Posted on 02/09/2009 12:36:11 AM PST by nw_arizona_granny
Yahoo ran an interesting article this morning indicating a rise in the number of survivalist communities cropping up around the country. I have been wondering myself how much of the recent energy crisis is causing people to do things like stockpile food and water, grow their own vegetables, etc. Could it be that there are many people out there stockpiling and their increased buying has caused food prices to increase? It’s an interesting theory, but I believe increased food prices have more to do with rising fuel prices as cost-to-market costs have increased and grocers are simply passing those increases along to the consumer. A recent stroll through the camping section of Wal-Mart did give me pause - what kinds of things are prudent to have on hand in the event of a worldwide shortage of food and/or fuel? Survivalist in Training
I’ve been interested in survival stories since I was a kid, which is funny considering I grew up in a city. Maybe that’s why the idea of living off the land appealed to me. My grandfather and I frequently took camping trips along the Blue Ridge Parkway and around the Smoky Mountains. Looking back, some of the best times we had were when we stayed at campgrounds without electricity hookups, because it forced us to use what we had to get by. My grandfather was well-prepared with a camp stove and lanterns (which ran off propane), and when the sun went to bed we usually did along with it. We played cards for entertainment, and in the absence of televisions, games, etc. we shared many great conversations. Survivalist in the Neighborhood
I’m showing that to my husband. Nice work.
>>>Did you chill it before cutting?<<<
Yep, chilled (actually put in freezer - cuz everybody wanted some quick) The chips melted very quickly and before I knew it, it was done... nice and creamy - no granules of sugar and no thermometer either.
Hmmm do they pack superpails of chocolate chips?
I see no reason not to add nuts and those little marshmallows - Hmmmm maybe a jar of diced maraschino cherries?
OK, so my quirks are showing... I LOVE CHERRY pie with CHOCOLATE ice cream on top! Those two just go together in my mind... Amazing how many times you get vanilla if you order it with chocolate in a restaurant...
>>>I’m showing that to my husband. Nice work.<<<
Glad you like it...
Just remind him that the best response from a smart husband is:
“Yes Dear”
“Yes Dear”
He knows that, LOL. He's pretty well trained.
>>>And then there are the clintons and kerry.....
LOL, now we know of another place to get lost forever in research.
(an old FR joke)
Those were the good old days. Would change the font to white when someone was being disruptive, then not turn the white font off and everything would disappear.
Will you hubby build you one?
That is a nice looking green house. I need to do some special manipulating to get mine to. He’s all for preparing for the worst by buying toys (power tools, nonpower tools, guns, gun safe, ammo, even some silver, and stocking food.) Anything involving work and not spending - then he balks a little...
150,000 Postal Workers Offered Early Retirement
The U.S. Postal Service is offering early retirement to 150,000 workers and
closing district offices.
MORE DETAILS: http://www.10News.com/tu/5FqlTpeEt.html
That is a nice greenhouse and it needs to be about 3 of them, joined so they are one long one.
Also, we had rentals for a while. The way laws now make it all but impossible for landlords to have any rights w/r their own property and tenants to have many - it’s not hardly worth the trouble to have a rental either. And people aren’t what they used to be - most renters would just as soon destroy someone else’s property or try to live there for free (the attitude of entitlement has ruined this country, IMO).<<<
Yes, there are new laws, all against the owner.
The ‘get rich quick crowd’ did loose a lot of money, they got greedy.
Buy low, cheap land, sell it to the next stage the developer, less trouble and far more profit for amount invested and a hell of a lot safer than money in a bank.
This valley is a perfect example, it was subdivided in the late 1950’s and 1960’s, by a lady from Hollywood, Crystal, I have talked to her.
She saw the ad for a huge ranch for sale, cheap and talked her 2 brothers into joining her in buying it.
She said that before it was over, her family tried to have her committed, sure she was insane.
Crystal subdivided much of Arizona and still had new , far out cheap subdivisions for sale in 1999.
I am sitting on one of her 1960 lots, who knows how many times they sold it before I bought it with an old mobile on it.
Crystal did no building, but many people bought from her ads and I have talked to Military wives, who finally came to see the land they bought 30 to 40 years before, from an ad in the Navy times, sold for $10. down and $10. a month.
The lots on the highway are 1 acre lots, they now sell at
$75,000 and up per acre in the business zone.
The $600. 2 1/2 acre parcels in the water district, are worth about $50,000 and there are some fine homes being built on them.
They say even owning your home is a waste, for if someone else owns and maintains it, you can use the money for investment.
Never buy a parcel that does not “feel good” for if you are not attracted to it, the next buyer will not be either.
Buy cheap, keep your greed level in control and avoid the urge to get quick fast. For that is what crashed the market, too many people with a high greed level, trying to make a pile of money, some did but the end of the pyramid did not.
I bought this in the late 1970’s, choosing an old mobile, over a newer one on a 50 x 100’ lot in Kingman and it was the only one we could make the terms on, right then.
We had about 600 homes and cabins in a 20 square mile area, now there are about 20,000.
A couple of land surveyors were at Laughlin on a fishing trip and decided to see what Kingman looked like, they saw an 18 mile wide flat valley, decided to check on a cheap lot for their fishing trips and the valley came alive, they bought cheap, split into 2 lots and sold for a low down and fair monthly payments and got 10 to 12 % interest on the note.
Every time they came fishing, they bought a few lots, sold them in San Diego and did well.
