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
You are on the right track, be sure they are strong enough to support hanging pots, as soon it will be full of plants and that means “hang them up”.
When I started in greenhouses they were redwood and glass panes, a pain, as you used white wash on the glass in the summer and then removed it.
Later came a Saran cloth screen, that we bought, by how much of the light we needed.
On the mountain, I did the roof in that corrugated fiberglass from the lumber yard. The walls were used windows that i got a good buy on.
Here we used the corrugated fiberglass to build them with and regular lumber for supports.
When the wind pattern changed for my place, it took the roof off the greenhouse and I can no longer garden, so did not replace it.
I think that over the years, I tried as many things as I could think of to get a mulch on this ground and in it , about all my ideas got me was scorpions under them and other bugs hiding.
For a first aid kit don't forget a health supply of products for healing blisters, calouses and broken skin. You might be doing a lot of hammer or digging or other un familiar manual labor (or hiking a long way) and broken blisters are sure to result.
Shopping on the internet, is good, if you can get to the mailbox and mail a check or use credit cards.
Saving 6% would be wonderful.
I can’t go to the mail box, due to bad health and Scott only comes once or twice each month, so that is when he picks up the mail.
For the same reason, I can’t have a credit card, as it is too hard to get the bill paid.
Food is all I buy today, don’t need anything else, as I never leave the house and it sure saves money.
Thanks for explaining the saving of taxes, I hope you will continue to read the thread and share your ideas with us.
Gun sales spike amid fears of federal regulation<<<
I think folks are beginning to discover that they will need guns and are waking up to what may be coming at us.
Even if it is a rabbit for the stew pot.
Thanks for the ping. I saved this link and the previous to a word document. Good info here.
Thanks for sending the ping to your group, I haven’t even had time to do my own as yet, will when I catch up here.
Yes, the thread will grow, it is even more important this year than it was last.
I hope your world is going in the right direction and your family is well.
Thanks! My parents were both young adults during the Depression and I grew up on a small farm in Georgia. Their teachings guide me to this very day. I learned to can veggies from watching my mother as a child. In fact, I still use her Sears and Roebuck "Maid of Honor" pressure canner from time to time for smaller, lower pressure runs. It was built in 1949. I have a larger, newer canner that I bought a couple of years ago that I use for larger runs, though. I also have a 6 quart pressure cooker that I use at least once a week. I can make a "fall off the bone" tender pot roast in about 45 minutes with it. If you didn't know you'd swear it cooked all day. Pressure cookers are sort of a lost art anymore, but they are a great way to cook fantastic meals in a fraction of the time of conventional cooking without losing vitamin content.
These folks http://www.pressurecooker-outlet.com/ have an excellent selection of both pressure canners and pressure cookers.
My newest canner is an "All American" brand and I cannot speak highly enough about the superb quality. My cooker is a "Chef's Design" and it's quality is also top notch.
I built my greenhouse from a kit, purchased from these guys:
http://www.farmtek.com/farm/supplies/prod1;ft1_greenhouses_accessories_2-ft1_professional_greenhouses;BackyardPro.html
I got it going early last fall. It's 12'x24', aluminum framed with polycarbonate coreplast panels. It even has a UV coating so I don't have to worry about being fried by the Sun when I'm working inside. A bit more than I really wanted to spend, but it's sturdy and should last for many years. I'm already wishing I had double the space, though. I've been planting fruit and nut trees, berry bushes, and grape vines for about the past five years, a little more every year. In fact, I'm submitting this year's order to a nearby nursery this morning. This year's effort includes six new grape vines (scupponong and Thompson seedless varieties), six peach trees, four pear trees and six apple trees, along with some blueberries, raspberries and blackberries.
Great thread you have going here. Lots of great info! I'm happy to be a small part of it.
I listen to the police scanners on the internet, you can get a start here and there are other sites:
http://co.scanamerica.us/index.php
I thank you for the prayers and will return them, as even I don’t want a wheel chair in my future.
It is good that you are still able to build, that is a help.
Yes, we do need to learn from others, I have all my life and have been blessed in finding folks that shared their knowledge with me.
Now it is my turn to pass it on.
My own family will not listen to my old ideas, they will go to the store and wish they had listened someday.
I have a hard time convincing Scott that I buy store labels and chuck roast, I don’t even like the fancy roasts he buys, to me they are tasteless.
So goes life, we live it and one day it is over.
We already do the do’s.
I don’t have a really good Swiss army knife, though.
There are radios that crank for energy.
Here’s a link where you can find them and other things that you mentioned.
