and doubt i am alone. how could i be?!
as much as this is a fantastic and worthwhile endeavor, i have to admit i’m getting a little burned-out.
there are two pounds of turkey meat, a humungous bunch of fresh celery, green beans, and corn on the cob in the fridge, plus fresh-plucked potatoes in the pantry, that i can’t even bring myself to get around to chopping and dehydrating.
(it’s been beautiful outside lately.)
and i still have so much to learn but am having trouble absorbing another single piece of bf-teotwawki associated information no matter how hard i try.
surely in a week i’ll feel be back in the prepper swing of things again.
anyone else here experiencing prepper-burn-out from time to time?
I get tired of it once in a while so I take some time off.
Posie, I do. I haven’t done preps for 2 months, and not just cos I’ve been too busy. I can’t speak for anyone else, but I think sometimes you can only work on the big picture numbers eg millions of deaths, if you stop thinking about yourself. Cos that brings the horror too close to home and it paralyses you. I didn’t use to understand how ‘experts’ can possibly not be prepping for their families, now I understand perfectly.
I’ve decided the only way is to alternate the two: work for the public good for a period of time, then timeout and do your own preps. Trouble is I don’t know what’s a good time to go timeout, cos there’s so much to do!
But, not to worry, I will figure something out. I always do. :-)
I tell people to do as much as they can, as fast as they can, as long as they can. That’s about all anyone CAN do.
I’ve found that if I do a little something BF related every day, whether it’s prepping (shopping, planning, storing, planning, shopping, planning….) or writing for the newspapers or reading or campaigning or just harping on the subject to my indifferent relatives, I am making progress without killing my enthusiasm or sapping my energy…or bankrupting my beloved DH.
I tried taking longer timeouts, but I guess my PPF is higher than Im willing to admit - and the time left to act and make a difference gets shorter every day.
Yes, big time. I took time off too a month ago. Sometimes I just don’t want to do anything. I’m guessing this for me anyway could be part of my adjustment reaction again. My skin has gotten thicker, I’ve prepped, have water mainly under control..now I’m working on getting others on board too. Today I take info to the CFO and HR Director at my office. Emails and chats at the water cooler haven’t really worked. So I go officially as a concerned employee and ask for them to give me updated on their progress after they read the data I printed out on Sunday. Thank you to everyone who has made this data easy to find.
Good luck, KimT. Give ‘em heck! Calmly. ;-)
Oh yeah, I get so sick of bird flu I could scream (No pun intended) Mostly I wish I didn’t have to worry so much and very often I wish I could spend prep money on something else. We are on a tight budget and it has been stressful constantly making prioritys and shopping for the best deals and giving up things to buy a few more bags of rice. I have tomato sauce that needs to be canned and carrots that need to be dehydrated and I don’t think its gonna happen today.
I did take most of July “off” but I have found that Saddle Tramps advice works the best for me-try to do a little every day, and then also take some time everyday where I don’t think about it.
I hear you Posey-you are not alone.
Yes, I am tired of the process.
Left on my “to do” list is a composting toilet and solar set-up(batteries, wires, ect) for my 8, 15-watt panels and I am declaring myself done…as in “stick a fork in me” done.
Preparation is an interesting process. The emotional spikes, the sheer volume of information and consistant reenforcement of “the worst case scenerio” is overwhelming. Trying to grasp the concept of what we are considering, global pandemic, and getting the prep done. Can’t imagine preparing for a group/family that consumes preps on a daily basis…one is enough!!!
I find I am able to stay away from the FW for 24 to 48 hours whereas before I was on several times a day. This is helpful as well. Have seen a pattern over the past five months in the information and able to digest in a more detached way. I am able to consider a range of view points rather than death and destruction is on my doorstep every moment of the day, which is how I felt. I can’t imagine following this for YEARS!!! Must be exhausting!
