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

[SouthernBreeze]

Another reason we're going back to shopping at Walmart is that it will save us some on gas from having to drive all over town to shop at separate places. The gas is cheaper there, too. I'm going to be rethinking what I actually have to have to keep my pantry stocked, too, or can I slack up a bit, and buy more dry beans, instead, which is lots cheaper. Cary will eat them if that's all there is. I'll store mine in the freezer. I've got the old freezer cleaned out down to the bottom, almost, so I've got room there. The other freezer is for meat, only. We only go into big town now if we have a doctor's appt. No special shopping trips there anymore.

Because of my eyesight, I only read the threads here in the Prep room and watch the "Latest Post" threads. If I'm interested in any of them, I'll click on them to read. That's about all I'm able to do here anymore. I get a bad headache if I read too much at one time.

Our weather has been cooler, too, Judy. It's only forecast to be 85 with no heat index, today. Tomorrow is the same, but it goes back to triple digit heat indices after tomorrow. No rain in sight.

I'd love to hear all of ya'lls ways you're trying to save money. I could use some help, pointers, new ideas....etc.

 

[nomifyle]

I've almost always been a penny pincher, unless I was feeling flush for some reason. One time, many years ago, we had to get food stamps for a year. I made an itemized list for once a month shopping. I followed my list completely, no impulse buys. I had a list for food and the things that food stamps didn't pay for. My food stamps were $110 a month for four people. I bought basic staples and meat. Not much in the way of boxed foods except mac n cheese. I can remember borrowing $20 from my dad to buy bread and milk.

I shopped the grocery sales, at that time we would get the sale papers in the mail or in the Sunday paper. Coupons were never much of benefit for me because there was rarely something that I would buy what ever brand it was. I would buy the cheaper store brand. I shopped around for the best deals.

I still make grocery lists and I rework them several times before I buy, eliminating things that can either wait or that we just don't need.

I've always felt a need to keep a full pantry, even when it was just me.

This is just how I shop and I imagine most of ya'll do something similiar. So no new tips, just what I do.

 

[Rabbit]

After lunch at the local chicken place, we went to walmart. I was looking for a stackable water container but they had none. However, I did buy two containers of Bacon Up, it was cheaper at this walmart than the one we usually go to.

I've put on a load of clothes to wash in an effort to keep the laundry up. Only a few things that need washing, now if I could just get the pile of clean clothes folded, hung up and put away.

Monday week is commodity day for this month. Its always interesting to see what we are given.

Church today was good, and inspiring. Unfortunately for me I'm starting to get tired of going, so I have to have a strong talking with myself. Church and the grocery are about the only places we go and we need to fellowship.

What is bacon up, please?

 

[nomifyle]

What is bacon up, please?

Its shelf stable bacon grease that you can buy. Its wonderful.

https://www.amazon.com/Bacon-Up-Grease-Rendered-Cooking/dp/B07RDYQSGP/ref=sr_1_2?crid=1KGMBIZYN5NJM&keywords=bacon+up&sprefix=bacon+u%2Caps%2C2002&sr=8-2

 

[SouthernBreeze]

We just got home. I bought a gallon of milk, 15lb. bag of potatoes, a couple of bags of dog treats, 2 cases of yogurt, a gallon of ice cream, 2, 6pks of Cary's beer, and 2 boxes of Cheerios. Total.....$192.67!!!!! Cary eats the cereal for his lunch during the summer. We both eat a small carton of yogurt each day for kidney and gut health. I could have cut out the ice cream, but it's so hot that ice cream sure is good at the end of the day. We go through that 15 lbs. of potatoes in 2 weeks. The dog treats are for our baby. Yes, he's our baby. I've already cut back on those, and a man has to have his cold beer. How am I supposed to save money when those few items totaled that amount?!

We don't get flyers in the mail for sales items, and Walmart hardly ever has sales on things I need. I always shop store brands when possible.

Today, the whole store was a disaster area. They are remodeling, and it sure looks like the aisles are going to be farther apart. I'm wondering if, at the end of the remodel, they will have downsized.

