Little Green Men

Seems Congress has found something else to try to justify their existence.  They are holding hearings about Unidentified Flying Objects.  That's right, folks.  Now we need to worry about those pesky UFOs cluttering up our skies.  

This may be new territory for the younger set, but us old farts have been hearing about 'flying saucers' for, at the very least, 50 years.  A whole tourist industry was built upon rumors of what was hiding in 'Area 51.'   The book and comic book industry has produced countless publications featuring those little green men from Mars.  And the film industry - both movies with live actors and the animated variety - have produced many films about invasions from outer space.

Good grief...even Bugs Bunny has dealings with Marvin the Martian.

I am not saying that it is impossible to find life on other planets.  And I am not saying that such life could never find its way here.

What I am saying is that these hearings are a doozy of a distraction.

Seems to me there are some things to concern ourselves with that are just a tad bit more important.

How about the fact that government officials lie to us so often that lying has become standard practice for them.

How about the fact that millions are openly crossing our borders illegally and nobody is doing anything to stop it.

How about the fact that kids are being sold to pedophiles.

How about the fact that groceries are fast becoming a luxury item.  

How about the fact that our government wants to limit all sorts of items like gas stoves and firearms and meat.

And how about the fact that using the wrong pronouns in addressing some individuals is becoming unlawful.  Really?  When did we lose all forms of common sense!

There are countless other issues that our leaders should be addressing.  But holding hearings to try to prove to the voters that they are doing something for us is wearing thin.  Thing is, once they have performed for the cameras, they do nothing.

And once again, I do believe we desperately need a Do Over!

Keeping On

 It is easy, sometimes, to use a setback - no matter what kind - as an excuse to avoid the chores we know need to be done but don't really want to do just now.  I have been guilty of that.  But my lazy days were not during a time of crisis.  If things in our country don't change real soon, that crisis is going to overwhelm us all.

I had a talk with my son today.  He knows that lately, arthritis is kicking my backside pretty hard.  I have had to stop canning because arthritic fingers tend to drop jars full of food and heavy canners.  He is bringing me a few items that will make life a bit easier.  And I had never heard of a battery operated can opener before.  Who knew?

Just because one way of preserving food has become a problem doesn't mean the job can not be done.   I spent some time the past few days, going through the room where I store my food and supplies, to see what I needed to dehydrate.  Turns out the list is fairly long.  My grocery delivery is a week from today and will include several bags of frozen hashbrowns, bags of frozen broccoli and maybe some more whole kernel corn.  Frozen foods are so easy to dehydrate.  Just spread out on trays and dry.

And because we all need a bit of fun now and then, I think I will dehydrate some mini marshmallows.  I had seen a video about that over at 'The Purposeful Pantry.'  There are tons of videos about dehydrating there.  Here is the link.  The Purposeful Pantry - YouTube   The dehydrated mini marshmallows can either be a snack or can be used to top off a mug of hot chocolate.

No matter what our limitations are, there are things we can do to prepare for whatever horror our leaders have planned for us.  Not all of us have homesteads.  Not all of us have space for a garden.  Not everybody can raise cows or goats or chickens.  I admire those who can do these things.

But the rest of us need to know that if we cannot home preserve foods, there is absolutely nothing wrong with hitting the grocery store sales and stocking up that way.  It doesn't matter how the stocking up is accomplished - just that it gets done.  Soon! 

I think we all know by now that when the going gets tough, we are on our own.  Nobody from the government - local or national - will be offering help.  We had better do everything we can to feed ourselves and our families or friends.  

Keep praying.  Keep stacking.  Both are absolutely necessary.

It is Time

 Looks like our "leaders" are about to get us totally involved in the war they have been wanting.  You don't send your troops to a country at war, just for the fun of it.  And you don't suggest reinstating the military draft unless you want to send more of our soldiers overseas to fight.

There is a video out this morning that lays it all right on the line.  Most of you are familiar with Patara over at Appalachia's Homestead with Patara.  And if you are, you know she is totally a straight shooter who tells it like it is.  I strongly suggest watching her video if you haven't seen her latest one already.

Here is the link.

💥 Rich Man's WAR! 💥 - YouTube

And if those who believe nothing bad will ever happen and even if it does, it won't have an effect on them - good luck with living in Fantasy Land with all of those unicorns and the fairy dust.