Trying to not feel tooooooo stupid for being so concerned. Hoping, I am the laughing stock of my family when BF doesn’t arrive, they already think I am crazy and future get togethers could be brutal. Knowing, I am eating beans and rice for the next 3 years BF or not…wondering if that in itself is a punishment enough for my enthuastic response to my bird flu fantasies. HaHa
Of course I haven’t told anyone that I couldn’t resist the iodine pills just incase of a nuclear incident and the nuke alert key ring is sooooo tempting!!! My prepping suffers the bane of house remodeling which is…well, might as well. Once you open your mind…you never know what will come in and roost.
Time will tell. I know my life is more pleasant now that I am ready…for whatever.
Posie, I have on occasion taken a break when life overwhelmed me in some other area — like the death of 2 of my cats - but for the most part, I’m a ‘do a little every day’ kind of person with this (my husband wishes I was that way with dirty dishes in the sink). I’m just a little Energizer bunny with this stuff. However, I DO get tired of the same thing over and over, so I end up with several things going on at once with none of them finished because I ‘feel like’ dehydrating one day & reorganizing my medicines the next or like today it’s printing out stuff for my notebook…I’d started on Sunday but ran out of black ink & had to have more shipped, so it arrived yesterday & I’ll start printing again today. Meanwhile there’s some dehydrated food in between paper towels on the kitchen counter that’s been there since Saturday that I haven’t put in jars — I’ll have to inspect it really well to make certain that it’s OK.
Sometimes it’s not good to do a lot of thinking about something….sometimes (and in this possible pandemic scenario), we just have to DO. We may not like to be having to do all that we have to, but it must be done. Pacing yourself is the key—and make sure you always plan a little something—some type of respite—for yourself during the day…a litle treat or a chance to get to watch a movie in the evening, etc…something to look forward to after your tough days.
And NEVER forget that EVERY LITTLE THING that you do,is going to benefit someone down the line…possibly even mean the difference of survival or not. All of you—who are doing so much for your families,loved ones,towns, etc. are TRULY amazing, special people—you are the ones that are making a difference in this world—it’s people like you that will be the foundation as this world gets darker. You have and are pulling everything you have in you to do all this incredible amount of work. Know that in all your hard work & sacrifices you are making now, everything that you have done will matter. Pat yourself on the back, everyone….you are all truly very special people!!
I stop prepping every time I realize that the majority of people are doing nothing to prepare. I can’t get over the fact that people have boats trailered along side their house with 100+ gallons of gas available for generator use. Yet when we lost power due to Hurricane Wilma / Katrina, they didn’t know a) how to access their gas or b)that they could use the gas. If they don’t prep for Hurricanes, you know they’re not prepping for BF. It won’t be long before their resources will be available for the intelligent people to use.
Anon_22 at 2:23: “ I haven’t done preps for 2 months, and not just cos I’ve been too busy.” Anon_22, please tell me that you have AT LEAST put away plenty of dogfood for that big doggy of yours. Ever see those cartoons where the hungry cartoon character is looking at his buddy when all of a sudden his buddy morphs into a giant turkey leg? I don’t suppose you’d want to be in the middle of a pandemic and have your “buddy” looking at you with a gleam in his eye that sort of way. ;-)
best prep today, my cat finaly got a payoff for moving to the countryside, he catched his first bird :-D I am so proud! Now I know he will feed him self if needed. hmm but wait, I cant let him roam around freely during pandemic? damm! have to get some hughe buckets of cat food then…
I say, get some basics in order, make a plan, write it down, and wait and see whats happens if you are tired. After all life aint ment to be a contious preperation for catastrophe is it? No, just look at all the advantages of the preps. Learning to cook propperly, saving some enviroment, learning new skills, that the nice parts of it :)
Hi Urdar! To me, the only nice part of prepping is getting to know good people like you, and all the other brave souls of FluWiki. Thanks for the help everyone.
