To be prepared for a crisis, every Prepper must establish goals and make long-term and short-term plans. In this column, the SurvivalBlog editors review their week’s prep activities and planned prep activities for the coming week. These range from healthcare and gear purchases to gardening, ranch improvements, bug out bag fine-tuning, and food storage. This is something akin to our Retreat Owner Profiles, but written incrementally and in detail, throughout the year. Note that as an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. We always welcome you to share your own successes and wisdom in the Comments. Let’s keep busy and be ready!
Jim Reports:
This past week we did some hiking and caught up on our chores. We also took a trip to the vicinity of Lewiston, Idaho, to pick up a set of shelves. These large, adjustable plywood shelves were a swap for some autographed books, a SurvivalBlog archive stick, and some consulting time with “R.” — one of our blog readers. This unit is six feet wide and seven feet tall. It has more than 100 horizontal slots. Those shelves are now used to house the pistol and revolver inventory for Elk Creek Company. There is plenty of extra space for holsters, un-barreled Mauser actions, bayonets, Savage Four-Tenners, bags of gun parts, and other small items. It will be a welcome change to have all of that inventory available, well-organized, and available at just a glance. That will sure beat digging through a pile of pistol rugs!
Now, over to Lily…
Avalanche Lily Reports:
Dear Readers,
Oh my goodness folks, this week just flew by. Where is the time going? I feel like time is being divinely compressed and shortened on purpose. What do you all think?
This week was spent in the garden, with the girls, getting the weeding done; the cabbage patch, broccoli patch, and sweet corn patch. We picked and froze strawberries. I did not dehydrate any of them.
I picked our first cabbage of the year.
Our Red Raspberries are beginning to ripen. I’ve munched a few of them, yum! Also, I have eaten the first three golden raspberries with the promise of much more to come. My Black Raspberries are close behind.
This week for the first time ever, I ate Lamb’s Quarters and Dandelion leaves in my smoothies. I survived! 😉
I am letting a bunch of Lamb’s Quarters grow and go to seed, which I will save to plant specifically, and to make flour. I ordered a bunch of wild edible plant seeds that I will be planting in my garden and around the ranch and elsewhere: Forest Gardens type gardening. I have noticed in my garden that if you leave areas alone, not harvest everything, that volunteers will come up year after year, such as garlic, potatoes, onions, carrots, celery, etc.
Therefore, my plan is to cultivate some areas around the ranch and plant these foods and let them do what they do best. This will be outside of the fenced and controlled garden areas. Tomatoes, also, I have found, will drop seeds through the rotting of over-ripened tomatoes on the ground and will grow them the next summer. Most plants want to grow and continue their species. We should learn to work with the natural cycle of things instead of controlling them so much.
I am developing an herb garden for the first time ever, this summer. Because up until now, I could not decide where I wanted to put it. However, now in the new Extension Garden, a perfect spot has presented itself.
Jim and I had a day trip which was very sweet to be alone together and to have a too-short of a visit with some very dear friends.
We picked up some adjustable shelves for the Elk Creek business, to store the handguns and holsters in. The day after our return from the trip was a day of unloading a bookshelf, transferring it to another room, and rearranging some other bookshelves. It was a full-day job, but the shelves all look great and have organized our living space, books and handguns in a much better fashion than before.
Another day, Jim and I did some trail maintenance and went canoeing afterward together on The Unnamed River. Sweet!
The horses were worked several times.
Jim split wood, while the girls stacked.
I picked more garlic scapes and have been cooking with them. Yum!
Poultry in Motion
The baby chicks are still in the house. I have half a dozen of them. Twice this week, I took them outside for a supervised “Recess/Parental Visitation”. I brought them down to the chicken tractor and introduced them to their parents. I was hoping that one of the hens would adopt them. The first time, the adult chickens, especially the roosters, were very curious and very attentive to the babies. None of the hens were broody enough to take them under their wings. The babies were a little bit intimidated, but soon pecked the dirt and grass around them and inspected the adult chickens. It seems that they all knew they were the same species/kin.
Unfortunately, one baby freaked out twice (Over what, I wasn’t sure) in rapid succession, running into the chicken wire, putting its head and part of a wing through it, and getting stuck. Both times, I had to gently extricate the baby. I then decided it was time to end recess. They were just too tiny to be in the tractor even under supervision. Three days later, they are growing rapidly, I brought them out again for another recess with “parental visitation rights”. 😉
This time, as I uncovered the basket they were in, the adult birds and the chicks stared at each other for a couple of minutes with recognition, then presently the bravest chick jumped up to the edge of the basket and jumped to the ground. Two more chicks followed, and I helped the last two out. They immediately went pecking around the ground, ignoring their parents, at first. One saw a spider and dove on it while the others followed it closely. They ran around the tractor in a pack/flock together and when one became separated or lost sight of its fellow chicks, it would scream until they all met up together again.
Meanwhile, my two of the roosters were putting their heads down to the ground right into the center of the pecking chicks and looking back up at the chicks, ( it was so cute to see). They wanted to see exactly what the chicks were seeing and pecking at and also seemed to want to get to know them. The roosters were far more interested in the chicks than my hens were… Interesting! I sat on the ground outside the coop and observed them carefully. A little while later one of the hens pecked one of the babes. I watched her closely to see her intent. Was she testing them? Was she annoyed with them? Or did she have hostile intent? A few minutes later she pecked again several times in rapid succession at several babies. She wasn’t friendly at all and seemed rather hostile. The babies were looking tired and scared. Therefore, at that point I decided it was time to intervene. I went into the tractor and rescued them. I think I will wait another week or so before bringing them back down to the chicken tractor. Chicken behavior is so neat to observe.
The Coming Winter
There is a La Niña weather pattern currently forming in the Pacific Ocean. This means that North America in general can expect a colder snowier season this winter. Some have predicted that it will be a winter on par with the winters of 2008 and 2017. Horsey Friend reports that the winter of 2008 dumped a total of 30 feet of snow at her ranch. We received seven feet of snow total in 2017 with a residual snowpack of four feet just before the Spring snow melt. I wonder how much we’ll get this year? Make extra preparations for a very cold and snowy winter, with many possible power outages, maybe even a long term power outage.
In the Christian prophetic circles there is a lot of talk of there being only seven more weeks to prepare before we are in another even worse lockdown. Are you ready and prepared to not have to need to go to the stores at all for a very long time? There is a very good possibility of even worse food and supply shortages.
There is talk of the Economy crashing, the cashless system being implemented in earnest. And talk of the Earth passing through multiple clusters of Asteroids that will be striking the earth. There is talk of massive devastation worldwide through war in December. There is a lot of talk of many other events occurring soon in rapid succession with no break in between. Are you physically prepared with multiple game plans to enhance your survival if these events do occur? Are you spiritually prepared? The Word going forth is that we need to be praying and fasting seriously now and through the month of September to be ready for what comes in October, November, December, and afterward. Repent and Pray and READ THE WORD daily and fast often. If you don’t know Jesus as your savior repent and give your life to Him.
He says the ONLY way to the Father God, the Creator of Heaven and Earth is through Jesus. “I am the way the Truth and the Life, No one comes to the Father but through me.”
John 14:5-31
Thomas saith unto him, Lord, we know not whither thou goest; and how can we know the way? Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.
If ye had known me, ye should have known my Father also: and from henceforth ye know him, and have seen him.
Philip saith unto him, Lord, shew us the Father, and it sufficeth us.
Believe me that I am in the Father, and the Father in me: or else believe me for the very works’ sake.
And whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son.
He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me: and he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, and I will love him, and will manifest myself to him.
Jesus answered and said unto him, If a man love me, he will keep my words: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him.
He that loveth me not keepeth not my sayings: and the word which ye hear is not mine, but the Father’s which sent me.
These things have I spoken unto you, being yet present with you.
May you all have a very blessed and safe week.
– Avalanche Lily, Rawles
o o o
As always, please share your own successes and hard-earned wisdom in the Comments.
“Most plants want to grow and continue their species. We should learn to work with the natural cycle of things instead of controlling them so much” This little gem of wisdom from Avalanche Lily should be the heart of gardening/growing your own for your survival. Thank you – I’ve written this on my white board where I keep a list of things to do for prepping/survival in these difficult times.
Bellen, I appreciate the reminder. I didn’t fully note that gem while reading Lily’s report.
Carry on, in grace
I realize that a lot of “events” are coming at us; I have tried very hard to plug any holes discovered during the Jan thru June shut downs. If you are a Christian and study the scriptures you are aware of what’s ahead. You will also know to watch and be ready because no one knows the time of the Lord’s coming. While I keep preparing both spiritually and temporally, I had to step away from most of the news and just keep on “doing” and trust in the Lord.
Been reading “The Law of Self-Defense” (Branca) all week and it is a real eye-opener. There are so many little actions that can get an innocent person, who is claiming self-defense, into deep trouble. No matter what you use to defend yourself, even words, it can be used against you. From the minute you open your mouth to call 911 you are not presumed innocent; you are a possible notch on some prosecutor’s win board. Ever heard of ‘brandishing’? Whether you own a gun or not, you need to read this book. Also, remember, the first and only thing out of your mouth is “Attorney”.
Went to the hardware store and bought more building supplies and five large boxes of various size screws. Wow, those have gone up about 75% since I last purchased them! Picked up a few evergreen trees and gardening supplies for fall and next spring. Our fruit tree buds were frozen again during late frost in April, so thinking about buying new dwarf pear and peach trees to place in the greenhouse in pots. Local nursery does not have dwarfs so may have to look on line.
Spent most of my time canning meat, pork and poultry and dehydrating veges as much as possible. Also put up cabbage, kale and collards, which are all high-protein health foods. Got more canning jars at Tractor Supply at good prices.
Got a new medical skin stapler and some 5% lidocane for cuts and gashes which need to be closed up. Received an order of livestock medication for various types of worms and infections and additional syringes of all sizes.
