.
@rufusj seems like every time we turn around there is another recall. If you don’t grown it yourself there’s no telling what you’re actually consuming.
Worked on plant identification on the walk to the lake. Very little left to identify unless it has berries. A rather ravenous flock of robins and cedar waxwings arrived this morning. Enjoyed watching them tossing leaves about in search of a meal. Ordered supplies to make laundry soap and shampoo. Baked biscuits and made gravy.
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Smoked bacon yesterday and today. Shopped, picked up azure order 8 horseradish roots gonna plant two and see what happens
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Tuesday the 4th, back to work day. Got gas on the way to work. It was below a quarter of a tank, haven’t done that in a long time, scared myself, wasn’t paying attention. Bought the last 3 of the 40 hour candles. Ordered a longer bamboo circular knitting needle 40 inches size 13 from Amazon, that afghan is getting mighty bulky. Dinner, laundry, and work on the afghan tonight.
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Oh, just remembered, Seed Savers catalog came today, yippee. I’ll be marking pages, then work on the afghan.
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Today’s every day prepping was dealing with everyday “stuff.” Daughter’s car needs extra work so made an appointment with the shop to get it in for repair. We’ve got a 3-way light switch that started popping a circuit breaker. I figured it was the switch so I changed that out. Still pops the breaker. What has changed? It used to work fine and did not do this before. Decided to call a friend who is a contractor and asked for a recommendation for an electrician. Some things you don’t want to mess with. Got in a few “turns on the mountain” even though there isn’t much snow yet, but good exercise. The wife had her book group over tonight and they discussed their latest “read”, <span style=”text-decoration: underline;”>World War Z. </span> Included some interest survival discussions that I participated in.
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@oldmansd- about a rocket stove, I bought a single burner thing for a gas range to use in mine at a second hand restore. Hardly cost anything but still haven’t made it yet. Will do in the summer, don’t need it now.
Was out of town on the first of December but I’m in. I have to travel again in the middle of the month and I’ll see what I can do then.
Dec 1st I was on the road, gassed up the car, stopped at a candy store to find special candies for a gingerbread house I’m making for a gift for the grandkids. Put some documents on a flash drive.
Dec 2 Did some shopping at goodwill and bought some fleece pants, stopped at Aldi’s and added extra for the SHTF pantry
Dec 3 yesterday, Checked the medicine box to see what I need to add to it, charged handheld radios, did laundry
Dec 4 today- cannibalized some old magazines- by that I mean I saved articles about herbal medicine, gardening, and homesteading that I wanted to put in a binder- then tossed the magazines. I tend to save too much and am trying to pare down so things are easier to find when I want them. I also have a small notebook with the title “where” and have alphabetized pages so I can write down where I put things I don’t use often.
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Today I hung up a load of laundry to dry instead of using a dryer. In addition, I’m getting ready to make my own bread.
I helped a friend who had a baby recently. It was nice to chat with her. It’s also forming community. 🙂
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LovingLife…glad your adventure went well. \0/ So many things we can learn with “dress rehearsals“…the ones we do on purpose AND the ones thrust upon us! LOL Thanks for the detailed report. I have compasses but wouldn’t have thought of bringing one. The usual roads here are very clear as to where you are. Hmm….if I had to resort to the Forest Service roads…they scatter all over the place.
As for the gas tank situation, your post made me get up and go write “gas” on our “communications board”. Told DH my truck needs gas when it was just less than half. Then we both forgot and I looked tonite….quite near E. Ooops, don’t usually do that. Esp. in winter when that OLD truck needs it’s long warm-up time. We do have gas cans but…I’d feel pretty stupid if it ran dry at the barnyard and had to walk UP that steep hill.
Dang it’s been COLD. We’ve gone subzero the past 2 nites and going down again. I try to do PM chores before dark cuz temperatures sink quickly after that. Stupid fridge in basement froze half of my carrot crop — inside the refrigerator section! I avoided putting them on bottom shelf….it always freezes. Got fridge temp turned way up and still does it. This time it froze the ones on the top shelf. Augh! Only middle shelf survived so I brought them upstairs to save them. Will have to make room up here somehow. But back of this fridge freezes stuff too. 🙁
Muffy, glad to hear you making plans for further modified gardening efforts. We tried vertical gardening – during the worst drought summer we had. 🙁 EVERYthing was a failure that year. Even pea vines…usually 6 feet tall, were literally 6 INCHES tall that year. It was so dry that the air sucked the moisture out of the plants….even with multiple watering. Tried hay/straw bales that year too. My Midwest friend has had good luck with them. Arid West….the bales take 3-4 yrs to decompose. I do think I’d try the vertical again on a more normal-arid year. Sure beats getting down on hands/knees. And it might keep the plants from marauding voles! If shallow animal watering tanks are available anywhere near you, my friend also uses those – propped up to waist high. Drainage in bottom. They’re only a couple feet deep…would need soil.
Woodsrunner…cutting out what you want from magazine/newspaper and dumping the rest. I need to do that too. But no more recipes. I have way too many already. I’d like to sort those by which ones would still apply in a post-Stuff Hits Fan situation. I rarely cook meals by recipe but like to save those that tell me how to make things like mayo, yogurt, sausage etc from scratch.
Continued sorting today….attacked the ‘containers’ shelves. Pulled out most of the gazillion lids I have. Still need to match and toss.
I’ve been thinking of a Lights Out situation as in: sudden loss of power and a need to quickly find my way in the dark. No street lights out here in the woods. Cloudy or no moon means it’s pitch dark. I have small flashlights stashed everywhere – yet in full dark and some emergency. [OK…like the AK earthquake. Lucky that was not in the dark hours.] So what about glow-in-the-dark stickers or tape. I have a star in one corner of bedroom which helps me orient up from down. Something like that in other key places…near front/back doors. Bathroom. A strip of it on several of the flashlights. Or on the BOBs? Thinking on it.
OldMtWoman ….wanting some warming in our neck of the woods!!
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Hubby had an eye exam today and ordered new glasses so he has another backup pair. I got really energetic today and started cleaning in my office. Want to get rid of my large desk so I;m finding better ways to organize everything so I can empty the desk and still be able to find everything. Cleaned hubby’s office today and found cases of canning jars under a counter top that we forgot we put in there. Put the jars on the shelf now that I’ve made room in the fruit cellar. Filled a large bag with stuff to take to the local thrift shop for donation. Made a few craft items to display in the living room. Worked on the menu for this week. We received our first seed catalog today so looking through it to find what new items we might want to grow this next season.
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Picked up one car that was in the shop. I’m hoping to get one or two more years out of her. 375,000 miles. Love that car. Checked the preps in the car , need to add some finger foods and water. Filled the tank. Got 8 packages ready for shipping.
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Anonymous12/4/18
Did research on several items, rocket stove, organic cleaning or lotion stuff. Then got the items I needed to make my rocket stove. Will probably try and work on that tomorrow. Want to take my time and do it right. Also tried new recipe for pork chops in our instant pot. Pretty good.
Spent a little time reading End of the World fiction. I have read a lot of it. Trying to save some money and going back and reading some I have on my ipad (kindle app) I have about all of Jerry Young’s books.
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12/4 I did some Christmas shopping. Solar powered chargers for small electronics cell phones/kindles/tablets were on amazon deals, so I got two for my sons for Christmas. 12/5 Today, I am canning some chicken stock with vegetables, for chicken and dumplings through the winter. Christmas decorations are going slow. I lost several family members in the last year, and they are on my mind since I started going through Christmas stuff. Oh Well!! Off to check my canner!
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Read most of the just add water book. I really like it. I have a LOT of dehydrated food in the pantry but I do have troubles actually using it a lot. I should try recipes more often!
I printed the black out book from daisy. Absolutely love it. I loved the bbc documentary about it: https://youtu.be/9WrCI0W37zw
another print out for the bee course starting this Saturday
Masked a colleague about property for sale. It is an old pigs farm. The ever so big shed has an asbestos roof. And the asbestos roofs should all be removed from our government before 2024. First I will have to look of my beekeeping is seen as a company or just hobby. Yes they have rules for that. If it is not considered a proper business I’m not allowed to live there. I will ask tomorrow. Then I will have to look at the probable price for replacing the asbestos A lot of then, ifs and buts. But I will keep on trying.
Today is sinterklaas evening. Which I had themed as a survivalish presents. But ta lot of items are still in the post. I took what I have aside and will make it a survivalish Christmas. I got them some essential oil diffuser jewellery. I hope they like it
im deep cleaning my dehydrator hope to dehydrate some persimmon purée (it will come to an end…)
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I did my 3 hours of volunteering this morning at the park. When I stopped at the store to get some milk, the clerk was marking down Classico tomato sauce to $.49 each. I always make my own sauce but still picked up eight jars for my pantry. We are having 14 people over for Christmas. I have been thinking about Daisy’s article and asked my husband, what would we do if disaster struck while everyone was here for the holidays? We had a good discussion about this and decided that the only thing we really need is more water for drinking. I’ll be picking up a few more cases the next time I’m in town.
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Started making a shopping list for all the baking. My daughter and I are going to be busy busy for the next few weekends. We always make a Greek Christmas bread with Anise, which my hubby says HAS to be kneaded by hand, so that’s going to be his job.
My fingerless mitts are just flying along, much faster than what I made for my girl and thicker too even though both yarns use the same size needles….weird.
Going to be looking through hubby’s get home bag this weekend and see what needs to be added/removed.
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Spent quite a bit of time this morning searching online for a supplier of Italian mattarello rolling pins for making pasta. The type I’d like to find is about 40 inches long but only about 2 inches in diameter, with a carved knob on one end so you can hang it up to lessen the chance of it warping. Found one but, unfortunately, the vendor doesn’t ship to the U.S.. (Maybe I’ll just buy a thick, long, hardwood dowel and carve and sand it into the shape I want). Then I went to lunch with a non-prepper friend and, among other things, discussed how to prepare for Winter storms. Gotta break them in slowly, lol.
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Another doctor appointment for hubby which makes 3 this week. While getting dressed this morning, I felt a sharp pain through my low back and hip. Having trouble straightening up and put in a call to the chiropractor but can’t get in until tomorrow. Not able to do much since I can’t bend down or lift anything. Made some dessert and arranged for a dental appointment for cleaning and exam.
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This morning, I stared at the cordless vac pole attachments wondering where the vacuum was. Then I saw the trash can right next to the attachments.
Too late, I must have dropped it in the can and put trash on top so it couldnt be seen. Going to wait until after Christmas to get another, cause the prices hopefully will go down.
With that said, I looked around and saw all the things I rely on electricity for. My goal now is to get a ‘non-electric version of things. Coffee grinder, a drill, ect.
A phone book got dropped off at my home, and my first instinct would have been to put it in the recycle bin. Now its “info in a power outage or fuel for a fire”
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We gassed up the car this morning. It has been really cold, waking up to 24 degrees just isn’t normal for here. I put another blanket on the bed. Stocked up on more vegetables, salt, baking soda, and baking powder at the grocery store. Did a load of laundry, (actually the machine did it while we were running errands.) just hung it up to dry.
Finding all sorts of things out about how long a death certificate can take and how many original certified copies to have! We have already prepaid for all of our cremation fees, daughter has all necessary paperwork (wills, medical directives, etc.) so she doesn’t have to do all of this for us! I suppose this is more of a prep for our daughter than ourselves but it is nice to have it all in place so it is one less thing for us to worry about.
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Another slow day….pretty cold for us but nice sunshine helped later in the day. I’m watching lots of youtube videos about what to do next with my spinach sprouts. They seem to be taking to the grow light…standing a bit taller. I’m going to wait a few more days before trying to thin them out. Got my handyman to fix the attic fold-up stairs…am thinking to put some of my non-food extra supplies up there…placed an order from Amazon for items needed after reviewing the LDS materials about what and how much we should stock up….Perhaps unrelated to prepping but on my mind (I’m old): number three son coming in from out of state for a brief visit, EST 7:30 pm…will be here several days and I plan to ask him to review my “end of life stuff” Although I hope to have many more quality years, I want to have as many things ready for my family as possible when my journey here is finished…baking an apple pie (his favorite)…number 2 son returning from Atlanta with one of the granddaughters who had to go to French Consulate in Atlanta to get the visa she needs to be a student in France beginning in January…she’s the granddaughter who has been helping me the past two years with general housework that I find a bit more challenging to do. I’m really going to miss her. But a younger sister has said she wants to take over. My prayers go out to all of you who are coping with some tough situations. Thanks so much for sharing. 🙂
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Today I sliced up the remaining banana nut bread and put it in the freezer. Did a partial inventory of the kitchen pantry, meaning I poking around on the shelves, going “What do you mean I don’t have any more chicken broth??” Several other things were scarce as well. About once a year we resort everything in there because it gets so jumbled. The bulk things are together but the one or two cans of this and that are scattered everywhere. Chow mein noodles do not go with the asparagus. Then I searched the ‘net for some inexpensive castile soap. Maybe that’s oxymoron”inexpensive” and “castile”. I’m looking for some that is less than 30 cents an ounce. I like Dr Bronner but his is more expensive than that. And I’m cheap… er, frugal.
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I made our bread for the week. Still trying to find time to read an implement Daisy’s book of lists.
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Beautiful, crisp winter (late fall) day. Temp never got above freezing but the sun being out makes all the difference. Swapped out the stove in my truck get-home bag this morning. The new one is smaller and lighter. Since I was putting the other stove, a Jetboil, in my camping gear bin, I decided I should make an inventory list of what was in there. I also did the same for the extra hiking gear bin (minus all the various packs we have acquired over the years – that’s for another day). Found some good stuff I had forgotten about! My goal is to have the bins as a sort bug out complement so if we need to evacuate we can toss these bins in the back of the truck and be ready to go. Next step is to copy the handwritten inventories into my supply database.
Did my normal 2.75 mile hike with the dog at a quick pace for a little cardio workout this afternoon. Still some snow on the ground in the forest, but very passable for the time being.
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This last summer was so busy that things got really jumbled up here at home and I’m still working on that. It will take a while. Today I refilled some water jugs. Also downloaded a prepper book on kindle.
If you go to bookbub (its free to sign up) you will get list of books daily that you can get cheaply or free. Today there was a free one entitled “When the Power is Gone” by P.A. Glaspy – free for kindle and if you don’t have kindle you can download that for free on your pc. So that’s the one I downloaded and will begin reading it.
I read Selco’s books almost at one sitting. Just Can’t stop once I get started. According to the reviews this one is about ordinary people and most reviews were good so I will see. Also got out the Christmas tree to put up. I used to like to do it but now seems like work- no little kids anymore. Even the grown ones are far away.
I also am making a cookbook with just basics like how to make cheese, spice blends, dressings mayo, and all kinds of stuff from scratch. I also make herbal medicines and keep on learning about them. It seems like there are several of us older folks on this forum.
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by the way I remember you choose categories that you are interested in and that book was under science fiction I believe.
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Anonymous12/5/18
Installed another grow light and noticed that my sprouts were sprouting…very cool. Spinach will take longer but the system is working. I showed my wife the sprouts and she thought it was neat. We went to town to gather prices on the items we buy at and wrote them down with the pertinent data. A lot more work than I thought but we found a few aha moments where we have been paying too much. Old brains forget somewhat….so now I need to put into alphabetical list on excel and print off and keep in a binder for shopping. Good place to put any coupons also. Was looking on line at some stuff about being frugal and saw that suggestion about writing down all of the things we buy. You all are probably doing that all the time.
When we got home, my wife noticed that the sprouts had grown taller a noticeable amount. It is cool to see here enjoying my project. Found another planter and used up more of the potting soil to make another sprout pot.
Bought a few more things for my Rocket stove so that may be what I work on tomorrow.
Also am working with a Long Term Disability insurance that is going very slowly. Money not coming in from them….seems like something always needed more. I went down to my doctors and asked for all of my medical records so that I can send as needed and not wait for folks to get around to what I need done now. I understand they work with a lot of folks but I think this falls under being prepared so worked on it.
Thanks..
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@xant dewit, hope the farm works out.
@woodsrunner, thanks for the book info.
@coffee girl hopefully your memories are pleasant ones and being you comfort this season.
Cleaned out the garage a bit and moved more leaves to the compost bin. Made a batch of basic immunity booster. Baked biscuits and organized the dog’s closet.
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@rufusj I just order Walmart brand castille soap. It was less expensive than the others. I have yet to try it but hopefully it will work just as good.
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@peppy P , Thank you, and yes, most are pleasant and comforting, but I miss them so much. First Christmas without some very dear loved ones. It will be a hard one. Bittersweet.
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Thanks, Peppy P! I will check them out!
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Have been prepping everyday. Here’s a recap:
1st: read about EMPs and faraday cages.
2nd: Stocked up on some meat that was purchased on a great sale! Will can it at a later time.
3rd: Caught some bigger candles on sale and stocked up on them.
4th: Sorted out items in the kitchen and will donate what we don’t need and stock up on what we do.
5th: Read about some garden tips. Will be planting some lettuce and spinach next week and start it indoors.
Thank you for doing this again. Really enjoy reading what everyone else is doing.
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Same as Jessee Jones we hubby and I watched several YouTube videos on EMP and bags or buckets to protect items.
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Got batteries and summer sausage for my storage. Got some fire blocks to help with starting fires. Read about different uses for aluminum foil. Researched tub bladders. Made meatloaf and mashed potatoes. I checked the garden and still have some veggies growing. I read news from many different sources every night to keep track of what’s going on in the world. I believe this activity alone keeps me motivated to continue prepping. The world is going crazy.
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December 5: Still sick but getting better. Depressed over lack of success finding a surgeon / oncologist who won’t butcher my daughter and render her sterile, but praying and hoping. If we go with the first oncologist, it’s going to be a battle in ways we don’t want – the battle against the cancer is going to be hard enough.
Reading more in Selco’s book.
Felt a little temporary paranoia today when I read Daisy’s blog about the rating system in China and learned about mylife.com here. Took a brief gander (without giving an email address) and found out someone has written a review of me! I don’t know what it is, because I’m not giving them my email address. Sometimes it’s a real struggle between what my ethics tell me (it doesn’t matter what other people think, as long as you’re doing the right thing) and what the culture around us tells me (you need to look good). Oh, well. Something to meditate on and pray about. I’m sure the conflicts are going to get a lot worse in the years to come. Time to build that strength and resistance.
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Wow missed this because I lost the forum. Been still working on my prepping over the last 5 days. Went through our canned goods made a list and then hubby and I shopped to fill our shelves for the month.
I got a large supply of mushrooms and spent the last four days dehydrated them. I have two gallon bags full after I finished tonight.
I also sautéed a bunch some with garlic some with onion. Put it on a tray to freeze and tomorrow I will vacuum seal it tomorrow before work.
Glad I found the forum again I like reading it.
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Old Mansd… I’ve got quite a few of JerryDYoung’s books too. Have you read his redone ‘Expedition’? Very detailed and slow but I kinda like that style. Just got #4 and #5….and don’t know if that finishes it or not. Yay, on your sprouts! What kind of Rocket stove did you decide to build?
Corsaire….yeah, I just ordered a new vacuum. I have two and neither is worthy of spending my scarce energy for not much satisfaction. Didn’t go higher price cuz I’m not sure how long I’m expecting it to last anyway. Either cuz we move or cuz we all lose electricity. [HOPE not!]
As for phone books…yes, we use them cuz no cell service out here and I’ve never gotten used to looking up everything on-line. BUT also…they go into a box labeled ALT TP. Just like the old Sears & Roebucks. You rip out a page or two….crumble them up really good to make them softer….and well, do not use this alternate T.P. to flush down modern toilets, of course. Either an outhouse. A ‘cat hole’. Or put in container with lid and burn later. I’ve collected lots of ALT TP ….and sincerely hope I don’t have to use it.
Today DH went to fill my truck with gas! 🙂 Can’t believe I let it get that empty. Grrrr! Spent a lot of today researching for a new disability device…..I’ve worn out my current one in the past 2 decades. Have to do a lot of measuring yet. Something I’d definitely NEED post-StuffHitsFan. Need to think of spare parts too.
Putting more things on the ‘Stock Up’ list as well as ‘We’re Out’ list. AND DH and I filled livestock water tank…plugged in expensive elect. heat to keep it from freezing in our subZero nites. Hoping we didn’t have to do that this year. 🙁
Thanks for the PA Glaspy tip, Woodrunner! Ebook is free thru Amazon too and I just got it. I’ve read a couple of her other ones. I get so many free that I rarely ‘buy’ one. Above mentioned ‘Expedition’ by JerryDYoung were exceptions. I’ve gotten so many free from that man, I owe him!
OldMtWoman …needs to go…cherry pie calling. See y’all tomorrow.
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This reply was modified 1 year, 6 months ago by OldMt Woman.
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Today I cooked enough food to last us a couple of days. I also made a sale, cooked my husband’s breakfast in the thermal cooker (saves time & electricity), and hung up some laundry to dry instead of using the dryer.
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Smoked bacon put into food saver bags in 1 lb pkgs and into the freezer. The hams are soaking before they get equalized for another week or so, they look good. Fed the dogs and chickens the cooked lungs today. Sure saved 350 bucks on doing the porker mysel, it is a lotta work but worth it to me. Not only learned how to butcher, but how little work is actually involved in care and feeding.
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<p style=”text-align: left;”>Yesterday, I went to a wreath making class. I made both my wreath and a door swag. I am not the most crafty person, but the wreath and swag turned out ok. The bows looked really good. I finished decorating the Up State house for the holidays. Now I need to start baking.</p>
This morning, I finished book three of the Yellowstone series. I never knew the effects that a super volcano could have on an entire continent.
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Other than cleaning basil seeds , I have gotta clean the house and do <span style=”text-decoration: underline;”>all</span> the dishes. The hams are equalizing in the smoker, since it’s cold enough out for the week. The air flow is much better and it’s safe from the critters.
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Our vat taxes on food are going up from 6 to 9 % as of January. So I bought some extra legumes to add to my dry storage (10 kilo chick peas, 10 kilo green lentils, 5 kilo red lentils and 3 kilo split peas) .
i did ask about the old pigs farm but you have to have a full time agriculture business to be able to buy the place. Bad luck
Thats all I did today. It was a busy day at work.
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I have been busy the past few days with prepping. I cleaned out the freezers and dehydrated my frozen fruit from summer into leathers. They aren’t the best ones I’ve ever made, but I didn’t expect them to be. I also read a few chapters in my old Mary Bell dehydrating book and I learned that I can make zucchini powder, beet powder and potpourri from my dead flowers. I really hate waste so I will continue to use up whats in the house and I have been trying to find other uses for foods and items past their use by date. I made homemade chicken soup from a carcass I pressure cooked the other day. I also added a few half gallons of bleach to my stockpile. Today I didn’t get much accomplished because we all have a cold. I was really surprised when I went to my medicine stockpile and I couldn’t find anything for the kids that wasn’t expired. I cleaned it out over the summer but I forgot to keep tally as to what needed to be replaced for fall and spring sickness season. That is now on my to do list. Between the family, prepping and nursing school I could seriously use a vacation.
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Thermal cooker?
Ok, I had no idea what that was. Search engines to the rescue. That is something that is handy. I put it on my list.
Went to the thrift store looking for tools, nothing yet. Went to TJ Maxx and looked at backpacks and bags.
nothing else there as far as preps.
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I picked up a Saratoga Jack thermal cooler last year. Love it!!! Makes the best over night steel cut oatmeal. I also love getting it ready for an outdoor picnic. Have hot dish, will travel.
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Today since the canner was out I canned some beans.
Still have to finish my Christmas cards and wrapping.
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Have not even written one Christmas card. I’m usually almost done by now. Oh well. Christmas shopping is almost done but no decorations up yet. I went to Dollar General today and picked up some extra antacids for stock, plus some non-prepping items as well. I’ve been reading through “Patriots” by James Wesley Rawles. Lots of great info but the writing style is not for me. Thus the wading. Still, I want to take notes on the info in there. Tons of stuff about survival and prepping. I emptied a drawer of extraneous clothes, put them in a bin and stashed the bin. The clothes are usable, just not for now.
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Feeling a little “under the weather” today so I haven’t gotten as much prepping accomplished as I’d wanted to. Peeled and froze some large pieces of fresh ginger for future use in cooking as well as in homemade herbal remedies. Researched the names, locations, hours, and phone numbers of machine shops in my area. I’m trying to find one that can make a minor alteration to a stainless steel metal cutting disc so it will work with the meat grinder attachment that goes with my Bosch compact kitchen machine. Once that’s done, I can start making sausage at home.
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Have not being feeling too well for the last five days. Appointment tomorrow with my medical team, so did not have to schedule another one specifically for this issue.
Dec. 6: Tried another new to me recipe with lentils as main ingredient. Taken from a long storage cookbook compiled through the years. Made adjustments and noted in the binder in ink instead of penciled in.
Dec. 5: Yesterday, Mother and I went to our annual Christmas lunch with the ladies at a local retirement home. Took the time to check their inventory of items in our closet. (Where we stash dishes, napkins, serving trays etc.) Should there be an emergency due to a snow/ice storm, they are set to survive a few days before our rescue team needs to worry about. Made sure to take notes about what we think should be added, rotated or purged. Even if I wasn’t feeling optimal, I went to the event because I knew it would boost my morale.
Dec. 4: Added cheap flashlights and lighters to my shopping list for this weekend. We are running low on those. Our emergency winter kit finally returned in the car’s trunk after being replenished with different blankets, coats, boots, change of clothes. It’s amazing to see how much weight we lost/gained. I have yet to find a low energy needed radio for when there is no power. Having to store six to ten C batteries only for that equipment seems futile. Don’t want to buy online. We used to have a smaller one, but it disappeared.
Dec. 1-3: Read several blogs about homesteading in rural colder climate. Trying to figure out the real « needs » from the wants. As to not burn ourselves out in the first five year of taking ownership. Open-minded about of lot of stuff but don’t want to waist energy where it should not be focused. Looked into inground greenhouses and grey-water recycling. Still need guidance, but will get there one way or the other.
Stay safe All
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Not much prepping today as some plumbing issues brought my day to a halt. Fortunately was able to get a crew out here to my rural home. Problem not catastrophic but did set me back a bit. One of those times the “emergency” fund came in handy. I did check on the spinach and it continues to live but I do think it’s time to get serious about thinning out and perhaps transplanting into some small 4″ pots. This is definitely a sharp learning curve for me, but I’m enjoying learning something new. Fun having my #3 son here for a few days. He turns 50 this week. I’m having a lot more difficulty than he is with that number. Where have the years gone? Amazon delivered my Christmas gift to myself today….a really cool gardener’s bag with some really heavy duty tools. If I were much younger I’m sure spending that money on actual long-term food items would make more sense; but, at my age why not have a bit of fun and spoil myself a little. I was raised by Depression Era parents who valued frugality. Extreme frugal I’m not, but probably a somewhat more “waste-not-want-not” type person. Happy prepping, everybody! Love your posts!
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@xant dewit, sorry to hear about the farm.
We have a winter storm watch. Don’t get those too often around here. Filled up the bird feeders with seed and suet. Baked biscuits and cinnamon raisin bread. Mixed up a batch of cleaning solution. Inventoried and organized otc meds.
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I went to a Bible study this morning and then ate lunch and settled down for a long nap. Got up, blew snow, ccoked supper from scratch and will read the prepper book this evening. Not much else today.
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We plan to go to Tennessee tomorrow to visit our daughter and her family. We had snow today and hope that the weekend storm stays far to the south. Today I baked 2 zucchini breads to take, one to eat for breakfast and one for my daughter to freeze. She is not much of a prepper but appreciates everything I bake or cook for her freezer. I made lunches for my husband and me to eat while we are driving tomorrow.
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Didn’t get much done today as we had to go to the Funeral Parlor to pick up Mother’s cremains & death certificates. Not my best day.
I did actually get all 10 of our Water Bricks filled. We’re going to store those tomorrow. I’ve got 6 gallon iced tea jugs waiting to be filled – “toilet water”. Daughter gave me a good idea, rather than scalding, bleaching, etc. all our jugs we could just fill them, mark them for “toilet water” and store them right in the bathroom! Ta-Da!
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Anonymous12/6/18
Typed up my grocery store comparison spreadsheet and sorted it and then printed it out. We went back to town and plugged in some Costco and Walmart items and hit some sale items that beat our list for stuff we needed or will need. Amazing the things we were sure that were cheaper at one store and found out it was not true. It involves going back and forth to the stores to make sure…But a nice thing about Astoria Oregon is that everything is very close and we get our steps in walking around the store. So with that walking plus around the house tinkering…got 6062 steps and 2.7 miles. No big deal for most people but an old guy with a cane it is ok.
Also read up on some prep sites and worked a little on my Rocket Stove. Thought I knew where my cutting tool was but oops…old brain got me again….took about an hour to find where I put it.
Then trying to decide what cans to use…But it is fun and a useful alternative bugout cooking tool.
This is what I am trying for found on https://gardenandseeds.co.uk/diy-rocket-stove-plans/
I took a picture of my parts not put together yet and drew it on my iPad…hope it looks kinda like this when I get done.
Thanks
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Whew…LOW energy day. {frown} Read some in the “When Power is Gone” book. I have her ‘300 miles’ book too. A little clearing. A little research. Scored a couple more dystopian type ebooks for free. Tom Abrams and LJ Andrews. I haven’t read either of those authors but recognize their names. I avoid zombie books…on so many levels! {roll eyes}
DH did PM chores before he left for town. I didn’t have the energy to do that. Hmph…these days are annoying! He’ll be back soon. We finally got our humidifier running. With the pellet stove, it’s very dry in here. Hanging laundry helps but he dried the blankets in the dryer downstairs. I went down to shift some papers that got damp and I’m air drying. After we came up, there was great booming sounds from down there. Ran down to see those paper boxes had tumbled into the furnace aluminum housing for the venting. Lot of noise but no damage. Startling tho… lol
OldMtWoman …hoping to feel better tomorrow and get more done!
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I’m making bread in the bread machine tonight and my husband’s breakfast in the thermal cooker.
Since we were going to be out in the cold tonight, I made my husband tea to take along. We both dressed very warmly. I wore two coats and brought a third one along just in case.
Since we were in a different town, we purchased meat that was at a very good price. Yes, I got multiples. 🙂
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Rocket stove diagram looks good, OldMansd. Is that a paint can…[never used]? Cuz I bought one years ago and …forgot what I was going to use it for. Mebbe….. ? Are they solid enough to hold up to the heat of a rocket stove, I wonder. [Edit] I just checked out that link…they fill with small stones between the cans. Yep, I think that’s what I DID plan for that. Dontcha love a brain that leaks such good ideas out sideways on ya?
Keep us posted – we watch with interest!
OldMtWoman….posted at the same time as OldMansd
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This reply was modified 1 year, 6 months ago by OldMt Woman.
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Researched more food storage ideas and worked on my 1 year food storage lists of what I have and what is needed for the year to know what is still needed. Cleaned up a lot of started files on my computer and copied them off to put in my emergency binder. Caught up the laundry. Pulled an old beef roast out of the freezer to put in the crock pot in the morning. Saw my rheumatologist today and got all normal test results so the inflammatory markers from earlier in the year have gone away due to a better diet and exercise program.
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Yesterday the 5th got a couple Christmas presents, art supplies came from Amazon when I got home. I got an order for cards and for a new print. Laundry, dinner from pantry, hung with the cat awhile in the art room, moved onto the living room with the Sheltie and worked on the monster big heavy afghan. Think I might get it done for Christmas.
Today not feeling all that swell when I got home from work, planned to get a lot done. Took awhile before I could eat anything, feeling better now, had overnight oatmeal, I’m in with the cat now, she’s curled up in her bed and a sweatshirt in front of the little heater, will move into the living room and work on the afghan. The longer circular needles will come tomorrow that will make it easier, quite bulky and heavy now but super warm, I’m using three strands through the middle. It’s chilly and drizzly out there, perfect weather for a Sheltie to run in barking at planes.
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Spent time today researching the best ways to provide lightning protection for my ham radio antenna set up I am working on. I have a lightning arrestor to go inline in the coax run but trying to find the best ground for it. My coax and associated hardware arrive this afternoon so planning on working on the cabling tomorrow although I’m a bit concerned about the snow still on the roof. Once I reach the peak of the roof I can straddle it so I won’t go slipping off. Also, if I do start to slide, there is a gutter on each side to stop me before I go over the edge. Hopefully my next post is not from the hospital!!
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December 6 – Today was St. Nicolas Day. Yes, the one we made into Santa Claus. He got made into a gift-giving fat guy dressed in red because in real life, back in the 4th century, he was the Bishop of Mira (probably not fat), who quietly/anonymously distributed his inherited fortune to various poor people in need. Lots of stories. Also purported by some to have slapped Arius at the Council of Nicea in 325 A.D.
So today was a long, long work day and I’m still sick, so I didn’t go to church 🙁
Reading more in Selco’s book. Thank you, Selco, for sharing your experience and knowledge with us!
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I thought iT is not going to be a prepperish day. I printed some assignments from the bloom course. Unpacked some parcels and received some items for my survivalish Christmas gifts. But then I got news from my canning lid supplier that my order came through. So I will receive a lot of canning lids to last me for years. Nice because I would like to do some winter canning like legumes. Love canned legumes: cheap easy and tasteful.
I did ask for a price for a new electric water canner. I will be using my old one for melting beeswax. I make the beeswax inlays my self.
I also was asked to join a project group for biodiversity in regarding to bees. It will be for two counties. You got to love bees, flowers and politics for that😉
mom a more serious note: I wonder what is going to happen with the European movement of the yellow jackets (is that the correct translation?). The movement is growing in France, Belgium and also the Netherlands. Here they also want the prime minister to go away. Tomorrow different demonstrations are planned in these countries. I do am happy I don’t live in the big city anymore!!
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I’m starting to write in the challenge on the 7th of December, but I did do something everyday in December that is challenge worthy. I actually do so much I forget what I do. I’ll list below: December 1st- Biked outdoors, December 2nd- Cleaned the bathroom sink & tub drains with (1 cup baking soda & hot water, then 1 cup baking soda & vinegar closing the sink upbright away while it cleans and bubbles. Then chasing it down with more hot water and repeat if necessary, or getva plunger if it’s stuck. It’s a grand idea to get all hair and filth out of the sink before starting.) This cleaned my pipes so well they are like brand new!!! So much better and less expensive than Drano. December 3- bought cheaper car insurance, bathed my dogs and worked out on the elliptical & stretched. Dec 4- called around to look into getting a landline phone. Dec 5- Christmas shopped for 25 people and spent 58.00. I’m going to make most of gifts with lettering vinyl. Dec 6- Cleaned out All clutter in house & worked out with weights & elliptical. Dec 7- Buying silver, Bills/Budget, Sell stuff online to save.
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Made horseradish sauce with my own turnips and white wine vinegar. Rainy day, think I’ll just cook all day now that the dishes are done. Experiment with 7 up biscuit recipe and Apple crisp been meaning to do.
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<p style=”text-align: left;”>The contractors are still here working on the laundry room. I have divided the 15×10 room into thirds. First third is work bench with area for smaller tools. Second third is for laundry, sink, laundry supplies. Third area is for rotating food stuffs. This third area is the one I keep trying to decide on shelving. This morning was looking at different shelving options. After the contractors finish drywalling, painting etc, it’s all on me for the shelving.</p>
Yesterday, I continued reading. Someone mentioned “When the Power is Gone”, so I started reading this series. I can’t understand why so many people wait many days, weeks to go to their bug out locations. By that time, the majority of the public has figured out that a crisis exists.Yesterday, I made chicken noodle soup from scratch. I also made a nice dinner, sesame beef bowls in a hoisin sauce with snap peas, spinach, and a side of spicy kimchi. The majority of the items were locally sourced. Since this challenge, I have started doing a lot more cooking from scratch. I have really enjoyed the cooking.
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I made a dentist appointment for December, a mammogram appointment for January and our yearly wellness checkups with bloodwork in February. Preventive health measures are a big part of being prepared.
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Anonymous@Lilac5farm-you are SO right about preventative health being a big part of preparedness. DH and I got very serious about that only recently and being in our mid 60’s we’ve got some catching up to do. Currently, we are removing things from our diet little by little and the first things to go have been sugar and highly processed foods. When we want a dessert I’ve found some yummy keto recipes that satisfy a sweet tooth using stevia or other alternatives to cane sugar.
Today I am beginning the process of making Kombucha by activating a dehydrated SCOBY that a friend sent me. Fermented foods are so good for our gut health. So, I really hope this works!
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December 7: (1) Having a conversation and planning session tonight about changing the business structure to make it more flexible with regard to whose working and ability to be more mobile. Will come up with concrete plans. (2) Downloaded PDFs on earthbag building (https://the-mud-home-courses.teachable.com/p/the-mud-building-pdf-package/) because I really, really want a non-toxic home we can design ourselves. Current tiny home has mold problems. Not good. Also would be optimal to have more land, even if it’s just an acre or a little less. (3) Printed out a sheet to help me plan a year’s worth of food storage. Already made strides toward that, but need to round it out and make sure it doesn’t need freezers/electricity to stay good. Trying to stay away from higher-tech stuff. Don’t want everything to spoil when the power goes out. (4) Starting a review of my favorite resources – like the one above and http://www.lowtechmagazine.com, http://www.notechmagazine.com, permies.com, books like “Honey from a Weed” by Patience Gray. There are a lot more. I need to organize my resources. (5) Listened to a presentation on using herbal infused oils. Need to get more details and write some stuff down and then practice it.
