Prep Genrl Weekly Prep Thread: August 13 ~19, 2023

[kyrsyan]

We have outside storm windows on all windows. I have mini blinds on the inside with the insulated curtains over them. Once Cary caulked around all the window frames, it cured all the drafts that came through these old windows. Our biggest problem in the winter and summer is that when this old house was built, no insulation was put in the outside walls. We've added tons of insulation to the attic, but only put up the aluminum styrofoam boards on the outside walls , before we put on the cedar siding. That's all we could do, because of the way they built the studs with cross pieces between each one. That stopped us from being able to have insulation blown into the walls.

My house is the exact same way. I did think about getting one of those sensors that shows temperature differences and using that to try to locate and mark the cross braces during the winter. We killed more than one Mad Dog bit when we were doing the rewiring because we didn't realize, at first, how much cross bracing is in the walls. It's especially bad under the windows.

As far as worrying about winter and govt, I don't have the mental bandwidth. I have a list to plug away at and that's what I'm doing. The one thing I can and will do that is one that list specifically for winter issues, is to get all three kerosene cans filled. And keep and eye out for some more at the thrift stores or yard sales. Other than that, we have tons of blankets and other things to keep warm.

I can't use oil lamps or candles with son. So I have a lot of emergency lanterns. Several can solar recharge. I'm working on a reflector design for them that is similar to the one used for old wall mounted oil lamps. Then I'll put them up in their spots and tuck their batteries underneath them.

I may look at the Dollar store and see about getting some of the 7 day candles. Those are the safest I can use with son. Typically a fall for those will extinguish the flame. Leave me with lots of wax to clean but rarely flames. And I could put them in the same reflectors as the emergency lanterns.

 

[connie]

I agree with everyone that the wheels are coming off. Chaos will rule.
We get cold weather but not for extended periods. We put double pane windows in our 1960 home.
We get good morning sun and have lots of windows so that we can function without artificial light if necessary.
I have lots of wool blankets and a down comforter.
I like hearing what everyone is doing to prepare.

 

[briches]

I agree with everyone that the wheels are coming off. Chaos will rule.
We get cold weather but not for extended periods. We put double pane windows in our 1960 home.
We get good morning sun and have lots of windows so that we can function without artificial light if necessary.
I have lots of wool blankets and a down comforter.
I like hearing what everyone is doing to prepare.

I like hearing what others are doing as well. It helps me to stay focused and think about our needs as well.

 

[ReneeT]

The neighbor lady came by this morning and we were off to the pool - spent an hour there. She needed something from Dollar General, so I wandered in behind her and came out with cat food, plus a large package of paper plates for the prep closet. I asked if we could go to the nearby orchard as I'd already gone through the peaches I bought last week - we put 4 pints of sliced peaches in the freezer, and had enough left to have with meals - even with the grandkids here . The variety I came home with today must be a later variety - they are going to have to set for a few days to finish ripening. I'll try to add a few more pints to the freezer, then slice up the rest to have in the fridge. I'll keep an eye on the orchard's Facebook page as I'd like to put several more pints in the freezer. I'm blessed to be at a point in my life where I don't want to do canning marathons unless it's a have-to case; I'd rather do smaller batches more often. The next major canning I'll do will be apples, applesauce, and apple butter.

I did the core, vacuum seal,and freeze thing with 5 large (1 gallon) Ziploc bags of tomatoes - I found a long skinny straw that would fit on my vacuum sealer's hose and was able to reach nearly to the bottom of the bag; it seemed to work better than fussing with the small piece on the vacuum sealer. I sorted out the nicest tomatoes for freezing whole, then the rest of the red ones I dipped in boiling water, slipped the skins, quartered them, put them in 5 one quart size freezer bags and tucked them in the freezer. I haven't put up any of my yellow tomatoes as yet; have just been enjoying eating them. I don't care much for lettuce, and the spinach that I use in place of lettuce on BLT's is done for the year, so I've tried using some small tender sweet potato leaves - you can cook them like spinach, but I just added them raw to my bacon and 'mater sandwich - not bad; not bad at all.

I'm looking out the window at a five deer who are cropping the grass near the mailbox; glad to see them there even if they do snack a bit in the garden. I may be snacking on them before the upcoming winter is over...

Well, I think it's time for me to get cleaned up and get ready to head for bed - no nap today, so I'm tired earlier

Take care all; stay safe out there!

 

[connie]

I also need to get some new sheets. I may have to brave WM or use Amazon.

 

[ioujc]

I hit the gardens early this morning, but my eye glasses fogged up as soon as I stepped outside. It wasn't quite as hard to breathe, though. Another excessive heat warning for today, with no rain in sight. The tomatoes still weren't ripe enough to gather, but there are several that will be ready tomorrow. I did get a few more banana peppers and squash. The green beans are dying without producing but a small handful of beans. The vines were so lush and green, but we must have planted them on a "no planting" day, or it's been because of the heat from planting them late.

Just regular household chores, today. I need to do a load of laundry to hang out on the line. I've got my middle of the month shopping list made out which includes more doggie treats, milk, yogurt, ice cream, and produce. We plan to do that, Wednesday. The cost will come out of my monthly household budget. That will be the end of our shopping, until the first of next month when my budget starts over. The first is one payday for Cary.

