Today and Tomorrow??

 Hello Everybody, Frank here.

It’s a beautiful Saturday morning here in southeastern Oklahoma. Sun shining, light breeze, nighttime temperatures were above freezing. We have clear skies forecast for a number of days. It’s just plain ol’ beautiful.

I wanted to drop you a short note today. It involves preparedness.

We all know there is an election coming up Tuesday. And we all know there is a chance of civil unrest.

Where I am today is beautiful and I expect it to stay that way here for a number of days. But that doesn’t mean it’s beautiful everywhere today and in a few days it may be quite ugly in some places.

This is just a reminder. If you’re going to use any item in the next month, let’s say. Go get it today or tomorrow, or maybe Monday and Tuesday. Go during the daytime if you can. If you pull up to a store, let’s say Wal-Mart, and there are people outside rioting, keep going. Go to another store and pay more.

I know that sounds unbelievably simple and insulting to anyone of average intelligence, but we read about people everyday that drive into situations like that. Teenagers and adolescents don’t always make the best decisions. Now may not be the time to experiment with an adolescent.

So what I’m saying here is, if you like ice cream, get a couple of extra tubs today. While you’re at the store think about things you’re going to buy either way for the next week or month. Stuff like toilet paper, batteries for your flashlights and anything else that uses batteries, general food items – canned, boxed, frozen. If you need fresh foods, buy them. Today or tomorrow. Get a few extra, things that will last.

Some people will find this next area to be a bit offensive. If you smoke or drink alcohol, you might want to get some extra because you may not be ready to quit just yet. Forgive me for saying what I’m about to say, but if you use illegal drugs you may not want to quit right now. 

There are items you may not think about, things you use everyday. Prescription and over-the-counter drugs. Feminine products. Anything you’re going to use in the next couple of weeks or month, get now.

Our goats are dried up right now and we are buying milk. It happens every year. Pasteurized milk will last for a long time in your frig. If it does go bad, your dog and chickens don’t care. Also get dog and cat food. I know some people believe Fido will turn back into a wolf if necessary, but I’m relatively sure that ain’t gonna happen.

I do believe it’s too late to buy items for protection. You might still find some places that have firearms. Good luck on procuring ammunition.

Something I rarely talk about. If you are trying to find home protection, you’re not going to find an AR type rifle and .223 or 5.56, you’re just not. You have missed that boat. But you might be able to find a shotgun and get whatever ammunition you can find for it. Don’t do something stupid with it. It may be too late to practice, but know the safety rules. Again – don’t do something stupid. If you have waited this long to get family protection, then you have already waited way too long.

Make sure all of your vehicles gas tanks are full. If you have a generator with extra gas cans, good for you. Make sure they are full. If you have camping gear, get some new mantles for your lanterns and a couple of cans of white gas. 

By all means, don’t forget water.

The next couple of days know where your loved ones are. As you well know, a short text message will get through much faster that a screaming, out of control, voice message will.

You need to talk to your neighbors. You don’t have to tell them everything about your life, just talk to them.

Just walk around your house. Look at what you may need for the next couple of weeks. Make a list. If you need entertainment items, especially if you have kids, give thought to coloring books, crayolas, puzzles. Adults like to color too, by the way. Kids will color a whole lot longer if an adult is coloring with them.

A little bit deeper philosophical thought here. There is a possibility our system is going to shut down. Everybody in your family does NOT have to be a trained ninja soldier and neither do you. But you need to have your head screwed on right. You need to be prepared to do the unthinkable if the time comes. You need to be right with God.

No joke about knowing where your family is. You do not want that stress in your life. Especially if there is no electricity or water.

I hope next week that we have a declared President and that you’re eating week old ice cream. But if by chance that’s not the case, you can drink that ice cream, too. Try it on a bowl of Cheerios or Captain Crunch. You’re going to need all the sugar, salt, starch, calories, protein that you can even imagine if this thing goes sour.

But I really do hope that when you get that ice cream out, that your spoon bends.

Before your spouse gets up, get all your kids around and have a bowl of ice cream for breakfast. Then you go play golf and let your wife deal with kids bouncing off the walls.