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I didn’t really have time to post yesterday. I’m getting ready for a big fair this weekend and stayed up way too late. It was a cold, cold day and the challenge I faced was keeping the fire going while being so busy. I knew when my toes got cold, I was in trouble. Spent most of the day setting up my booth. Got the Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds book today and looked through to see what I want to try and grow in the spring. There are a lot fun plant possibilities.
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Been a productive day….#3 son left early to go back to his home so got busy to take my mind off missing him…continuing to read about indoor gardening…checked on spinach that I think really needs replanting…maybe tomorrow….diet is so important for keeping healthy at my age, particularly for preventing inflamation in my joints so keeping fresh veggies in my meal planning year round is important to me. Still checking mail for my Baker Creek seed catalog. Thanks to someone for the heads up on stamps going up in January. Found a special on canned tuna today so loaded up on those. Pantry space is going to become a challenge now that I’ve decided to get serious about stocking in at least a six months supply as suggested by others. Someone mentioned watching the activity that is going on in France. I’m hoping that gets settled down soon as my granddaughter is scheduled to leave mid-January to attend school there. A crazy world, but still it’s important I think to keep on living life fully and not allow stuff to make us fearful. A line from Steel Magnolias “What doesn’t kill us, just makes us stronger.”
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Checked my dried goods inventory, and made of list. Also researched paracord, as it keeps coming up on websites and I wanted to know what is was all about.
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Today I read the prequel to the book “When the Power is Gone” (which has been mentioned by a couple of other posters in this Forum) then I started reading that book too. Kind of cringed though when I read in Chapter 5 about the ladies using straws to suck the air out of food storage bags filled with dehydrated foods because their vacuum sealing machine was shorted out by an EMP. Seems to me that someone doing that risks aspirating food particles into their lungs. It would be far safer to stockpile a “Pump ‘N Seal” or a hand pump brake bleeder to use to vacuum the air out of the bags – or to just manually press out as much air as possible, and seal the bag with an Oxygen absorber inside.
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@ Amy gibson
Just have a big pot 3/4 full of water ,put bag into water and seal water pushes out most of the air. Dry outside of the bag and it in nearly vaccum sealed
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Dreary day here. Baked biscuits and made mashed sweet potatoes with onions and kale. Tree seedlings arrived so got those soaked and then potted up to hold through winter. Received an email that some of the canned cat food has been recalled. Will package it up for return. Fortunately they only have eaten 2 cans. I have lost faith in our food system for both human and animal.
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Anonymous12/7/18
Nice cold and crisp day here on the West coast. Put up a new shelf to stock supplies on. Passed the wife test so am good to go on that.
Spinach is sprouting…first time I tried to grow it indoors. Sprouts for smoothies are doing very well.
Got my rocket stove done today. Will test fire tomorrow and make sure it works ok. I was asked if a gallon paint can will work for this and according to several sites, it will. One of my pictures shows some insulation material that causes the heat to go up and it takes a while to get the can hot. Below the insulation is sand on all sides of the wood infeed and chimney.
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Busy day. DH is coming in from a week long business trip so I’m making chicken stew and rice. Still wading through the “Patriots” book, gleaning some ideas here and there. It’s easier to read it for research if I skip around. Rained all day and cold (40s) so taking the dog out hasn’t been as much fun as usual. A wet 40 is worse than a dry 30. It may snow (wintry mix) north of here but we won’t see it. One of the pillowcases was ripped all down one side so I put that up to be mended. The thread was rotten; I think the case is about 30 years old but the material is still good. The newest glaucoma drop seems to be working okay. I see the doc on Wednesday and I’ll know for sure.
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Prepping today wasn’t too impressive. Got laundry done. Got straw on top of all the strawberry plants. Got the blackberry, raspberry and blueberry shrubs trimmed back for winter. Got the deck cleared off, and husband ran the pressure washer to clean off the deck. Starting to look at the Seed Saver’s Exchange catalog – I could be in serious trouble!
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Today I was content to stay home all day. I ate what I had at home and am soaking beans for chili tomorrow. 🙂
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6th: went to a free education session at the Red Cross about disaster preparedness.
7th: Read articles about survival first aid. Checked the first aid kit and re-stocked.
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A day for running errands today. I got a different drug plan to save dollars, gassed up the car, stocked up on dogfood and did about seven other things. Will do a little reading before I go to bed.
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Quick update. Filled several airtight plastic containers with rice for storage.
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I printed Daisy’s “Book of Lists” and started on my pantry inventory. Once I got everything out of the cabinets, and divided into categories, and cleaned the cabinets, boy was my kitchen a mess! I am trying to decide how they should go back into each cabinet. I used my instant pot to make carnitas and my air fryer to make corn chips which got me thinking…I have food but how would I cook these things with no electricity? It will take some more thought because this is one of our favorite meals.
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Hi Namelus, yes, that method could also work. I have done that myself occasionally to force as much air as possible out of Ziploc-type food storage bags (holding non-dehydrated foods) before sealing them and placing them in the freezer. I would be a bit leery of using that method with dehydrated foods though since I want to keep those as far as possible from any source of moisture, both before and after they are sealed up.
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Felt somewhat better today. Brought up the bag from the {hopefully} Faraday cage. Need to check batteries in the 2-way radios and run the emergency radio a while on the …spinning-whats-it. [I can tell my brain recall has not improved yet…hmph!…Runs if you wind it up! ] Researched a lot of things…caches, uses for PVC tubes [which I have a small supply of], state of the globe, etc. Walked the dog just for exercise tho DH did the rest of the PM chores.
OldMansd…what type of insulation is that white corded stuff? Stuff used around wood or pellet stove doors? Your stove looks great. Hope I can do the same with my paint can…once I figure where I stashed it. I think it’s on shelf down in garage. I also think I dropped a 3 wick candle in it -since I forgot what I was originally going to use it for. Might have to get another one…or two…
FlamingoLady…Very good news on diet/exercise changing your health report.
OldSkiBum….do be careful on your roof. Have spotters? Have harness?
Hieronyma…hope you get over whatever has you down! And thanks for the links…they look very interesting.
XantDewit…yes, Yellow Jackets/Vests They’re using both terms. It’s spreading that far to your country already?? Selco just did an article about riots turning into movements… Aiyiyi! Yes, glad you aren’t in a big city…same for us too! Tho so far, I don’t think US has “Yellow” yet. What do “they” want in your country without a Prime Minister? Chaos? 🙁
Amy Dixon…I forgot there was a prequel to Power Gone series…I have it and read it long ago. Guess I’ll go back and review that before going on with book 1. Good point about aspirating particles….
And Namelus – water technique for pushing air out of bags. 😮 Simple and non-electric! Just don’t dip water inside a dry ingredients bag. [I’ve got fumble-fingers!]
OldMtWoman….time for bed!
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This reply was modified 1 year, 6 months ago by OldMt Woman.
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This reply was modified 1 year, 6 months ago by
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Anonymous12/818
Worked on updating my grocery spreadsheet comparing the stores in our area for the items we use. Also put in some Amazon Pantry prices but no big find on that….cost more on the items I compared. Some stuff is cheaper but not on what I looked at.
Tested out my Rocket stove this morning…Worked great. Even cooked some eggs for my wife and myself. Was able to boil 2 cups of water in @8-10 minutes. Played around with it for over 1/2 hour and the can finally got hot enough that you would not leave your hand on it…but no instant burning if you bumped it by accident.
The knife is one I made from an old planer knife out of a big lumber planer. Not perfect but fun.
SD
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@oldmansd im totally in awe of your rocket stove. Well done!
@oldmt woman in France and Belgium the yellow vests demonstrations were out of control. Lot of arrests. Here the demonstrations were apparently not too bad. I have no idea why ppl want chaos. I don’t think it will be the solution.
Today I had my first lesson about bee product examination it was very interesting. Having hives, honey, wax propolis and such is a good shtf barter I assume. I like to learn a lot about bees and everything bees. So today was about skills more then actually prepping…
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This morning was interesting
Got an email from the insurance company stating that the bank declined the payment. Went to the banks atm and it couldnt print out the balance. Off inside I go, and yes there is money in the account. The teller prints out the recent transactions. I glance at it and go my merry way. I glance again and was like “huh, I never order takeout”. Back to the bank to discover that they are on it and had declined quite a few major suspicious transactions. The take out ones that went through were flagged as fraud. Naturally the card was inactivated. Best guess is that someone got access to it via Amazon.
Researched pea recipes and discovered that Walmart has some great deals on dried beans.
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It’s has been a crazy few weeks getting everything ready for the grand baby, now that the baby is here I can hopefully get some things done around the homestead.
Sold a load of pecans and made a little extra for a few Christmas gifts for the grand kids, not much but every little bit helps. I purchased a few organic chickens for the freezer, a couple rolls of sausage for making sausage patties, and flour for making buttermilk biscuits.
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yesterday i had to have a medical procedure on my back that put me on the couch for the rest of yesterday and today. So I sat both days and did research on recipes for canning and food storage. Made more lists of items to stock up on. Luckily I had a beef roast, potatoes and carrots in the crockpot yesterday morning so we at least had supper ready last night and can have leftovers tonight for supper.
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December 8
(1) Got new book – The Winter Harvest Handbook by Eliot Coleman. I love what this guy does – no heated greenhouses, just unheated ones, and he harvests all this produce in the winter in Maine!
(2) Made elderberry syrup.
(3) Reviewed sinus tapping and did it. Already feeling the improvement.
(4) Learned about nasal oiling and did it – even more improvement.
(5) Dug out old “kits” list in prepping notebook. Have been so tied up with work and family illnesses in the last year, that I had abandoned my de-junking / organizing plans. The hope is to minimize down to essential kits (each one packed in an appropriate container and stowed on a shelf (for example, lighting kit, emergency cooking kit, sewing kit….) so that they can be easily accessed, but also so that moving, if we have to, would be super easy (just pack the kits). I don’t have this all worked out in my head yet, but I finally feel I can start working on it again.
(6) Working on ideas to keep our emotions stable, with all that’s going on. Doing a lot better today. Daughter (sick one) told me today that St. John Chrysostom (priest who died in 407 A.D.) once said that if God loves you, he gives you suffering to strengthen you and make you holy. Laughing over that one – it’s both scary and beautiful.
@corsaire – that’s happened to us, too – several times. I think we’re on our 3rd or 4th iteration of the PayPal debit card. Once, someone stole the number and booked a flight to Turkey and a hotel in Ankara. The last time it happened, someone started buying stuff at Kentucky Fried Chicken and an ethnic grocery store in Chicago (we are not in Chicago!). We always got our money back, but it’s a pain. Thinking about implementing Daisy’s prepaid credit card idea – they can only get what you didn’t spend, especially if you spend it fast.
@OldMansd – what a gorgeous rocket stove!
@grannyj Smith – congrats on the new grandbaby. I had no idea how exciting it is until I had one myself 🙂
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Cold, gray, dreary day here so I’ve been a bit slow getting motivated to move about. Did check on spinach and they really need transplanting but just didn’t have my heart in it today. Sorted out kitchen cabinets, finding stuff I’d forgotten about. Checked on my medical supplies, a comfortable variety of OTC meds. Fortunately, I only have to take two prescription meds, neither of which are life-threatening in the short term if I don’t have them. OldMansd’s rocket stove is cool! As long as I have gas I’m okay without electricity. Should electric be out for an extended period, I would definitely need to stay with second son who lives within walking distance as I can’t seem to get my generator working correctly. Oh well, maybe next week that will get worked out.
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PS…I’m a heavy user of on-line shopping for many years. I’ve never used a debit card for the reasons you all are noting. No one can get to my money in the bank account. A credit card can be stopped at the point of origin without impacting your actual funds. Sure am sorry you’re having this problem.
I’m not Catholic but I love St. John Chrysostom’s sermons/writings. Down South we just say “if it don’t kill ya’, it will just make you stronger.” Keep up the faith through this tough valley. I suspect many will be praying for you and your daughter on this forum. 🙂
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Thanks everyone
The bank rep told me not to keep a debit card on Amazon. Also the email provider which I am using isnt secure. I am going to switch to Proton mail, its based out of Switzerland.
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Yesterday’s post was short and sweet, but I forgot to mention that I cycled the batteries for my handheld ham radio to keep them fresh. Today was much more productive. Put 5 gallons of stored gasoline in my truck, filled the containers with non-ethanol gas and added fuel preservative. Also added another 5 gallons of storage. That’s as much gas as I want to store for safety reasons. While I was refilling the gas cans I also filled up the extra 20 lb. propane tank for the outside grill.
Earlier in the day I attempted to run the coax from my rooftop antenna to my ham radio in my shop. It was 24 degrees outside and there was snow on the roof from several days ago. Needless to say it was very slippery so I decided I would wait until conditions were better or when I have an assistant to man a safety line for me!!
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Today was an awesome sunny day in the North Country. I took a course on essential oils. I then made chapstick, body scrub, and body oil (supposed to help with those nasty migraines).
@Muffy1938 is so right about credit cards versus debit cards for online use. Credit card are much better in the case of fraud or other issues. I do a lot of online shopping. Recently, I had a package go missing. It was easy with the credit card company. If I were messing with my bank and a debit card, I wouldn’t have anywhere near the protections and I would still be trying to resolve the missing package issue.
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Today I went to make some more Christmas cards…slowly getting them done 🙂
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@Muffy1938 – Thank you so much for the tip on credit cards. It never occurred to me. I just thought I was taking reasonable measures to stay out of debt…. Need to take care of that immediately. And thank you for the encouragement 🙂
One more update – I found this really cool article today about echolocation training. It’s commonly done for the blind, but sounds hugely useful for the rest of us. It’s entitled “Echolocation: My Secret Survival Skill”. The link is https://thegrownetwork.com/echolocation-survival-skill/
Showed it to husband and told him I wanted to try it. I’m probably going to have to get after him every day for a while 🙂
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@hieronyma Textor, we too use credit cards for that purpose. Once had someone get the card number and charge about $7000.00. All it took was 1 phone call and everything was handled. Hope you get it worked out without too much trouble. Any luck finding a dr y’all are satisfied with yet? Hoping for all the best.
@Oldmansd, nice work!
Our big winter storm was a bust. Just a few flurries every now and then throughout the day. Baked dog treats, people biscuits and made spaghetti. Made laundry soap and did a couple of loads of pet bedding. Even the dog is bored staying in so we’ve added an additional walk during the day lately.
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@peppy P – Got all my cards off of Amazon already tonight, and won’t use a debit card on-line again.
No luck with a doctor yet. Had a serious conversation about communication with the first one to see if it might work if she lays out all her objections to the proposed plan and says what she really wants, but that will have to wait until Monday. Daughter is a grown woman – just got her Master’s degree – so it’s all up to her, really. Her father and I are the support team. She’s lived all over the world while she studied, took care of herself just fine, paid her own way through grad school. But she’s back home because she’s too sick to work. Trying to start her own freelancing business, but it’s slow going. Her Dad and I are trying real, real hard to not be pushy because we know she wants to get an oncologist and get well. She probably has the time – maybe another month – to start treatment. So we’re justing praying, and then advising when she asks. But it’s hard to shut up sometimes.
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Lists! Lists! I’m working on lists! The car list, medicines (over the counter & prescription), toiletries, laundry things, linens, added 46 gallons of water to our stash, canned food, Thrive food, beverages, etc.. I’ve actually now got a list of my lists! Haven’t started the gifts for all the neighbors. (making candy & candy covered pretzels). Started the Christmas cards – very short list there as many of the older relatives are gone. I’ve got a few cousins my age that I’ve got to let know that Mother passed away. I think all of Mother’s friends are gone also. I found her address book and everyone was crossed out. Was that the dementia making her angry with everyone or are they actually gone? I don’t know but I suppose I’ll have to find out.
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Helped a friend food saver pack 100 lbs rice. Did inventory of lbs of food in various buckets. Made list of items to get on next town trip. Low on triple aaa.Tried to find a decent price for a book I want. A failure of civility. 600 bucks on Amazon, yikes….Did download a sample of the book, jeez. Want to Start knitting now that winter is here.
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We are still inTennessee. Today I helped my daughter trim her Christmas tree. At the same time we organized her decorations and threw away a lot of excess trash such as plastic bags and tissue paper that had accumulated in the tubs. They wanted some new light fixtures hung and the dryer vent fixed. Her husband’s family hired out all of their home repairs when he was growing up unlike what my daughter was used to in our family. But her husband is very eager to learn and my husband is a willing instructor. Today our son-in-law learned how to install new lights and repair a dryer vent. Tomorrow he is hanging the final light fixture on his own. Our 3 year old grandson watched everything and is learning already. Preparing the next generation!
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8th: did lots of things today. Packed up about 1/2 of the kitchen. Thought that I had everything accounted for but on a low shelf, found 3 large pickle jars of pinto beans, one of great northern beans, and one full of rice. All look good and no issues. Added this to the stockpile and very thankful to have it!
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Read the Preppers Book of Lists about foods to buy that do not require cooking. Great list! I haven’t ate Vienna sausages in a very long time, but would be good in a pinch. Got my bug out bags out to add peppermint & lavender oil to them for emergencies. Made sure my windup radios usb charger is working well after charging. Stretched and played Christmas music on my keyboard. Relaxing day today as well.
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Hi everyone….quickly before my unsteady Internet service OR computer knocks me off again:
Tried one of the cans of bacon-flavored Spam this morning with FrenchToast. Not bad. I’m not too picky. Greasy. We used to live in a region that actually still eats Spam a lot. Haven’t had it since we moved here but since we’ve stored some…thot we’d try it.
Took dead battery packs out of the 2way radios. Put AAAs on the shopping list. Have some but radios take four each. Need a big pack of batteries to go into Faraday cage with the radios. Checked the solar battery charger ….good. Put rechargeable batteries on shopping list too. I’ve been charging all the AAAs and AAs in the past 3 days. But all are QUITE old….new ones would be advisable. AND JUST NOW OCCURS TO ME: I should be putting new rechargeable ones in the radios…to be charged in their base [until we don’t have elect] I won’t put any batteries actually in the radios tho…not during storage.
And I checked our big wind up/solar charging radio. AM/FM/SW1/SW2. Receiver, not transmit SW. It’s still got a charge from eons ago when I last dragged it out. Alrighty then! All will go back into Faraday enclosure tomorrow.
DH decided to put one of his devices into the Faraday cage also. He was out checking some things in his area of expertise today. Had fun…. LOL
I’ll send this and then go back and see what all of you have been up to today….not trusting my laptop either tonite. Had to reboot and wrangle it a bit to get on here. Hmph.
OldMtWoman…computers are great….until they’re not!
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This reply was modified 1 year, 6 months ago by OldMt Woman.
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This reply was modified 1 year, 6 months ago by
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- Had a quiet day today. Finished reading the Powerless World trilogy by P.A. Glaspy and started on Linda Jacobs’ Yellowstone series. Also did some online research about a natural foods store not too far away from me that has a great bulk foods section and will stone grind grains for you while you shop. Hope to stop in there later this month and possibly pick up some more dried blueberries I can use to make syrup for treating future colds and flu.
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Love the knife, SD. I gotta make me a paint can rocket stove too!!!
Stay safe, Zant. Way toooo much crazy erupting! 🙁 Very good prep, your bees.
Congrats on GrBaby, GrannyJSmith
OldSkiBum….good choice to wait on the roof walk for safer conditions! Safety line sounds reallly good!
Muffy…you can thin your spinach babies by having some for salad instead of the work of transplanting. 🙂
Ow….the HEADACHE I woke up with early this morning is trying to return. 🙁 Haven’t had one in a while…
OldMtWoman….see y’all tomorrow.
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Today I walked for over an hour and practiced being the gray man. I also handwashed dishes and made chili from scratch.
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So…………12/6 thru today 12/9. I’ve got my Christmas tree up, but not decorated. My wreath is hanging on the door. In the past few days I have, canned some root veggies that were threatening to go bad, Made two small quilts for my granddaughter’s baby doll., added three more personal water filters to my stash and two, two-way radios. I have also cleaned the chicken coops. stacked two cords of wood, finally got the strawberry plants covered and put straw in the dog box for the outside cats. It doesn’t sound like much, until you add in the pulled back muscle and cooking and cleaning and working, and studying…….I’m working on my online cpr and first aid certification, it’s been a couple years since I’ve taken the tests.
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Well, I missed posting yesterday. We went to feed the cows late yesterday afternoon and got the truck stuck in the mud. It was only 33 degrees and raining, and I had boots on that I thought were waterproof. Hahaha. Note to self– put socks in the truck. I had spare boots but the socks were missing. So I changed into another pair of boots. They leaked too so I had wet feet most of the afternoon. We did everything we could to get the truck out but alas, it is still there. Our house is over fifty miles away so walking back to the house wasn’t an option. And once it’s dark we’d have to watch for the wild boar out there. Our youngest rescued us, bless her heart, and dropped us home. What did we learn? Mud tires are mandatory. (A tractor would have been nice too.) Put spare socks in the car. Make sure boots don’t leak. Get road to back of property reworked. BTW, we did feed the cows. And don’t panic.
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Today i did exactly 0 prepppng. It was a lazy day because I was really tired.
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Hit paydirt on the backpack front as Staples was having a clearance sale. Picked up two, one for the car and one for the home. The colors and size arent suitable for a bug out bag, but will work for supplies in the car and home goods
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Put 20 gal drinking water into various containers, am knitting a hat, finally. Made two kinds of bean soup to try out the homemade smoked bacon and ham.donloaded several new kindle books both for enjoyment and learning. Gonna make a short medical use of herbs for a local group. Wrote out Christmas cards with ham freq for contacting me in emergencies.
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finished the book, Night Light, and ordered the next one in the series from the library. Made some snack mix using up some odds and ends of cereal, nuts and dried fruit. Making some beef stew for supper from the leftover beef roast we had last night. I started making the Christmas cards for next year trying to get a jump on my projects scheduled for this winter.
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Woke up this morning to a minor ice storm. Board of Public Utilities noted 1200 folks in our county without power due to ice breaking lines and trees. Thank goodness my neck of the county not affected as my generator is still acting up. May be time for a new one. Loving my new indoor gardening hobby! Spinach continues to grow but not yet big enough for salad. I did try transplanting a few this afternoon in individual pots made from plastic cups. My next goal before day is over is to plant the grocery store onion bottoms with the roots attached and see what happens. The celery I started from the cut off base of a store bought stalk continues to grow but ever so slowly it seems. The big problem for things i’m trying in the house is a lack of light. Still trying to figure out a way to get some shelving in a large south facing window. Oh, yes, trying to cut back on sugar and all I can think about are sweet things. I’ve managed to stay relatively small in my advancing years, but it wouldn’t hurt to drop a few pounds just to stay as fit as possible. Sorry for Rufus getting stuck in the mud, but loved her story about things she learned through the experience. Keeping the feet dry is important so I’m checking out my boots and socks also 🙂
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Today I read the LDS preparness Manual, It’s time to plan not panic & The preppers Book of lists. Very good information in all three. I watched a video on how to make your own perfume with vanilla and essential oil. A super easy recipe. I prepared my spray bottle to create the perfume tomorrow. Rode bikes, cleaned house, grocery shopped. I learned that a carryon case and backpack are great bug out bags. Drinking my ginger hot tea now and preparing for more adventures tomorrow!
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Not feeling really great today. Sore throat and congested sinuses. Still visited some friends for a brunch and talked about the state of the country. Came home and did a quick organization project in my shop then decided to surf the coach for a while. I did managed to put my camping and hiking bins and truck supply inventories into my computer. Still need to update my get-home-bag inventory and get it into the computer. Then I can print out a couple copies. Very easy to forget what’s in there when you don’t go through it all the time.
A friend was going to help me string the coax for my ham radio today. He was going to hold a safety line while I scaled the snow covered roof. Unfortunately, I did not have the energy so the project is delayed indefinitely, especially with lots more snow in the immediate forecast. Oh well, I’ll continue to use the mag – mount antenna that I have on top of a metal storage locker for a while longer. It seems to work okay.
I do need to kick this bug. We’ll be traveling starting Monday evening and will be with family on the east coast for a week. Prepping will be limited to planning and writing and helping them if they let me!!
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Not much in the way of prepping today.
Went to church (prepping for eternity). Enjoyed watching the children. There’s a wonderfully relaxed attitude with children in our little church. No nursery to babysit kids and keep them away from the adults. Sometimes a little one who can barely walk will just walk up to Father and tug on his robe while he’s giving the homily, and Father just bends over, greets him, and pats him on the head. Father says if the children cry or otherwise get loud, we should just sing louder. Somehow it all works out.
Tried to call Dad and talk to my uncle, too, but no luck. Sinuses still messed up, but I don’t think I’m contagious anymore, so got to got see Dad again.
Trying to finish Selco’s book tonight.
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Today was a lot of little things.
I went to Marshall’s and I was surprised to find some key little prep items. I bought several pairs of nice warm socks and gloves. I put two extra pairs of socks and an extra pair of gloves in my GHB. I also put a pair of snow shoes in the back of my SUV.
I stopped off at the car wash and did a thorough job of getting the salt off my SUV. I also topped off the fuel tank as I am trying to keep all my vehicles at least 1/2 tank full or better.
I cam home and made some vegetable beef soup. With the extreme cold here, I like to have lots of stews and soups.
With lots of folks on the forum having colds, I stocked up on my vitamin C.
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Hallo Muffy! Thanks! I’m glad you liked the story. Yes, it was a learning experience for sure. We’re already planning how to get the truck out ( we call him “Hanc”; trucks are masculine, yes? At least this one is) and figure if we don’t have much rain between now and next weekend we should be able to dig him out. If not, ew’ll have to call someone to pull him out. The thing is– I used to have spare socks in the truck. I must have taken them inside to wash them and not put them back in. Well. I won’t make that mistake again. When Hanc is back home I’ll have to go through and reorganize what’s in him.
Today was a rest day from yesterday and we needed it. We both woke up sore and tired. So we skipped church to sleep in. I only feel a little guilty, and I’d rather feel guilty than feel sick. We have a function or appointment almost every day this week. Ugh. Today’s prep was reading, which is always fun. -
@rufusj, at least the cows were happy! Did you get the truck out yet?
@heironymaTextor, I can’t even begin to imagine what you and your family are going through. Your daughter is lucky to have a place of comfort and support to come home to.
@oldskibum, hope you’re feeling better. Our whole house suffers from sinus/allergies all winter, including the dog. Vicks makes a warming machine that works wonders for us.
Made peanut butter. Baked biscuits and stuffed bell peppers. Found a small clearing in the back of the house I can use for additional garden space. Discussed with hubby what we have and where he feels we might be lacking. Since we have different perspectives it’s always helpful to have him bring ideas to the table.
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Running a little behind on posting, Friday, cold tired from work, made dinner, did some laundry, got pjs and slippers on turn on space heater, rocking chair, transferred big heavy afghan to new longer circular needles that came that day and worked on it until 10, bedtime.
Saturday, had day off, cleaned kitchen, printed two card orders, wrapped up big print to mail, ran out to post office, worked on dog portrait all afternoon had YouTube on, many subjects, made blueberry muffins, worked on afghan all night, really, until 12.
Sunday, 9th, laundry, washed doggy blankets, cleaned out a kitchen drawer looking for something, never found it, this will be big on my list after holidays busy season, declutter! Finishing up dog portrait, got a new portrait order today, have one more to go also. Worked all day on it in studio, YouTube again. Made a list for Sam’s tomorrow. Will finish this art tonight, scan it, make a greeting card of it for the folks and wrap it up to mail tomorrow. Will work on the afghan later tonight.
Oh I have Walla Walla onions growing! put the garden to bed quite a while ago, and there they are where the others were. How fun!
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Just saw my last post, it should have read that I was going to get more dried elderberries (not blueberries) to make an herbal syrup – darn that autocorrect!, lol. Didn’t do much prepping today because I got started trying to help an older lady I know find out if and how she can get a little pension from her years as a teacher in Great Britain in the late 1950’s and early 1960’s. (She’s a U.S. citizen now). Seems as though it will be complicated since she doesn’t have many supporting documents from that time period but we’ll see how it goes. Decided to hold off on reading the Linda Jacobs’ series for now and instead started reading Lights Out by David Crawford – enjoying it a lot so far!
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Hi Peppy P! Nope, poor truck is still out there. But yes the cows were happy! WE always give them alfalfa cubes when we go down and they came a-runnin’, mooing and jumping like little kids. Even in the cold and wet they enjoyed them. Working on getting a barn down there to block the wind. Right now they use a hollow that the wind blows right over.
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<p style=”text-align: left;”>@Rufusj I am still laughing about getting stuck. Your post is why I put extra socks, boots and gloves in my SUV. I also added snow shoes.</p>
I forgot to add to my little things today, that I had a friend over and she was admiring my wood stove and all my different areas of stacked wood. She asked me how many years of wood did I have. I responded with currently 4 years and another 2 years felled but not cut. Her hubby laughed and said what was i planning for a zombie apocalypse or a terrorist attack – laugh laugh… Some people get it and others don’t. -
Anonymous@hieronyma Textor-it’s always so good to hear of congregations that have what I call family integrated services. I attended a fellowship a few years back that did that and it was such a blessing to see the little ones. There was a room off the sanctuary where parents could take their children if they got a little too “excited” as pastor use to say (smile) where they could still hear the service.
I printed off the Prepper Supply Checklist and read an article on Survival Mom website in regards to the advantages of bugging in. I also looked at dehydrated food menus from Momwithaprep.com and found 6 instant meals- on- the- go (just add boiling water) that you easily make yourself on The Yummy Life website.
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I helped my daughter organize her clothes closet today. With 2 little ones and a full time job as a physician, she tends to toss her sweaters, scarves, jogging clothes and sweats on shelves and in drawers. Then she forgets what she has and thinks she needs more clothes. She has always been like this—her brothers are actually much more organized. Tonight we went to see the Christmas decorations at the Opryland Hotel. The little ones ( and their grandma) loved it!
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Read articles by Doom and Bloom. Survival at sea and about how to keep food safe, esp in a survival situation where illness would be serious.
Dug RECHARGEABLE batteries out of trash and put back into the 2way radios … ran them on their charger all nite. Yes, they still work when recharged. {sheeesh…..I hope this current season of “slow brain” passes soon!} Hmph. I’m not used to making so many simple errors.
Got set for a doc appt tomorrow. Don’t think I’m gonna like what they tell me but …better to get such things handled now, when we still have modern medical care. [tho sometimes it’s pretty barbaric now too] But this didn’t go away using the more natural methods… {shrug}
OldSkiBum….sorry you got sick and couldn’t finish your roof project yet. Yeah, winter comes..
Rufus and mud and frigid temps…..at the very least, carry some plastic bread sacks as the layer between sox and boots if the spare turns up with leaks. Did that as kids. Can use same for mittens in emergency. Definitely good idea: extra sox stashed everywhere. Can use sox as mittens if gloves wet.
I accidentally slipped into the ICY pond while trying to get STOOOPID ducks to come off the water. Pond was in process of freezing and for about the fourth time in my life, I slipped into frigid water up to knees. Realllly need to stop doing that since your feet are in danger of literally freezing nearly immediately. Hyperthermia can be an issue too. Since the last time it happened [trying to rescue an injured duck off same pond..I’d walked into the pond!] I knew I had no time to lose. Stripped off the shoes/socks and rolled pants up so wet was not directly touching me. Ran over the snow to the truck and roared it up the drive to house in bare feet. Had spare sox in truck but was better to keep going and get into house – run warm water over lower legs/feet until thawed. Then full change and go back down to those dumb ducks again. The last time I was in water too long and could not feel my legs/feet up to my knees. Weird feeling…and easy to injure yourself. Didn’t wait the next time – run!
Of COURSE you still fed the cows! And I finally got all those stupid ducks off the freezing pond and into duckhouse that nite! Farmers do that, don’t we? 🙂 These past years, we don’t even let them out on the pond if it might freeze. They can just gaze unhappily at the water from their pen, but I’m not risking that stunt again. {roll eyes}
OldMtWoman ….wanting to get more reading in but…seems like no time
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Today we topped off my gas tank. In addition, I was able to help a friend with an abscess tooth bring down her swelling with my natural remedies tucked into my purse. Note: put more natural remedies into my purse!
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Anonymous12/9/18
After Church I made a whole chicken dinner in Instant pot and got all other stuff ready for my wife and her parents and the dinner turned out pretty good. They got to spend time with my wife or nap … And I got to practice cooking for more than just us.
Went through a bug out bad that I used to take to work…while still working and pulled everything out. Will re-evaluate what goes in tomorrow.
My edc light on my key chain quit working so I took apart to see what size batteries it needed. Saw that it was a rechargeable one and started trying to figure out what to charge it in…looked it up and found that you recharge with a USB connection without taking battery out. I feel like what OldMt Woman wrote about memory…seems to be happening more and more….I remembered that this newer light had to be plugged in…must be pretty good to last this long before running out of power.
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It’s been a rather frustrating weekend with bad weather and bad sales. I helped my hubby get ready to travel into a snow storm. For Christmas last year I bought each of our vehicles an immersion heater that plugs into the vehicle so you can make a hot drink. I loaded his car with food and water and hot chocolate and told him he should wait till morning to leave, but he didn’t listen and now he’s stuck. I hope he makes it to his destination in one piece. You can lead a horse to water but you can’t make him drink.
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BTW…that pond incident happened several yrs ago….not today. Missing a paragraph about not letting them out on the pond anymore if it’s going to freeze over at nite. Pond’s been frozen over for 2 months already this year. Just an old story…
OldMtWoman ..must really be getting senile if I lost a paragraph ??? Hmph! forgot to edit too.
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December 10: Lesson for the day: DO NOT put off getting dressed and prepared for the day IMMEDIATELY upon rising. This morning I was lazy and thought to myself, I’ll just have a nice cup of coffee before I get dressed, and then, I’ll relax and eat my breakfast before I get dressed, and then, I’ll just finish this little editing job and send it on before I get dressed. 🙁
And then, like I deserve, I’m barefoot, wearing nothing but a robe, with my hair as wild as Einstein’s, and I have to rush out into the front yard in below freezing weather to take care of a little emergency. Although I did grab a hat. 🙂
So prepping is as much about discipline as it is about skills and stockpiles…
@OldMt Woman – great story!
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Today I talked with a coworker about the dystopian film the forest which can be seen on netflix here. We talked about the decisions made by the two girls and the progressing worsening of life after a long power outage. We both work in crisis and safety manage. He more in policy of this field. I work more in social safety which includes policy and crisis management with high risks for municipal administrator. He knows Ian a canner and I have a certain amount of food on hand. He said that he would not survive because his lack of prepping but I should worry about looters. Which is very true! We aren’t allowed to have guns according to law, I only have a trained Malinois for protection.
I read quite some about forage patterns of bees a scientific study. I m going to self educate about biodiversity for the bees.
I research another house and talked to the realtor the house is in vad shape and by no means sustainable at all.
Also found out the owners name from a farm which is a monument and they want to give the farm a new destination. Perhaps the guy who is 66 looks for a nice neighbour ( yes me;)) He lives alone over there and perhaps he is willing to rent out a part of the farm long shot but who knows…! I just keep on looking for possibi hope I don’t bore you all with that :S now I have to find me some courage to call him I will the next couple of days
Printed some recipe books about organic cosmetics to improve my own recipes
paid for my canning lids it did hurt because it was a lot of money… but winter canning is almost there and I love canning legumes
that was all for today
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Oh, my! I look forward to reading all ya’lls post everyday. I want to respond to so many but haven’t yet figured out a way to do that unless perhaps I take notes as I read. Whatever, thank you to everyone for taking the time to tell me a little bit about what you’re doing to prep and just to deal with life. The memory thing….I can empathize there. What is helping me with just the daily keeping it all together has been my serious effort to “declutter” and make certain that everything that is left has a specific place to be. Then it’s just the discipline of making myself put things back immediately rather than letting things hang out for putting away latter. Of course, I have to admit my energy level is considerably less than it once was and I do rely on my sweet granddaughter to help me get caught up when she comes in a couple of times a week after school. Really going to miss that girl unless France keeps “burning” and her parents decide it’s too risky to let her go. Got another order from Amazon today containing mostly things I’ve identified as holes in my pantry/med supplies from the various lists I’ve consulted. Spinach is chugging along. I did transplant a few yesterday into smaller containers. My family thinks my new hobby is cool! Still looking for my seed catalog. Pantry space becoming an issue now. Just going to have to get a bit more creative and, as someone mentioned, keep notes on where everything is stored. Just looked again at a new pillow cover that says “make everyday an adventure.” Yes. Even with my limitations, I can still choose to make each day a little special.
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OldMtWoman: Glad your pond adventure wasn’t recent. Dang but that sounds awfully cold!
Hieronyma Textor: I can see you flying out the door with your hair, barefoot and in a bathrobe! Yes, I’ve learned to not leave my bedroom unless I’m dressed. Alas. A hard lesson to learn.
Xant: Do call! The worst he can say is no and he might say yes!
rdLucai: I hope your hubby made it okay!
Prepping today– not much. I got the tree up. Not decorated but up. It’s an old artificial tree whose “needles” are actually some kind of paper, but we’ve had it almost 30 years now and it’s still doing a good job. Alas, we’re not doing Christmas here this year — the kidlets are on their own now– but we’ll get to enjoy it for a while. This is one of those weeks with all sorts of things going on, mostly graduations and office parties– and going to dig the truck out. It’ll be a few days before we can do that, maybe even this weekend. There is a LOT of water moving down there still. The good news is I know where to put in another pond now. I have been doing more reading on prepping but that’s so easy for me that I hate to claim it as prepping.
