Friday, September 30, 2011

Local Doctor Watching Too Much Breaking Bad

One of the local doctors, fifty years old, has been busted.
 
Here's the link:
 
My man and I are on season two, episode 4 of Breaking Bad. Its disturbing. The influence these harsh drugs and gobs of money can turn normal people into nut cases.
 
When it starts happening with respected medical practitioners and in the nearby cities, it really hits home.
 
Can we say bad economy where even a doctor may have a hard time making ends meet?
 
Its all conjecture on my part. We'll see what happens as this story unfolds. In America, one is still supposedly innocent until proven guilty.
 
Interesting stuff. I'm watching some more of Breaking Bad tonight!
 

Thursday, September 29, 2011

No Need To Buy A Kindle Book Machine Thingy

A good friend mentioned he wants to read kindle books available at Amazon.com but the $200 he needs to drop on a kindle book reader is a lot of money. Hell yes. I agree.

I downloaded the free software and can read any kindle book I want. Its easy, fast, reliable.

I love having the application on this laptop. As a minimalist, one digital machine is enough for me to deal with, keep updated, dry, clean, safely stored, yeah, like that.

I have my music, movies, WiFi, word programs, online banking, and more all on this one ultra portable computer. Then, I went whole hog and bought a two year subscription to Norton anti virus because I like things to last and minimize my required attention to mundane things. I do use DVD writeable disks to back up all my photos, documents and music, just in case this one major piece of equipment bites the dust.

The link is at the right hand at the top of this blog for the free download:
says:
The Kindle application which makes this possible is free and found at Amazon.com.
Download for PC There are no shipping or handling fees, and it doesn't matter which country you live in. Within minutes you can be reading e-books.

Wednesday, September 28, 2011

Survivors- a BBC Series

My guy and I love a good series, like Breaking Bad, Dexter, Six Feet Under, Gold Rush Alaska.

Netflix allows you to surf around reading descriptions and put them in your "instant queue" which means if you're like us, you have way more waiting to see than you will ever be able to see in your lifetime.

Today I took a break from my marathon of writing to watch Survivors, a 12 episode series about a super bug virus getting loose in England, killing off 90% of the population and being exported to USA and China.
The scenario is frighteningly possible. They take pains to show us how easily we contaminate each other in our daily interactions. A believable false reassurance is broadcast to the population and the grid finally goes down as the workers die off.

It made me want to stock up on more food, just so we wouldnt have to go to town and catch something.
The genre you find this series in is called TV Sci-Fi Fantacy. We've been hearing about super bugs so long I don't think this should be called fantacy any longer. More like, Self-Quarantine Promotion.

There are a few survivors, one who has recovered from a near death infection, several who just were immune. We see them leave the metropolis, knowing no good can come of urban competion for the few goods that remain.
A school teacher trys to convince one of the necesity of relearning the basic skills.

I'm looking forward to the rest of this series produced in 2008. Sometimes the british accents are hard to understand (I thought the lady was asking her husband for a pizza, she was asking for her son, Peter!) and they use a few words we Americans don't. But, its worth taking a look at if you get a chance.

Monday, September 26, 2011

Marching On Wall Street-Protester

We all know that normal people are being hurt by the actions of the Wall St firms. Speculation creates bubbles, bubbles burst and we are the ones who suffer. 1.3 trillion dollars worth of speculative transactions are done each day, that is more than 50 times the amount of commericial transactions. The mainstream media won't touch this because they are owned by Wall St firms. This is an effort to raise awareness, to direct people, and give people a voice. On October 6 there will be another March on Washington. I honestly believe that if we do not affect some form of positive change that we are headed for a violent outbreak in this country.--T.W.

I'm a member of an online community which is all about seasonal workers, at National Parks, Resorts, Beaches, Private Ranches, etc. A member posted a blog stating that during the off time, perhaps we should become part of this  campout.
http://my.coolworks.com/forum/topics/wondering-what-to-do-with-your-off-season?xg_source=activity
I asked specifically :
Hi T,
The news media is sure keeping quiet on this one. What are their goals? I caught a short glimpse of people being arrested yesterday for blocking sidewalks. What is the objective here, just publicity, Wall Street CEOs fired, spread the bonus money around?


He posted the above response. I thought it was well written, politicians take note!
Sorta what I was talking about earlier today!

