May 23, 2011
Aren't these lovely! They are part of a mix of flowers seeds I had planted in the 'holes' of the blocks we use for our raised beds. I knew I would want something to make it look pretty - and these work well.
Spring!
I love Spring! The weather has warmed up, but it's not hot. My plants are growing like crazy and we get to start harvesting the early squash. The lettuce hasn't all bolted yet and the fresh air makes me have energy to cook!
Disappointments in the early garden -
Bok Choy - It grew, it probably would have tasted great if only I knew what to do with it. I fed it to the chickens, rabbits and ducks instead of fixing for myself. I'm letting the last one go to seed so that I can collect them and try again this fall. I need to do some research first however.
Carrots - I didn't plant them in the raised beds, but rather in the ground - I may have mentioned before that when I had the landscapers put in sprinklers for us they had to use a jack hammer to get through the dirt... the carrots didn't do well even after a few years of soil amendments. But at least some are growing... just not producing as many as I planted, or as many as I'd like to eat.
Beets, Rutabagas, and other root crops that I planted in the dirt - all did the same or worse as the carrots...
Herbs - partly because I kept having to replant before I decided to lock up the critters, and partly because I was too lazy to re-plant the 4th time, but I have almost no herbs when I was planning to have a wonderful herb garden. I'll have to re-think how I want to do that for this next planting season.
Successes in the early garden -
Lettuces! WOW, I sowed them pretty thickly and we are still harvesting every morning. Kevin is spoiled and getting a freshly picked salad for lunch every day. While he's in the shower, I'm in my bathrobe and slippers picking his lunch.
Onions! I planted the starts, about 80 to a package and I did white and red onions. I've been harvesting the shoots for salads, eggs, broccoli - for months now. The bulbs are just starting to really fatten up, so I'm still harvesting the shoots, but I picked one of the fatter bulbs the other day and used it for dinner - it was delicious.
Garlic! I haven't actually dug up the garlic yet, but it's doing very well. Or I should say, it looks like it'll be a healthy plant. I have 2 rows with garlic cloves planted side by side like little soldiers all in a row. They are in the ground though, so hopefully they'll do better than the other root crops did.
Potatoes! These were planted in raised beds with just straw and whatever mulch I could find - no dirt. They are still growing and whenever I see a flower I pick it off so that the energy will go into the roots and not into the plant. I planted early, mid and late season varieties. It looks like bugs just recently got to the greens of the mid season variety, but I'm interested in the roots, and I don't really think they'll be affected. I'll keep you posted. What's strange is that all 3 varieties are planted together in a long row - the bugs only ate the middle ones. Which is proof that you want to plant multiple varieties of each plant so that if something gets one, you will still have others to rely on. AND there are many, many, many varieties of potatoes out there... Ronniger's has a great catalog and they specialize in potatoes.
Cabbage! - I'm harvesting them now. I planted too many last year, and so I didn't plant but a few this year - now I'm wishing I had planted just as many as last year... Since I've become a vegetarian we eat so much from the garden - and the vegetables taste sweet to me now... particularly the cabbage. I made some kung pao the other day with vegetable crumble, broccoli and cabbage from the garden, we couldn't stop eating the cabbage. Even though I didn't add the entire head to the dish, there was none left. Kevin and I ate it like it was candy, fighting over the last pieces in the bowl.
What's going good NOW! -
Squash! - I have a bed that I knew was going to be too wide for me to easily get to, but I planted in it anyway. It's up against a fence, so I can't reach in from all sides. But since squash take up so much room, I figured that would be a good plant for the area.... now, how do I harvest the ones all the way in the back? Squash are prickly! But I'm able to start harvesting the yellow crookneck squash - my all time favorite. And I planted seeds from a Blue Hubbard squash that I got from the Farmer's Market and saved the seeds from - they are huge! The leaves are bigger than dinner plates.
