SurvivalBlog presents another edition of The Survivalist’s Odds ‘n Sods— a collection of news bits and pieces that are relevant to the modern survivalist and prepper from “HJL”. Sweden is getting in on the preparedness movement again.
Sweden and Preparedness
As Sweden gets more nervous at the thought of Russian aggression in the region, they government has begun sending out an emergency preparedness guide to all of its 4.8 million people. The document called “Om krisen eller kriget kommer” (If crisis or war comes) explains how people can secure basic needs such as food, water and heat, what warning signals mean, where to find bomb shelters and how to contribute to Sweden’s “total defense”. These are very similar to the pamphlets that Sweden distributed in 1943. They continued to update it until the early 1960s. Thanks to reader KAA for the link.
Eggs, Eggs, and More Eggs
Reader DSV sent in these articles on eggs being a part of a healthy diet. The first is a Reuters article profiling a study that showed an egg a day is tied to lower risk of heart disease. My how times have changed. It wasn’t too long ago the food industry was decrying eggs as bad for your diet and especially bad for your cholesterol. Now there is evidence that, in moderation, they are actually good for your cholesterol. I see this as a good thing. Several of our egg customers have moved and we’ve been unable to replace them. As a result, eggs are very abundant here. We no longer freeze dry them because we already have nearly 100 quarts of eggs prepared this way. We often have breakfast for dinner and keep a supply of hard boiled eggs in the fridge as snacks. I’m literally running out of ideas on how to use them.
Intercrop, Companion, and Row Planting
Reader T.J. sent in this video from ThePatriotNurse on how to plant a great garden. She covers a number of options including row planting, square foot gardening, intercropping, companion planting as well as planting by the signs. She does a good job of explaining the basics as well as giving the links for books that she likes to use for the various methods of planting. Even if you have already planted your garden, it’s not to late to start some of these techniques.
DoD and Banks
Reader G.P. shared this link with us on “Project Indigo”, the quiet information sharing program between banks and the U.S. Cyber Command. The intent to have an open line of communication between the target of potential financial hacks and those responsible for tracking and potentially responding to foreign attackers. Bank of America, BNY Mellon, Citigroup, Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan Chase, Morgan Stanley, State Street, and Wells Fargo are all involved in the program. While the participation is somewhat informal at this time, the DoD and Bankers are looking to make the arrangement more formal. I can certainly see some benefits to this program, but I can also see how the blurring of the lines can be used against the common man as well, depending on what information is getting shared.
More Edible Knives
Last time we linked to his pasta knife. This time, the video is about making a knife from Jello. Interestingly enough, he rates it as third in sharpness of non-metallic knives he has made (behind the pasta knife and the carbon fiber knife). It would probably be easier to start with gelatin and sugar, but he starts with some store bought, ready-to-eat jello packs. So much for banning kitchen knives in the U.K.
Explosives and Computers
Mike Williamson, SurvivalBlog’s Editor at Large sent in this interesting story. So what do you do when you’re an airconditioner service guy and you find what looks to be a live military anti-tank missile tucked away behind your clients server? These guys acted appropriately. The comments are also pretty interesting.
For the record, it is not unheard of in dealing with Unix servers to have hardware that runs unattended for months or years without anyone touching it. I have one remote server that is going on 5 years with no physical access to it. It is a 2 hour drive to the location, through locked gates that I have to call for access (from people who can’t access my server). It’s such a pain to access that we just don’t do it unless we have to.
SurvivalRealty
SurvivalRealty has a new listing for 42 acres in Sandpoint, Idaho. It has some great view views along with an attached two car garage and a great root cellar. it also features a seasonal creek that fills up the year round pond. It is reasonably priced for the acreage of land.
o o o
Please send your news tips to HJL. (Either via e-mail of via our Contact form.) These are often especially relevant, because they come from folks who watch news that is important to them. Due to their diligence and focus, we benefit from fresh “on target” news. We often “get the scoop” on news that is most likely ignored (or reported late) by mainstream American news outlets. Thanks!