Have a good day. May God and Peace be with you.

GO VOTE!!

We’ll talk more later,  Frank

Hmmm….. I need to grow more food

I haven’t felt this way in a while. This year has been a normal garden season, no urgency, just grow our own healthy food and put it on the shelf for another year’s supply of homegrown food. The garden is a little smaller and would be even smaller still if we hadn’t decided to grow a little corn for the first time in many years. Just another year. Right? Waiting for the collapse, watching the shenanigans of our congress, observing the demise of civility, avoiding crowds if at all possible.

We had this same flooding about two weeks ago. Here it is again.

We have had an over abundance of rain this year, with over four inches in the last 24 hours, and more falling from the sky as I type. Everything is growing well, not necessarily producing a harvest yet, but growing well, except maybe the okra. It’s barely over knee high and is just starting to bloom. The peppers are in the same shape, starting to bloom. The tomatoes are green, but there are quite a few of them. 

Our great bread basket across the country has been flooding and flooding and flooding. Stories have been coming out about the impact to major crop harvests. Some say there will be shortages and rising prices, some say all is well. What do we believe? We have been fortunate to get comments from CW who lives in Iowa’s corn country. We like hearing from boots on the ground.

Somewhere along the way we ran into a link for the YouTube channel of the Ice Age Farmer. I watched him to see what he had to say about farms underwater and the country’s major crop harvest. It doesn’t look good according to him. And then he started talking about the grand solar minimum. I didn’t think a lot of it at first. I knew the sun cycle was at the low end because of how it is affecting radio propagation. Then I remembered an article I wrote back in 2014, What is a Maunder Minimum? I went back and read it, then went in search of more information about the grand solar minimum that the Ice Age Farmer was talking about. This took me to these two articles.

Winter is Coming – Super Grand Solar Minimum

Evidence of Grand Solar Minimum Continues to Mount

Hmmm….. comparison to another mini ice age? I sure hope not. But Colorado did just have two feet of snow in some places on the first day of summer. The same storm that caused major storms in other parts of the country. I have never believed in the current global warming paradigm. Man’s carbon emissions are not causing the planet to warm. The planet has always gone through cycles of warming and cooling. Just like the sun cycles. Either we adjust or we don’t. We learn new ways of living and producing food, or we don’t. If we as a society don’t learn to adjust, we die. To me, it’s that simple.

Is this the only reason I feel like I need to grow more food, after the growing season has started and the garden is already planted and growing? No. But you probably suspected that didn’t you? Our last few articles discuss the ways of the world, our country, our politics, the invasion of foreigners from all over the world, and the potential conflicts between countries worldwide. Is that it? No, not entirely.

In the last few weeks Frank has begun working on a project to provide another source of water to our house. We will write about it before long showing the steps, equipment and results. But just yesterday Frank looked at me and said, “After all this time, I don’t know why I am doing this project now.” You see, we have had the supplies, parts and equipment for a long time, in some instances up to ten years. It has all been on a shelf, waiting in the wings for the time it was needed. But recently, he took these things down, looked them over and started to work. The scary part is he doesn’t have a distinct reason why.

Amaranth will be planted here.

As I harvested the carrots and cleared up the area between the tomatoes, Frank asked what I was going to plant there. My response? Nothing, we don’t need anything else. Then we harvested the beets. Again, same response, we don’t need anything else. As the amaranth has grown well and started to produce large seed heads I have been reading about harvesting and winnowing the seeds for use in our bread, reviewing the nutritive value and how it can benefit both us and our chickens and goats.

Then, in just the last week, I have had this need to grow more food. Densely nutritious food. Just this morning at breakfast I asked Frank what shorter season crop we can grow once the pinto bean crop is finished. I plan to plant some carrots for winter eating in a portion of that area, but there will be a lot of room left over. Cow peas are a 75-85 day crop, high in protein and other good nutrients, good for animals and humans. That’s why I planted some yesterday after I tilled the space where the beets and winter squash had been. This is what lead me to pull up the winter squash before it was fully finished with it’s production.