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Today I am making homemade laundry detergent and was going to organize my laundry room by hanging my broom and other cleaning things up until I could not find the hooks I purchased at Walmart, it seems they did not get put in the bag and it’s too far to go back for them, so that is on hold.
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Today I put the winter preps to a test. Woke up to about 4 inches of snow on the driveway. Wanted to get it cleared before the wife went into town and smashed it down. The snow thrower won’t move it if it has been compressed. The snow thrower started right up and after about 45 minutes the job was done. The temp warmed up to about 34 degrees (warmest in a week) so any remaining snow melted off by itself. Packing for a trip that starts tonight. Hopefully roads aren’t too bad, but will make sure all the necessary stuff in on board in case we have a mishap.
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Listened briefly a talk on EMF exposure. Would have watched the entire thing, but someone posted a link to an article by the author (Dr.Mercola). Researched smart meters and laws. Purchased 5 gallon buckets at the box store.
Watched mob mentality at work in Amazon. There was a lightning deal on a vacuum sealer. Not a name brand, just something cheap out of Asia. Well it sold out quickly and I took a closer look. It had a dozen 5 star reviews. All of them were posted within 2 days of the deal and none were verified purchases. One of them actually put a different brand name in the review.
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Took two trailer loads of ancient junk and e-waste to the recycling station over the weekend (the trailer is about the size of a pickup bed). Duly split into metals, cardboard (broken down of course), paints and oil, e-waste, and generic clutter. Objective is to clear completely out of the rental storage unit and downsize into a (re-organized and optimized) pair of sheds on my property.
That will take a little bit of expense off the monthly nut and put everything I need, where I need it, accessible in a timely manner. I figure I have another month or two of work to get it all done.
.. this is what happens when two pack-rats live in the same place for decades.
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Today I continued reading Lights Out by David Crawford (good book!), and watched some YouTube videos by Arthur T. Bradley, Ph.D., about how to protect your electronic gear from the effects of an EMP. Great advice about homemade Faraday cages! Also, the new whole house surge protector he’s developing (the “EMPStorm”) sounds interesting.
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@red carnation, don’t you just love when an herbal remedy does the trick.
@lilac5 farm, Glad to hear your son in law is so eager to learn home repairs. I love Christmas lights and can imagine Opryland goes all out.
@skypony what a nice surprise with the onions.
@lovin life, too funny. You’re right some people just don’t get it.
Hubby replaced carburetor on the weed eater before putting it away for the winter. I cleaned out a spot in a spare room for an cabinet so we can bring it in tomorrow. Discovered that hubby has never had rice and gravy. Not only that he’d never even heard of it. I was in total shock. He loved it so much he had two large bowls with biscuits for dinner. Repackaged bulks beans into smaller containers for storage. Put paper from shredder into compost pile. Moved plum seeds outside to get their cold hours. Would love to see at least a few sprout.
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Anonymous12/10/18
Continued going through my old work bug out bag to see how to use it. I have a little one for when we go walking and a large one in the car for traveling. It was cool to see about six or seven different ways to make fire plus other stuff.
Worked on my spinach/sprouts garden window boxes…rigged up more reflective material to concentrate the light we get from outside plus the grow lights.
Tomorrow I get to go to Jury duty. First time for me in this city. So may be interesting.
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Today I created Geranium oil & Vanilla perfume and made a DIY video for others to learn. I cooked Eggplant Chana Masala in the ole’ crockpot. Posting items on eBay to sell & make extra income. Worked out to elliptical & weights today. Handled errands and talked with a friend I hadn’t spoken to in a while. Today was a good day. Very productive!
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December 10: Last week sometime I think I mentioned “kits”. The idea is to look at each need and figure out the minimum I need to do the job (1) in a BOB, (2) at home with the power out, and (3) at home with the power on -and everything should be as uncomplicated and as tested as possible. I might also need to learn certain skills to go along with each “kit”. So far my hypothetical kits include: water, documents, cooking, heating, money-making work, food, sanitation/hygiene, lighting, repairs, gardening, basic electronics, communication, first aid/medical, clothing/textiles, defense, shelter, transportation, music, laundry. This is a rough brainstorming list and I am sure it will develop over time.
Today I’m doing something easy – laundry. I did laundry in a bathtub when my oldest was a baby (including the cloth diapers), and then wrung it all out by hand and hung it on lines strung across the living room because we were so poor I had to pick between going to the laundromat and having enough to eat (we lived above an old carriage house in Memphis, Tennessee). I have also done “bucket wash” (for both laundry and ourselves) in India. You fill a bucket 2/3 full of water (most likely cold, warm if you can get it), put in some soap (or soap nuts), and wash. Then you wring it out by hand and hang it up wherever you can find a place. We stayed at a college, in the “guest” house, which was a grade above the dorms for students (which meant it had a private bathroom). Still had to wash our clothes and ourselves using a bucket. The good part was that it only cost us the equivalent of $2.50 a night to stay there.
So my BOB would simply have (1) a length of clothesline that can be strung up somewhere, (2) a little bag of soap nuts (they last quite a while). Horse chestnuts are the equivalent in North America, but they’re a bit hard to buy. You have to harvest them yourself. Soapwort also works but, again, if you find it to buy, it’s expensive. I have some growing in my herb garden. Should dry some for the BOB next year and practice using it. And then, (3) something to wash the clothes in if there’s no bucket or stream nearby. One of those giant ziploc bags might fit the bill. I would need to test them, though.
My at-home power out kit would be my indoor and outdoor clotheslines that I already use anyway plus several buckets (soaking, washing, rinsing) and soap/detergent. The water can be used in the garden.
My at-home power on kit just adds a washing machine. Voila!
I also have some magnetic laundry thingies that greatly decrease water surface tension so that much, much less soap or detergent is needed. They can be used in a machine or a bucket.
Skills to learn: I need to learn to make soap, and also how to make lye from ashes. Actually, ashes by themselves can be used to wash dishes – the naturally occurring lye in the ashes is supposed to suds up when mixed with the grease on dishes – so I hear. I should also re-watch that episode of Tudor Monastery Farm where they do the laundry. No such thing as soap and they still got the linens clean and white by pouring diluted lye through the sheets in a big basket and then beating them on rocks with paddles in the river.
That would certainly keep me in shape…
So I’m off to add soapnuts and giant ziploc bags to my list and put the clothesline in my BOB. Need to list things to test out, too.
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Hubby made it home, but sat in traffic for 11 hours. He called me an angel because of all the preps I threw in his car, especially the food and immersion heater.
Trying to get my decorations up, but there is so much work for the business that I can’t think straight.
We have 5 bushels of potatoes in the root cellar. I made baked potatoes for dinner so I checked on things out there. Everything looks good, the potatoes usually last till August. I rarely buy potatoes from the store.
Read some from several different sources and took some notes. Got a great spiritual recharge over the weekend. I love feeling close to God and feeling like a new person to start the week.
Keep up the good work everyone. You all are an inspiration!!!
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Yesterday I worked on getting a comprehensive monthly meal plan going. Still working out how to add a small note on the things required for a recipe so if I drop that off I can adjust the list. A work in progress 🙂 Today I divided up some meat into vacuum bags for meals.
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I cut hubby’s hair this morning, did the laundry and hung it up in the basement. Went through old receipts of items we’ve purchased and realized our dryer is 36 years old. WOW. I know the drum belt was replaced once but that is the only thing we’ve done to it over all those years. Figured if I didn’t use it much, it would last a few more years, so I am hanging the laundry on some clotheslines he hung up for me. Forgot to take something out for supper so defrosted a prepared meal out of the freezer and heated it in the microwave. Love having meals set aside for days like this when the memory isn’t up to snuff. Sold some items we no longer use so we have a little more money to buy insulation for 2 of the basement walls that haven’t been insulated yet. Finished the Christmas shopping.
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Spent day with my daughter, very fun. We went to Sam’s first, they finally have Chicken bone broth back, we each got two cases, going back next week for more. Got pkg of outrageously soft fuzzy socks, makes me feel rich, another super soft fuzzy blanket, more staples for pantry, went to lunch, our favorite Mexican restaurant, went to Walmart got candles, lamp oil, cat food, some Christmas stocking stuffers. Back to her house for coffee and play with the Corgi puppy. Totally fun day.
Got a print order today and a portrait order last night. So have some work to do tonight. Make some time later to add a few more rows onto the ever growing afghan. End of a fun weekend.
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Hi everyone. Today was challenging for me. Woke with heavy fatigue from my disease plus odd foot problems. Foot cleared up 🙂 but faigue remained. It will pass. I think we got the bag of electronics back into the Faraday cage. Most important today: went to an appt to deal with a health issue. It’s going to take some time. But it’s the sort of thing that can be handled in our current medical system. If things go bad…uh, not good. So…today we began….
Plan to read more of P.A.Glaspy’s books tonite and go to bed.
Oh….another good thing to prep….contact with relatives. Family is sometimes those who will back you better than others. Finally reconnected with a cousin…and it was good! Besides, this health issue seems to follow our genetic lines. So we’re keeping in touch.
OldMtWoman …tomorrow should be better.
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Today I used the thermal cooker to cook. I also took an hour-long walk with a friend.
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Roasted green coffee beans yesterday in a 2$ popcorn popper I bought at the senior center. Gonna try a test pot today. Also got my usual 2 bales of hay yesterday and lotsa aaa batteries, but couldn’t find rechargeable this trip, oh well. Gotta do dishes and clean house again, am tired of bean soup, so will freeze the rest. The smoked bacon wins hands down over the ham bean soup by the way. Filled the gas tank and a spare propane tank. Never know when I might get stuck here for a month waiting for the mud to freeze or dry out.
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<p style=”text-align: left;”>Yestetday, I made breakfast on my wood stove. A simple egg dish, but I need the practice cooking on the wood stove with a skillet.</p>
<p style=”text-align: left;”>I also our purchased another wood stove cookbook for the Kindle. I have a really old spare Kindle that I just reset. I am starting to download all my favorite Kindle books, including medical, prep, etc. On my task list is building a small Faraday cage.</p>
This morning, I started reading Daisy’s lists and making notes. I also went through some more boxes. I found a small metal flask from my college days. I added it to my GHB as I hear it’s an essential item in all the Hollywood preppers’ GHB. -
I am making yeast rolls and pot roast while working on organizing my laundry room. My daughter gave me some extra hooks last evening that she didn’t need. My broom, dust pan, and misic cleaning tools are hanging on these hooks and are off the floor, much easier to sweep and mop the laundry room.
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Red Carnation, I’d love to hear any tips you may have about how to cook with a thermal cooker! I have a small Saratoga Jack’s thermal cooker but I’m ashamed to say I haven’t tried using it yet.
This morning I downloaded the 23 free e-books from the “Medical-Nursing” section of the www dot survivorlibrary dot com website that Daisy mentioned in one of her Organic Prepper emails earlier this month. The books are mostly from the early 1900’s but I think that some of the advice they contain will still be applicable these days (for example, how to set up a sick-room in your home and what to feed a patient). I was excited to see that the 1911 edition of the Encyclopedia Britannica is also available for free download at that website. I’ll definitely be downloading that soon!
One great free e-book I didn’t notice there, but which (at least as of this morning) is still available for free download in pdf format elsewhere is: <u>Practical Plastic Surgery for Nonsurgeons</u> by Nadine B. Semer, M.D.. You may already have a copy but, if not, you can download it at: http://practicalplasticsurgery dot org/the-book/ (just substitute a real dot in place of the word “dot” and close up the spaces to make the link work). That book has chapters covering: ‘Suturing Basics, Basic Surgical Techniques, Local Anesthesia, Protecting Yourself from Infectious Diseases, Evaluation of the Acutel Injured Patient, Evaluation of an Acute Wound, Gunshot Wounds, Nutrition, Taking Care of Wounds, Secondary Wound Closure, Primary Wound Closure, Skin Grafts, Local Flaps, Distant Flaps, Scar Formation, Facial Lacerations, Pressure Sores, Chronic Wounds, Soft Tissue Infections, Burns, Fractures of the Tibia and Fibula, Skin Cancer, Cleft Lip/Palate, Breast Surgery, Facial Fractures, The Normal Hand Exam, Evaluating the Injured Hand, Hand Splinting and General Aftercare, Fingertip and Nail Bed Injuries, Finger Fractures and Dislocations, Traumatic Hand and Finger Amputations, Tendon Injuries of the Hand, Nerve and Vascular Injuries of the Hand, Hand Burns, Hand Crush Injury and Compartment Syndrome, Hand Infections: General Information, Specific Types of Hand Infections, Chronic Hand Conditions, and Exploration of an Injured Hand or Forearm.’ Cynthia J. Koelker, M.D., the author of the book <span style=”text-decoration: underline;”>Armageddon Medicine</span>, highly recommends that people interested in emergency preparedness download <span style=”text-decoration: underline;”>Practical Plastic Surgery for Nonsurgeons</span> for their own medical preparedness libraries.
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Ordered more dry bags, as there was a price drop on some decent ones. I should be set for the season and then some. Purchased canary beans, and looked at some recipes. I need to look at my receipt and compare the online vs in store price. The backpack that I plan to use as a bug out bag also took a major price drop ( within a few hours ) so I ordered that.
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Today was an odd day. Sunday evening grandkid fell off a chair and landed on his side. Ergo, he had a sore arm. Which did not get less sore. So mom took him to the doc today and found out he had a break right by his humerus. So I’ve been on needles waiting to hear how the casting went. Ugh. He is a very active two year old so this will definitely put a crimp in his style for a while. Phooey. I spend the time waiting on a call from my daughter by pulling everything out from under the stairs. I was looking for the Christmas wreaths. Didn’t find them but found a lovely mouse nest. And places where I could put shelves between the studs. More storage! Win! So that’s kinda prepping. sort of. Still waiting to hear about the casting.
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Addendum: Grandkid just has a sling, and Mom has to make sure he doesn’t roll on it. So he’s home now, having french fries and a chocolate sundae. And tomorrow will be better!
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12/10 and 12/11 . Well, the tree is decorated!! Three batches of cookies made and cookie dough in the fridge and freezer. I had to repair the chicken coop/ branch went through the window. Replaced the window and trimmed the black walnut tree. Spread composted manure on the garden while it is frozen enough to walk on. Built another mouse trap for the old coop/ it’s over-run with rats. Added more dehydrated foods to the pantry and have oranges and lemons in the dehydrator for ornaments. I need to step up my game a little, but getting used to working again, even part time, is making it hard to get things done.
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10th: Had a root canal and picked up my new glasses. I really hate dental work but want to keep my “real” teeth as long as I can. My new glasses have gradient tint to accommodate my issues with the fluorescent and other lighting. I am really happy with this pair. I am also going to order another pair from one of the websites and get a back up pair cheap in case something happens to this pair.
11th: went to the doctor about some long standing health issues and had a couple of x-rays. Read a good article while I was there about some herbal remedies.
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Today i received Daisy’s canning book. Hooray. Have been reading in that. I will take some time if the coming weeks. I only took 40 hours of holiday this year. Not that much. Perhaps that’s why I’m a tidbit tired lately. Also a lot of work is cumulanting everywhere.
So in the morning I have one meeting at work and then I’ll take a sort break until Monday.
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I posted already but my post seems to have disappeared. If this shows up twice I apologize. After reading Daisy’s article about your apps tracking your every move, I followed the instructions and turned off all of locations that I could find on my phone. On YouTube I watched a video on 11 vegetables and herbs you can buy once and regrow forever. Once the holidays are over I plan to try at least 9 of these.
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Today was more relaxed. I focused on detoxing today. I ate a green salad with raw garlic, onions, green bell peppers with Applecider vinegar, olive oil, basalmic vinegar and a dash of vinegarette dressing. I made an Applecider Vinegar, Lemon & Raw Honey drink with water. Looked into prices on new Berkey Filters, read a book on all the benefits of Applecider Vinegar. I guess it was Applecider Vinegar day! I’d love to learn how to make that stuff.
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This reply was modified 1 year, 6 months ago by VLC Truthseeker.
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Busy day but not sure exactly what I accomplished! Checked on spinach and potted onion roots to see if they make new onions. Searched the whole house for a box with shoe maintenance stuff….it’s lost? so frustrating. Drove to town and filled up on gas less than $2 a gallon here…woo hoo! I have some more 5 gallon gas cans so will try to locate them while gas is so cheap. They’re probably in my son’s barn. Tomorrow handyman coming to do some winterizing things and work on my tool shed that I’m turning into an indoor gardening center. Watched a couple of youtube videos this morning about winter gardening. I really think my spinach is going to do well eventually! Yeah!
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Got gas on the way home from work tonight, didn’t quite fill it up. Interesting gas is so low in some places, still $3.13 here, but that’s way less than it’s been. Have a lot of work to do tonight, making coffee to get motivated, get these projects done. Stay warm everyone.
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@rd Lucia, glad to hear your hubby was as comfortable as he could be stuck in traffic.
@heironyma Textor, you seem to have a great plan in place. India seems like it would be fascinating to visit.
@old ski bum, have a safe trip
@xant Dewit, do call. Maybe it will work out.
We moved to storage cabinets to the basement today. They will be good for organizing some of the preps. Made the ration corn bread recipe with just a few minor changes. Came out pretty good. Moved the potted plants back outside to enjoy the next several days of decent weather.
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I didn’t feel good this morning so I took it easy today. I worked on making my Christmas ornaments and wrapped some more presents. I was going to vacu-seal some meat but thought I should wait until tomorrow. Gas is about $2.40 a gallon here-Florida panhandle-I usually drive to Alabama it’s 20 cents a gallon less.
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December 11: Ordered soapnuts and bigger ziploc type bags for travel laundry kit, and also for storing off-season clothing. Ordered Lifestraws for BOBs/emergency bags plus some extras for stocking stuffers. Otherwise, worked all day and all evening 🙁
@peppy P – India was indeed fascinating – and hot. We also learned how to get by without refrigeration and still just cook once a day. Lots of ginger, turmeric and lots and lots of hot peppers. I think lots of hot peppers by themselves would do the trick. Americans can’t even imagine how hot real Indian food is. But it works! The poor especially won’t cook more than once a day – time constraints and fuel constraints. The spices make it possible – food will stay good to go for nearly 24 hours even in tropical heat, and then you cool down the spice with lots of rice or flat bread.
@Muffy1938 – Way to go on the winter gardening!
@rufusj – so glad to hear the grandkid is OK. It’s going to be difficult to keep him off that arm, I suspect. And aren’t mouse nests lovely! We lived in a trailer infested with them once upon a time. Yuck! We got cats, and that did the trick.
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Finally made the choice and ordered two different disability devices today. Needed to replace the ones I’d worn out. Feel now like these will last another couple of decades….definite prep for me.
rd Lucai….glad to hear your dh made it home in horrid weather. Glad also that he acknowledged your foresight and prepping WISDOM. Whoohoo! 🙂
Amy D…thanks for the book tips. I missed Daisy’s article, evidently… 🙁
Jessie Jones….I happen to think improving health is one of the MOST important preps! I’m working on that too.
RufusJ….glad to hear Grson will be ok. “Just” a sling on a 2 yr old? His mom will be busy! More storage room – great! Mouse nest….NOT so great.
I haven’t heard a rustle or squeak nor seen even a whisker from my colony since putting out poison…..here’s hoping!!!!!!!!! Could I possibly be able to use more of my lower cabinet space some day?? …… {roll eyes} Let’s just say hopes have been dashed many times before so I’m not holding my breath!
OldMtWoman
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This reply was modified 1 year, 6 months ago by OldMt Woman.
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This reply was modified 1 year, 6 months ago by
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Anonymous12/11/18
Spent most of the day in Courthouse so they could decide if they wanted me for a trial. At around 5 pm they picked and I was not chosen.
Every time we got a break, I would read the posts on this site and appreciated them very much.
I saw a post about vegetables that you only have to buy once and then can keep growing….Will look that up after dinner.
No other jury commitments until maybe next week so good news.
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Today I filled up containers with water, took a walk, and drove home with the heater off (27 degrees or so) after errands. It was only a ten-minute drive, and it got COLD. I have a blanket in the car and am off to buy hand warmers!
Edit: which hand warmers are the best? Amazon link would be appreciated. Thank you!
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This reply was modified 1 year, 6 months ago by
Red Carnation. Reason: I went to buy hand warmers and had no idea which ones are best
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This reply was modified 1 year, 6 months ago by
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I got my hair cut and did some laundry and dishes. I planned the meals for Dec. 24 and 25 since everyone will be at my house those days. I planned the meals around what I had in the freezer, cupboards and fruit cellar. Made a grocery list of what fresh produce I need to pick up. Hubby got a rebate debit card from buying oil so I used it to stock up at the dollar store. I bought some canned peaches, dried beans and crackers. Having problems figuring out where to have my prescriptions sent since my mail in company decided to charge extra co-pays. I thought I had it researched but now discovered the pharmacy I was going to use is closing all their stores in the area, so back to the drawing board to find affordable meds locally.
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<p style=”text-align: center;”>Took the kale and carrots out of the garden. I want to make soup with the kale. Spent most of the day working on the business. I’ve been thinking about the Berkey lately. I need to figure out when I should change the filter. I have a lifestraw, gravity fed filters, water bottles with filters, rain barrels that collect water. and two natural springs. I’m good for water, but I can’t seem to get the hang of gardening. This year will be my third year at trying. I’ve planted 8 different kinds of fruit trees and have three different nut trees. There are raspberries and blackberries and watercress. Without gardening skills, I wouldn’t starve, but I wish I could get better.</p>
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Hi OldMt Woman, I just double checked and saw that the article about the Survivor Library of free e-books (about which I received the email back on December 3rd) was actually written by a guest contributor called “Anon 411” . That article is still available on Daisy’s Organic Prepper website if you want to check it out.
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Got a nice score from the food bank for dry dog food. Guess this stuff only lasts 6 months in storage but with a little pig fat should still be edible in a year or two. Have 1 big dog and a little Jack Russell. And a cat. Since I qualify for food bank might as well use money for non food items to stock up on. Going to put green coffee beans into food saver bags today. They passed the taste test and may order more.
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Just finished reading Daisy’s article on paying off credit card debt and thank you for writing and posting it. Making plans and lists for next year on what food to grow and can, along with getting some extra 30 gallon propane tanks for the generator to run the freezer through power outages.
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Today I did the final prep. We purchased our plots and are researching monuments and other final preparations so the kids won’t be burdened with our final expenses.
I am still working on a monthly meal plan/grocery list. I used to shop biweekly so I don’t know why it is so hard to expand it uuggh.
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Wow @Dala Barnes hats off to you for the final.planning.
Today, I did minimal. I made an omelette on the wood stove.
I also took a ski lesson and also got my skis tuned and bindings checked out. I haven’t skied in about 13 years. I survived!
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Today it dawned on me that I am dependent on the microwave, so starts the “no microwave challenge”
Researched good ole “canned heat”,-liquid, solid uses ect. Gonna get some, as it seems good for reheating when sheltering in place.
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@corsaire – great idea about the microwave! Problem is, if it’s there, it’s really tempting to use it. I had so much trouble with that, I decided 3 years ago, when the last one burnt out, to just not get another one – and not let anyone give me one either. So it gets heated on the gas stove or it’s cold. Period. Now I need a rocket mass heater or wood stove….
December 12: Yesterday and today were steep learning curves. We finally got an appointment for a second opinion on daughter’s cancer for Monday. In the meantime, with her GP monitoring her, we’re inducing ketosis to try and starve those nasty cancer cells. It wasn’t happening with diet alone, so she started fasting on Monday night. Tuesday was great – after only about 12 hours she was in ketosis, along with a healthy pH in the saliva and urine. That’s actually really fast – probably because she had little glucose reserves in the liver to begin with (not a sugar eater). There was a nasty headache to deal with, but it passed. This afternoon, however, the ketosis got too strong and she started getting more acid – so she’s eating again. We’ll just keep working on the ketogenic diet and maybe have her fast just one day a week from here on out.
So our prepping today was gathering notes and experience. It’s going in the journal under “how to care for cancer when no doctor will help you unless you let him butcher you,” or maybe “how to treat cancer when there’s no medicine available.” Believe me, this is not way out there risky stuff that we’re doing. We have been collecting the studies. Daughter is a trained researcher and her GP has had women do this very same thing and overcome cancer because they didn’t want disfiguring surgery, or wanted to preserve healthy function. Conventional oncologists are actually starting to use fasting in conventional cancer therapy – if you fast before you get chemo, it makes the cancer cells more vulnerable and the healthy cells do a chemical thing that protects them from the chemo.
We’re being very careful, and she is being constantly monitored. It’s hard, though. You are making yourself feel awful (from the fasting) instead of the doctor making you feel awful (chemo). We may have to do both, though. We’ll see.
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@rufusj glad to hear the grandson is good.
@dala Barnes congrats to you. It’s such a shame so many fail to prepare for the inevitable.
@heironyma Textor, glad to hear things are finally coming along.
Started moving things to the new cabinets. Went to town for errands. Researched how/what to store for thyroid issues if no rx is available. Baked biscuits and made veggie soup.
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Slow day today. Energy level a bit low. Checked on spinach and other things I’m trying to grow. Really such fun. Can’t believe how quickly the onion roots have already shot up a green center. Wow. I think onions in no time! Celery has sort of stopped adding any growth. Just not enough light coming through kitchen window so may have to move out to shed under grow light. Handy man came by and finished dealing with leaves in gutters and on deck. Continued to sort out tool shed for my new indoor gardening hobby. Now that I’m beginning to pay more attention, I keep finding references to the Pentagon’s draft report on our lack of preparedness for an EMP grid down situation. And, not in kooky sources but rather more main stream. Hmmm….It certainly won’t hurt me to do a 24 hour, no power-of-any-kind practice run just to see where the big gaps are in my situation. Will take a bit of courage as I enjoy my comforts, but something I think I should do. I’ll make certain, however, that I have a way to make my morning coffee before I start!!! 🙂 PS..can anyone recommend a good book for identifying edible foods in the wild? I looked on Amazon but the choices were numerous.
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Today I got a “That Seals It” kit for vacuum sealing an opened No. 10-size can. I’m going to try vacuum sealing my opened No. 10 can of “Eggs Ova Easy” with the one lid provided in the kit and, if it works well, I’ll order a few more of those lids. I also got some more Ball quart sized canning jars and a couple of the Easy Fermenter XL sized lids (and XL glass fermenting weights) for fermenting larger quantities of food in gallon-sized jars (in case I get the urge to make a heck of a lotta sauerkraut at one time, lol. The lids seem to be well made of good quality materials, so I’m happy with the purchase. I also continued reading Lights Out by David Crawford.
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Picked up the next book in the Restoration series by Terri Blackstock, True Light. Did the grocery shopping for my Christmas meals and found spiral hams on sale today for 95 cents a pound. I bought 2 which was the limit so the freezer is filling up again. Worked on the budget sheets to see how we stand at the end of the year and crunching the numbers for next year. Filled out the new patient forms for the dentist I have to see tomorrow. Need a tooth pulled and want it done while there is still a dentist office to go to. All these EMP reports on the internet kind of worry me. Tonight we went to the Advent service at church so took care of the spiritual side of my preps. My daughter stepped out of the vehicle, slipped on the ice and fell. I fear she broke her arm but she refused to go to the hospital to have an x-ray. Will have to see how much pain she is in tomorrow and may have to drag her kicking and screaming like in the past.
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Today I did my weekly volunteering at the park. When I was driving to the building where I work, a fox crossed the road. He leisurely walked in front of me and into the woods. That was special. I paid bills and worked on my checkbook, baked a banana bread from overripe bananas and put half in the freezer. We had a penance service at church tonight. I talked with a priest from Africa and came away feeling uplifted yet humbled. His calm demeanor and quiet voice were what I needed at this time in my life.
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Anonymous121218
Got my stuff sorted and put back into my back pack. Noticed that I needed to get another filter mask for the house so went into town and got some.
Sure is a different experience shopping after putting together a price comparison sheet for the stores in our town on the things we use.
Have a nice evening.
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Seeing as how I was rudely woken up by what seemed like an invasion, I’ve been reading about the triangle of life. It makes some sense that you should get beside an object to block a larger object from falling on you during an earthquake but what about the debris falling all around you. It will be something I think about and study some more. What not to do during an earthquake, lay in bed and hope nothing falls on your head. Need to remove the pictures directly over my bed so as not to get a concussion.
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I finished up making Christmas presents with a vinyl machine and heat press. Christmas this year was about 60 bucks for 25 people. That’s unheard of! I did great budgeting this year. Making plans to buy a 55 gallon drum and food storage beans, white rice, wheat, salt, sugar and oats this weekend. Just the basics for now. Also have ideas floating around on how to redo my first aid kit and bug out bags. A little at a time. I got my bug out bags out, now tomorrow I’ll start to finally pack stuff in them. A very productive day to say the least!
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Regular work day, went to Post Office after work to drop off a Priority Mail package, I do the postage at home, just need to drop it off, I like to do that in the morning before work but left a little late, everyone in town had the same idea. Big line just to get in to the parking lot. Thankful I didn’t have to wait in line to mail a package, ugh. Fed the dog, did a holiday update on an illustration for a client, working on a sketch tonight for a little dog portrait. Getting late already. Just want to vege and knit, maybe later, probably not, got doggies to draw, it’s somebody’s Christmas present.
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With our time difference I write this on 13th while for most of you it is still the 12th. Fell asleep yesterday very early in the evening. I was pretty tired. Yesterday afternoon after work I went to see a house for sale. It is a lovely house but considering the work and money that needs to be put in there it is not worth it.
I tried to call another farmer on the island which I helped getting bees for his crops last year. I heard he hasquite a lot of property. So I might just have a visit with this man. I love talking with farmers and their work.
In the late afternoon I went to an old friend old in the sense he is 80 years old he was released out of hospital yesterday. He has a little farm and a lot of fruit trees he had 4 bypasses with open heart surgery so he had to have his spirits up a bit. We talked about getting him some skep hives next spring. We talked about how where to put those and we had a good laugh or two (which was painful for him). But he got his spirits up and that was important for me.
I sorted out a lot of leifheit canning jars so I can do some winter canning: legumes! I am very low on canned beans.
about microwaves and dryers. I don’t have those. I had them in the past but not anymore. When they broke down I never replaced them. And to be frank, I don’t miss them. I don’t like to buy electricity appliances. It seems they break down in a certain time of use. For years I bought an electric water cooker/kettle for example and they lasted only for 2 years or so. I went back to the old fashioned kettle but it due to our politicians we have to go all electric and off the gas. Next year the average gas bill will be extra charged for at least 360€. The other day I bought a electric water cooker on a flea market for only 5€. Let’s see howling this one lasts. As said I don’t like electrical appliances and I have a lot of household items that are manual : grain mills, coffee grinder, other cutters.i like to use them and it doesn’t seem to make my life extra complicated.
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It was a pleasure to meet with a potential client today.
I dressed SUPER warm when going out, did not run the heater in my car, hand washed an article of clothing needed for tomorrow, and baked bread at home. I’m also cooking lunch and breakfast in the thermal cooker overnight.
Wow, today was more productive than I thought. 🙂
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Flamingo Lady: Sorry to hear about your daughter’s fall. Hope it isn’t broken.
rd Lucai: ….earthquakes… I’m out west but there are rare earthquakes here. Usually the simple Ka-Chunk type that makes you think a Mac Truck ran into your house. So when I read your post, I looked up at all the bookshelves on the walls above my bed. Yeah well, my plans would be to roll over quickly up against the wall so I think I’d be clear of the cascade of ….lots of books. Might be stuck between wall/bed and buried under the books…. Glad you’re ok. Anyone else feel that one? ….er, two…wasn’t it?
Today my prep was going to medical appt…..and will again on Friday. Ya let these medical folks get started on you…. No, this is necessary to figure all this out. Then decide what is needed, if anything. Just takes long to get there!
Visited our elderlies while DH finally got car in for oil change. Then we did our usual couple hours at Walmart….and that’s the bulk of Christmas for us. Some of their favorite candies and we’re done. None of us does anything extravagant for Christmas. We’re all too tired!!!
Came home in snow…not much. Too dry here so it’s welcome…if it doesn’t get too enthusiastic and come down all night.
Did check the availability and cost of canning jars at this Walmart. They had some but not a lot. Price ok. Bought two oven mitts. My hand strength is poor and grip is quite unreliable. So I found mitts with silicone but also has an insulated lining. Cuz just silicone heats up fast. But I do like the GRIP it has. We’ll see how they work in practice. I’d imagine they’d work well with my cast iron cooking. Sometimes new things can be better than old things…and sometimes not.
OldMtWoman….old ‘bodies’ are in the NOT category! Definitely!
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Ahh, let’s see. Found out my car is terminal. It’s been in the shop for about a month now and somehow it’s figured out how to get antifreeze into the cylinders. Plus the heat core is broken/messed up/ fundamentally and permanently ticked off. Fixing the car would cost more than the value of it. So … meh. I guess we’ll replace it. (That’s code for DH has new car fever.) Me? I’d like Polaris for the land. Doesn’t look like that’s happening any time soon.
I finished Jerry D. Young’s non-fiction book on prepping, and started the one by Stephen Konkoly. It’s a different approach to prepping, which give a different set of synapses in my brain a workout. Still working on getting the glaucoma meds straightened out. Started the Christmas cards and working on the tree. Most of the shopping is done– yay! -
I’ve already had a full morning of prepping things so decided to make my notes now before running errands. I found the box of shoe maintenance things. Was looking for something else and suddenly there it was. If it had been a snake it would have bitten me. 🙂 Oh, well, at least I can put it back where it belongs! Spent an hour or so checking out an emergency supply company with which I am familiar. Bought a variety of items I had identified as holes in my short-term emergency plan. Still haven’t yet decided what I should get to make my morning coffee when I do my 24 hour no power trial run. I’m thinking to go for this Sun and Monday as weather is predicted to be sunny and in mid-50s. My celery re-grow is definitely looking sad this morning so will set out under grow light to see if it perks back up.
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Did a germination test on my carrot seed. Yup, it’s better than 70 %! Which is good for homegrown. Trying to overwinter my parsley by bringing it in and started horseradish in a big pot. Need to get carrots outta root cellar and use up, maybe dehydrate as treats for goats. Researching how to perhaps make eggplant extract for possible skin cancer treatment….hmmmm making loose fitting slippers by using the smallest round loom. It keeps the feet off the ground which is good, but the loose weave may need to be double knitted with mohair, just a thought.
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IT was my day of at work. But i was Called back for a (mini) crisis. So not much done in the house. I’m now at a course organic vegetable gardening. The first of 4.
Looks promissing.
And of course tomorrow is a new day…
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@hieronyma Textor indeed it is tempting
No microwave challenge. Today I did not pick up frozen dinners, didnt even walk down that aisle. Realized that I will need another small saucepan for reheating, and a small deep casserole dish for the toaster oven. I’ll hit the thrift stores after Christmas when ( hopefully) people donate their old stuff.
Noticed that Walmart does not carry canned fuel or the burners. It has plenty of propane though.
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Made the list for some last minute Christmas shopping that hopefully will finish it up, it seems each year more family in need is added to my list for warm clothes and shoes. Read some of the articles posted “Today on Preppers Daily News”, hopefully I can finish reading more of them.
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December 13: Today’s prepping is a review of our car emergency kit for traveling. Getting ready to go to see son’s family in about a week, which involves a 12-hour trip over mountains. So I’m reviewing everything. Decided we need a few more space blankets, a better shovel, the addition of a bag of sand, and at least 3 days’ worth of food. Hope that does it. Will finish gathering it all this weekend. Still need to put together a travel menu, with daughter’s help. I wish I weren’t working 12 hours a day right now. I am a freelancer in the medical research field and everyone is trying to get certain things done before the end of the year – I just want it to stop. It leaves no time for the really practical stuff – or a life L
So right now I am planning on the pieces of paper I keep beside me at the computer (during the week), writing things down whenever I get an idea – and then practical stuff on the weekend, I hope. This weekend it will be finalizing the car kit, Christmas shopping and putting up a shelf in front of my living room window for the aloes.
When daughter was in optimal ketosis (read: cancer-killing body condition), she told me there were two things she was craving. One was bitter greens, and the other was mugwort (Artemisia vulgaris). Evidently that happens to people sometimes when they are fasting – they start craving things they actually need (NOT sugar).
So husband went out and got a bunch of dandelion greens. Tonight I cooked them based on a recipe in Patience Gray’s “Honey from a Weed” – a beautiful cookbook/food ethnology study about southern Greece, Corsica, etc. By the way, the so-called “Mediterranean Diet” that gets touted here in the US is a joke. Two facts – Orthodox Christians in this area of the world (most of the people there) fast for about 1/3 of the year. That means no meat, and sometimes no dairy, wine or olive oil (vegan low-fat). The other 2/3 of the year is a pretty high fat diet, including animal fats from FULL fat cheeses, lamb and pork. And they eat an unbelievable amount of “weeds” (like the dandelions) at all times of the year. That is, if they are still living a traditional lifestyle. The edible weeds might come from the family vineyard, unless they’ve started using pesticides. This fasting-feasting cycle can be found in the “Typicon”. I dare you to find these facts in any book touting a Mediterranean diet. But I digress…
When daughter mentioned mugwort, she didn’t know much about it. We are both avid investigators of plant medicine and it’s benefits, but mugwort was not on our radar. She was just thinking, for some reason, that she wanted mugwort. I said, OK, let’s see if there’s any good clinical studies on mugwort and what it does. Lo and behold, one of the most recent articles we found on PubMed was this one:
“Herbal extract of Artemisia vulgaris (mugwort) induces antitumor effects in HCT-15 human colon cancer cells via autophagy induction, cell migration suppression and loss of mitochondrial membrane potential.”