 

[nomifyle]

I use to love a bowl of cheeros and milk, but abut 12 years ago I decided to cut out eating cereal. But that's just me and DH wasn't a cereal eater any more either, got him that way, not my influence. Although I could go for a big bowl of cheeros and cold milk right now. If I bought ice cream it would be gone by day two. We both love it but its not on my food plan. I don't blame you for giving your baby treats, my dog likes them too but she spends most of her time with the goats.

 

[SouthernBreeze]

I use to love a bowl of cheeros and milk, but abut 12 years ago I decided to cut out eating cereal. But that's just me and DH wasn't a cereal eater any more either, got him that way, not my influence. Although I could go for a big bowl of cheeros and cold milk right now. If I bought ice cream it would be gone by day two. We both love it but its not on my food plan. I don't blame you for giving your baby treats, my dog likes them too but she spends most of her time with the goats.

Since Cary is one to be outside working most days during the summer, he wants something cold for his lunch when he comes in. That's why he eats cereal with ice cold milk. In the winter, he eats a bowl of Ramen noodles. He never has been a big soup eater. I don't eat either one, but I don't fuss at him for doing so. We love ice cream, and eat it year around, but it's mostly to eat over a warm dessert like pies and cobblers.

Cary doesn't fuss too much over all the dog treats. He always says that if we had grandchildren, instead, we would probably spend more on them than we do on our dog.

 

[anna43]

By searching I was able to find six half gallon jars that I could empty into quarts or into the trash. Two jars had dried beans which I put into a gallon jar. I have them washed up and draining but will wait another day to be sure they are fully dry before putting flour in them. Two jars will hold 5# of flour. I found one more jar but didn't dump it yet. It has dehydrated tomatoes which I could whiz into powder and put in a pint of even half pint jar. I also have an old blue half gallon, but I don't think it would seal so will keep for storing pasta in the kitchen.

kyrsyan, I agree that used fridges are not a good option. Always better to save for a new one if possible. When my sister left her spouse, I loaned her a stove. She needed a fridge and ended up trading her diamond engagement and wedding rings for a used fridge. It turned out to be a good one and lasted her many years, so I guess you never know.

I agree on "wants" and "needs". I "need" sweatpants and shirts for this winter. I "want" to buy some, however, I have fabric, patterns, findings, sewing machine and time so I guess I'd better find a backbone and force myself to sew. I still will try to buy a couple sweatshirts because I don't have sweatshirt fabric, I have fleece. The fleece is fine for pants but not so much for shirts. Jackets, yes, shirts, no. I actually have a pair of fleece pants 1/3 done and shoved back instead of finished. Those are deep purple and I have a lovely light green, a red/black plaid and two brown lengths of fabric each enough for a pair of pants. I think the plaid fabric would look better as a jacket though.

I saw a couple of Monarch's on the zinnias today. First I've seen in a while. Temps are climbing here again too, heading into the 90's again. It's also windy so all the lovely rain we had will dry up fast. Heard on radio yesterday that we're still considered in drought.

 

[kyrsyan]

@anna43 , I've had great luck with used washing machines, dryers, dehydrators, and freezers. But fridges... the last one I bought used had issues. We did finally get the issues fixed and it lasted a long time after that. But nowadays, I just don't trust people, or used appliance shops. I'd consider it if I knew and trusted the person. But that's about it.

And the other part is that the space for it isn't large. And a lot of the fridges out there are now these monster sized things.

As far as sewing, that's me as well. But I can't wear sweatshirts. They hit my senses wrong and I overheat in them too easily. But I'll get back to that after I get the yard and house back under control.

 

[nomifyle]

I quit sewing back in the early 90's when I discovered that I could find clothes that fit me in thrift stores. I still have some of the clothes I made back in the day, classic styles that could be worn today if only they fit. They were some of my favorites that I saved from Katrina. At this point in my life I have plenty of clothes in different sizes. I did buy some new flannel shirts last winter. I still have a couple from 20 years ago that still look great, even better than the crap I got at wm. The walmart stuff needs to be ironed but the older ones don't. Guess which ones I wear the most. And I have other flannels shirts that will fit in a few pounds. I'm hoping to get back into my regular bras instead of the sports bras I've been wearing for about a year. With the sports bras I felt blessed that I could find something that I could wear.