Spent some time reading about natural greens helping to produce glutathione, which is supposedly the “mitochondria protector”. Has anyone seen research on this? Also been researching natural food blood cleansers such as garlic, broccoli, ACV to help rid my body of toxins from medication and stress. I have used milk thistle supplements and olive oil with lemon juice to do liver cleansing; but need to increase other raw veges to get the toxins out of my blood.
Created another new pet food recipe using raw poultry, vege and fruit (low carb/low sugar) mixture that can be freeze dried; then re-hydrated for use. I don’t use my FD in the summer b/c of the hot weather and the heat the machine puts out. So the FD part will have to wait until the weather cools.
Hurt my back carrying heavy loads from truck to storage. Spend most of Friday doing ice/heat/massage. Increased my intake of turmeric and started taking valerian; hoping today will be better. Getting old is not for sissies.
May your week be healthy and productive.
Animal House please share your pet food recipe.
Three of my 4 cats love this recipe; the fourth is coming around to it.
Cat Food Raw Meat recipe – Low Carb and Low Sugar
This recipe is for cats or other small pets to avoid garbage ingredients in commercial food. Freeze dry (may be dehydrate) to make shelf stable and then re-hydrate to serve. The meat or poultry is not cooked.
3 cups raw chicken, turkey or beef, ground in food processor
½ cup coconut oil or olive oil
1-2 sardines depending on size or if unavailable use 3 TBS omega 3 fish oil
½ TBS turmeric powder
½ TBS salt
1 TBS hemp powder (for older animals)
1 TBS chopped Double E immune booster powder
½ cup finely chopped broccoli, asparagus or collards
½ cup blueberries or blackberries crushed and finely chopped and keep the juice
Mix dry ingredients together in large bowl or mixer. Add finely chopped vegetables and fruit and mix well. Blend well with coconut oil. Add raw ground chicken/beef a little at a time to bowl of blended ingredients; mix well.
Place mixture on parchment paper and roll out to FD tray size. Freeze dry for standard time. When FD is complete, crumble into cat size pieces and store in air tight bag or container. When ready to use, re-hydrate cat food mix for about 10 minutes, before serving.
What a great recipe, Animal House! Thank you for sharing. The best quality food for our companions will keep them happier and healthier, and with us for much longer too.
For anyone with dogs, and an interest in baking, there are some great recipes for homemade dog biscuits — and in our experience from years’ past, dogs love these. We’re convinced that they know these special snacks are homemade just for them.
Also a more serious note about commercial pet food. BEFORE it was known that there was a problem in the processing of pet food which ultimately killed quite a few beloved dogs and cats, we were using what we believed was a high quality commercial cat food with just two ingredients because our kitty had a food allergy (and had been fur mowing).
What we did not know was that there was a problem with the food, and this food (and quite a few others) were toxic due to errors in processing.
The cost to us was the loss of our oh-so-much-loved cat who had come to us as a stray. It was after his passing that the problem was identified. We so wish this had been known sooner. Perhaps we could have saved the life of our precious companion.
Here’s a link related to this problem in dogs…
https://www.fda.gov/animal-veterinary/outbreaks-and-advisories/fda-investigation-potential-link-between-certain-diets-and-canine-dilated-cardiomyopathy
If you have the capacity to make your own high quality and nutritious pet food, this is a great way to go.
If you only have one or two pets, home made nutritious food is the way to go. I have 11 dogs, 1 with cancer tumors and 4 old dogs. The rest are big, younger and healthy. So I buy dog kibble to feed most of them. I do buy the good stuff but I also am storing some what I call cheap stuff, for when the trucks stop delivering.
My Vet told me that there are only 3 types of taste buds, sweet, sour and salty. cats do not have the sweet taste buds. I don’t know if all of the sweet ingredients necessarily add anything to the ” flavor” of cat food. It may add nutrition to the food however.
Thank you!!
Great reference and suggested reading, Animal House!
From your post: “There are so many little actions that can get an innocent person, who is claiming self-defense, into deep trouble.”
It’s critically important that people understand the laws that govern, and the politics that may motivate prosecutors. Insurance such as USCCA should probably also be considered. …and folks might also consider becoming more active voices when it comes to rights related to firearms (including but not limited to generous provisions for self-defense), and may want to support one of the national networks such as Gunowners of America.
Remain steady. Be safe. Stay well everyone!
Animal House, I am always inspired by what you accomplish in a week.
Animal House, I applaud your joy in eating greens. I have been eating the wild greens since early April. As soon as the cultivated greens grew enough in June, I added them.
Yesterday, I put out a video presentation of drying the green and other food. Dehydration is so simple and efficient for time, energy and space.
Carry on in grace
Hey Marine, is there a link to your video? I’m big on drying too and always looking for new tips and ideas. I tried making some blackberry leather this week and it was a total flop. A gallon and a half of blackberries wasted. My solar dryer gets up to 170° so not sure if the temp was too hot or if, more likely, blackberries just have too much juice and not enough meat. I’ve done tons of apricots, peaches, and pears in the past with no problems, but I’d like to get blackberries figured out.
StF, thanks for asking. The video is “in house”, no release.
And fruit leathers. Bummer about the blackberries. I have usually failed to make good leather, so I buy it. Sigh. The best use I can think of for all those berries would be wine, or vinegar.
Carry on in grace, brother.
Regarding your detox you might find the following information useful.
Using cilantro and Chlorella to remove heavy metals from the body:
https://naturalsociety.com/proper-heavy-metal-chelation-cilantro-chlorella/
A heavy metal detox with cilantro and parsley:
https://juicing-for-health.com/heavy-metal-detox-drink
Note: The above link lists a recipe for the detox and includes 1/4 of a lemon. My personal preference would be a WHOLE lemon and I would probably use less parsley as that much can be pretty strong.
Using zeolite for heavy metal elimination:
https://juicing-for-health.com/zeolite-heavy-metal-radiation-detox
A list of acid forming foods why to avoid them:
https://juicing-for-health.com/acid-forming-foods
I found this list by searching for: CILANTRO DETOXIFICATION – there were lot of YouTube videos listed and a few of them are:
Cilantro Chelation – Cilantro chelation for heavy metal detox
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9NTontFqaZE
duration 4:06
Detoxify your Body with Cilantro and Parsley
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qI2p4cXkpxc
duration 4:18
Cilantro Heavy Metal Detox, Top 3 Reasons to Eat or Juice It
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5GeKVU94InU
duration 12:20
Milk thistle, garlic and lemon juice are good cleansing aids however there are a lot of others as well. There is a book you might be interested in:
Fresh Vegetable and Fruit Juices by Dr. Norman W. Walker
https://www.amazon.com/Fresh-Vegetable-Fruit-Juices-Walker/dp/089019033X
I’ve actually given away my copy to a friend to read.
Thanks for the references. I love cilantro; I grow it in the spring and fall and dehydrate some for in between times. Cilantro and garlic go into just about everything I cook, except maybe sweet stuff.
Animal House, thank you for suggesting Branca’s book. I downloaded it today along with On Combat by Dave Grossman. Those should both be interesting and sobering reading. I was disappointed that Branca did not have a special edition for Crazy California, but at least his general book will be a good start, and I’m going to move out of California anyway.
Thanks Jim and Lily, prepare like your life and the life of your family depends on it. Because they do.
Your family has always written direct, as it needs to be.
Thanks for being an inspiration to Christians and preppers worldwide!
I pray Psalm 91 guide us all, along with those verses you’ve shared here.
I love that passage and the verses preceding it that encourage us to not let our hearts be troubled. Although we are living in troubling times, our hearts can be at peace.
So glad the two of you had some time away.
This week I picked the remaining snow peas. I have over a gallon of those in the freezer now.
I went to the you pick strawberry patch a second time and now have 4 gallons of strawberries frozen.
Bottled up a half gallon of peach vinegar.
This morning the peach truck returns so I will pick up a box of peaches, a box of blueberries and some pecans.
Our cherry tomatoes should start ripening soon – looks like we will have a bumper crop.
Picked up a generous new supply of socks and undies for us . I’ve started getting Christmas presents and birthday presents for the grands. I hope to have all my gift shopping done by the end of August.
Hubby went in to the fishing tackle shop that he helped start 40 years ago. The owner told him he is receiving only about 10% of his orders. The local bike shop is now basically just a bike repair shop as he only has a couple of kiddy bikes in the window. No adult bikes at all. However our hiking store has a good inventory and is doing a brisk business. My sister and b-I-l rent out their fleet of 6 RVs and motor homes. Business is good.
Our oldest son, who is a real estate investor and owns 28 units, has started a side hustle as a Amazon book vendor. He has several folks working for him – my brother, my best friend, his brother-in-law and a few others. They are sourcing books at garage sales, flea markets, thrift stores and library sales. The books that are most in demand are: cookbooks, how to books, medical books, gardening books, food preservation books. I was able to snag a book from him called ‘How to Preserve Food without Freezing or Canning’ from him.
Our oldest lives down state. It was just announced yesterday that, for the first quarter at least, school will be online. My grandson was so excited about going to kindergarten. My daughter-in-law will be teaching 8th grade English. Online.
Took a meal to a church family. The mother had a stroke at age 61 and has now been transferred to a nursing home. Her prognosis is not good. I can’t imagine having to put a loved one in a nursing home during our current health crisis.
I’ve been taking a bit of a break from the news. I’m keeping my heading down, sourcing and preserving as much food as I can for my family. And being thankful.
We are gathering with all our kids and grands today. I can’t tell you how that refreshes me.
Take care all.
(I had hoped to report all this in limerick form as a nod to St. Funogas’ rhyme last week. Maybe next week.)