Cooking is one of the most esential parts of social life. I love the face of my guest when I serve them beans that is tasty. I mention that i have 20 kg more of it in the closet :D But I allways liked making food :) Energy and peoples skills to change is just inerest, that may be the reason I hang out here. And of course meeting all those nice folks here that I learn alot from :)
Urdar- you just made my day! You are absolutly right, cooking properly, learning new skills and saving some enviroment is the great thing, and Swann, you are right also about all the great people here on the Wiki. I wish we could all get together for a big dinner of tasty beans!
I put my carrots aside for now. Today I probably did one of the most important flu preps-my kids and I went in and got our flu shots. I’m going to take the rest of the day off(flu wise) and hit those preps again fresh tomorrow.
Now, Urdar, if you could get that cat of yours to catch mice instead of birds, that would be great! I used to have a great mouser-now she just stalks the cat-food container.
What ever happened to mom11? Did she take a break from the fluwikie and prepping?
Green Mom at 16:57: Do you have any good recipes that use carrots (aside from stews)? I acquired a bit more in carrots (don’t ask) than I intended, and we usually don’t eat a whole lot of them. I guess they’d be good to have around during a pandemic since they have a lot of the precursor to vitamin A in them. Any ideas on how to make them tastier?
Hi Green Mom! Let’s meet at Urdar’s house for the party; I suspect everyone would have a great time! :)
Just FYI - the better quality dog foods, like Purina One, for example, make completely adequate human food. When it first came out, I was told by my veterinarian that a 50 lb bag could feed an adult male human for up to six weeks. So if you are storing pet food, make sure that it will do double-duty as human food if necessary.
De jure,
I did put away dogfood, but she gets through them too quickly, :-)
Never mind, Green Mom. SaddleTramp just answered my question. Hmmmm…Purina One and carrots…yummy!
Anon_22 at 17:14: You have to plan for your dog like you would for yourself, Anon_22. You don’t buy the really, really good stuff or you’ll eat it all before the pandemic (haven’t you been reading the posts about chocolate?!) Likewise for your dog. And remember to triple-bag it or he’ll sniff it out and know that you’re holding out on him. But honestly, how big has your dog gotten already?
De jure,
I know all that. Like I said, knowing is not the same as doing. I am travelling next week for 4 weeks which involves 4 different presentations of different nature on 2 different continents. I’m starting to research UK pandemic plans, which is hard and discouraging work cos its hard to find real information. I’m working on understanding the N1 neuraminidas paper cos there are contradictions I can’t resolve, I need to figure out what exactly I’m not getting! That’s just a few things that I’m doing. Plus my normal things like helping my daughter figure out study-abroad options, and looking for a house still…..
I’m swarmed all the way till Xmas, so I’m just doing my best. I have preps, just not enough. :-)
My prepping energy starts to run low, then, Bam. A heavy peice of news will be brought to my attention, and I’m re-engerized. That heavy piece of news reminds me why I’m prepping in the first place. This is a process with me. I’m a mad prepper, energy runs low, re-engerized with news.
I want to thank each and every one of you. The kind words and optimism are a huge help. I am so burned out it’s almost scarey. For me the doomsday aspect of it all is getting me down big time. We talk to so many people on a daily basis who believe in so many dire political and religious doomsday scenerios, well, I’m having a really, really hard time putting one foot in front of the other.
Aon_22: I stand corrected. Yours is a special situation. I’m pretty sure anyone reading your itinerary would say, “Go ahead. Get the good stuff. Lots and lots of chocolate (and plenty of RWFK, from the sound of it).” Let us know how the research on the neuramindase turns out. I’d sympathise with you on that but as you know I can’t access it. Good luck. :-)
I go through periods of “rest” from prepping, then I’ll see the daily news thread being over run, and I get back in gear. I’ve taken almost a month break, but still check the wiki twice a day ;) Even when I’m not actively prepping I still check the pantry, and buy extra groceries. With so much news going on now, it’s hard to focus on just bird flu.
I think I’m done and I stop for awhile. Then I’ll start to worry it’s not enough. Should it be 6 months? one year? 2 years?
Shoud I buy a tent? more water barrels?