 

[anna43]

I've with you on thrift stores. However, I've never found any good sweatpants at a thrift store. I have found new or like new sweatshirts, but not the last couple of years. Of course, I don't go every week like I did when I was working in town and could go on my lunch hour or after work. I found a lot of elastic waist jeans at thrift shops back then but haven't found a pair anywhere in the last three years. Probably because I can't find them in stores anymore either. They have elastic waist so called jeans, but they are mostly polyester not denim. Jeans are DENIM.

 

[SouthernBreeze]

Cary and I, both, are covered where new clothes are concerned. It would be more of a "want" item than a "need" item, at least for this winter. I'm just a sucker for new clothing, but that is changing, fast. If I have to wear a bra, it's going to be a sports bra. I can't stand anything that doesn't fit me well, and sports bras are comfortable.

I don't do thrift store shopping for clothes. Very rarely will any of them have petite sizes, so I don't even try anymore. I haven't sewn for myself in years. I doubt if I could even thread my machine it's been so long. I guess it was back in the 80's that I quit sewing. I don't even know if it will still work if I dug it out and tried. Before we moved here, I had a sewing room, and everything was so convenient. Now, I don't have room, and with my portable sewing machine, I would have to gather everything up and put it all away every day just to make room for something else.

 

[John Deere Girl]

We're pretty frugal, but I'm always looking for ways to save money. I cook almost all our meals from scratch, I try to buy in bulk if it's cheaper since we have a big family. We raise a lot of what we eat, I can, dehydrate, freeze what we grow/raise. I've switched to reusable microfiber cloths to clean surfaces and glass. I do still buy paper towels to clean the toilets and we aren't quitting toilet paper either.

 

[Milkweed Host]

Ref storing kerosene for long term, a metal container is the way to go.
Some people buy kerosene in plastic and transfer it into a metal jerrycan. I
haven't tried that.

Kerosene can be purchased in five gal sealed metal containers for long term
storage.

I would never place any type of metal container on the bare concrete floor for
long term storage.

Before you decide on plastic or metal kerosene storage containers, research it
on the internet.

 

[kyrsyan]

Thrift stores around here rarely have good clothes in my size anymore. And with my son's sensory issues... I can only order him specific clothes. There was a real panic period when his favorite style of shorts disappeared and I couldn't get into stores to look for replacements under another name. I finally was able to do that and ordered him new ones.

And the thrift stores that I frequent lately, because they actually have items and keep things clean, don't actually carry a lot of clothing. But that's okay. I find things that help with the house. Last week I found two Ikea containers to help organize things in the fridge. And a collapsible garden garbage can. And, surprisingly, some in date, unopened Vitamin D that is safe for son.

I tend to keep an eye out for towels nowadays. And I'll probably start getting sheers again to make frost covers. Maybe some thin sheets.

 

[philkar]

We're pretty frugal, but I'm always looking for ways to save money. I cook almost all our meals from scratch, I try to buy in bulk if it's cheaper since we have a big family. We raise a lot of what we eat, I can, dehydrate, freeze what we grow/raise. I've switched to reusable microfiber cloths to clean surfaces and glass. I do still buy paper towels to clean the toilets and we aren't quitting toilet paper either.

Glad to hear you are hanging onto that toilet paper! I have lambs wool planted for “the just in case”!

 

[connie]

SB, that total does sound high for what you got. With food prices going up so much it's hard for me to know what is a good price. We occasionally splurge on chocolate or such. I don't bake a lot of sweets. No self control there. I have been eating ice cream this summer but will stop soon as weather cools off.
I am more of a stock up shopper and husband goes to store for things he eats but I don't. Mostly lunch stuff as I do intermittent fasting. Eat a late breakfast and supper.