Liberals Acknowlege Disaster

I watched In the Money yesterday, a news program on CNN, and Bill Maher. I know! Both liberal leaning stations.

But the same thread was evident in both broadcasts. We're in the midst of a new reality, a "generational reset" of expectations that began and still continues, sence 2008. Michael Moore was part of Bill's panel. I like him if for no other reason the guy will say what he thinks, passionately.

At the end of Maher's show, most of the people present agreed a turning point, a peaceful revolution was building. People have had enough, yet the momentum has not reached the tipping point.

Knowing CEOs get paid ungodly bonuses while 14 million are unemployed and 17 million are underemployed (like Dad working for McDonald's, part time, that kind of thing) and the government paid 16 bucks for one lousy muffin and 8 bucks for a single dam cup of coffee....that's a $24 dollar breakfast http://news.yahoo.com/16-muffins-8-coffee-served-justice-audit-023623142.html .

Sort of makes the common person pissed.

All kinds of theories fly about how and when the people will reclaim their power. It sure won't be with any of the GOP candidates we currently see debating.

Just my two cents, anyways.

Sunday, September 25, 2011

Perfect Birthday Presents


Two perfect presents from my man, a coffee pot for the wood burning stove, and an oil lantern.
I love them both, indispensable in an survival situation. A woman's got to have coffee, and percolated beats the hell out of instant. Candles are nice, but the amount of light, and safety of a good lamp is incredible.


Thank you sweetheart. You know me like an eagle soars the sky. Beautiful.

Thursday, September 22, 2011

Recent Photo-Cover


I'm sorta of the opinion that a person on a book cover makes a statement. This is a recent photo of me, taken by the driveway security camera about a month ago. I used it for the cover of my new book. I thought it said it all. Camo, weapon, prepared for all hell to break loose.

A friend asked if my profile photo was recent. Its actually several years old. Should I swap them out?

Winning the Battle, Losing the War

The man won the dumpling eating contest. A wonderful jar of sour cream was the prize.
But, he lost because he became ill directly afterward and died.

http://news.yahoo.com/man-wins-dumpling-eating-contest-then-dies-150830490.html

My man is a great strategic thinker. Many times he helps me figure out the best strategy. It's not always about the present situation, the current Battle at hand. Long term thinking, the entire War at hand, now that's strategy.

I heard about a water drinking contest which took place in a radio station. The woman died from too much water. Yeah, that can happen.

That same thought applies to other ridiculous contests, Binge Drinking, Night races on back country roads, crazy stunts.
I know a person has to live life on the edge. I prefer it to be at least with a measure of sanity.

I should talk. Once I downed a lot of salt in soy sauce on a bet. I didn't know any better, and started coughing like crazy. Later, I found out it could have been fatal.

Hope the gods continue to protect the foolish.

Tuesday, September 20, 2011

Albert Einstein Hits the Nail Once Again

Problems can't be solved at the same level of awareness that created them--Albert Einstein.

http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/authors/a/albert_einstein.html

Human beings must have action; and they will make it if they cannot find it.
Albert Einstein



The man is a widely acclaimed genius, who specialized in physics and mathematics. He was instrumental in the US developing the nuclear bomb in World War II


I love this cartoon drawn of Albert, showing him with the sword of preparedness.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Albert_Einstein

The above quote took some digesting, until my friend offered the analogy. It took 75% of the brain to create that problem, its going to take 100% of same brain to fix it. In other words, a person, country, governorship has got to wake up.

We have got to be more aware of what the hell we're doing to get out of this economic /moral mess we're in.
For too long people have wanted the easy solutions. Spending our way out of depression, creating a false demand for consumer goods, tax cuts and tax incentives, now calling for tax increases for the wealthy. The wealthy know loopholes and they can hire good tax lawyers to find more.

Lets get some 100% brain power awareness and fix the tax thing once and for all. How about that flat tax. No more of this insane beginning of year tax preparation and IRS follow up fear stuff. Of course, it would cost America in jobs.

Think of all the IRS agents and tax accountants that would be out of a job.
I don't even pretend to have the answers. All I'm saying its time to quit bumbling around, adding more tax code on top of tax code like a stack of matches about to crumble.

Its time for 100% awareness to solve this world wide problem.