Maybe incubate and hatch the eggs, and freeze dry more chicken? Or sell chickens? Barter silver half dollars per chicken. Just thinking out loud.
Sweden and Preparedness
Ignore the millions of Muz taking over your country, it’s the Russians, again, some more, ugh.
EGGS, EGGS, EGGS…… You can make deviled eggs (boiled egg, halved, mix yoke with salt/pepper/garlic & mayo). We make homemade ice cream using eggs (4 eggs, 2 cups sugar, 1 Tbsp vanilla, and fill the rest of the canister with milk). You could give some to local widows or families in need. Those in our church who farm, whether animals or produce, will bring buckets or containers of their excess to share with other families. The chicken farmer may give away eggs, but come home with tomatoes, potatoes, corn, cucumbers, squash or mellons. It’s a win/win for everyone!
Crumble up some of the hard boiled eggs and feed them to the chickens, they love it.
@ridiek
We never use cannibalism in our feeding regiments. That is one of the vectors of disease. My preference is to have a plant cycle in the mix (chicken manure to the garden, excess garden to the chickens). I have known some who feed chicken parts to pigs and pig parts to chickens and that also seems to cause issues. In our case, we don’t eat pig so I don’t worry about that. goats and cow parts could be used, but I don’t like to have a cycle without a plant in there somewhere.
(GASP!) CANNIBALISM!!
;-()
Grandpa used to love his pickled eggs, he just couldn’t get enough. They are most certainly an acquired taste, but you might give them a shot.
EGGS
One of our favorite recipes is Clafouti. Saveur has a recipe that is fairly easy but I change it up often and substitute many different kinds of fruit. I suppose it is an acquired taste as many think of eggs as savory and not sweet. I have served it to many guests in a pinch for something sweet and simple after a big meal. Don’t forget to top it with a light dusting of non-preservative powdered sugar, it makes all the difference in the taste. My favorite fruit to add is yellow plums and cherries.
You can use up to 12 eggs in one batch and I keep the sugar to a minimum. It is a quick chilled snack, a great dessert warm with ice-cream, and keeps for a couple days. I grew up eating it as a Frenchie myself and reminisce about that delicious Clafouti, presented on a country kitchen table, on my great aunt’s farm à la campagne of France. Oh how France has changed – and not for the better. :[
Re eggs : make machaca . Link provided.
http://muybuenocookbook.com/2013/09/machaca-con-huevo-machaca-with-eggs/
Or make chorizo and eggs.
https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/food-network-kitchen/scrambled-eggs-with-chorizo-sausage-recipe-2011487
Frugal meals that only require small amount of meat to make a tasty meal. If you had refrained beans on the side, even better. My husband taught me to make both meals early on before I became a great cook. I still make these due to ease of preparation, frugal and nothing makes my husband happier than a traditional Mexican dish.
RE: Egg research. Talk about normalcy bias, even though the study showed lower incident of heart disease for those that ate approximately one egg a day (the study did not examine outcomes of those eating more then the one measly egg), doctors and researchers still hold the dogma that cholesterol therefor eggs are bad.
“Eggs are not safe for anyone at risk of heart attacks or strokes, but particularly not for diabetics,” said Dr. J. David Spence of the Western University Stroke Prevention & Atherosclerosis Research Center in London, Ontario.
“Eggs increase the risk of vascular disease,” Spence, who wasn’t involved in the study, said by email. For example, egg yolks contain phosphatidylcholine, a chemical that can contribute to clogged arteries, he said.
Hogwash
The brain needs cholesterol to function properly. Joel Wallach talked about that. Uses for eggs: I like to feed them to my dogs and cats when I get too many.