Watermelon - I think this is still going to be okay, but they are in with the squash. The leaves are smaller than the squash where I thought they would be about the same. I have a couple varieties and I'm hoping so much that these will do well. So far, everything looks good.
Tomatoes! - I have 50 tomato plants! Yes, Fifty - not a typo. My Facebook friend John from West Virginia shared a secret that his grandmother passed along to him... tickle your tomatoes. (Ok, he said shake the plant every day, but I like my term better) Since they are self fertile I go out every morning and where there is a flower I 'tickle' them, not the whole plant. My tomatoes have started fruiting much earlier than I thought they would, and they are much more prolific than I've ever seen. Everything is still green, but they are doing really well. Salsa, Tomato sauce, canned tomatoes, Spaghetti sauce... yum... and many to share and sell. I'm so excited about them.
I also have some bird house gourds that I planted, the squash leaves are covering them, but they still look healthy - we'll see. And I planted some jalapeño peppers, but even though they look healthy they aren't growing at all. So I'm not sure how they are going to turn out.
New for me this year is the Jerusalem Artichokes. These are different from Globe Artichokes (which I have one of), these are tubers that are harvested like potatoes. I've never planted them, or eaten them before, so like the bok choy I need to do some research. I'm determined not to waste this experiment.
The fruit trees are going strong. We've already picked a few blueberries with many more waiting to plump up. The black berry bush is covered with still green berries. The plum and nectarine tree are trying to compete with each other to see which can put out the most fruit, and the pomegranate tree is covered with flowers and partially grown fruit.
My cherry tree has never produced but has always looked healthy, this year is no exception, the persimmon tree looks healthy for the first time ever. I thought I was going to lose it to transplant shock or whatever was ailing it, but it looks good this year. Maybe I'll get at least one this year?? The orange trees have just finished flowering a week or two ago and I can see baby orange buds where the flowers once were.
The trees looking healthy, but no fruit or flowers so far are the peach, pear, apple, avocado and as I mentioned before, the cherry. I may have forgotten a few, I'm trying to picture the yard from memory as I write at 1am.
Disappointments in the early garden -
Bok Choy - It grew, it probably would have tasted great if only I knew what to do with it. I fed it to the chickens, rabbits and ducks instead of fixing for myself. I'm letting the last one go to seed so that I can collect them and try again this fall. I need to do some research first however.
Carrots - I didn't plant them in the raised beds, but rather in the ground - I may have mentioned before that when I had the landscapers put in sprinklers for us they had to use a jack hammer to get through the dirt... the carrots didn't do well even after a few years of soil amendments. But at least some are growing... just not producing as many as I planted, or as many as I'd like to eat.
Beets, Rutabagas, and other root crops that I planted in the dirt - all did the same or worse as the carrots...
Herbs - partly because I kept having to replant before I decided to lock up the critters, and partly because I was too lazy to re-plant the 4th time, but I have almost no herbs when I was planning to have a wonderful herb garden. I'll have to re-think how I want to do that for this next planting season.
Successes in the early garden -
Lettuces! WOW, I sowed them pretty thickly and we are still harvesting every morning. Kevin is spoiled and getting a freshly picked salad for lunch every day. While he's in the shower, I'm in my bathrobe and slippers picking his lunch.
Onions! I planted the starts, about 80 to a package and I did white and red onions. I've been harvesting the shoots for salads, eggs, broccoli - for months now. The bulbs are just starting to really fatten up, so I'm still harvesting the shoots, but I picked one of the fatter bulbs the other day and used it for dinner - it was delicious.
Garlic! I haven't actually dug up the garlic yet, but it's doing very well. Or I should say, it looks like it'll be a healthy plant. I have 2 rows with garlic cloves planted side by side like little soldiers all in a row. They are in the ground though, so hopefully they'll do better than the other root crops did.