And quit punishing savers with this pittance being offered. I saw a 1% "High Yield" Savings account being offered by American Express. I nearly spit my coffee out, laughing at that oxymoron.

Monday, September 19, 2011

Cash or Credit, that is the Q.

Credit card companies offer stuff for those with good credit. Things like air miles, cash back, points for getting free stuff. They will wave the first year's fee to get you on their program.

You got to play the game right, though. If you carry a balance, you can loose your shirt. A tiny carry over charge will net you near 20% interest. If a person goes on a spending spree, they might never catch up. But, if a person gets their finances in order, using credit and paying it off each month, its a better gig than using cash. Every card offers different benifits, like buyers insurance, and rental car insurance, so its worth reading offers carefully. I never pay a yearly fee.

One thing experts say, never use checks. No protection using checks, no bonus points, no contesting charges, no insurance against theft. Bottom line, checks are has been, ancient instruments on par with the post office.

Not all of us do online stuff. So maybe none of this applies to you. I'm making my resources work for me. God knows in this economy a person has to make the most of every available resourse.

Saturday, September 17, 2011

Time To Winterize the Bedroom

Its that time of year, and I love it. The fall colors really haven't arrived, but the morning chills have. It was 49 last night, and time to swap out the cotton sheets on the bed for fleece. I also switched out the summer comforter for the new quilt I made to match the new curtains. The quilt is wider than the summer comforter, hence no loosing my side of the blankey ( he claims I hog them ) during the middle of a winter's sleep.

All is well. Washing everything before packing away for the winter, the domestic chores are under control.

Muscadines are ripening. This morning I found several on my old road bed. I didn't know there was a vine nearby, probably the bears have scarfed them to keep me from discovering this good piece of news. A true southern delight, I hope to harvest some more.

Speaking of bears! While checking the draw of my wood stove, I was startled by a large black glossy coated bear running away from our home. He was on the path that connects the yard to the road. No damage to the garden.
I saw a deer munching away in the closet neighbors garden, 1/4 mile away, while walking past this morning.

The stove is great. I gained 18 degrees inside the studio in less than 2 hours, and using small branches. Its going to be easy keeping it toasty, just gotta remember no longer than 15 inches for the firewood.

Not much else happening. Saturday of tying up loose ends.

Hope you enjoy yours.

Thursday, September 15, 2011

High Time We Embrace the Tool that Keeps Men Free

Found a link to this video channel at You Tube and the lyrics are pretty interesting. Warning, its definitely controversial for some folks, but it advocates guns as the tool that keeps men free.




I've wondered if we had left Iraq alone, maybe they would be in the midst of their own civil war right now, outting their dictator just like Lybia and Eygpt did, building their democracy like we did in 1776. If we had ( 20 20 hindsight in action, folks) focussed on going after bin Laden, instead of outsourceing and asking Pakistan to do it, maybe our country would be in better shape.

People want to be free. More guns, anyone?

I'm basically a live and let live kind of person, who totally believes in self-defense. If you don't believe in self-defense, who do you think should defend you? Are you worth defending? I speak to adults, our children are part of us. Defending them is the same as defending ourselves.

Just saying. Hope you enjoy the video.

Shrinking American Consumerism-GBU

Even as obesity rates are going up, Americans are downsizing.  The problem with growing waistlines is not always appetite control. Look at the price of food. A pound of apples, which is basically two servings, costs more than a bag of generic potato chips. A pound of cheap hot dogs to go with those chips cost more than a decent grade of chicken breasts, and it probably should cost more. The food industry has learned to wet our appetites for high fat and sugar foods, addictive substances that are killers. And they can produce non food cheaper and store it longer (shelf life of cheetos? maybe 15 years?) than fresh wholesome food.

Solutions include:  have a garden, limit meat consumption, hunt and fish, kick the trash foods to the curb and eat basic things like oatmeal, rice, and grains. Not surprisingly, the food industry has made prepackaged foods so easy and affordable, many have forgotten or never learned to work with basic foods.

But what caught my eye this morning is an article on voluntary minimization of the general American public.
http://finance.yahoo.com/news/The-Beginning-End-Suburban-atlantic-1156625650.html?x=0

According to this article, electric (power) consumption has reached a peak per capita and is on its way down. Much of that trend is due to the down sizing of homes. Not even counting all the people who now share tight living quarters with family members, live in tents, or are homeless, the author of this article states that new homes in 2010 are 130 sq feet smaller than new homes built in 2007.  130 isn't much smaller, but its a start. Its like one 12 x 11 room not added on.

