I now understand...

the meaning of the phrase..."Stop the world.  I want to get off."

Evenings I will sometimes find a video to watch on my computer while sewing or crocheting.  A couple of nights ago I was scrolling through YouTube videos.  I understand that many videos are fake, just to get clicks, but many seemed to be somewhat true. 

I saw gangs of people stealing huge dollar amounts of merchandise from stores and nobody stopped them.

I watched an argument over whether men can become pregnant.

I watched a Senate inquiry of potential judges who were unable to define a woman.

I watched parents at a school board meeting reading pornography from books that are found in elementary school libraries, only to be hauled out of the meetings.  Apparently, it's OK for third graders to read what is too deranged for school board member's sensitive ears.

And there were countless videos of people screaming at one another over trivial matters.  

And, of course, everything bad known to man is the fault of one who has not been President for several years.

I would really like to know when stupid took over the psyche of many Americans.  

In the world I grew up in, none of this would have been tolerated.  Of course the world wasn't all honey and roses, but most people were held responsible for their actions.  We knew how many genders there are and which bathroom to use.  We mostly worked out problems by sensibly talking to our neighbors and reaching solutions agreeable to both.  

We honored the American flag and and all things patriotic.

The direction we seem to be taking is sure to continue with all things hateful.  

Saw a t-shirt the other day that had printed on the front, "Stupid Should Hurt."

True, that.

Stacking, Stacking, Stacking

I am not one who lives in the conspiracy theory world.  I have been around the block way too many times to believe everything I see on the news or on the internet.  And half the time I am skeptical of what I am told by some individuals.

But something is going on.  Something that does not bode well for the average citizen.  Something bad.

Me...I refuse to take chances with the welfare of my family.  There are a lot of us.  With good appetites.  

7.5 lbs. of shredded hash browns are dehydrated and packed for storage.

24 half pint jars of chicken breast are in the pressure canner.  About 3 lbs. of meat are in the freezer until I can get my hands on enough for another canner load.

15 lbs. of russet potatoes are waiting to be peeled, chopped and canned.  I'm trying a new to me method of canning.  Potatoes canned in water turned out awful for me.  I dislike the taste, texture and the buggers mostly turned gray in color.  So, this go-around will be canned without liquid.  Can't be any worse.

The plan is to can or dehydrate whatever is on sale.  This time I got 3 lb. bags of frozen chicken breast for $5 each.  Granted, they are not pretty.  The meat looks pretty rough.  I would guess these bags are full of the 'seconds' while the pretty meat is packed on Styrofoam trays, covered with cling wrap at an also very lovely price.  I don't care.  I cut the chicken breasts into about 1-inch cubes to pack into wide mouth half pint jars.  Doesn't have to look nice.

The only negative thing I can say about the grocery delivery service I use is unless an item is listed in the weekly sale ad, I don't know the cost of anything until it arrives in my kitchen.  I was in for a shock when I looked at the grocery receipt.

When did a can of pear halves become worth $2.39 each!  A box of a dozen wide mouth canning lids runs $5.99 each!  The hashbrowns I dehydrated were $5.49 for a 30 oz. bag!

Don't even try to tell me those in power care one hoot about us.  I have to wonder how in the world those folks who are raising kids and working their fingers to the bone for wages that don't even come close to covering all they need - how are they managing.

My days of wimping out simply because arthritis rears its ugly head from time to time, are over.  And yeah - I know that's what I tend to do.  But that isn't going to get the job done.  I still do it - but slower.  A turtle's pace.  As a dear friend likes to say, "Turtles of the world.  Unite!'  :)  

Stack it high and wide.  If this country continues down the path we are on, nobody but the elite will be able to keep food on the table.

God help us! 

Here we go again.

When will the government types learn that all most of us want is to be left alone to live our lives the way we want.  Within a civil society - Yes.  Within the law, provided stupid is not part of our laws - Yes.  Without hurting others - Yes.  