And instead of leaving the winter squash to cure so we can bake one every now and then, or bake and freeze some if the need arises, I am going to can them all. We can add a jar to soup and it will be ready on the shelf for another food option as desired or needed. Why? I’m not sure. It’s just another one of those food options I have been impressed to change from my original plan.

The areas I showed you between the rows of corn and between the tomato trellises will be planted with amaranth as soon as the new seedlings come up. I have two trays planted and more pot maker pots made up today for planting. And if there is time once the corn is harvested, the rest of this area will be planted with amaranth.

Wire cat protectors for the seedlings as they grow.

Just like Frank and the water project. I don’t know why, but I need to grow more food. We have lived our lives listening to that little voice of warning and instruction and it has served us well. So, it’s time to plant, tend, harvest and preserve. The why can take care of itself in it’s own time. Heed the warnings you are given. Listen. Act. 

Until next time – Fern

Electric & Water Lines, Day 1

This was one busy day. It started about 6:00 am and hasn’t quit yet, since now I am sitting down to write this article. We accomplished a great deal today, and have ditches in the pasture, by the chicken house, through the branch in two places and into the yard to show for our efforts. Here is a glimpse of our work in pictures.

 

We started off with a real treat. As Frank left the house, right before the sun peaked over the horizon, he called me on the radio to let me know there was an eagle in the old dead tree in the pasture. He recommended I get the camera and head out, which I did. I waited for the sun to come up, but because I was on the west side of this tree, I still didn’t get the full effect of the light. Eagles are magnificent birds. We had the opportunity to see one up close and personal at a veterinarians place in Alaska one time. They were trying to return it to good health so they could release it. The size of the beak and talons are a sight to see, not to mention the wing span.

 

Frank and Henry went and picked up an excavator first thing this morning as the company opened so we could make the most of the daylight. Henry ran the excavator while Frank and I worked on the wire and conduit in the first ditch.

 

 

After a few hours, we had power to the barn, which is a goal we’ve had for seven years now. This is just in time for our next set of baby goats which should be arriving in about 17 days.

About this time, we discovered that our neighbor down the road had a hay fire. They lost a lot of hay, but had no other major damage.

After lunch, it was time to start working on the water lines. There will be two lines in the same ditch most of the way. One will be pressurized with the water from our rural water supplier. The other will be gravity flow from the rain catchment water tanks at the barn, down to the house.

Frank got most of the electric line covered up with the tractor while Henry kept digging and I went after more PVC glue. It turns out that we got two cans of cleaner instead of one cleaner and one glue.

 
As you can tell, there are lots of deep ditches and dirt everywhere. We ran out of daylight and energy, so it was time to quit for the day, do the chores, have some supper and work on the blog.

The places where the water lines will cross the branch are full of water. This will be an interesting challenge tomorrow when we lay the rest of the water lines.

 

It will still be a few days before we can install and connect the no-freeze faucets to the pressurized water line. We need to reopen the hole Emmet dug for us when we found the location of the water line. It had to be filled in temporarily because of freezing weather. Then we will need to get the water storage tanks plumbed and connected to their water line. Since both lines are in the same ditch, we’ll need to get everything connected before we cover them up.

We’re very tired and very pleased with the progress of the day. We’ll update you again in a few days. 

Until next time – Fern

Project Preparation Day

Our plans for today were to prepare for tomorrow and take it easy. It didn’t end up that way. After breakfast we checked the incisions from my hand surgery and discovered one of them was weeping. A call to the doctor’s office ended in a visit there, 60 miles away. That took a lot of our day that we had earmarked for other things, like taking it easy.

The next few days will be very busy. We are renting an excavator to dig water and electric lines. The electric line will go from the new pole the electric company set in the pasture for us a while back, to the barn. That will be the most simple installation we have planned.

The next line will go from the existing rural water line around the chicken pen, attach a no-freeze faucet at the chicken pen, then up to the barn where another no-freeze faucet will be installed.

 
The third line will start at the rain catchment tanks and run 400 feet down to the house. The two water lines will run in the same trench for the most part, so we will need to mark them to prevent confusion.