Re eggs
A Recipe
Big Dutch Babies
1/2 C butter, 6 eggs, 1 1/2 C milk, 1 1/2 C flour
Melt half of the butter in each of 2 13 by 9 inch pans at 425 degrees. Blend eggs in blender at high speed for 1 minute. While blending, gradually pour in milk, then flour. Continue blending for 30 seconds. Pour half into each pan. Bake for 20-25 minutes. I serve it with a tangy butter sauce out of a traditional cook book. Can also be served with berries and whipped cream. I serve this as a breakfast.
Something I heard/read, is to place an egg (unbroken) (and eggshells?) under each tomato plant at the time of planting.
Possibly also use for other plants?
Re Eggs, a recipe
Big Dutch Babies
1/2 C butter, 6 eggs, 1 1/2 C milk, 1 1/2 C flour
Melt half the butter in each of 2 13 by 9 inch baking pans at 425 degrees. Blend eggs in blender at high speed for 1 minute. Then while blending, gradually pour in the milk, then the flour. Continue blending for 30 seconds. Pour half into the 2 pans of melted butter. Bake for 20-25 minutes. Serve with a tangy butter sauce from a standard cookbook or with berries and whipped cream.
We also feed extra eggs to our dogs. We also give extra to church members who don’t get out much or those in need.
Emergency Preparedness Guide. I looked up the Swedish Army and was pleasantly surprised to see they have 50,000 Active Duty and Reserve troop, and another 22,000 in their Home Guard. For a country about the size of California, but with only 10 million population, that is impressive.
I also did a quick search for an American version of the Swedish Guide and found a 4 page Virginia Emergency Preparedness Guide that deals with natural disasters, but very lightly.
Another way to use up eggs and preserve them at the same time is to make noodles. Four eggs go into a pound of noodles. Then you can dry them or freeze them fresh and you’ll have them for later.
DOD and Banks? How about DOJ/DHS and banks. The title company refunded $5K to us by check drawn on their US Bank account. This is after the title company delayed giving us a refund for 10 working days.
We went to their specific bank, who demanded $7 bucks from us to cash it. We called the title company to say ” Your bank refused to cash your check unless you pay $7. How do you want to handle it?” With their stammering on their end of the phone, I said” Never mind, the bank is one block away.” And took their check back to them. Then they called bank to cancell the fee. So we returned to the bank.
The bank again refused to honor the check until we each produced ID which the bank copied, and we had to answer several questions about residence, employment, phone numbers. When I asked why we had to provide this information for their account, and after the title company had called the teller personally, they said it was bank policy.
I identified the federal $10K policy to them and asked why they were applying it to $5K in their bank policy. She then handed me federal brochures showing the $10K amount. At my further questioning she said she could not disclose what the triggering amount was for their bank.
The brochures identified money laundering (of course!) for the reason to get our information. I turned to my wife and said so all in the lobby could hear, ” The XXXXX Title Company with their account here is being investigated for money laundering by the feds.”
When I took the US Bank cash to our own bank for deposit, I asked how long the delay could be before a deposit check could be finally fully credited to us if we had brought the check to them instead of cash. Our bank staff told us some banks in the ‘same system such as Wells Fargo’ could be credited to us overnight, however other banks may not have the funds fully credited to us for up to THIRTEEN BUSINESS DAYS.
Which would make a total of up to five weeks from the day a refund was due to us until the day we actually would have the money back.
You can get several points out of this week’s experience. One that I’m going to keep and use is that I will require any title company we deal with to provide agreement ot MY refund policy, practices, and timelines. And stay the heck away from US Bank.
RE Sweden Here’s a link to a PDF English translation of the brochure.
https://www.dinsakerhet.se/siteassets/dinsakerhet.se/broschyren-om-krisen-eller-kriget-kommer/om-krisen-eller-kriget-kommer—engelska.pdf
Blunt and simple. Evidently the Swedish government doesn’t believe in being politically correct so as not to upset any snowflakes. Kudos for the “never stop resisting” part.