So trusting your body isn’t a bad idea sometimes. Ordering mugwort tonight.
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Saw the dentist for the first time in 3 years. Haven’t been able to afford it until now. Got a good report with no cavities or issues. Talked to my daughter this morning, and found out she went to the hospital last night after all. She broke her elbow, so won’t be able to make some of the dishes for Christmas. I will have to redo the menu so I can handle making everything for the 4 meals during the 2 days. Went shopping for some new clothes since I lost so much weight during the year. Need a new outfit for Christmas. Received a report from my doctor that some labs came back positive showing I might have an autoimmune disease. Will have to go back for more labs to be done.
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Anonymous12/13/18
Did some reading on Prep fiction and looked through a new website.
I heard there was a non fiction book by Jerry D Young about prepping….where do I find that?
I made a new watchband for my watch. Had a nice piece of black leather so my wife helped me cut it out and she helped me do some stitching and then I started getting the hang of it. I only poked myself two times or so…that means, any project I bleed on is a good one. I included a couple of pictures below…First time I made something like that. I need to practice on some other projects as well.
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Today I read some of the information at survivor library. I started with some of the first aid articles and the CPR course from Ft. Sam Huston.
I also worked on making my Christmas cards/ornaments.
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@flamingolady glad daughter made it to see dr. That has got to be painful. Good news at the dentist. Good luck with the bloodwork.
@xant dewit, the perfect house for you will come along. The bees sound so interesting.
Not much done today. Fighting a headache and chest cold of some sort. Spent most of the day cleaning the cat room. When you have as many as we do it can get away from you pretty quickly. Sorted through old papers and tossed the majority of them. I think they multiply when no one’s looking. Baked biscuits and had leftover veggie soup. Read a few short articles on prep stuff and noxious weeds.
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@oldmansd nice work!
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Today I got together clothing for my bug out bags, made a grocery list of items I need, food items for stocking up & other needed items to stock up on in an emergency. I started my weekly budget list and cooked baked potatoes & baked chicken. I’m working out to weights for arms, stretching & elliptical. Drank Applecider vinegar and lemon water. That’s about it!
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@amy Dixon, thank you for sharing the link to practical plastic surgery. I look forward to reading over the winter.
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12/13 Payday. Ran to the bank at early lunch, then hit the dollar store, they have the peppermint sticks I like, Bob’s. Real useful for upset tummies. Bought the last of the big candles and a couple things I had stashed that we’re already out of, some groceries and a bottle of sake. Got an okay for the sketch I did last night, So I’ll transfer that later and work on it tomorrow. Have two other projects to put finishing touches on. Wanted to get them in the mail tomorrow but that’s not going to happen for another day. Ordered art supplies on sale online, free shipping deal of the day, some stuff I needed. Some laundry, and chicken in the crockpot. Another day in paradise.
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PeppyP – You’re very welcome. Hope the book is helpful!
OldMansd – I think the non-fiction book by Jerry D. Young may be the one he wrote called “Emergency Preparedness and Personal Survival” that was published around 2011. Amazon.com has Kindle format copies of it for sale for 99 cents. I think I’ll get a copy of it to read also.
Didn’t do much prepping today because I spent a lot of time working on getting Christmas cards and e-cards sent out to family and friends along with personal notes. I did finally finish reading “Lights Out” by David Crawford though. Saw that Nourished Essentials is having a half-price flash sale just for today on their starter kit of 3 wide-mouth fermentation lids, 3 glass fermentation weights, a manual pump, and a small booklet of fermentation recipes. Its a good deal but I’m trying to decide if I want to buy it now or not since I probably won’t be doing much fermentation until the Spring. There always seem to be so many things one needs/wants to spend money on around the holidays – it’s hard to stay on a budget this time of year (sigh).
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Picked up a nice sale of 6 different soups in #10 cans from Emergency Essentials. Getting our truck back with the help of some very lovely benefactors. I feel 100 times better knowing that I can go halfway across the country before I need fuel. I love that truck. I can’t wait to get it home and put all the essentials back in it. Like the zombie apocalypse kit 😉 Picked up some protein shakes and water. Made soup with the kale from the garden. Good prepping day.
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I also bought the soup special by Emergency Essentials. I’ve been pleased with this company’s products and services. Spent some time this morning with handyman looking at my laundry/pantry room, trying to figure out better configuration. I have several 5 gal buckets with gamma seals there which may need a new home in tool shed. Problem is not as convenient to the kitchen. Plus I’ve ordered 4 additional 5 gal water containers…where to put them??? For my practice run of “grid down” I’m toying with the idea of leaving the natural gas operational. Electricity outages of hours and sometimes days in my area are not uncommon, usually due to severe and not so severe ice storms. But for the gas lines to go would take some pretty serious event, and in that case I probably should go to my son’s house. If I leave the gas operational during my trial, my early morning coffee is a breeze. I can boil water either on my gas grill or on the gas longs in the house. Then with a French Press, there’s my coffee!!! Cooking on the gas grill, not a problem, though it is a bit colder these days. I guess the real test will come when it gets dark. The test to myself when I don’t have my usual electricity-dependent entertainment devices during those dark evening hours. And, just exactly how am I going to keep my phone, computer, I-pad charged if I use them much during my 24 hour power outage?…I guess sit in the car, keep in running while the phone charges. Question: do I have the will power to do a trial run and disrupt my comfortable life, for 24 hours? Maybe I should ask a couple of my teenage grandchildren to play this “lights-out” game with me just so they can experience the importance of being prepared. Nah….they won’t see that as something they want to do…AT ALL! 🙂
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Today I again used the thermal cooker for cooking and helped a family member feel better with natural remedies.
Today’s online business event was a success too!
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Hi everyone.
Muffy…could you use a chafing dish or other candle arrangement to heat water enough for instant coffee? Perhaps not the best but ….I hear that coffee must be had at any expense or bother. Best to figure out now so it’s good that you’re braving a trial No Electric day! Stay warm and safe!
Hieronyma…interesting. I’ve heard that about the cravings….once you get rid of the dratted sugar cravings.
FlamingoLady….so glad your dd went to check her injury. Pain is usually a good motivator but ow! Sounds so painful and yes, debilitating. Good luck with further diagnosis for you.
OldMansd ……good work on the watch band! Here’s Jerry’s book: [Whoa…did the link just expand to show whole book – or just on my view?]
Skypony….I do real peppermint for stomach too. I scored huge with an after Christmas sale one year. Box of big peppermint sticks that will last me a long time. Real peppermint oil. Have to break them in pieces.
Yesterday when we accidentally ended up at Walmart, of course I didn’t have my LIST! I’ve been faithfully writing down prep holes and other things we’re out of… But DH did remember the AAAs. Got a large pack of those. I haven’t even looked to see what else I missed. {roll eyes}
Today I spent some time reading an article about anger…productive/healthy type and collective anger that we’re seeing in our current society from yellow vests to political insanity. It brings up some good points ….some scary points. Some ways we’re being used….but we know that, right?
Continued with a bit of clutter clearing. Washed a bunch of plastic lids for canning jars – for storing in fridge after opening a jar. I used them a lot when I milked goat long ago. They got dusty and such sitting in open box. Now they’ll be inside a Ziplock.
My PC Kindle program is fritzing on me. I’ve reloaded it several times and it won’t respond right. Not sure WHAT to do with that. It is holding a lot of ebooks… And I can’t READ them!!!!!!! 😮
I think I need an eReader for Christmas and begin to download a lot of my prep fiction/non fiction on that. This laptop is getting cranky too. So if I disappear…..
OldMtWoman
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This reply was modified 1 year, 6 months ago by OldMt Woman.
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This reply was modified 1 year, 6 months ago by
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Flamingolady: Sorry to hear about your daughter’s elbow. I hope it heals quickly!
OldMansd: Jerry D. Young’s nonfiction book is “Emergency Preparedness and Personal Survival”.
Yesterday (Dec. 13) was light on preps but I did get some reading in. Strung some lights on the tree, which is always an ordeal. Gloves help greatly! Stared hard at the Christmas card list but successfully avoided it for the day. Today, though… Today shall be windy, which means the land will dry out (our ginormous storm yesterday turned out to be a wimp) , and if it it dries out enough, we should be able to get the truck out of the mire tomorrow. I hope!
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This is my prep for yesterday. I went to the dentist for my biannual cleaning and checkup. My teeth have always been bad and I am missing at least 6 in the back. Last year I was ready to get implants after saving the money. When I had an X-ray to confirm placement, it showed the nerve too close to the surface for implants. So discouraging. My dentist though is great. With no insurance I wanted to go once a year for checkups. She wants to save what teeth I have. ( my mouth is too small for comfortable dentures). She gives me 30% off my bill. And yesterday she decided to give me free fluoride treatments each visit. Yes, I know fluoride is controversial but at my age, 69, I’m okay with it if it saves my teeth.
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Ordered my cordless vacuum cleaner, one of the ones I was eyeing had a price drop, and with it, it fit my budget. Got the backpack yesterday, it has a handle on the back to use a duffel, but one can grab it if its on your back. It looks like it will work well though, so I’ll tape it down.
Read up on foodwaste and pantry organization from one of my favorite finance bloggers Squawkfox. ( Kerry Taylor).
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Used superglue for an emergency repair. Prepare biscuit mix for this months bread. Want to make coffee bean cookies for Christmas. Picked up pkgs at p.o. yeah electrolyte powder and Shea butter for soap making. Sent off a few too. A little visiting and gift exchanges and soon it’s gonna be dark!
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Anonymous12/14/18
Printed out the book of lists and put into a binder.
Worked on a gift for my wife today…good thing I got started. Looks like it will take a few hours to complete. May not make it in time for Christmas but her birthday is on Dec 31 so looks good for that.
Got down some items to prepare for a trip this Sunday toward Seattle area. Car is in good shape so hope weather is good.
Also worked on the watch band I made a little more to make it more comfortable and finished that.
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I worked in the shed for a couple of hours. Rearranged bottles of apple juice I made in the steam juicer.
i find it challenging to find a place for all my preps.
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@oldmansd can’t wait to see what you’re making your wife
@muffy1938 have you decided when the “lights out” will occur? I just love trial runs.
@lilac5farm you’re lucky to have a dentist like that. Seems like they’re in it for the right reasons.
Went to town for errands. It was rained for the last two days so the dog was thrilled to go somewhere. She is not much for staying in the house. More like a teenager that gets bored. We did walk down to the lake this morning though. Even in bad weather she must be walked. Worked on organizing preps in the new cabinets. Worked on tracking down my shipment of marshmallow root. Seems it made it to the sorting facility of the post office last Friday and that was the last it has been seen. Made biscuits and gravy, mashed sweet potatoes with onions and kale and scrambled tofu. Baked 3 acorn squash to make a baked pasta this weekend.
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Today was a busy one. I did 3 loads of laundry and had to use the dryer for 2 of them. Cleaned, then finished wrapping gifts. I baked 3 loaves of bread and spudded (is that even a word??!) the potatoes. The red potatoes didn’t keep well, they are getting soft and wrinkled. The white ones still look great. I started a pile that I hope to keep for seed potatoes next spring. And we will eat the red ones first next year.
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December 14: Took inventory of fats and oils and ordered ghee and olive oil from Thrive Market along with a few other things. Trying to make sure I have at least 3 months’ worth on hand. January/February is usually pretty lean. Also ordered herbs, dried greens, and candles, etc. from Frontier Coop – again, shooting for a 3-month supply at least. Horrified at the amount of money I spent, even if it is all wholesale prices. But that means I won’t have to spend it in January, February, and maybe even March.
In the bitter herbs department, got some more dandelions and put them in the food tonight. Daughter picked up some radicchio (a very bitter lettuce considered a delicacy) at the store, but just about fainted at the price. Thought it was worth it just once – now we need to grow it! Could make a fortune off of this stuff if we could grow it and sell it!
Soaking lentils tonight so I can make the lentil salad tomorrow for meal at church on Sunday.
Making lists for husband to go out shopping tomorrow for travel supplies and gifts – while I sit at the computer at home and work 🙁
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I took my daughter to the elbow specialist this morning where he told her she had a small crack in the radial head bone in her elbow, tendonitis in the triceps from her fall and the mother of all bruises. She should be fine in about 4 weeks. Went shopping to stock up on allergy meds, looking into what pharmacy to transfer my meds to since the one I wanted to use is going out of business and bought new jeans after mine died in the wash. Notified the doctor I will need another set of trigger point injections in my back next week and rested the remainder of the day. Paid some of my bills while resting.
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Today I downloaded the first seven volumes of the 1911 Encyclopedia Britannica from the SurvivorLibrary.com website – have about 27 more volumes to go <Whew!> Also watched several prepping-related YouTube videos by “Obsessive Chicks” (formerly called Obsessive Prepper AZ), and Susan at “I’m Still Workin”s video about making sour cream and butter out of canned Media Crema. I want to try making butter soon from the Media Crema (and Trader Joe’s retort packaged cream) that I have stockpiled so I will know what sort of yield you get per can/package.
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Got a bag of dog food for the pantry, did laundry, finished one project, varnished it, transferred a drawing onto a panel, will paint it this weekend, watched a YouTube video, and heading to the living room to knit for an hour, listen to a podcast and head to bed, tomorrow is my Friday.
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<p style=”text-align: left;”>Got a bunch of product ready for tomorrows market. Hubby made it home with the truck. Glad he made it back with the truck. Can’t wait to take a ride and see how it rides. Went for my yearly checkup. Made million dollar spaghetti. Cleaned out the fridge. I was at the store today and there was a aldi’s bag with what looked like cases of soda in a shopping cart outside, like someone forgot to put it in their car. Normally, I would have picked it up and taken it into the store, but I decided not too because of all the crazy talk about bombs all over the country. It was a big bag, and I just couldn’t see someone forgetting it. I’m either paranoid or getting better at situational awareness. I called the store and told someone about it, so maybe someone gets their groceries back.</p>
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Managed to go to medical appt. #3 for this week. That’s way more than usual for heading into the village. Once is plenty and this past week wore me out! Stopped in at elderlies…DH and I brought their tree up from basement. Ate with them then left. I lay down in back seat on way home. 🙁 Hope I can reduce village/medical visits for a while now.
Muffy…do be very careful with your dress rehearsal. Too bad one of your grands isn’t up for such fun! One thing I noticed in one of my Lights Out was how dark it was at floor level. As in: alternate lighting isn’t usually as bright and darkness at one’s feet is an invitation to trip.
OldMtWoman
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I havent posted in a few days as I have been super busy with the holiday.
Dec 13. I found a great pair of snow shoes at Marshall’s. I practiced with them. We get lots of snow here, so winter travel is something to consider.
Dec 14. I did some Xmas baking. Giving homemade Xmas cookies puts a smile on most people’s faces. I bought Xmas paper plates last year after the holidays. The little plates of cookies looked so festive.
I also attended some “free” sporting events. My military discounted season ski passes give me free entry into lots of local sporting events. I enjoyed seeing World Cup luge. I had the coolest USA gear. Yes, I found it in a thrift store. I enjoyed the fun so much more because I was thrifty.
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Don’t know if I posted yesterday or not my laptop doesn’t sometime work well as I sometime don’t remember well.. Today we are headed to the city to pick up some things for our teenage daughter. She thinks she has outgrown Walmart and wants to shop at some high end stores, no fear we have set a budget for her.
Going to pick up a few things to go in my preparedness box for things are much cheaper in the city than they are here in the country.
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I forgot to add that i picked lots of hats, socks and other cold weather gear at Marshall’s. In my very artic area, this stuff is very hard to find at Marshall’s. I chatted with the staff and one of the gals told me they just got a big shipment in that they were just putting on the shelves. She let me go through some bins first. Thirty pairs of socks and 4 pairs of thermal gear, I was overjoyed. Some will go for Xmas gifts. Thick warm socks make me happy! I know why they call those socks “cabin socks”! Lol.
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Yesterday (the 14th) I was sick. Oh my gosh. I must have picked up a stomach bug somewhere. Still not completely over it. Nasty thing. So preps? Nope, didn’t happen. We’ll see how it goes today.
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Making a qt Greek yogurt for today have enough cottage cheese made for the next week. Still milking my nubian, the only female i didn’t breed. Coyotes were close had to fire off a few bbs from the daisy air gun to make them back off dark thirty this am. Strained the tumeric extract, got a good quart of the stuff for medicines.
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Made a qt. of elderberry tincher this AM. Picked up a cold somewhere, so I hope taking a dose of tincher helps move it along.
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Yesterday I boxed up presents and ornaments to mail out.
I LOVE survivorlibrary.com, been reading a bunch.
Today I went through my stores and rotated. I also made a list of what needs to be used first in the next couple of weeks.
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My sister gave me her old curtains. Creamy white velvet and double fabric. I live in an old house so I hope it will keep the cold out a bit better.
I tried to install the old fashioned bell together with my dad. On January first, He had a major stroke went into a cardiac arrest. He ended up with 6 bypasses. He still hasn’t recovered fully and he can’t do the things like he used to. I feel so sad for him. I didn’t want to say anything or say how I think it should be installed. I managed to hang the curtains. I look at the bell another time.
First sniw is expected tonight.
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This reply was modified 1 year, 6 months ago by
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Well, some sad news….my celery re-grow plant has succumbed to something. I thought moving it from my kitchen counter where it gets little light, to the tool shed under a grow light might do the trick. Whatever, I’m going to try again! I’ve been watching Root and Refuge youtube videos and she says we learn best from our failures, so I felt encouraged to not give up. Plus, the re-grow onions have at least 2″ growth in just a few sort days under the grow light. However, the spinach seems now to have just stopped growing. The lady on Root and Refuge said to check the soil. It may be too heavy. I don’t know but I’ll keep piddling with it as it gets me up out of my comfy chair and keeps me moving…important at 80. OldMtWoman is right about the darkness. I’m about to chicken out (definitely not in my character) for obviously I don’t need to fall. The last time the power went out and I was sitting in the total dark, I did fall getting up to go and retrieve a flashlight. When in the country and all light goes out it is truly dark! Hmmm…perhaps that should have shown me the importance of keeping a flashlight beside my favorite chair. Had ordered a manual coffee bean grinder which arrived today. Why are the instructions always printed in such tiny fonts? Even with my magnifying glass they’re almost impossible to read. May need to set aside for one of the grands to read and we’ll figure out how to make it gitty-up and go. To end on a happy note….my Baker Creek Heirloom Seed catalog arrived today. Wow…beautiful four color production with every type of seed imaginable! Definitely recommend it for your perusal.
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James Mitchner – Hope you’ll be feeling better soon!
Xant Dewit – I can relate to how you feel about your Dad. I had a similar situation with my own Father. It hurts so much to see those we love struggling with limitations caused by illness or aging. It’s harder than facing those limitations ourselves!
Gloomy, rainy weather here today – yuck! Went down to the basement storage room and retrieved some mason jars of 14 bean mix for soup. I really need to go back down there and reorganize my cases of long-term food storage items. It’s too hard to find thing the way they are now. Will have to wait until I have some strong helpers, though, to do that. Downloaded more chapters of the 1911 Encyclopedia Britannica then treated myself to re-watching Episode 2 of the BBC show “Tudor Monastery Farm”. I just love to watch the way Ruth Goodman makes the cheese <smile>.
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Got something delivered in packing peanuts, but what to do with them. Researched that as well as seeing if I could use the mylar blankets to use as a window covering. Verdict was a definite maybe, the gold ones possibly so says Amazon seller. Cant hurt to try. Also bean storage. All of my cupboards are open ( long story, but I intended to refinish, but decided to replace. Cant do that now because of finances. )I’ll find a chest of drawers somewhere.
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Awww, dear Muffy. Do not give up on your ‘test run’ entirely. They teach us so much, especially the unintentional ones. So you already know you need A WHOLE BUNCH of small, $1 LED flashlites placed in strategic places. Cuz whether you chose to go thru with this or not, a LIGHTS OUT situation can occur. You’ll be ever so much more confident with some practice. You might think of doing just several hours….part in daylight and part in the evening. That way you’d have practice getting ready as the sun sets. You ARE in an area where you’ll still be warm enough, right? Cuz keeping warm w/o elect in winter is a whole ‘nother challenge.
Don’t actually shut off your gas…you know that, right? I’ve always had to put notes everywhere to remind me that the lights, faucets, etc “don’t work today“. EVEN when they’re really not working, how many times I’m standing there, dumbfounded, flipping the switch. {roll eyes}
LOL …I do identify with those microscopic fonts on instructions! IF they even include them at all. It’s another prep I have – SUPER READER GLASSES! I get the strongest I can find. I also have several magnifying glasses. I’ve been known to perch 2 pair of readers upon my nose and use an embroidery magnifying glass around my neck….when I’m removing a nasty splinter. It gets to be a super-narrow field of clear focus….so you have to hold steady. But I HATE working “blind”! Just gimme a microscope, already!
Xant and AmyD …I hear you about elderlies who were [ just ‘yesterday’, wasn’t it? ] so able and teaching us. And now…I’m hoping mine will be able to string lights on the tree and be ok. 🙁 But we cherish these last years with them!
Hope all you who don’t feel well will be getting better soon! Good to be trying for a non-pharma type cure/restorative! Try now before we’re forced to…. Elderberry is on my ToDo list…but it’s so far down that list. 🙁 Have store-bought.
Okay, since last nite I’ve been reading up on ‘camping’ knives, expedient shelter types, other folks’ ideas about BOB, primitive food-catching traps — including a fish one I didn’t think would work on our stream trout. Not that I could travel to a stream in a Post-StuffHitsFan anyway…
I’ve read several articles: Comparing 1929 with our current times. About the Farm Bill …which has at least one good thing [taking rope hemp off the Fed Regulated Drug List, for petes sake! ] but seems to have a lot of goodies for PEOPLE WHO ARE NOT FARMERS!!! Appalling! …..business as usual? 😮
Since I’m barely walking today, that’s about it.
OldMtWoman
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This reply was modified 1 year, 6 months ago by OldMt Woman.
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Anonymous12/15/18
Worked a lot on my wife’s birthday present while she was busy sewing in next room. Made sure she did not see what I was doing. We ended up working pretty long and I finished. It is one of those paste onto a page little plastic diamonds kinda like paint by number. Looks pretty good. I have it flattening out under some books so will take a picture later.
Read some prep fiction…some I read over and over again.
Downloaded some files from survival library…some boy scout stuff and other. Will do that some more in the future.
Found a better grate for my rocket stove….we were in a kitchen store and they had trivets that looked like old gas stove grates. Worked pretty good.
Off to make thousand Island dressing for my salad tonight. Really like the home made version best. But I do keep trying out a recipe or two. I lost the first one I made and am trying to get it back. Lesson: print them or take a picture every time.
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Went to my son’s farm today. Baked cookies with my grandson while the guys researched chain saws. We have a lot of trees to cut down and need another bigger saw. I watched several YouTube videos, one on raising bees. We are hoping to start doing that someday soon. Watched one of my favorite tv shows, The Last Alaskans.
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Dec. 15: I am really impressed with what everybody is doing. Been thinking about the lights out practice and realized I am absolutely not ready. We could survive with difficulty – have solar lamps and candles, gas stove I can light with matches, gravity fed water filter and relatively close by water sources, but the heating situation would be miserable, and we need some sort of solar panel system for recharging phones and computers. The phones can be used to access the internet for work, if cell phones are working. Otherwise, it wouldn’t really matter, I guess.
Looked up information on radicchio, endive, chicory and escarole – bitter lettuces – in Eliot Coleman and on the Internet. Made a note to buy the seeds in January. Some of these are traditionally “forced” as well, I found out. That is, regrown inside the house in the middle of winter after harvesting once outside in the spring or fall. I think I need to concentrate on lettuces and greens anyway – most space efficient – and we need to be efficient.
Sent husband out to shop so I could work today, and not on Sunday. He got an electric blanket for daughter. Not exactly a prep for lights out, but a necessity right now because of an inability to maintain body temperature – at times. Wish I had a wood stove – we’ve either got to get one here or move. If I had a wood stove, I’d bundle her in wool blankets and set her in front of it. But wishing doesn’t make things happen. We do have a propane heater for backup heat, but we’d all have to gather around it in a single room with the doors closed. Better than nothing – but that’s why the heating situation would be miserable.
Thinking a lot about business plan – right now working mostly for contract research organizations and pharmaceutical companies. Not where I really want to be, but it pays the bills. I want to be working in the field of plant medicine. Husband and I will both be able to get Social Security this year, so the tentative plan is (1) get on Social Security for the “pad”, (2) transition as much as possible to working part-time in plant medicine research (me) and editing scientific papers written in English by people who don’t speak English as their first language (him), then (3) start a business growing herbs and making value-added products from them, keeping it small, at farmer’s markets maybe, or develop an herbal medicine CSA (way to stay under the radar, legally). But nothing that requires more than part time. Need to break all this down into smaller units and go at it aggressively. Right now, my work schedule is literally killing me. And it seems to me that herbal knowledge and products might be valuable in a collapse.
Looked at the yurts at yurta.ca and dreamed.
Made food for church tomorrow. We all eat together between mass and Sunday school. Going to bed. Have to leave at 7:30 in the morning and drive over an hour to get there. Some people drive even longer.
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Worked on organizing and cleaning today. Hubby worked in his truck. Baked raisin bread. Soaking cashews for “cream cheese”. Planted a couple more garlic cloves that had already begun to sprout. Moved potted plants back inside. Made a batch of immune booster.
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Went to the market today to bend. Miserable, rainy day, but did ok. Bought the rest of my gifts from there. Forgot to get the propane filled so sat in the cold for a while. Picked up some nice herbal teas and elderberry syrup. Trying to stay healthy with all the people around me sick. Went to the movies with my sister. Had a little me time.
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Beginning of my weekend tonight.Catching up on emails, and bought myself a Christmas present, a big plastic horsie from Amazon that I’ve been wanting. I’ve been collecting Breyer horses since I was a little girl, the closest I could come to a horse. I miss my horses. I’d go out every morning and sit with them while they were eating, before I went to work, just watching them, looking at them. May sound silly but being very visual, an artist, it helps to be surrounded by these beautiful models, so I don’t do something crazy like take on another rescue. I used to tell them, plastic horses next time. So my new horse will come on Monday, lol.
Two of my major projects are finished, just have to take pictures and wrap them up to mail. I’ll do that tomorrow and mail them Monday. Will work on Otis the Basset Hound tonight, wearing his little King crown from one of the Basset rescue events. He is a Christmas present for a client’s wife. The nice part, it’s not a memorial portrait. Have a couple Christmas presents of my own to make still, hope to get them done this week, time is going by really fast. When the holidays are over I am decluttering. I still haven’t put away the summer t shirts.
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Read 4 so so prepper fiction books this week, They all start ok but then they get really stupid. In one book every time a farm animal gets killed by “bad guys” nobody butchered or ate It, they just buried them. Seriously! But they killed and ate their own chickens.
In another silly one they had a plan to wait around in town for a month before heading out to their fall back home were the elderly relatives were expected to be holding down the homestead for a month waiting for them. This was supposedly to allow things to settle down LOL Meanwhile the town is burning down and starving people don’t show up for a several of weeks even though there was no food left anywhere aft a couple of days.
These writers need to do a bit more thinking before they write. Have read some really good stuff too these last few weeks.
Collected more World War Rationing recipes and just did a bunch of research. Christmas was squared away last week.
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Today I purchased marked down meat, made bread, and lined dried my laundry. I also made sure to take water with me when I went out shopping.
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Hieronyma Textor – You might want to consider getting a survival bivy sack for your daughter (one that has a lining that reflects most of one’s own body heat back) to help her stay warm in a power outage.
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Hieronyma make sure your propane heater is indoor rated with an oxygen depletion sensor ods or you could run into trouble using it to heat indoors. They can catch things on fire if they come into contact with elements ie blanket ends as people huddle over it
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12/ 12-15 @ Old Mt Woman
@ Muffy1938 I purchased a three pack of night lights that work on motion. They cycle through several colors of light, but can be set to one color. They come on when they detect motion, and when the power goes out. I have them plugged in lower outlets near where hubby and I sit, and in the kitchen and bathroom. When the power goes out, they can be unplugged and and used as a light to get to alternative lighting. They are fairly bright.
I found a cache of eggs that the pullets have been hiding. behind a bucket, in the corner, under the poop board. I had to throw them out, as my rooster is not in with them, and last week was very cold.
I straightened up my daily pantry and found a few holes in my inventory. I have to make a run to the grocery store. I usually go to Costco’s for some of the stuff, but I’m just not up to the hour long drive. I’m going to visit my family in a few days and that is a few hours drive each way.
I bought two basic first aid kits and beefed them up. One for my son’s car, and one for mine, to replace the one I gave away last week. The young man that I gave it to was impressed and when he saw that there was a written list for refilling it, he was even more so. He has a small business and is going to use my kit as the model for his work trucks and main office. 🙂
I dehydrated some frozen zuchinni that was in the freezer from last summer. I used up the frozen eggs for cookies and breads. I have gone through most of my canned pumpkin, so next year I will have to can more than I have been. I have been washing a lot of canning jars, which means I have been using a lot of canned products. I will have to really step up my game this summer. My garden didn’t do so well this past summer, because of all the rain.
I’m still reading How to books and survival situation books. I have really gotten into the below zero show. I will be glad when I can do more ‘physical’ prepping again.\
I’ve done a little local shopping, mostly for small gifts and such, at the “mom and pop” stores. We don’t have many left, so they need the business.
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Coffee girl.
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I upgrade my inventory every time I shop to make sure I’m on track and not concentrating in only one area.
Water is always the hardest thing to store so I use a lot of those 2 liter soda bottles the kids use. You can use a tube, boil the water in one pot and collect the steam in another as it recondenses to help purify it. The 2 liters are easier to store in small places and not as flimsy as many of the newer water bottles.
My bed sits on top of the 5 gallon food buckets to save space, I put a board over them to keep the mattress from being lumpy. I keep the first aid stuff in 5 gallon buckets too to keep them from getting wet, and color code the buckets so if we have to leave we know which buckets to grab. Food in one color, first aid another and clothes in another that kind of thing that way we don’t have to stop to read what is in the buckets to make sure we have the variety we need. This works well if you have children helping who are still learning to read.
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I went to a friend who is in his 80ties. He lives on a small farm with a lot of fruit trees and he gardens a lot in two big plots of land. He had 4 bypasses and he is probably not be able to have a big garden. So I went there and asked him how he was going to deal with it next spring. I offered him to order a lot of different pumpkins and he liked the idea. Not too much work and less weeding because the pumpkins cover most of the land. He was pretty happy about it. I ordered the rest of my seeds as well. Trying to get a better garden then this year. So I’m working on garden plans.
I also ordered daisies new book and course. I’m very curious about it. I did low carb for a while. Did lose weight but I have so much trouble keeping it up. I really like to eat from my pantry. And I don’t care much for meat. I like beans more. Now to figure out a diet with pantry ingredients and loosing weight. Perhaps Montaigne again. I do love my home baked whole wheat sourdough bread and beans😉
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Helping my daughter make homemade cookies requested from her teachers as their gifts and for her class Christmas party, it is so nice to hear people still love and enjoy simple homemade gifts.
I sure do miss my friend and neighbor who would do gifts of hams, turkeys, fruits and vegetables he raised on his farm and give them as Christmas gifts, to me that is worth more than any gift you could buy with money.
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I really like the ideas generated here. For security I have made shotgun primer rat traps trip wire , used game cameras, and harbor freight driveway motion detectors. All non lethal, may scare the living s$t outta whomever decides to Ignore no trespassing signs and slip under the barbed wire fence. So far have only caught my own cats in live traps.
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Thanks to all who are sharing special ideas for me! Well, I don’t know what is going on with my spinach. It has simply stopped growing. Heat and humidity and water are correct according to my devices that measure such things. The grow light is on for 10 hours. But, the onions are growing like crazy. So, I’ll keep reading and researching at how to grow veggies indoors. Today, I’ve spent several hours this afternoon, rearranging my pantry, getting a better idea of where I need to focus. Need more fruit for sure. Actually food-wise I’m in pretty good shape. The biggest challenge for me is space so continuing to work at decluttering.
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Today I feel normal but DH feels puny. We made it down to feed the cows but the truck is still there.We did manage to get the truck hooked up with a come- along so the next time we’re down there we can (fingers crossed) get it out. The ground is still really wet. At least I know where to put another pond now. By the time we got home he headed for the bed. Yep. Same thing I had. Poor guy. It lasts about 48 hours. So I’ve been taking care of him, wrapping presents and writing cards. And feeding the worm bins. It’s time to stock electrolytes and Imodium.
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Printed out bean and lentil recipes. I tried one red lentil recipe and I did not like it. Going to try again, cause lentils are cheap and nutritious.
Perused the aisles at the grocery store and found buy one get ones on combs and brushes.
Spent tons of time trying to find opaque containers for the cupboard. Nothing yet.
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It was a sunny day, finally! With temps near 50, I thought it would be a good idea to walk the perimeter of our property. I like to do this occasionally just to make sure the fences are still intact and nothing has been bothered. Everything looked good. I also caught up on my ironing. We use cloth napkins everyday, wrinkled or not. But I wanted to get the Christmas ones ironed for Christmas dinner. I also iron our flannel shirts; they look so much better when ironed. Ironing relaxes me, so why not do it? I should have waited to iron after I worked on this month’s expenses. I have to transfer money from savings to checking to pay off my credit card. Every month I put a certain amount of money into savings for various things that come up throughout the year—insurance, medical expenses, car expenses, gifts, property taxes and of course Christmas. We charge everything we buy on a cash back credit card and pay it off each month. By the new year we have between $300-$700 in cash back, depending on what we spent during the year. Every little bit helps when you are on social security and a state pension.
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Anonymous12/16/18
We got up early and drove to Tacoma WA area so drove as best we could in dark and rain. Made it ok. Went to Church this am and will be speaking tonight.
Bought a timer to turn grow lights on and off at home. Made sure it was working this morning before we left
Will be driving back tomorrow.
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Church. I love church. Came home and took a much needed nap. We ate leftovers, so minimal work today. We are fighting a cold. I hope we win. I can’t afford to be sick, caring for my grandmother. My favorite medicine is the raw honey I get from my dad’s beehives. The next swarm he catches will be brought down to my place to help with pollination. I love bees and their contributions. They are actually very smart. One time, the bees started tapping on my dad’s door because they were out of water. One chased me out of the garden. Buzzed in my ear until I left. Did it three times. I actually started laughing when I realized what it was doing.
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Rainy day here today – didn’t get much accomplished. However, I did read an interesting article in the Winter 2018 issue of Heirloom Gardener magazine about how you can steam distill your own floral or herbal hydrosols at home in about 1+1/2 hours on your stovetop without any special equipment. It looks like a very simple process. I’m definitely going to have to try it once I have enough fresh flowers or herbs available!
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Walked the dog twice today. She’s putting on a bit more winter weight than usual so we have to up our mileage. Did some organizing. Sent off for my certification renewal. Cleaned litter boxes and did a load of laundry. Made baked pasta with the acorn squash I had baked a couple of days ago. Baked biscuits and made vegan cheese. Discussed priorities with hubby. Fixed outdoor light fixture.
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I love reading everyone’s dailies. It’s like the letters I used to get from my Aunt Betty. What she was planing on planting, how she found the London Fog raincoat in perfect condition at the Goodwill, how many laps she walked around the basement with her Cocker Spaniel, Sporty, in the afternoons in the winter, new recipes for zucchini. She made the best zucchini bread and sent me a couple of loafs every Christmas. I miss her.
It was a beautiful day in the neighborhood today. The sky so blue it hurt your heart. I went on a water run this morning. Then stopped at Target to get elastic wraps, inexpensive ace type bandages that are a yard long with Velcro at each end. only $1.29, bought four, I cut them in half for my wrist, have had tendinitis for a long time, it’s doing real well now but I still wear one at work to protect it. Found a 2019 planner that I liked, got it. I get one every year, fill it out for a while get sidetracked, or too sad,the last couple of years I’ve lost a dog early in the year, then big portions of it are blank. But I get one each year anyway.
Helped out at the barn walking horses up to the horse park (10 acres just for them, it’s helped keep this small area zoned rural when the apartments wanted to invade) anyway, we walked three horses there, turned them out in the big arena, walked back to get the girls, walked them up, traded, walked the boys back, they are pokey, the girls step right out, more walking than I have done in a while. Geese need to walk more. Working on my little doggie portrait now.
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December 16: Went to church and enjoyed the fruits of preparing food yesterday. Did get up really early and researched some of the details of the ketogenic diet and cancer, in particular how to help someone actually GAIN weight while on a ketogenic diet (answer: even more calories than you would think). This is not going to be easy. She’s 5’8″ and only 106 pounds. Looks like a model, but it’s not healthy.
@Amy Dixon: Thank you for the bivy sack idea!
@namelus: Yes, the heater is indoor rated. I do need more gas cylinder, however. We had to use it for a few days last winter and it really burns it up fast.
@Old Goat: I really love your bucket organization! We have all our buckets under beds right now – found cheap but sturdy metal frames with a 16-inch clearance underneath, so the usual 5-gallon bucket fits perfectly. All the beds in the house have storage under them, but it’s not all buckets. I think I’m going to organize it like you have it now, with color-coding.
@padded cell homestead Farmer: love your security system. There’s one you can do inside the house with cheap cell phones, too, but I’ve got to look into that again. It uses a free app developed by Snowden. I think it sends any images or recordings to your main cell phone if anything happens while you’re gone.
