1 month

I got a lot of this information over at Casaubon's Book (Thanks Sharon!)

Now You might not want these exact things but this will give you an idea of where to start.

Non-electric can openner
Multi-Vitimin (get the one per day type, bottle of 30 at least)
Water 1 gal. per person per day
Oatmeal 8oz per person per day (not the instant stuff that is basicly a powder, old fashioned rolled oats)
1 can fruit or apple sauce per person per day (drink the "juice" that it is packed in too)
1 can beans per person per day
a few cans of tomatoes to give the beans a little bit of a different taste.

All of these things can be eaten as they are without any cooking at all. The apple sauce will make the oatmeal taste a little better but you can eat it as is. Vary these things don't get 30 cans of peaches. If you actually had to eat those EVERY day you would be pretty sick of peaches. Pretty quick. Now I am not saying rush right out and buy all of this at one time although if you could you would just have it done sooner. I've already been over the water storage so I won't repeat that. The oatmeal comes in 5 lbs. containers for about 3.00 or so (I'm going to quote local prices YMMV) When you are doing your regular shopping pick up one. Speaking of regular shopping eat this stuff as part of your normal diet esp. if you have kids you don't want to spring new things on them in a time of stress. If you and they are used to seeing canned pears on the table then it won't be a big deal if worse comes to worse.

The canned beans and fruit can often be had for 1.00 a can or less, look at places you might not normally buy food like "Big Lots" or "Pick and Save" that type of store. Also, if kidney beans are on sale this week then pick those up. Don't buy anything that you don't like. If black beans are on sale and you don't lke them it isn't going to help you much. I hate lima beans so there aren't any in my food supply, now kidney beans I could eat forever so I have a lot of them.

Use common sense if you can spare 5.00 this week for the storage food then spend that, if it's 25.00 then you can pick up a few more things. This list isn't hard and fast but it will give you protien, fiber, and fruits, remember to take the vitimin. (Oh I have seen vitimins on sale buy 1 bottle get one free so be sure to check if you're local drug store is having a sale)

Once you have these basics down you can add stuff like powered milk and tang like drinks. Now I know that tang is full of sugar and isn't exactly a health food but if it can get you or your kids to drink your water then it is worth it.

These types of food aren't easily portable, like the backpack supplies but if you could shelter in place even with out power you could survive. Also, These things would fit into a normal sedan type car without too much hassle if you had to leave and were able to take your car with you.

My next post will be about a more long term approach that will involve growing and cooking so be warned!

3 DAYS

OK let's start small here let's think about 3 days lights go out, no heat, how are you going to feed yourself and stay warm? Water,food, shelter are nonnegotiables.

First off water you need 1 gal. per person per day. I hear grumbling there's no way I drink that much water in a day, maybe not but you would like to wash off your hands and face, maybe rehydrate a little food. You can buy this in 1 gal containers in the store or fill up empty soda bottles from the tap (milk jugs tend to become brittle over time so if it's all you have for now use it but try to rotate it out before too long) I like to buy some of it in smaller bottles so that they can go into a:
BACKPACK:
here is a list of things needed for 72 hours. You could pick this up and go if you needed to.
• 1 Emergency Thermal Sleeping Bag ( these also come as emergency blankets that you can wrap around yourself)• 1 Tube Tent• 1 Poncho• 1 Whistle• 1 AM/FM Radio• Waterproof Matches• 1 Pocket Knife• 1 Heavy Duty Flashlight• 1 One Person First Aid Kit• 3 1200 Calorie Bar• 1 Toothpaste• 1 Toothbrush• Toilet Paper• 1 Tissue Pack• 2 D Batteries• 2 AAA Batteries

All of these things can be found a any "big box" store with the exception of the 1200 calorie bars, they are sold by shelfrelience.com for 2.80 each I have never ordered anythng from these folks and have never tasted one of these bars, I prefer MRE's (these can be had on ebay) but I wanted to give an example that was small and light. If you buy MRE's they are about 4.00each meal . I would suggest either way you round it out with some granola bars and/or GORP (good old rasions and peanuts) maybe some instant coffe or coco (MRE's come with this) when you are scared/stressed/cold you need more food besides it is always comforting to have a warm drink.