People are driving fewer miles. This will eventually translate into fewer cars bought, and fewer tires.
It all adds up. Fewer oil changes.
As the population slows in growth, (presuming can we halt the massive influx of illegal immigration) and the trend to downsizing continues, we can not expect our economy to grow. The current unrecognized continuation of the recession that began in 2007 has helped in a small way with the illegal immigration problem. Some folks are returning to their homes south of the border cause there's no work here. Some, a few.

One guy noted on a comments thread to a similar story: they can't expect us to buy the junk we used to make when we no longer have the jobs to make it.

In other words, outsourced, out thought, and outlasted.

Tuesday, September 13, 2011

Stove Installed, an Update from the Homestead Studio

The stove is totally installed and tested now. The 90 degree angle pipe and the damper work great. I admit I was a little skeptical, so tested it before cold weather set in, just in case I had to go straight up through the ceiling, cutting into the insulation and roof. All is well.


The shelving is made with cinder blocks which have been sealed with a glaze and brown tint. I didn't like the gray blocks with the terracotta, and black. Way too many colors going on.

The acrylic glaze was $2 for a gallon at the Habitat for Humanity Thrift store. The brown tint was acrylic paint I already had on hand. Mix 4 parts glaze to one part brown paint. Stir well, glaze away.

I love having the shelving behind the stove. Not only will it absorb heat, protect the panelling, but decorate and organize all the nice things a person uses with a wood stove. A large coffee pot is coming soon.

The outside is not as pretty. My rain cap was a little close to the pipe. I raised it with more spark arrestor material, and used heat tempered tape to seal the interfaces, then painted it with black stove paint.
The support for the pipe is a copper wire, securely attached to the roof, circling the cemented pipe and anchoring it horizontally as well.


I had some difficulty installing all of this outside work because the ground slopes and the ladder was scaring me. I did get it level enough to finish the job.

Not too bad. Cold front coming in the end of this week. I have firewood ready to go.

Sunday, September 11, 2011

If Perception is Reality Then Tell It Like It Is

I watch Your Money on CNN every Sunday at 3:00 p.m. Today they started the program, then changed to the 9/11 Coverage of the President Landing and shaking hands.

Its almost like the terrorists gave us a Holy Day. Americans feel solidarity, a oneness we forget on other days. A very sad time for all.

But, on the money front, a recent poll showed that 82% of Americans believe we are still in the same recession. You will hear very few "experts" say this. They claim we are in danger of a second recession, the first one having ended in 2009.

But, if our economy is based on consumer's spending, up to 70% they claim, and consumers believe we are still in the same recession, wouldn't this be the time to trot out the old adage: Perception is Reality?

Now, I don't always agree with that adage. Things can look totally true and obvious, and be 100% wrong. I'm reminded of the time I shot a pile of mulch around a tree, Sure it was a brown rabbit. I need my glasses.

One of the guests on the show noted that we have 1 Million less jobs now than before that last similes of 800 million was spent. Not the desired outcome. Funny how they expect small businesses to hire when the current employees aren't even busy. No customers!

The approval rating for congress stands at 14%. This is bad news for you all, congress people take note. All this fighting and B Essing when our country needs intelligence is not doing you any favors.

Lets see, they claim that durable goods ( the big stuff like refrigerators and appliances) sold very well a few months ago. Well, dugh. If my refrigerator breaks, doncha think I'm going to replace it? Eventually durable goods do need replacing, we can put it off only so long.

That sounded like a rant getting started. But, I'm going to say kudoos to Ken Rodoff, Professor at Harvard University for saying what we all believe, its the same recession.
 

Friday, September 9, 2011

Wrecked-A Movie Review

Netflix is a great way to get some seriously good entertainment while maintaining solvency. I mean, with cable and satelite prices going through the roof, its a wonder Dish or Direct TV can stay in business. If you're not one to go out on the town or rent seat space at a huge ball stadium, then its not so awfully bad. Its all about perspective.

Today I watched the 2011 release of Wrecked, an hour and a half production which opens with a mangled guy regaining conciousness after the vehicle he's in has crashed into a very deep ravine.