Lehman’s is an Amish place.
Thank you for all of the information and moral support. It’s a great thread.
Don't forget that you can buy Gatorade dry in canisters and they take up less space to store for emergencies! Plus, cost is less per serving.
12. Gun and backup ammunition. Gun-control advocates won’t like this one, but I believe in our right to bear arms. Make them safe and out of reach of kids if you have them.
Okay, this one made me chuckle... not because it's not sensible, but better to just teach your kids to use the guns and be responsible with them.
9. Whistle. Whistles are great to carry along on hikes because they can make a lot of noise without wasting a lot of energy.
This is something a lot of people don't think about. I used to keep a whistle on a string around the bedpost of each of my kid's beds. Told 'em that was required for use in case of emergency. You never know when that might save a kid!
24. A wad of small bills, mostly ones and fives. Stores would soon run out of change and most vending machines only take small bills. (submitted by Greg)
additionally, keep change. Many people throw their change in a dish at the end of the day or when they clean their purse out and then turn it in for cash somewhere. Why not just keep that stash of change for emergencies? It *really* adds up and could be the best form of currency in some emergencies.
Welcome to the thread, glad you stopped in and hope you will continue to add your thoughts.
Your addition are good ones, and a roll of toilet paper fits nicely on a shovel handle.
In the city, one might add one of the small metal sheds in a corner of the yard, with a dirt floor, LOL, you know a tool shed to store the shovel in.
I forget that everyone does not own an axe and shovel.
For years I had a folding military type shovel in the truck, but someone took it.
I would want a couple rolls of the drop cloth plastic that Walmart sells, good under and over sleeping bags and to seal things, to keep the rain out.
For me, I would also want Essential Oils, Lavender for many uses and Oregano as it kills bacteria and other bad guys.
The citrus family also kill germs.
LOL, Bill hated it when I packed the camper and I could not stop from laughing, when he wanted something that he did not want in the camper......but he knew I had put in there.
I found some wonderful soft baling wire at an old mine camp, and started rolling it up, he said “you are not going to put that in the camper”, which I did.
The next morning when we went to leave, the truck had lost a cotter pin and would not work, so he had to ask for the hiding place of the baling wire and use it to come out of the far out area we were in.
Another time the distributor cap kept breaking that little metal arm that was in it and he would replace it, then one night in the middle of a bad rain storm, it happened again, and he put it back in place, used a band-aid that was in my purse.
So it is true one never knows what one will need next.
You are welcome on this thread and I hope you will continue to share your ideas.
Thank you for following the threads, join in any time or read and I hope find something useful.
Another thing to consider is latex, or vinyl, gloves.
Those are also cheap enough at places like Sam’s and BJ’s.
/bingo.
Ted Nugent: Why gun sales are surging ( It just wont stop )
WacoTrib | February 8th | Texas Wildman
Posted on 02/09/2009 3:36:28 AM PST by Halfmanhalfamazing
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2181413/posts
I have been thinking of purchasing some cast iron skillets and Dutch oven. I got a book on Dutch oven cooking from a book sale, but have yet to buy the Dutch oven. Any tips for buying new or picking up used?
On the “chuck roast,” that sounds really good. ...extra turkeys around Thanksgiving can be a good buy for the freezer, too. ;-) And on your bread post, yes. It’s better made by hand than in a bread machine, IMO. ...softer crust, for one thing, and like you said, not much kneading needed.
...time to get out and give someone a hand here.
Fantastic, a greenhouse gives one back so much pleasure, it is like taking a trip to a far island and being all alone.
I am glad you like the threads.
I didn’t trim my Thompson Seedless grapes and let them grow to about 30 or 40 foot, stung a support about 2 foot down from the ceiling of the greenhouse, it worked, they broke the sun in the summer and the leaves dropped in time to let the winter sun in.
I do not think we lost any in the sizes, they were normal and I had to use my laundry basket when it was time to pick them.
Everything grows better in the greenhouse, LOL, if one goes to the effort to help them be pollinated, using a paint brush.
I don’t remember when I started using a pressure cooker, maybe 50 years ago, I agree they are wonderful for quick cooking or any tasty meal.
They will also save a lot of the cost of the regular cooking stoves, with the low fire they require to do their job.
Love your pics, my grandpa and his 15 siblings grew up around the Pulaski/Ardmore area in s. central Tenn. Haven’t been down there in years.
Thanks for the ping Gabz.
E-gads! over 9000 posts in thread #1! No way I’m wading through all of that! LOL!!
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