He called the tree cutting guy this morning and had to leave a message. I hope he comes out one day this week. We're thinking the cost will be around $3,000 to bring the tree down, hauled away, and the stump removed. The tree is still losing a lot of leaves, and it's beginning to look sickly. It's right at 100 years old. We want it down as soon as the man can get to it.

I HATE seeing old trees come down!! This goes all the way back to when I was about 9 years old, and they had to cut down the HUGE OLD cottonwoods where we lived in Kansas. I counted the rings and it was over a hundred, but don't recall by how much. There was an owl's nest in it and the babies survived because they were in a hole in the tree.
I wanted one so bad, but my Dad said the mother would come back if we left them alone, but she didn't.....

I just think it is sad....I wonder about all the things those big ole trees have had happen under
their branches and the things they have seen.....so much history!!
I was able to tell that the big cottonwoods had been singed by fire a couple of times, and that there must have been years of drought, because the rings were very small. So much to tell, and no way to speak!

I had to have a HUGE OLD oak taken down here, but it was dying and the inside was starting to rot and go hollow. Just think big ole trees have a magnificence about them.......besides being beautiful!!

 

[ioujc]

I expect extreme food shortages, more diseases, more vaccine mandates of unknown origins, more lockdowns, and a rationing of electricity/gasoline coming soon. Not to mention a possible new war thrown into the mix. In other words, more governmental control of the masses. All of that doesn't even include the weather cycles that keep changing causing disturbances in our weather patterns.

I agree SB. I think our current dictator is going to make life as difficult as possible for all of us.

About 6 weeks ago, I felt a real change in how I perceived things. I don't know if reality changed, or my perception of it changed, but I feel like things and people have become much "darker." That was when I decided to move to my niece's. Plus the fact that my body just is not performing like I want it to. I can still lift 50 pound bags and haul 5 or 6 of them in and put the grain in a big bin, but it was becoming harder. And my knees and hips kept trying to pop out of joint. Even though I have mostly unpleasant memories from here, I continue to question my decision. I could grow everything here, but that doesn't help much if you can't make it out to the garden and back because your knees gave out on the way, or you fell and broke your neck!!

Speaking of falling, a couple of days ago, I was standing on the steps of the RV, and got dizzy. I fell off and basically landed on my head. I'm OK though.....musta knocked something back to where it SHOULD be, cause I had very little pain or stiffness today. Yesterday I WAS stove up, but today I have felt great!! WEIRD!!

Continuing to remember all of you to my LORD each night and hoping you are having a good day ongoing....

 

[nomifyle]

I HATE seeing old trees come down!! This goes all the way back to when I was about 9 years old, and they had to cut down the HUGE OLD cottonwoods where we lived in Kansas. I counted the rings and it was over a hundred, but don't recall by how much. There was an owl's nest in it and the babies survived because they were in a hole in the tree.
I wanted one so bad, but my Dad said the mother would come back if we left them alone, but she didn't.....

I just think it is sad....I wonder about all the things those big ole trees have had happen under
their branches and the things they have seen.....so much history!!
I was able to tell that the big cottonwoods had been singed by fire a couple of times, and that there must have been years of drought, because the rings were very small. So much to tell, and no way to speak!

I had to have a HUGE OLD oak taken down here, but it was dying and the inside was starting to rot and go hollow. Just think big ole trees have a magnificence about them.......besides being beautiful!!

We were watching a movie about loggers in the PNW, I sympathazed with the people that didn't want the trees cut and DH asked me why. Sometimes he's a slow learner, we had many cross words about him cutting "my" trees around here. He simply can't grasp that I have the mentality of chaining myself to trees to prevent them from being cut down. I've had to soften my attitude about it a bit to keep him happy. But I'm never happy about cutting trees that don't need to be cut down.

We also have a big old oak, very old that looked dead. But when DH cut all the vines that had been choking it for God only know how many years, it revived itself and looks like its good for the long haul, at least in my life time.

 

[anna43]

If you are on Medicare and have a prescription plan and if you happen to change plans, you can get ahead on prescriptions. One year I had just received my 90 days in December under the old plan and had the doctor fax prescriptions to the new plan right after January 1. It didn't occur to me that they would be filled immediately, but they were. So, for the last several years, I've been ahead 90 days on all my old prescriptions. No so for the newer ones though. I changed carriers again but did not change pharmacies so haven't been able to do that again. Just so you know.

Also, you can usually get your RX filled several days early each time you refill so if you consistently do so, you will slowly get ahead over time. Even a 30-day buffer would be a blessing if the SHTF.

Easy reflectors are mirrors. When we moved into the old house here one wall was mirror tiles. I was able to save a few while taking them down and used them as reflectors. I need to check if I still have any. Question, does lamp oil get old/unusable? Also, does kerosene get old and unusable? How old is too old?

I understand about trees. I'm mourning the two I lost last week even though there was absolutely no choice...they were coming down one way or the other and I chose "the other" to protect my house.

Speaking of SHTF, I'm not too sure that it's not already happening. I sometimes feel like the frog in the pot not realizing the water is getting hotter and hotter. I guess I really do know we're being cooked, but I cannot do anything about it beyond pray, prep and complain.