Went to an auction last Saturday morning. It rained most of the time. I had a rain coat on but it didn’t matter, I was soaking wet. I was out bid on a few things I was interested in (JD44 plow), the chicken plucker (one of the items that took me to the auction) was in poor shape so I didn’t even bid on it and I didn’t stay for the canning jars since I spent my allowance. I did pick up 2 20lb propane tanks, an 8” draw shave, a new Plano tackle box that I put to good use storing and organizing spare parts for Coleman lanterns and stoves. Got a decent 5 gallon crock, a double mantle Coleman White gas lantern, a belt pulley that attaches to a tractor’s PTO, 2 belts for the pulley, another pulley that fit over the PTO drive shaft of a tractor but for a “V” belt and an oval galvanized tub.
Also on Saturday I worked on connecting the down spout to the 1500 gallon tank. Note to self- there are advantages and disadvantages to trying to hook up a rain catchment system in the rain. I was not happy with the set up, so I had a friend come over on Monday night for a different perspective and we got it done.
My restoration of one of the corn shellers I got the week before at an auction is done and I started the other. Having my son help on this one.
The whole family participated in weeding and tilling the garden. The troy-built Horse is a brute and is even more challenging for a person with a vestibular issue but hey that which does not kill us makes us grow strong. Seeing green tomatoes and flowers on many other plants. The peas didn’t make it, I think we waited too late to plant and it was just too hot. Seeing Japanese Beetles on a lot of the plants, will be addressing that. On Friday evening we went over to the neighbors so he could show us his milking routine for his cow. They are traveling out of town and we volunteered to take care of his animals while they are gone. Got to admire is garden and orchard and asked him if he was having issues with Japanese beetles, he said no and as he was showing me on of his peach trees we found beetles. He said he lost all his peas too.
I am starting something new out of frustration and that is I will be putting washers and nuts on all my bolts. This way I am guaranteed to have a nut and washers on hand and I don’t have to play scavenger hunt looking in multiple organizers to see if I have the right ones. That should save me at least 20 minutes each time I need a bolt!
I returned some extra fittings that were left over from the water tank project, any duplicate parts that I used in the build I kept but anything I did not use in the build was returned. Lowe’s was clearancing a bunch of grey tube fittings so I picked up a bunch of fittings that I can use for part of the drip irrigation system off the rain catchment tank. I also purchased a bunch of flat washers and more hex nuts. Stopped by the Salvation Army store (by Lowe’s) and was Blessed with a Presto pressure canner even had the manual. In the bottom of the box was the original receipt from 1985 when the person paid about $52 for it new so I was happy to get it for $10.
I spent some time looking at my 3 year plan and updating it. I shifted many of the 2019 projects to 2020 since our house didn’t sell until March of this year. We are doing a great job getting many of those projects done. The wife and I discussed buying a pre-built building for a summer kitchen but didn’t think we would get that done until next year but I’m thinking we might be able to swing it by late Fall, depends if our other big house project gets done on time. At the very least we can order it and have it ready for early spring delivery in 2021.
I was hunting for Japanese beetle traps yesterday and went to a Walmart and a Tractor supply store. Folks there are shortages of stuff. I was shocked at the almost bare peg boards and shelves. Walmart wasn’t as bad as Tractor supply but what I saw (or should I say what I didn’t see) was very concerning. I don’t think we will see the media cover “runs” and “shortages” this go around. Like many of you I am deeply concerned about the challenges that we will face in the Fall. Election strife, peek Covid19 and perhaps a bad Flu season running parallel to Covid.
“I am starting something new out of frustration and that is I will be putting washers and nuts on all my bolts.”
Hey 3AD Scout, great minds think alike! I had the same frustration last week and dumped all the small nuts and bolts into a 9 x 12 cake pan. Now while I’m watching a movie at night, I’m putting washers and nuts on all the bolts. Like you said, it’s going to save tons of time and frustration, especially on the fine-threaded stuff. I also put all my split rings on a string so it’s a lot easier to find just the right size now, and the the same with all my various sized carabiners and hung the string full on the pegboard. My next project, since I use a lot of 3d and 4d brads to nail things together, and a lot of sheet rock screws in my small projects, is to take a small 2 x 4 and make a drill rack for the all the 1/8, 5/32nds, 3/16ths, etc drill bits since I can never remember which one is for what, and then write right on the board next to each drill size, “3d”, “4d” and “sheetrock”. I spend ridiculous amounts of time holding drill bits up to each fastener size, trying to remember which size to use. No more! I should have thought of this 5 years ago but sometimes I’m very slow on the draw.
Great buy on the pressure canner, wow!
St Funogas,
Thanks, I have all kinds of bolts, nuts and washers and it is in various organizers but there is no organization of the organizers, if that makes any sense! So I rooting through multiple “organizers” to find what I need. No more. Maybe this winter I’ll find a pan and get to work. I’ll Make some labels for those organizers that are better than “washers” – a little more description will be helpful. As for your drill bit project I feel your pain there too. One of the things I started to do while building the two 8×7 sheds was to put the bits and drivers right in the box with the screws. I love Peg board!! My buddy that helped me with the rain catchment project is in awe at how I set up my workshop with peg board, dry erase board and little parts cabinets. This fall I am heading over to help him put up and organize peg board.
3AD Scout…a year ago while checking out YouTube for Japanese beetle trap info, i happened upon a video in which the person had rigged up the bait and “fins” above a PCV pipe suspended over a wide water pan. The beetles flew in, then dropped down through the pipe landing in the water. This setup was in the chicken yard where the girls had figured out these big bugs were being served up non-stop…YUMMY! So if you found traps, you could set up a Bug Buffett! We think the sparrows have caught on to these bugs lately and have enjoyed watching them hop around our redwoods catching them…hopefully more birds will watch and learn!!!
I DO look forward to Saturdays to see what great ideas everyone has! Today’s comments have not disappointed though it is amazing what all you are accomplishing. It’s good to help motivate and give me better plans for the coming week.
Thank you Avalanche Lily for the spiritual nudges and insights each week. Won’t it be a great day in Glory when the curtain is pulled back to reveal the effects of your witness!!! The way God has “hardwired” our brains to focus on our earthly journey, it is sometimes difficult to embrace the idea this part of our lives is such a short, quick prelude to the eternity ahead!
Ok…back to work…
We finally got some nice rain! The plants are so happy. I swear the tomatoes grew a foot overnight! I had been keeping most stuff alive but not thriving with judicious watering. So now with the extreme heat(90’s tomorrow) and some rain, stuff is coming along nicely. I’ve harvested cucumbers, summer squash, zukes, sugar snaps, Asian eggplant and cherry tomatoes. This week I’ll probably be able to harvest green beans, Italian eggplant and maybe broccoli. The latest plantings of kale, lettuce, beets etc which I armored against some predation is still alive and kicking so maybe maybe I’ll get some of those eventually.
A neighbor stopped by to let me know they’d sold their house and to offer me a whole bunch of canning jars and many unused lids. I happily took the whole lot- will have some to share with others now. So she said she’d noticed my garden when she was out on the road walking the dog and figured from the size of it that I must can veggies! Guess my garden is getting noticed. Gonna have to work on some visual screening with shrubs and small trees, etc. It’s funny but to me this is a really small garden given my years of farming but to others it’s enormous.
Stopped by a gun store up here in the north my neighbor recommended and it was a totally different experience than the last gun store I went to. Ended up buying a Ruger 22; spent way more than I should have or wanted to but it seemed like if I didn’t act now it wasn’t going to get any cheaper or more available. They connected me with a woman’s shooting club. So it’s nice to know that there’s a gun shop up here in the far north that is happy to work with women customers.
Noticing that all sorts of things are just not available now, from garden supplies to ammo to clothing. At the grocery store the other day I had sticker shock; OMG. The prices on canned or boxed foods have skyrocketed. Many things are insanely priced like about $2.50 for a can of tuna or fruit, bagged lentils doubled in price, etc. So it’s not just a lack of many items but also the difficulty of affording them for many now. This doesn’t bode well.
The “mask wars” are continuing to get to me. Had some virtue signalling woman giving me grief the other day for not wearing a mask out in a farm field harvesting crops for distribution at food pantries. Seriously? I’m supposed to wear a mask for hours outside working in a field? I told her she’s welcome to wear a mask all day long if she wants and she can just keep her distance from me if that makes her feel safer. It does seem to be shaping up to make mask wearing a political act which is so sad. I continue to wear one in stores but I’m also trying to use common sense.
Re: winter. That is so not good news Lily. Just don’t need a really cold and snowy winter, especially as I need a new roof and absolutely no one has time to take this job on. But since everything here has been canceled anyway, I guess maybe it won’t matter if we’re snowed in.
Ani, I’m so glad to hear you got rain! And that your garden is making up for lost time!
Rain finally! Woohooo! What a blessing. I’m so relieved for you!
Congrats on the Ruger purchase too.
This link had some interesting maps related to the possibility of a La Nina this winter (estimated at a likelihood of 50% to 55%). It may be helpful as we work our ways forward, and do our best to adjust and adapt and prepare given forecasts for various parts of the country!
Here you go:
https://www.ski.com/blog/noaa-long-term-winter-forecast-2020-2021-55-chance-of-la-nina/
While taking out the trash the other day, ” we have a trash service” . I realized there was another hole in my preps. It is amazing how much trash 2 people generate per week.Years ago when I lived on some acreage, and most trash was easily handled by a burn barrel. Burn piles are definitely out in the summer months.We cannot use barrels any more in our area but I have decided to add a couple for the upcoming event. Solution, off to the local fuel depot and purchased a couple of open top drums with lids for $15 each, added a couple of regular drums for additional diesel storage. When last I used them I put a couple of vent holes near the bottom to increase the burn rate. They seem to last 2-3 years.
I have noticed when bumbling around doing chores I occasionally get ideas from my subconscious brain that I have overlooked a potential future problem area. Many thanks to JWR and Lily for this informative platform where many of the readers remind us of things we may have missed on our quest to be prepared.
