Gearing Up For An Economical Squeeze!

And that's part of the problem. This was all discussed at length, with proper warnings, in the 70s. Just nothing done about it. People ignored it then, and continued to ignore it all the way until 6 months ago. The writing was on the wall. Had people reacted THEN, it may have diverted some of this NOW.


Sidepasser, kudo to your sensible upbringing of your son. I wish my daughter could find a man like that! (But, she's high-mainenance. I guess I was too frugal, so she jumped ship when she grew up!)

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Before you marry someone, ask yourself, "Will they be a good killing partner during the zombie apocalypse?"
-someecards.com

Groundhog seems to cook well on a blacktop road in the summer;-)

RF

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It's not good enough that we do our best; sometimes we have to do what's required. - Winston Churchill

They seem to be smart to me. They were willing to ask for help from someone who knew what he was doing and was actually willing (if forced) to learn how to use the tools. I would wager that they would have a very good chance of surviving because of this willingness to ask and learn.

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On a good day, I'd have to agree with you. But, if it was a SHTF scenario, I tend to think that people will be worried about their own survival, which may not allow time/resources for accommodating "ask and learn" sessions. Nor do I think that anyone should be of the mindset that they can put off learning, thinking that they'll be able to lean on someone else in tough times.

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Before you marry someone, ask yourself, "Will they be a good killing partner during the zombie apocalypse?"
-someecards.com

What a good son you have. You have taught him well..not only should you be proud of him but of yourselves also. Too many people don't teach their children the valuable skills in life that REALLY count. The world wouldn't be in such a mess if there were more people like him out there.

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~Teresa~


"Fears over tomorrow and regrets over yesterday are twin thieves that rob us of the moment."
Author Unknown

Never spend your money before you have it- Thomas Jefferson

99% of the people in a recession are simply going to tighten their belts, cut back on their spending, eat less, and grin and bear it. However, that 1% is worth worrying about -- it's that percentage of people who feel that the world owes them a living, and they're willing to take from everyone else if there's no easy way to make that living.

In my area, the bad guys have gotten a LOT bolder. Used to be that abandoned (foreclosed) houses or houses under construction (unoccupied) might be stripped of their copper, or the occasional car might be stolen. Now, anything not nailed down is a target of thieves, and the bad guys are desperate enough to do things like steal AC units & machinery (for the scrap and resale) from occupied homes, and to regularly burglarize and then burn down homes. I've got big loud dogs and good neighbors and have so far done okay, but a neighbor's cousin's house was ripped off and then burned down.

The "burning down" bit I suspect probably pure jealousy -- revenge for having something (material goods) that the bad guys don't have.

-- Leva

We've seen this and worse in our country before. Look at the south after the Civil War. It was a mess and most people thought thier world was ending. It was. But another took its place.

I think what we may have here is a crisis that will force us to change our values which of course is always hard. At whose feet the fault lies, it's all of us. We've lived complacently for a long time in this country and we've allowed our values to slide into extreme consumerism, with all the waste and destruction that those values entailed. We've abandoned the old "self-reliance" code once respected in this country and turned to the government to help us (especially to gain advantage over other groups, to provide for our needs, or to force our values on others). An example: We didn't want commercial enterprises near our homes because we had cars. We created zoning regulations. Now we have expensive trips (or long walks) to work and to stores.

Well, we've asked for it. We've mortgaged our future to live for today, we've grown our government so large it now consumes a huge portion of the national income and regulates so much of our lives, it is all but impossible to re-gain any sort of real self-reliance. In essence, we are no longer free to use creative ways to survive economic crises. For example, just try to actually live off your land without any real capital or any way to obtain it. You need expensive permits and licenses to do just about anything. Try to pay your property taxes with a couple of feeder pigs and a bushel of tomatoes. You can't. In fact, your property taxes are probably high enough that you will be forced to find some sort of real wage work to pay them. And if you don't, your land will be gone. In fact, expect taxes to increase as things get worse, because historically, they always have as the government scrambles to maintain itself by "solving the problem", in essence creating massively expensive programs to "help" people but in fact, making us ever more dependent upon it for our survival.