 

[briches]

I also need to get some new sheets. I may have to brave WM or use Amazon.

We get our sheets on Amazon. I think their store brand. They are soft and have held up great.

ioujc - maybe your dizziness and fall was a gentle (or not so gentle) reminder of the fact this move is a good fit for you. Continuing to uplift you in prayer.

May you all have a wonderful day today …..

 

[briches]

I just looked at my Amazon orders. Most sheets are Amazon basics brand I had ordered. I recently ordered a Utopia brand for son on Prime day. Both are great for the money. (Around $20 for queen size set).

 

[kyrsyan]

@anna43 to my knowledge, both kerosene and lamp oil can store for a very long time. From experience, I don't store kerosene in metal. The one time I bought it in a metal can, the can rusted through. But I have several plastic 5 gallon containers for it. Eventually, when I have a small set off storage space for it, I will likely get a 20 gallon drum or two for it. Kerosene is not hydroscopic like gas and diesel.

 

[Illini Warrior]

My house is the exact same way. I did think about getting one of those sensors that shows temperature differences and using that to try to locate and mark the cross braces during the winter. We killed more than one Mad Dog bit when we were doing the rewiring because we didn't realize, at first, how much cross bracing is in the walls. It's especially bad under the windows.

As far as worrying about winter and govt, I don't have the mental bandwidth. I have a list to plug away at and that's what I'm doing. The one thing I can and will do that is one that list specifically for winter issues, is to get all three kerosene cans filled. And keep and eye out for some more at the thrift stores or yard sales. Other than that, we have tons of blankets and other things to keep warm.

I can't use oil lamps or candles with son. So I have a lot of emergency lanterns. Several can solar recharge. I'm working on a reflector design for them that is similar to the one used for old wall mounted oil lamps. Then I'll put them up in their spots and tuck their batteries underneath them.

I may look at the Dollar store and see about getting some of the 7 day candles. Those are the safest I can use with son. Typically a fall for those will extinguish the flame. Leave me with lots of wax to clean but rarely flames. And I could put them in the same reflectors as the emergency lanterns.

in regard to those lamp reflectors - they were just small mirrors - unless you need to focus to a small specific room area a regular piece of mirror will do the job - otherwise you'll need a convex mirror dish .....

 

[kyrsyan]

in regard to those lamp reflectors - they were just small mirrors - unless you need to focus to a small specific room area a regular piece of mirror will do the job - otherwise you'll need a convex mirror dish .....

View attachment 430137

Mirrors are a son issue. I'll likely get chrome or another good reflective metal. But I may look into being able to adjust them.

 

[spinner]

Putting a mirror under a lamp or candle also works very well. I have a couple of old mirror trivets (for lack of a better word) that are for putting under candles or flowers etc. that work well to reflect more light into a room.

 

[ioujc]

If you are on Medicare and have a prescription plan and if you happen to change plans, you can get ahead on prescriptions. One year I had just received my 90 days in December under the old plan and had the doctor fax prescriptions to the new plan right after January 1. It didn't occur to me that they would be filled immediately, but they were. So, for the last several years, I've been ahead 90 days on all my old prescriptions. No so for the newer ones though. I changed carriers again but did not change pharmacies so haven't been able to do that again. Just so you know.

Also, you can usually get your RX filled several days early each time you refill so if you consistently do so, you will slowly get ahead over time. Even a 30-day buffer would be a blessing if the SHTF.

Easy reflectors are mirrors. When we moved into the old house here one wall was mirror tiles. I was able to save a few while taking them down and used them as reflectors. I need to check if I still have any. Question, does lamp oil get old/unusable? Also, does kerosene get old and unusable? How old is too old?

I understand about trees. I'm mourning the two I lost last week even though there was absolutely no choice...they were coming down one way or the other and I chose "the other" to protect my house.

Speaking of SHTF, I'm not too sure that it's not already happening. I sometimes feel like the frog in the pot not realizing the water is getting hotter and hotter. I guess I really do know we're being cooked, but I cannot do anything about it beyond pray, prep and complain.

Kerosene and lamp oil do NOT go bad. They both will last for many years.

Also, if you have cooking oil that has gone bad, you can burn that in oil lanterns.....it will stink like rancid oil, but it can be used. Maybe if one added an essential oil, like lavender or eucalyptus, it might not stink so bad???

Well, the man who is buying my place came yesterday and got all the goats, chickens and the lone surviving rabbit (I had two a couple of weeks ago, but strangely one morning when I went to feed, he had been stabbed repeatedly. Gee!! I WONDER who came to visit overnight!!).

I already miss them and getting up REAL EARLY to feed them. All that is left is my garden. It didn't do nearly as well this year as in the past. Didn't get it really going until the first week of June and I guess that is a large part of it. But also, the DEER have been harvesting most of my green beans, plus eating the plants too.
I grew cantaloupes again this year and they are producing well again..... ESPECIALLY the volunteers!!! I had three of those from where the deer harvested three cantaloupes last year.....hope they as as delicious as they were last year!!

I think winter is going to be early this year. We are half way through August and it is NOWHERE NEAR AS HOT as last year!! Plus, it has rained about every couple of days and at times rained A LOT!
I am NOT complaining!! Relief from the atrocious heat is wonderful, just seems quite odd.