Running out of places to hide the masses of TP, bags of beans/ rice, the stacks of canned food, the boxes of med stuff, soaps, candles, batteries …. No more space in closets, cabinets, or under the beds!
Might be able to stetch supplies to one year, but more than that? Makes me want to sit down and cry just thinking about it. Also might have parents showing up- they would have some supplies but it would radically reduce my current 6mo-year preps. So want to do I do - start stacking things in the bedrooms against the walls?
I don’t want to live obsessed or buried under supplies- so I think I’ll stick with what I have, make a big run if I get “nervous” , and pray for the best.
In my household, we are looking at this situation as though the pandemic will start tomorrow and that it will last a full year. Yes, prepping is arduous and costly, but every measure we take now could impact our quality of life months from now. Therefore, we prep.
Potentially, this is a life and death situation for every household. Being tired is a transitory state. Rest later. Persevere now. Press on now. Plan to survive. Failure is not an option.
MnEagle, thank you! great encouragement!
and i’m also very relieved to hear i am not alone in prepper-burn-out-ville.
i continue to do things on a daily basis, despite lingering thoughts of “it will never be enough.” and/or “look how much you’ve done already! continue and you’ll begin to seem crazy even to yourself!”
at times i notice there are boxes of preps put aside and little in the cabinets to actually eat. i’m nearing the end of my initial preps list tho, a 6 mos long process, prepping for about one month each month, and feel as tho i’ve covered nearly every base i could reasonably afford to cover up until this point. i am definitely running out of room (for now) to store things tho, so this might be a huge part of the prep-fatigue.
sometimes it occurs to me that we may be years ahead of the curve here on this and will need to continue to prep and rotate, prep and rotate, for the another year or more, which is fine, really, as i’d rather be prepped than not, considering, but it’s so difficult to not have a time-frame with which to work with. and of course, that’s just stating the obvious.
ah well, such is our fate as the panflu potential aware.
i honestly wouldn’t have it any other way.
only, thank gawd you people exist! cheers, all.
Du jour- actually I decided to feed the carrots to my dog and eat the Purina One :-O !!!
I think a problem some of us are starting to run into is what to do when you run out of room for your preps? Since I’ve been hear these past few week, and have been made aware of the situation, I’ve started stocking again, even thought I always keep some stock on hand, I’ve really hit it big time. I’m looking around and it won’t be too much longer and I’m going to be sleeping with toliet paper and paper towels under my head. Any storage solutions from in the home, ideas?
We have a play house out back in the trees; my husband made it two stories high; the bottom is for storage. Garden sheds. Store fuel in extra car(s) gas tanks. Store stuff in trunk. Buy those old large freezers ( with lock and key) to store. (I know I know about the risk- make it very difficult to get open). Old travel trailers, old vans, you can get them cheap.
Yes, I’m sick of prepping. There’s no end to it. Everytime I think I’ve made headway… I’ve either done something wrong and have to re-do it… or… I realise there is something else I “have to do.” I went to the thrift store today to look for coats for my grandsons. Found an apple peeler for $3… see, that’s what I mean. I can’t even shop “normal” anymore. BTW, the apple peeler was still in the box and just like one I’d seen on the internet. Also, can’t believe I am telling anybody about THIS, there was an old timey baby bottle sterilizer for under $2. I bought it. What the #*~^ I’m gonna do with it is beyond me. But, I just thought- “What IF there is a baby who needs sterilized water, etc.” And… ummm… didn’t find coats for the boys.
haha! there IS no end to it!
always some little piece or part or detail of information to be sought after.
i am also reminded of some bit of Buddhist wisdom re the nature of samsara and our grasping and avoidance of its many possible flavors. human beings reach for that which brings pleasure and a sense of security while attempting to avoid that which causes us pain. when we obtain the happiness/security we seek, we then begin to worry about losing it.
i’m not knockin what we do, by any means, preferring to view it in a zen light. y’know, before enlightenment, prep, after enlightenment prep. equal suchness. ; )
this samsara thing is ever so apparent tho with the preps. now that i’ve moved half mine into a storage space, i’ve begun to mull-over just how safe they may in fact be. they might be disguised as junk, but suppose someone were bored enough to get into there and poke around?! horror of horrors! it’d take me forever to replace it all and i’m not sure i have the oomph in me at this point to start that far back again.
there IS no end to it! we’re trapped on the pandemic wheel of life and death!
hahahaha!
no way!
we’re zen with this. ; )
Hi Silversage!
