It is the middle of January and here in the wilds of Minnesota suburbia, that means there isn't much going on.
We had a couple inches of snow with more predicted for the remainder of the week. Some years January finds us somewhat frozen with sub-zero temps, but so far it has been relatively mild. And some years we have been up to our hips in snow by now, but this year - not so much. No complaints here. :)
The store where my grocery delivery service shops has fresh coleslaw mix on sale for 10 packages for $10. I have ordered 15 packages to dehydrate. Drying this mix is easy. Just spread the mix out on mesh lined dehydrator trays and it is good to go. It doesn't take long to dry and this stuff makes a good filler for soups, plus it adds flavor. Win - win.
Youngest Son brought me 2 tubs full of canning jars. There were 35 quart jars and 53 pints. Score! I have two cases of half-pint jars ordered so I am back in business for canning. Up to now, the stacks of jars were getting pretty small. Thank you, Son!
I have the ingredients all prepped for canning ham and beans. Thursday is grocery delivery day, so canning will take place over the weekend. Because I move at the pace of a herd of turtles, putting groceries away and canning are not compatible on the same day. My days of multi-tasking have come and gone these days.
However, just so I won't be accused of lounging on the sofa, remote in hand, I spent time last evening going through boxes of quilting fabric and supplies. I found several Ziploc bags of already cut out quilt pieces - some already pinned together ready for sewing, that my aging brain had forgotten about.
That's one really nice thing about getting old. We put things away for safekeeping and when we find them again, it is like getting surprise gifts. Who says aging can't be fun!
So I think I will spend the rest of today and tomorrow playing with fabric, which is one of my favorite things to do. Plus, when the lights go out, we in the Minnesota tundra will need all the quilts we can lay our hands on, just to keep from freezing. Food is important, but there are many other things to consider. So keep on prepping!
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I'm still too poor to return to prepping to any degree, but my minuscule retirement finally kicks in this summer, so maybe that will help. Glad you're staying busy, that keeps the boredom away. Stay warm.
ReplyDeleteGorges...Even a couple of extra cans of food when you shop puts you far ahead of those who can't be bothered. And if I didn't stay busy, I figure I would be bat guano crazy in less than a week! :)
DeleteThere is a lot of food and fabric in the dump!!! I am essentially starting all over. My blankets are there, too.
ReplyDeleteI'm sorry that happened to you, Linda. I pray you will be able to recover.
DeleteIt is happening slowly, but the toys of my youth and heirlooms can never be gotten back.
DeleteI'm still finding canning jars at yard sales out here in the Old West. Grandma dies, and the kids don't know what to do with them. I get them for pennies apiece.
ReplyDeleteI guess I'm not as old as you are, Vicki. I put something away for safekeeping, only to not remember where the hell I put it. When I do find it, it's usually two days... or two minutes... after I bought another one!
Pete...I haven't been lucky enough to find canning jars at yard sales here and the thrift shops seem to think the jars are made of gold. New jars run between $8 and $10 per case of 12, so I either save up or get just a couple cases at a time. Not too bad since lids and rings are included and a 12 pack of lids are between $2.25 and $3.
DeleteI have been known to lose things for months at a time. I forgot where I had stored a half a bucket of dried beans and finally found them several weeks later. The worst was the 6 birthday cards I bought at one time to have on hand for my grands. That was maybe 5 or 6 years ago. I expect after I die and my kids are cleaning out my apartment, one of them will find the cards. I have given up. :)
Vicki~The weather here is a little cloudy and 64 with a projected low of 41 tonight. Just picked up from Ace two cases each of pint, pint and a half and quart jars. The clerk that loaded them into my car said I was the third person today with a jar order. He said his Mom has been canning for months now. There's something everyday cooling when he gets home. I told him you have a smart Mom. You'll be eating food that you know where it came from and what went into the jar. I found a place to order sweet potato starts https://www.sweetpotatoplant.com and already received True Potato Seeds from https://www.cultivariable.com Red
ReplyDeleteRed...Because I live alone and because I share home canned foods with my son who also lives alone, I use lots of half pint jars, so that's the size I will be ordering for a while. I have to say I am kind of surprised about the store clerk remarking on selling lots of canning jars. I really didn't think many were canning any more. It is good to hear that is happening. The more people who are putting food by, the better off we all will be.