One of my best clients knew them, heard about what they were doing and happened to find me at the office, on a Sunday.....and he in later years talked of the millions that I had made from him.
For he trusted me and if I called him and said “Jim I found this lot for $$$, it is a nice one and water and electric are___, he would buy it over the phone.
Then he split it and sold it as the Surveyors were doing, or better yet, he took half of it, for finding it for people who trusted him to invest his money.
They were not doing anything new, in the 1960’s, I worked for a group of doctors in Calif., they bought large ranch land parcels and held them, until the subdividers wanted them to subdivide, no building.
It takes time and paying attention, not a mad dash to get in on the turning houses, as they were doing in so many areas.
My opinion of course.
Good advice on green houses - thanks granny!<<<
You are welcome, make it as big as you can.
That fudge, is going to be one of those wonderful recipes that changes into many others.
Sounds like one could stir in rice crispies and have a good candy bar.
LOL, now we know of another place to get lost forever in research.<<<
Got too many of those already and those code words expire at the end of the month, then one will need to pay.
bttt
3 Banks Failed Today
details on the fdic site
http://www.fdic.gov/bank/individual/failed/banklist.html
also may want to look at this reference credit unions
March 20, 2009, Alexandria, Va. — The National Credit Union Administration Board today placed U.S. Central Federal Credit Union, Lenexa, Kansas, and Western Corporate (WesCorp) Federal Credit Union, San Dimas, California, into conservatorship to stabilize the corporate credit union system and resolve balance sheet issues. These actions are the latest NCUA efforts to assist the corporate credit union network under the Corporate Stabilization Plan.
The two corporate credit unions were placed into conservatorship to protect retail credit union deposits and the interest of the National Credit Union Share Insurance Fund (NCUSIF), as well as to remove any impediments to the Agency’s ability to take appropriate mitigating actions that may be necessary. Service continues uninterrupted at both U.S. Central Corporate Federal Credit Union and WesCorp, and members are free to make deposits and access funds.
The Federal Credit Union Act authorizes the NCUA Board to appoint itself conservator when necessary to conserve the assets of a federally insured credit union, preserve member assets and protect the NCUSIF.
Corporate credit unions do not serve consumers. They are chartered to provide products and services to the credit union system. These products and services will continue uninterrupted and there is no direct impact by NCUA’s actions on the 90 million credit union members nationwide. Credit unions that serve consumers remain very strong, with net worth exceeding 10 percent of assets, healthy growth in assets, membership, and loan portfolios despite the difficult economy.
U.S. Central has approximately $34 billion in assets and 26 retail corporate credit union members. WesCorp has $23 billion in assets and approximately 1,100 retail credit union members. The member accounts of both credit unions are guaranteed under provisions of the previously announced NCUA Share Guarantee Program, through December 31, 2010. The Program extends NCUSIF coverage to all funds held by the two corporate credit unions.
Following initial actions taken by the NCUA Board January 28, 2009 (see NCUA Letter to Credit Union No. 09-CU-02 http://www.ncua.gov/letters/letters.html), NCUA staff completed a detailed analysis and stress test of the mortgage and asset backed securities held by all corporate credit unions, including US Central and WesCorp. Specifically, this review determined that an unacceptably high concentration of risk resided only in the two conserved corporate credit unions. Securities held by US Central and WesCorp deteriorated further since late January 2009, contributing to diminished liquidity and payment system capacities, as well as further loss of confidence by member credit unions and other stakeholders.
Additional mortgage and asset backed security analysis and assessment of the two credit unions by NCUA staff enabled NCUA to refine NCUSIF’s required reserve for potential loss. The findings indicated an overall estimated reserve level, previously announced by NCUA, had increased from $4.7 to $5.9 billion. The specific computation and the impact of the refined reserve level are addressed in NCUA Letter No: 09-CU-06, which NCUA issued and posted online today at http://www.ncua.gov/letters/letters.html.
NCUA is hosting a webcast Monday, March 23 at 2 p.m. to provide the credit union community with an update on the corporate credit union stabilization program.
The central short-term objective of NCUA’s Corporate Stabilization Program has been to increase liquidity in corporate credit unions. Since the NCUA Board first began taking stabilization actions, liquidity has demonstrated marked improvement. The reliance on external borrowing has declined from $11.8 billion to $2.1 billion.
NCUA believes that the actions to conserve the two corporates, in tandem with established plans to enhance liquidity and generally stabilize the corporate network, represent the most cost effective and prudent alternative available to the credit union industry. The final stage in the overall stabilization program involves the Advanced Notice of Proposed Rulemaking initiated by the NCUA Board in January. The credit union industry is expected to provide suggestions on possible future regulatory reforms to the corporate credit union network.
NCUA will continue to take any and all steps necessary to preserve a well-functioning system of corporate credit unions and to protect the assets of natural person credit unions and their members during the ongoing broader financial market dislocation.
The National Credit Union Administration is the independent federal agency that regulates, charters and supervises federal credit unions. NCUA, backed by the full faith and credit of the U.S. government, also operates and manages the National Credit Union Share Insurance Fund (NCUSIF), insuring the deposits of over 89million account holders in all federal credit unions and the majority of state-chartered credit unions.
White House Admits Obama Energy Tax Will Increase Ave Electric Bill By $1800/Yr http://tinyurl.com/d96a3t
We’e all gonna have to learn how to make our own energy too. I’m so sick of this jerk already!!
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