Joe, this is a good reminder! A thought or two to add… The barrel described in Joe’s post is most assuredly much sturdier than some that are sold commercially, and a better option than some others that are available. Our first burn barrel was an aluminum style can with holes drilled in it for air flow. We purchased it from a local home supply/hardware store, and it functioned quite well for a short period of time. Ultimately the metal failed, crumpled and collapsed. We were extremely careful in the use of the burn barrel because we were aware of the limits and risks. For anyone purchasing a burn barrel, just be cautious — about the barrel you choose, about the limits of its use, and about its placement (fire prevention and general safety). We have also been exploring this question — and looking at the sturdiest burn barrel options (and considering as well digging a burn pit). All this to say that Joe raises an important concern, and one well worth considering closely!
You are right commercially bought burn barrels last about 6 months!
I have constructed a loosely built concrete block burner about 3′ wide, 2′ deep and about 3′ high with some rebar placed above, and across, the lowest level of blocks, to create air flow, works a treat, can be moved if needed and never rots out.
Great idea, DevonJon! Much appreciated suggestion. My husband made a rocket stove out of some spare block we on hand, but we hadn’t considered a block-style “burn barrel”. Your thought has sparked a new idea and option. Our thanks!
Hey Joe, here’s a thought or two about trash. I don’t know if you have a composts pile or not but I compost every bit of trash that’s made of organic materials, including all my paper and cardboard, which most people don’t do. I use 32-gallon trash bags and only have to change it every three weeks on average. Since there is no organic matter in the trash, it doesn’t smell bad no matter how old it gets while waiting to get dumped. On big cardboard, I leave it by the compost pile and after a rain, it’s much easy to tear up.
I only have a burn pile, no barrel, which I move around my pasture depending on which stump needs to get disappeared next. I make the burn pile right on top of the stump and after a year or two, it’s finally gone. I have three trash cans which hold two 32 gallon bags each so I don’t have to burn very often. In the dry months, when I read there’s a storm coming, I put a tarp over the burn pile that afternoon to keep it dry. Right after the storm, I get out there as soon as possible, remove the tarp, and then burn while everything else is wet so that I don’t cause a wildfire.
This week:
I did some shooting with a buddy and mowed our huge lawn with plate carrier and rifle slung both for exercise and getting used to moving with loadout.
We are in the midst of chicken butchering season and my wife, son and I have been once a week starting butchering at 6:30 am to beat the heat. (25 or so more chickens to go)
I’ve been ramping up my chicken breeding side hustle and taking it to a new level. This year we made over $2000 with our 8 hens and rooster…. next year I’m hoping to make at least $5000.
Today working on firewood side hustle (putting a roof on lean-to storage) — hoping to make $4000 this year off firewood … all this extra money we will throw at prepaying our mortgage and working on some larger ticket items (ie. night vision).
“I’ve been ramping up my chicken breeding side hustle and taking it to a new level. This year we made over $2000 with our 8 hens and rooster…. next year I’m hoping to make at least $5000.”
Hey Josiah, can you explain this a little more or, better yet, write an article?
Josiah – I agree with St. Funogas- an article would be great.
Josiah Irwin – I, too, would like to hear more about your chicken breeding side hustle!
Lily, perhaps you know of these books. Others may benefit.
The Wild Wisdom of Weeds by Katrina Blair
Backyard Foraging by Ellen Zachos
I am enormously grateful for both.
Carry on in grace
I seem to wake up each morning feeling like the days are running faster and I am falling further behind. We work on preserving food every day and still I feel like we need to do more. This week we have been running the freeze dryer (fajita mix), the dehydrator (herbs) and the PC (potatoes and carrots). I also did cherries last Saturday. Greens are next on my list to be PC and I have a very long list of items I still need to get to. Some items will need to wait until the crops are ready to harvest. I am trying to gather as much that is picked and ready on Saturdays so that I have my work for the week.
My own garden is humming along as well. We get zucchini every couple of days. I pulled garlic and some scallions and carrots the other day. Green beans are about ready and I finished harvesting broccoli. Cabbage is also about ready.
Anyone have a recipe for greens that they like? I have been watching several UTube videos and so far I seem to be landing on collards and whatever else I can find. We eat a lot of stir fries in the morning as I cannot eat eggs so I am trying to find an alternative that I can put aside in place of this choice.
Ani, I am glad you had a better experience with the newly found gun store.
We are an extended family of teachers and those that work for school districts in other capacities. Our conversations have turned to what the fall might look like, the fears that our teachers have and how to best take care of our kids. Our grands are small yet but we have already started collecting curriculum. I am thankful we have the knowledge and skill to home school. I worry about the “littles” and creating a generation of kids who have missed out on learning.
We like our greens simmered in chicken broth along with a ham hock or small pieces of ham. Add salt and pepper to your taste along with a teaspoon of sugar. Cook until tender and serve with corn bread…..yummy southern meal.
This sounds wonderful. I will give it a try. Thank you.
CAL, I don’t know your location or situation, but, I wonder why out-of-work/school teachers don’t offer their knowledge as “tutors” for a couple of families. If you took on privately teaching kids, separately or together; I bet lots of parents will pay high wages for their children to continue to be educated, while the crazies keep schools shut down.
For collards, I always add some apple juice to the pot of water as they simmer. The apple juice takes away the bitter taste and I have had people tell me they have never liked collard greens until they tried mine.
I have also minced the leaves and fried quickly in oil, then salted and served to provide some flavor and crunch over potatoes or fish. I also make Southern egg rolls and fill them with a sautéed mixture of garlic, olive oil, minced cooked chicken, tasso (or beef bacon or turkey sausage) and cooked collards (with juice drained out and reserved for sippin’ as “pot liquor”). Wrap the same way you do when making regular spring rolls then fry in veggie oil until nice and crispy on all sides. Serve with the egg roll sauce of your choice.
I also use fresh collard leaves to make my version of “Southern sushi”. Take one of those by beautiful leave and roll it up around rice and slivers of cucumber and carrot, and crab, shrimp, or “imitation crab”.
Collards are right up there with grits… Manna from heaven. 😉
Apple juice! The secret to great collard greens… Thank you, GritsInMontana! Can’t wait to try this. So much appreciated!
Grits, I love your description and recipes for collards. I’m going to try your southern egg roll recipe next week!! Collards and kale are staples at my house.
GritsInMontana…had to look up Tasso since i am not familiar with it but see how it could stretch/flavor any dish, especially those yummy sounding egg rolls! Wish I knew what it tastes like as making it seems pretty straight forward.
Your apple juice tip is BRILLIANT…think it could be applied to other greens for those not accustomed to them as well.
The crunchy minced fried leaves also caught my eye…THANK YOU for sharing!!!
I so enjoy your sharing your experiences. The story about introducing your chicks is so cute. We once introduced our half grown ducks to our older batch. The older ones were afraid of the younger batch and the younger ones kept trying to check out the older ones. It was funny to watch the older ones trying to get away from the younger ones . They eventually got used to each other. I too believe we are in the “last days”. I could be wrong as past generations thought they were . But so many things seem to be coming together right now. The Bible warns that many mens hearts will fail because of fear. So I would like to remind believers that God has given us signs and the opportunity to make preparations. Also this earth is not our final home. We have great opportunities to see God’s workings and be a light to those around us. I would encourage people to set themselves up to live a “simple” life if necessary. We love our conveniences, but many people around the world survive living very simply. So I would try and gather supplies that enable you to live off grid and still be able to cook and stay warm.
It’s been a great week on the homestead.
The figs are progressing nicely. I have blackberries coming out of my auditory canals. I’ll make a pie and some blackberry crisp this afternoon since I have no room left in the freezer. I’m giving blackberries away to friends and neighbors who keep saying, “Darn, we’ll take ’em off your hands if it means being good neighbors.” Last year the total harvest was 32 lbs and this year I’ve already surpassed 40 lbs with 20% of the crop left to pick. While looking for recipes on blackberry chutney and blackberry vinegar, it was interesting to note that the majority of the hits were for British websites, with the recipes in grams. I ran across this website, EatWeeds.com, one of the best websites I’ve found in a while. It has lots of great recipes and you can click on which plant you want to use, then it will give you lots of info including recipes and medicinal uses. Since the majority of these are weeds, they also grow in the U.S. It’s definitely worth taking a look for anyone interested in edible wild plants and how to prepare them.
https://www.eatweeds.co.uk/plants
I got my honey harvesting/bottling equipment perfected this week. I bought a “honey gate” that opens and closes, drilled a hole and mounted it in the bottom of a 5-gallon bucket to make it a cinch to dispense honey into jars. I built a stand to hold the 5-gallon bucket at just the right height for filling jars, with a small rotatable board in the back to tilt the bucket when getting the last drops. Found some 5-gallon paint filters at my local hardware store cheaper than any I could find online, even in bulk. Their prices are generally better than Home Depot’s and I built most of my house from stuff I got there. My total cost for my DIY honey equipment was under $10, something similar sells in the beekeeping catalogs for $40 without a stand. Right now I’ve surpassed 10 gallons of honey harvested with two hives still to harvest from. I’ve never had a honey year even close to how this one is turning out. The blackberries and honey are setting the example for the garden, I hope it follows suit and sets some records.
After last week’s elderberry discussion, I couldn’t resist trying to root some elderberry cuttings now instead of waiting to use dormant stems. So far so good on the woodier cuttings, not so good on the others. I trimmed each cutting back to two leaves each, with all the leaflets removed but two on each side. A mist bench would greatly improve the success rate. I also propagated 20 wisteria to sell next spring and will do another 20. The last few stragglers on my turmeric rhizomes finally threw up some leaves and everything there is doing great.
I went to the big city for a meeting and afterwards checked to see how many mason jars Walmart had and they are finally sold out. Glad I stocked up on ten cases for selling honey a few weeks ago at $8/case. I still have twelve dozen unopened cases from previous years’ stocking up, in addition to all the ones I rotate in my canning each year. It definitely pays to stock up on things as a habit instead of trying to buy things at the last minute. Lots of people are going to have problems with their canning this year based on how many frowns I was seeing on peoples’ faces in the jarless canning aisle.
Hoping everyone has a great week coming up!
St.Funogas…thanks for the EatWeeds link. Had checked it out a while back and not thought of it again.
