Posted on 07/24/2009 3:37:21 AM PDT by nw_arizona_granny
Weekly Roundup - Living On Nothing Edition Category: Roundups | Comments(15)
Did you hear about the guy that lives on nothing? No seriously, he lives on zero dollars a day. Meet Daniel Suelo, who lives in a cave outside Moab, Utah. Suelo has no mortgage, no car payment, no debt of any kind. He also has no home, no car, no television, and absolutely no “creature comforts.” But he does have a lot of creatures, as in the mice and bugs that scurry about the cave floor he’s called home for the last three years.
To us, Suelo probably sounds a little extreme. Actually, he probably sounds very extreme. After all, I suspect most of you reading this are doing so under the protection of some sort of man-made shelter, and with some amount of money on your person, and probably a few needs for money, too. And who doesn’t need money unless they have completely unplugged from the grid? Still, it’s an amusing story about a guy who rejects all forms of consumerism as we know it.
The Frugal Roundup
How to Brew Your Own Beer and Maybe Save Some Money. A fantastic introduction to home brewing, something I’ve never done myself, but always been interested in trying. (@Generation X Finance)
Contentment: A Great Financial Principle. If I had to name one required emotion for living a frugal lifestyle it would be contentment. Once you are content with your belongings and your lot in life you can ignore forces attempting to separate you from your money. (@Personal Finance by the Book)
Use Energy Star Appliances to Save On Utility Costs. I enjoyed this post because it included actual numbers, and actual total savings, from someone who upgraded to new, energy star appliances. (@The Digerati Life)
Over-Saving for Retirement? Is it possible to “over-save” for retirement? Yes, I think so. At some point I like the idea of putting some money aside in taxable investments outside of retirement funds, to be accessed prior to traditional retirement age. (@The Simple Dollar)
40 Things to Teach My Kids Before They Leave Home. A great list of both practical and philosophical lessons to teach your kids before they reach the age where they know everything. I think that now happens around 13 years-old. (@My Supercharged Life)
Index Fund Investing Overview. If you are looking for a place to invest with high diversification and relatively low fees (for broader index funds with low turnover), index funds are a great place to start. (@Money Smart Life)
5 Reasons To Line Dry Your Laundry. My wife and I may soon be installing a clothesline in our backyard. In many neighborhoods they are frowned upon - one of the reasons I don’t like living in a neighborhood. I digress. One of our neighbors recently put up a clothesline, and we might just follow his lead. (@Simple Mom)
A Few Others I Enjoyed
* 4 Quick Tips for Getting Out of a Rut * Young and Cash Rich * Embracing Simple Style * First Trading Experience With OptionsHouse * The Exponential Power of Delayed Consumption * How Much Emergency Fund is Enough? * 50 Questions that Will Free Your Mind * Save Money On Car Insurance
This morning I rinsed the beans, and then dumped them in boiling water -- to which I had added ..... you guessed it! A half teaspoon of Baking Soda.
The beans were soft in less than one hour. They started falling apart in less than one & a half hours.
I can't imagine why EVERY single recipe for bean soup doesn't include baking soda, this is totally unexplainable.
There is NO way for beans to not 'turn out' when baking soda is added.
Someone had mentioned on a FR emergency food storage thread that old dried out beans could be brought back by soaking in baking soda water, so I thought I'd see what would happen with brand new beans.
WHY would people want to simmer them for hours & hours, when they can be done so fast with the baking soda???
Very curious.....
WHY have any canned beans, strictly for emergencies when the dried variety can cook up so fast this way? STRANGE.
You can find links to Granny’s archives at:
http://www.pixiesites.com/granny-archive.html
The files are Zipped Word documents - If you don’t have MS Word, or MS Works, you can use Open Office (free) http://www.openoffice.org/
Then you can search.
Hope you find all you are looking for.
(next archive should be added in a few weeks)
Those magazine bowls are cute. They are like the baskets a friend of mine used to make from old clothing. Wish I knew now how she made ‘em, now that I’m into being frugal and not throwing anything away!
hmmm, I had read that about the older beans too.
I’m going to make some bean soup for this weekend, so...I’m gettin’ out the baking soda!
thanks for the tip, hennie
>>>WHY have any canned beans<<<
LOL - Because I am not as organized as you are...
Before I started canning beans, they often were not used because I hadn’t started soaking them the night before or during the summer I didn’t feel like cooking those baked beans the ‘long way’. With them canned, I am much more apt to grab a jar and add them to a meal.
The other reason is that it seems more efficient to do a big batch all at once instead of small meal size batches. If I am doing a big batch, I tend to spend more time getting them just right. A few 24 quart batches and I am good for the whole year. Heat and eat... Mmmmm
Yep - I use baking soda soaks too.
That said, I must add that for soups I use dried beans - In the winter, half the enjoyment is the wonderful aroma as they simmer. Plus, the added humidity makes the house feel warmer on really cold days. Adds to that mellow ‘feel good’ feeling that is so rewarding in the dead of winter. Mmmmm Mmmm Good - a big pot of lima bean soup cooked with a ham bone and a nice big pan of corn bread - heavenly!