Blame democrats, blame republicans, blame ourselves. Our choices as a society did bring us here. Perhaps this would be a good time to change things and I feel that the self-reliant homesteading mentality sets a very good example.

everything you've said is true except that at the end of the civil war, America had no enemies in the world. We just had blacks and whites living in America and for the most part we all got along although the black man was held back but everyone was loyal to America. today the league of nations are living here and i don't think anyone trust anyone else. I know that if the SHTF,I better know anyone comming up my driveway.

There are probably more issues here than you've shared, but have you considered just buying a cheap little run-about?
About four years ago when diesel hit $2 (oh how expensive that was! lol) we quit driving our diesel pickup so often, blew $800 and got a Metro with 120,000 miles on it. Within 6 months it had paid for itself both in actual costs and related costs (like higher insurance, though we only have liability on it).

We've put on tires and shocks and last summer, DH replaced the tranny and motor with new(er) versions of each and ran us up another $800. But again, it quickly paid for itself.
We still have our pickup. As of fall '07, it's paid off, so no reason to get rid of it.

But that Metro has been one of the best vehicles we've ever bought! lol

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~*~Erin~*~
SAHM, ranch wife, sub and quilt shop proprietress
the Back Gate Country Quilt Shop

At least the 44 year old DAD is willing to learn and isn't just forking over the money to pay someone else to do the labor. Now he has the know how --- and hopefully he will use the skills he just learned. Sounds like he is in the right mindset --- except for eating McDs every meal.

Your son did a good deed in helping those folks. Good for him.

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For me, it is far better to grasp the Universe as it really is than to persist in delusion, however satisfying and reassuring - Carl Sagan

Yeah, I know what you mean. My 14 year old daughter works on our horse farm. She can out throw the 16 & 17 year old boys we hired to stack hay . She had to teach them how to drive the tractor, how to turn off the gas when they were thru with the tractor and how to run the hay elevator. She is raising her own herd of goats and helps with our garden. These boys were amazed when she told them she didn't own a gaming system and didn't care to. She has a barn full of horses she can saddle up and ride so why should she spend her days indoors.

Edited to add - these same boys called their moms to bring them gatorade and McDonalds because I made lunch (ham sandwiches, potatoe salad, macaroni salad, ice tea, etc.) and they didn't want to eat what I made. My hubby and daugher wolfed down the food and turned their noses up at McDonalds! They also complained because we had one of those coolers filled with ice water (from the well) and they didn't want to drink any of it. Hubby said they were more than welcome to drink out of the hose at the barn (we do and don't think anything of it) and they declined. Go figure...

I agree with many that maybe the hard times will have a positive impact, especially in alternative fuels. We have to make a change and most Americans including myself to some extent won't do that until forced too. Maybe the price of solar panels and wind mills will come down for the rest of us!! Of course, as I said the energy crisis will force me to start putting the money aside and just do it no matter what the price, and the bicycle will come out. People just aren't there yet, but we are getting there.

A year ago the "surbinite Moms" in the neighborhood were bragging about how much it cost to fill up their SUV and they were still driving the 20 miles to town almost everyday (we have the essentials within 2 miles), but now they are not bragging, and I have even seen a few of them trade in their SUVs. I have a Dodge myself, but as soon as prices went up we made drastic changes over a year ago to cut our consumption by over 50% and I am still finding ways to cut it further.

I think it is going to be tough, but I am praying we will end up in the end with a much healthier and environmentally friendly economy, but in the meantime I am going to go plant more in the garden and build some more cold frames!!

I just can't see anything positive coming out of an economic crisis much less a total collaspe of this country or any other SHTF scenario.... when I hear people saying that they welcome one or that it will be better in the future... I just wonder if they even have one ounce of a clue as to the following:

1) How bad it is for some people right now

2) How bad it will get for others very soon

3) How bad it will be for you no matter how well you have prepared...