In the back seat is a dead fellow, out in the woods is another body. We watch as the man takes inventory of his injuries and the contents of the destroyed car. Its almost slow motion and we start to wonder if there will be any speaking parts in this movie.

It rains, he is trapped, gets wet, fights with the car interior to free himself. This is very realistic. Gradually he begins to remember stuff, has hallucinations and without spoiling the plot, gets out of the car to traverse the wilderness. A dog, mountain lion, woman, river and gun are all utilized as the story unfolds.

The ending is of course a twist, and much better than I feared it would be. We end up liking our guy, and he does make it out alive.
I don't want to divulge much more, but its worth watching.

The one main take away, or moral of the story, is don't judge a book by its cover. No matter how many times we hear that old old old proverb, its very hard to remember in times like these.

Sometimes a person Has to judge a book by its cover. Waiting to see whats inside may be too late.

Thursday, September 8, 2011

Shelf Life For Survival Pantry Foodstuff

Today I bought a 10 pound bag of white rice at Walmart for $5.78. According to this website http://survivalacres.com/information/shelflife.html
white rice will keep for 8-10 years whereas brown will only keep 6. This is presuming 70 degrees and properly packaged and sealed.

There's a large chart there, and I was happy to find oatmeal will last 30 years. That's my staple food for breakfast. A person can munch on it raw too. Just be sure to drink enough water or the fiber will actually draw water from your intestines and you'll be very sad and constipated.

Anyways, checking on the chart, and purchasing regular dried goods like flour, salt, rice and beans, oatmeal and such, a long term survival pantry isn't hard to imagine.

I have white food quality buckets. Each one is being filled with basic assorted dried foods and should last one person a month. With canned goods, and wilderness skills of hunting and gathering, this should be a good plan.

One three pound container of oats says its 30 -1/2 cup servings. That with coffee, maybe some canned fruit would be breakfast.

Hot homemade bread, and "Survival Soup" would make good lunches. Bread requires flour and salt. Leavening can be obtained from natural yeast or baking soda. Survival soup is supper leftovers in a broth, with garden and wild harvest, sort of Native American Style. Please, no bugs slime or sludge. Like Dave on Dual Survival, not into that crap.

Suppers would be rice and beans, pasta and corn, or potatoes and beans. Potatoes are dehydrated , like instant mashed. I added some spices and for sure some salt to that.

Really not too hard. I figure how much I could eat, or how many servings a container claims it has and go from there.

Bought my stove pipes today. I'm getting all set up, braced for the winds we get in these parts and will post photos soon.

Wednesday, September 7, 2011

Warning-Amature Video Clips



These videos show me making the hobo water filter system.


Using Charcoal and Sand as a Water Filters

After publishing my Hobo Water Filter system video to YouTube, a guy suggested using Charcoal and sand as well, or in place of chlorine. I like to go as natural as possible, so did a google research on this. The best link I found was:

http://www.helium.com/items/1423236-how-to-purify-water-in-the-wilderness

Indeed, charcoal is very effective in purification. However, it did say chemicals are sometimes needed against viruses. The article recommended rain water as one of the purest sources of water.

If I intended much of this run off to be drinkable, I would definitely totally disinfect the buckets and add a screen to the top to prevent anything from falling in. One morning I found a dead mouse which had probably fallen in and drowned.

All these systems and knowledge is great to learn now while we still have Internet and resources. I use this information too in my new books.

At first, I thought, how do I get charcoal. In a campfire! Easy as that. Of course, if you are on the move, like a long distance backpacking trip, using a tiny bottle of chlorine is perfect.

Tuesday, September 6, 2011

Free Filter Hobo Style for Rain Water Run Off

I just finished this video for Youtube. Its part of my Hobo Series. I take "junk" and free stuff to create usable survival systems. This one is all about what to do with the rain water collected in buckets from off the roof. I have used bleach exclusively for all my long distance hikes, including The Pacific Crest Trail (Mexico to Canada), the Appalachian Trail, the entire 2,172 miles from Georgia to Maine, the Colorado Trail, can we say Bovine and Beavers?? I know bleach works.

Its important to get the organic material out of the water, hence the double filtration. First, the netting removes the larger debris. Its easy to clean this netting too. Then, the cotton bandanna creates a fine filtration. Its a cheap easy way to get it down to the finest particles.