LOVE it when you post your bee/honey stories! (Decades ago i removed a hive from a farm building for a gentleman who wanted them gone. Even though we lived on the edge of town before the houses filled in, i passed my bees on to someone in the country due to a neighbour’s ire…and we never made it to the country so no bees.) You always educate us, no matter what subject you post on!
Concerning the elderberry cuttings, how long were the cuttings and did you cover the pot with a moisture barrier? Even though it isn’t the “correct” season to start cuttings, i had also thought about trying some cuttings since one can SEE which bushes are setting more fruit than others. (Some have LOADS more and closer blooms…I want to propagate those which are more productive!)
True on the canning jar/lids though it seems to be dependent on the location.
By the looks of abundant honey/blackberries for you, and other other reports here, it’s looking towards a bit harsher winter than normal. Appreciate the suggestions by everyone on the preps for that!
Back to work…
Recently returned from a 2-week road trip through parts of the American Redoubt in a rented RV. Looking forward to relocating there in the not too distant future. Thought of the SurvivalBlog community often.
Just curious, but where did you go in the Redoubt?
“Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.”
Amen!!! I have struggled with anxiety and it all comes down to this. Either I trust the Son of the Living God, our Saviour and Redeemer, to mean what He said, or I do not. No matter what happens in our earthly existence, He is faithful.
Also: He has not given us a Spirit of fear, but of power, and love, and a sound mind. I recite this verse over and over and over–sometimes yelled through gritted teeth!–to combat panic attacks. Truth is truth is truth, no matter what my misfiring brain chemicals are presently indicating!
This felt like a slow week in terms of preps, but several consecutive nights of only 2-3 hours of sleep will slow down most things. That was standard for me fifteen years ago, but, time takes its toll! Often, cleaning and tidying and maintenance doesn’t feel much like “real prepping,” but I have to remind myself that all are necessary, whether we put this house on the market sometime, or stay here and need a streamlined decluttered haven.
We did get a small grocery order, things either not available or not practical to buy from the restaurant supply or bulk store. I signed a form at the insurance office, finished listing lightning-damaged items for the claim, and gathered a list of things for the electrician to address. Some of those were suggestions from fellow SB commenters last week–thanks again 🙂
I got extra bottles of the cat’s supplements and an extra bag of lactated ringers, with the lines and extra needles. Every time I reorder her things, I can’t help but wonder if it will be the last. I am grateful for the years we have had with her, and I want her to be as comfortable as possible during her remaining time.
Tried to pick up son’s new compression orthoses, but the office in reality closed a half hour prior to the time given in their phone recording, and so I just missed them. Grrr. I did get him in the pool for his PT this week, and he did EXCELLENTLY. Toward the end, he was floating on his back unassisted, holding a foam kickboard to his stomach for balance. It was huge strides toward confidence and away from panic. He’ll never be a good swimmer, but I now have hope that we may be able to teach him how to hold out for help if he finds himself in water unexpectedly instead of just gasping and inhaling half the pool. We are still working on the first and most important lesson: CLOSE YOUR MOUTH! (He has trouble with this outside the water too.)
Shampooed the dining room half of the great room–an epic undertaking with this much small “help” (who will then be totally distracted by eating in the living room instead–and caper and cavort around like they’ve never seen carpet before once it’s dried. LOL).
Cleaned out the gutters, and checked for more lightning damage while I was up there. Didn’t see any. Going to call for a free estimate from a local company that does gutter screens. We have lots of trees.
Cleaned the dryer vent, dryer, and hose…tons of lint, tons of water. I am thinking we missed its last scheduled cleaning and I’m grateful we didn’t have a fire. Reorganized and cleaned the laundry room while I was in there. I think it’ll be more functional now.
Awaiting discussions with husband about converting “investments”–those magical mystical bits and bytes out “there” somewhere, that the tidy quarterly statements assure me represent “money”–into acreage. He doesn’t think I’m nuts, so that’s a start. Whether we move to it immediately or just have it, because after all, they aren’t making land any more…at least we’d have it.
Biggest battle remains mental: re-emerging into wider existence after years of psychiatric special needs rabbit hole. I think it is common for caretakers to have their worlds close in sometimes, as existence becomes focused on the person’s needs and care. For so many years, life was ONLY about the appointments and the numbers and the therapies and the feeding tube and the hyper-strict safety protocols,…to the point where I could rarely even clean regularly or cook for my own family. My other kids missed out on a lot. And I never could leave the house while she was awake without BOTH a grandparent AND a home health aide present, for safety (and witnesses!). And I never could be here by myself towards the end, either (for safety, and witnesses. The last CPS investigation came when she tried to jump me, missed, and split her lip on the floor. I immediately reported it to all her therapists in detail, but they still called CPS.). In some ways we are still trying to rebuild as a family, re-establish feelings of competence for us and security for the other children. The baby is too young to remember her sister coolly, calmly explaining how she’d murder her, but I will never forget it. Continuing the struggle to recalibrate my threat-meter from being pegged at a constant RED ALERT, now that our home isn’t constantly at that condition, so I can accurately recognize future threats and not jump at my own shadow. Anyway, enough rambling about that.
Have a productive, peaceful week everyone!
Bear,
I am sorry your family has had to deal with mental health issues. In my former line of work I saw many families that were isolated by their experiences and impacted by the disease. I also know first hand the compromises that must be made to maintain some sort of equilibrium in the home. I pray that you have found the supports you all need.
Be well,
Blessings on you sweet person. Your crown in heaven will be huge! I too have cared for mentally unstable family members, nothing to the level you have described. I used to just go into the bathroom and cry, then straighten myself up, and keep going. It takes a huge toll. I’m so sorry you had to go through that. May your days be more peaceful. Hugs.
Thank you for your prayers! We have been so, so blessed with all of the supports we have found. Therapists, medical professionals, and above all: thank God for GRANDPARENTS! I’ve seen too many families torn apart by pain and misunderstandings in these situations. (There’s even a little survivor’s guilt sometimes. I’m working on it.)
Hugs and blessings right back to you, SaraSue! Thank you! It does take a toll, doesn’t it? I’m so sorry you had to go through it too!
SO often I thought, if only I was more patient, if only I was a better mother, if only if only if if if aaaaahhhhh! There were a lot of things I did wrong, but a lot of things I did right, and after all we were thrown in the total deep end of parenting with virtually no preparation and little after-support by our adoption agency, and everyone told us this was the worst case they’d ever seen, so, I’m trying to forgive myself. She’s thriving in her new home now and that’s most of what matters! God is still in control.
Bear:
I fully understand the panic/anxiety attacks…Usually at 3:15AM. The only solution that puts me back to sleep–prayer immediately.
I’m so sorry you deal with it too, jima. Absolutely, prayer and praise are always the best weapons! “I will lie down and sleep in peace, for You alone, Lord, make me dwell in safety.” (Psalm 4) I hope you can reclaim 3:15AM (and the whole night) as your time and God’s time! No weapon formed against you shall prosper! The enemy has no place in our brains or our homes! (Resist him, and he shall flee from you…)
I wonder how many weeks ago the Christian Prophets received and then disseminated the prophecies regarding the number of weeks? Thanks
Seven weeks from now is about September 1. I’m not sure when the dreams and visions occurred, but they reported them just during the last two weeks. They are saying that we’ll definitely see astronomical events in the skies and more serious meteorological and geological events, then, not to mention economic, virus related lockdowns, and more political upheaval. Israel is talking about another total shut down by next week. Israel is also talking about going to war with Iran any day now. China is threatening every country around them: India, Pakistan, now Taiwan. I listen to Israeli News Live with Steven Ben Nun and many others that he has recently been associated with. I also listen to, every now and then, Paul Begley and Mike from around the World on Thursday nights. He has a lot of interesting things to say concerning Astronomical events and worldly events.
I listen with a grain of salt and tuck the information into the back of my mind and watch. I do not say that they are saying “Thus Says the Lord”. only that they too are studying scripture and are watching world events and comparing the two and preparing accordingly. God’s word is truth and if He says He will do something, He will. God’s time clock is not our time clock, but we are definitely in the season of the Last Days and a we have the technology to control every human being on the planet. Everything is in place.
Basically just 2% of the world’s population are controlling the other 98%. Isn’t that just crazy? That 2% are forcing many to do Satan’s Last Days Agenda. But God is the Ultimate Victor and we just have to remain Faithful and Trust our Lord and Savior Jesus to see us through until He returns or takes us home in whatever manner He chooses for us. He will be with us always until the end.
Today I’m going to try out the Aquabarrel pump I purchased for my rain barrels because I got tired of wasting time schlepping a bucket around to water everything. The pump battery is charging now with alligator clips and my small Powerfilm rollable solar panel.
I also bought two organic potatoes and chopped them into three smaller pieces. I’m going to let them dry a few days and then I will plant them in a patch which I recently cleaned out. I put in my second corn crop last weekend.
I will move out when my parents return from overseas at around the first week of October. That’s cutting it close, but I don’t know what else I can do. In the meantime, the watchword is keeping up stockpiles, saving money, and getting rid of clutter.
Good luck, everyone!
Just now at lunch, husband mentioned that he’d seen a nice property with acreage toward the southern border of Virginia (I think probably on Survival Realty). I replied that I’d seen it too, but, Virginia *wrinkled nose.* Our 6 year-old asked what would be wrong with living in Virginia. I explained that the government there doesn’t really like for people to have guns. He said, “What?! Then how would they defend themselves?” I said, “Great question! Gimme five!” 😀 He was first concerned about robbers, but I also asked him to think about how the Revolution would have gone differently if the colonists didn’t have any guns. He said, “The British soldiers would have won.” Husband reminded him what the British soldiers were going after when Lexington and Concord happened.
Forgot to mention earlier — we did buy our GOYA for the food pantry! And husband mowed part of the yard. I don’t care about long grass in the slightest but I am highly in favor of his improving cardiovascular health!