Praying our LORD keeps HIS hand on each of you in these BIZARRE times!!!!

 

[Digger]

Another foggy morning here. According to weather lore, every dog in August means a snow in winter. I have 5 on the calendar so far and I may have missed a couple. We already filled the wood racks on the porch with fire wood. We needed to empty a section in the wood shed to fill with new wood. It's early, but I would rather put it on the porch than move it around in the shed.

Friday the tree guys came and removed the lightning struck tree by the house, a small hickory tree, and another large white oak that was very close to the house, less than 6 feet. We just had them take them down. We are doing the clean up. To take down all 3 was less than $600. They were here only about 2 hours. We will get a lot of firewood out of them. I got to try out my electric chainsaw I got myself for mother's day. I love it! It makes short work of the branches. But the gas powered saw does better when you get to the larger pieces. The trunk pieces will require my hubbys big gas powered saw. Today the weather is nice and cool so hopefully we will get a lot done on clean up.

Our 2002 diesel truck has a fuel leak. Hubby figured it was a cracked fuel filter or something. Couldn't find any problems there. Got to looking more and the coolant water has fuel oil in it. So the injector sleeves are bad. That is not a job hubby can do anymore. So we took it to the Ford dealership. They wanted to do more than just the sleeves because they didn't have the right tools to just do sleeves. Hubby didn't get a warm feeling about it and then yesterday they called and said the parts order had somehow gotten canceled. The cancellation would mean a several day delay. Hubby found a mechanic that does diesel's that used to work for the dealership for 20 years. He can do just the job that we need and he has the tools. He will save us several thousand dollars too. We just have to wait about 2 weeks till he can get us in. But we have another truck so it's not a big deal. The dealership was wanting to replace the heads and that was a lot of the added expense. Just replacing the sleeves is a 10 or so hour job. Hubby has made his living as a diesel mechanic but he can't do that kind of job since he is disabled. He does still do what he can.

I have garden work to do along with the fire wood. I may have to get the push mower and mow some before I till.

There is lots of talk about the eclipse coming in April. Russellville AR has a population of about 40,000. They are expecting about 100,000 extra people in the area for the eclipse. Things will be crazy. Farmers are already renting out camping and RV spaces in their fields. Motels are all booked up at crazy prices. Getting groceries and gas may be an issue for a couple of weeks. NASA is coming to town for it too. I am staying home unless it is am emergency. Of course, this is assuming the world can hold together till April.

Be safe everyone and have a blessed day.

 

[Illini Warrior]

Another foggy morning here. According to weather lore, every dog in August means a snow in winter. I have 5 on the calendar so far and I may have missed a couple. We already filled the wood racks on the porch with fire wood. We needed to empty a section in the wood shed to fill with new wood. It's early, but I would rather put it on the porch than move it around in the shed.

Friday the tree guys came and removed the lightning struck tree by the house, a small hickory tree, and another large white oak that was very close to the house, less than 6 feet. We just had them take them down. We are doing the clean up. To take down all 3 was less than $600. They were here only about 2 hours. We will get a lot of firewood out of them. I got to try out my electric chainsaw I got myself for mother's day. I love it! It makes short work of the branches. But the gas powered saw does better when you get to the larger pieces. The trunk pieces will require my hubbys big gas powered saw. Today the weather is nice and cool so hopefully we will get a lot done on clean up.

Our 2002 diesel truck has a fuel leak. Hubby figured it was a cracked fuel filter or something. Couldn't find any problems there. Got to looking more and the coolant water has fuel oil in it. So the injector sleeves are bad. That is not a job hubby can do anymore. So we took it to the Ford dealership. They wanted to do more than just the sleeves because they didn't have the right tools to just do sleeves. Hubby didn't get a warm feeling about it and then yesterday they called and said the parts order had somehow gotten canceled. The cancellation would mean a several day delay. Hubby found a mechanic that does diesel's that used to work for the dealership for 20 years. He can do just the job that we need and he has the tools. He will save us several thousand dollars too. We just have to wait about 2 weeks till he can get us in. But we have another truck so it's not a big deal. The dealership was wanting to replace the heads and that was a lot of the added expense. Just replacing the sleeves is a 10 or so hour job. Hubby has made his living as a diesel mechanic but he can't do that kind of job since he is disabled. He does still do what he can.

I have garden work to do along with the fire wood. I may have to get the push mower and mow some before I till.

There is lots of talk about the eclipse coming in April. Russellville AR has a population of about 40,000. They are expecting about 100,000 extra people in the area for the eclipse. Things will be crazy. Farmers are already renting out camping and RV spaces in their fields. Motels are all booked up at crazy prices. Getting groceries and gas may be an issue for a couple of weeks. NASA is coming to town for it too. I am staying home unless it is am emergency. Of course, this is assuming the world can hold together till April.

Be safe everyone and have a blessed day.

in regard to that eclipse - great opportunity for local ORGs and individuals to make some $$$$ - had the same thing in S IL years ago - temp biz like bonfire firewood can put some real dough in the bank .....

 

[kyrsyan]

I know of several people who made plans over a year ago to be there. It should be a good opportunity to make some extra money. But it may also bring extra levels of stupid. I hope the local first responders have worked out backups from the surrounding areas.