I didn't sleep well last night so not much motivation to cook dinner. If I do, it will be enchiladas. Think I will make quiche tomorrow and leftovers Friday.

 

[nomifyle]

I was out on the camper porch (screened in) looking for quart jars to wash. I opened a tote that was right at the front where it would get wet. I opened it to see if jars were in it and not it was all kinds of stuff that I'd put in a clear trash bag. Everything is in prestine condition. Not sure what it all is but I do know it had been in a leaky shed that we tore down awhile back and then sat outside for awhile. I guess my point is those clear trash bags keep things in good condition. I'm sure I must have packed it before I moved here almost 13 years ago.

 

[kyrsyan]

My malicious compliance bug has bit again. I have several pints of different exterior paints in different colors. But not really enough to give everything a good basecoat and then another layer or two as needed. I do have two gallons of a bland gray from the Habitat store. So I'm going to basecoat everything with the gray. And second coat if necessary. Then I'm going to have fun using the colors to paint random patterns.

And the flat part of the storage area is going to become the new home for seedlings. I found some of the metal wire shelves from my old greenhouse. I'm going to use those across the top to make sure that trays don't slip around.

But for now, off to unlock my credit so I can try for a loan for the fridge. And to get work done for the day. (Note: I already have half the price for the fridge saved. But it's on sale now, so the hope is to get it while it is $200 lower so that I can use the "extra" to pay for a warranty and to haul off the old one.)

 

[SouthernBreeze]

SB, that total does sound high for what you got. With food prices going up so much it's hard for me to know what is a good price. We occasionally splurge on chocolate or such. I don't bake a lot of sweets. No self control there. I have been eating ice cream this summer but will stop soon as weather cools off.
I am more of a stock up shopper and husband goes to store for things he eats but I don't. Mostly lunch stuff as I do intermittent fasting. Eat a late breakfast and supper.

I didn't sleep well last night so not much motivation to cook dinner. If I do, it will be enchiladas. Think I will make quiche tomorrow and leftovers Friday.

Yeah, it was more than I was expecting. I got my receipt out and looked at it. I did forget to mention that I also bought 4 pks of sliced cheeses, 2 cheddar and 2 Swiss. We go through a lot of cheese, since we've been eating more sandwiches for supper because of the heat. Cary usually has a list of his own, and he pays for all of his stuff, but if it's food, it comes out of my budget money. We only eat 2 meals a day, too. We skip breakfast and eat an early lunch. Our supper meal is always the biggest meal of the day even if it's just sandwiches with chips or homemade fries. I don't think we eat any fancier than most people, either. Roasts and steaks aren't even on our menus anymore, unless I find a good one on sale, which is very seldom. Our meats mainly consist of ground beef, pork chops, chicken breasts. and smoked sausages. Pork and chicken are cheaper here than ground beef per pound.

It's going to be another coolish day, today, so I'm cooking a big meal, tonight. Baked bacon wrapped chicken breasts, Bush's Grillin' Beans (bourbon and brown sugar), and steamed and buttered potatoes, with buttered and toasted Kaiser rolls. Once the weather turns cool this Fall, I'll go back to making cornbread and biscuits, but I don't like to use the oven more than necessary. That's why we eat a lot of rolls during the summer months. I can toast them in the oven right before the chicken comes out of the oven.

It feels like Fall outside, so yard work is going to get done. Cary is already out weed eating. Our gardens are all finished, except for the peppers.

 

[paxsim2]

Today is a do something with the rest of the cucumbers day. Cucumber jalapeno jam and refrigerator gerkins then I'm done with cucumbers.
Next up tomorrow will banana pepper jelly and pickled peppers. Our tomatoes fell flat but the peppers are booming even though half the plants were mistakenly marked. But my sister gave me 6 of her starts and they are going gangbusters.
Husband planted zucchini, corn and beans. I'm planting a fall crop of chard, bok choy, radishes and carrots in the vertical gardens. The next 7 days are going to be in the 100s and I will plant once those are gone.
Organizing the canning pantry, packing up clothes to donate and pitching some things is the plan for the weekend since it will be very hot.
Stay safe every one! Prayers for all!