Potatoes! These were planted in raised beds with just straw and whatever mulch I could find - no dirt. They are still growing and whenever I see a flower I pick it off so that the energy will go into the roots and not into the plant. I planted early, mid and late season varieties. It looks like bugs just recently got to the greens of the mid season variety, but I'm interested in the roots, and I don't really think they'll be affected. I'll keep you posted. What's strange is that all 3 varieties are planted together in a long row - the bugs only ate the middle ones. Which is proof that you want to plant multiple varieties of each plant so that if something gets one, you will still have others to rely on. AND there are many, many, many varieties of potatoes out there... Ronniger's has a great catalog and they specialize in potatoes.
Cabbage! - I'm harvesting them now. I planted too many last year, and so I didn't plant but a few this year - now I'm wishing I had planted just as many as last year... Since I've become a vegetarian we eat so much from the garden - and the vegetables taste sweet to me now... particularly the cabbage. I made some kung pao the other day with vegetable crumble, broccoli and cabbage from the garden, we couldn't stop eating the cabbage. Even though I didn't add the entire head to the dish, there was none left. Kevin and I ate it like it was candy, fighting over the last pieces in the bowl.
What's going good NOW! -
Squash! - I have a bed that I knew was going to be too wide for me to easily get to, but I planted in it anyway. It's up against a fence, so I can't reach in from all sides. But since squash take up so much room, I figured that would be a good plant for the area.... now, how do I harvest the ones all the way in the back? Squash are prickly! But I'm able to start harvesting the yellow crookneck squash - my all time favorite. And I planted seeds from a Blue Hubbard squash that I got from the Farmer's Market and saved the seeds from - they are huge! The leaves are bigger than dinner plates.
Watermelon - I think this is still going to be okay, but they are in with the squash. The leaves are smaller than the squash where I thought they would be about the same. I have a couple varieties and I'm hoping so much that these will do well. So far, everything looks good.
Tomatoes! - I have 50 tomato plants! Yes, Fifty - not a typo. My Facebook friend John from West Virginia shared a secret that his grandmother passed along to him... tickle your tomatoes. (Ok, he said shake the plant every day, but I like my term better) Since they are self fertile I go out every morning and where there is a flower I 'tickle' them, not the whole plant. My tomatoes have started fruiting much earlier than I thought they would, and they are much more prolific than I've ever seen. Everything is still green, but they are doing really well. Salsa, Tomato sauce, canned tomatoes, Spaghetti sauce... yum... and many to share and sell. I'm so excited about them.
I also have some bird house gourds that I planted, the squash leaves are covering them, but they still look healthy - we'll see. And I planted some jalapeño peppers, but even though they look healthy they aren't growing at all. So I'm not sure how they are going to turn out.
New for me this year is the Jerusalem Artichokes. These are different from Globe Artichokes (which I have one of), these are tubers that are harvested like potatoes. I've never planted them, or eaten them before, so like the bok choy I need to do some research. I'm determined not to waste this experiment.
The fruit trees are going strong. We've already picked a few blueberries with many more waiting to plump up. The black berry bush is covered with still green berries. The plum and nectarine tree are trying to compete with each other to see which can put out the most fruit, and the pomegranate tree is covered with flowers and partially grown fruit.
My cherry tree has never produced but has always looked healthy, this year is no exception, the persimmon tree looks healthy for the first time ever. I thought I was going to lose it to transplant shock or whatever was ailing it, but it looks good this year. Maybe I'll get at least one this year?? The orange trees have just finished flowering a week or two ago and I can see baby orange buds where the flowers once were.
The trees looking healthy, but no fruit or flowers so far are the peach, pear, apple, avocado and as I mentioned before, the cherry. I may have forgotten a few, I'm trying to picture the yard from memory as I write at 1am.