Yes! I am sick of prepping! I have also been sick all summer. I also have problem chicks…#7 is wearing a cardiac monitor for the next two months and if it shows any abnormalities, he will be re-diagnosed with Rheumatic Fever, instead of Post Streptoccocal Rheumatic Infection Syndrome. My #8, has had severe stomach pain and lost lots of weight, since he came home from the psy. facility. He’s just miserable and will be seen by ped. GI’s on the 25th. Both autisitc-bi-polar boys have been….difficult! I still prep and prep, but my energy is just gone. I hate it, with a passion!! Over the last 4 days I canned 80lbs. of chicken breasts, 80lbs. of ground beef, and 45 quarts of applesauce…150 filled jars. My kitchen is covered in more apples to do and the chicks and I have been apple picking several times a week. I have canned close to 800 jars of food. I have bought a side of beef and plan to can most of it. It will come on November 1 and has no antibiotics, hormones, and is grass fed.
I have been begging, pleading for a windmill and wood stove……Since last month’s electric bill hit over $400, with no air or heat, I just might win this battle! The windmill would be a wonderful science project for these homeschooled chicks and could run my generator and well pump! We have all had our flu shots and made our visit to Toys FOR Us for the “shot toys.” No 11, informed me yesterday, that his flu shot was gone and he needed another one….Translation…Another shot toy!
I have tried to get others to prep, but no takers. I keep info. going to my Amish friends and neighbors and they seem receptive to it. Others think I am nuts. My almost 70 year old neighbor is really the only one listening. After I spoke with her, she went right out and bought a new canner. When I find a bargain, I drop some off for her to can. She will have the jars, filled and sitting on the counter the next morning. Other than that, I have given up! My husband hates all my little projects and thinks it is all playtime. My grown children laugh at me and I know my heart will break, if this pandemic comes. They are all getting canned food for Christmas. Other than that, I am protecting my own and will sacrifice them for NO ONE!
I read all of you each day, but I just don’t think I have anything left to offer. I just hate this threat and feel I will lose this battle. My hope is gone, but I can’t look at my babies and give up. It is their right, that I keep trying. In my heart, I feel this is useless.
We started prepping seriously just over a year ago. It took longer and cost more than I ever dreamed. I’m still buying things here and there, not only to replace used things, but also to get new prep items to be complete. Over the past year I would prep hard for a couple weeks, then take only brief time off. I looked upon prepping in life/death terms, and I could not really stop for very long. I was driven by fear of not having enough for the most part, and once we got to a certain level in preps, I really relaxed.
As to in-house storage, we have run out of room. We live mildly rural, and there are rodents that can get into the garage, so storage out there must be in metal containers. (except for canned goods) I’ve picked up over time at yard sales old large popcorn cans, large stock pots that can be wired shut, and most important, old metal filing cabinets that offices are discarding these days. We have 6 large ones now, and a couple smaller ones. The prices for these have ranged from free to about $5.
If I could find new galvanized metal garbage cans at a reasonable price, I’d get a few of those too. And use a wire hangers keep the lids in place.
Oh dear, Mom 11-don’t give up. Its not useless, but I do think you need a break! 150 jars in four days would wear out anyone, much less someone whos taking care of children with severe medical problems. You have offered all of us plenty in the past, and will do so again. I get so very tired but I don’t feel its useless. Take heart.