And finally, the bathroom project didn’t happen yet, but the plumbing toolbox was located! and I did open and inspect all but one of the shipping boxes. Baby steps right?
So happy that your husband is on the bandwagon about finding land.
And if you will please pardon the intrusion… Please allow me to suggest that you go to the health food store and pick up something for adrenal support. (Just ask one of the store employees to direct you to the right area.) I am confident that your adrenals are shot. Sustained hypervigilance destroys the adrenal gland function. As the damage progresses, cortisol levels will spike sky high, then eventually plummet. Your cortisol levels are most likely in one of those two spots (super high or non-existent.) Don’t worry… you can fix this. It just takes time and rest, adrenal support and a healthy diet. You will start sleeping better and start feeling better too. 😉 Give it time. You have been in adrenalin-charged-fight-or-flight-super-human mode for a long time. Time to rest now and let your body heal. You are worth it and your family needs you.
I am saying a prayer for you and your family as soon as I finish this post.
Thank you so much for the prayers and the good advice, Grits. I thought I would be “over it” by now, but sometimes my body/brain just says NOPE! I looked back and, over a little less than a year and a half, we had five kids’ surgeries (some minor, some NOT), the death of a pet, a hurricane (or, wait, two? IDK, only one was “insurance claim and new roof” level), and a new baby (whose pregnancy I HID for two months so we could get through her brother’s skeleton rebuild without husband cracking again). And some CPS investigations. Inside the usual psych-stuff pressure cooker. Hmmm maybe I am more crisis-hardened than I thought! So anyway I will go and ask our herbalist what she recommends. Thank you so much for the reminder to put on my own oxygen mask!
Wow, you are amazing. Would you happen to have any advice or information regarding an 8 yr olds’ general anxiety? I am also looking into nutritional/ herbal support for him too. Thanks kindly. Prayers for you and your family as well.
We’ve been wondering about the possibility of a cold winter this year or next… Avalanche Lily’s note on this is timely! Seems the timing (solar cycle activity) is just about right for a whopper. With this in mind, we’ve been working in earnest on the storage of food (with a focus on canning) and lots of cold weather preps too (plans for firewood, purchases of additional sleeping bags rated for severe cold, wool hats and socks, a couple of additional jackets).
This is also a great time to consider indoor activities to enjoy throughout the winter from family games to practical home crafting and sewing, reading, and more.
We have outlined a series of goals for the next 6 weeks so that we are hopefully in as solid a stead as we can be going into the fall with tasks completed just before Labor Day. If a few items linger past, so be it… But! Our hope is that we can check them all off as completed for the season. We’re quite sure new items will appear too… This is the nature of life and living and being prepared.
Across the coming week we’ll be back to canning! Hard to believe our pumpkins are nearly ready to harvest, the acorn squash is coming in by the basket load, the zucchinis continue to produce at alarming rates, and we are on the edge of fresh onions and quite a few peppers. We are so very thankful for the good news of such a bountiful harvest, and continue to work forward in earnest to preserve and prepare.
CAL shared that the days seemed to be moving faster through time, and we are experiencing this too!
COMET NEOWISE …
This posting doesn’t fall under the category of “prepping progress,” but I thought some of you might find it interesting… especially those of you who live in the rural or Redoubt regions where the skies tend to be darker, and the stars brighter. (Here in the Willamette Valley where I live, light pollution is more prevalent than in central or eastern Oregon.)
Last night, my sister invited me over to do some “star gazing” with her hubby. I got there around 10 PM, but the sky was still a little too light to see what we were looking for. Finally, around 10:30, I spotted the comet through my binoculars. It was an amazing sight. At 70 million miles away, the head of the comet is quite visible — as is the tail, which extends upward and to the right.
As an added bonus, we saw the ISS (International Space Station) go sailing by at around 11 PM. The ISS looks like a really bright star, but it moves pretty fast — it has an angular velocity of 4 degrees per minute, or about 17,500 miles per hour.
For those of you who have not yet seen the comet, it is relatively low in the sky as you are looking to the northwest. It is currently located below the cup of the Big Dipper. Hopefully, you will get a chance to see Neowise in the next few days before it heads off on it’s 6800-year elliptical path around the sun.
I hope you all have an amazing week ahead, and perhaps get a chance to see the comet — or other wonders of God’s creation. In the midst of all the craziness going on in our world, don’t forget to: stay safe… stay healthy… stay in God’s word… and stay in a spirit of prayer and thanksgiving.
Blessings in Christ,
Cliff (in Oregon)
CDM! How neat to read the news of your NEOWISE sighting! We hope to see Neowise also, and will be looking for it this evening. Closest approach is supposed to come on the 22nd. Thank you for sharing this experience with all of us!
Jim and I slept out in our tent in the meadow last night specifically to look for the comet Neowise. We saw it with our naked eyes and then saw it more clearly with binocs. Jim woke up at around 2 AM and saw that the tail appeared visibly longer during the darkest part of the night.
It was amazing! Signs in the heavens!!
Wow! That is SO cool!
Made a couple of visits to Costco over the past week to help replace some of our long-term storage staples. I found out my M-in-Law had been using the sugar and rice I had sealed in 5-gal buckets… she though they should be used up so they don’t go bad apparently. After a gentle discussion about “Indefinite Shelf Life Means Don’t Touch It!” we agreed to not do that again. Flour should be rotated, but salt, sugar, most beans, and white rice can out live us all if properly packaged.
At Costco, I was met with questions about what sort of restaurant I had, and wow- that sure is a lot of flour and baking soda… I made up a story about a non-profit to help the chronically homeless and hopefully ended the curiosity. Then the checker and manager were disturbed that I was always paying with ca$h, so they tried to convince me that due to our responsibility to each other plastic was the only responsible way to pay for goods. I smiled and brushed it off. I will continue paying with the “legal tender” of our system until the gubbermint dissolves the dollar.
I ordered a bunch of food grade buckets and lids from Lowe’s and had it all delivered right to the home. Not the best for OpSec, but when one lives in a city they realize how tough it is to be totally gray. I am incrementally increasing the long-term stored foodstuffs to regain our one-year supply goal.
A local farm is readying some beef for processing, so we ordered a quarter steer. Two weeks out and we will have the freezer stuffed again. Still cannot get a new deep freeze because they are not available in the northern hemisphere apparently.
Our small sustainment garden in the back is keeping us well supplied, and we coop with a neighbor for fresh eggs from time to time. Becoming less dependent upon commerce and relying on barter/trade is our ultimate goal until we can move to the country and cut the umbilical completely.
We wish continued blessing to all who choose to remain free and self-sufficient.
Our experience at Costco has been the same, and well before the pandemic. “That sure is a lot of !” or “You must be feeding a very large family!” This is a familiar story.
Remember… Your history shows up on the computer screen at the register. We know this because the last time we were in Costco, the checker said this: “See you back in 3 weeks!” Seriously. A little invasive and inappropriate, but that was the remark.
I have often asked “what’s the largest order you’ve ever filled”. It’s a great way to turn the conversation around. The stories are typically interesting and fun including the one about a ship’s captain who was restocking supplies for a long fishing voyage!
Could anyone share what vegetables and fruit they dehydrate and how? Can dehydrated fruit and vegetables be stored in empty canning jars, and are there any steps that need to be taken? Thanks!
I’m going to recommend 2 books; the all-around food preserving book “Putting Food By” and “The Ultimate Dehydrator Cookbook” which was recommended on SB and I just received(it looks amazing). I have only minimally dehydrated food in the past as I couldn’t run an electric dehydrator off grid so only used my car(for sun-dried tomatoes) and racks above the propane fridge heat vent for berries etc. Now I have a dehydrator for the first time so I’m reading up and planning on using it soon to try dehydrating a number of things. But probably most people who comment on SB have lots of dehydrator experience so they can chime in if they suggest anything else.
Northern Lily: Just about any vegetable can be dehydrated but some should be blanched before drying; potatoes and broccoli are examples. Potatoes also benefit from a dip in lemon water to keep them from turning gray/brown.
Fruits are a bit more complicated; some need to be dipped in lemon water or Fruit Fresh after pealing so they don’t discolor, for example bananas and apples. The water content of the fruit also impacts successful drying; for example elderberries or grapes versus lemons or orange slices.
Recommend you get the book Ani mentioned; or spend some time on the internet on dehydrating sites. Normally experience is the best teacher, but since we are all running out of time and money; do your research before dehydrating.
Northern Lily, I agree with Animal House. I’ve dehydrated almost all veggies from tomatoes that I then grind up into tomato powder to thicken my recipes to onions, peppers, corn etc.
I also make fruit leathers by blending the fruit before dehydrating it. We have done banana chips, apples, pears, peaches and various berries.
You can store your goods in canning jars using a food saver to pull out the oxygen or by using an oxygen packet to pull it out.
This has been on odd summer. Many of the plants in my veggie garden continue to show very little growth, though the tomatoes look fabulous. June was cool and wet and seemed to retard growth for many of my veggies. I have also noticed berries ripening much sooner than they typically do. I wonder if my plants are warning me of an early (and difficult) winter? I also noted that we have tons of grasshoppers this summer. They are leaving ugly holes in the leaves of raspberries, lovage, and lilacs. The last time we had this many grasshoppers, we were slammed with a really tough winter. Maybe the good Lord is helping the birds fatten up with their grasshopper protein food source?
This morning I harvested chokecherries. Chokecherrry syrup is a Montana favorite! The currant berries will also soon be ready to harvest. (A dollop of currant jelly is the perfect balance to the savory pot of Thanksgiving gravy which has been seasoned heavily with sage and white pepper.) There’s more rhubarb to gather and it’s time to become aggressive harvesting the herbs. Maybe they will have time for one more big spurt of growth, giving me another harvest later this summer. But I am bummed that the peppers are thumbing their noses at me. Last year’s harvest was fabulous and this year it is a disappointment!