 

[nomifyle]

Kerosene and lamp oil do NOT go bad. They both will last for many years.

Also, if you have cooking oil that has gone bad, you can burn that in oil lanterns.....it will stink like rancid oil, but it can be used. Maybe if one added an essential oil, like lavender or eucalyptus, it might not stink so bad???

Well, the man who is buying my place came yesterday and got all the goats, chickens and the lone surviving rabbit (I had two a couple of weeks ago, but strangely one morning when I went to feed, he had been stabbed repeatedly. Gee!! I WONDER who came to visit overnight!!).

I already miss them and getting up REAL EARLY to feed them. All that is left is my garden. It didn't do nearly as well this year as in the past. Didn't get it really going until the first week of June and I guess that is a large part of it. But also, the DEER have been harvesting most of my green beans, plus eating the plants too.
I grew cantaloupes again this year and they are producing well again..... ESPECIALLY the volunteers!!! I had three of those from where the deer harvested three cantaloupes last year.....hope they as as delicious as they were last year!!

I think winter is going to be early this year. We are half way through August and it is NOWHERE NEAR AS HOT as last year!! Plus, it has rained about every couple of days and at times rained A LOT!
I am NOT complaining!! Relief from the atrocious heat is wonderful, just seems quite odd.

Praying our LORD keeps HIS hand on each of you in these BIZARRE times!!!!

I must have missed something somewhere. You sold your place and are moving? When did that happen? I had missed seeing you around for awhile. Where are you moving?

 

[SouthernBreeze]

Finally, the guy is coming around lunchtime to look at our tree. I sure hate to see it go. When it was set out as a small sapling, the people who owned the property at that time were living in a log cabin that was still here when we bought the place. We bought this property from their daughter. She was already an older woman. So, the tree has to be 100+ years old. We've been living here for 42 years. It is dying and has to be taken down. It's too close to our house, and the general direction of the winds during a storm would blow it right across our house. Gosh, it's so huge our house would disappear underneath it if it fell.

Cary and I were talking this morning over coffee about any needs we need to get taken care of as we go into Fall. He has his own list made out and I have mine. Both are rather small atm, but they can grow as we think of other things. We've always tried to stay prepared as best we can for any and all emergencies, but there are always things that pop up that need tweaking or adding to. One thing we've never stocked up on are antibiotics, since Cary is allergic to most of them. We finally found a link where we could order what we wanted. He ordered a bottle of 100, 500mg capsules. He's ordering another bottle, today. Amoxicillin is one he isn't allergic to. I'm storing them in the fridge.

Today is his birthday. 71 yrs. old. I ask him if he wanted a cake, pie, or cookies. He said he would just pick up something at the bakery tomorrow while we're in town. I tried to give him a birthday spanking first thing this morning, but was unsuccessful, LOL!

 

[connie]

Happy Birthday to Cary.

I am now working on Amazon list in addition to grocery and Costco lists.
Following the urging of the still small voice in my head.
After mowing season hubby will refill all gas cans. He rotates through them in summer.
He is not much of prepper but has many many tools and can do anything so that is a huge prep in itself.

 

[SouthernBreeze]

Happy Birthday to Cary.

I am now working on Amazon list in addition to grocery and Costco lists.
Following the urging of the still small voice in my head.
After mowing season hubby will refill all gas cans. He rotates through them in summer.
He is not much of prepper but has many many tools and can do anything so that is a huge prep in itself.

Some of the items on Cary's list are more spare parts for our mower, weed eater, and tiller. He rotates the gas cans for them all summer, too, and makes sure all cans are filled when he stores them away for the winter. He also makes sure his chainsaws have plenty of gas and oil stored and spare chains.

 

[John Deere Girl]

Finally, the guy is coming around lunchtime to look at our tree. I sure hate to see it go. When it was set out as a small sapling, the people who owned the property at that time were living in a log cabin that was still here when we bought the place. We bought this property from their daughter. She was already an older woman. So, the tree has to be 100+ years old. We've been living here for 42 years. It is dying and has to be taken down. It's too close to our house, and the general direction of the winds during a storm would blow it right across our house. Gosh, it's so huge our house would disappear underneath it if it fell.

Cary and I were talking this morning over coffee about any needs we need to get taken care of as we go into Fall. He has his own list made out and I have mine. Both are rather small atm, but they can grow as we think of other things. We've always tried to stay prepared as best we can for any and all emergencies, but there are always things that pop up that need tweaking or adding to. One thing we've never stocked up on are antibiotics, since Cary is allergic to most of them. We finally found a link where we could order what we wanted. He ordered a bottle of 100, 500mg capsules. He's ordering another bottle, today. Amoxicillin is one he isn't allergic to. I'm storing them in the fridge.

Today is his birthday. 71 yrs. old. I ask him if he wanted a cake, pie, or cookies. He said he would just pick up something at the bakery tomorrow while we're in town. I tried to give him a birthday spanking first thing this morning, but was unsuccessful, LOL!

Happy birthday to Cary! I hope y'all enjoy his day!

 

[nomifyle]

Last night the light went out in my pantry closet, I tried several light bulbs to no avail. DH changed the light fixture this morning and it still wouldn't work. Turns out it was a breaker that included three of our freezers. Since it had only been out over night I'm confident everything is okay. As soon as the weather cools off we have to defrost the upright and I need to go through what is in the other two out there.