Mosaic – at 01:16
What are you putting in the metal file cabinets? I have 3 at my house that I have been eyeballing--- trying to figure out what I could put in them… & what I can take out of them to put “?” in. One of my hesitations is they don’t seem vermin proof.
One of my couches “was” a hide-a-bed. I hated the thing. I had my husband rip the bed out… and… ummmm… create another storage “unit.” pathetic. But, very useful!
Mom11 I just knew you were still around. I know we all get tired of prepping. When I first came on the fluwikie alot of people were discussing where to stash all the preps. I thought they were crazy cause I had lots of room! :-) Now, I’m eyeballing weird nooks and crannies cause I’ve filled all the big spaces.
Yesterday I rearranged my regular pantry to put in the new jars of jelly. rotate rotate rotate. Now everything has names: baking pantry, regular pantry (used to be a coat closet), the basement pantry(long term storage), the two storage cabinets(secret pantry) that I keep locked, and the shelves in the garage. I’m currently looking at clearing the space under the stairs but where to put the stuff that’s currently there. That’s what wears me out!
Mom11 where do you put 800 canning jars?
p.s. I’m glad your still with us!
woah, Mom11!
oookay.
(you might need a break soon!)
ahem,
think i’ll quit whining now and get back to work.
I get tired sometimes (planted apple trees yesterday, found a few new muscle groups), but actually I’m happy about moving toward a more sustainable lifestyle, which is my ultimate prep strategy. (Hope H5N1 gives me time to get a little farther along.)
InKy, I’m doing the same towards more sustainable lifestyle. It doesn’t make long term sense to prep for PF when other threats keep rolling in and the world keeps making the same mistakes. I put a comprehensive set of SIP supplies for 3 months into place and that will do. I expect to have to move them all anyway. Also I have to keep in mind that PF is not a certainty although we are pretty good at convincing ourselves it is.
I can’t believe my husband and I are talking about moving, it will be a lot to pack and lift!!! Mom11--I really admire you and you make me feel lazy, I couldn’t can that much in 4 days!!
EnoughAlready – at 02:14 “What are you putting in the metal file cabinets? I have 3 at my house that I have been eyeballing--- trying to figure out what I could put in them… & what I can take out of them to put “?” in. One of my hesitations is they don’t seem vermin proof.”
Our metal filing cabinets are rodent proof, but not bug proof. Right now I’m only putting protected rice and beans in them. First I pass the rice/beans through the freezer for 3 days to kill anything, then put them into empty and dry plastic water bottles with a funnel. I tap them to get out any extra air spaces. I then dip the closed lids into melted parafin (in a double boiler) till they are totally sealed. These then go into the filing cabinets in the garage.
I also have some cans of cat food in them too.
Hi Mom11..Glad to hear from you but sorry to hear some of your little chicks are under the weather. How is #5′s case going?
You certainly are energetic. It took my “team” a week to can 32 quarts of chicken. It does look like it is enough for the three of us for awhile though. We would like to do some applesauce, too.
Yes, We get tired of prepping, but it’s going to be a way of life for me from now on. I was of this bent already, but after Katrina, I’m going to always try to be as prepared as possible for whatever life might throw at us. There’s just a lot of scary things going on in the world out there today, isn’t there?
Thanks Silversage!
Baby Madonna and I just finished canning another 48 quarts of applesauce…I am sooooo sick of apples!
I was able to put about 300 jars, on top of my kitchen cabinets. The rest, I am packing back into the boxes. You can stack the boxes behind your bedroom doors. I mark each box with a number and record what each box contains and where it is stashed, in a little notebook. This cuts down on raids of the good stuff. It is hard for anybody to dig through all these unmarked boxes. I pulled my sofas out a bit, and stacked piles of boxes behind them. You might be able to even get 9–12 boxes behind your sofas.
Thanks Love Texas. Good luck with your move! You aren’t lazy! I just have more to feed…Translation…More to can!
Hi bgw in MT! #5 is doing well. Most of his case was dropped and the rest is going into a diversion. That was the better option for him, since the cost of going to trial would have been much, much higher! Thanks for asking!