I have been working with the new bull we bought a few months ago. He was 1.5 years old then, and is now approaching 2 years. He had never been around much human contact and I am pleased that he is becoming gentled. Occasionally he has dropped his head and tried to shake his horns at me, which resulted in a swift kick into his legs and a slap on the nose. I also watched him shake his horns at one of our livestock guardian dogs. She lost it! She went after him, teeth bared, making a horrible “I am going to eat you alive” barking sound that clearly conveyed “Don’t you dare!!!” That bull jumped back about 5 feet in shock and then stayed away! The next time he shook his horns at me, I jumped forward and imitated the same sound my dog makes. That bull could not get away from me fast enough! LOL! Oh sure, I look like an idiot doing it, but it worked. (Thanks for the great tip, puppies!) The bull has pretty much stopped that behavior now and is being much more gentle with me and our dogs. We have an extremely gentle breed of beef cattle anyway. It takes some time, but eventually, all our bulls are halter broken – without a ring in their nose.
Well, I’m in the same boat with the anxiety only calmed by reading scripture and praying. Two nights this week were a total waste and the following days I was a zombie. But, I did manage to get the car serviced, a visit to the dentist to fix a broken tooth, waiting on another cord of wood to be delivered (just in case), you know, all the maintenance stuff that I figured I better do now while I can. Canned a large bag of potatoes. Just finished putting up a dozen pints of apricot jam, froze cherries (did you know you can freeze cherries with the pit in??), have a list still to do with peaches, plums, cabbage for sauerkraut, etc. It’s that time of year! My potato plants are doing great. Last year they were miserable, so I’m hopeful in another month I’ll be harvesting a goodly amount. Oh! And for the first time, I used Azure Standard for bulk wheat berries, frozen chicken, cheese, etc. I feel like I’m really well stocked, even if my family all moved in. I might buy another freezer (sigh).
My family in Commiefornia are extremely anxious and looking for property and jobs here in Idaho almost every day. There’s very little inventory, although there are Help Wanted signs out everywhere. I guess there are some people who are taking advantage of the covid related unemployment or government aid and don’t want to go back to work. Yes the wages are lower, but so is the cost of living. Although, I joked with them, “ya know, Noah was considered a conspiracy theorists when he was building that really big boat!” But, I don’t think it’s helpful to increase their anxiety. They know my home is the “safe house” if they have to GOOD in a hurry.
My spirit is heavy, but each day I put one foot in front of the other while I await either the Lord’s return of TEOTWAWKI. In about 4 weeks I’ll have my new GSD pup and I’ve decided to feed him a raw diet for several reasons: 1. I’ve seen too many dogs in my family die early and I can only surmise it’s the processed dog food – even the expensive stuff is GMO, 2. What if I can’t get dog food. We’ll see how it goes.
I ordered the Eton emergency NOAA radio that was recommended.
I do find it helpful to put a moratorium on the news and get outside! Blessings to all of you. #KeepTheFaith
I have been trying to talk to some elderly relatives about how they need to have more than a 3 week food supply on hand and that now is the time to start stocking up. They keep insisting they are fine, they have plenty of food, they keep declining all offers of help, and do not want to move out of their Ground Zero Riot, Loot and Burn state. IDK what I can say further to them to convince them to stock up or begin considering moving Elsewhere.
I have no idea if this would help or not, but it wouldn’t hurt to try. Ask them if they remember the great depression and the food shortages way back then. If they do then perhaps draw a parallel to the food shortages that just happened this year. Maybe they did not experience the great depression so that might not work. My father was born in 1917 so he grew up during the depression. If you have other relatives (or friends) that are older that are also like minded as yourself they may be able to lend some credibility to your efforts. No guarantee that it will work, but it wouldn’t hurt to try. At this point in time you might be prepping alone so you might have to serve as an example to them. Hopefully they will have their eyes opened before it is too late. I happen to be in that “boat” right now myself, with some older people that I’m working for. So I know the challenge that it is.
From your post: “At this point in time you might be prepping alone so you might have to serve as an example to them.”
It’s true… Sometimes we must soldier onward and forward, even understanding that others may not yet be willing or able to work in the same direction. We do our best to protect them even so, and to include these folks in our preparations as best we can.
Thank you, David n Goliath. I will try that. They were young children during the Depression.
Everything’s still exploding in the garden. All the raised beds are overflowing. Finished moving the last of the stone for the garden walkways, and trimmed all the fabric. Now comes leveling the yard around the garden, and planting new grass.
While I was out today, my next door neighbor had a friend stop over. He later came to the side of the house swearing up a storm into his phone. What I could make out was something about his family and that he is now at war with somebody. I also heard, “those ni***rs are going to pay!” Looks like something bad is going to happen! Hope it’s not the next shot heard round the world starting the second civil war! Pray he’ll cool down, and ask for comfort for him!
Regarding Avalanche Lily’s question of: “I feel like time is being divinely compressed and shortened on purpose. What do you all think?” Yes, I have been of that same opinion for some time. There is a verse that reads “And except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect’s sake those days shall be shortened.” Matthew 24:22
Regarding forest type gardening: I’m all for it. I prefer forest gardening over the more popular “edible landscaping” as it is more OPSEC oriented. In the past I’ve planted comfrey out in the wild and just let it blend in with everything else that was growing there. The same can easily be done with parsnips as so few people know what they look like. Just a weed looking plant to most folks. If it were not for the fact that I got behind this spring with repair projects I would most likely already have done this (and a whole lot more to boot).
And the book of John – my favorite book of the Bible. I’ve read it more times than any other book.
John 14:18 I will not leave you comfortless: I will come to you.
Many people stumble over Who the “Comforter” really is and the book of John plainly shows Who it is.
Yes. We are experiencing this compression of time as well, and while it’s true that some days and weeks move more quickly than others, the feeling surrounding this experience has been quite different this time around! We look forward to the thoughts of other SB readers as well.
June in my corner of Wyoming was quite cold and it has been very dry, so the garden is struggling. Fortunately I have plenty of canned garden produce left from 2018 and 2019!
I decided to practice my hand sewing skills in case the grid goes down and the supply chain fails, so I have been sewing a lined fleece jacket by hand. Obviously slower than using the machine but I am enjoying the work.
No shortages of ammunition or canning jars here, so I am just gradually building up supplies.
A previous post asked about dehydration. Game meat turns into jerky of course, along with the fruits that I grow. In this dry part of the country they keep fine in quart jars (no processing) or zip locks in the pantry.
I personally am hoping the predictions of disaster are wrong, or at least farther out in time, because I lost ALL my preps to a house fire last month. All the food, firearms, and ammo I had burned up or was too ruined to salvage, and in this economy, restocking is impossible financially (especially guns and ammo right now). It took me about 10 years financially to amass the food (20 years for firearms and related), all gone in about a half hour, so I’m hoping I have at least another full year to re-prepare.
So sorry EECOM for this extraordinarily difficult news. A house fire is devastating in so many ways. Praying first that everyone was physically safe, and no one suffered lasting injuries. Praying next that God uses this disaster to guide you through the next steps in recovery, and that He unfolds an amazing plan and miraculous results right before your eyes — that your experience will become a great testimony.
I am so sorry to hear that. I know that I was so late in getting going prepping as I’d been “on the road” mostly and overseas for nearly 3 years and landed in my house in the early days of the pandemic. I guess once you’ve figured out housing and that sort of thing the cheapest and fastest thing to do might be to try to acquire the basics of food storage; the ole wheat, rice, sugar, beans, dried milk etc that you can seal into buckets. It’s not an interesting diet but would keep you alive. See if there are any food pantries etc in your area and see what you can score. I’ve been frequenting yard sales and “free piles” to furnish my house and even buy stuff such as fishing gear and garden tools for minimal cost.
Yes, that is one of my fears for sure. You can prep all you want but for many of us, what we have is our house and if that should be destroyed we have lost all of our preps as well as our home and refuge. I know some people live in places where they have garages, barns etc where they can store stuff but here the winter temps are so low that it’s not feasible. And whatever you know how to do hasn’t been destroyed; skills are the most valuable asset.
Concentrate on the basics I guess. And since you have nothing left to defend(other than your person), maybe guns and ammo won’t be a priority right now. Gotta eat!
That’s what I was thinking also. We have a good place to stay indefinitely, plus solid plans to rebuild in our rural area, so all is not lost there. Still, it would have been nice to have at least one firearm or one batch of food survive. The irony is that prior to the fire, I actually had my preps in two different places so that a disaster would likely not take them all out, but I had just recently put them all in the house to better keep track of what I had as well as do PM on some of the less-used guns. It wasn’t too long after I did that when the fire happened. Almost (maybe?) as if God intentionally took it all away on purpose. Which raises even bigger questions about what higher purpose that has.
EECOM I had a similar experience but with a different cause. We were away for a few days R and R and we had a break in. We live in the country were our nearest neighbor is a 1/2 mile away. The thieves had plenty of time to locate spare car keys, hook up one of our trailers and load up the house and out buildings. When we returned there was nothing left but a few odds and ends. The experience left us reeling but also allowed us to re-evaluate our priorities. It has taken time to replace some things, others were replaced quickly by insurance but most importantly our goods became just “stuff” in many cases and we had no desire to replace it.
Your loss has to be devastating but perhaps it will provide you with some of the clarity we had regarding what was really important to us.
Best wishes
So sorry to hear this, EECOM! House fires can be so traumatic. Praying for you and your family! I am glad no one was hurt, and that you have a good place to stay. God will lead you and carry you!!
Good morning everyone
It’s been exceptionally hot here and very humid so out door work has been really hard.
Had my annual physical and blood work done. Everything is great except that my lymphocytes are rather high again so it looks like I’ll be heading back to the oncologist again. This happened last year also and he suggested a wait and monitor plan which is in line with the possible Lymphoma/Leukemia that I may be faced with. Husband is freaking out but I am not. We will see what happens. I will post updates as I get more information. Now I know why I haven’t been “feeling right “. I’m going to just keep on preparing and praying. I’m not going to tell my parents about this right now as they don’t need the added stress to go along with their Dementia/Alzheimer’s issues.
