Posted on 07/24/2011 1:08:37 PM PDT by Mamzelle
All of my usual stores are rearranging and changing what they put on their shelves. I'm sensing that the big uptick in prices will start to arrive shortly, maybe before Christmas. I'm interested to hear what the impressions of FRugal Freepers. What are you seeing? What will you be buying in quanity before TSHTF?
When you get closer to implementing your bee project, don't hesitate to contact me. Being a miserly person, I can direct you to some bargains on the purchases you will need to get you started.
I wish you and your DH the very best with your baby girl.
Both of my big Prestos came from garage sales. The county home extension agent will test pressure canners for free and has tons of recipes. Any new sealing rings or regulators can be ordered from the manufacturer or hardware stores like Ace or True Value.
Back in the day, we had what was called bent can stores where they’d have unclaimed shipments, or slightly damaged, or the label was missing. But guess the government did away with that.
The grocery store here used to be able to set out past sale date items and people could take them home for free. It worked out well for everyone but noooo, can’t do that now. Too many government regulations.
Walmart is bad about rearranging their shelves. About the time you know where everything is, poof! it’s changed so you have to spent more time looking around for things. Sure, they think if they can get the customer to stay longer in the store that they’ll spend more money but I don’t play that game. I get ticked off and leave. In fact, they’ve pretty much lost me as a customer because of that. That’s another store that seems to have less variety than it used to.
LOL !!!
Coincides with the passage of CAFTA, which put the evil American ‘sugar barons’ out of business.
We stock up on things we constantly use, and rotate it. If it has a shelf life of 12 months, then we do not buy a 24 month supply. For most things, we get them on sale.
We have a well, and we do have some water filters, but they are not totally necessary, hence we don't have a lot. We have been exploring how to get water from the well in case of a long time shut down of electricity.
We also have a creek on our other property, instructions for converting such to safe drinkable water. We have rain barrels that could be used to haul water etc etc-I won't bother you with further details.
But anyway I do think it is important for everyone to sit down and think what if all modern technology was gone overnight or too expensive for you to buy. How would you survive independently? Focus on food, water, shelter, meds, protection, and hygiene(not necessarily in that order).
It was hard to not buy a kit, but I don’t have my own kitchen so it would be pointless.
Back in 1990 when our first daughter arrived, my wife thought she would be an great environmentalist. We got a diaper service.
After one hot week in May, we dumped it an never looked back.
Cloth is nice, but it is “yucky.”
Antibiotics. After you guys eat all of that mealy, wormy, food...you will be lined up at my door.
How much will a 500mg of cipro be worth?
Keep your well, but don’t trust it. Even a little bit of arsenic leeched into the water can be very dangerous. It has been found that it inhibits the immune system so that it doesn’t recognize pathogens fast enough.
http://water.usgs.gov/nawqa/trace/arsenic/
There is an old trick used in Mexico that is impressively good in purifying water. They would hollow out a big block of limestone, then form the other side to a point. The water that seeps through is sterile, particulate free, de-metalized, pH neutralized, and about as good as it gets short of a Z-filter. Good for thousands and thousands of gallons.
As far as fuel goes, I am very fond of commercial column stills, which can produce a goodly amount of alcohol.
For very high temperatures, a Fresnel lens from a flat screen TV can give you a point temperature of about 2000F, enough to melt copper, lead, aluminum, and tin. While you’re wearing welding goggles.
For medical gear, there are fairly inexpensive oxygen concentrators for sale, which can be a lifesaver when someone has lung problems.
Twenty mile range walkie-talkies are less than a hundred dollars.
Thanks, that is interesting.
I had heard about local co-ops doing that service. I checked with ours before deciding what to buy, and they told me they don’t/won’t test the pressure canners or parts. Said I’d have to send them to the manufacture for that.
I brought new.
BTW, around here garage sales got wildly popular about a decade ago. I used to go every weekend, and soon noticed that the prices were pretty high for garage sale stuff. Next year they got higher. Same with our local Craigslist listings - the people around here “pro-rate”, LOL. If they paid $100. used it twice, they want $75.
I repack all grains like rice and pasta with some bay leaves scattered in, and have only had bugs once, with brown rice that was very old and ill packed. Not saying it will always work, but have not had any bugs in years. Some people don’t have big enough freezers to do the freezing thing.
One thing learned from reading others’ experience:
Never, ever store foods in the original cardboard boxes etc, unless said boxes are in tight containers (which wastes a lot of space). Bugs, what to speak of rodents, can chew right threw cardboard, thin plastic or cellophane bags and destroy tons of food.
I enjoy good coffee - sounds like you lucked out finding great coffee at bargain basement prices. Maybe I can do the same... Thanks for sharing.
Sam’s Club bakeries give away their 3 and 5 gallon buckets that icing comes in. Add a mylar bag and an O2 absorber and you’re in business! ;-)
Do walkie talkies need to be in a line of sight or can they work if there are hills in the way?
FM, pretty much line of sight. And, theoretically, you are supposed to voluntarily register them with the FCC. I wonder if anyone has ever done so?
Importantly, they are charged with a/c house current, a consideration if there is none available.
I read somewhere about being careful not to use buckets that had any kinds of fats or shortenings previously.
I wish I could remember where. Something about those binding with the plastic.......
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