Hi Posie! A break??? Hmmmmm…What would that be? TeeHee! I know…A glass of Caffeine Free Diet Pepsi, with Sonic ice and no elses slobber in it!
mom11 – at 03:36 I was able to put about 300 jars, on top of my kitchen cabinets.
It’s sooooo good to hear from you but OMG!!!! You just made my PPF skyrocket….. are you sure your kitchen cabinets are rated for that kind of weight?? Have you ever done that before — put all that weight on top of them?? I had an awful image of your cabinets pulling out of the wall slowly until the jars all crash to the floor. Are you SURE all that work is safe up there?
I hope you’re able to enjoy this pretty weather while you’re working….Fall is so beautiful & it’s fun to be outside with your kids…..please visit here when you can.
Hi I’m-working-on-it!
I’ve been putting them up there for a long time. Many of them, have lighter things, vacuum sealed in them, but so far, so good. All my freinds are copying me, they think it looks cool! I did catch #11, trying to shimmy up the cabinets to get something yummy, off the top. I nearly had a stroke! That was actually one of his mild antics!
I am stashing jars, all over. In my schoolroom, by several bookcases, I have a big stack. You can’t see them, unless you go over there. It works well to stack them behind bedroom doors, etc.
I think of everyone here, each day. I have just felt so rotten and exhausted, since about March. I wish these docs. would agree on something, so I can get my energy back and get these little boys back on track. I am afraid #8 has something serious. He is in so much pain. He isn’t impacted, so we can’t blame that and he is on a double dose of Prilosec. We are at HS library now, and the children’s librarian just came out to tell me how bad #8 looks. He’s in severe pain and lost lots of weight. He is also becoming more agressive. Ouch! What’s next??
I’ve done 151 quarts of applesauce and only one didn’t seal…YIPPEE! I’ve done 38 pints of applebutter and 47 quarts of apple pie filling…..Still more to go, but I can hardly look at apples and my kitchen is dripping in applesauce. After library…..More apple picking! The chicks and I actualy went to buy apples last month, from a nearby orchard. It is owned by an elderly couple. They didn’t have any, because they couldn’t find anyone to pick…Isn’t that why you have chicks…So they grow up and lovingly come home to help you, in your feeble years???? TeeHee! Yeah right! I’d like to hand a few, a mop and paintbrush, and a little brother, in a dirty pull-up!! Anyway…Us guys are free spirits and I told the man, that my chicks and I would come and pick for him. He wanted to give us apples, but that wasn’t the point. It was to get them off the trees, so he could make some extra $$. Anyway, Now they are selling them to me for $5 a bushel. Another relative, buys the apples from the elderly man and she makes and sells little fruit pies, from a stand, on the farm. I don’t mind paying something for the apples and I have had plenty to share with my almost 70 year neighbor.
One of my Amish friends, has a jam shack. She has been letting me buy 30 lb. boxes of frozen fruit. I have 30 lbs. of sour cherries and 30 lbs. of strawberries, in the freezer, to do…SOON…because my side of beef is coming and all four freezers are bursting at the seams. The door was left slighlty cracked on one of them, a couple of weeks ago and when we got home, there was meat goo all over the laundry room. I was really sick that night and my precious #7 helped clean it all up. I was heartbroken…My holiday peas, I grew, snow peas, lasagnas, chicken breasts, steaks…All in the trash. I tried locking the freezers, but SOMEONE…Took a screwdriver and would keep unlocking them…Take a guess WHO?? I gave up! A warning---Upright freezers, defrost quickly, with a only the door slightly cracked….Much faster than chest freezers. I am canning or dehydrating every solitary thing possible, because this is NOT happening again. I came home 3 times the next week, and found the door cracked on the other upright…Only one person was home and it wasn’t a member of my flock! Next on my list is an Excaliber, 9 shelf dehydrater. Sure wish I could find a used one, but I think they are RARE!