@corsaire: I make a great bean or lentil salad – one pound of dried beans soaked and cooked, then all the chopped or grated veggies (fresh or rehydrated) that you can manage (grated carrots, chopped tomatoes, various chopped herbs like dill, cilantro, parsley, niblet corn, olives, celery – anything you like). You should have about half beans (any kind) and half veggies. Then mix 2 parts olive oil and 1 part apple cider vinegar. Pour about 1/2 to 3/4 cup of the dressing over your bean-veggie mixture and salt to taste. Very simple, and tasty. Red lentils don’t make a very good salad, though, because they get all mushy. Best to cook them with any spices you like and serve over rice.
@Lilac5 farm: Great way to handle the credit card. Going to try it now.
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Yesterday I made cookies and candy using supplies out of my food storage. Cleaned out the fridge, did dishes and caught up laundry. Today I made venison steaks my brother in law gave us for supper. Researched garden plants since we have decided to expand our garden this year to include more vegetable plants. Need to can, freeze and dehydrate more of the harvest. Making a garden journal that will track how much food we get from the garden next year.
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Well….THAT didn’t work! 😮 My prep for today: I dug into the back of the truck to retrieve my BOB. Needed to pull out the Katadyne water filter and check the gaskets that need lubrication [per a different thread here]. Of course it’s BEEN A WHILE since I’d gone thru it so I pulled out stuff.
We could have a contest to see who had the weirdest surprise when checking Emergency Bags that had been sitting a while. I found that small magnesium bar with the strip of flint for fire-starting…had been flaking off onto a bandana I’d wrapped it in. So took it out and cleaned it up. Then decided to FINALLY try to start a fire with it. ……………… uh, understand that I’ve started thousands of campfires, stove, trash burning fires. In rain. In snow. Lots of experience. WITH matches or cig lighter. Never got anymore creative than that. No steel wool with 9V batteries. No flint/steel. No drill or gouge method. Fire piston looks interesting.
Years ago, I DID attempt using different types of magnifying glass..focused finely to make fire. Or using ice. Eyeglasses…. Couldn’t get that to work at all. 🙁
Tonite, trying to light fire in pellet stove with magnesium + flint/steel ……did not work either. Got the right angle to shower off lots of sparks. But I could have stood there with a 4th of July sparkler and got the same results. I even had fire-starting gel on the nest of shredded newspapers. I wasn’t even going all primitive on this attempt. All sparks ….7,439 of them…died instantly. I wasn’t even working outside in the cold and breezy conditions. [scratch head, puzzled]
I mean I’ve sent a lot of sparks flying thru the years….by unintentionally striking a shovel or high carbon machete a glancing blow against our granite boulders. The flight of the spark was completely uncontrolled tho…and none ignited fires I did NOT want started, fortunately.
Glad I have LOTS of wooden matches and cig lighters! [Can’t get either of them wet or they don’t work either.] Any hints here? I was not expecting to have trouble with this. Good to find out NOW!
OldMtWoman ….do I really NEED char cloth for this to work well?
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This reply was modified 1 year, 6 months ago by OldMt Woman.
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<p style=”text-align: left;”>Have tinder near bit if it is me in woods and I need fire I cut wedges 1/4 size of candy corn hammer into driest wood you can find. wedges at a nickel diameter apart at the 4 points then scrape the powder onto a piece of small birch bark and light the pile on that then place the bark over the wedges …. once they start step back smoke is kinda nasty but the magnesium burns at 5600 f and does not extinguish with water.. the wedges burn hot enough that you can use sap wood and have it start.</p>
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Thanks, Namelus. I definitely need a lot more magnesium bits! So VERY light weight, most of mine kinda jiggled away into the tinder pile. Get ignition…then deal with tinder.
Yeah…get familiar with a lot of different options.
OldMtWoman ….I’ll try again!
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This reply was modified 1 year, 6 months ago by OldMt Woman.
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Today I went through the procedure again of how to act when someone is at the door when I’m not at home. I hope it sticks because they are so incredibly stubborn. Have you ever noticed how many situations in movies go south because children and teenagers just don’t listen to the adults…
i bought a portable water bottle with filter from Britta not sure if you know that brand in the states it is not as good as the ceramic filters but will do
I bought quite some tea, my favourite tea was on sale so I bought 5 boxes . One has to be kind for oneself sometimes
i read Daisies newest book and it gave me all the motivation I need to make meals with what I have in storage. Which is a lot very happy with the purchase!
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Thanks for the recipe @hieronyma Textor. I’ll definitely try it
The bean storage saga has ended. While milling through the kitchen, there was a drawer which had things that could go elsewhere, so viola; best part is that it didnt cost a cent. And that lone piece of shelf liner which I had fit perfectly
Cleaned out and organized the spice drawer. I think everything else will be ok. should double check though.
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Canned 6 qts cranberry juice and made pot of mulled juice too. Got night vision ready to be picked up at p.o., maybe will get topped off in hay while picking that up tomorrow.
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Moved the last of the preps into the new cabinets. Cleaned and caught up on all the laundry. Put together another load of donations. We are really trying to thin. Cut back a few plants.
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Hi, all!!! I do look forward to reading all the posts. Feel as if I have new friends located in all sorts of places. I try to picture each one of you and cheer you on in your efforts to be prepared. Today has been an unusually BUSY day for me. I try hard to keep my days active but not too pressured; but, from early morning seems lots of things have sort of said “deal with me, now!” My indoor gardening effort continues: onions growing like crazy, spinach sort of sitting there not looking sad, just not prospering. But I’m still excited with my new hobby and handyman and I talked about his making me some raised beds this winter so I can start my seeds inside, then transplant when the weather gets right. I’m in TN so Spring starts around early April here. Went to bank this morning to put a bit more cash in my lock box. In a grid down, would banks close doors? It’s hard to know exactly what to do, but I think I’m in adequate shape financially compared to many. More importantly, I’m definitely not a “snowflake” and when the going gets tough, I typically meet the challenge head on, if that makes any sense. I use the cash-back type of credit cards and pay them off in full each month. That way I accumulate a bit of cash but more importantly can see more precisely how I’ve managed to spend my money each month with a statement printout. I’m keeping a bit of small bills tucked away where I can get to it easily as someone suggested. But, I live in a rural area where neighbors tend to help neighbors and in a serious, serious crisis, most folks around here are good folk. Now if things got really, really bad, I have a gun, I am trained and prepared to defend myself if need be. I raised three boys as a single mom, all of whom have turned out to be fine men, so there’s a bit of toughness in me behind my sweet Southern charm….Bless her heart. 🙂 Oh, yes. Went to Walmart today and bought a power bank for charging my I-Phone and I-Pad. I had previously bought a portable solar panel for charging the power bank. Gonna see if I can get that set up tomorrow and see how/if it works. Supposed to be a sunny day. I’m rambling now, so tomorrow ya’ll…
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Hieronyma Textor – You’re welcome 🙂
Although I do have a manual Wondermill Junior among my preps for a grid-down situation and for grinding nuts and seeds, today I did some online research about electric grain mills. I have a Nutrimill but I’ve only used it a few times – mainly because it’s too bulky to keep out in my kitchen all the time, so it tends to stay in a storage closet. I’ve heard a lot of good things about the Mockmill, so I spent some time reading about the three available models (the 100 and the 200, which has the same dimensions as the 100 model but reportedly grinds twice as fast, and the Mockmill Kitchenaid attachment). I like that the Mockmill 100 and 200 are small enough to sit on a kitchen counter under a cabinet. I think I’d be far more likely to use one of those than my Nutrimill. I also learned that Mockmill has started offering financing options for folks who might prefer to pay for the mill over 6, 12, or 18 months rather than all at once. The 6 month option is interest free, which is nice. The Mockmill 100 reportedly uses 360 watts of electricity, while the Mockmill 200 reportedly uses 600 watts. However, I don’t know what “surge” watts each model needs when it first starts up. I would want to be sure it could run off a solar charged battery and inverter set-up if necessary. Guess I’ll have to contact the company about that since the amount of surge watts needed (sorry if I’m not using the correct technical term) is not listed on their website as far as I could tell. So, obviously I still have a bit more research to do, lol.
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I actually got the courage to ride my bike again after the unfortunate incident. Yesterday I rode 10 miles to get back in the groove.
Today was a special day so we went on a date. I wore my pretty boots. Unfortunately the heel came off. Thank goodness I had a pair of sneakers in my GHB…not as pretty but very functional.
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December 17: Today was a joyful day. No prepping, and we ate every meal out. It was worth it. Finally found an oncologist who won’t go taking out chunks of her body unnecessarily without knowing what’s really going on. He told her they don’t actually really know what kind of cancer it is. They don’t know enough to do the radical type of surgery that the first doctor was saying she had to have. We are so relieved. This doctor actually has a super reputation, and we all feel good about it.
Buyer beware when it comes to medicine, just like anything else!
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Got a temporary barrier in front of the compost bin. You would think I starve the new pup. He sure is growing fast. Gonna be a great deterant as he’s a German shepherd. They are beautiful dogs, but scary if you don’t know them. Set up my fitness app on my new phone. Made a plan to walk a mile for the next five days and see how that goes. Business is booming. I am filling orders from sun up to sun down. I’m pretty wiped.
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Anonymous12/17/18
We made it back from Tacoma in one piece but I can see I am really not cut out for driving in the dark for gloom when it is raining. It was beginning to get dark by the time we got home and I was pretty tired.
Have tried those yellow driving lenses but only seem like a little help.
We stopped off at a Winco store to check out some prices that are usually cheaper than some places. Bought a few things to fill out our supplies.
Glad we are back safe.
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Enjoyed a fun day with my daughter. We went shopping several places, as she wasn’t finished with her Christmas shopping yet, then had lunch at a buffet, very fun. Back to her house for coffee, played with the Corgi puppy, she’s growing fast.
I worked late on my doggie portrait last night, it’s just about done. Wrapped up a project tonight for mailing in the morning on the way to work. Doing some laundry now. Will amble into the living room and put a few rows on the afghan. Night all.
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Hi everyone. Welllllll, is it possible that I purchased a FAKE or INFERIOR magnesium block? Yes I tried again tonite. I make a good little pile [as was in the vid clip] of magnesium bits. Takes a lot of effort…does not shave but kind of breaks off tiny bits. I put those in a tiny cast iron frying pan [about 2″ diameter] and was kneeling over the brick hearth besides. Not the kind of weather to try this practice outside yet. Again I sent lots and LOTS of showers of sparks from the ferro rod side of the magnesium block. I’ve actually done enough strokes to improve my aim at where that shower of sparks will land. {sigh}
I did have little fizzzles here and there. A bit of magnesium would begin but goes out in the next instant. Some strikes I could get 3 fizzzles at a time. Only once I was able to grab the bit of paper towel and edge it up to the red coal…..but it went out. THAT was as close as I got to success tonite. I couldn’t even get the magnesium to light with the cig lighter. That flame probably isn’t high enough temperature.
So…..did I purchase a magnesium block that has other elements besides pure magnesium? Is our VERY high altitude making any difference like it does getting charcoal to stay lit? [the element in that is less oxygen in our air….and/or…. less air pressure] OR….did storage in HOT/COLD truck for a few years change something in the magnesium??? I’m grasping for straws here….. 🙁
Took dead 9V out of a small PALlite and requested DH bring home a fresh one ..or two. That was also in the BOB. Haven’t even investigated all in the BOB yet, but getting there.
Manage to clear out the second laundry basket [that also hasn’t been holding laundry] of misc. things. Found a place for them. Clutter clearing….seems like it fills in right behind me…argh!
ALSO had a frantic search during/after PM chores tonite. Somehow dropped a bag off my shoulder – somewhere. I was checking the roadside where dog and I took a walk, but it was now dark. So drove with spotlight out the driver’s window. Checked other areas. Twice! THREE TIMES! WHERE have I been in this past hour??? Ah…down to check garage AGAIN and there it was. Hanging off a box in a corner where I’d put some things. Did NOT feel it come off my arm. It was a trial run for that bag to carry needed stuff while I’m feeding right before dark. Obviously, it’s NOT going to work for me. Need a hip pack that attaches to me! So far haven’t found a small one yet among my stuff. I do have quite a collection of bags, packs, and such.
Hieronyma…SO GLAD you found a doc that seems a lot more honest! Rare critters! Reason to celebrate!
OldMtWoman …reading…
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This is my posting for Monday. We had our semi-yearly furnace check today. Everything is good. I think it’s important to do a preventive checkup on the furnace, the car, appliances and especially your body! I baked biscotti and my husband delivered cookies, bread and a new horse blanket to our neighbor. The blanket belonged to our daughter who never used it. We found it when we were cleaning the garage. Our neighbor teaches jumping at a local stable and we asked him to gift the blanket to a young girl in his class who deserves it.
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Well, back to the drawing board on the glaucoma meds. The new drops I was using absolutely sent me into a tizzy. I felt like I was going into a thyroid storm. Started 20 minutes after I used the drop, and stopped exactly 3 hours and 15 minutes later. So they are out. Phooey. Plus still dealing with this virus. Ugh. As long as I don’t eat or drink, I’m fine. Heh. We ate supper last night, which was a mistake and now I’m back to feeling weird. It’s great for the waistline but not much else. I guess I’ll get an appetite eventually. Hubby is recovering from the same virus a little faster than I am. I did get some prep reading done yesterday but that’s about it. Gorgeous day here today. I have lots to do but don’t have the ooomph to do it. Fingers crossed for later.
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Rode my bike again today. When I got home I had to call animal control as the biter was running the street again. I hope he likes the face full of pepper spray he got. Actually, I feel bad that it had to happen.
Today was cookie day so I made 4 different kinds of cookies for my kids that I will see tomorrow.
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Finally was able to buy pool shock in a small 5$ bag for emergency water. treatment. Locally. It’s been on my list it seems for years! Got some ends for pc pipe to do cache. May have to cut it a lot shorter so can do multiple. 4 inch diameter can put anything I want in there. Cut up some wrist diameter wood for my emergency rocket stove. Trying to come up with plan for critters that need to stay outside. Am not gonna bring goats inside no matter what. Maybe add a mud room onto entrance that will help with keeping heat from escaping as well as another barrier to front door. Hmmmmm need some more plywood for THAT project
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Don’t know how you are set up, but if you have an attached garage it would work. On a farm in New England we once lived on they had an enclosed passage that ran from the house to the barn because of the heavy snows this was common. You could try something similar with a shed or if you have an attached garage with an exterior side door you could attach a shed/coop in a something along the same line out of concrete blocks and a metal door with interior bar. Just a thought
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I’m really enjoying reading everyone’s posts and am getting lots of great prepping ideas from them!
Today I unpacked a case of Nalley’s canned chili I’d ordered online for my food storage pantry. I like that brand better than the Hormel brand of chili that’s available in my area in brick-and-mortar stores.
I also spent some time checking out the many interesting old cookbooks (some of which also contain household tips) available for free download in pdf format from the Michigan State University library’s archive website. For anyone who’d like to see it, here’s a link to that archive: https://archive.lib.msu.edu/DMC/cookbooks/ One of the cookbooks I looked at there today was “Housekeeping in Old Virginia”, which was copyrighted in 1877. Among other things, that book contains a short but interesting section on how to care for (and what to feed) the sick. I learned that, back then, it was not considered good for patients to read anything until they had reached the convalescent stage because it would be too “great a tax on their sight and brain”. So, I guess I should stop bringing magazines to friends in the hospital? LOL. I also looked at the images of antique cooking implements in the University’s museum. If anyone else would like to see those, here’s a link to the webpage that contains links to the images: https://archive.lib.msu.edu/DMC/cookbooks/museum%20images%20for%20cookbooks/
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Read an article on types of fowl, good and bad and what works depending on how much land you have.
Got dinner out of the refrigerator and thought, its my no microwave challenge. It was chili and rice in separate bags. Tried a hot water bath, almost like the bainmarie as shown in the pic, but it wasnt cutting it, or more likely I ran out of patience.
So off to the stove top I go, mixing everything in.
The cranberries that i cooked with apple juice made a great addition to my martini.
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This reply was modified 1 year, 5 months ago by
corsaire.
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This reply was modified 1 year, 5 months ago by
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A reminder if you need hard candies for part of your prepping consider candy canes when they go on sale after Christmas. They can be stored for 7 or more years without any problems giving you a small sweet treat periodically during stressful times and peppermints are good for people with upset stomachs. don’t get the hard candies with “soft” centers
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I continue to walk in the polders with my dog before work but iT is quite dark And there is no lichtning. I have a yellow beste even though I’m not part of the movement. I bought a reflective collar for the dog. She will be so pretty!
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This reply was modified 1 year, 5 months ago by
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Anonymous12/18/18
Spent some time watching videos on how to make a net. Kept stopping it and taking a snapshot and then putting it into a Word document and saved it while also printing it to put into a binder. Since we currently live within sight of the Columbia river, it seems like a good survival strategy to be able to fish out of it. The normal person can not use these type of nets without some license at the moment but if disaster looms…..
Also was watching how to make a cargo net which I could use a lot now. May try that out soon.
Refilled my hummingbird feeder today since a lot of them come by each day. It is fun to watch the little guys hovering around it. The other day it was empty and we were getting ready to take a trip and two of the little birds swooshed down and flew around my knees and then took off. I filled it up right then and have kept it that way. Very cool. Today when I was hanging it up, a little one hovered just outside of reach watching me and he left cause I took too long. I hung it up high so cats are not an issue.
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@heironyma Textor what fabulous news. Glad to hear.
We drove to the nearest city today, 2 hours away. Hubby needed new boots. Still couldn’t find a pair. The dog had a fabulous time, we fed the ducks at the river while he was shopping. Checked out potential places to look into moving. Read several articles today on home redmedies for people and pets.
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December 18: Still so much more relaxed since we have a doctor finally. But experienced a real frustration today when I went to check things in the car emergency bag and found the emergency cook stove was missing! I have no idea what happened – did I put it in daughter’s car when she went on a trip last year? No. Not there. Did husband clean out the car and absent-mindedly decide it should go in the tool shed? No. He looked and looked. Not there. I can’t figure it out, and we need to come up with an alternative.
One thing we do have is an excess of bricks. Going to try this (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=onMbSLuC7Oc) – if the link doesn’t work, it’s “DIY brick rocket stove – cooking without power” on Tinyhouse Prepper. But I have to build and test before Friday – and then if it works, throw it in the trunk for emergencies.
Need to learn how to build a good 3-stone cooking fire. A well-made one is supposed to be as efficient as a modern cooking stove (https://www.lowtechmagazine.com/2014/06/thermal-efficiency-cooking-stoves.html – if link doesn’t work, it’s “Well-tended fires outperform modern cooking stoves” at the Low-Tech Magazine site). But I am far, far from being able to build a good 3-stone cooking fire. Last time I tried to cook over an open fire was truly an adventure. So much to learn. I think Selco’s assertion that skill is more important than equipment is true.
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I went to the grocery store and bought all of the food we will need for Christmas dinner as well as for the 5 days when my daughter’s family is here. My husband was not with me so I took my time and compared prices and substitutions for items on my list. I even used coupons that I get in the mail from Kroger. I played several games on Lumosity to help with my memory and read an article called Practical Prepping in an old issue of Self Reliance magazine.
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Checked on indoor garden. It’s still not doing anything but it isn’t dying I don’t think. Made appointment to have car serviced tomorrow as planning a drive out to MO to visit family over Christmas day. One of the grands with me tonight so had to borrow the computer to post this. 🙂 More news tomorrow.
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Lots of orders to get ready. Went on our morning 1 mile walk. Keeping track of food and water intake on my phone fitness app. Filled the gas tank. Ate all meals from home. Warm days, but cold nights. Had to build a fire. Took food out of the freezer for meals over the next few days. Picked up fresh greens from the local market. Read a few articles and monitored the news. I have felt for some time that the fresh food I eat will be safest from my own garden, but I still have a lot to learn. I also think that less time in public places is safer as well. Some of the places I don’t go anymore are fast food places, sporting events, and the mall if I can help it
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This reply was modified 1 year, 5 months ago by
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It’s been a productive week! I’ve hand washed a few items of clothing, line dried all the laundry, baked bread, and taken my charger with me when going out.
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DalaB…..wasn’t that dog supposed to be on rabies watch? Or has it been 2-3 wks already? Did you report it’s loose again? Yikes, either it’s an escape artist or the owners can’t be bothered which will end up being tragic for the aggressive dog. Awful that you have to be on the look out for that! Pepper spray may have gotten thru to the mutt tho.
RufusJ…so sorry to hear the glaucoma drops are not going to work …again. Hope your household gets to feeling much better soon.
Amy Dixon….I like looking at those pics of olde kitchen tools. I actually will recognize some, I think.
Xant…when I take dog for walk after dark or even getting dusk when I get a late start, I always wear a headlamp. I flash it across the road if a car is coming but then keep my head turned so I don’t flash the driver in the eyes. I just yesterday put an old blaze-orange vest in my truck too. Someone gave it to me years ago for riding horse on the road – to be more visible. I just found it and washed it. My clothing is very ‘earthy’ colors usually and dog is ‘road-colored’. We’re not very visible but I pull us both off the road when vehicle approaches. The ribbon on her retractable leash is yellow and kinda glows reflective. There are times you need to be seen, yeah?
Hieronyma….that’s a link I will save to explore. Looks interesting…useful!
Well… just as I would have gone to bed at 1am ..[or later]… last nite, I developed a nasty headache. I cannot lay down with my type of headache. I was up for several hours. Our Internet plan is limited but between 2 — 7AM, it’s all free. Sooo I pulled up my long bookmark list and began searching out PDFs that I hadn’t yet downloaded. THIS is when I do that. I’d saved several about suturing – when you are not a doctor, nor is one coming. I finally got Doom and Bloom’s [Joe/Amy Alton] huge medical book for post-Stuff-Hits-Fan. Quite a few studies on growing things in High Tunnels. [big hoop houses] Finally got to sleep around 4AM…. Glad to make use of the time tho.
I did not have a rematch with the magnesium block/ferro rod before starting pellet stove tonite. I was busy investigating/adjusting my newly-delivered disability device. I think this will work fine after taking off a couple of extraneous things. I like to keep it simple. Got a problem with the other device delivered yesterday. Not fitting right….might be able to alter part of it.
Replaced the PALlight, into the auxiliary hip pack of my BOB. [the part of BOB I’d grab if I had to run instead of drive…ahem, “running” being a rather euphemistic term in my case] I included in the packet: The empty PALlight which is merely rubber case not much bigger than the 9V it uses, plus lens. The 9V but not inside the light. And a piece of steel wool…..y’know…in case I need to make fire THAT way.
….and yes, tomorrow I’ll try making fire that way again. I can’t remember how it went when I did it a decade ago. Refresh memory but need to go outside for that one. Seems to be ‘Fire Week’ for me…tho being so dry outside, I’ll need a non-windy day to play safely with my toys.
OldMtWoman ….need bed!
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This reply was modified 1 year, 5 months ago by OldMt Woman.
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This reply was modified 1 year, 5 months ago by
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I so enjoy reading these posts. It’s given me a lot if ideas and some laughter. The small things done every day are what get us prepped.
I have done a fair amount of small things this week. Saturday, I stopped at Marshall’s and picked up more warm comfy socks. I also darned a few of my work ones just for practice.
Sunday, I bought two solar chargers for my various electronic devices. With my power being so iffy I figured I could always use more. I now have three.
Monday, I read some articles on essential oils and herbal medicine. I purchased a few more oils and some herbal supplements. I am really trying to focus on medical and wellness in 2019.
Tuesday, I went to the dentist for a check-up. Unfortunately I will have to get a root canal. I scheduled it for later this week. I also picked up my 1985 Mercedes from the mechanic. My mechanic laughed about the car and how they don’t make them like this anymore. It’s all good for the next year. I should only need to change the oil. The car is so solid. It just keeps on running.
Wednesday (today), I am at my Pennsylvania house, so I am continuing to get it prepped for sale. I made a list this morning of all the things I need to accomplish before Spring. I hate decluttering.
Even if I don’t post every day, I read the posts. I added to my list a few more manual kitchen tools. I also put more lighters and matches on my list after reading the posts. Lol. I also tossed out the last bottle of canola oil here at the Pennsylvania house after reading Daisys blogs.
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Today my brother in law gave me forty five dollars as a Christmas gift and I can’t decide if I want to save it for the double wash tubs I need or for another small propane tank for running my freezer during power outages. This just filled my heart with joy and lifted my sprit that he would do this for me. Guess I have been felling down and so worried about how I am going to prepare my family for how bad things will be financially for us in the coming months.
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Tryn to use up pork to make room for goat meat. New recipe blueberry jam, allspice and v8 in pork roast. Nice to not feel nervous about experimenting. Downloaded bunch of pdf about shelf stable food and cold weather hacks.
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Made acorn squash in my instant pot; super quick and easy. Downloaded info on how to reheat foods in an insta-pot.
Researched some camping recipes and one user said that they bring a pressure cooker. Hmmm dont think that will fit in my BOB; vodka well I’ll make room for that 😛
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@Loving Life…I’m with you on decluttering! I hate it! Been at it seriously for over a year and still there’s so much stuff I don’t use – taking up space. I’ve read the books and I KNOW how I’m supposed to go about it; it’s just hard to look at something that’s really cool (like all my backpacking gear) and admit honestly than I’m not going to be doing any serious backpacking ever again. But, I love that gear!!! Maybe one of my granddaughters inherited my “wander lust.” So, maybe I can keep it a bit longer? 🙂
A positive report on the spinach…it’s beginning to look a bit better. I may yet be able to harvest a few leaves sometime mid-Jan. Yeah. And the onions are crazy tall. After Christmas trip I’m going to try planting some more of those veggies I buy at grocery store to see if I can get them to root and survive. The celery bottom did great for a couple of weeks, pushed stalks up but then suddenly collapsed.
Oh, yes, speaking of my backpacking gear, I was going through it and found some really cool items I’d forgotten about that I’ll move into my BOB. Another emergency blanket, a small pair of binoculars, and some really good wool long johns.
Got my car serviced today to be road ready…need to remember to put BOB in it before I leave. Love my car! It’s a 1999 Isuzu Rodeo four wheel drive. I’ve offered to give it to several of the grands but they turn their noses up at it….not fancy enough for them.:) But that car has served me well and still has only 150,000 on it…good car, paid for, drives great and with the back seats down I could sleep in it in an emergency. Number 3 son thinks I perhaps should get a new car, but I’ve followed the Dave Ramsey financial plan for years and I love living debt free and having a wee bit set aside. I figure if my car consistently starts and gets me from Point A to Point B safely, then I’m way past caring how old it is. It’s an antique and I’m an antique…we’re a pair. Feeling good.:)
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Today i went and talied with a farmer About possibilities of renting his old barn. Turns out this barn is a monument and needs a 1,5 million € makeover. Then one has to buy the land AND by then you only own a fixed up barn where you still can’t live in.
Its an old farmer and his business partner was there and thought that I would come up with that amount of money … way way too unrealistic imho. So I’m not really getting anywhere with my plan and limited means.
Went on a visit to an older friend and we had a coffee.
Read my new book about essential oils and bought two pre-owned books from Robert tisserant on eBay uk co. Trying to learn more about essential oils.
Didnt do much. Hoping tomorrow will be a better day.
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OldMt Woman – I enjoyed looking at the antique kitchen items also. It’s interesting to see how many of them (with modern design updates) are still in use in cooking today!
Hieronyma Textor – Thank you for posting the links about the DIY concrete brick rocket stove and the 3 stone “stove”. The video and article were very interesting! I watched/read them today, along with watching several other videos about other variations on brick or concrete block or fire brick rocket stoves. I think I’ll try making one. Just wish fire bricks weren’t so expensive. Guess I’ll make mine out of clay bricks instead and maybe purchase a thin fire brick platform to set them on.
Today I reviewed ads from several grocery stores and made my big monthly shopping list. I saw that frozen southern style hash browns are on sale for a pretty good price so I’m planning to buy some to dehydrate for my food storage pantry (assuming they are just plain potatoes with no oil coating them).
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Anonymous12/19/18
Found a spot of mold on my bedroom wall low to the floor. Not black mold but still cleaned it all off. Did not penetrate the plaster. Came off easily. Had all the stuff we needed to do it.
Went through everything I found and put it in a better place to know what I had. This was stuff I found as I cleaned up the area and looked around in a bookcase.
Went to the Hospital to visit an older lady who just had knee replaced. We got there too early yesterday and it was obvious that she needed to just sleep. Today she looked very good. I got her a card that showed the operation group using duck tape to fix the patient. She liked that.
..corsaire: checked online for the how to reheat frozen food in an instant pot and downloaded what I found. Thanks, did not even know that it worked.
Supposed to be a chance of high winds here on west coast around midnight on until tomorrow so as ready as can be. Will see what happens. If it does cause issues, it is nice to know that you have prepared for most of what can happen or know what to do if you can not stay.
Best thing is knowing we are cared for by God. But we know that I must provide for my family. Good feeling.
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@rufusj I hope you finally find a glaucoma med that works for you.
After several days I think my headache might finally be subsiding. Caught up on the laundry. Made baked potatoes with veggie chili. Arranged for a replacement order of marshmallow root. The first one made it to the post office and was never seen again. Ordered pet supplies. Put a few more things together for donation.
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Thanks Peppy P. I guess I can always move to Colorado… j/k. 🙂 Glad to hear your head is better.
Still fighting the end of this virus. I’m exhausted. I got the rest of the lights on the tree, sat down on the sofa and fell asleep. Putting lights on the tree is not THAT strenuous but it wiped me out. I hope this ends soon. DH contacted someone to come on Saturday to pull the truck out of the mud. It’ll be wonderful to have the truck back. And I came up with a plan to feed the cows without traversing so much mud. The way it is now we could build a cob barn down there, no trouble. I’ll need to get alfalfa cubes tomorrow for the herd so we can meet the tractor early in the morning. We always give cubes to the cows; it makes them happy and it’s easier to see how they’re doing. I read a few articles about prepping and was especially impressed with Daisy’s interview with Selco on Christmas during the war. No energy to do much else. -
Finished prepping for Christmas by making lists of reminders for myself. I love checking off items as I get them finished. It was another sunny 50 degree day so I sat out on the back porch and read a few articles in a 2008 Countryside magazine. I had a subscription in 2008 and 2018. I like the old ones better. Did a load of work clothes and hung them on the drying racks. Almost hung them outside but I didn’t get home from volunteering until 1:30 and by the time they were washed it was too late. I really like reading everyone’s posts. Getting a lot of good ideas.
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December 19: Not much today. Tomorrow is packing day and it looks like I’m working through the day. Not sure I’m going to make it. When to an Advent service at church tonight. Trying to make a packing list.
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Dec. 12 – had some adverse reaction from the root canal resulting in a very swollen jaw, painful joint, and me on another round of antibiotics. This has me running a fever and feeling crummy. Has been reading some articles about gardening.
Dec. 13 – Still feeling very bad. Running a high fever. Looked through a new seed catalog and found a couple of new types of tomatoes that I am going to order.
Dec. 14 – Went through some boxes and re-organized supplies and listed what needed to be replaced/restocked.
Dec. 15 – researched some appliances to be used in an off grid kitchen. Really liked the ceramic cone for coffee making.
Dec. 16 – continued researching about the off grid kitchen. Also, checked out some different types of propane cook stoves. The new home is at the edge of a state forest and when the electric goes out, it is out for weeks.
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yesterday 12/18 busy busy day at work, had an english muffin with peanut butter when I got home, fed the dog, was going to add a few finishing touches on the Otis portrait ended up taking hours, but it’s done, and it came out super sweet and good. Sprayed a fix on it that took the rest of the night for the smell to dissipate. Got the package prepared printed out the postage, but kept the art out for the rest of the night. Worked on the afghan added a few more rows.
This morning wrapped the art up and dropped it off at the post office before work. Got a cool salad lunch thingy from Target a few days ago, and have been bringing a salad for lunch. Wrapping up a gift to mail in the morning. Was going to try to finish the other vignette portrait but it still has too much to do, so I’ll take my time and do it right. She isn’t expecting it for Christmas. This time of year I really want to declutter and clean, but am staying focused and getting things done. Will do that after the holidays. Going to mosey into the living room and add a new color to the afghan, have a little sake.
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Yesterday I received an empty first aid bag. I will fill it with emergency food like energy bars and such and put it in the car. I have a small Coleman coolbox and will use that to make the car kit easily portable. That will be my prepping task for today.
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Got my soup package today. 6 different kinds of soup in #10 cans. Can’t wait to try them. Lots of packages to the post office. Avoided getting scammed today. You have to be careful. Some person wanted to order a big order , but was in Japan. Claims he has his own shipping ID and wants a quote from them. They want money up front through a bank to bank transfer. I said bye bye, don’t need your business that bad. Walked 1.5 ,miles. Took the puppy. He did really well. Cooked from home. Butternut squash kale egg bake for lunch and pork loin with onion gravy for dinner.
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Good*NITE….I keep getting here later and later. Just attempted to place an order for the wall calendar I get every year for the past 2 decades. Big enough to write what we don’t want to forget…. and no, we don’t have an iPhone to schedule things electronically. I remember daughter went off to college and got herself one of the early electronic devices to keep your calendar/address/phone#s. Pre Internet and Cell phones. She got them all entered and somehow — all data wiped out. She was not happy. I still keep mine mostly on paper. Anyway, 30 min later, I’m still not sure the order went thru and customer service is not available at this hour, of course. Gaaah!
Nice to come here where the forum is available even if at least half the world is in bed by now. As for decluttering [Loving Life and Muffy mentioned] I love it and hate it. I love the process of getting rid of disorganization. Tho one can’t tell from my house, I do organizing very well. But I don’t throw much away — I reuse/repurpose EVERYthing. Almost. I can happily go from here to there, getting things organized….pulling out things I haven’t even seen in um, too long. Happy Day. But of course if I’m not willing to part with much, organizing well can only take you so far. Tiny house doesn’t help at all. But…we persevere, right?
And I count decluttering/organizing as important prep – cuz we’re finding things we forgot we had – or WHERE we stashed it! I’m doing at least a bit daily now. Today was quite a mess of packing materials from stuff that’s come in FedEx/UPS this past week. {not even Christmas stuff}
RufusJ….I’ve lived a season with UNending rain/mud. ‘Bout to build an ark that year! Got a Farmall H stuck up a bit further than the rear axle. We got it out with manual labor….shovels and a jack. Threw a LOT of rocks in that hole…making progress…. and then snapped off one inner tube stem on a rock. Had to lift the rear wheel out of the hole with a come-along….get it repaired….drop it back into the hole to put back on the still-stuck tractor….and continue getting the whole tractor out of the mud. {they called us ‘Murphy‘ …as in Murphy’s Law…in that neighborhood.} We were a LOT younger then….but still gave up on that mucky land and regrouped for another try elsewhere. Hope your truck comes home nicely on Saturday! Praying you get over your illness and the fatigue!
Jessee J …sounds like a horrible time after root canal…and enduring one of those is bad enough. Hope it’s better now.
Xant….it sounds like so many regulations for rural living. But running into a declared “historic” site here in U.S. would get some extra regulations too. Well, somewhere land is waiting for you!
Towards evening, I started to feel stuffed up in a way that isn’t my usual sinus. So I drank some ginger/honey tea with lemon squeezed in. Then took an herbal formula that’s worked for us for decades. DH and I just don’t get bacteria/viral sick anymore. Other health issues but not that. Last time was….6yrs ago? And he’s out and about in public. But we jump on it right away! Delay and it will get ya! So I’ll keep an eye on this…take more stuff in the morning. Can’t bring any germs to the elderlies for Christmas!
Did some research today…general. Usually do some of that daily. Cut/Paste if I run into any data….and I did that with Daisy’s shower bomb recipe. Might try it too….with feeling on the edge like this.
OldMtWoman …could be getting more sleep too.. {roll eyes}
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This reply was modified 1 year, 5 months ago by OldMt Woman.
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This reply was modified 1 year, 5 months ago by
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I have to say that I’m very happy you are all here. With my way of life I don’t have many friends who come over. Ppl think it it strange that I have so many canes goods, save clothes to make quilts things like that. It makes me feel good to be able to do those things. It is therefore so nice to read your stories. I wish I had beter and more words to write like you all do. But I try.
Today I filled my first aid bag with grain bars trail mixes and propolis and honey lollipops! Those will be nice if we have to wait or are stranded on the road.
I received my three mini survival kits. Unfortunately they are all dented. I try to get my money back. Can’t really give them as gifts now.
I thought I buy a tv in the living room. Realised that I never bought a tv before. But thought I buy a little smart tv cos I only stream and don’t have had cable for years! I didn’t know that TVs nowadays are like mini film theatre size😳 so I ended up not buying one. Have to rethink all that because I have to remove my book shelves and books. Which of course I’m not going to do!
i bought more chickpeas and green lentils for storage. Next month the prices go up because we are going to pay more vat.
Tonight I’m going to go to my veggie gardening course. Not sure if I’m going to learn a lot. It is a course for total beginners.
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Xant look at a mini projector instead of TV it takes less space all you need is blank space to project on to you cant see in 4k 1080 dpi will do.
We also like that because we can unplug and lock it up in 2 minutes when not using it is size of a paperback book
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Made eggnog with quail eggs and goats milk from this morning, boy the maple syrup and the homemade brandy vanilla sure made it taste reaaaal good. Deep cleaned my stove, guess all that lard rendering sure made it icky. Caught up on the dishes, gonna make lotsa cookies now that i have room. Good ole fashioned sugar cookies with homemade frosting. Maybe make some dog biscuits too. The blueberry pork roast was a hit, the dogs even liked the blueberry “sauce”. Hopefully have enuf i dont have to cook for a couple days.