Apparently, the first virus go-around didn't scare us enough to knuckle under to whatever the powers that be think we should do.  From what I have seen from those who know more than I do, another round of idiocy with more of the same regulations is on the horizon.  Some health facilities and schools have already issued mask mandates.  My answer to that is...

accompanied by a double middle finger salute!

I also have no doubt that the next rounds of vaccines are already bottled up, waiting to be plunged into the arm of some poor person who actually believes politicians.

I wonder why we hear nothing about flu season any more.

On another note:

I have tried over the years, without being too preachy, to introduce some of the younger nurses I see weekly to the concept of preparedness.  I might be sitting at my kitchen table when they arrive, repackaging food items for long term storage.  Or I might be filling water bottles.  Or there might be several jars of home canned foods ready to go on the shelves.

A couple of the older ones have gotten busy stocking up.  When I see them, they like to tell me what they are working on.  But most of the younger ones - far the majority, look at me like I have grown an eye in the middle of my forehead.  

Sometimes, in order to get rid of the headache, we need to stop banging our heads against the brick wall.

I am so done.  If asked, I will answer to the best of my ability.  But time is becoming too short to waste it trying to teach those who have no desire to learn.  

Although arthritic hands tend to make pressure canning a bit of an adventure, after taking stock of the chicken I have on the shelves, I am orderng 12 lbs. of chicken breast this time around to can in half pint jars.  Living alone as I do, I find the half pints just the right size for sandwiches or to have slathered in BBQ sauce for supper or for adding to a cold macaroni salad.  So I will give one more try to pressure canning.  The small jars are light enough in weight to be manageable.

One thing about us preppers - we rarely give up.  We soldier on even when things get tough.  For we know that if bad things happen, our families will be taken care of.

And that's what it is all about, isn't it!

Sigh

This morning I watched the live webcam of the Lake Superior Canal at Duluth, Minnesota.  I enjoy watching the people who line up to watch the huge, long, low ships enter or leave the harbor with their loads of grain or iron ore or taconite.  There often are sailors on deck who wave to those in the crowd.  I enjoy hearing the ship's horns blowing a salute to the lift bridge that raises high to allow the passage of the ships, and to hear the bridge's answering salute to the ships.

But my favorite view is of a rather large, grassy area just north of the canal.  Often the activity there, mostly children playing, is good for the soul.

Today I saw several seagulls either walking through the grass or flying in circles low over it.  And in the middle of that activity were three or four toddler sized kids playing "Catch the Seagull."  A bird or two would land and the kids were after it until those birds on the ground took flight and a couple more took their turn at being chased.  Looked to me like both kids and birds were enjoying the activity.

Sometimes - particularly these days - we need the gentle distraction of kids chasing seagulls.

Looks like the government types are gearing up to try to control us with more pandemic rules and regulations.  I already find that mask mandates are in effect, particularly in health care facilities and colleges.

I saw this morning where the government has an alcohol czar who has decided that no more than two beers a week should be allowed.  Now, I no longer drink alcohol, but it still seems to me that might be a personal choice.  Does no one recall how well Prohibition went in the 20's and 30's?

The final example of pure insanity I came across was the article that said Biden thinks we should regulate ceiling fans.  Apparently, the fans use way too much energy.  But electric vehicles don't.  Sigh.

Yep...some days watching kids chasing seagulls is vastly better than facing the reality of our new world.

Oliver Anthony's song, "Rich Men North of Richmond" is truer than anything else I have heard for a while.

Keep stacking it high.  Stay on bended knee, praying.  It is coming at us like a speeding freight train.  Get ready.

Why?

Is there a reason that we are putting up with enough governmental bullsh*t to require wearing hip waders in order to slog through it all?

I don't need to tell my readers to wake up, but there are so very many others who just skip blithely through life without a single clue.  

Nobody is coming to rescue us.  Case in point:  how much government aid has gone to Hawaii since the horrible fires there and how many of our tax dollars have been sent to aid those in a war overseas that has nothing to do with us. 