Sounds like you have a fox in the hen house…take action.
HI NO Name!
Just wondering…How would one exterminate…a fox?? TeeHee!
Mom11, you are somethin else!
cheers! your diet pepsi, sans slobber, my dark porter, served warm.
the farm share’s slowly coming to an end, tho we’ll have plentiful squash, kale, and root veggies through to spring. as sick of prepping as i am, purchased more jars today (not going through em fast enough around here) and plan to get down with the ground turkey dehydration project from here on. have really been slacking on this.
storing preps gives me somewhat of an uneasy feeling. do i find more spaces where we live? are the preps in storage space safe?! how much do we send to potential bug-out space? etc. i now understand what i didn’t so many months ago, reading these forums -the fear of a fire, for many reasons tho i never really got that before i’d invested so much time and energy into this…project. now ah undastand.
gettin pretty chilly out lately at night. first frost this morning.
cheers.
Hi Posie!
I bought more jars today, also. I went to various Amish farms today and loaded up with MORE apples, green beans, zucchini, corn… My van was dragging!
One of my Amish friends said that they store their butternut and other winter squash under their beds and they keep all winter. I thought about renting a storage space also, since that would cut down on prep raids. I didn’t know how secure those rental storage bins were and I also worried that if the H5 came fast, it might not even be worth risking going out, to get everything. I don’t have a bug out space…I’ve been perfectly able to bug out here…..I worry about break ins, fires etc. Wouldn’t that just be horrible!!! All of our work, up in smoke!
Another Amish store opened here. They sell all kinds of spices, flours, noodles, and every kind of cookie sprinkle imaginable. The lady that owns the store,said a woman came in and asked what the sprinkles were. How can you not know what cookie sprinkles are?? Don’t they hand them out to all new mothers, along with the mini van, when mom and baby, leave the hospital…
mom11, just a quick word to say I haven’t forgotten you, just that this is a busy period for me and there’s a lot of material to get through before I can form an opinion of the stuff that you sent me! Hope you keep getting better.
Somewhat burned out here too. I really need to do a complete re-organization of all my preps and because it’s such a big project, I just can’t get motivated to get it done! I have to haul a lot of old stuff out of the basement, buy more shelving and move all my preps from all over my house to one spot in the basement. Too many things are well-hidden so I never use them. I know some things will start expiring in a few months so I want to start consuming them. Plus the weather ahs been sooooo amazing here (I love NE in the fall!). Maybe when the weather gets colder?!
Hi anon-22!
I know you are there! A lot of the stuff, from the site…that I sent you is very anti-vaccine…No matter what. I just saw a lot of it pertained to some of these H5 trial vaccines, as well. I go to a Nephrologist in a couple of weeks and will see what he says. I know what I have to say…No prednisone, no chemo…Hope he has something else!
You must be very tired….Take care!
I am really burned out on prepping today. It seems everything I own is broken…The double ovens, my new Cuisinart bread machine, all 3 vacuums, both dishwashers….How can this be?!!!! While I try to can and prep, everything around me is either falling apart or filty or has to be done the hard way…..I’m ready for tomorrow! Today, I am worn out! I’ve spent the afternoon, washing, labeling, and recording my weeks canning. Then I drug it all upstairs, to stash it away! I’m waiting for 24 jars of green beans to come out of the canner…..Yeap!!!! I’m really hating all this!!!! I’m praying no one wants dinner, but the odds are definitely against that…I just hate dinnertime…Just hate it!!!!! Don’t want to eat it, don’t want to cook it, and DO NOT want to clean it all up!!!
My Egyptian Walking Onions and Multiplier Onions came yesterday. I hope they grow well…Both are perinneal onions and the Egyptian onions, grow their bulbs above the ground, in stories of bulbs, that grow on the main stalk. I sent some to my grown boys and they are probably having to chistle through frozen soil, since they are in Mi. They probably have some choice words for me this weekend…TeeHee! Just like the ole teen years!!
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