 

[philkar]

Hubby and I are taking a break and making our top off list. Reviewing seed stock and procuring what we need, which for us is usually bartering unless it is something really different. I took other inventories earlier and found no needs. We are discussing lawn care and what we will do if things go tipsy turvey. Anyone remember when women swept the yard because it was just dirt? We might just have a dirt yard! I grew up in South Georgia. Dirt yards are my memory!
We are thinking that this is such a dangerous time to be alive. Lawlessness abounds and our govt has crumbled. A sad day to us.
May all of you have a productive day even in the heat!

 

[SouthernBreeze]

Hubby and I are taking a break and making our top off list. Reviewing seed stock and procuring what we need, which for us is usually bartering unless it is something really different. I took other inventories earlier and found no needs. We are discussing lawn care and what we will do if things go tipsy turvey. Anyone remember when women swept the yard because it was just dirt? We might just have a dirt yard! I grew up in South Georgia. Dirt yards are my memory!
We are thinking that this is such a dangerous time to be alive. Lawlessness abounds and our govt has crumbled. A sad day to us.
May all of you have a productive day even in the heat!

I do remember my grandmother sweeping her yard when I was small. It was bare dirt, too, from what I can remember. I told Cary we would get a goat if we could no longer mow our yard. He just laughed. Seriously, though, if it comes down to it, he'll probably just keep a few feet out from the house mowed or weed eated, and let the rest of our yard go. Our yard is 1 1/4 acres. Or, he could kill some of it off using roundup. I will need to stock up on a lot of brooms if he does that, lol.

Yes, dangerous times. Perilous times. I trust the Bible to be our guide as to what's coming in our future. It's really scary, but we know who is in control.

 

[Old Gray Mare]

Good morning. So weeding through pantry and preps. With what's going on over on Maui in mind. We had some grab and go tubs with camping/emergency supplies, food etc. in them. Pulled them and and realized I couldn't lift the food tote. So much for grab and go. Everything in the food tote was dated. Noticed no blankets even emergency ones, sewing kit, cutlery or fishing gear. It doesn't get cold, cold here but it gets a little chill in the evenings and windy. Oops no tie downs. little things. Sigh.

A lot to update today and reorganize.

 

[ioujc]

I must have missed something somewhere. You sold your place and are moving? When did that happen? I had missed seeing you around for awhile. Where are you moving?

I am in the process of selling it now. Already have a buyer, waiting now on the bank to do all the inspections and stuff necessary for the guy to get the loan. They have not started yet, but hopefully will soon.

I am moving my RV to live in my niece's back yard.....they have an acre of land, so it should be OK. I am kinda frightened to go, because I know that I can survive here, whereas they live in a very small town outside of Pensacola, Florida. Makes me nervous to be close to a fairly big town.

The reason I am going is because I am starting to have some pretty intense issues with my knees and my right hip, and the back with 2 ruptured discs doesn't help any. I can still do pretty much everything I have been doing, but my knees and hip continue to try to pop out of place and while I can still pop them back in, it is becoming more difficult and painful to do it. Plus I am having some dizzy spells......been going on for about a year now. But about 3 days ago, I got dizzy and landed on my head!!! Was standing on the RV steps and before I knew it, I was on the ground!! And, I guess I bopped my head pretty good, cause I had the hardest time finding my way into the RV and then trough to my bedroom.....no flashlight and I don't have lights in the RV. Only have what I can run on 2 heavy duty extension cords. Basically, the room A/C, the microwave and a fan.

If something ever happens to me, like falling and breaking bones, etc., my niece is where I will end up anyway.

 

[John Deere Girl]

@ioujc ,
Pensacola is a lovely area! My parents took me there a quite a few times when I was younger. Santa Rosa Island is close by and has beautiful, serene beaches.

 

[SouthernBreeze]

The guy who will be cutting down our tree just left. $4,700 to take it down, haul it off, remove the stump, and will clean our yard up. That's a bit more than we was expecting, but it's what we'll have to pay. It's a huge tree, and he was a bit surprised how large it is. He also inspected the tree and verified that it is dying. I'm glad his company is bonded and insured. He said it will be a couple of weeks, before he can get to us. His company is still doing tree cutting and stump grinding for our small town that was hit by the tornado earlier this year. He's had to bring on a second crew, and they're still running behind.

I'll be glad when it's all over.

 

[nomifyle]

Our water pressure is down to a stream. Got a notice that the wells can't keep up with the demand. People are stupid and selfish, all they can do is complain. Of course, water is important. but I doubt its only the old folks that are conservative with their water use.

 

[nomifyle]

I am in the process of selling it now. Already have a buyer, waiting now on the bank to do all the inspections and stuff necessary for the guy to get the loan. They have not started yet, but hopefully will soon.

I am moving my RV to live in my niece's back yard.....they have an acre of land, so it should be OK. I am kinda frightened to go, because I know that I can survive here, whereas they live in a very small town outside of Pensacola, Florida. Makes me nervous to be close to a fairly big town.