 

[nomifyle]

DH brought in a pitiful few tomatoes yesterday, I'd asked him to pick some. Church is having a pot luck Sunday and I thought I make a tomato and onion salad, might throw in some of those cucumber and put italian salad dressing on it all.

I'm still clearing the food stuff out of the front room and in boxes in the kitchen and finding a home for it all. I swear I'm about to run out of jars.

I got a package yesterday UPS ground. They left the box under my mail box on a major highway. Getting in touch with UPS is just about impossible.

 

[hd5574]

I got a package yesterday UPS ground. They left the box under my mail box on a major highway. Getting in touch with UPS is just about impossible.

Try calling the shipper...and have them call ups

 

[nomifyle]

Although I'm getting extremely low on canning jars, I do have a decent supply of pint jars. Those are for canning meat out of the freezer. I need to get started doing that, although I've been saying that for like forever.

 

[SouthernBreeze]

We got all of our yard work done today, except for rolling up all the water hoses, and I still have some trimming to do around the deck. I'm loving this cooler weather. I'll need to get out early tomorrow morning to get that trimming done. I also saw some volunteer plants that have come back up after many years after setting them out. I want to transplant those into pots til next spring. They aren't in a good place. That's why I thought they had all died off. I was surprised to see them coming up after all this time. I've got just the place to put them next spring.

I've got my chicken breasts all seasoned and bacon wrapped and in the fridge for later tonight. Since we're back into triple digit heat tomorrow, I decided to do the whole 3 lb bag of the chicken breasts. Cook it all tonight, so I won't have to use the oven tomorrow night for anything. Just pop them in the microwave to reheat. What's left will be for our lunch the next day. Makes great chicken salad.

We'll be waiting for another cool down, before we start cleaning up the raised beds. We clean them out good, so when the leaves begin to fall, we can put all of those on the raised beds to overwinter. Come Spring, Cary turns them all under with the tiller and works them in with all the compost.

 

[nomifyle]

Try calling the shipper...and have them call ups

I've been though this before. The shipper is the VA and I thought I had it taken care of. The last time they sent it by the post office and that worked out fine. I need to go to UPS in the town nearest me.

 

[nomifyle]

we had a decent couple of days temp wise and not back to the 100+. DH did get a good bit done outside both of those days. And I've been going in and out of the house more often, that's a big improvement for me. For the longest time I was almost afraid to go outside, as I'd had two miserable falls outside. But now I'm better and also being very careful.

I'm still working on pantry stuff, still some to go but progress is being made.

I was supposed to get a delivery today from wm but it didn't make it. I do need to go to town to see if I can find more quart canning jars. I found more beans that need to be stored. I'm pretty sure I have enough dried beans to sink a battle ship by now.

 

[kyrsyan]

What a day. Good news, bad news, stress, a roller coaster.

The loan is issued. The new fridge is ordered. It should be here Sunday, but with life, likely Monday. More cleaning was done. And the first layer of paint. The dark gray is surprisingly not as ucky as I thought it would be. And 4 posts drank almost a half gallon. Good thing I have two gallons of it. Even better thing that I invested in one of those paint mixers that you can use with your drill. It took the full 5 minutes to remix it.

I emptied the freezer and tossed all of it. And tomorrow I'll likely have to do the same for the fridge. I'm going to pull in the coolers for the things that likely are still good, and toss the rest. And order dry ice, if I can. If not, I'll pack with ice. I only have to wait until Sunday or Monday. The plan, at the moment, is to leave the money that is in savings in there. And then just pay $150 to $200 every paycheck until it's gone. The loan is technically for 5 years at $22/month. I'm not planning on letting it go past 3 months.

Since I bought the same fridge, just in a different color, we're going to pull the shelves and other removable parts to be used for backup on the new fridge. Including the ice maker. I am paying for them to haul away the old one. No reason to upset the town again by putting it curbside for the scrappers. And while I debated putting it in the garage and getting parts to DIY it, I decided that I have enough extra sh..stuff sitting around. That did not need to become yet another project on hold.