This is another long-term project that we have looked forward to for a very long time. I will probably give you an update tomorrow or Monday. We will get as much completed as we can over the weekend, while we have the excavator since it will be returned early Monday morning. These projects will meet several goals we have. We have wanted to have electricity in the barn since we had it built seven years ago. It will be very nice to have lights in the barn in the winter, especially since we have baby goats coming in a few weeks. These pictures will look very different tomorrow. I wanted to post these today before all of the digging starts. It should be interesting.

Running the rural water line to the barn will be very convenient. We’ve debated whether to do this or not considering the condition the world is in, but we will enjoy the convenience for as long as we can. Setting up the rain catchment system will provide us with a more sustainable water supply, than what is ‘bought’ from the rural water company. Not only will we be able to provide water for the goats, pigs and dog at the barn, it will provide water down at the house in the outdoor kitchen and garden.

Keep working on your preparations, whatever you need to have ready for your family. Time passes quickly, and there are never enough hours in each day. Make the most of it.

Until next time – Fern

Got Food? For How Long?

If you don’t know how to provide food for yourself and anyone else that is depending on you by now, it may be too late to learn. You may just starve. Cheery thought, isn’t it?

What will millions of people do when the just-in-time deliveries of food stop? Stop as in never to be seen again? Seriously, what will happen? Right now there are so many trigger points leading to a collapse, the slightest wind could cause them to fall, and where they will land is anybody’s guess. The destruction that will be left in the wake of that landing will change the face of the world, permanently.

Let’s say you are preparing for disaster/collapse/anarchy/chaos and have a lot of food stored. That’s great. What are you going to do when it’s gone? We ask ourselves that. Regularly. So, what are you going to do when it’s gone? Turn into one of those starving zombie people that will do anything to take the food that belongs to someone else? Go to any lengths to stay alive? Is that your plan? I truly hope not.

Do you have plans for replenishing your food supply as you eat it? How will you do that? What if the stores are all closed and there are no more seeds? What if the electricity is off forever? What if there is no gasoline or diesel for all of the gardening equipment you currently depend on? Do you have canning jars, lids, rings, canners and a way to use them minus electricity, propane or natural gas? Do you have a root cellar? A solar dehydrator? Think ways to produce and preserve food and add those to the list.

Now think of how many people you plan to feed. Can these people help with the work that will have to be done to replenish your food supply? Will they be productive members of the group? 

Do you have livestock or access to a meat supply? This is assuming you have been able to protect these animals from other folks that need food as well. Hunting by now will probably be out of the question. The sheer number of hungry people will have seen to that not long after the collapse. Remember, any food you cook, especially meat will draw people like flies if they are within smelling distance. Just how good did that Thanksgiving meal smell while it was cooking today? Makes your stomach growl, doesn’t it? What if you and yours were starving and you smelled a meal cooking? The draw to that food would be irresistible, just like it would to others if you were the cook. Always remember that.

There will be many articles posted today about ways to use leftovers from Thanksgiving meals. Some of them will talk about making turkey broth from the carcass or other ways to extend the food supply from existing ‘leftovers’. Read them, ponder them, then try to apply them to a collapse situation. How many more meals can you get from the things you cook besides the original? Now think about the ingredients. Do you have plenty? Can you replenish those ingredients? How? How long will it take to grow that stalk of celery you want to put in your turkey soup? You want carrots, too? Do you have a place to grow them in abundance? Can you store them, can them, dehydrate them or preserve them in a ready made soup? What else to you need to provide adequate nutrition to live and work in a collapsed society? 

Lately I have been pondering how to provide food for the men that will be out hunting or patrolling for protection and security. What is an efficient, reusable, durable means of sending food? What kind of food? How much? Who will provide it? What about water? We used to put maple syrup in our coffee. What does that have to do with this conversation? Well, I kept the little jugs the syrup came in because they are very sturdy. They are big enough to hold a small meal of soup or dehydrated food and water. These jugs would be relatively easy to transport, clean up and reuse. 

Where would the water come from? That’s another thing to think about, a source of water that is easily accessible and potable. Are you going to need to filter your water? If so, can you for the long haul? 