The reason I am going is because I am starting to have some pretty intense issues with my knees and my right hip, and the back with 2 ruptured discs doesn't help any. I can still do pretty much everything I have been doing, but my knees and hip continue to try to pop out of place and while I can still pop them back in, it is becoming more difficult and painful to do it. Plus I am having some dizzy spells......been going on for about a year now. But about 3 days ago, I got dizzy and landed on my head!!! Was standing on the RV steps and before I knew it, I was on the ground!! And, I guess I bopped my head pretty good, cause I had the hardest time finding my way into the RV and then trough to my bedroom.....no flashlight and I don't have lights in the RV. Only have what I can run on 2 heavy duty extension cords. Basically, the room A/C, the microwave and a fan.

If something ever happens to me, like falling and breaking bones, etc., my niece is where I will end up anyway.

I've been to Pensacola several times. My mother lived near Orange Beach, AL which is not far away. Plus I'm familiar with the gulf coast having lived most of my adult life in New Orleans. The very best of luck to you, sorry you have to give up all of your animals. Praying for you.

 

[kyrsyan]

This morning was trying really hard to be a full on CF. Trying really hard. I'm seriously surprised that it didn't completely frag my mental state. Regardless I got to see the doctor.

After discussing the test results, we made the decision to try Jardiance. She doesn't want me on metformin for multiple reasons. And she'd prefer me on semaglutide but the insurance company's have put prior approvals in place that require trying and failing all other available medications and/or an A1C over 6.5. That is their response to the people getting it prescribed for weight loss without diabetes or pre-diabetes.

Jardiance should also support the other heart meds because it seems that my blood sugar levels are part of my AFIB problem. It is most noticeable in the morning when I wake up with the liver's morning blood sugar dump into my system.

It is a gamble for me because I spent so long dealing with a yeast infection in my kidney. So we are also doing another round of Diflucan.

After discussing diet, and how I had reviewed everything after the last testing, we think it's the Sparkling Ice drinks that are my problem. Should be safe, but the sweetener apparently triggers my system. :-( Ah well. I couldn't handle more than one a day, or one every other day anyways. I'll just have to go back to making my own flavors.

She is still amazed that all the other bloodwork. Everything looks good.

And then the rest of the CF occurred. My prescriptions were accidentally sent to two separate pharmacies. One pharmacy was having phone problems. Yada, yada, yada. So what should have taken no more than an hour ended up taking more like two hours. And I had to drive from one side of the city to the other side. And to the next town. Just ugh. And then the pharmacy filled the Jardiance for 90 day instead of 30. I hope it works. The good news is that I got an extra discount on the price somehow.

When I picked up son's meds, I had a talk with the pharmacist. They are putting an alert in to remind them to make sure that they have the one he needs in stock. And are more than happy to have me call a few weeks in advance to make sure that they can get it in, or give us time to find another source if needed.

And I'm not even going into the rest of the CF this morning. Except to say that "Little Bunny Foo Foo" is now running through my head on repeat. And making me laugh every time.

 

[connie]

I cannot seem to find any light bulbs that are bright enough beside our chairs and bedside for reading. I like a warm light and massively failed in stocking up on the old style bulbs. It is so frustrating.
All the new style bulbs seem so much dimmer. It can't all be my age !

 

[anna43]

Thanks for the info on kerosene and lamp oil. I have quite a bit of lamp oil which is over 10 years. I have two 5-gallon blue plastic containers of kerosene which are also over 10 years old. I could not lift those, and they are stored in a shed as we decided not to store fuel in the attached garage. I should probably have someone move them into the garage. Somewhere there is a "something" to use to move fuel from the containers to the tank of the stove, so I guess I need to find that too. Also, should find the booklet on how to care for and operate the stove as it's never been used. We bought it after an ice storm and six-day power outage with temps going below zero. With the generator, we've never needed to use it, but as the saying goes one is none, so backup is needed. Our winters are not survival without heat PERIOD.

I went to town and did my shopping today. Stores were very busy considering a Tuesday. One detour was open but a new one popped up downtown. I got most everything on my shopping list but had to do a LOT of searching at Walmart. Their OTC meds and vitamins were scarce, fruit was better stocked but in disarray, canned veggies were stocked, plenty of sugar and flour. I needed vacuum sealer bag material, and it took a bit of searching to find what I wanted. They had maybe half full shelves in disarray. Has anyone noticed that the section for pickles seems to be shrinking?

Dollar Tree was out of shelf-stable milk so will have to go there again next time I'm in town. Aldi did not seem to be out of anything, but prices were up again. Frozen orange juice concentrate was $1.49 in May and is now $1.99. I stopped at Fareway to pick up a few things and it seemed to be fully stocked. Of course, all prices are up everywhere.

I stopped at the Friends of the Library bookstore on my way out of town and picked up 9 books and a magazine for $8.25. They had a huge selection of jigsaw puzzles, but I resisted buying more as I have several that I purchased recently at my local library.

I bought 5# flour and vacuum sealed it into two half gallon jars. For some reason my vacuum sealer seems to do a good job of sealing wide mouth jars but not so much regular mouth jars. I have 5 wide mouth quarts so will use them to store flour I bought on my last shopping trip. Then it will have to be regular quarts or I'll have to buy more half gallon jars. I have a pasta (that I'm using, not storage) in half gallon jars so might be able to switch those into quarts. Since I have something like 20 dozen empty regular quart jars, I certainly do not want to buy jars!! I also have two empty gallon jars and oxygen absorbers so could probably use those too. I've just had to throw out a goodly amount of flour that was old and not stored properly so don't want a repeat of that.