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Anonymous12/20/18
Power went off right about time to think about breakfast. So fired up my rocket stove and used one of the fire starters I had made several days ago. Took a little to get the firestarter made from egg carton and wax plus lint to light. Since wind was blowing, it was a good test. Picked up on a couple of better ways to light one.
Boiled some eggs and was very quick to boil…around 5 minutes.
Then fried some eggs and scrambled some. Worked very well. So pretty good little test for when power goes out longer. The little bit of smoke blew away and the stove did not make a mark on my aluminum table.
While power was out but we are able to run some lights from the landlords generator…have to be careful what we run on the 15 amp circuit…
I finished my wife’s present. Not great but was fun. It is something I was able to pick up at a Quilt show while she was not looking. You glue little plastic jewels onto a canvas. Kind of like paint by numbers…but lots and lots of the little things. Went pretty well. Only the tree has them. Then was a comedy to get her to help me cut out the mat without seeing what I was doing.
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Having a hundred gallons of propane put in the tank, hoping and praying it will stay above freezing so this propane can last a few months.
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We have a gale warning today, and tomorrow, so a couple of walks around the perimeter, putting things inside and securing others. Also read an article on juices for sore throats.
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Xant Dewit – Your posts are always very interesting, and I always understand your words 🙂
Today I spent some time trying to track down information on the surge watts (a/k/a startup watts) of electricity needed for the Mockmill 100 and the Mockmill 200. I called and spoke with staff at both Pleasant Hill Grain and Breadtopia. They didn’t know the answer but said they will try to find out for me.
Then I did some online research about surge watts and found an article that said if you take the “Locked Rotor Amp” (LRA) number listed on the sticker usually found on the bottom or back of an electrical appliance and multiply it by the voltage needed for that appliance, that will tell you its surge watts. If that’s true then maybe I can just ask a couple of people who each has one of those mills already to read me the LRA number from the label on their Mockmill and figure it out myself. I know they both use 110 volts.
I did learn that the Mockmill 100 and 200 models both make essentially the same amount of noise when grinding grain, and both grind grains into flour that is essentially the same degree of fineness.
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Dear Amy thank you for your nice words.
About the grain mill. I have this model for about 15 years now and it is still running strong. The mill has two rotating stones. I think the flour is Less fine then a mill without stones. But I’m not sure.
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@amy dixon
the other set I have is this:
https://messerschmidt-muehlen.de/
I can make oats out off oat grains the oat maker can also be attached to an electric device . I also have the grain mill attachment I can use both attachments manually or electrically
good luck finding the right mill it is so much fun to do this!
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@oldmansd that is so sweet! I’m sure she’ll love it
@rufusj glad to hear you’ll be getting the truck out.
@xant dewitt I enjoy your posts. I always like hearing about your bees and your house hunting.
Dreary day hear. Walked down to the lake this morning before the cold and wind moved in. Researched Berkey systems. Double checked pantry for any needed items since we have to go into town tomorrow.
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Lol xant the oat thing… I back up the tractor to the grain mill about 2.5 ton metric per load for oats peas and barley for the pig feed. Thinking about a table top version I envisioned how many days it would take. The rolled oats are a hit with just about every animal.. had some that was treated with glycosphate nothing would eat it.
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Looks like the virus is gone– yay! No more exhaustion. Time to scramble to get ready for Christmas! I spent the day wrapping presents and writing cards. Took a trip to the pharmacy to see if they would take back the eye drips I can’t use but nada. Maybe the eye doc will. He could use them as samples. Started buying items for Christmas dinner. Tomorrow I buy alfalfa cubes for the cows on Saturday, and I’ll start raising the bottom wire so I can let the cows into the new field while the guys are pulling the truck out of the mud. At least that’s the plan. We’ll see how that goes. And tomorrow will probably be cornbread day (for the dressing later on.) Yum!
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Oh, my…where has this day gone? i’ve been more or less active all day but can’t say anything in particular was accomplished directly related to prepping…well, I read a lot on Survival Mom website…printed out a few of her list….keep printing out interesting list but not checking things off….perhaps because it’s another grey, rainy kind of day….and, this was the last day for my granddaughter to be here to work…she is leaving for six months study in France after Christmas and I will miss her….but have found a local woman who is going to come in on the same schedule so with her help things hopefully will remain fairly well ordered…A caroling group came by after dark and sang for me….that was nice…whoops, I just remembered I haven’t checked on the spinach today…oh, well, as Scarlett says “tomorrow is another day” so nite all…
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After reading your article today, Daisy, I used the excuse of the holiday season to purchase multiples of several items at the store. It’s concerning to think how life could change so much so soon.
Another prep was doing a load of laundry and hanging it up to dry. I also topped off my tank today while I was out.
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I’ve been busy the last 3 days. I tried using up more of the older food in the freezer. Used up a lot of the odds and ends in my fridge so I would have room for all the Christmas foods. Did some laundry, washed up the dishes, paid bills, got groceries, made some cookies for the freezer and looking for recipes to make a strawberry & cranberry jam. Had to see a chiropractor today for severe back pain. Tomorrow I get the 4th round of trigger point injections for the pain in my back and arm. Not sure how I would handle this in a shtf situation.
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I cleaned the entire house today, did laundry and baked 3 loaves of bread. Watched YouTube videos and read Daisy’s article. A lot to think about.
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Dec. 17 Read some internet articles about getting prepared for a power grid problem. Started thinking about alternative heat sources and water sources. Believe that I have this covered now.
Dec. 18 Had some medical tests ran and used a gift card to get a BOGO steak meal (actually two meals) for free.
Dec. 19 Read more and watched a couple of videos about the power down warnings and also checked out some of the end of the year seed deals.
Dec. 20 Worked more on the living room floor and went to the dentist to get the root canal checked. He changed the antibiotic again. Read Daisy’s article about the 8 red flags of a economic collapse. Paid the house payment early just in case there is a developing problem. Feel that I need some space between me and losing the property.
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December 20: Have to delay the Christmas trip, maybe as much as a whole day, because of work. I’m bummed. A project manager gave me a job saying it was 16,000 words and it’s going to turn out to be over 20,000. Normally, that would be an extra 2 days, but we’re trying to get to our son’s house for Christmas, so I’m trying to do it in one. I’m mad at the ditzy, unreasonable project manager. I don’t want to lose the client, but I think I’m going to avoid this PM in the future.
So much for the rant. Today we finally got an emergency car kit all together. Husband and daughter did almost everything because I was stuck at the computer. Again. But daughter planned good meals for the trip and made sure we have everything we need, and husband made sure the car is in tip-top condition. It should be OK. Son told us to take a different route than usual because he felt our usual route would be too dangerous if bad weather hit. So we’re taking the long way around, for safety. Hope to leave by tomorrow afternoon and just drive until it’s time to find a hotel for the night.
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Xant…always glad to hear your stories. We’ve had TV about 3 years out of the past 30. Not in the past 20 at all. Only thing I miss is HOW to pronounce new words people keep making up and how to pronounce prominent names in the news. I only read on Internet…not vid clips. I’m happy to put up with that and go without TV.
OldMansd…the rocket stove worked well – in a true test! 🙂 So it doesn’t get that hot on the bottom? That’s good to know! I WILL get one of those built!!! Not today or tomorrow….but I’m keeping that project towards the top of the LIST. Haven’t seen that type of craft you made…must have taken some time to place those bitty dots. Your dw will love it! At the “11th hour”…I’m still trying to come up with an idea for my DH. Brain has gone blank on me this year. 🙁
RufusJ …yay, so glad you’re finally feeling better. Hard to be down …so close to Christmas!
Hieronyma…y’all drive safe and have a great time. Sorry you’ll be delayed in leaving tho.
JesseeJ ….hope that root canal problem will be handled soon.
I read the same article ….Red Flags….and the links…and links from there. We mostly don’t keep much in the bank. ” A bird in the hand is better than two in the bush”, as they used to say. Food, supplies, tools, books-data, skills are ‘in the hand’. We’ve ordered some things lately….even tho we don’t spend much on Christmas. Placed $ where we needed to fill in. {Merry Christmas to us} Course then ya gotta find where to PUT THINGS…
To bed earlier tonite…still feeling a bit ‘off’ but no worse. Now would not be a good time to break my no-illness record. {shaking head}
OldMtWoman
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This reply was modified 1 year, 5 months ago by OldMt Woman.
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This reply was modified 1 year, 5 months ago by
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The holidays are such a busy time. I continue the small steps and try to stay on track.
Dec 20. Today, I had more dental work done. I also bought some more canned goods on sale at the grocery store. I also reused some gift bags for holiday presents.
Dec 19. I had maintenance work done on my SUV. I keep my vehicles well maintained. I am at 165,000 on my SUV. Thinking about my vehicle, I am putting some additional oil and supplies on my prep list.
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Read Daisy’s article. Kind of scary. Every time I leave the house I think to myself, if this was the last trip, what do I absolutely need. I usually grab one or two small things, but sometimes I check myself because there are a lot of things I want, like solar powered equipment and a Mossberg, but I have to remember what I can afford and what will help right now. I took visual inventory today, and realize that I have gotten a lot done, so I am proud of all I’ve accomplished. I would hate for the s to htf, but I’m as ready as I will ever be.
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First day of winter. My dad was a dairy farmer and this was his favorite day of the year—days are getting longer and spring is on the way. He was up at 5am 24/7 for 60 years, so anything that made him happy made the rest of us happy!
My daughter and her family are on their way from Tennessee. Going to be a challenge to think prep with the 2 munchkins around. Before they get here, I’m making trays of cookies and bread to take to the neighbors. We have a police officer and a nurse across the street a family who does bow hunting next door and a very resourceful couple behind us. Having a good neighbor and friend is paramount when disaster strikes. The couple on the other side of us will most likely be on their own if shtf. They have called the sheriff and the health department with complaints about all of us, all unsubstantiated. I do pray for them because I think they must have mental health issues. They don’t talk to anyone so I may be wrong.
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Today I ordered 2 books (used) about self sufficiency on eBay uk. I love books. I love reading.
I also spent a lot of money buying dog food, food and stuff for the chickens and the two birds we have. Well, I have. They were my children’s. I bought them after a lot of nagging and gave in ( the dog is yours and the chickens too-we want an animal to take care if ourselves). They wanted rats and other nasty critters which I don’t want in my house. I anticipated on the fact that a little bird is nice… for a couple of weeks. And so it happened and they ended up in the living room. When I go to the animal feed store, I like to take something as a treat. The dog got a big smokey bone, the chickens something to pick in and the birds a new bath, completely of plastic. It will be fun to see them bath.
Im preparing for Christmas and did some extra shopping. My parents will come over. Normally I ho to their place but this time I’m on duty for incidents/crises. So they come here. Which is nice for a change.
Today i filled my copper leak free tube thing with paracetamol tablets to add to my travel mini bob.
Probably will be preparing for Christmas and not so much prepping.
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Picked up some oatmeal, grits, and bacon for breakfast for the next few days and will make a couple pans of buttermilk biscuits. We have company in today that will stay till after Christmas and then family coming in a few days, by God’s grace I will get through all the baking, cooking and extra food required.
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Aaaand there is a felon on parole in the neighborhood. Researched security cameras, and hope to purchase and install soon
Ordered decent shoes. I went through a pair of sketchers sandals in 3 months. Purchased ecco that was on sale this time around.
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Another dreary, gray, rainy day….can’t imagine how folks live where it’s like this most all the time…I need the sun to shine…Checked on the indoor garden and things are definitely looking up…the spinach is finally beginning to make a few more leaves and the onions are at least 8 inches tall!!! I’ll be heading out to MO on Sunday (hopefully less traffic particularly through the St. Louis stretch which is most challenging for me), so I’ll ask my handyman neighbor to check on my little gardening effort every day or so to be sure moisture remains correct….before leaving, I’ll throw my BOB bag in the car along with my new battery power bank…kind of proud of myself that I was able to figure out how to get the power bank fully charged….but the youngest granddaughter had to help me understand that apple products require specific connecting cables…good grief…why can’t all this stuff be standard? While I’m traveling I won’t be able to do much prepping other than continuing to read and look at youtube videos….I’m intrigued with the idea of the rocket stove and thinking to maybe try to do something like that after Christmas, just for fun…hopefully Daisy’s warning signals for total collapse won’t be as bad as some think….whatever, we do the best we can and I am blessed with a faith that gives all the rest to God. I’m praying safe travels for everyone….
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Anonymous12/21/18
Way better day in Astoria today compared to yesterday.
Made 24 more fire starters with egg cartons and dryer lint plus wax. Added a length of cotton twine to act as a wick. Put a little Vaseline on the wick to make it burn better. When I had to use a regular one yesterday, the wind was blowing pretty hard and the egg edge did not want to stay lighted. Going to see if that helps.
Got some more supplies to see us through Christmas week. Will have some guests and maybe 2 grand kids staying with us for the week.
Also reading through some prep websites
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Today I took a walk, filled up water jugs, and purchased marked down meat.
Daisy, your challenges are super helpful to keep prepping top of mind. I’m much more aware of what color coat I wear when going out and also how low my gas tank is, among many other things. Thank you for this extremely helpful challenge. 🙂
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We got the truck out!!! Yay!!! Bless Charles’ heart– he came with his truck, hooked the two up with a strap, gave it a good yank and out came Hanc! (Hanc is our truck’s name.) It took all of 3 minutes max. And bless him, he wouldn’t take any payment for it either .We met him a few years back when we hired him to bulldozer a fence line for us. So Hanc is now home with us, dirty but here. And the cows got their treats too. The ground is finally dry so we took Hanc out to drop off the cubes and they came running. Getting Hanc was our big prep for the day. Now to clean him up and get all the supplies back in place.
Those of you traveling– be safe! And blessings to everyone this holiday season! Merry Christmas, everyone!
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This reply was modified 1 year, 5 months ago by
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This reply was modified 1 year, 5 months ago by
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Ran errands today. Baked bread, biscuits and dog treats. Cooked large pot of rice. Made pedant butter. Hubby stays home while I visit family over the holidays. He’ll be on pet duty. I try to make enough food for a week even though I should only be gone 4 days. Individual containers of overnight oats for breakfast, fresh loaf of bread and a couple dozen biscuits. Tomorrow I’ll make beans to go with the rice and a veggie lasagna. Laid out directions and supplies for cats and the dog. Filled up bird feeders and watered the house plants.
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20th-Dropped a package at the post office in the morning before work. Was on the reg three hours, long time, mostly nice people until that one who is joyless. I did not crush her potato chips, lol. Reminded me of David Sedaris’ Elf Diaries, when he was an elf in Santa’s Village and the lady said I’m going to have you fired. Lol, I’ll leave it there if you know what the rest of it is, but I was thinking it. Filled the tank yesterday on the way home from work, had sake and knitted until midnight. The afghan is getting large and is gracefully blending into another color. Real happy with the way it’s coming out. Determined to finish it. I started it three years ago in November when I tore the ligaments in my knee and missed quite a lot of work. My Basset came down with Pancreatitis, my little ancient mare got laminitis and my other Basset was getting a nasal tumor. It was a very bad time and I had no extra funds, and was hoping to get the afghan finished for my daughter for Christmas… and now I am. Life is better now, well financially anyway. I did lose both Bassets and my mare in the last three years. But I have the maniac boy Sheltie as comic relief.
Today when I was on the reg in the morning a man was backing up into a space in the parking lot and they guess hit the gas instead of the brakes, he crashed into three cars and a cart full of groceries a 72 year old woman was loading into her trunk. She survived thank goodness, is in the hospital now. Crazy energy. My theory, they all drive like they push their carts in the store, sometimes I have to jump out of the way. Be careful out there.
Happy Winter Solstice. Tonight I gifted myself with the new slippers, Isotoners with memory foam, so comfy, I bought over the summer, got a pair for my daughter too. I’ve been picking up Christmas gifts here and there for months now. There’s still about three projects I’d like to finish for my friends, but I have back up presents in case I don’t. Tonight I am going to work on the afghan again and working on a list of preps in areas where I’m a little lacking. I’d like to keep more liquor but darn I keep using it.
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Yesterday we ran some errands and stocked up. We topped off the tank and gas was only $1.99 in Alabama.
Today we signed to buy a car (as soon as they get it). It is scary with the economy but ‘Babe’ is on her last leg. The good thing is that we got 15 good years out of her.
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Hi everyone. Yes, I am always SO glad for winter solstice to arrive! Cuz I don’t like the darkening days and get down right excited about having a couple extra minutes of daylight tomorrow. And the next day…and next. Until I’m not doing evening chores by moonlight. Speaking of which, glorious full(?) moon out tonite when DH and I fed. I do enjoy moonlight too….but only if I have extra large dog with me. [predators lurk] I walk her and DH does the rest. This winter [baring a number of subzero nites] has been mild, more like it was around here a couple decades ago. Before we got so horrifically COLD and HARSH winters. I would like to return to the milder winters!!!
I am feeling like I have again beat out the virus/whatever that was attempting ‘invasion’. Never really got uncomfortable….just pending. So I’m keeping up with the herbs, etc. Make sure it doesn’t return. 🙂 Elderlies happy it won’t interfere with Christmas!!
Solved the issue of DH’s Christmas gift. I just asked him – so much for surprise- but he mentioned another attempt at getting gloves/mittens that can keep his hands warm enough. We think he’s developed Raynauds in our years up the mountain. 🙁 It’s so very painful when the blood won’t flow to fingers. I spent couple hours searching. Eliminated the electric gloves…they don’t extend the heating elements down the fingers. In his case, that doesn’t work. Finally found insulated mittens with a glove inside. The gloved hand can come out of a zipper, to do dexterity work, then slip back inside the warm mitten. I think we might have found our solution. By now, it’s a medical problem for him when he’s out doing chores, etc. Pricey tho…but if “the lights go out” we’d better have something to keep him able to endure winter. Also can slip those air-activated heaters inside…which he’ll need. Remember, you can use those for an hour, then put them into a Ziplock bag. Lack of O2 will stop their use. Then re-activate them with air the next time you need them. Otherwise they are an awful waste of money.
Read Daisy’s article about organizing preps in the house. Laughed in recognition at the preliminary remarks….WHERE IS IT? I say that a lot. I’m still sorting…a little each day. It shows…after the past month and a half…it really does show! 🙂
Because of wildfire/EVAC experience, I’ve had my First Aid stuff pretty organized into 2 kits [one for each of us] if we had to run out door. Now a large cardboard sign [large so I don’t have to get my readers to read it] tell us to also grab his meds and our herbs, and a few other BO things. If we had space, the larger totes of 1st Aid/medical would come too. In other categories, I’m not as organized…tho somewhat. If I’d quit moving things around, I could remember better. But have to make room for new stuff….thus, new arrangements.
Too tired to make comments tonite but enjoyed everyone’s posts. Stay safe on roads…crazies abound! Glad Hanc is out of mud! G’Nite!
OldMtWoman …fell asleep at laptop tonite til doggie-dear started barking..Hmph!
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This reply was modified 1 year, 5 months ago by OldMt Woman.
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This reply was modified 1 year, 5 months ago by
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This article was sent to me by a friend. I wonder how close to the truth it really is, and 6 months without electricity means I need more fuel and more money at home. I’ve got everything else. I say that then think of 100 things I’ll probably need. Filled the propane tank. Got a big order ready to ship. Got the last of the Christmas gifts. My oldest daughter will be here tomorrow for a week. The whole gang will be together. Have a great weekend everyone.
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Xant Dewit – Your KoMo Classic grain mill is beautiful – such a pretty wood housing! This is the kind of oat flaker I have (but it is manual, not electric): https://www.amazon.com/All-Steel-Marga-Mulino-Roller-Cereal/dp/B01N7QXV5A/ref=sr_1_fkmr0_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1545459941&sr=8-2-fkmr0&keywords=marga+marcato+mulino
Yesterday (Friday), I drove for over an hour to go to a very nice natural foods store that has a special cool room (55 degrees Fahrenheit) full of bins of bulk grains, nuts, beans, salts, sugars, flours, herbs and spices. I bought some more organic dried elderberries to make elderberry syrup and an elderberry tincture to help fight colds and flu. I also bought some hominy corn to give to a friend who likes it. It is hard to find hominy in my part of the country, so I was happy to be able to get some. Because it was my first visit to that store, I also walked up and down all the aisles and made a list of many of the items they sell and what they charge for them so I can compare the prices to see if I would save money shopping there again, or if i should just order those items online.
Next, I drove for another half hour to get to a discount grocery store I like. I did part of my monthly grocery shopping there and was pleased to find that they had little tubs of Siggi’s Icelandic yogurt for just 25 cents (that’s $0.25 U.S.) each! By the time I got back home, I was so tired from all the driving and shopping that I fell asleep and didn’t unpack my groceries until I woke up after midnight (which is why I’m writing this post so late at night <smile>, Later today (Saturday) I will be going out again to two or three more stores to finish my grocery shopping for the month – so I guess I’d better stop writing and go to sleep, lol.
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Dec. 20 – Started looking up recipes for low cost “scarcity” meals to utilize what is in the pantry so I can have variety but keep the cost down for the meals.
Dec. 21 – researching more about the call to start prepping by the mainstream. Also, boiled eggs, washed the eggs that I got this week to sell, cleaned out the small freezer and used some of the older veges to feed the chickens. Nothing to go to waste.
Dec. 22 – Got the oil changed in the car last night, picked up some ink for the printer in case that we need it. Got hair dye to do my hair myself to save some money. will be painting in the kitchen today as the boys are going to work on the flooring this evening.
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Love reading all your accounts and very glad Hanc is out of the mud
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Dec 22
I am writing down my prepping list for 2019 and putting it at the front of my notebook so I can look at it every day and stay on course.
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Yesterday I filled the car with gas, rolled coins for my money storage, got signed up for some physical therapy to finally deal with a health issue that has plagued me for the last few years.
Today I cleaned out the fridge and found some apples getting soft, so I made an apple pie with them using a crust I had in the freezer. Cooked a ham and found I already had a ham bone in the freezer so now I have too. Plan to cook some ham bone broth to can after Christmas. Organizing some prep notes I’ve been taking so I can print them off for my binder.
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Im deepcleaning the house. Today was the bedroom so i reorganised the foodstorage under my bed. I want to store the new stock of beans.
I also rearranging my bottle and jar storage for the balms and salves.
I bought 15 boxes of whole wheat bread mix. For those days I don’t have enough time to grind grains. Monday I will buy extra bags white flour for just in case and long storage.
I hung linen curtains in my bedroom I found an a flea market for only 2€ they are really beautiful and a good quality
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I learned a lesson in being prepared today that I wasn’t expecting. I went to the children’s museum today with 6 other adults and 3 grandkids. When I was in an exhibit with the 12 year old I got very hot and lightheaded. I had no water, no candy, no snacks to raise my blood sugar. I sat down in the commons area while my grandson got in line to hold a spot for his cousin on the winter slide. I could see him and didn’t want him to be alarmed. I was able to call my son after I sat for awhile and kept my head down. He texted my daughter and after some apple juice, graham crackers and water I felt better. If I had been alone I would have had a very hard time staying alert. I would not have had anything to eat or drink to help. A few pieces of candy in my purse was all I would have needed and will have from now on.
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Anonymous12/22/18
Enrolled in Daisy’s class on the pantry and went through the first lesson today. Very timely class for us at this time. And price was down a little so great timing. Check it out if you have not done so.
We had some of hour home grown sprouts today in our breakfast smoothies. Very cool to go over and cut some and put into shakes. My spinach has slowed down but is still there. I have been reading how some of the others folks spinach is doing.
Looking forward to having two daughters and their families here on Christmas day. They know we are money challenged a little until disability kicks in or not…then retirement. So good timing…since all are trying to lose weight.
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Filled water jugs, cache pvc pipe cut and filled, making dog biscuits now
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tired tonight so will be brief….ready for drive out to visit family in MO tomorrow….told the spinach of my plans to be gone for several days and they were okay with it….assured them handyman neighbor would be by to water…:) onions going crazy…will be able to cut and use in another week or so…what fun, definitely going to do again….
so glad to hear Hanc has been retrieved….Lilac5 farms incident reminded me to keep something in the purse for sugar low…OldMtWoman has so many interesting stories to share…thanks…I just love coming here each day to catch up on all that is going on…
Was able to persuade my Number 2 son to give a bit more thought to possible EMP situations based on frequent references in more mainstream media…he moved reviewing his food storage higher on his priority list…so much of what we have and do is in freezers so talked some about canning the tons of deer meat he has in freezers….hunters who hunt on his land give him deer every year.
BOB bag secure in car…need to call it a day…travel safely everyone….
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Learned about psychopaths, how to deal with them and how to protect myself. Also checked prices on knives. I need to be careful as there are laws regarding the type and length of the blade. As long as its under 4 inches I am ok for concealed carry
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Packed for the trip tomorrow. Hubby checked the air pressure in the tires and topped off the coolant. Baked cookies and made trail mix.
Hope everyone has a safe and wonderful holiday!
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Old Goat and Muffy– thanks so much! It does my heart good to see Hanc where he’s supposed to be.
Today we went to the mall, and on the way there had a nice little chat about prepping. DH isn’t really into it but he doesn’t mind me being into it so it’s okay. The mall was full but not crowded, and we were able to finish off the Christmas shopping except for a couple of gift cards. Came home, wrapped presents and wrote cards. I guess we’ll do the tree tomorrow. And cook– I’ll start the cornbread dressing tomorrow after church and seeing the kids.
Traveling mercies to those who are headed out! -
Today I took a brisk walk, delivered an order to a customer, made soup from scratch using leftover ground beef, washed and lined dried a load of laundry, and cooked a whole chicken.
I also took note that I need to re-stock some pantry items ASAP.
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Lilac5….glad you were able to solve the blood sugar drop. Scary! That’s the type of every day/ordinary mini-crisis that gets our attention. Then once you always carry stuff for that crisis….a different one happens and you always carry the stuff for that….and then…. This is why people laugh cuz I take stuff with me…but they stop laughing when it averts a greater crisis. ‘Course…as I’m getting older, it means I do have more things that can go sideways with little warning.. Hmph! A bother!
Sounds like many of you will be traveling or expecting travelers. Pray all will be safe on the roads, etc. and have joyous time with family/friends.
Today….I woke waaay too early [thanks to my dog speaking firmly to other dogs on HER road]. Then realized I was into a very bad headache. Cannot lay down during my headaches and this was a dooozy. So I hauled out of bed but when the first streak of light from around the edge of a closed curtain hit my eye — felt like a spear running thru it. YOW! That kind of headache. Ate something quick so I could take Nuprin. Then I pace…trying to avoid light leaks. Took forever for it to even notch down a bit. Was evening before it was finally gone. Those of you who suffer for DAYS on a single headache….I don’t know how you do it. No choice but it must be awful. An all day one wipes me out.
Got nearly nothing done today. Talked on phone with prepping friend….she’d been down all week with some virus attack. On the upswing now but still sounds awful. We exchanged clutter-clearing stories. And cat stories. I miss mine. 🙁
DH and I looked at the on-line report of my recent medical test. It’s as expected but …probably will have to chose surgery this time. [ BEFORE the Stuff Hits Fan! ] I don’t think I even poked my head outside today. I should be much better tomorrow. Still taking the Prevent-Virus-Attack herbs and ginger tea. Can’t slack back on that quite yet tho I’m doing fine so far.
OldMtWoman ….fell asleep at my computer again this evening. Need sleep at nite!!
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Today was another busy shopping day for me. Went to two Amish/Mennonite owned stores and two discount grocery stores. Among other things, I got some half-gallon Ball canning jars and some dehydrated potato slices that I will repackage for long-term storage. I also got some dried black-eyed peas and ditalini pasta for my food storage pantry.
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I downloaded an app on my phone that informs me when there is an earthquake or volcano. I am amazed at how many occur on a daily basis around the world. Was outside from 9 am to 5:30 and managed to stay warm and comfy. I love long johns, hand warmers and propane heaters. Read a few articles about the government shutdown and the state of our economy. Very worrisome. My daughter made it home. It’s nice to have my whole family together. Picked up a bunch of beautiful vegetables from the market and made chef salad for dinner. Watched a movie, Bird Box. Kinda scary, but made me think of some things I could work on.
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Wow, I’ve done failed at being active on here.
The Alaska Earthquake freaked me out because my SIL lives there and was without power for 2 days. She had things that they needed to get by for a week but no more than that. So I asked her what they needed/used during that 2 days, and then worked on implementing it in my own home.
Week 1: meal planned the whole month, shopped to fill low spots in my pantry. I found most of my flashlights, placed them where they would be useful and easy to find, changed out batteries. Bought extra batteries for all flashlights. Replaced all batteries in CO2 and Smoke alarms, and bought a new one for our Master. Made a Power Outage Kit for my kiddos, which includes ALL THE THINGS to keep our stress low.
Week 2: prepped freezer meals. bought long term food storage, 4 more cases of water, new sleeping bags for each kid ($10 each!), pieces for 72 hour kits, and another 18 pack of TP. Wrapped all presents for Christmas, collected all my candles to 2 locations, 1 on each floor, and keep them with a box of matches and a 5 pack of lighters.
Week 3: made bread and apple butter for Christmas gifts, attached a recipe for each, and delivered them to friends, neighbors, and some family members. Worked on loom knitting a scarf for one of my kids, hemmed and repaired several sewing projects. Bought new Waterproof mittens, snow boots, and warm socks for our kids. Cleaned out my paper clutter (Preschoolers make a lot of crafts), worked on uploading pictures to my external hard drive, and put several items into my safe. Decided I need to buy me a .22 because (gasp) I’m not super confident with guns and I want to practice with a smaller gun first.
Mover the month, I’ve also made a shopping plan for my 2019 prepping budget. Each month, I take so much and buy things, and this year, my budget gets to go up by $10 per month! Thankfully my gardening equipment and my husbands reloading equipment count for us as Hobby, so they’re a whole other budget. 😁
I hope we keep doing this every month. I would love to be more active through 2019.
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Don’t feel bad @prepperfan305 , I haven’t had the time to be on here for the last week!
12/23 I have been busy…..too busy to take the time to log on here to post updates everyday, (or even every other day). I know some of you use phones, tablets, etc. I use an old desktop, with spotty internet, so sporadic best describes anything that I do on the internet. I have butchered a couple chickens. canned the chickens from the freezer, decorated the house for Christmas, baked a ton of cookies, made fudge and bon bons and assorted sweet breads. I have also canned some sweet potatoes for a couple of friends for Christmas, made ten pair of slippers, six more baby minky blankets (for dogs, mostly)! I haven’t done much in solid prepping, just small stuff. After Christmas is usually when I overhaul and do the major stuff.
the new job is a lot of training and paperwork in addidtion to actually working. for a part time job, it is keeping me full time busy for this time of year. I guarantee that I won’t be back b4 Christmas, so Merry Christmas everyone!
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I prep everyday even if its only to looks something up and collect information. Today I just up dated the inventory and made a shopping list for the those things I need to add or make in the next 4 months. Needed to adjust the inventory needs list to allow for more items needed during rationing based on the recipes I have. Don’t know why I didn’t do that before, guess I was just concentrating on other basics ooops
I try to prep in all categories across the board all the time rather than just one aspect at a time such as the pantry
going to try building a dew catcher so need to see if some of my ideas for netting will work or not.
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December is a busy month. Like everyone, I have been remiss on posting. I have been doing little preps. This forum has made me realize how much I do little preps every day.
Since Friday, I have been hosting family. Every day, we have been cooking from scratch.
On Saturday, we made ornaments for the tree. I ordered some prep items from Amazon. Amazon had some good buys this year. I bought a ton of seeds to store. I am planning on planting a garden this spring.
On Sunday, I talked with my goddaughter and made arrangements to pass some family items. We also talked about prepping and the current events.
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Yesterday I rode my bike. Read some info on medicinal herbs that I will add to my preps.
Today I took the household scraps to the mulch pile. Read an article about making bath salts… maybe gifts for next year.
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Well, I haven’t posted in awhile. December is just so busy! I did some volunteer work for my local humane society and I picked up a few items for next to nothing at their thrift store. I also bought some food and non perishable items for a local family that posted on social media that they were desperate for food and hygiene products and they were willing to barter their furniture and household items they had. I pulled from my stockpile and purchased some fresh items and pet food from the store. My community is struggling with very high housing costs with difficult restrictions.This family has two adult, elderly women on disability, an adult man working full time and a few small pets. They look like a normal, stable family but after rent and expenses there just isn’t much left. This is becoming a very common problem. Many older people are just going hungry and not filling their medications. But the developers keep building “luxury” housing. The economy is really only great for the folks who are already comfortable. This sweet lady just kept saying ” I never thought I would be in this position at my age”. It was very unfortunate.It made me realize how important it is to maintain a well rounded stockpile that can keep my family fed and clean during lean, uncertain times. I have decided to befriend this family and I am going to try to help them become more self sufficient, if they are willing of course.
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Nw Prepr015 Good for you.
I’m on a fixed income which is very tight so sometimes its hard to make ends meet when the economy shifts as it is now. Keeping things up in between lets me get through the tougher times and long term illnesses. And makes me dig deeper for low cost no cost solutions. Helping someone else stretch their budget with ideas really matters.
Merry Christmas everyone or a belated Happy Hanukkah.
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Half way through canned inventory. Refilled my 10lb suar cannister. Dogs loved my lung dog biscuits. Made enough for a month, i think. Am keeping track of how long this commercial, no inner roll tp last, 2nd week and est one sixth? Anyways it lasts a long, long, time. Used 6 gal propane for heating for 17 days. About 3 gal propane week for cooking. Heated big kettle water on my rocket stove. Took about 3- 4 in sticks to get it cranked. Am having fun, used to have a cubicle job, now that i am retired, get to learn new ways of doing stuff whenever i feel like it.
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Oh for goodness sake didn’t realize clicking on the number next to my name would save me the trouble of going to my email all the time LOL. Ooops I guess I missed a few replies, sorry guys if you were one of them
Will make stuffing (or breading as we are supposed to call it if it isn’t in a bird) and get a ham ready for cooking. Pie gets done tomorrow and will serve with ice cream. This is one of the rare years the kids aren’t required to work the holiday so we will have a regular dinner and watch movies, gab about how everything is going down hill but could be worse and what we want to do next.
Might save a few potatoes for a potato box this spring
Printed out the latest batch of recipes to stretch the budget and compare with the pantry inventory
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Today I went to a few “remove yourself from the internet” sites Checked to see if my name was anywhere. I put in a request to Spokeo to have my data removed.
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RufusJ – I’m glad Hanc is home safe and sound <smile>
Lilac5 farm – I’m sorry you had that scary experience with low blood sugar! Glad you made it through safely 🙂
Wasn’t feeling so well today so I mostly rested. Didn’t get much prepping accomplished today except I sent a couple more emails to the Mockmill customer support staff asking for clarification on the peak wattage information they sent me. I also got started adding my latest grocery purchases to my pantry inventory list.
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Suffering with a health issue and couldn’t get to sleep last night. Finally fell asleep about 5 am this morning and slept 3 hours. Definitely not my best day, but still managed to get all the food prepped for tomorrow when the kids and grandkids will be here. Washed up the floors and throw rugs, made supper from some leftovers in the fridge. Worked on my food storage inventory.
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Anonymous12/23/18
Went to Church this morning and then to store to get the few things needed to feed the kids coming tomorrow. Get to try out some instantpot recipes on them.
Put some lists and network stuff in binders. Put some dividers in to make sense of some of it. Still have much to do on that.
Had to get a new timer for my grow lights and figured it out this morning I think. Put up a little more reflection to keep light around our spinach and sprouts.
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The big news for me today is I made it safely to MO….takes about 6 1/2 hours driving time….the really hard part is getting around St. Louis….nearly an hour there driving 60 miles an hour in 5 to 6 lanes of traffic….pretty tense but I know the route well having been making the trip frequently since 1978….I used the drive time to listen to some relevant audio books for learning new things and thinking new thoughts….happy to see my grandchildren who are now young adults, attending college and planning their futures…went to church tonight and listened to some awesome a cappella singing….and now we’re going to see a movie “Spiderman.” I can’t remember the last movie I saw in a theatre but I wouldn’t miss this chance to do something totally different with my grown up family…praying for everyone’s safe travels if on the road and thinking especially of those who are alone during these days….I love this group and the stories you are sharing….it helps me so much…thanks
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Amy Dixon– thank you!
Cornbread for the dressing is made, some of the packages delivered to daughter where we’re going to be having Christmas. We’re also cooking quite a bit so anything we can do now to make more room in the car on Christmas is a big help. Tree still isn’t decorated! Maybe tomorrow. Just the gift cards to get now and then I’m done. Church was this morning and the church was decorated so lovely. Prep-wise I’ve only done some reading today. Prepping will be sketchy until after Christmas. But that’s what– less than 36 hours away? Wow. It’s really flown this year.
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Day of rest. Love the Sabbath. Cooked napa cabbage salad and beef and broccoli. Took all veggie scraps to the compost. Got together with my sister and her kids and reenacted the nativity in Luke 2. Nice evening with family.
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Yesterday-22nd, busy day at work, got a bag of dog food, a couple last minute presents, the last three candles I had stashed. Worked on the afghan until very late, almost done.