Nope.. sorry... can't see this as some "grand adventure" or some cleansing re-set of soceity..

It's not going to just be tough..it is going to be horrible..unimaginable...it makes me very sad to know that some folks are wishing for it...

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Christanie Farm...living life as it was intended

I had to look up "groundhog" since I'm not quite sure what they are and we don't have them around here. According to Wikipedia they are also known as the woodchuck or whistlepig. Still don't know exactly what they are and I've now heard of a completely new term (Whistlepig?!) however, my cookbook does have a recipe for woodchuck. This is from the Meta Given's Modern Encyclopedia of Cooking copyright 1947, revised edition 1955.

WOODCHUCK
Like the beaver, woodchuck has dark tender meat, but its flavor is milder. There is a heavy layer of fat on the body just before the animal begins his winter sleep. The excess fat should be removed but it is not necessary to remove all of it because it flavor is not disagreeable. The meat seems to be improved, however, with the same short parboiling recommended for beaver and coon. This animal also has scent glands at appear as kernals under the forelegs, under the thighs, and between the shoulders, on the back and along the spine in the small of the back. Care should be used in removing all of these glands for the best flavor in the cooked meat. Woodchuck may be cooked like rabbit or squirrel.

WOODCHUCK PIE
1 woodchuck, 5 to 6 pounds
2 medium onions
2 cloves
1 tbsp whole black peppers
1 branch celery
1 tbsp salt
2 carrots
2 medium potatoes
1 cup diced celery
Baking Powder Biscuit Dough (page 234 if you happen to have a matching copy of this cookbook)

Skin and clean the woodchuck. Be sure to remove the 7 to 9 (depending on age) kernals found under the fonrt legs and along the spine. If these are not removed, the meat will have too strong a flavor. Fit the woodchuck into a large bowl or pan, cver with cold water to which has been added 2 tbsp of salt. Cover and let stand in the refrigerator or in a cool place over night. Next morning drain off the salt water, rinse woodchuck well in cold water. Drain. Cut the woodchuck into serving pieces as you would a rabbit. Fit them compactly into a kettle, add the peeled whole onions stuck with a clove, the whole peppers, branch of celery, and the salt. Barely cover with cold water. Cover kettle, heat to boiling then reduce heat and simmer until the meat is tender - from 1 to 2 hrs. Remove meat and cool. Boil the broth down to about 5 cups and strain. Add the peeled, sliced carrots and potatoes and the diced celery. Cook until about tender or for about ten min. While vegetables are cooking, remove the meat from the bones and cut meat into dice. Combine with hot vegetables and taste for seasoning. Add more salt and pepper if desired. Turn into a baking dish larege enough that the woodchuck mixture comes within an inch of the top. Cut out biscuits and place on the hot mixture. Bake in a hot oven (450 degrees F) for 15 minutes, then reduce heat to 400 degrees F and bake until the biscuits are baked well all the way through and the mixture is bubbling hot. 6 to 8 servings.

There were instructions at the beginning of the "Game" section of my cookbook on how to properly slaughter game. Generally as soon as it is killed, it should be immediately and thoroughly bled out. Then eviscerated as soon after that is practical. Bleeding it out while it is very freshly dead is important to get good tasting meat.

There are also recipes for turtle, squirrel, rabbit, raccoon, possum, muskrats (aka marsh hare), elk, venison, beaver, bear, antelope and assorted game birds.

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As for the economic things, we have been frantically preparing for quite some time now. All the garden seeds we bought this year are open pollinated heirloom types just in case we can't get more seed later.

We now have two small incubators and have been hatching out and selling chicks and chickens as fast as we can since the last big commercial egg farm (all our chicken feed in this state is imported) went out of business this spring and the price of imported (as well as nasty commercially produced) eggs has skyrocketed. By selling chicks and chickens we are hoping other folks will be able to produce some of their own food.

