Sunday, June 19, 2022

This and That

 I have been neglecting this blog lately.  I have no excuse, really.  I can truthfuly say that stuff gets in the way and consumes my time and attention.

My dehydrators have been running and I have added potatoes, spinach, onions and more eggs to my food storage.  This past Thursday my groceries were delivered and they included 8 one pound boxes of strawberries that were on sale.  In order to freeze them along with 4 lbs. of butter, I had to remove several bags of frozen peas to make room.  It made no sense to run the pressure canner for just peas, so I dug deeper.  When all was said and done I had 9 pints of peas, 3 pints of celery and 25 pints of meat - hamburger, pork and chicken.  

I haven't been overly concerned about the power blackouts discussed on various preparedness YouTube channels, but when the local news put out the same warnings for my area, I figured it was time to clear out the freezer as much as possible.  Taking stock of the number of empty jars I have left, I am thawing out enough food to fill them.

It has been suggested that perhaps people would take being prepared more seriously if politics were not discussed here.  I understand the sentiment, but it is my belief that the two are intertwined.  We see gas prices, grocery prices, any number of prices on other goods and services headed skyward.  Many parts of the country are finding empty shelves in stores.  And if we are honest, we can see that these problems are mostly caused by the decisions our politicians make.  

The way to be fully prepared is to know what is happening around us.  I don't mean that we have to immerse ourselves in the daily theatre that is DC.  But in the same way we watch the weather so we know when a storm is approaching, we need to know what new horrors our representatives have in store for us.

Unless something changes soon, it is my belief that we are in for a really rough time in the coming months.  Pray.  Prepare.  Pray some more.        

   

24 comments:

  1. Spot on, Vicki.
    I’m a bit more worried about electrical grid problems down here. We’ve considered a generator but never did anything about it, since we don’t get very cold. Shortsighted of us, I know. And now they’re very expensive, if one can even find them. We’ll just have to manage, whatever comes our way.

    Take care, everyone.
    —Lucy’s Mom

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    1. Hey, Lucy's Mom, Check out Craigslist and Offerup for used generators. Yeah, they might still be more expensive than they once were, but they'll be A LOT cheaper than new. Many of these units have VERY LOW HOURS, often being sold due to disuse.

      It's not about lack of heat... It's about lack of POWER. It NEVER gets REALLY cold here in the Southwest, but that doesn't stop me from being prepared for a power outage. Indeed, the heat presents even MORE issues where I live when the power goes out. Refrigerators and freezers thaw quicker. A/C, while not being a matter of life and death, is surely handy when it's 110* outside! Good luck on your preps!

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    2. Lucy's Mom...Pete answered your comment better than I could have. He knows what he is talking about.

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    3. Pete and Vicki, thanks for the suggestion. For some reason, that had not occurred to us. We feel kind of silly for not thinking of that, but we’re on the track now!

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    4. Lucy's Mom...Even with my lists, there is always something I haven't thought of. That's one good thing about our little family here. We look after one anther.

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  2. Vicky, separating preparation from politics is like separating water from being wet! Indeed, many of our current potential tipping points are being caused by the occupant of the White House and our "representatives!" My primary barometer for my preps is what's going on around me, but it doesn't hurt to check the "news a couple of times a day...

    You might investigate getting a small generator for your freezer. The price of things being what they are, that frozen food is becoming more valuable every day! Quick and dirty, you can get one from Harbor Freight for less than $200.00. I don't recommend these things for everyday use, but they;ll get you through the night, short term. If you've got a little more scratch, a 1KW Honda or Yamaha will run your ice box. Any of these and an extension cord will store under a table or chair on your balcony.

    God bless you and yours!

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    1. Pete...I would love to have a generator. However, I live in a small apartment in a building that was built in the late 1800's. No balcony. I have looked into solar generators but I have no place to put solar panels. So until I can find a solution, I am canning as much as possible - especially meat. My ace in the hole are my kids, who have in the past, ridden in on their white chargers to save the day when needed.
      May God truly bless you and yours, Pete.

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    2. Off-topic, Vicki; just an FYI to you and anyone else out there who uses rice in any quantity; I just touched base with a ham radio friend who read of an up and coming shortage on rice. Believe it or not, California produces a BUNCH of rice. I had no idea of this myself until I drove the I-5 north of Sacramento where these HUGE rice paddies are. Anyhow, the farmers up there can't get enough water to grow their rice, so... they're not growing any rice... Whatever rice IS grown will probably end up on dinner plates in China.