Tomorrow is more painting. Probably some more cleaning outside. At this point, it's stuff I know isn't in the regulation but I might as well get it done while I'm doing it. And then cleaning inside so that the old fridge can be easily removed and the new fridge easily put in. Saturday will be at least the first stage of the build. And more inside cleaning.

 

[anna43]

kyrsyan - make a phone call to your electric company and see if they will pick up the old fridge and pay you for their trouble. When we replaced our fridge and later our freezer, the utility company came and hauled them off and paid us $50 each time. The energy efficiency program may no longer exist, but worth a phone call.

I woke up with my eye hurting and since today is the day the eye doctor's local office is open, I called for an appointment was able to get in. I've got an abrasion on my eyeball and was given some sample medicine to use before bed and first thing in the morning. I hope it works.

I spent a good bit of time going through jars of dry goods to see what could be shifted so I could gain four more half-gallon jars for flour. I ended up finding four, three wide mouth and one regular AND THEN I kept going and ended up with 17 jars to wash up. I vacuum sealed the jars I found yesterday and got them hauled to the basement. Fun and games. I threw out a good bit of dehydrated chard, kale and other odds and ends that were too old or that I shouldn't eat. I kept two jars of chard which I like to put into soups. Reorganized the cupboard shelf the dehydrated stuff is on and moved the salt from the far back. Far back of bottom cupboards and bad backs do not work well together.

I picked enough cucumbers to do a batch of bread and butter pickles tomorrow. Can't decide if I really want to bother as I don't eat a lot of pickles other than kosher dills. I could make up a batch and then dump the old jars left on the shelf. Decisions, decisions.

We're pretty frugal, but I'm always looking for ways to save money. I cook almost all our meals from scratch, I try to buy in bulk if it's cheaper since we have a big family. We raise a lot of what we eat, I can, dehydrate, freeze what we grow/raise. I've switched to reusable microfiber cloths to clean surfaces and glass. I do still buy paper towels to clean the toilets and we aren't quitting toilet paper either.

I have two shoe boxes of cloths to use if I have no toilet paper, but I currently have about a year's supply on-hand so I'm definitely not planning to use the cloths anytime soon. I don't use many paper towels, but buy a couple packages a year.

 

[connie]

Anna seems many of us doing the same thing. Evaluating what we have and what we realistically will use.

I have dried foods in small containers I have been trying to use more. Problem is that I don't have room for them on the counter so I forget about them. I think they will be great for soups this winter. I am also making effort to freeze extra when I cook to use this winter. Hoping my future self will thank me !

My solution to back of bottom cabinets was a basket that would slide out. Put less used items in it but they are still easily accessible. Otherwise nothing at back of lower cabinets.

 

[nomifyle]

Anna seems many of us doing the same thing. Evaluating what we have and what we realistically will use.

I have dried foods in small containers I have been trying to use more. Problem is that I don't have room for them on the counter so I forget about them. I think they will be great for soups this winter. I am also making effort to freeze extra when I cook to use this winter. Hoping my future self will thank me !

My solution to back of bottom cabinets was a basket that would slide out. Put less used items in it but they are still easily accessible. Otherwise nothing at back of lower cabinets.

The basket in the back of a lower cabinet is a really good idea. I've had 2 one gallon buckets of coconut oil down there for the longest time. I won't get rid of that because it lasts a long long time. But a basket in from of them is a good idea. I'm not even sure what is in that cabinet. When DH first bought this mobile home he wanted to put a dishwasher in that cabinet and I should have let him. I used it ten years ago but my back was younger then.

 

[SouthernBreeze]

I'm also inventorying and evaluating my pantry as well. Should I realistically be buying more canned veggies when I have 2 yrs. worth already? I think not. I'm slacking up on those. Canned meats, the same. I have gallons of pancake syrup that's already 2 yrs. old. That needs to be used soon, before buying to replace. Some things, I just went overboard on, and it's getting old. In order to save money, I'm only replacing food that I use most often, at least for a while. I certainly don't want my pantry getting anywhere near too low. I'm trying to be more realistic.