 The green's bed - Lettuces here that I pick from daily. There are also some cabbages in here, some radish, bok choy - and as I'm pulling things out, I've planted some beans and cilantro. |  I have over 160 onion bulbs growing here - half red, half white. In the foreground is where the asparagus came up - the first year - it's lost amongst the flowers. Funny thing about the flowers, remember when I had 6 beds all together, then got rid of the front 3? We moved all that dirt into the back 3 beds - the flowers must have been seeds still not germinated in the soil we transfered. No complaints - so long as they actually flower soon. |
 This is the squash bed. In the foreground is Yellow Crookneck squash, further along is watermelon, then in the back is Blue Hubbard squash. I took these pictures a day or two ago - they are already so much bigger today. The Blue Hubbard is growing up the fence. Before too long our neighbors will be harvesting the squash right alongside us - but from their side of the fence. |  This s the yellow crookneck squash - ready to harvest already. They grew much faster and larger here in the raised beds than they did in the ground the last 2 years. I'm very impressed. |
My favorite bed - the tomato bed - along with the flowers in a few holes in the end. I have about 40 heirloom tomato plants in here. The inside is marked off in square feet with an ingenious watering system that Kevin developed for me. If the boy knew more about this type of thing there's no telling how fancy it would get. I also have every one of the holes in the block filled - again a couple with flowers, but most are with tomatoes. I love the scent released as I brush by the plants every day.
Our 3 main beds, potatoes behind. Then the dirt garden behind the small fence... where nothing much grows.
 To the left of the 3 beds (you see 2 of them here) is the squash bed. |  Potatoes - we actually picked a couple today for the neighbor kids who came over to visit. Okay, we made the little boy pick one of them. He thought it was really cool. |
 We had decided to let the grass die back here in the back yard, but it comes up anyway. Oh well, I don't mind cutting it, so long as I don't have to pay the water bill to water it. |  The tomato plant you see to the left and behind the PVC trellis is all one plant. The ones to the front and right are all new heirloom tomatoes, as are two hanging pots. (One is jalapeño). |
 Tickle your tomato plants when they are in flower - I can hardly believe that we have so many tomatoes on the vine already! |  Tomatillo - a new plant for me this year also - I guess I use it in salsa like I do tomatoes... or so I'm told. This is just one, but the plant has many fruits on it. |
 The empty spot was planted with cilantro seeds the other day - the square used to hold a cabbage - it was delicious! |  This is the Blue Hubbard Squash - look how many flowers are about to bloom! This was from seeds I saved from a squash I bought at the Temecula Farmer's Market. I dried the seeds in a bowl on the back of the sink, then planted a few - and boy did they grow. SAVE YOUR SEEDS! Think of the money you'll save! |
 This is the 'ground' garden. The only things that have been coming up (besides weeds) are Jerusalem Artichokes and garlic. |  I also have grapes in the ground - they have been there for a few years now. Last year is the only year they tasted somewhat good. Maybe I'm actually improving the soil after all? |
 As I'm writing this Kevin has been out in the garden picking weeds, and came in to show me what he discovered growing... |  After washing the dirt off he decided it was HIS carrot... I think I planted that seed. ;-) He did give me two bites at least. WOW it was so sweet and smelled good. You don't get that smell from the carrots at the grocery store. |
I guess some rutabagas did grow...
Fruit Trees and Bushes
 Nectarines! I can hardly wait. |  Plums |
 Blueberries |  Blackberries |
Pomegranate
New Additions to the farm!
I found someone who was selling chickens for $10 each, but when I talked to her I found she was moving and had some 'left overs' that no one had bought, and she was willing to give them to me just to take them off her hands. When we got there Saturday we could see why - they are a scraggly mangy lot... but they'll do just fine with us.
One is a silkie that is molting, one is a leg horn that is freaked out by everything, one is a mutt with Ameracuna in her - and came with 7 eggs she'd been laying on, and 2 are pullets (female teenage chickens) that aren't layers yet and are a sexlink - which I'm told is a cross between a Long Island Red and a Barred Rock. They are pretty girls.