I'm in two Bible studies and one has been on hiatus for a month and is restarting tomorrow. We are going to be studying Revelation which somehow seems appropriate for the times!

 

[hd5574]

I have found that if I have trouble with regular mouth jars sealing if I put a second lid on top the lower lid seals fine...

Amazon still has some halogen light bulbs left...even three way..

 

[SouthernBreeze]

We're off to town sometime today if we can get out of our driveway. The county is repaving this old road for the first time in about 20 yrs. It was nothing but a bit of pavement and a lot of potholes! They've been working out at the road in front of our house all morning.

We'll just be making a quick stop in Walmart with my small list of items to get and another stop at the Wine Shop. That will be it, until payday on the first. Walmart is still the cheapest place in town to shop, so, in order to save money, we're switching back there to buy groceries and everything else. Don't like supporting them, but we've got to do something to save money. I even decided not to send in my Blair order for new fall and winter clothes. With paying cash for the SUV and now, having this tree removed is dropping our funds down farther than we feel comfortable with, so it's time to start cutting some things. Our monthly household budget needs to shrink and no new clothing for either of us this year. That's the only place we can think of to save. It will be only needs and no wants for the foreseeable future. I feel most of us will have to get back to bare essentials, before this ride is over. Don't ya'll? Of course, if any of ya'll are filthy rich, it probably won't matter, LOL.

 

[nomifyle]

I hear ya SB, its mostly essentials for us. Very little went to savings this month, I went to the grocery too many times and a lot of what I bought was wants. Got to cut that out. There is very little we actually need from the store. Although I have started another grocery list but its small. Did I really need to add another 60 pounds of dried legumes to my pantry last month, probably not, but it made me feel better.

Yesterday DH dug out some deer meat from the freezer and fried it. Most of it was so tough that we couldn't chew it. The dog will probably swollow it whole.

The water pressure came back up, praying the tank doesn't fall short and cut it off completely. Got the dishes washed that were in the sink. There is a voluntary boil order in place until we get some rain. I only make coffee from that water.

Since I've been out of time out I've been trying to catch up with the Q thread. But, frankly, it hurts my brain ro read some of the stuff in there and Rags threads too. While I appreciate their efforts I just can't read it all. Go figure, I'd rather talk about food.

And speaking of food, I've lost 15 pounds, but unfortunately I'm not sticking closely to the food plan, just not eating that much and almost no sugar. That's in four months. DH keeps telling me I didn't put it on over night.

Praise God, my balance is getting better. There was a time a little while back that I was afraid to go outside after dark. But last night I went out to the she shed looking for some pint and a half canning jars. None to be found. But then I realized I couldn't use them for what I wanted because they are wide mouth. I wanted to store bulk spices in them but the shaker lids I get from the crappy cheese from DH are regular mouth. And do I need that large a jar for spices anyway. I'm not think not.

The weather the last couple of days has been about 10 degrees cooler, day and night. But its back to three digits tomorrow. I saw a report that temps have not been this hot since the late 40's. So there you go its just weather patterns and not climate change or what ever they call it now.

 

[kyrsyan]

We're off to town sometime today if we can get out of our driveway. The county is repaving this old road for the first time in about 20 yrs. It was nothing but a bit of pavement and a lot of potholes! They've been working out at the road in front of our house all morning.

We'll just be making a quick stop in Walmart with my small list of items to get and another stop at the Wine Shop. That will be it, until payday on the first. Walmart is still the cheapest place in town to shop, so, in order to save money, we're switching back there to buy groceries and everything else. Don't like supporting them, but we've got to do something to save money. I even decided not to send in my Blair order for new fall and winter clothes. With paying cash for the SUV and now, having this tree removed is dropping our funds down farther than we feel comfortable with, so it's time to start cutting some things. Our monthly household budget needs to shrink and no new clothing for either of us this year. That's the only place we can think of to save. It will be only needs and no wants for the foreseeable future. I feel most of us will have to get back to bare essentials, before this ride is over. Don't ya'll? Of course, if any of ya'll are filthy rich, it probably won't matter, LOL.

I completely understand this. One of the reasons I do site to store is so that I can get the best prices at the time I'm shopping. I plan the trip to hit the stores close together, so extra gas isn't really an expense.

And my fridge is making it very clear that I need to pay attention. I think I'm clearing out the freezer this afternoon. And then I'm going to freeze some water bottles in the deep freezer and fill the fridge freezer with them. I don't know if it'll help. My logic is that if the compressor isn't working so hard on keeping that space cooled, it will hold out for a while longer and keep the fridge part cool. Unfortunately the freezer portion doesn't have a separate controller.

Family thinks I should just go buy a used one. But I've survived without a fridge before. I don't really want a repeat, but if I know there's a goal in sight... I have $200 set for it already. The basic fridge I want is pretty much the same model I have. And it's "only" $800 at full price, not on sale. And I may be able to catch it on sale. I'm reluctant to buy used because I've had bad experiences buying used fridges. Much better luck on most other used appliances, but not fridges.