(I read the PDF at the link on my Windows 10 operating system with Windows Defender and Malwarebytes running, and it didn’t generate any virus or malware warnings).
The other thing about eggs is that free range chickens will eat a lot of things and the eggs will have a bright orange yolk and just taste different than even the “organic” or “cage free” from the supermarket. I get them from local farmers.
One thing I do is create my own version of egg salad or a spread by spicing up the hard boiled eggs with avacado or pecan or some other oil, salt, lemon juice, red wine vinegar, and various spices.
They are also zero carb if you are trying to do a ketogenic diet.
I see no mention of using excess eggs to make a quiche in these comments. When we have an abundance of eggs my wife will make a couple of quiches. I’m not sure if they can be frozen or not – they rarely cool off completely before they are gone.
Despite the satirical book “Real Men Don’t Eat Quiche“, that is a regular staple around here. Yes, they freeze well. They make excellent snacks for hungry young men and we almost always have one pre-sliced in the refrigerator just for that purpose. Hungry? grab a paper plate and a slice and 1:00 min in the microwave.
When my daughter was young, I could easily use up a dozen eggs by making whole wheat french toast. (It was extra yummy when the eggs were mixed with leftover eggnog.) The cooked slices were divided by a small piece of wax paper and stacked into a large ziplock bag before being stored in the freezer. The wax paper made it super easy to pull out one or two pieces of french toast, as needed. We’d pop them into the microwave to warm them up. This helped ensure that my daughter enjoyed a hearty and healthy breakfast meal, even on mornings when our schedule was hectic.
Funny comment about UXO (Sagger anti-tank rocket) in server room: Taking pictures is a good thing to avoid having to re-approach the UXO. Don’t pick the UXO up and take the picture in your hand, like this guy https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unexploded_ordnance#/media/File:TBJ_4681.jpg_(8621592150).jpg
Eggs, Eggs, Eggs. Let me tell you about eggs. When I was 35 I had cholesterol pushing 900 and lipids in the 1600 range. A blood sample from me looked like cold chicken soup. I tried the recommended diets. If you compare, they contradict. They put me on Lipator. If there is anything to what they say that was the big clean out. In ’08 I could not afford the drug. I punted. Started shunning pasta, bread and sugar. I did not say eliminate. Started walking my little girl to school four days a week. Helped with math though we did not talk about math and I dropped 20 lbs without breaking a sweat. For 10 years I have eaten 3 eggs a day. Seldom eat pancakes or the like. Went for a physical last November. Number on cholesterol where totally within range at 59 years of age. Blood pressure a normal reading and with the weight of my business enterprises on my shoulders. Eggs are good for you. Write that down. Also, “mo bacon, mo betta” but then this comment is about eggs.
When I get an excess of eggs I just break them in a greased pan , shells included, with milk, a little salt, add cornmeal (about 2lbs per dozen eggs) , (I get old corn meal for .10 cents a Lb.) Or you can use Flour, or any grain, and cook or bake it for 20-30 min. it until looks like muffins. And feed them back to the chickens! They fight over my “muffins”.!
Eggs! Let me tell you! About 9 years ago, I was walking 3 miles a day, 85 pounds lighter and began getting sick. I was finally diagnosed with an autoimmune disease. I’ve been in agony since then. I’ve stayed away from narcotics. I do not want to be a junkie. I am too young for that but I had accepted that the day might come if I wanted to stay upright. At one point I was on a $5K per month injection. It really didn’t do much good. About two months ago I started getting up every morning and making myself two organic eggs cooked in olive oil with onions, ham, and cheese. Not my usual fair. I was craving them. My pain is all but gone. I’m not up to the walking 3 miles a day yet, but I am well on my way to going back to that lifestyle again. I credit the eggs. It’s the ONLY thing I have done different in nine years. Oh, and the shells get dried then crushed in a thrift store coffee grinder and used in the garden! Go eggs!