I was worried about taking the mama hen off her eggs. I put her in a cage by herself with a nesting box of hay. Once she calmed down and adjusted to her new home, she plopped herself right down onto her eggs again. I'm so glad as we don't have an incubator.
These are not tame hens like my other three that I pick up and hold, or even just pet every single day. These new ones were part of a flock of about 100 - so they had no individual attention - and they are a bit flighty. Everyone settled down and stopped picking on each other fairly quickly. My 3 are much larger than these other 5.
I wanted more chickens because ours just aren't laying enough... Not long ago I was complaining because I was drowning in eggs and was taking them to all my neighbors who I imagined whispered to each other behind closed doors - "There's that crazy chicken lady again. We still have eggs from the last time, don't open the door, pretend we're not home!" But as I would ring the door bell some child would always run to it and open it in great delight at the 'presents' I'd bring over on a regular basis.
One is a silkie that is molting, one is a leg horn that is freaked out by everything, one is a mutt with Ameracuna in her - and came with 7 eggs she'd been laying on, and 2 are pullets (female teenage chickens) that aren't layers yet and are a sexlink - which I'm told is a cross between a Long Island Red and a Barred Rock. They are pretty girls.
I was worried about taking the mama hen off her eggs. I put her in a cage by herself with a nesting box of hay. Once she calmed down and adjusted to her new home, she plopped herself right down onto her eggs again. I'm so glad as we don't have an incubator.
These are not tame hens like my other three that I pick up and hold, or even just pet every single day. These new ones were part of a flock of about 100 - so they had no individual attention - and they are a bit flighty. Everyone settled down and stopped picking on each other fairly quickly. My 3 are much larger than these other 5.
I wanted more chickens because ours just aren't laying enough... Not long ago I was complaining because I was drowning in eggs and was taking them to all my neighbors who I imagined whispered to each other behind closed doors - "There's that crazy chicken lady again. We still have eggs from the last time, don't open the door, pretend we're not home!" But as I would ring the door bell some child would always run to it and open it in great delight at the 'presents' I'd bring over on a regular basis.
One of our free hens - she's molting and looks pretty scraggly. Hopefully she'll get feathers back and be pretty - she's a silky.
 This isn't a rooster - she's a Leghorn - yes we are naming her Foghorn Leghorn. What else could we name her? |  This is our Mama hen. She came with 7 eggs that she was sitting on. I put them into a nesting box and she and it went into a cage by themselves. She took up laying on them again - phew! Please no roosters in the clutch!!! Only hens!
She's a mutt - she has some Americuna in her as she lays green eggs. |
 More mutts - these are a cross between Rhoad Island Red and Barred Rock - or so we were told. They are pullets, which are young females. They should start laying eggs in a month or two. |  Another view of the Silkey |
Hello Sunshine!
And new babies...
Okay, the rabbits are all gone - the babies that is. They found new loving homes and everyone is happy, but new life on the farm is what farming is all about. When we got home from picking up the chickens we were outside working on the coop getting ready to put the new hens in with our others.
Buddy came out from laying on her nest and she had something in her mouth. It was an egg shell that she dropped in front of us. My first thought was, "She's that hungry?" I thought she had eaten one of her eggs. Kevin went to look and she wasn't eating the egg, she was cleaning the nest. In the place of the egg was a tiny baby duckling. It was so incredibly cute! We were able to see that others were also cracking open and were about to hatch. She went back to her nest quickly, covered the eggs and the new baby so we couldn't see much. At one point as we were peaking in I could see one chick starting to hatch. When Buddy saw me she quickly pulled the egg in under her to protect it. I could hear the egg shell cracking more and I was thinking she was going to smother it - but I'm sure mama knows best. The last time I looked for the day I saw an egg shell in the bowl of water that I have for her next to her nest (because she's there for hours and hours every day)... so I believe that there is at least one more. At last full count there were 19 eggs - I'm hoping and dreading that they all hatch. Never having gone through this before, I don't know if they'll all hatch within 24 hours, or within days of each other - and what about the ones that don't hatch? Will she continue to sit on them indefinitely? Half the fun is finding this stuff out. I guess I'll know soon enough.