DeleteGlad to hear you have your seed potatoes. I had read where the potato crop wasn't very good due to the weather - spring and fall - and shortages were talked about. I have lots of potatoes canned, but I think it might be wise to can more. And perhaps it would be smart to dehydrate more, especially the half-inch dices that work so well in soup. Prices here on potatoes haven't gone up much yet, but I expect they will.
Its not getting forgetful as we mature. No mama its because our heads are so full of information that its take time to go through all our records to find everything. They say 8" of winter powder for us up north here...
ReplyDeleteRob...That excuse works for me. :) I haven't heard just how much snow is expected here, but as long as I don't have to go out in it, it's fine with me.
DeleteTonight -11 temp with WC of -25 to -35. Friday 8" sounds like the minimum amount. If the WC is that low We will not send the GS to school. Not waiting for bus in this kind of weather. Snow yes bitter wc not happening
Delete.rob...Smart move keeping GS home in this kind of cold. Bad things happen when the wind chill is that low. Every winter the frozen bodies are found of those who didn't have sense enough to stay indoors.
Deletejust a note read 'takimag.org' about golems touches on the situation where you live
ReplyDeleteyou might want to remove this comment after you et the message
Sorry, deb...I found the website but could not find the article you mentioned. Could you please be specific as to the title? Thanks.
DeleteI think I found the article she is referring too.
Deletehttps://www.takimag.com/article/stop-with-the-golems-already/
Thanks, Alice...I read as much of it as I could stomach. It does mention the problems my state of Minnesota has with Representative Omar who seems to hate most everybody. And while I believe in freedom of speech, I do think that time could be better spent trying to heal our nation rather than working on tearing it apart more than it already is.
Deletethink taki is addressing his own people in that article, i just found the reference interesting
DeleteWow! That is awesome with the canning jars. It's about to turn cold in our parts of the US. I don't quilt, but I did work with my sewing today. Stay warm.
ReplyDeleteKristina...Yep. The jars were most welcome. And those of my adult kids who have already huffed many cases of jars up the stairs to my apartment were pretty pleased as well. :)
DeleteWinter doesn't mean an end to canning, does it! I have a whole list just waiting for my grocery orders over the winter. It is all good!
*shakes head* I just counted the amount of squeezed lemon juice in jars. Eight quarts of organic lemon juice. Plus I'm still not done. My three types of garlic showed up today. Made masa harina tortillas and they were tasty. Stay warm everyone. Red
ReplyDeleteRed...No shortage of lemon juice at your house. :) That tree of yours is worth it's weight in gold this year!
DeleteSeven lbs. of slaw mix (shredded cabbage and carrots) in the dehydrator. Eight more lbs. to dry tomorrow. Diced ham, carrots and onions in the fridge. Six lbs. Great Northern beans soaking. Will cook ham and bean soup tomorrow and can it Saturday.
I probably should pay more attention to the freezer above the fridge. Found 6 lbs. of chicken breast I forgot I had. That is thawing, too, to be canned. Got two cases of half pint jars today, so after the other stuff, bbq pork is next to can. Am determined to add as much as possible as soon as possible.
Are you paying attention to Virginia? Rumors of possible unrest there over the weekend with a protest planned over the new gun confiscation threats.
Yes I am watching Virginia. Also saw this offer from West Virginia. https://www.wvlegislature.gov/Bill_Status/bills_text.cfm?billdoc=hcr8%20intr.htm&yr=2020&sesstype=RS&i=8&houseorig=h&billtype=cr Red
DeleteI had heard about West Virginia's offer to accept any Virginia counties that wished to leave VA, but had not seen the actual legislative act. I looked it up and if all the VA counties/cities that have declared themselves to be 2nd amendment sanctuaries, that would leave the Gov. of VA presiding over Richmond and very little else. I also read where nearly all of the Sheriff Departments in VA have threatened to deputize any citizen who wants to be deputized as deputies are allowed to keep firearms. It is about damn time the public started standing up to tyrannical politicians. I'm pretty sure my Gov. would do the same as the Gov. of VA if he thought he could get away with it. Thanks for the link!!
DeleteThe really interesting thing is NONE of the Elected Virginian persons have standing in any County that moves into the West Virginian umbrella. All the Soros backed DAs See Ya. Plus all the Govn't workers will need to validate their usefulness. Red
DeleteRed...That is bloody marvelous! All those what my Dad used to call 'little tin gods' left without a pot or a window. Get the popcorn ready. This could be fun!
Deleteremember once the panhandle part of maryland threatened to join wva ---wanted attention from their state govt and got it
ReplyDelete