US-CERT Current Activity
BlackBerry Desktop Manager Vulnerability
Original release date: November 5, 2009 at 8:45 am
Last revised: November 5, 2009 at 8:45 am
Research in Motion has released Security Advisory KB19701 to address a
vulnerability in BlackBerry Desktop Manager. This vulnerability may
allow an attacker to execute arbitrary code.
US-CERT encourages users to review BlackBerry Security Advisory
KB19701 and apply any necessary updates.
Relevant Url(s):
http://www.blackberry.com/btsc/search.do?cmd=displayKC&docType=kc&externalId=KB19701
Freeper "Government Shrinker" brought this info to everybody's attention in another messagethread:
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>>> "It seems baking soda is the key to softening old dried beans.
"The longer dry beans are stored, the longer they may take to cook. First, sort and rinse the beans. For each cup of beans, bring 3 cups of water to boil, add the beans to the boiling water, and boil for two minutes. Next, add 3/8 teaspoon of baking soda (sodium bicarbonate) for each cup of beans, cover, and soak for 1 hour or more. More baking soda may be required for older beans. Next, drain and rinse the beans thoroughly, cover with water, bring to boil, then reduce heat and simmer 1-2 hours or until tender. Do not add salt or other ingredients until the beans have softened adequately." <<<
http://www.providentliving.org/content/display/0,11666,7636-1-4104-1,00.html#question_8
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FROM A FREEPER THREAD ENTITLED
"EMERGENCY FOOD STORAGE"
I don't really understand it, either - but in the massive long FR thread about H1N1, steve86 has made interesting posting about the reported RE-infection. Here's an example:
H1N1 flu victim collapsed on way to hospital [Latest H1N1 updates downthread]
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2278371/posts
Post Number 5,039 of 5,368 steve86 to hennie pennie
>>> "Yes, I have had to revise my ideas about Influenza Type A re-infection and immunity.
It appears that any Type A has the ability to re-infect. This is because the immunity acquired through previous infection is not all or nothing — it is some degree of partial immunity, probably never perfect.
It does appear that when re-infection occurs with Type A seasonal flu the new infection is often asymptomatic.
Just as with natural influenza, the immunity conferred by a vaccination is partial. This is why flu shots don't always work — in addition to the problem of missing the dominant flu strain.
The question remains: why is the health establishment so adamantly pushing the H1N1 vaccine even to those who have already been infected — like my kids?
How on earth could the vaccine (dead virus) grant superior immunity to the actual live infection? This simply makes no sense, unless the vaccine includes genetic material that is anticipated to occur in the wild infection. Highly unlikely, IMO.
Guess I have a lot more to learn." <<<
Contribution of Urban Agriculture to Food Security, Biodiversity Conservation and
Reducing Agricultural C Foot Print
Urban Agriculture has a definite role in food security in the cities. This paper
will explore the extent to which urban agriculture contributes to food security
in the cities with examples from different parts of the world. The paper will explore
the potential of urban agriculture in biodiversity conservation in urban and periurban
areas, its role in reducing the C foot print of agriculture, urban food needs and
generation of organic waste. The potential for urban agriculture in securing C credits
for the cities will also be explored here.
Downtown Vancouver community garden heals people
It’s not hard to turn urban wasteland into urban farmland. You just have to plant
the seed. PHS Community Services Society’s Peter LaGrand planted that seed in late
2007 when he had the idea of turning an abandoned lot owned by Concord Pacific into
a vegetable garden for the residents of the Downtown Eastside.
South Africa: Urban Subsistence Farmers Spread Wings
Cape Town - A project which began as an effort to empower citizens of Cape Town’s
poorest neighbourhoods to grow their own food has mushroomed into a scheme for selling
vegetables for the city’s wealthier residents.
When AllAfrica first visited the project, operated under the banner Abalimi Bezekhaya
(’Planters of the Home’), nearly two years ago, its focus was on urban woman farmers
practicing subsistence agriculture.
Race dynamic seen as obstacle in Detroit urban farming
DETROIT - The Motor City has been most famous for its past industrial endeavors.
That’s why it’s still a bit surprising to some that within the city limits, there
are more than 700 urban farms that yield more than 120 tons of produce each year.
When harvest season comes around, the social aspect of urban farming shines through,
with farmers coming together to celebrate the season at parties brimming with locally
grown food and drink.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
All stories here:
City Farmer News [http://rs6.net/tn.jsp?et=1102809064861&s=1304&e=00162pEtbfoJcWgd50WOyzEDxnwgS5GDDAxoCzCV3Zr4YhcX9SO2P3dQtzBRsDmYo4EDIK_TAJRtEOPZ6lieKq0j_KrSRn0GYeDCu1XhLeyDxV-xscATKFdwA==]
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Michael Levenston
City Farmer - Canada’s Office of Urban Agriculture
I like to make very small quantities of any one soup at a time - I have a tendency to keep adding ingredients, ... like, "Oh, Let's See What This Tastes Like, With This Added To What *LITTLE* Is Left Of The Soup," so it often feels like I've eaten 25 quarts of the same soup -- consequently, I try to make only a SMALL amount of any one soup, (OR STEW, lol,) and I also try to FINISH it, LOL... My soups seem to go through Indefinite Reincarnations, LOL
LOL - You’re going to get my imagination going here....