I know that regardless of how much thought and preparation we put into being able to produce a food supply that is independently sustainable, there are things we will not be prepared for. There just will be. There will be times when we want to kick ourselves for not thinking of something that would make that work more manageable and productive. We have some friends that have had to face forced evacuation from wildfires and extended power outages this year. They took it in stride and learned from the experiences and the opportunity to practice and test their preparedness. It’s a great time to learn when failure is still an option.

As we give thanks for our many blessings, we continue to study what is approaching over the horizon. We enjoy this time in the sunshine, but can see the approaching darkness, thick with evil intent. The difficulty is in not knowing what shape or form it will take when it arrives at our door. This evil is a changeling and will manifest itself differently at different locations, for what will work in the country will not work in the cities and suburbs, and vice versa. Study, ponder, pray and pay attention. Do everything you can to be ready, for keeper of the gate has welcomed the invasion of those that will help take your freedoms, which is another topic in itself.

Until next time – Fern

TEOTWAWKI Cleaning

If things fall apart and your regular routine is greatly compromised, how are you going to keep things clean and sanitary?

We had a great conversation in the last article about different ways to cook our food in a collapse situation, and one comment took the conversation a little farther along the planning process. I really enjoyed this comment because I have been thinking along the same lines. Your comments on the last article has given us more to ponder and learn, and I’m hoping this article will do the same.

The comment I referred to is this:  “Fern, after commenting this morning, I was out picking apples and got to thinking about this some more. Besides cooking itself, what about clean up like washing pots and pans as well as dishes and utensils? Heating water will be a similar challenge. For me, I have a couple of large pots designated for this. One of the many things I learned in Boy Scouts back in the 60’s was how to set up a sanitation station by heating water over a wood fire in pretty large quantities.. Just thinking the whole thing through. Carl in the UP” I really appreciate Carl’s comment, the added dimension to the discussion, and the fact that he lives in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan where it gets much colder than it does here.

I have given this situation thought many times. When Frank and I lived in Alaska back in 1990, we were in an Inupiat village without running water. There was a washeteria that provided water to the village, people would bring 30 gallon trash cans to fill and haul home. Frank carried two 5 gallon

collapsible water jugs to school and back many days, keeping our 30 gallon trash can supplied with water. Any water we used for washing dishes and such had to be heated on the stove first. The ease of heating water at the time came with an electric stove. Since there are many times throughout the day that something needs to be wiped down, cleaned off or hands washed, we began keeping a bowl of water in the sink that had a little soap in it. Granted, throughout the day, the water would be cold, but it was better than using up the water Frank hauled in. We learned to be very frugal with our water usage during this time. It was a very, very good learning experience for us.

When I think of cleaning, or having water on hand for washing, winter time seems easier than summer. If we have the woodstove in the house fired up for heat, it only seems logical to keep a kettle or large pot of water on it heating. This way it would be available as needed for washing dishes, clothes, or cleaning up after a meal or project. 

Summertime hot water may be a different issue. If I fire up the rocket stove to fix coffee and breakfast, a pot of water can be put on the stove to utilize the remaining heat until the fuel is expended. The size of the pot will be limited by the size of the stove. If more hot water is needed for washing clothes, another heat source will have to be utilized.

Both of the options I’ve outlined depend upon a source of fuel for the fire. There are other options, like a solar shower bag or water tanks in dark colors meant to harvest the heat of the sun. They may not get as hot, but it is a way to heat water without consuming a fuel source.

What are other ways to provide heated water for cleaning and sanitation? And like Carl said, in large quantities?

While we’re at it, what about toileting needs? What will you do when you can no longer flush your toilet? Haul water just for that purpose? That may work for some, but if you’re dependent on a city sewage system, it probably won’t work then. Where are you going to go to ‘use’ the bathroom? Or, how are you going to dispose of your waste? What other options do you have plans for that will safely, take care of your needs and not cause unwanted health issues? And while we’re talking about it, what happens when you run out of toilet paper?

There are many, many things we take for granted each and every day. I know we sure do. What happens when the power goes off for

a while? You walk in a room and turn on the light switch, even though you know it won’t work, you still do it because most of the time it works just fine. What happens when the water goes out? You walk over to the sink and turn the faucet on, because it usually works. Then you go to the bathroom thinking all the time, don’t flush it, don’t flush it. But then you flush it anyway! These are just a few of the basic things we take for granted that will require more planning and work when we have to depend upon ourselves for everything. Everything.