I finished up all the trimming I needed to do this morning. Cary rolled up all the water hoses we had been using to bring water from the rain barrels and tank to our gardens. I swept and cleaned the deck up really good, too. Since our deck faces East, it got hot out there doing all of that in a hurry. No shade from that direction. Triple digit heat starting today.

We'll be having leftover chicken breasts tonight, deviled eggs, and purple hull peas, with more Kaiser rolls. Very little cooking to heat up the kitchen. There should be enough chicken breasts left again tonight to make me a small batch of chicken salad for my lunch tomorrow, too.

I decided to wait about digging up these giant elephant ears to put in pots. They're still small right now. I thought they had all died out, but they managed to come back up. I think it's still too early to be transplanting anything. Maybe, next month. I'll baby them, until then.

 

[nomifyle]

How old is too old for home dehydrated vegetables? Most has been vacummed sealed but I've found a few jars that were not. The food still looks and smells ok in the un sealed jars.

 

[SouthernBreeze]

How old is too old for home dehydrated vegetables? Most has been vacummed sealed but I've found a few jars that were not. The food still looks and smells ok in the un sealed jars.

I don't know anything about the home dehydrated versions, but I'm still using out of a half gallon canning jar of commercially dehydrated bell peppers for over a year now. They are still fine and are unsealed. They are kept in a cool dry place. When I open a #10 can of them, I empty them into a half gallon jar to use. What doesn't fit, I put in a freezer bag and placed in the freezer.

 

[nomifyle]

I don't know anything about the home dehydrated versions, but I'm still using out of a half gallon canning jar of commercially dehydrated bell peppers for over a year now. They are still fine and are unsealed. They are kept in a cool dry place. When I open a #10 can of them, I empty them into a half gallon jar to use. What doesn't fit, I put in a freezer bag and placed in the freezer.

Some of my stuff is going back to '19

 

[SouthernBreeze]

Some of my stuff is going back to '19

I don't know, Judy, but that seems too old for me. If it were me, I'd throw it out if it's been unsealed, especially.

 

[nomifyle]

I don't know, Judy, but that seems too old for me. If it were me, I'd throw it out if it's been unsealed, especially.

I am thinking about tossing the stuff I didn't vacuum seal, but not the food I did vacuum seal, just wondering if ST will comment.

 

[connie]

I am in an extremely dry climate so my dried foods should be fine. Some are old and like rocks in jar! Different story if you have humidity.

The grocery store had what I assume was a sale on store brand canned veggies. But I think I have enough for the foreseeable future.
I had always assumed we would eat somewhat differently in SHTF situation. But I no longer want to store things we rarely eat but would in an emergency. I am just stocking what we use day to day. That's enough to keep up with.

Extreme emergency : commercially freeze dried stuff.

 

[SouthernBreeze]

I had always assumed we would eat somewhat differently in SHTF situation. But I no longer want to store things we rarely eat but would in an emergency. I am just stocking what we use day to day. That's enough to keep up with.

Exactly. Only store what you eat now. When I started my pantry, and still today, I plan to keep right on eating what we always have in a SHTF event. Also, I try to stay realistic about the amount I store away. Some things, I have gone overboard with, and probably will have to get rid of some of it, if it's not used by next year. Like the gallons of syrup I mentioned earlier. We hardly ever eat pancakes, so it was unrealistic for me to buy up so much of it.

 

[kyrsyan]

I finished work early. After finding a major CF in one client that was not of my making, and for the moment, I'm not being asked to fix. We'll see if that holds. And spending an hour explaining to another customer that I can't mark invoices paid if the money never appeared for the business. And, and and, and and. I'm done.

And honestly getting tired of being accused of things, then they realize it wasn't me but I never get an apology for the bs and accusations. But oh if it was actually my mistake I have to apologize multiple times.

I got another paint layer on wood first thing this morning. I just went out and did more cleaning. In about 15 I'll be going back out for another section to paint. Since I finished work early, I may be able to get most of the painting handled today. Fingers crossed.