Let’s see - We could call it the FRI (Free Republic Institute) Then we could post project weekend assignments (from previous posts) on ‘FRIday’ and they could post pictures of their completed projects and best could be chosen by all competitors and lurkers with an online vote...<<<<
Excellent choice.
And thanks to your knowledge, who knows how many pantries are now stocked with jars of canned foods, that were grown in the gardens that you helped to get planted.
I would say a jar of home canned and home grown food is as good of a reward as a wooden nickel.
LOL............
Thanks for being here to answer our questions.
I can’t imagine why EVERY single recipe for bean soup doesn’t include baking soda, this is totally unexplainable.<<<
I have always added baking soda to the pot of beans, about a half teaspoon sounds right, sorry, I am a pour some in my palm and dump person.
I do not soak my beans and never found that it was worth while, we did as kids, but I check my beans for dirt clods and wash well, so quit the soaking.
You might try adding a big spoonful of ginger to the pot, I read that it helped cut the gas and tried it, don’t know about the cutting of gas, but the beans were good.
Fennel is also said to cut the gas in eating beans, LOL, so I add that too.
Just as with natural influenza, the immunity conferred by a vaccination is partial. This is why flu shots don’t always work — in addition to the problem of missing the dominant flu strain.<<<
That is about what I thought.
They want to make billions from this chance to get rich.
Those magazine bowls are cute. They are like the baskets a friend of mine used to make from old clothing. Wish I knew now how she made ‘em, now that I’m into being frugal and not throwing anything away!<<<
There are several ways to make the cloth baskets, or even rope works.
You can make the cloth strips and tack them down with a needle, you will need to wrap the thread around the cloth to get it to hold its form.
Or use wood or wire and use the cloth as weaving material, as you would with regular baskets.
Or experiment with crochet, a slipstich or a single crochet, that allows the cloth to be in the middle of the stitch will work.
You can single crochet enough stitches over a rope the cover the rope and join it too, as you form the basket..
Or leave the rope / cloth exposed and use only enough stitches to shape it into a basket.
http://www.thecityedition.com/2012/First_Aid.html
First Aid Primer/ Wilderness Medicine
[A full first aid primer]
http://www.thecityedition.com/2012/Herbal.html
Herbal Medicine
[The how to and a list of links, to other sites, schools and more healing information.
"With his widespread ancestry in Colonial America, Obama 'is certainly related to millions of contemporary Americans -- perhaps even a significant percentage of the population,' Roberts wrote."
- - - - - -- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Can Virginia add Obama to its leadership legacy?
A genealogical scholar says presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama is a distant relative of both Robert E. Lee and President James Madison.
BY FRANK DELANO
....According to a venerable genealogical society, the Illinois senator and presumptive Democratic nominee for president is a distant cousin of both President James Madison, who was born in King George County in 1751, and Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee, who was born in 1807 at Stratford in Westmoreland County....
....A scholar of the New England Historic Genealogical Society in Boston traced lots of Obama's maternal ancestors. The society announced earlier this year that Gary Boyd Roberts found that Obama's mother, Stanley Ann Dunham of Kansas, had many ties to old families in Virginia and other Colonies.
One of those lines goes back to a 17th-century Englishman named Richard Eltonhead, the ancestor shared by Obama, Madison and Lee.... Consequently, Obama and James Madison are third cousins nine times removed, Roberts wrote....
...With his widespread ancestry in Colonial America, Obama "is certainly related to millions of contemporary Americans--perhaps even a significant percentage of the population," Roberts wrote.
Roberts said Obama's African ancestry can be traced for several generations. The village where Barack Obama Sr. was born is about 200 miles from Tanzania's Olduvai Gorge, where anthropologists have discovered fossil remains of human ancestors dating back 2.5 million years. Therefore, on his father's side, Obama might be a cousin to everybody on Earth.
FULL ARTICLE AT:
http://fredericksburg.com/News/FLS/2008/062008/06212008/388337/printer_friendly
>>>24 quarts!!! Wow, that’s amazing.<<<
Not really... I have two big 24 quart stainless steel pots that I use when canning, as well as the old bluestone (enamel) canner and pressure canner.
One of the stainless pots has a really thick bottom with a copper insert(about 3/4” thick - I think it is copper inside, but can’t see it to find out) - that is the one I use for tomato sauces, chili, spaghetti sauce and other things that tend to stick.
When the power goes out for an extended time around here (like a big snow or ice storm - fortunately not too often) I have been known to make two pots of soup at a time and bake batches and batches of bread to help the neighbors. (and having a generator, we have lots of water for them too - as public water systems don’t come out our way)
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