Buddy came out from laying on her nest and she had something in her mouth. It was an egg shell that she dropped in front of us. My first thought was, "She's that hungry?" I thought she had eaten one of her eggs. Kevin went to look and she wasn't eating the egg, she was cleaning the nest. In the place of the egg was a tiny baby duckling. It was so incredibly cute! We were able to see that others were also cracking open and were about to hatch. She went back to her nest quickly, covered the eggs and the new baby so we couldn't see much. At one point as we were peaking in I could see one chick starting to hatch. When Buddy saw me she quickly pulled the egg in under her to protect it. I could hear the egg shell cracking more and I was thinking she was going to smother it - but I'm sure mama knows best. The last time I looked for the day I saw an egg shell in the bowl of water that I have for her next to her nest (because she's there for hours and hours every day)... so I believe that there is at least one more. At last full count there were 19 eggs - I'm hoping and dreading that they all hatch. Never having gone through this before, I don't know if they'll all hatch within 24 hours, or within days of each other - and what about the ones that don't hatch? Will she continue to sit on them indefinitely? Half the fun is finding this stuff out. I guess I'll know soon enough.
About a month and a half ago...
I count 19 eggs, but then Mama duck covered them up so we were not able to find out how many in total.
 |  |
 That's a lot of baby ducklings - and one looks like it's still going to hatch. |
 One is still wet - it must have just hatched before I got there to take the picture. |  Awwwwww |
... and a video of those little ducklings
You can never have too many cats... I think I'm running on the low side.
The white cat is Patch, he's 12 years old. The dark one is Scraggles, the orange cat is Toby.
Minis And More, Yes MAM!
This was our booth in Victorville a few weekends ago - we were at the ABATE biker rally for the weekend and had SO much fun!
It was an interesting and scary day at the Perris Farmer's Market this last Thursday. Just as everyone is set up and the market is about to open we get a rogue wind that came through. Luckily it was before the public showed up. It hit the back row of the market first, then the middle, then the booths just across the aisle from where I was. There were booths flying up in the air like kites. Papers strewn across the parking lot, trash cans flying 3 stories high. People were screaming and running...
The wind would pick up an EZ Up tent like structure, it would go flying over everyone's heads, then come slamming back to the ground, or into people. One man jumped under his pick up truck just as a booth (full of metal rods and footings) came slamming into the side of his truck. One woman had to be taken to the hospital because her head got split open. Another man had his laptop computer with him and it was on a table. The table went flying and took the laptop with it - when it landed the laptop was in 3 pieces.
One booth ended up in the power lines at a pole. The electricity zapped, small fires erupted, and the power went out that I was using. As for me, my booth sustained no damage. I held onto it for dear life. One side had gotten sucked out into the aisle a little, but nothing broke. Other people's booths looked like pick up sticks - metal crumpled all out of shape.
I called Kevin at home and I was still shaking - I said, 'Get here, now!'... when he arrived everything was still in disarray. The booth was still in the power lines and he got a great picture of it sparking. The Farmer's Market was shut down for the day - high winds were expected to continue until 2am.
I'm very fortunate that my equipment was alright. I couldn't have afforded to replace it and I'm so in debt trying to pay for all that I've put into it so far. (Anyone have an extra $10,000 laying around and want to donate, remember me! ha ha ha) I feel bad for all those who have to replace everything. I'm wondering how next week's market will be - are there going to be enough people left who can operate and even create a market?
The wind would pick up an EZ Up tent like structure, it would go flying over everyone's heads, then come slamming back to the ground, or into people. One man jumped under his pick up truck just as a booth (full of metal rods and footings) came slamming into the side of his truck. One woman had to be taken to the hospital because her head got split open. Another man had his laptop computer with him and it was on a table. The table went flying and took the laptop with it - when it landed the laptop was in 3 pieces.