Our founding fathers would be stacking bodies like cordwood by now.

Normal? Really?

 We are never going to see what was 'normal' for us in years past.  Perhaps that is the reason I hate the phrase 'New Normal' so much.

I just don't see a whole lot in the world around us that could be considered normal.  Men wearing dresses and makeup and calling themselves women is not normal.  I hear the question 'what is a woman' so often that it makes me wonder if there is a shred of common sense left.  And why, pray tell, haven't some people figured that out.

I am seeing the names of several new viruses being hailed as the new diseases we need to be afraid of and for which, of course, new vaccines are at the ready.  And I am hearing that we should again be confined to our homes when these deadly viruses are upon us.  How ever did we manage to live through previous viruses without 'government protection.'

Granted, we have lived through some less than stellar administrations.  But the current one seems hell bent on destroying America rather than working toward a better future for us all.  It reached the epitome of 'petty' when its leader decided that home appliances were going to ruin the climate unless we changed them out for whatever he deems suitable.

Insert big sigh here.

Frankly, I just cannot keep up with all of the foolishness, nor do I want to at this point.  Each and every day there is something else coming at us destined to make life harder.

On the bright side, empty store shelves don't seem to have reached my area.  I am still receiving everything I order every two weeks.  There may be brand names that are unavailable, but there are substitutions that work just as well.

This week I ordered frozen corn and mixed vegetables to dehydrate.  Those are done, but celery, onions and potatoes are waiting to be cleaned, peeled, chopped, sliced and dried.  I am concentrating my efforts on dehydrating just now.  This is not the time to slack off with the preparedness.  God only knows what kind of crazy we will see tomorrow, next month, next year.

As always - keep preparing and keep praying.  God is our only hope.

Just Checking In

The older I become, the faster time seems to go by.  I realized this morning that it has been a week since my last post.  So here I am - checking in with all of you!

Six large bags of frozen hash browns are dehydrated, bagged and put away.  Same with six 16 oz. bags of frozen broccoli.  My grocery order goes in Monday for delivery next Thursday, so I am working on the list.  Probably can use more dehydrated onions.  I seem to use lots of onions.  And I grind some for onion powder - one less item to buy.

I am also checking my stash of ingredients.  Since even the prices on small items like gravy or taco seasoning mixes have headed skyward along with so many other items, I think now might be the time to use my recipes for making my own rather than buying.  

It is not all work.  I have been collecting information about my ancestors for a number of years now.  And because I think it is important for my kids and grands to know about the people who went before, I have been working to organize it all in a genealogy program to make it easier to follow and understand.  For me, this is not work.  It is fun.  Especially when I unearth a rogue or reprobate!

I admit to loving gadgets.  My son brought me a gadget that I am really enjoying.

Background.  I have two computers.  One is a desktop with a huge monitor.  I have used this one for a number of years.  It holds genealogy records, photos, etc.

I now have a laptop that I use for genealogy, among other things.  But I had no way - at least no easy way - to transfer data from one computer to the other.

Enter my son with an external hard drive.  This little piece of electronics has enough memory to hold my entire Documents file, including a ton of photos.  Plus much more.  As I have been writing this post, a wealth of information is being transferred from the desktop to the external hard drive.  Next step - plug the device into my laptop and  download.  I was afraid there would be a whole project in itself to do the transfer.  Nope.  Cut and paste.  I can do that without any frustration.

Most of the time we plan and God chuckles.  But this time the plan is actually working.  :)

That's all I know for now, except that the world is still a hot mess with no end in sight.  I still check news reports to continue to know what the enemy is up to.  And, as always, preparing is at the top of the list.  That and daily prayer for this used and abused land of ours.  Or more to the point, it's used and abused citizens.

Can't give up.  Won't let them win.  Have never been very good at following orders, especially from the kinds of morons who are now issuing their silly orders.

Keep preparing.  And most importantly, keep praying.