We've been gathering recipes and information on how to make laundry soap, bread, insecticide, compost, cheese, wine, beer, paint, etc. We've been gathering tools which don't need electricity or gasoline, scythes, hand drills, push mowers, hand saws, etc.

We've also been putting together shared rides to town, buying food in bulk, gathering compost in family groups, loaning out the tiller to get other folks started gardening, etc. The more our local community can feed and take care of itself the safer we will be also. There is still a huge uphill climb and things are going to get a lot worse before they get better.

We did just manage to sell our 6 cylinder Ford Explorer yesterday. The fellow who bought it was from Europe and thinks our gas prices are very inexpensive and didn't care that it only got 20 mpg. Whew! Not that we had much invested in the truck, mostly it was just too many vehicles.

This summer's project will be to try building a windmill for electricity. There is an interesting website which has details: http://www.otherpower.com/otherpower_experiments.html
Hmm, come to think of it, I should download the information directly to my computer in case we lose the internet for some reason.

This is a joke post, right?:banana02:

Perhaps there are some who are having a rougher time now. I don't know any yet. Two guys at work who are supposedly poor drive ten miles into town from our job every few days for lunch to get a burger. I guess packing a sandwich would be considered hard times?

Society as a whole has been going downhill. There is always a happy medium, and I think we've long passed that point. Too much junk food and lack of work is not good. Our easy life is killing us.

I have a physician friend who gave up family practice because he said he was tired of treating "diseases of excess". Obesity and diabetes are epidemic - for the first time it is predicted that the next generation will live shorter lives. And mental health isn't that great either - supposedly rates of anxiety, etc are going up. I cannot believe that it is a good thing to be endlessly sitting on rears, driving cars, or staring at screens. That is the future that is set for us.

Some will not be satisfied until we can lay in bed all day hooked up to an IV line with all essential nutrients. And we can have an entertainment center on the ceiling controlled by our mind. We won't have to move a muscle! Yeah! Progress!

BTW, SunshinyTraci, excellent post.

I'm of a sort of mixed opinion on the whole downturn.

On the one hand: I'm looking forward to it because a lot of the weak willed and general chaff will be winnowed away. That may sound cruel, but it is an unfortunate necessity in any animal population on occasion and we are a very dysfunctional animal population. I think the smart, strong willed and those with a true and honest desire to succeed will do so, whatever their endeavor.

On the other hand: While I own my future mini'stead, I haven't yet retired from the military and live in a hidden piece of burb paradise right in the middle of the city that most people don't know is here. That said, the traditionally "bad" city people live all around me outside of that little hidden paradise and I already have to look twice to be sure there's no guns when driving through to go to work. It won't take a long bout of adversity before they follow the smell of food and prosperity back here and the 30 houses here wind up cinders. I seriously hope that I can get outta here before it gets bad and that I can find a buyer that still buys places like mine!

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Christy
Growing Human
http://growinghuman.blogspot.com

When wearing narrow lenses of hate and ignorance, is it any wonder one finds it difficult to see clearly? - Me

Back to the original post.
I've read here abouts that Maclame is also very unfriendly about gun ownership.
Its NOT just Boom bomma.

So the point of stocking up is that either of those slugs will add more problems to those who like to own firesticks.

Where is "around here"?

I personally, think Americans are a lot more enterprising than to sit on their hands and complain when they are hungry. If the SHTF happens, it will be those like you and I that provide the leadership. Kudo's to whomever it was who's son showed the DAD what to do. That is one less person to teach how to not only survive, but to be a productive member of society post-collapse.
The fact is, we have done this to ourselves with our greed and selfishness. At this point in history, we are like the Roman Empire prior to the fall - bloated by beaurocrats who can't govern or won't govern, debt so huge that we are already broke (check out the national deficit) and rising costs on everything.
BUT this society is a melting pot, and we are enterprising. AND ITS UP TO US TO TEACH IT.
Just a little seomthing to think about...