One booth ended up in the power lines at a pole. The electricity zapped, small fires erupted, and the power went out that I was using. As for me, my booth sustained no damage. I held onto it for dear life. One side had gotten sucked out into the aisle a little, but nothing broke. Other people's booths looked like pick up sticks - metal crumpled all out of shape.
I called Kevin at home and I was still shaking - I said, 'Get here, now!'... when he arrived everything was still in disarray. The booth was still in the power lines and he got a great picture of it sparking. The Farmer's Market was shut down for the day - high winds were expected to continue until 2am.
I'm very fortunate that my equipment was alright. I couldn't have afforded to replace it and I'm so in debt trying to pay for all that I've put into it so far. (Anyone have an extra $10,000 laying around and want to donate, remember me! ha ha ha) I feel bad for all those who have to replace everything. I'm wondering how next week's market will be - are there going to be enough people left who can operate and even create a market?
 The mangled mess that was people's livelihood. Their booths are destroyed. |  |
 This is someone's booth that the wind caught and landed in the electric lines. There were sparks, small fires - and as the wind blew the sparks kept coming. You can see the metal legs sticking out. |  Can you see the spark? |
I'm wanting a farm...
With the debt crisis we are in as a nation, I told Kevin that I want to move. I want a farm - a real one, where I can have goats and a cow or two. Yes, I would give up being a vegetarian if I had to, but I think I'd still be okay. I think it's the safest way to ride out what I believe is coming. So I've been surfing the internet trying to find something. I'd really love to move to Tennessee, Arkansas, South Carolina - but I'm also looking local. The reality is that Kevin has a job to do, he's good at it, and he loves what he does. (Ok, the politics suck, but they'd suck anywhere.) He still loves what he does.
I'm looking for a place with it's own water source... I would take my solar panels with me, and as we have very little trash anyway, I would just be more careful about composting more than I do now.
I urge you to listen to the video (all text but it's read to you) at endofamerica32.com - I understand that the number at the end changes from time to time as 'they' try to shut it down. But everything makes perfect sense -and it scares the hell out of me.
Stock up on things like sugar, flour and vinegar - water of course is a given. Get rice, beans - things that need no refrigeration and can sustain you - for 6 months to a year... That's a lot of goods you'll need. I have a list of things I'm compiling that I think I'll need, or could use to barter with if things go really bad... Alcohol, chocolate, even cigarettes - and I don't smoke... Toilet paper. Store things in metal trash cans where the rodents can't get in. Figure out how you would protect yourself and your family if someone was desperate and tried to take your survival nest away from you.
And if we survive the financial crisis I believe we are heading for, it's still a good idea - think of Australia who just had their earthquakes and Japan that recently had earthquakes and tsunamis... The government can't save you during a disaster, how will you survive when the crops are gone if something happened here? The jobs are gone because the buildings are destroyed - as are the ships that would carry the goods in and out of port. It's a good idea to be prepared.
As a side note about Australia - I wanted to share this, it gives updated information about earthquakes located by the USGS and contributing networks for the Map of Australia Regionhttp://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/recenteqsww/Maps/region/Australia_eqs.php
.
I'm looking for a place with it's own water source... I would take my solar panels with me, and as we have very little trash anyway, I would just be more careful about composting more than I do now.
I urge you to listen to the video (all text but it's read to you) at endofamerica32.com - I understand that the number at the end changes from time to time as 'they' try to shut it down. But everything makes perfect sense -and it scares the hell out of me.
Stock up on things like sugar, flour and vinegar - water of course is a given. Get rice, beans - things that need no refrigeration and can sustain you - for 6 months to a year... That's a lot of goods you'll need. I have a list of things I'm compiling that I think I'll need, or could use to barter with if things go really bad... Alcohol, chocolate, even cigarettes - and I don't smoke... Toilet paper. Store things in metal trash cans where the rodents can't get in. Figure out how you would protect yourself and your family if someone was desperate and tried to take your survival nest away from you.