Saw a neighbors house across the street is flying an American flag upside down? What is wrong with people? I’ve about had it with people disrespecting our nation and our flag.
Rioters clashed with police on Friday evening at Buckingham fountain in Chicago. Now all these punks are claiming police brutality as usual so they are going to investigate all these bogus claims. Mayor of Chicago has also called White House Press Secretary a “Karen”. How typical! How about getting the dozens of shooting and murders under control.
Okay, rant over 🙂
Thinking of you all
Have a Rockin great week!!
I am praying for you RKRGRL68. Jesus knows all things. He loves you and is watching out for you and your family. Trust in Him with all of you heart mind and soul. Remember “By his stripes you are healed” “Are”. is in the present tense. Claim it daily. Remember the doctors are not God! I’m also praying that the Lord God will give you discernment.
AMEN.
@ RKRGRL68
Sending healing thoughts your way.
Sending prayers your way!
I’m re reading all of the comments, thinking and praying. Maybe: Lymphocytes/leucocytes/white blood cells can multiply when one is too stressed, tired, fighting off something… If the rest of the blood work is normal… Maybe you’re just stressed and tired??? There is certainly a lot on your plate to be worried and concerned about, not to mention world events… Jesus is your physician! Trust in Him, eat well, and get some rest! Praying for you,
Lily
The flag upside down is distress
Thanks for keeping us posted so we can pray for you! I agree with Lily – maybe you are just fighting a bug, plus stress? May God bless you and keep you and HEAL you!
Prayers lifted up for you, RKRGRL68, for your husband, for your parents, and for all your family. Read your message, and we have been lifting you up since! You are greatly loved by Almighty God, and surrounded by earthly friends within this community.
Adding my prayers for you and your family
RKRGRL68, I am sorry for the blood work update being disturbing, and am praying for your health.
As Sblog friends, we metaphorically lower you through the thatched roof, down to Jesus for healing.
In lieu of going to lunch or sending you flowers, I am sending you this gift of song:
https://youtu.be/OKd0B2YhHpk
“The Blessing,” by Kari Jobi.
May it touch your soul and transport you into the presence of our savior just when you need it most.
Much love and prayers, Krissy
So, ran across this gem this morning… Aesop frequently has colorful material, but today was a real treat. A particular quote that I enjoyed and plan to use myself, in a comment on his [short] post (linked below) was regarding the disinformation being continually quoted by the mainstream media and various Gilligans out there who refuse to understand the nature of a virus, masks, etc.
Part of reader’s quote (edited for language): “I think the government has done a [****]-poor job of clearly and truthfully explaining things (let alone hijacking the situation for partisan [bs] games), resulting in the widespread existence of the Modified Expert Law: For every expert, there is an equal and opposite expert.”
So very true, which is now why we have no idea who to trust, who to believe, and thus tend to believe nobody.
Aesop put together a terrific response to the entirety of the comment at the bottom of the post, which was longer and much more colorful than his original commentary, so I highly recommend, for fun and instruction, reading the post and the comments. Enjoy.
[Moderate language warning]
http://raconteurreport.blogspot.com/2020/07/your-hopeium-broker-called-sell-short.html
Greetings from rural eastern Oregon! I used to read this blog years ago when starting on the preparedness journey. Nice to be back among like-minded friends. Love the picture of Lewiston, we were there last weekend to have dinner on a restaurant patio for youngest son’s 26th birthday. He works for a grain company in the area.
This past month my husband and I butchered 50 meat chickens. Did the males first (at 8 weeks) then let the females grow for another few weeks to get more meat on them. We invested in a Yard Bird plucker, love it, it speedily plucks 2 birds at at a time. Have used a friend’s Whiz Bang Chicken Plucker (note, this can do 3 birds at a time), an old deck-style plucker, and used small family businesses for processing. We purchased the heat-shrink poultry bags, they are great! The freezer is now loaded up along with the hog my husband got in trade and had butchered.
My veggie garden is doing well, we’ve been eating spinach, kale, broccoli and red potatoes. A few years ago I planted some Japanese Haskaps on trial for Oregon State University. They are promoted as a dryland option for blueberries. My garden soil is super alkaline (8.2 ph) and once we built a frame and covered them with netting, they have grown and produced well. Alas, super tart berries. I can only use them for jam, adding chopped Sweet Cicely (Myrrhis odorata) to neutralize the acidity, just like I do with rhubarb.
Last winter, we reorganized the basement, spreading mortar on some crumbling walls and painting everything. Husband cut out some cubbyholes into crawl spaces, cleaned, laid down plastic, insulated, etc. In one, he set four pallets, and we placed 30 buckets of my preps into this new hidey hole. This leaves the other buckets in the “long term pantry” in the basement. He’s never really paid attention to my preps, other than “shopping the pantry” when he’s packing for elk hunting, but was impressed by some of the buckets: coffee, tea, chocolates, candies, jerky and other dried meats, variety of beans, all the rice, dried veggies, dried fruit, etc. Smile. He then built a closure for the crawl space and we placed a shelf in front of it.
I work for the Extension Service, which has been shut down for months from any face-to-face activities due to the virus. Offices are slowly opening up, and at long last, I was able to permission from the university (long, complicated process) to host a food preservation table at the farmer’s market in our area yesterday. Hurray! A chance to visit with people (albeit with my mask, yuck), talk about food preservation and gardening, hand out information, and tested three pressure canner gauges for people. Talked to a few people who were slowly getting on board about prepping. One gal had watched some of the Christian videos on prophecy that Lily may be referencing, as she is now working with her sister to store up more food to be ready for supply disruptions and chaos this fall.
I am on Facebook for personal and professional reasons, and primarily use my page for positive, encouraging comments; posting Scripture; and encouraging people to cook from scratch, eat healthy, grow gardens, raise chickens for meat and eggs, store food, etc. I am literally a “prepper in plain sight” as I can do all this as part of my job with Extension, what a joy! Over the years, I have taught classes on these subjects, with the goal of helping people be more self-sufficient and be prepared for what is coming.
Take care and God bless.
We had a visit from the nearby college town Saturday, apparently on of the recent alums from our local high school had moved to “the big city” and they had enlightened her about how oppressed she had been growing up in a rural southern town. In her new found “Wokeness” she decided to come down and enlighten all the poor uneducated hicks in her old home. So with help from the BLM and ASP they organized a rally in a local supermarket parking lot. After hearing about a lot of “new folks” in town Friday night I thought I’d load up a take a look at what was going on Saturday. When I arrived I was pretty surprised, I’m not sure what I was expecting but it wasn’t a few hundred trucks lining the one main street through town waving American flags and Trump 2020 signs. I made my way to the rally site to find they had 60-80 protesters there, 2/3s of which appeared to have been bused in. The girl who was fronting the protest seemed completely unprepared and seemed to think anger would be enough to fuel the protest. There were a half dozen professional agitators that I could tell were the money and organization behind the event, they stayed busy directing folks from the background and when the rally ended after less than 15 minutes the protesters marched to the Sheriff’s office to call for de-funding police while being guarded and escorted…by the police. I noticed that the leadership types disappeared at that point and did not make the march. After marching a mile or so in 100 degree high humidity heat the rally fizzled shortly after reaching the Sheriff’s office.
One disturbing thing I picked up on there were a couple of people videoing the crowd, I assumed they were local news but I happened to see them in the parking lot loading up n an SUV that had state tags on it. Why would state law enforcement send out a crew to document who was at a political rally (for either side). After discussing it with some friends on the Church security team we feel that they were gathering facial recognition data. Scary times we live in.
Psalm 59
1 Deliver me from my enemies, O my God;
Defend me from those who rise up against me.
2 Deliver me from the workers of iniquity,
And save me from bloodthirsty men.
3 For look, they lie in wait for my life;
The mighty gather against me,
Not for my transgression nor for my sin, O Lord.
4 They run and prepare themselves through no fault of mine.
Hello 0utlaw!
Something very similar happened in our small town with regard to protests which –thankfully — fizzled out fast, without any acute injury to any persons or property.
So much like other kinds of terrorist organizations, the well funded agitators who commit acts of violence against people and who destroy property are using our freedoms against us — for the purpose of stealing from us those very freedoms.
As much as I do not support the surveillance state, and have great concern for the abuses of surveillance, I also understand the need to identify mob leaders. The people law enforcement is searching for have committed terrible and sometimes terrifying and horrific acts against others.
As a country and a culture, we’re in quite a difficult situation — and one that can only be truly solved by the restoration of the foundational Judeo-Christian values on which this country was founded. Without this foundation, we will continue to face the risks of criminal abuses of power — by criminals outside law enforcement, and by criminals within it too. We have no shortage of examples of this unfolding before us.
To all of my friends here,
Thank you to all of you for prayers and of all the kind comments from everyone. I’m so grateful for you all. Isn’t it strange and wonderful that a group of us strangers have all become so close like a best friend or close confidant but because of our OPSEC we cannot reveal ourselves truly to one another?
Wish it could be different, but I understand.
You all made me feel great and I know that whatever God has in store for me I will be able to handle it, especially with all of you cheering for me.
Thank you
P.S Krissy, are you doing okay? I haven’t seen you comment in a few days. Hope all is well with you. Thinking of you
Rock on
RKRGRL68…you have been much in my prayers also. EVERYTHING you take care of in your world would tax ANYONE…please take time to take care of you! God’s timing and plans are ,,not ours…”I am not only WITH you on this journey, I PLANNED the journey.” (A word of prophecy from years ago that has become a marker for me on the way.) You have such a heart, thank you for reminding us of the important stuff…will be watching for Krissy’s posts.
Hopenjoy…(love your moniker btw!) “Prepper in plain sight” is a HUGE blessing to you and others from the sounds of it! It was good to read of your interaction with those individuals at your preservation table during market. The spirit is moving even when we don’t see!
TRYING to get back to work…