This discussion didn’t even touch on things we’ve come to depend on for cleaning. Things like soap, Pinesol, Mr. Clean, 409, dish cloths, towels, mops, brooms and 101 other things we use all the time. Doing without, or finding good substitutions will require a change of attitude and more work on our part. Again, this is one of those things it would be easier to practice now, than try to figure out later when the chips are down and many other needed tasks are vying for our attention.

Frank and I think about many different options for a number of situations like food, water, power, communications, or security. Some we keep and some we discard, which is what everyone needs to do. Evaluate information for usefulness in your situation. Some will be good, some will not, but the main thing is evaluate it. Think about it, just like Carl did. That is one of the things that struck me about his comment. He took a conversation farther by thinking about it and applying it to more areas of need along with cooking. Once again, we look forward to your thoughts, experiences and ideas. We’re all in this together and the more we can learn now, the better prepared we will be when the time comes.

Until next time – Fern

Homestead News, Volume 14

Well, let’s see, what have we been up to lately? Bunches. Last week we got a comment that accused us of putting the youngsters to shame with all of the work we’ve been doing. It struck me as kind of funny at the time, and I’ve thought about it a couple of times since then. Because of that comment, I thought I’d let you know that the two men that are doing most of the hard work around here, Frank and Henry, are 65 and 60 years old, respectively. This little tid bit of information may motivate someone out there, so I thought I would share. As for the woman here? I’m 56.

The ditch we showed you last week looks exactly the same as it did then, except we ran a soaker hose across the yard where the rest of the ditch is to be dug. Emmet has been back since this ditch was

started, but during that visit he dug a different ditch, the one between these two buildings, and about half of it was done in the dark by lantern light. The one picture I tried to take showed too much of Emmet’s face, so I didn’t keep it. After the ditch was dug, Frank and Emmet ran 12/2 in conduit connecting the two buildings. And then there was light. Inside that is. Frank did his first night time tractor driving and covered up

the ditch with the bucket. He didn’t like it much, he prefers the visibility daylight provides instead. So now we have temporary power to these two buildings. Temporary because the solar panel installation will provide the power to these buildings in the long run.

 

Today Frank and Henry finished installing the braces and brackets for the new antenna towers. There is one on the garage, one on the garden shed and one on the house by the current antenna pole. Frank has been determining the angle of attachment because these towers will fold over at the bottom so they can be laid down to install or work on antennas. This has taken a lot of planning, plus acquiring some needed equipment and accessories. We will continue to give you updates on how this project is progressing.

 

 

As you can tell from the picture on the header, the concrete for the outdoor kitchen was installed last week. I have to tell you, watching Henry mix the concrete bag after bag made me tired. That was a lot of work, but it went quickly and smoothly. Frank brought the bags of concrete over in the bucket of the tractor so no one had to lift them. We kept water in a five gallon bucket for Henry to pour into the wheelbarrow, which saved time and effort as well.

Here is the first appliance for the outdoor kitchen. Neat, huh? It is neat and exciting to think about completing this project and having a functional, no-grid, rather primitive kitchen right off the back porch. But when I really stop and think about using it out of necessity in a survival scenario, the neat factor drops like a rock. This kitchen has not been conceived, nor created to invite friends over to enjoy tea and crumpets. I picture processing vegetables and meat out here, washing clothes and fixing breakfast before a hard days work. It’s rather daunting, actually.

 

Last week our friend Grace let me know there were some local pears ripe and available. There are folks that have pear trees, but aren’t using the pears. One gentleman’s tree is loaded and they are falling by the dozens to the ground. Yesterday instead of butchering and canning chickens, I went and got pears, five 5 gallon buckets full of pears. Guess what I

Washed pears in the sunrise that’s peeking in the backdoor.

did today? Yep, but I only got started. So far we have 21 quarts of canned pears. We did it a little different this time, no sugar (just like the peaches), and no peeling. When we had finished canning peaches a month or so ago, one person commented that they don’t peel their fruit before they can it. I thought that sounded great and read about other folks doing the same thing, so that’s what I did. Aren’t they beautiful? And there are lots left to put way. I hope to have them finished by the weekend.