23rd- today-painted a small portrait of my friend’s dog who passed away last week. I’ll put it in her Christmas gift bag. Played Mozart at 432 hz all evening very soothing, in the background, also listed to You Tube while I was painting. Brought the Christmas presents out from all the places I have stashed them, will wrap them tomorrow. Will finish the afghan tonight. Did laundry.
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Well how ’bout that? I’m not really good at the electronic tech stuff but I just managed to post a profile pic. Ahem…I don’t remember where I grabbed that image so I hope there is no copyright stuff to worry about. {roll eyes} So it’s a YELLOW CARDINAL. …cuz I’m often a ‘bird of a different color’ , so to speak. 😉 And yes, this is a real variation like some other critters. I’ve seen a coal black fox. Rare but possible.
PTL I do not have any sign of the headache today. \0/ And I got 8 hrs of sleep, finally. Seems like I was busy allll day but mostly just putting the wreckage back together after not being quite able-of-mind-body the past couple days. But house looks a bit better for the efforts. So tonite I began looking over my old WILDFIRE EVAC PLANS. Yeah, very much needs to be revised. But I’ll glean some good ideas from the old version. Notebook will collect stray ideas as they come to me…..as in: OH…I can’t forget to bring this!
Cuz you’re never going to remember unless it’s down on the EVAC PLAN! …ask me how I know…
Sending a prep item to Brother for [late] Christmas…..who is woefully unprepared but I think he’ll like this. Hip waders….cuz access to the boat he lives on keeps getting flooded. I’m upgrading him from boots that are often too low and his Plan B of 2 trash bags. LOL I’m impressed he has a Plan B!
Boiled some potatoes and eggs tonite. Elderlies are cooking a ham. I’m bringing potato salad. We keep things VERY simplified these past years — it’s survival! But at least we can still pull off a festive day. I hear the tree is only minimally decorated this year. Elderlies ran out of energy but they did get the lights on the outside railing. I’m impressed. I’d have gone in to help but…I’ve been laid up! Rats. Well, we do what we can and be satisfied…even if it’s not like “we used to do”. We’d actually go to a restaurant if there was one open in our tiny hamlet.
NwPrepr015….I liked what you posted about the older folks and the insane rise in housing costs. The bottom is dropping out for a lot of folks. 🙁 And OldGoat’s comments about it too.
FlamingoLady…..oooh, I just had a day like that – after a night like that! I didn’t get half as much done as you did the next day tho. Hope you’re well now for Christmas!
AmyDixon ….also not feeling well. But yet, we all try to do at least SOMEthing, huh?
Muffy…..GLAD to hear your safe travels. Have ever-so-much fun with your family!
Skypony….hooray on finishing your afghan!!! Seems like we’ve watched you on that project! Um…you reminded me I have to WRAP presents tomorrow! I was so glad to get them on our shopping trip….and there they sit. oops.
OldMtWoman ….might get to candle light service tomorrow since DH isn’t working as we thot.
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This reply was modified 1 year, 5 months ago by OldMt Woman.
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This reply was modified 1 year, 5 months ago by
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I thought I’d better text while I’m thinking about it….no prepping today except making great memories with my grandkids…two are in college and planning their futures…youngest a sophomore in high school….really super young people, got their heads screwed on straight…can’t say much about movie last night as I’m definitely totally out of the modern movie stuff…an animated rendition of the Spiderman comic books which I never read so didn’t have any context against which to measure this modern Spiderman…suffice it to say it was not Bambi! Today they’ve had me playing a video game…needless to say I was lost but it was fun trying….hope everyone is breathing deeply and keeping everything in perspective….if it’s stressful, perhaps this year rethink how you approach “holidays.” Big smiles and warm wishes to everyone on this forum….
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Anonymous12/24/18
OldMtWoman: very nice picture
Hope all are having some fun today. We just had the first carload of our daughter, husband, and their boy and girl arrive. So we have to go into lots of noise but we love them so much.
Almost first thing the boy wanted was to play on my computer…so getting this written early for me so they can play each other on my computer and my wifes….I know, why two computers for two old people…Cause we both spend a lot of time….I on prepping….building, etc and she on Quilting and pattern making and then once in a while we both are trying to build embroidery patterns separately…lots of fun.
For prepping today, I updated my grocery lists and put in any new price changes. Printed it out and has coupons on top ready to go. I also put my binders together and found a good place on my shelves.
Now we are baking bread for tonight and tomorrow…
Talk to you tomorrow.
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Its day 2 of a email course on internet anonymity. Today was about protecting data. Also learned about Zeer pots from Graywolf survival
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Today I was feeling better, so I was able to finish my monthly grocery shopping rounds, whew! In addition to my “normal” groceries, I got 3 lbs of frozen, diced potatoes to dehydrate for storage and some unflavored, 80 proof vodka to use to make an elderberry tincture. Well, have to go wrap some presents now! I hope that everyone in this forum who celebrates this holiday has a very Merry/Happy Christmas tomorrow!
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The dressing is made, the presents are wrapped, the cards are mailed and the tree is almost finished– yay! Now to load the car tomorrow and head up to see the kids. We also got a few things at an antique mall here– an eggbeater in good shape for a song, a metal juicer and a shelf for the pantry. With this shelf I’ll be able to better organize the cans and whatnot so this is a win.
I hope everyone has a peaceful and joy-filled Christmas tomorrow. -
Christmas greetings, everyone. A lot of family times beginning. Good friends too. That’s the best part.
I’m so very physically worn out…but I dropped all the gifts we’re bringing in to gift bags. Tried to look decorative with colored tissue paper but I have to say this will be the least inspired effort I’ve ever put forth. [Conservation of Energy!] We keep all gift boxes [the shirt box size mostly] and all manner of gift bags. We reuse even the tissue paper if it isn’t mangled. We’ve been passing the same gift bags/boxes back and forth for 2 decades. LOL Now and then we have to renew a couple that get torn up. I just was not up for trying to access the gift wrap paper rolls that are stored just under the eaves in the loft. [a loft that is 4′ high at the peak, btw ] So ..that’s done.
I got a tiny bit of decluttering/vacuuming done too. And discovered that somehow a glass jar had broken on the lowest shelf. Probably got bumped/kicked and the bottom just snapped off the top. Fortunately it wasn’t a canning jar…tho they were on the same shelf. All are empty in that shelving unit, thankfully. I duct-taped the broken jar and pieces into a box for trash. Vacuumed the glass dust and dumped the vacuum canister. I LOVE my new vacuum! The design has actually improved since I last bought one. [ahem….usually I think they are making worse design.]
The day was nice enough to run water thru 350′ of hoses to fill horse water tank again. Always glad when that’s full. Frigid weather makes that impossible. Ran to our rural communal mailboxes ..twice…and the second time a box from the kids had arrived. Not sure if they got ours or not. Sadly they have health troubles right now with a very elderly member on the other side of the family.
My sole decoration for Christmas….tho I LOVE Christmas decorations [Conservation of Energy!]…is a very tiny Nativity set. It fits into a box the size of a pack of cards – which is why I can keep it handy enough to use it on the brick hearth. Has everyone….angel, a shepherd with 2 sheep, donkey/cow/camel, wise men, and Mary/Joseph/Jesus. I made a ceramic set nearly this small a very long time ago. Painted it in great tiny detail. Gave it to a good friend….long ago. I think this one reminds me of her…and I’ve long since lost track of her. Missed the candle light service tonite….[Conservation of Energy]. Just not able this year.
Almost ready to go to elderlies tomorrow….have to put together the potato salad yet. Then bed early, I think.
OldMtWoman …g’nite all
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Spent the day with the kids and grandchildren. We ate way too much food, but had an incredible day with only one minor irritation which is easily forgotten. This years meal was made almost entirely out of food storage items. I have already stocked what was coming out of the storage so no bare spots on the shelf. My son and his wife bought me a new book for canning which will come in handy and hubby was given new tools to add to his collection.
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<p style=”text-align: left;”>Finished all the wrapping! Went on a 1.5 mile walk. Two cars in the shop. One needs breaks, heater stopped working on the other. Spent some wonderful, quality time with my family. Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!</p>
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Getting an early start this morning! I just downloaded what looks as though it will be an interesting e-book: “The Fat Kitchen: How to Render, Cure & Cook with, Lard, Tallow & Poultry Fat” by Andrea Chesman. Probably won’t be able to post any more until tomorrow due to Christmas activities. Have a great day everyone 🙂
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Have all the buckets inventoried, now to get the rest of the cans sorted and inventoried. I have categorized them into beans, meats, tomato,veggies, fruit, condiments, milk, and comfort foods as well as home canned goods. Am stocked up on the smaller propane tanks, what a nice feeling going into a long cold weather stretch. Gonna make sausage today or at least grind the meat a couple times. Cant wait for maple breakfast sausages and then i can start on the italian.
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Well Merry Christmas, got a paper log maker for Christmas which was cool. Everybody got something they were looking for their supplies so all were happy.
Couldn’t believe Fox didn’t know what wreath cookies were. We made them every year when the kids were young.
Took the toddler out to see the lights in the neighborhood, which was interesting, last year all but 3 houses on the block had lights and most of the next 2 blocks had lights. This year only 1 in 20 homes had lights for three blocks around.
No problems with Wallie World they were busy at a steady pass, pretty much as always this season, will head out tomorrow as things go on sale. Looking for hard candies which will store for years, and some meat since hams and turkeys will drop in price tomorrow. Prices are expected to climb along with everything else in the food department according to the managers. So will try to get a few things to dehydrate and freeze or preserve while I can afford to.
The celery is rooting and growing in the cup on the counter, my daughter just loves it and the toddler thinks its cute. (everything is cute right now) Probably won’t see him the rest of the day as he made out like a bandit with little cars,books and coloring books/crayons (easy to pack in the BOB)
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Merry Christmas to all! I’m still in MO so no prepping specific activity. Just enjoying family time. We’re going to play Monopoly here in a bit….should be fun….yesterday played a new game called Scattergories….hysterical fun. Wishing all well and safe travels.
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Christmas Eve. We cooked from scratch. Lots of food was made and consumed here in Philadelphia. Christmas Eve was seven fishes. I am getting pretty good at guessing portions as there was little leftovers. I wrapped gifts in reused gift bags.
Christmas Day. Another day of cooking from scratch. Everyone loves the various homemade salad dressing. My family seems to have gotten it. Many of the gifts under the tree were prepper gifts, including life straws, fire starters, cook books, and manual kitchen tools. Everyone received prepper gifts with smiles and excitement. I was so very excited to receive two Vincent Price cook books that @crowbar recommended.
The crowd left a few minutes ago. It is much cheaper to travel on Christmas Day.
Merry Christmas!!
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This reply was modified 1 year, 5 months ago by
Loving Life.
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This reply was modified 1 year, 5 months ago by
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Today a lesson on protecting your data from the internet. Also reflected on Daisys short story. Some lessons I learned was importance of community, skill sets and items to barter.
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We had a lovely Christmas with the kids, laughing and remembering Christmases past, and eating way too much. Our grandson had a goosey tummy but he was a trooper and hung in there. He finally crashed right before we left and he’ll probably sleep through the night. Some of the gifts related to prepping, which was fun, but just being together was the best part of it all. Not much prepping today except for reading a few forums, but after washing dishes and laundry and cooking, and then taking dinner up to the kids (an hour away) along with presents, I’m too pooped to do anything else.
But tomorrow is another day!
One thing that’s helpful is the new shelving unit we bought yesterday is already helping out in the pantry. Wow! What a difference! I should have gotten one a long time ago!
Merry Christmas, everyone!-
This reply was modified 1 year, 5 months ago by
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This reply was modified 1 year, 5 months ago by
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Took a walk today. Enjoyed my family. Got a solar powered phone charger for Christmas. Made homemade rolls and a ham. We will eat that for a few days. I’m using the ham bone to make a pot of beans.
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Merry Christmas! Dec. 23 – spent the day trying to get the house ready for the living room and kitchen floor laminate laid. They have 90 percent of it done now. Also, did laundry and wrapped some presents to get the things done.
Dec. 24 – finished putting items in the gift bags, wrapping gifts, and made deviled eggs for the dinner tomorrow. I also washed the eggs and put them in the cartons that the neighbor brought over. I have 10 dozen and unsure as to what to do with them. So… looked like a good hostess gift to me. I had two dinners to go to and had gotten some really cute tins for 97 cents each and some peppermints to put in there. I decided to give both eggs and mints. I also read a really good article about making some extra income and part time income.
Dec. 25 – One meal and family event done and one to go. The eggs and mints went over well. I also am taking the deviled eggs for this meal. I read some articles about saving seeds. I looked quickly at what was running low. I was shocked to find that the water is the lowest in a long time. It is on sale at Kroger starting tomorrow and I will pick up some extra cases. Plus I need to get some extra dog and cat food, peanut oil, and knee high stockings to wear with my dress clothes for my job. I am planning to look for some of the extra little tins but am unsure if I will find any.
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Anonymousv12/25/18
Had a nice Christmas dinner with some left over ham, hambone and some chicken. We have been blessed with a pretty good amount and need to make beans and ham and have dinners ready out for awhile. Everyone gone home except for two of the grandkids who will be staying with us this week into next.
Worked on replacing a cardboard mini shelf in the refridgerator that had meat juices leak on it. We use the box on a lower shelf to pull out stuff that is too low. Made this one better with a plastic inside
Read Daisy’s short story….Thanks
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In the last few days, I’ve topped off my gas tank, baked bread at home, and caught up on cleaning. When I went grocery shopping, I checked for unadvertised sales.
Yesterday we also took a walk.
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This reply was modified 1 year, 5 months ago by
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This reply was modified 1 year, 5 months ago by
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It makes me smile to read about all your holiday doings today. Thanks for sharing!
We had a nice day with the elderlies. Simple meal but I was so stuffed I didn’t even eat pie til we got back home. Plenty of leftovers for sandwiches, etc. for a couple days to come. ENJOYED the Christmas tree and the lights on houses as we drove home after dark. 🙂
For prep gifts – both DH and I got warm clothes/wool sox. DH got a coat with specifically a metal zipper. That man has more clothes in good shape but broken zippers! Got another 10 pack of small LED flashlites …..so finally I’ll have some to put into the 1st Aid kits. I’d gotten that tip from here…sorry I don’t remember who to credit! Also we have now replaced two sizes of faulty adjustable pliers…they were AGES old! 🙂 I like tools and faulty ones bug me!
Downloaded a lot of FREE ebooks today.. 🙂 …large percentage were prepper fiction. Thank you Daisy, for the story you posted. It was an enjoyable read! I switch off between reading prepper stuff and fluff stuff. Keeps me balanced. Lets me sleep! 0_0
Renewed my new ‘texting’ skill while “in town”. I had learned that in November – necessary with that crisis going on and while I was staying “in town” with elderlies. I’d forgotten some but fiddled with the cell and figured it out again. Took pics to send around to relatives far away. Set off a storm of texts and pics back and forth between us all…and some phone calls. Made our party larger…thru the magic of technology.
I have always wanted to be fully aware and appreciate our current level of modern conveniences for as long as we have it! I often give thanks for hot showers. I’ve lived without….and I’ve lived with….I like WITH better! Of course! But….I know I can live without a lot.
OldMtWoman ….peaceful and thankful on this blessed day. G’nite all.
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This reply was modified 1 year, 5 months ago by OldMt Woman.
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This reply was modified 1 year, 5 months ago by
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Finally got the storage barn cleaned out on 12/24. That was a multi-day effort involving transporting a lot of “this might be handy some day” stuff that was many years old to the dump. I have a major mouse problem in there. Donned a respirator and swept up a bunch of mouse droppings. No food storage in there; just hardware, so things that were contaminated got a trip through the dishwasher on “Sanitize.”
I put down six big poison blocks (15mm x 30mm x 30mm) closed it up, and came back three hours later to find three of the blocks were completely gone!
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December 26
After reading Daisy’s story ” A Post-Apocalypse Christmas Story”, which I very much enjoyed reading. I went out to Walmart to pick up some wrapping paper for next Christmas which I do every year because it’s fifty percent off. I am prepared with Christmas wrapping paper for next year, it’s not an important prep but every little thing helps.
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December 21 & 22: Learned a lot about myself. I need to improve work planning and pre-packing. Bea Johnson of Zero Waste Home has a great packing video (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F_ZwE2IUxyk). I want to come up with a cross between a BOB and a pre-packed bag for travel that’s always ready. We got off way too late on the 21st. Then we went the “safer” route pointed out by son and still got stuck in the mountains in pea soup fog and unable to see in front of us – in the dark. I learned that I am not as calm as I need to be. Started crying after about a 100 hairpin turns in that fog. Horrible. But evidently it was a better choice than the other route, which included a giant snow storm.
December 23: Went to church with son and family. Glad to not be traveling.
December 24: Went shopping in larger town nearby. I was really bad about making Christmas gifts ahead this year. One of my New Year’s resolutions will be to work less and have more of a life – and time to prep.
December 25: Nice, quiet Christmas day with family. Delightful.
December 26: Starting list and plans for next year’s prepping and financial goals. I think I will be more focused this next year. Perhaps even a move is in order – but we’ll see. Daughter has cancer surgery on January 10, so starting the medical prep for that tomorrow. Really enjoying little granddaughter.
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After all the holiday visitors, I am exhausted. I am recovering today.
Today is about leftovers and meal planning for the next week. I was pretty good on buying food for the holidays. We cooked from scratch.
I was amazed on the fact that some of my visitors just wanted to toss leftovers. I can see why the average US household wastes/tosses over 20% of the food bought. I am really looking at how much I waste and keeping it to a minimum. I even try not to throw food out by composting and feeding items to birds etc. I estimate that I throw away less than 2% of my food. Let’s just say my visiting family doesn’t seem to get this concept.
I am continuing reading my new cook books and gardening books. I am planning on planting a garden this year. Last year, my garden was very minimal but this year I plan to plant more items.
I started an inventory of my planting items here in Pennsylvania. I am setting them all aside to take on my next trip up to New York. Each trip I am filling the back of the SUV. One step or one load at a time. I am on schedule to list the Philadelphia house in late April.
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After writing my post about not wasting food, I had to laugh as I just read Daisys post about holiday leftovers. Great minds think alike. Although instead of lots of unwanted gifts, my family just puts that money toward the holiday food budget. It helps that my sister and stepmother are wonderful cooks. My sister studied at a famous culinary institute. At least we don’t waste money on restaurants.
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<p style=”text-align: center;”>My grand babies left this morning and I’ve spent 6 hours cleaning and doing laundry. Not complaining, just needing a rest. And I’m a few days behind posting. On Sunday I decided to start running again for strength and endurance. My daughter is rehabbing from an injury she got in the Chicago marathon so we did her routine. Walk, run 1 minute, walk, run 1 minute. We did 20 minutes, not a lot but a start. Monday we went to my middle son’s farm. My 3 year old grandson rode on the tractor and the Gator and stood in the hay feeder with his uncle and mom while the cows ate. He even pet 2 cows. They live in the city and his dad grew up in the city, but we think it’s important to get him and soon his sister used to the farm and the life his mom grew up in, especially if he may have to live that way some day. We had 14 people for Christmas dinner. All of the food was made from scratch and a lot of it was also home grown. My prepper gifts were a 12 in 1 tool (pink🙂), gloves and a pair of rain boots. Today I am serving leftovers for dinner then putting the rest of the food into the freezer so nothing goes to waste.</p>
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Started reading Daisys book, the cheapskates guide to personal finance. Got through the first 3 chapters. Good stuff. Also perused the sales at the big box hardware stores. Nothing on my list though.
Still not using the microwave, though it has been tempting.
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Did some work on securing front door, prepositioned some bolt holes etc. Did more inventory of canned goods- whew what a workout. 1000 lbs est of canned goods all with good dates, except the couple dozen that i dont feel like deciphering. What a good feeling when you inventory, have never done in the past, until i went thru stuff to give to simon the pig. Nice to have a big box of comfort foods, as well as togo buckets. Thx Daisy for all your work on these websites. I like gleaning knowledge wherever i can. Oh and also read a couple kindle books. I do just like i did in college, i write down all pertinent, new, or important facts with the title and author on a page of paper. The act of writing helps me remember.
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A few days in MO and I’m ready to go home…love this family, they are all so good to me, but honestly, I’m ready for my own bed and the routine of my life…the break has been good but I’ll be headed by to TN early morning tomorrow…
My handyman reports that all is well in the gardening room….I watered really good before leaving so hopefully growth continues unabated…
The past few years I’ve been really working hard at removing all fast-food stuff and COKE from my diet…of all the cookbooks I’ve tried recipes from, the one I like the very best is Clean Keto Lifestyle: The Complete Guide to Transforming Your Life & Health by Karissa Long. I had down-loaded from Kindle but decided I wanted a hard copy of the book for easier use. Went to the local Barnes and Noble and found it today…yeah…a bit pricey but so glad to have it. Recipes, Meal Plans, Exercise, Social Situations, and Intermittent Fasting….I think this is the best approach for me…low carbs, no sugar….
Love reading all your posts. I’m going to be making some plans for my new year that definitely include more conscious efforts to be bettered prepared!
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Anonymous12/26/18
Went for a walk along the beach down around Seaside, Oregon. Took the grandkids who are staying with us for a the rest of the week. I tried to tell them the ocean was closed but they wanted to go. We had a good walk along the sand and found some of the largest shells I have ever gotten on the oregon coast. We have had some tide surges and such due to winds and there was a lot of stuff piled up around the beach.
I had taken my hiking pack and there were three poncho type rain coats in there. I had mine on already and we could see the squall heading our way so got them covered and were dry. But the wind blew fairly hard for a while as you can see from picture below. I also included one of the shells. Now if we are still here…I know better when to go beach combing.
We hiked about 2.5 miles and had fun doing it. Good day.
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Today I finished downloading the rest of the free 29 e-volumes of the 1911 Encyclopaedia Britannica from SurvivorLibrary.com into my computer so I can later transfer 2-3 copies of it onto flash drives to keep with my preps.
I also got a phone call from an elderly friend who thanked me for the No. 10 can of freeze-dried blueberries I brought her a few days ago as a Christmas gift. (I had opened the can for her, re-packaged the contents into 14 serving-sized Ziploc-type bags, put those bags back into the can and closed the can with the plastic lid that came with it). My friend said she was able to easily carry one of the little bags of freeze-dried blueberries down to the dining room of her assisted living facility and add them to her morning oatmeal – which is what I’d hoped she would be able to do. She loves fresh blueberries but, of course, isn’t able to keep fresh berries in her room. She is allowed to keep the freeze-dried berries there, so this way she can have some to snack on when she feels like it. BTW, the FD blueberries I got her this time were the Saratoga Farms brand, and she said they were large and sweet.
I also spoke with another friend and explained that the galvanized steel trash can, foam yoga mats, adhesive spray, and metal HVAC tape I had given a different friend for Christmas were not some kind of weird joke gift but, rather, were a DIY Faraday Cage kit. Yes, it was a “teachable moment”, LOL.
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Walked a mile. Spent time with my girls. Happy to see the stock market go up. Still worried though. Three cars needed help. Brakes, tires, heater core. Spent time with extended family. We get together twice a month and e as t dinner, talk about things share ideas. I have my parents over on Sundays. It seems nice as I’ve lived away from home for 28 years. Think I’m getting sick. Taking elderberry gummies.
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24th First time I haven’t had to work Christmas eve in years, nice. Got all my projects done, wrapped the presents for the folks here at the barn, exchanged gifts. Wrapped all the family presents, moved into the living room and knitted the afghan to Christmas music until I cast off and tidied up all the sticky out pieces, at 2 am. But I finished it!! Merry Christmas Eve.
25th It was raining lightly when I got up, fed the Rooster and the dog; gathered all the presents and took them out to the car, showered, and went to my daughter’s. We had a wonderful Christmas. She loved the afghan, It’s about 40ish inches wide and 6 feet long, lol, didn’t realize it was so long. Very heavy, goes all the way across the sofa back, all down the middle it is three strands thick, very heavy and warm. Puppy is getting big. It was very fun.
26th back to work. Long clean up now, been focusing on getting projects and orders finished. House is insanely messy. I’d like to focus on that until it is totally done and decluttered, I have four projects to finish. So work on it a bit each night.
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Whew! What a busy few days. With family in for the holidays it was hard to get any preps done.
Today I cleaned up most of the house. Still need to change sheets/laundry. Finally tonight I had time to read some more from the survivor library.
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yesterday was supposed to be a quiet day with our daughter, her husband and daughter. Hubby got sick to his stomach at lunch, then my granddaughter got a text from a friend she was all alone for Christmas as she is an only child and both parents had to work. I told her to go get her and have her spend the day with us. She picked her up but couldn’t get the car to start so she called her dad. Hubby drove the son in law to the friends house to find out why the vehicle won’t start. He managed to get it started so they drove it back to their house and then had trouble shutting it off. Turns out the car is shot and they will have to buy a new one. Hubby drove the girls back to our house, where we spent an enjoyable time playing games, eating too much food, and then drove them home. Spent the remainder of the night reading prepping articles.
Today I cleaned all the food out of the fridge and packaged it up for the freezer. Made some tv dinners out of the leftovers for those nights we are coming in late. Washed up a couple loads of laundry, washed up all the dishes and shopped for a few Christmas gifts for next year from all the clearance sales. Finished reading the book True Light by Terri Blackstock and picked up the last book in the series from the library.
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Mouse Wizard…..blocks of poison gone in 3 hrs? Either you worked some wizardry with your mice or…..do you have larger hungry vermin? Or you have quite a horde of the vile creatures! Were the blocks in a box so they couldn’t be carried off…but no, you said they were large blocks…??? Wow! …..so your mention of rodent poison made me curious. I crawled under to see about the block [ 2″ x1″x1″ ] in a box under the bed. We put it there what…..about a month ago? I did see teeth marks but it was still intact. And I haven’t heard any more crunching/scurrying. Did not see any foul ‘leavings’, either. Garage seems to be ok too. [but I’ve said that before and been totally disappointed ] I wish you success in getting rid of those vermin!!
Hieronyma….So sorry you had such a frightening trip. Glad your son’s advice was sound and you’re all safe. Relax, enjoy. Prepare for your daughter’s upcoming needs. Prayer for you all.
Corsaire…congrats on your continued microwave challenge. I like reading the interesting research topics you delve into!
Muffy…safe travels!
AmyDixon….what a great gift ideas….both the repackaged blueberries and the “mysterious” trash can. LOL
rd Lucai….thanks for mentioning elderberry gummies. I just went to Search for it and found a recipe. Copy-pasted into my file for herbal-Medical-wildcrafting.
I was pretty flattened by all the [low key for most folks] stimulation to system yesterday. Did make it out to walk dog tonite while DH did other critters. Was snowing, blowing, dark….but not dusty! 🙂 Snow was brief…too brief for our drought.
Read several of Daisy’s recent articles. Our leftovers get re-made with new titles or get eaten too quickly. Might have to save some ham in freezer temporarily. Makes such good soup. I don’t have the bone tho.
I began a new stretching routine….I plan to stretch legs while waiting impatiently doing hair. Worked well yesterday. I hate wasting time plugged into the wall – waiting on the curling iron. Hmph!
OldMtWoman G’nite all
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Well, I’m hammed out! It takes a lot of ham meals to get me to that point. Aldi’s had their spiral-cut hams half-price several weeks ago so I bought my limit of two. Heated the first on up and divided it into 1# portions and into freezer bags to pull out individually over the coming months. Heated the second up on Christmas Eve for all the family coming over. What remained of the second one I had my son take it home with him, but I did save the ham bone.
I was ready for something other than festive holiday fare. I was ready for a pot of beans, cabbage, and cornbread!
Put a pound of ’13 bean’ soup beans in the Instant Pot along with the ham bone, bay leaves, a touch of garlic, and kosher salt and covered it with water. Set it for two hours on high pressure. Had to take my wife to a doctor’s appointment. When we got home the beans were done to perfection and the IP had kept them hot. The beans, cabbage, and cornbread were a good change, for sure.
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Busy days. Here we celebrate Christmas Eve, first Christmas Day and a second one. Yes, two days of Christmas. My parents came and stayed over. We had a good time with good food and such.
Im winter canning. Did 14 jars of very large Spanish white beans. Two lid failed so I will make a roasted white bean dip to eat with the rest of the leftovers.
I sorted out my 1/2 litre leifheit jars to use in my pressure canner. Had to change a broken plastic lid which I had to get from the states. Which is always very expensive to get it here. We have different canning traditions here. No pressure canningbut everything in the water bath canner.
I soaked more Spanish beans and chick peas to can. It will be nice to have easy meals for when I’m late from work. I made dal in a jar. Only add water so that will be cool to have too. Researched some more meals in a jar recipes today. Will make them because I have everything in stock.
I grind cumin and coriander seeds today in a newly bought coffee mill it was a bad one and the smoke came out if it. I didn’t put in too much. Went to the store and luckily I got my money back.
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Cleaned big berkey and filters, went ‘grocery shopping in my food storage` Getn 2 to 4 in snow today. Made the kids goathouse more draft free. It used to hold all 5 of them when they were little, now it only holds 1 maybe two. Will have to put the game camera out there again and see. Too windy and cold for me to go out there and watch. Brought my pain down just soaking my feet in epsom, makes me wonder if i am really low on magnesium.
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Went to Wally world and picked up post Christmas goods. Candy canes, butter cookies in tins. Eat the cookies, save the tins. Vinyl tablecloth aka drop cloth. all at 1/2 off.
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Back home after quick trip to MO…really enjoyed my time there…went to a health food store to buy coconut aminos which my Keto recipes seem to call for frequently…
Listened to audio books during travel home today….focused on the need to be mindful of the now of life….
Good news…spinach is now thriving and I think in just a few more weeks I should be able to begin to harvest a few baby spinach leaves…my onions are absolutely awesome….
watching raised garden youtube videos tonight….
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Today I wrapped up our budget for 2018. There will have to be some adjustments made for 2019. When you live on a fixed income, prices rise but your income never does. We also finalized our trip to California. We are going to San Diego to help my husband’s 88 year old uncle. We are taking Amtrak to the Grand Canyon then Flagstaff, then to San Diego. We will be gone for 23 days. I am a real homebody so this trip is not something I’m comfortable with. But, I will try anything once.
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Yesterday and today natural remedies that I had at home already greatly helped me get over the flu. It was a huge relief to know what to do once I got it and to know that I didn’t have to go to the doctor.
Today I hung up laundry I washed and made bread.
I also followed up with a referral I received.
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Today, I cleaned and made two Xmas returns. I also continued reading third Yellowstone book.
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Got one car back with new brakes. The other one needs a water pump. Went on a trip and packed the car with all the essentials and a few extras. Filled the dodge up. Took $200. We could drive all day in that truck.
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All the kids and grandson are down with the stomach virus we had a week ago. Poor guys. Most re at the gatorade and saltine stage now but one is just now getting the virus. Today I washed new bedclothes, did post-Christmas cleaning and gathered up mags to recycle. And got a new pair of everyday shoes. Yay. My old ones, Merrells, I had completely worn out. The bottom was cracked so much that even in a drizzle they leak. And I ordered a bacon press for the kitchen. Tomorrow it’s back to the eye doc to see if I need new drops… again. Ugh. I hate these reactions.
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Anonymous12/27/18
Read Daisy’s book Cheapskate guide to personal finance today. Have done some but need to work on some more.
Split enough wood to keep my rocket stove in fuel for about a month I think. Remember that is not the kind of wood pile you all are thinking…it only takes a little bit to do a meal with it. So splitting up enough kindling basically is around a good arm load of wood. The challenge was that I no longer have the place or tools to do it correctly. Used to have wood only for heat and cut and split a whole lot more. But we have gas heat if electricity is working so my concern is to have fuel for my alternate cooking methods. Used my little emergency axe that I keep in the car so it took a while but I got it. I can burn twigs and little sticks but needed some other fir kindling to get it going. So that is off my list for the moment.
Took grandkids up to the Astoria Column and they walked up all of the 164 steps to fly their little wooden airplanes off the top. The place sells them for a dollar so you can do just that. They found two and resent them from the top once more. They are thinking correctly…why buy more?
Tried to learn how to braid an eye in some rope by watching YouTube but not getting the knack yet…will probably try to talk my wife into helping me…she is a quilter so it should come natural right? She also raised three girls and a passel of grand girls so has braided a lot of hair! When ever she was sick and I had to get them ready for Church…my hair skills were pitiful.
Have a good night
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Today I finally got the hang of making a monthly meal plan.
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Well, I woke feeling pretty awful. I was shaking/trembling but on the inside. Only a little showed in hand tremor. Hopefully only a result of so much activity [for me] on Christmas. Tried with no success to get a follow up medical appt. after the recent testing…with no luck. Hmph! “Corporate” and “Medical” should not be so linked. Our tiny clinic was much better before the huge corporation bought them. Still have to follow the rabbit down THAT hole till I succeed in getting an appt and schedule for ….whatever. Thot an hour on hold listening to music was painful enough, eh?
So it was a computer research day! NOW I am brain-dead. But the internal shaking has receded. \0/ Spent so many hours……I start with one article and then follow the links to a website I haven’t seen before….and follow their stuff and more links and ….. It was all homesteading/prepping topics. I’m certainly not new to prepping/homesteading/farming/camping/etc. Been doing it some aspects all my life. But I sure found plenty of new/interesting things….or old things I needed to study again. So much more I want to look at. And my brain was actually taking in data today pretty well 🙂 ….until now. Brain is now fuzzy. x_x
I copy/paste a lot and save into my computer files. I have plans to print quite a number of them when DH gets the printer out later in the winter. Don’t have room to have it up here most of the time. I have many 3-ring binders for various categories. I like to keep computer files and physical ones organized into topics and sub-topics….so I can easily find them.
Started with water….copied some specifics on using pool shock [calcium hypochlorite]. I rarely use bleach in laundry due to septic tank so it weakens before the bottle is barely used. Also did some math for boiling water at our very high altitude. All of that copied for future reference. Research on coconut oil. As I went along, I added to my Shopping List I keep in a file on the computer desktop. [I have things color-coded! LOL ]
DH was busy getting some business things set up on his computer. Dog thot the day was boring!
Oh…I finally placed 3 of the small LED flashlites. DH and I each have a small RED Grab-N-Go First Aid bag. So a flashlite went into each of those …and I told him it was in there. I placed the 3rd one in a larger bag that could go if we had time/room. A larger quantity of supplies in that one. DH positioned another new flashlight in the very darkest corner of our garage. That makes 3 down there too. It’s not well lit and that darkest corner is the Rip and Run stuff that would go out the big door in an EVAC. [hope he remembered to remove the bit of paper that keeps the battery separated from the wiring…]
Glad to hear of safe arrivals; sorry to hear of more illness. We’re being very proactive about illness, as always. I never quite got whatever was trying to invade. So hard to keep kiddos from getting sick – they are so exposed constantly.
OldMtWoman
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Sold some items that have been cluttering the house, so now I have more money to put toward insulating the basement walls. Made ham and broccoli loaded twice baked potatoes for supper and the freezer trying to use up more of the leftovers from Christmas. Working on the new budget totals for 2019 and started inventory of food storage items so I know if we are missing anything. Copied some folders off my laptop onto a flash drive so I can get them printed off and put into my binders. Typing up the goals for next year.
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Today I ate some spiral sliced ham left over from Christmas – yummy! (I don’t usually eat ham so it was a nice treat). I also spent several hours editing a friend’s article she’s hoping to have posted in a preparedness-related blog. She’s been ill lately and was running up against a deadline! I then had fun flipping through a couple of seed catalogs that arrived today, and responding to an email sent to me by the head of the Mockmill company, who has been trying to get me the surge wattage and Locked Rotor Amps information I requested a few days ago. It was super nice of him to email me despite the fact that, by rights, he should have been on vacation this week for the holidays. I’m very impressed with that company’s customer service already – and I don’t even own one of their grain mills yet, lol.
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Really got behind due to the holidays. On the 23rd, I worked on getting all the presents done, boiled and peeled more eggs for deviled eggs for the Christmas dinners. Read a good article about dry canning flour, sugar, and beans. On the 24th, took a dozen eggs and a pretty tin of peppermints as a hostess gift for one of the get togethers. Was gratefully accepted. Had a good get together and got a pretty reusable bag, some velvet covered hangers, and some money in lieu of a gift card to get what I wanted. The 25th, went to a Christmas luncheon and gave the same hostess gift. My chickens have kicked in on laying and seems like the colder it gets, the better they do. Started researching some glasses online as I have a FSA use it or lose it with $90 left in and I need a back up pair of glasses. The 26th, I went to the post Christmas sales and got some big tins that I can use to put items in and stack in the closet. Also, use the money to re-stock on some of the items that I needed. A very good Christmas present I believe. I also bought a used propane stove for a $100 for the new house. It is in good condition and can be used when the electric is out. The 27th, the floor of my home got completed and it really made the whole house look different. I am using the scraps of the floor to repair a couple of chairs. I did also pick up some wood glue, a couple of turtleneck shirts, and a couple of pairs of leggings with the rest of the Christmas money. I was very pleased with my gifts this year. I researched wood stoves as they are on sale at TSC. I need to pick up one soon while they are on sale.
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Found a website worth investigating westernrifleshooters.wordpress.com, looking for a reasonable priced thermal or night vision, so far the game camera is great alternative, but is passive not real time. Lotsa snow may have 6 to 8 inches by end of day, and it is gonna stay since below freezing temps for a week….. or two. Goats hate snow. So do chickens. Hope to get started on a pair of socks using the circular needles. Have knitted using 4 double pointed and the usual 2 and used a plastic loom from wally world.now to practice on the circulars.