The straw is inserted into a hole created by a hot soldering iron. You can use a hot nail, or match. Then insert straw, seal with glue. I prefer a 100% silicone in a caulking tube. I keep this stuff around all the time. Once open, you can double wrap it in a couple plastic walmart bags. When you need it again, apply pressure, unplug by pulling out that little solid piece, and it will flow freely again. The stuff is great for all kinds of repairs and water proofing. It will withstand direct sunlight and has survived my solar water testing procedures.

Anyway, hope you enjoy the short video.

Grid Down, Internet Anyways

Way back in these boonies a person is pretty cut off when the power goes out and you don't have a generator. Yet.

Used to be when the power was out, so was our Internet. Now we have wifi backed up with a battery which should last us as long as these batteries on our laptops do. The Wifi comes over the phone cabels (underground) and is the result of the router opperation.

 A propane, auto switch generator is in the works. We both hate pull cords. I never had much luck with a pull cord. Seems like I'd be pulling while it wanted to be recoiling. My worst fights with pull cords involved lawn mowers way up north when the family yard was so large we devided it into 6 sections, and each kid plus mom mowed a section. Taking turns. Sometimes a kid with money would hire an energetic sibling to mow their section. Lessons in capitalism.

If it got rainy, and the grass too long, too wet, too obstinate, the mowers would choke off. As soon as the mow-ee heard this choking and sputtering, they'd lift the front of the rig off the ground, allowing nasty green grass sludge to eject and the motor would revive.

I Know!
Get a Rider! Well, a rider is like $1,000 bucks, and the kids loved using it, racing around the ditch, nearly tipping the thing over side ways, spilling a second rider off the back until, for safety and gods sake we went back to the push.

So, pull cords be dammed, I want a switch, like on the wall for lights. Or like an ignition with a key, like a car. I know they are out there, and my guy is working on details even now.

We've got an excellent rain water collection system in place. Currently 30 gallons have been caught. I'd have way more if I had more buckets. List for Walmart: pick up some of those 5 gallon buckets now on sale for $2.57. I like a five gallon bucket cause most of the water is used in the garden, and I can just carry one over as needed.

Soon as I get some sunshine, I'm doing a Hobo Series Installment on how I get potable water from this stuff I collected off my studio roof.

Let me post this before the batteries die.

Monday, September 5, 2011

Gonna Be a Rough Year

The deluge has arrived and Tropical Thing Lee (never understood difference between a Depression and Storm) is pouring its heart out. Unfortunately, looks like the season's crop of acorns are going to be pitiful.


Last fall I did a whole study on acorns: different varieties, different methods of removing the tannins, cooking a variety of dishes and putting it all on http://youtube.com/user/brawny03

which is my channel. Last years crop was significantly larger, hence, easier to process .

Last year's bountiful crop increased the wildlife around here. There are tons of squirrels, deer, hogs, bears, turkey and their offspring. Its gonna be a rough year for them.

I read this article about wild hogs up in New York State. Of course we all know about the hog situation in Texas, so bad they are allowing hunting via helicopter. Go For It, by god. We gotta do something.
http://news.yahoo.com/ny-seeks-stop-wild-hogs-may-ban-captive-163701421.html

Now, there's an idea for the food bank. Lets have a huge hog hunt and put on a massive Bar-be-Que. It can be done like a Pot Luck. Bring a hog, a Six Pack, or a bag of chips. Whatever you can.

Sunday, September 4, 2011

A Little Levity For Labor Day in Prep for Lee

We're getting prepared for tropical something Lee (storm, depression, hurricane). I was surfing around and found this and thought you all would get a kick out of it. See, I do this "senior rant blog" thing, just cause I'm nearing that age and got to get it out of my system somehow.


http://seniorcitizenhumor.blogspot.com/p/blog-buddies.html

This guy runs a very funny blog, take a look at his links and other older bloggers, too. Sometimes we just need a break from the doom and gloom.

I was wondering the other day, What if they called for an Apocalypse and Nobody Came?


Saturday, September 3, 2011

Respect the Yellow Line

I live in the Land of Curves and motor cycle people actually make trips to our neck of the woods to ride them. I've been told there are 39 curves in 13 miles back in these parts. I pondered that statement awhile and asked myself, "Ken ye site me jes one straight piece, I ask ye?" I'm trying to learn Appalachian. I love it here, but my yankeeness sticks out, can't seem to help it after all these years, still.