 

We have had some cold nights this week, into the 40’s. This was the first ‘cold’ test for the greenhouse and the water barrels we are using for the thermal mass. The first night it got down to 47*, the greenhouse against the wall was 59*. Yea! That is where the tomatoes, peppers, ginger, potatoes and turmeric are living. The temperature on the thermometers along the outside wall read 54*. Another yea! That’s when I discovered that I hadn’t thought to close the screen at the top of the storm door on the greenhouse. That may have kept it even warmer in there. The plants are happy, even when it gets over 100* most afternoons. It is supposed to cool off, even for the highs later in the week. Today it got up to 97*, it was a hot day.

Beets

Carrots

Cabbage

Brocolli

Brussel sprouts

Muskmelon

Squash

Onions!

Spinach

Since I have been watering the plants in the greenhouse almost everyday, I thought it would be good to use the water well that is right next door. This water well has a Simple Pump installed that works very well, it’s just that we haven’t been using it at all. When I pumped some water out of it the other day it smelled awful, so today I put about half a gallon of bleach in it. We’ll let it sit for a couple of days then pump water out of it until the bleach smell is gone. It will be an easy walk with my watering can back and forth to the well. I figure it is a good time to get the well into good working condition since we may be using it regularly before long. I wiped down the main rod to remove any dust and grime. Before I use it again I will clean and lubricate the rod again with olive oil.

 

For now, I am filling the watering can with the hose and rural water supply. I have also been ‘watering’ the clothesline poles for several days. It is really dry here and it hasn’t rained since we put the poles in the ground with the dry concrete. I have watered each pole a number of times, several days apart. I’m ready to use it, it just isn’t ready to be used yet.

 

 

 

I almost forgot to tell you. Monday when Frank and Henry were finishing up shelving and braces in preparation for working on the antenna towers, I tore the carpet out of the bedroom. This

house has old, old, about 35 year old shag carpet in the bedroom, hallway and living room. Did I tell you it’s old? Well, last weekend Frank took up a small piece of the bedroom carpet, just to see what was underneath. That showed me what to do. I thought it would take quite a while and be difficult. It took less than an hour and was a breeze. The hardest part was moving the mattress out into the

hallway and back, and that wasn’t difficult. Now we have a somewhat uneven, paint splotched and stained in some places, plywood bedroom floor. It’s great! We haven’t decided what we’re going to do with it next, but there’s no hurry. We’re just glad to have the carpet and everything that was living in it out of our bedroom.

After I finished with the carpet, I snapped a few green beans I had picked over the weekend and thawed out the gallon bag of cowpeas I had put in the freezer over the summer. Out came the canner and they all went in together even though the green beans only require 25 minutes to can and the cowpeas require 40 minutes. I ended up with three pints of green beans and 10 pints of cowpeas. It sure is nice to have a few more jars of food on the shelf.

There is an interesting article on The Economic Collapse today that Frank ran across, The Numbers Say That a Major Global Recession Has Already Begun. We know that not everybody follows the markets, but we’re all invested heavily, one way or another. Please pay attention. And if you can or would, please pray for the Middle East. Things are not looking good there. Do you think the world economy and the Middle East problems might be connected? Certainly food for thought. A couple of extra cans of green beans might come in handy some day. You just never know when the stores might not be there.

Life continues to rush by at break neck speed. It’s amazing how much we are getting done and how much is yet to be completed. We have never worked this hard and accomplished so much in such a short amount of time. Ever. It’s quite fascinating. This afternoon after Frank and Henry had quit for the day and we were waiting for the last batch of pears to be finished, Frank and I talked about how hard we have been working. I told him we are practicing for what is to come, when there won’t be a choice of working hard all day or not. It’s hard work, it’s good practice and it’s providing us with many things that will make life a little easier. There is nothing like experience for learning. It’s your turn, do, learn, and experience. It will get you one step closer to being as ready as you can.

Until next time – Fern