It is about to get real.

Please, God.  Help us fight the evil that has taken over our land.

Memories

 We all have issues in our lives that cause us to change course from time to time.  Mine is arthritis.  Occasionally it rears its ugly head and makes physical work difficult at best.  So, until this particular flare-up goes away, I am spending time doing things that require very little movement.

That doesn't mean that I am abandoning preparing.  It just means my grocery order this week includes items that don't need to be canned or dehydrated.  Paper towels, toilet paper, cleaning products as well as some canned goods will be delivered on Thursday.

And because I never have been able to just sit and stare into space, I am using this time to work on the never-ending project of organizing my family tree.  Even though my family doesn't share my enthusiasm for splashing about in our gene pool, I find it fascinating.  Especially when I discover the rogues and outlaws.  :)

And since all of my aunts and uncles and grandparents on both sides of my family have passed on to their reward, my kids and grands do not know what kind of people they were.  So, while sorting out ancestors, when I remember something about an aunt or uncle or grandparent, I write it down.  

My Uncle Kenneth is a prime example.  A veteran of the Second World War, he was the one out of a family of nine children to remain on the family farm in northern Minnesota, to keep the farm going and to take care of his elderly widowed mother until her death in 1955.

As a young child, Uncle Kenneth scared me.  He was always dressed in rough clothes suitable for the barn or for the fields.  Add to that his normal weeks growth of beard and his ever-present slouch hat.

Turns out, Uncle Kenneth was one of the kindest men I have ever known.

My best memory is of winter on that small farm.  There were 4 or 5 cows to milk, morning and evening.  In the evening, Uncle Kenneth would walk from the house to the barn, holding a lantern in one hand and guiding me along by holding my hand with the other.  I can still see in my mind's eye, the lantern light sparkling on the snow.

Uncle Kenneth knew I loved animals and there were cats in the barn.  They would line up while he often would squirt a stream of milk at them that they handily, each one in turn, would catch in open mouths.  And, with a twinkle in his eye, he sent one of the kittens home with me, much to the chagrin of my mother, who wasn't fond of animals in the house.

I think I might give most anything for just one more walk to the barn with my Uncle Kenneth.

Don't let the memories fade.  Our loved ones may no longer be on this earth, but they remain alive in our memories and in our hearts.

Back to Prepping

 I hope all of you had a good time celebrating our Independence Day.  Mine was fairly quiet, considering my building is just across the alley from a neighborhood bar.  I can watch from my living room windows, the fireworks display from the local amusement park - far enough away so I get the beauty of the fireworks without the noise.  Then the more inebriated of the bar patrons set off their fireworks in the middle of the street.  A whole lot of noise and very little sparkle.  Couldn't get mad while laughing at them, stumbling over themselves.  :)  Thankfully, nobody got hurt.

For the past few days I have been working on canning the meat in my freezer.  The point is to get it into jars before freezer burn finds it.  So far I have two cases of pint jars full of either chicken or turkey, and another case of hamburger.  There are still 8 lbs. of bacon to can, but because I am not as young as I once was, a day or two of recovery is necessary before continuing on.

Both last summer and this summer have found good deals on strawberries.  They are surprisingly tasty for supermarket berries.  I have been buying six 1-lb. containers at a time, eating a pound or so fresh and freezing the rest.  I still have a large amount of strawberry jam stashed away, so I think I will heat the frozen berries with a little sugar and can them up as strawberry sauce to use as ice cream topping or in other desserts.  My mother would can berries this way.  One of her favorite ways to use the strawberry sauce was over a slice of angel food cake, topped with whipped cream and the berry sauce.  Ah, the memories.

In between canning sessions, I am working on an inventory of my storage, to see exactly what I have and what I need.  Some of my kids and grands were here around Mother's Day.  They hauled out a truck load of food in jars along with some of the dry goods, like rice.  That really helped me as my apartment is small and space is at a premium.  

I admit to falling way behind on keeping track of what I have and what I still need.  But with prices continuing to rise and a few products out of stock at the store, it is in my best interest to stop procrastinating and get busy. 

Keep at it, my friends.  Now is not the time to slack off.  May God bless you all.

 

Pride

 This is my Pride Flag.

Long may she wave.