Anyways, coming around the curves back in these parts a body doesn't expect cross traffic. Doesn't happen. But, its Labor Day weekend, and the fun is in full progress. We have customers up at the best flea market. The place was packed and I found a tight little spot to park my Geo. Nobody shows you where to park, you just try to be sure they can still get around you.Then lock the doors and don't look back.

Well, the "hardware" man was very nice and I bought some pipes today, mostly the transitional pieces needed to get the thing married to the stove, through the window and headed skyward. I also found the stove "handle"  thingy you lift the lids off the stove top so you can feed it. That little lever cost  $5, well worth it.

So, traffic being what it was, even on the back roads, I'd meet cars and trucks, motorcycles and what more, just crossing the line every which way. Luckily I learn quickly and stayed well over to the edge in my lane. All is well. I take the path of the rabbit, maybe the fox, or even the wolf. But, by god I know I ain't the grizzly bear on the road, able to take on all comers and top of the food chain. I keep to my side and pay attention. Otherwise, how can I go find my stove pipes, spend money at Dairy Queen, and pick apples from a wonderful local grower?

Live, let live. If you wanna die, do it on your own time.

Whew, felt good to get that off my chest.

Friday, September 2, 2011

Non Fancy Heirloom Seeds

From what I make of it, heirloom seeds are just non hybrids.
They used to be the common brand, and the hybrid were always labeled as such. Hybrid seeds won't reproduce true to genetics, if at all. If you're looking for long term, sustainable seed self production, always go for the non hybrid garden seed. Heirloom is a fancy name for that, and many times has a price tag to prove it.

Advantages of hybrid is usually earlier maturation, resistant to some fungus or disease, and availability.


I'm working with top of the mountain soil that at one time was a parking lot. Open space, full sunlight for over 10 hours, and up next to the house, this spot has been set aside for two seasons now. Every year, I pick stones out, add lots of leaves for organic material, turn the soil, use calcium (lime) to fertilize and prevent blossom end rot on tomatoes and summer squash, and rotate crops.

This year the onions, beans, tomatoes and squash did fairly well. The winter squash, namely, butternut, are sort of puny and have ripened already. Delicious peeled, diced and sauteed in a skillet. Cover and let rest til tender.
These seeds were kept from the largest butternut squash. Once completely dry, they are stored in a plastic bag in the refrigerator.

I'll do the same with the beans, harvesting and saving seeds. Not that I need to. Next spring we will probably be able to buy seeds again. But, who knows?
I'm just practicing my skills for when I really need them.

Thursday, September 1, 2011

Dry Run Grid Down Failures

Watching the news we find there are still nearly a million people without power. They lost it last Sunday, so they are on day five. I watched a Mom in Vermont as she hung laundry to dry on her first floor railings, had her sons playing board games, and basically chilling waiting for the power to get turned on. She was in obvious stress, and didn't know how much longer she could take it.

I know its probably hot and they could use a fan. What if it were winter? There's a lot of daylight now and no one's wearing a ton of clothes, laundry is minimal.
This is just a dry run. We got plenty of warnings, and had everything at our disposal to get ready for it.

Is anyone thinking about how to become more self sufficient and get off the grid for next practice run?

We back in the woods don't have cell phone coverage. A person should be able to survive without that. The other nice things in life, like hot water, food, lighting and entertainment should all be things well within our control, obtainable, suppliable.

Hard to imagine folks running out of food in less than a week. Apparently it happens. With all that rain and flooding, hard to imagine anyone out of water. The real problem comes when people don't know how to purify it. Strain the debris out of it first by pouring it through a netting, then through a clean cloth.
Take that strained water and add common household bleach. Let it sit at least half an hour.
You can boil it if you don't have bleach.
No electricity? Does anyone have candles, propane burners or solar powered yard lights? A kerosene lantern should be issued with your marriage certificate.

But seriously, you hear people bitching about our "nanny state". They don't want to be told what to do or eat. But then when a well publicized storm rolls in, these people won't prepare (they should be prepared all year round, if you ask me) and wonder out loud, in public, where the hell is the National Guard?

If you got caught with your pants down this time, pull them back up and get with the program.