      If you folks use rice, now's the time to put some up. As they say, panic early and beat the rush!

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    3. Thanks for the heads up on rice, Pete. I have lots stocked, but also have more on my list for my next grocery haul. You are spot on about our food winding up on the dinner plates in China. Don't suppose it would occur to anyone in DC that Americans might just need food grown in America. Sigh.

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    4. They want us buying their fake groceries, Vicki. All that "tastes like " stuff.
      You all be safe and God bless.

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    5. You are absolutely right, LindaG...I am seeing ads for fake meat fairly often now. As long as I still have a choice, I will not be partaking of their soyburgers or fake chicken nuggets.

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  3. Vicki~ Anyone not putting food and other items aside is NUTS. A friend's daughter had some extra cash and even though I recommended getting shelf stable groceries, she bought a new Smart phone with all the bells and whistles. Was showing it off all "see mine is better than your flip phone". I told her the amount of food she could have purchased would have fed them for at least 6 months. I said what happens when there is no food or tampons in the stores. Her reply " I'll just order it for delivery." Red

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    1. Red...Which explains why there will be a lot of panicked, crazed, hungry people if things don't straighten out. I really have to wonder what these people use for brains.

      On the other side of that coin...The nurse I wrote about recently who was clueless, surprised me today. She wanted to know why there might be food shortages. She asked all sorts of questions about what she should get for storage and how was I able to accumulate enough. I explained a couple of the high points of food shortages and told her that I buy multiples - one for the cupboard and one or two for storage. My conversation with her gives me reason to think there may still be hope.

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  4. The current occupants of our government, almost to a person, WANT prices to keep going up. They want the destruction of these once United States so the World Powers (whoever they are), can step in and tell us how we should live.

    And I really doubt that Biden is in charge. Not sure who is pulling his strings (or how his wife can allow it); but I am just thankful that God sees the picture better than I do.

    You all (everyone reading or writing) be safe and God bless.

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    1. Of course the current government wants the chaos to continue, LindaG...For if we are left to our own devices, we get along just fine and that will never do. Happy, productive people can not be controlled.

      I am not so sure that the resident of the white house is even capable of tying his shoes in the morning, much less running the country.

      Hang in there, my friend, and may God richly bless you and yours.

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  5. I try to do something prep related every day; some days a lot gets done, other days it can be as simple as making lists, but I keep moving forward.

    On happy note, after much discussion, my husband finally agreed that we need chickens. The coop arrived last week; I'm heading out this morning to get the other supplies necessary. Then all we need are the chicks!

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    1. sbrgirl...Sometimes the steps forward are baby steps and other times they are giant leaps. It is the direction that counts.

      Happy Dance for the chickens!! That is a big step toward self sufficiency and you are to be cngratulated!!

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    1. I can't fault you for that, BW. I refuse to eat liver. :)

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  7. I am a tad late to the party, but what a great post and wonderful comments. There is more common sense among your little blog family than in all of DC and half of the U.S. Thank you for sharing and blessings to all.

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    1. CW...I just love the way we all try to help one another. The world could use more of that very thing.

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  8. I want to clarify my comment on the last post about the political angle - you're right, politics plays a huge part in supply availability, or lack of. So does corporate greed. And consumer demand. No side can claim clean hands IMHO. My main point that didn't come across clearly was that maybe non-political reasons for stocking up could be pushed a bit more - power outages due to storms, floods, landslides, extreme hot/cold, ice storms, solar flares, wild fires, any number of reasons. And who knows what the next factory shut down, or food safety recall, will hit? Even coming down with an illness or injury and not able to get to a grocery store, especially for those who live where delivery doesn't exist, or might not have others who can run errands.

    Good news on the nurse thinking things over and wanting to learn more on stocking up.

    After canning, do the frozen peas turn out like the nasty canned starchy store bought peas? I can't stand those, love fresh or frozen though.

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    1. Anon...I completely understand your point of view. We need to prepare for whatever comes our way, be it natural disasters or man made problems. It just seems to me that those who wish to have complete control over us are the most dangerous and therefore require more vigilance.

      Yes, after canning, frozen peas are just like the canned peas from the grocery store. Some like them - some, not so much. :)

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