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I have been feeling under theweather lately but today I feel totally train wrecked by the flu. I did manage to can white beans and chick peas. 28 pints in total.
Made 4 meals in a jar curry coconut lentil soup
Tomorrow lentils and some more ready meals. Thinking of mushroom risotto.
But first a lot of sleep and tea.
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It has been a busy few weeks for us. Now that Christmas is over we are getting ready to pack up the the decorations. Tree will come down on Jan 1st. Then I want to try to get the freezer done. I have a lot of meats, hams, turkey breast that I got during holidays for 37 cent a lb. along with beef and chicken I want to get canned. If there is an EMP I don’t want to loose anything in that freezer. I am still learning this forum but really love what I am seeing on here. I can learn a lot from you guys. I have never made lentil soup. Xant Dewit will you put your receipe on here for me? I haven’t seen any canning receips yet. I am always looking for new canning ideas.
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December 28
Got the left over turkey on the stove going to make turkey noodle soup for the colder temps and icy conditions coming in next week, so soup will be nice on a cold day. Have to go out Saturday to get extra milk and a few other items to hold us over till better weather comes.
Read a little of the article that there may be no money for the food stamp program at the end of January if the government is still closed, makes me worry about how all those people will make do if that happens, how will they get food.
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Went on a two day trip with my family. Really enjoyed our time together. Two of my children are adults and one will be an adult in a couple of years. It was nice to be together. I mostly made sure our vehicle had food, water and meds. Added to my collection of hotel amenities, soap, shampoo, conditioner, pens, notepads, shower cap, bananas. Have been feeling under the weather . Glad I brought all the good stuff, chamomile tea, raw honey from my dad’s beehives, elderberry syrup, throat lozenges. All got me through the night as that’s the hardest time for this cold. I usually wake up choking and get a bad headache. Brought ham and chicken along on this trip and made sandwiches for everyone for lunch both days. Saved a ton of money.
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Had to return to Wally world for a wedge pillow, only to find out it wasnt in stock at this store ( at least today anyway). Ended up ordering it, will be in by Wednesday
Wasnt a complete waste of time though; as binders were 50 cents and 4 pack of spiral bound notebooks 75 cents.They were in the clearance section.
Reheated chinese food in the toaster oven. D*&^$ the microwave oven, full speed ahead.
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This reply was modified 1 year, 5 months ago by corsaire.
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Wow this is great info. It is really nice to sit here and read what others are really doing to prep for whatever lays ahead of us. Today I went to walmart and found rice for 78 cents a lb. Was going to hit the dollar tree but Walmart beat that price. Got 20 bags for our church food ministry. Found Christmas cards for 1/2 price. So good for next Christmas. Got some canned meat as well on sell. Hubby loves the underwood deviled ham. Makes for a quick lunch. Also found something I had never seen before. Ricos Premium Cheddar cheese. 15 oz. cans. I bought 2 of them to try. It is an aged cheddar cheese sauce. If we like it, I am going to add to my preps. We are debating if hubby will be able to handle doing a garden again next year. He is now 81 years young but lots of health problems. Has defibilator and pacemaker and he gets tired much easier now. This year has been a bit harder on him. Though we have hired someone to do the yard work. I am going to try to do garden on my own and get son in law to till up the area. We have done a garden for years but this past summer we cut it in half so hubby could keep up. I am getting ready to clean out my pantries or really 2 bedroom closets that have been turned into pantries. We do not have a basement nor a pantry in this house. So I have 3 closets and underbed storage. Going to be canning the meat from my freezer. I have enough beef to make veg. beef soup and also chicken soup. I have 2 turkey breast in freezer as well as ham. Going to be canning a lot of meat soon. Got a deal on the hams for 37 cents a lb and I couldn’t let it pass. Haven’t seen ham that cheap in a long, long time. Also got to figure out a way to have a southern facing area to grow some lettuce and other things indoors during winter time. So going to have to move some furniture around. Going to be getting new air conditioner soon as well as have my fireplace worked on. I want it so I can use it both for heat and to cook in if the need arises. This will keep me busy for a while so more later when i catch up.
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December 27: Sat down with husband and talked about 2019 business and prepping and life goals and came up with the first concrete steps.
December 28: Traveled through West Virginia today. Taking two days to get back home. Were able to stick to the expressways because no snow – our usual route. Reviewed some of the goals with husband. Listening to 2 hours of talks on smart phone in hotel tonight and reading Daisy’s new book on storage meals.
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I took advantage of an extended sale on organic chicken and purchased multiples. In addition, I purchased peanut butter, rice, salsa, vinegar, cheese, ground beef, and frozen fruits/vegetables.
My client and I had a good meeting and scheduled more. It’s a place I can get to without GPS.
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Anonymous12/28/18
Kids helped us take all the lights done and packed up in storage. Also all the rest of our Christmas stuff and put back regular items. When we have to do this by ourselves it can be a pain with the totes going where they do.
Worked on my splice to make a driftwood hanger. Turned out passable today so we will use it. Should finish it up tomorrow. My wife helped with what driftwood and in what order we use them.
Went to the store and found some very good buys on eggs and chicken. My wife noticed that at least here in Oregon, if they have to put eggs back into those cartons that had a few broken ones, then they put into a new carton and call label them Grade B Medium. In the fine print they say may be larger than medium. We got two cartons for 89 cents each. It has the date on them when packaged so you can see the freshness. Pretty good deal. And if you buy in Organic area you get free range at least and maybe better. Just an idea if you do not have chickens. Thanks
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Back to the glaucoma doc. I have a new med to try (whoopee) but he doesn’t want me to start it until around the 5th. I guess he figures I’ll have a reaction and he doesn’t want to spoil my holiday. In the meantime I’m exploring some herbal tinctures on helping with this problem (not CBD oil; that can increase intra-ocular pressure). So far I’ve got skullcap, eyebright, and vitamin C, believe it or not. Some folks have had great success with large doses of vitamin C. Outside of that we’re planning to go down to the cows tomorrow and pray we don’t get stuck in the mud again. Not much in the way of prepping today except for reading. Decorations will be up until after Epiphany at least. I once kept them up until February. lol.
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The lightbulb came on and I came up with mixes that I can add to my stores to make it easier: biscuit mix, baking mix etc.
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27th-made up chicken soup for the crockpot after work, organic breast, potato, celery, chicken bone broth, let it cook away all night. Smelled super wonderful and had a bowl this morning when I hit snooze too many times and only had 20 minutes to get ready for work. Picked up another freelance project. Cold night lots of blankies, tried out a new cbd oil vape before bed, hmm gone aches of the day but ready to build a Barbie Dream house lol.
28th-Cold day, on the reg three hours. Got my hoodie zipper sweatshirt replacement today, washing it right now. A week and a half ago someone, one of my fellow crew members took my 5 year old sweatshirt from the chair in my art room. There are loaners on the wall out in the break room if anyone ever needs one. So not sure what that is about. My name was on it also. We have several new people. We all get these sweatshirts. I am now keeping everything locked up at work Everything. One more day and then three days off yay. Mapping out what I need to do then. Little bit of cleaning, a lot of paintings.
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OldMt Woman – Thanks! I was glad my friends liked those odd gifts <smile>
Xant Dewit – Hope you feel better soon!
Littlesister – Thank you for mentioning the Ricos canned Premium Cheddar Cheese Sauce. I think I’ll try some too!
Today I spoke with a nice gentleman (first name Hunter) at Goal Zero. He said that if the operating watts for the Mockmill 100 are 360 Watts and its surge/startup watts are 582 Watts, and the operating watts for the Mockmill 200 are 600 Watts and its surge/startup watts are 1148 Watts, and if the voltage required for those grain mills is 105 or 110 AC, then I should be able to start-up and run either one of those two Mockmill models using a “Goal Zero Yeti 1000 Lithium Power Station”. That was good news since I had thought perhaps I would have to get a much more expensive battery/inverter device to run the Mockmill 200 model. Luckily, the Yeti 1000 has the ability to output up to 3000 surge watts for a long enough time to get either one of those grain mills started-up and running. I will pass that info. along to Paul at the Mockmill company in Germany, as he requested, so he can confirm with the engineers there if the surge watts information I was given earlier by his staff is accurate. After that, hopefully, I’ll finally be able to decide which model of Mockmill I want to buy, lol. (Hopefully, their holiday sale price will still be in effect at that point).
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Spent much of the day putting back together what happens when you’re mostly in bed the day before. {roll eyes} Then I spent time trying to get the Internet signal to work. Then I spent time trying to figure out why my CPU usage is so high that I can’t run FireFox and Kindle at the same time. ….do I HAVE to get a new laptop again? I like to use things til they’re reallllllly old!
While I was waiting on computer and Internet issues, I got a good start on the revision of my EVAC plan. It’s been so long since I revised it, things are not in the same places. We have different things. And I think I’ll have a sheet for myself and a different one for DH. He’s home a lot more now so it would be nice if I didn’t have to pack for any future wildfire [or other] EVACs by myself. If he’s not here, I just read off both of our lists. AND….I have to use a larger size print. I always make emergency sheets so I can read them WITHOUT reader glasses. JIC I can’t find them in a hurry. That project is going to take me a while. Important tho. Hope we get more snow to reduce fire risk……seems just WRONG to have fire risk in the winter!
Xant..sorry to hear you’re feeling ill. But you’re still up and doing! Take care of yourself!
Welcome LittleSister
RufusJ….another glaucoma med? Pray this one works – with no side affects. Just a note on Vit C…for best results get the real stuff…avoid the stuff made chemically in a vat. They are not actually the same critter.
OldMtWoman …late again tonite
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Thank you for taking notice of my feverish state. Still not feeling very well but took a lot of rest today.
I did manage to make four ready in a jar meals. Someone asked the recipes of the canning I do. I am a simple canner: only making simple ingredients in a jar so I can use it for more then one recipe. The ready meals in the jar I use dried and dehydrated ingredients. Only use water jars they are. If you want I can post what I have. Told my mom about the jars and she wants some too. I will give them to her on New Year’s Day when I visit them.
I bought 15 kilo rice and 10 kilo white flour to put to my storage. As I mentioned before the vat prices are going up on food and a lot of other things in 2019. The government is also charging more taxes for gas (where most of the folks here are heating the house with and cook on gas). The government tries to get us all on renewable energy sources. It is going to be an expensive year… I’m worried about how it will be next year…
cleaned pu the chicken coop and found out the new hens started laying! How cool is that I get so happy from chickens
i put away the canning I did yesterday. Still have to do one batch of lentils. Then I will call it a day… going to watch inspector banks detective serie.
Have a wonderful day!
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This reply was modified 1 year, 5 months ago by
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I went out to town for milk so now we have enough to last till the weather gets better and New Year’s is over. Wanted to get a little extra milk but my refrigerator has some left over food from Christmas and the turkey soup I made yesterday, not to much left overs but I don’t waist any food. Going to make some sweet potato pie with the extra pie crust and sweet potatoes I have and put them in the freezer for later us
In Walmart today they still have so much Christmas decorations and wrapping paper left despite it being marked down, I did get a few Christmas tree decorations that were marked down to a dollar and will give them out next year at Christmas in a pretty box with ribbon.
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My current living situation is un sustainable for the long term; the growing season is tough because of the heat, I have septic, so that means raised beds ( which I tried, but I can only grow Ocra in the summer). Also hurricane insurance is outrageous. I am looking at South Carolina ( may still have the hurricanes though). Found this interesting piece of info
Unusual Exemptions
There are several interesting sales-tax exemptions in South Carolina. For example, lottery tickets, zoo plants and animals, and movies sold or rented to theaters are all exempt from sales tax. :Sweetgrass baskets: Sweetgrass baskets made by South Carolina artists using locally grown sweetgrass are exempt from sales tax. Once used to collect and store vegetables and other staples, sweetgrass baskets are now made as a form of art by local artisans.
Alternative energy: Sales tax is exempt from any device, equipment, or machinery that is operated by hydrogen fuel cells, used to generate hydrogen, or used in the manufacture or research of hydrogen fuel cell technology.
Missile-making materials: Materials necessary to assemble missiles are exempt from sales tax.
Motion picture supplies and equipment: The sale of supplies, equipment, and machinery for the use in filming and producing motion pictures is tax-free.
War memorials: The sale of war memorials and monuments is tax-free.-
This reply was modified 1 year, 5 months ago by corsaire.
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This reply was modified 1 year, 5 months ago by
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Whoops….I’ve done next to nothing today toward prepping…had to go to town for major grocery shopping, that is the fresh veggies and meats I like….I did however, pick up several boxes of candy canes as someone had mentioned the value of having peppermint in the medical supplies…good for upset tummy and such…I’ve lost my reading glasses somewhere in the house…drives me crazy looking for them…I’m with OldMtWoman, I need everything in large print, thank you….Welcome to the forum, Little Sister…some really great folks here from whom I’m learning a lot!!!
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Today I took down all of the Christmas decorations and one tree, one more tree to take down tomorrow or Monday. I took my time and organized the tubs. Did a load of laundry and hung it in the laundry room. Also read a few articles on planning for the new year on the homestead.
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Today I re-read Daisy’s “10 Ways to Sow a Revolution” to remind me why I garden.
Yesterday I was reading the Reader’s Digest, June 2018. There was an article called “Sowing Hope” in their Everyday Hero’s section. It was about a pastor in NC that wanted to start a community garden with the children in his church. The church elders didn’t want to because of their agrarian past as slaves. Long story short-he started the garden and three years in the kids are feeding their families, running a stand, and selling to restaurants. They and their families are healthier too.
That is a great reason to garden!
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Corsaire – Hmmm, that sales tax exemption kinda makes you wonder who’s making missiles in South Carolina – and why? Hope no one’s thinking of secession again <SMILE>.
Today was a quiet day for me – not much prepping. However I did start listening to the old podcasts by “Doc Bones and Nurse Amy”. I have been wanting to do that for a very long time (to listen to all 300 of them!). I listened to the first two today – only 298 more to go <whew!> If I can keep up that pace (2 each day), I’ll be finished by around the end of May 2019, LOL.
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OldMt Woman – I hope you’ll be able to get a follow-up doctor’s appointment soon! So sorry to hear you’ve been feeling badly!
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Anonymous12/29/18
Was just finishing my post and we lost power. It was different than usual..Went out, returned, went out again and then started flickering very quickly and then quit. So am typing this on my iPad which can connect with cell towers.
Took grandkids 1/2 way to meet our daughter to save gas and got home in the dark and rain.
Trying to come down with a cold so we will not be visiting my wife’s parents for new years. His system may not be able to handle another bad cold.
Finished our drift wood hanging and learned a couple of new knots
Going to do some reading now
Good night
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Today I purchased Daisy’s book bundle and cleaned the house. I cooked and baked from scratch.
Yesterday I forgot to mention organizing my freezer. 🙂
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Xant, Hope you are feeling much better. Just saw on here you have been under the weather.
First time I have heard about the N. Carolina taxes. Not sure what to think about that. Seems a bit strange for what they are saying is tax exempt. We took all the Christmas decorations down and reorganized the shed. Was able to tighten up on the Christmas things and got rid of 4 boxes. Still have big tree to take down. Will do that on New Years day. Getting water jugs down from loft area and going to get them ready to fill with water. These will stay in shed. Going to start buying the water bricks 1 or 2 a month to fill and put under beds. Hope I find a good sale on them.
OldMtWoman, I just got a new computer but still using my old one right now. Mine was a windows 7 till they downloaded the windows 10. My computer hasn’t been the same since. Nothing but problems. We got a Mac that I am learning how to use. I am tired of the windows updates messing up my computer. Downloaded and saved Daisey Luther’s bundle of books. So will have some reading to do. Doc bones and Nurse Amy are really good ones. You will learn a lot from those.
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Thanks, AmyD. I DID get squeezed in the first week in Jan. 🙂 The person we saw in Dec. sent message for me to show up after her last patient and she’ll see me. Report of findings and what we’re doing next. Probably won’t take 10 min. A surgery is next, unless I’m greatly in error. It will have a major effect on me due to my underlying stuff but it’s not really that serious. But best to get it out of the way now….before ….STUFF happens.
Today I was again flattened. Drat! Dizzy and terribly light-headed. Should have taken BP reading but didn’t think of it. It feels like low BP but I’m usually quite good in that reading. I do have an underlying disease that whacks out a lot of things in intermittent ways. It’s probably just that and it’s no danger at all. {shrug} This too shall pass. But was flat in bed…not even sitting up on computer today. Up and down just a bit. DH put roast, onions/potatoes in crockpot for our supper. Good thing he cooks too.
I did put a few things on a general shopping list I’m maintaining. When I get an idea of something we’re running out of…..OR….something we might need in Post StuffHitsFan…it goes on the Master List. That’s the one on the computer. I have 4 scraps of paper that need to be gathered up. What has been scrawled on those need to be sorted and put on the master list. Categorized by stores or their departments. But…at least the bright ideas are written down cuz … 2 seconds later my brain forgets. I’ve just been referring to those scraps for a couple months now. It works cuz weekly needs don’t change that much. And if we use things weekly, multiples of that should be accumulating in storage as well.
But….I like a neater organization if I can manage it. {roll eyes}
OldMtWoman
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Made potato soup with leftover Christmas ham. Pretty sick. Face planted last night getting the newspaper and feeling like I’ve been hit by a ton of bricks. Took it easy today.
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Dec 30
It is a cold and dreary day so my prep for the day is crawling back in bed and giving myself some long needed rest.
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Dec 28. I drove back to my Upstate NY house. The weather was awful. It got me thinking about bugging out in the bad weather. I made note to add a rain poncho to my GHB. I also put an old pair of boots in the SUV.
Dec 29. I came back to NY a day early as my dog is limping. I took her to the vet today. It appears she just pulled something. The holidays were hard on us all. I picked up my held mail and packages. I received my essential oils, so I did a little reading on the oils.
Dec 30. I am with @grannyj smith. I am exhausted from the holidays. I am taking a mental health day. I will keep to my routine and read everyone’s posts here along with a few web posts.
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29th- cold morning, long day at work, bought extra bag of dog food and sake. Had warm sake went to bed early
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As of yesterday we have an official flu epidemic. I hope everyone here who is feeling not their normal selves: take care of yourself! Better take some extra rest and get well faster.
I took it easy too today and feel much better after a couple of Days rest.
Today I made mushroom rice in a jar. Only add water and I have another meal starter. I canned the lentils today because I’m on duty and last night when I was about to start canning I had a call for a social safety issue incident. So spent the whole evening on the phone taking care of things.
Today I started early but saw that the Lentils were sprouting… I canned them anyway. I think it will be the new food hype: canned sprouted legumes😂
two jars of white beans and two jars of lentils didn’t seal so I put them in the dehydrator. Together with olives. I like to have dehydrated olives to use in recipes. So every once in a while I buy a couple of very big cans of olives and put them in the dehydrator
I have two Excalibur dehydrators but one doesn’t work. I’m trying to find out how and where to buy spare parts in the USA. So I can use both of the dehydrators again .
I ordered a couple of books about beans and dehydrating. Also an old reader digest about growing and preserving your own food.
I think a lot about the things I do and why I feel it is important to do. I don’t talk about it much with my friends or family. My own two teenage girls think I’m a total nutter (“ I never asked for a mom who -fill in the blank-“ ). That is why I love to read all your stories. Everyday! It is inspiring and keeps me motivated. More over it is such a good feeling not to be alone… tomorrow is the last day of the month. I hope we do get a new thread continuing in the new year.., for me there is no need to win a book, I buy what I can from daisy and selco, not only to learn but also to support the fantastic work they are doing. I hope we can continue sharing our daily stories.
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Yesterday we got shed cleaned out and most of the Christmas decorations put away. Still haven’t gotten to canning what is in freezer yet. Hubby is sick with a virus again. This happened 2 weeks ago as well. Think part of it is he is just run down and needs to build his resistance up again. Working on that. So since we missed church because of his not feeling well, I checked out the end of clearance sale from Patriots supply. They had a 75% off clearance. So I ordered organic seeds for this spring. Also long term foods like coffee, potato soup and chicken noodle soups. Though I make the soups as well, it is still nice to have a few long term foods on hand. You never know when the garden might not do well do to weather and other conditions. We have had that happen and lost much of our garden several years ago to flooding rain. Though now we have just a back yard garden as a 7-11 sits on the land we did use. It was poor soil but we did good for about 3 years on it. Thinking of waiting now to do the canning till hubby feels better and things are back to normal.
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On the 28th, we worked on the chimney in the new house. The pipe is not correct so I will have to order two more sections to get the chimney to draw correctly. The 29th, I ordered the wood stove and the new triple walled pipes for the house. I found some people to help get the wood stove in and put in place. I also have been working on and reading about some organizational skills and getting rid of items that are not needed but taking up space. Today, the 30th, I had a free coupon for some Quaker oats so I picked it up and some bananas for 10 cents per pound to make banana bread. I have an article to read about water storage. I did get to pick up 5 cases of bottled water for the house as I have started running low.
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I have spent the last 3 days downloading photos and documents off my computer and cleaning up all the files. I added a lot of information to my emergency contacts pages, and added recipes to my off-grid cookbook binder. I signed up to take a 9 week genealogy course through my local library, so getting some info together for the start of that class.
Filled the car up with gas and hubby started the generator knowing we have a snow storm blowing through tomorrow. Thawing some chicken to can sweet and sour chicken for the food storage. Vacuum sealed some ham and after Christmas candy I found on clearance. Updating the grocery list while making the menus for January.
Working on uncluttering more stuff out of the house so I have more room for prep storage.
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Finished Daisys book, the cheapskates guide to personal finance, removed myself from some marketing emails. Reading all the posts here is keeping me focused with my values. ( and yes I dont need those trendy gadgets). Still in the process of removing myself from the people search search engines.
Got curious and found out the South Carolina missile exemption was enacted in 1990 and war memorial exemption in 1991
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Slow Sunday…checked on spinach and will definitely be harvesting baby leaves in about a week…yeah….watched some prepper videos on youtube channel…not much else…I’m tired….needed some down time…
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December 29: No prepping. Still sick as a dog while traveling at the same time. But made it home finally. And boy, do I sympathize with all of you that got sick over the holidays. This is happening to me more and more as I get older – over the holidays! I don’t like it! Need to do something different – prepare for Christmas in July or something so I can avoid the stress in December. Tone it all down. We actually had a very quiet, peaceful Christmas with son and family, which was wonderful. It was the lead up to it that got me, especially with the work.
December 30: Didn’t sleep much last night because of constant, violent coughing. Usually that means I’m getting better 😛
Stayed home from church and just rested and wrote some stuff. Getting ready to make my new bullet journal for 2019 and get those prepping, business and financial goals all set down in ink and take actions (see http://www.bulletjournal.com). Need to rest and get well because January 1 is a “feast day of obligation” in our church and I’d really like to be able to make it.
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Today I canned some split pea soup and threw in some extra jars of beans.
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Made potato water yeast yesterday, made biscuits today. Am not impressed. Liked the 7up biscuits the best. 4 degrees this am had to put a stockpot of water on to boil just to give the critters a drink. Read a bunch, mostly fiction, but some recipes too. Made dog food today with some questionable ground turkey, rice and grated carrots.
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We went to a gun show this afternoon (Dec 30). The people are fascinating to watch and sometimes one can find good deals. A lot of folks were there– surprising since it was just after Christmas and the weather wasn’t great. Lots of buying and selling, deal making and jaw wagging, and shooting the breeze. One guy was selling bump stocks but no one seemed interested. We picked up some great tamales that are made locally (yay!) and a couple of hemostats. No corn dogs though, which disappointed DH. He’s been craving a corn dog for about a month now. And we saw some things we didn’t expect, like the New Age booth. It had mostly oils, crystals and smudge sticks, and a booth that had some dogs for adoption. We found a few things pertaining to prepping there– Berkey filters and big cans of seeds, jerky merchants… but not as much as we thought there’d be. And only one bookseller and his prices were high. As we left, a girl was selling Worlds Finest Chocolate Bars, the same kind that we bought on the playground at school when we were kids. So of course we bought one. It gave us a chance to chat with her and convince her we really were old fogies.
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Anonymous12/30/18
Went to Church this morning and then stopped off at a very neat general store that has about everything you can think of. It services the Long Beach Peninsula area. I got some items to help me make a leather sheaf for my new hand axe. Then we stopped off at store in Astoria to get some essential oils to help with some nerve pain in my feet I hope.
Watched some videos on how to make a sheaf and will try it tomorrow I think.
My spinach does not seem to be doing well…not sure what I am doing wrong.
goodnight
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30th- Cleaned one quarter of the kitchen/family room. House is a crazy mess, step by step it will all get done. Most important about doing that area first, the counter is one of my work spaces, and has been piled high with mail and stuff, and yay, now usable so I can work in with Frankie, my Sheltie. He’s alone too much as it is. He’s got that huge coat so he likes hanging outside waiting for something to bark at, but its cold now. Anyway, I’ve gotten more serious about this hobby, model horses, these people are nuttier than the Basset people, but some are mighty fine artists, and there are some really beautiful resin sculptures. I collected Breyers since I was a little girl, and now in these scary times, finding something that you enjoyed when you were a kid, that truly makes you happy is a thing, an important thing. When the news and the doom talk gets too much I go over to Modelholics group, lol and hang out. Feburary is NaMoPaiMo National Model Painting Month. I am painting a horse this time. I found out about it a day late for joining last year but painted one anyway, a small portrait model of my mare Misty Blue. The prettiest horse I ever met, fell in love with her despite all the terrible habits she had I loved her every minute of the fifteen years I had her, right outside my bedroom window. I painted one tonight using a different technique and different media. It was way harder than I expected, and I paint. lol.
What does this have to do with prepping? Emotional stability I’d say. Just like enjoying the fact that I actually have a clothes dryer, after spending most of my life without one. Maybe it will crash and will all go away, been there. Taking precautions, way more now than I was ever able to before, but can’t be afraid of it every day. So I collect plastic ponies and now I’m painting them too, and it’s fun.
I hope everyone is feeling better. I enjoy reading your posts. I feel like I’m just talking to myself here so most likely won’t do this again. Rock on folks.
One more day and put this year to bed. Happy New Year.
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Skypony and others on the forum….thank you so much for sharing your lives and activities! I’m 80 years old, don’t get out as much anymore, and have learned so much from all of you. I feel I have a whole bunch of new friends that each day I look forward to hearing what’s going on in your lives. And, you have pointed me to resources about which I would otherwise have no knowledge. Hopefully, Daisy will keep this forum going or some similar challenge for us in the New Year.
My number 3 son suggested that not only should I think of new goals, but I should speak those goals out loud and then write them down. As my body has aged, I tire more easily so having specific goals helps me stay focused on living, not just surviving. Today, I will write down my 2019 goals which definitely will include continuing my gardening efforts. And, continuing to learn from other preppers!!! Perhaps this might be a place where I can list my goals and then the group can keep me accountable? 🙂
Today, my granddaughter who has regularly helped me with house keeping for the past couple of years is here for the last time before she leaves for France. She will be spending 5 months in a boarding school studying French and other courses required for high school graduation. She has studied French since the 5th grade and should have adequate language comprehension to do well. However, speaking only French 24/7 should bring a level of fluency only language immersion can provide. As it is an international school she will be meeting other students from many different countries and cultures. Her older sister did this several years ago so we are familiar with the routine. I, however, am going to miss her help terribly.:)
Before today is over, I shall do some financial planning for the year. Fortunately, I have managed to be debt free in these late years of my life and am grateful for my circumstances….modest but certainly adequate. More importantly, I think are the life skills I have developed and can implement if necessary (gained from my depression era parents, and years of practice being a single mother who managed to raise three sons who’ve chosen to live their lives wisely). Today, I’ve already had an opportunity to talk with granddaughter about “making do” with what we have in the house for a project I had in mind.
I’m sending all my very best wishes for all of you on this forum as we begin a New Year….a time for hope, love and joy….and may there be peace in your hearts!!!
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No church. Let my ankle rest. Sat all day and watched Longmire. Totally addictive. Binge watched all day and night , and my ankle feels so much better. Take time for healing.
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We haven’t had any snow yet this season and now that Christmas is over, I am ready to get outside and start the garden. On Sunday we burned the pile of brush, branches, twigs, etc that were in the garden. It was a perfect day for this chore. In fact two others on our road burned yesterday, too. I am impatiently waiting for my seed catalogues. I like to have an actual catalogue in my hand, not on a computer screen. Going to CA for a month will keep me out of the garden for now. And I am sure the bad weather will be coming soon.
My son stopped and took my sour dough starter to feed while I am gone. I have been using this starter for over 30 years, and he knows how important it is to me. He said he may have to FaceTime with me when it is time to feed it so that he can do it right.
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Well read peoples posts yesterday and the day before but couldn’t reply to anything. Kept getting a notice it wasn’t connecting when I would go to answer. hmmm oh well spent the day doing the genealogy and rethinking storage. Have used the genealogy to teach history for decades LOL Dehydrated some food. and read another Mark Goodwin book just happened to pick up the one where food stamp reduction starts off the trouble. It is part of his series on economic collapse.
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I so enjoy reading the posts here.
@sky pony Emotional stability is key. We must all have hobbies that we enjoy.
@old goat. I just finished reading the “Yellowstone” series so I was looking for a new series. I took a look at the Mark Goodwin series. I downloaded it yesterday and will start it in the New Year.
Yesterday, I meant to take a down day, but I forgot it was girls night out. We had a lite dinner and went to a ice skating event. The event was reasonably priced. I enjoy being near a major winter sports area. I bought a ski pass and a lot of events come free or discounted. I am hooked on bobsled and luge. The world cup events are so much fun.
Today, I woke up feeling really exhausted so I am taking day off. I am feeling like a might be on the verge of a cold, so I am pushing the vitamin C. I plan to veg on the couch with my spaniels and read a book. I will also review my 2019 budget.
Happy New Year!
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Yesterday, December 30th, I spent some time talking with a friend of mine who has been making herbal remedies for many years. She told me about one she recently made for her ill husband using hibiscus flowers and hawthorne. We also discussed the merits of dandelion flowers and dandelion root, and she told me about a good commercially-made dandelion product her husband takes on a daily basis. It’s available at the great natural foods store I mentioned in an earlier post – so I think I’ll get some the next time I go there.
This morning, December 31st (the last day for this month’s challenge – it seems as though it’s gone by very fast!), I was watching a really good YouTube video, by Jason Kingsley OBE, about the construction of Medieval shields on his “Modern History TV” YouTube channel, and was interested to learn that the shields were held together by “Cheese Glue”. I did a little checking online and found a recipe from about 1300 for making glue from bits of cheese soaked in water for 2+ days, which are then ground up and mixed with an almost equal amount of quicklime. The glue is to be used while still damp. Once it dries, reportedly, it won’t be dissolved by either ‘fire or water ‘. Here’s the webpage where I saw the recipe, in case anyone else wants to read it: askthepast.blogspot.com/2014/03/how-to-make-cheese-glue-c-1300.html It might be good to know how to make DIY wood glue that really works, just in case.
Wishing you all a very safe and Happy New Year!
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Dec 31
After some rest and waking refreshed last evening I decided to do my financial prep for January, so I printed out the monthly calendar page and filled it in with due dates of all bills, then I printed my notebook size check register that goes in the banking notebook that keeps all my monthly bank statements. I also created a list of all debt I owe and when I will be debt free.
So my prep for today was to order bulk tissue paper and hand soap for the bathrooms.
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<p style=”text-align: left;”>@Amy Dixon. After reading your post, I went and started organizing my essential oils and then searched “dandelions” in my herbal books. I was surprised at what dandelions can used for. I have always wanted to make dandelion wine. I have already decided to take a herbal remedies class this year and improve my knowledge plus use of herbal remedies. This year I started on my knowledge and use of essential oils.</p>
After reading Daisys post on producers v. consumers, I was really surprised on how far I gave come in the last two years on being more self-sufficient and a producer. This challenge has helped with continuing with those little things. If I pass a thrift store, I must stop! I am still looking for my dehrydrator. Lol.I am so happy I joined this forum. We are all in different stages of this “producer” lifestyle. I have learned so much from all the posters, plus gotten a good amount of laughter. Only you all can understand how happy I am to find a big sale on beans at the store — and why I bought 4 cases. Lol.
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AnonymousKudos to you Muddy1938 and a Happy New Year as well. I take care of an elderly couple that have stopped learning new things decades ago. Jean is about to turn 80 in a week and has no real quality of life. She is chair bound by choice, as she gave up long ago. Luckily for them they met me to help them through the rest of their lives and I them, as they are great people(just not very smart).
So, I wish you the best and hope your quality of life maintains or grows with your hopefully many great years you have left.
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MineYourMind…how very kind of you to give me a shout out!!! How fortunate your elderly couple have you in their corner. Who knows? perhaps your enthusiasm may help them be more willing to not give up on life….even one tiny step might light a little flame in their hearts. Maybe a house plant to care for everyday? 🙂
For all of you out there who will yourselves someday be old, whatever point and condition you are in life right this minute, I’d just encourage you to take where you are physically, mentally, emotionally, financially, etc. right now at the end of 2018, and decide what you want your life to look like when you are 60, 70, 80, 90 or whenever….then begin to take even small steps to make that vision a reality….that’s really prepping :)…. whoops, now I’m preaching….HAPPY NEW YEAR, EVERYBODY
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Made yogurt starter, will try tomorrow again with making biscuits. Happy new year everyone🙄
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Today, Dec. 31., I tried to dig out the trench in front of the house- again. Our house is on a slope and when we get more than a gentle rain, the water pushes up against the foundation. Sometimes it gets higher than the foundation and then we have flooding. Tomorrow and Wednesday we’re having a “Winter Event”, so any way I can get that trench dug so the water will flow to the sides of the house and down into the back is a good thing. Earlier we went for some Thai food (DH had a hankering for something oriental) and stopped in at Sprouts (grocery store that caters to the health food crowd.) I picked up some elderberry cough syrup and a tin of Rescue Remedy pastilles. I’ve never had them before. Tonight we’ll probably have the last of the shrimp and okra gumbo. Yum.
Happy New Year, everybody and be safe! See you in 2019!
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Cleaning out the place to get ready for new kitchen cabinets. I plan to put the place on the market at the end of February. Learned about mylar bags, sizes, thicknesses ect
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31st- Went to Sam’s this morning stock up, filling holes in the pantry, big box of princess kitty’s food, pair of Skechers, paper towels, spent a buttload of money. Ran to bank paid rent, one teller and everyone this side of the valley had the same idea.
Finished painting my Takeshi medallion last night, very fun, took photos of it today and entered it into the challenge. Not sure if I mentioned it. Wild half horse half fish, the original 3d version must be 2 feet tall, an impossible masterpiece wining awards at Breyerfest. This is a small medallion version, blank so the artists can have fun painting it.
So that was fun.Going to clean a bit, work on a small dog portrait later then toast to putting this year to bed, and welcome the baby new year. I have great expectations for it. Will spend tomorrow with my daughter.
May you all have a Happy New Year and wonderful memorable times ahead.
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Skypony – The medallion you painted looks beautiful! Hope you win the competition!
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Today I took the kitchen waste out to the mulch barrel… rainy and gloomy today. I want to thank all of the members that posted excellent Ideas! Happy New Year be safe and happy in 2019!
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Went to the library for a stack of movies to watch for New Year’s Eve and day. Bought printer paper so I can keep printing prepper ideas off my computer. Stopped at Aldi to pick up the green and red peppers for the sweet and sour chicken I plan to can tomorrow. Took hubby to the doctor and they have ordered an ultrasound of his kidneys since his last labs were showing increased kidney issues along with the new symptoms he is feeling now. His dad died from kidney cancer so this is a stressful time waiting until next week to have the ultrasound done. I
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We went to dinner tonight with our dearest friends. Cekebrated an early New Years Eve and got home before the partiers get going. Today I ironed all of our clothes for our trip, changed all of the beds, did laundry and cleaned. Hubby took the car in for the 50,000 mile check up. I also called Amtrak to arrange vegan meals for our trip to CA.
I really enjoyed the challenge in November and December. I know I am lacking in a lot of skills others have but at this point in time, I feel that I can go on to bigger and better things as the year ramps up.
Happy New Year to all of you!
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December 30: Getting better but still under the weather. Sent daughter shopping. Worked on bullet journal and tried to catch up on laundry. Going to be early.
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I want to try dry pack canning. I need to find out if oxygen absorbers come in smaller quantities. I don’t want to waste all of them. Cleaned and put away decorations. Need to fill some holes in my pantry on payday.
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Anonymous12/31/18
Skypony: Wow that is really good. Hope you win!
My wife’s birthday is today so she had a pretty good day. I made her breakfast and dinner all from scratch.
Went to town to get something for my leather work on my new axe. Have made some progress in making a sheath for it and a leather protection below the axe head.
Wanted to make some more fire starters….we went to goodwill yesterday and found some candles on a good sale with 1/2 half off that. Red tag day… But I checked out the drying here in our apartments and was only a little lint. When we were down town we went into a laundromat close by and asked if we could have some lint. Got the expected look but was told to come back at 10 pm and we could have some when they clean out the vents. We just went back down and got quite a bit.
My wife and I will be going over what 2018 highlights and low lights there were and what we need to start doing now. Been five months since not having new retirement or disability money coming in. So that is of course on our minds. We were supposed to find out today but they needed one more thing…now we find out on Wednesday. If the answer is no…then we just go ahead and file for Social Security but it is a little too soon so I will lose some. But then we can get on with our life….Not that we have not been having fun.
See you next year!
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THE DECEMBER CHALLENGE IS OVER
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