And if we survive the financial crisis I believe we are heading for, it's still a good idea - think of Australia who just had their earthquakes and Japan that recently had earthquakes and tsunamis... The government can't save you during a disaster, how will you survive when the crops are gone if something happened here? The jobs are gone because the buildings are destroyed - as are the ships that would carry the goods in and out of port. It's a good idea to be prepared.
As a side note about Australia - I wanted to share this, it gives updated information about earthquakes located by the USGS and contributing networks for the Map of Australia Regionhttp://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/recenteqsww/Maps/region/Australia_eqs.php
.
Our Electric Bill
The large spike was July 2010. That's when we had the solar panels installed. There was an immediate drop in energy consumption from the Electric Company. We started working on ways to reduce our usage even more.
We put in power strips and turn the power off completely for things like the printer and entertainment center. Lights are still my downfall. I can not see at all in the dark... I run into walls, trip over things (driving is fun at night!) So I tend to leave the lights on. Kevin can see perfectly well in the dark and turns everything off behind me. He'll wait in the living room at the hallway light switch until I can get as far as the bathroom and turn that light on. Then he turns off the hall light. When I get to the bedroom and turn that light on, he's in the bathroom turning off the light. Then I turn on the light at the headboard and he turns off the light switch at the wall. We have a routine down, it's funny, but it works.
So far, it looks like we're learning to do this right - we are now producing more than we use. This may drastically change when the summer gets here and temps reach 117°F as they have the last few summers. I don't function well in the heat. Maybe I can jump into the duck's bathtub pond with them to cool off :-).
We put in power strips and turn the power off completely for things like the printer and entertainment center. Lights are still my downfall. I can not see at all in the dark... I run into walls, trip over things (driving is fun at night!) So I tend to leave the lights on. Kevin can see perfectly well in the dark and turns everything off behind me. He'll wait in the living room at the hallway light switch until I can get as far as the bathroom and turn that light on. Then he turns off the hall light. When I get to the bedroom and turn that light on, he's in the bathroom turning off the light. Then I turn on the light at the headboard and he turns off the light switch at the wall. We have a routine down, it's funny, but it works.
So far, it looks like we're learning to do this right - we are now producing more than we use. This may drastically change when the summer gets here and temps reach 117°F as they have the last few summers. I don't function well in the heat. Maybe I can jump into the duck's bathtub pond with them to cool off :-).
Kevin being... well, Kevin.
This was at Sarducci's restaurant last Friday (the 13th). Of course he wore his contacts to work. The restaurant has a murder dinner theater and there is a chalk outline (tape) of a dead body. Kevin is here playing dead.
Freecycle.org
I love Freecycle.org. The idea of this is to keep things out of landfills. IF you have something you want to get rid of, instead of throwing it away, post it online to see if anyone wants it. If there is something you are hoping to find, post the request, you'd be surprised at what you can find. I'm collecting 2 liter soda bottles to use as the walls of a greenhouse... I need about 2000 of them. The rule is that it has to be freely given, no bartering, no prices, no trading.
Remember that one man's trash is another man's treasure... or woman's. I access it through Yahoo Groups. Check out my latest 'treasure' below.
Remember that one man's trash is another man's treasure... or woman's. I access it through Yahoo Groups. Check out my latest 'treasure' below.
Someone wanted to get rid of this teak glider set. Two gliders, two end tables and a fire pit. It looks lovely in my front yard. I've been making a point of sitting out there and watching the world go by. I firmly believe that a large portion of what's wrong with America is that people don't sit on their front porches and get to know their neighbors any more. Heck, we don't even have a front porch, and neither do any of my neighbors. Most everyone stays to themselves inside their houses or in their back yards... we are hoping to change that... at least for us.
We make a living by what we get, we make a life by what we give.
... until next time.