Put all of this stuff into a backpack (if you don't have one around go to goodwill don't spend money on something nice)
You might also consider putting in bug repelant, for summer time and also a comb I know it is not a survival item but keeping your moral up is important too.

Now if something happens and you loose power/gas/water you will be good to go for at least 3 days. By that time either the lights will be back on or hopefully you will have found help or help found you.
It's also not a bad idea to have one of these kits in your car.

OK this will get you 3 days..next post I will cover 1 month on the cheap.

(see wasn't that easy?? you didn't have to cook anything or grow anything or sew anything at all)

Worried

Ok I was trying to keep the blog up beat and not go all "doomer" on you guys but as a Yiddishe Mama I just can't help worry. I worry about you guys. I worry that people don't see what is coming down the track. I hope that I am worng and all of this is for nought but I really believe that it is going to get bad. Unenployment rates are crazy and you can check those out for yourself just be sure to look at the U6 numbers as they include all persons out of work where the U3 numbers only count a specific group of those with out a job (which is what is reported on the nightly talking heads show). Homeless rates are climbing. 1 out of every 10 houses in underwater with their mortage. People are selling for 50% of asking if they can get cash. Comsumers are afraid to spend or borrow money. remember that all of these things have a snow ball effect. Let's say 5 people get laid off from a company, now those 5 folks aren't eating lunch out at the usual place and 5 people who are left at the company are scared of being laid off so start to bring their lunches, now that place where they all used to go for lunch is missing 10 sales a day, so business is slowing down and they have to let go of a waiter , now the waiter used to have an apartment and buy things from the local big box place now he lives at his parents house and has no money to spend at the big box place. You see where this is going right?? The past GDP was based on consumer spending! Falling GDP is a DEPRESSION.
Please please prepare yourself both mentally and physically. I will be posting some lists and links to help you out and get you started...just think I MIGHT be right (I may be crazy) but even if the whole country does an about face, there are still other things to think about like natural disasters having three days worth of food and water in your house wouldn't be such a bad thing.

Chick Chain

We are taking the leap this year and letting our daughter do the 4H chick chain project. They project is to take 12 baby chicks raise them to be big chickens the return 3 of them to the Show and Sell in July. So we requested Rhode Island Reds that are suppose to be friendly and good layers. I hope so. We went yesterday to the farmer's co-op and picked up the brooder light, the water/feeders, we already have a box in place that will be their little home until we get the coop built. I keep thinking about what the best design will be and thinking about it and thinking about it. I now think that it is harder to decide what exactly would be the best than it will be to build the thing.

Oh why is it called chick chain? Well years ago Sears sponsered the project. The 4H kid got their chickens (25 of them) raised them and then brought them back to be sold and the money went to the 4H club directly so it was a chain. Today the 4H kid pays for the chickens (choosing 12 or 24) the returns either 3 or 6 hens to the show and sell then they get to keep any prize money and the money that their chicken brings at auction. So it's not really a chain any more but they still call it that.

So here we go! Waiting on baby chicks. waiting on baby goats.... waiting and waiting....

Eat Local

** Disclaimer I am in no way connected with any of these products except that I buy them and enjoy them **

Looking for a local mom and pop type place to pick up a few items? Looking to go local (or at least increase the precentage of local food in your diet? Well for those of you readers that are here in Knoxville...Farm Fresh Produce on Sutherland Ave. is the place to find local baked goods, cheese, milk and eggs. Last night I needed to pick up some milk and so I stopped in at this produce stand and WOOT! What a find! They even had local mayo. I just wanted to give a plug to these guys. Super friendly folks. They carry Sweetwater Valley Farmstead Cheese,yes it cost more than the store brand but what a difference, you will never want to put that excuse for cheese in your mouth again once you taste Sweetwater Valley Cheese, they also carry my personal fav of milk Cruze Farm. This is what milk is suppose to taste like. They also carry Tennessee Valley Eggs that are hand gathered by the Swaffod family in Englewood,TN. These eggs have a beautiful dark yellow yolk that stands up in the pan. This is a sign that this is a truely fresh egg. Lastly "The Bakery Lady" is back! Fresh breads baked in Seymour can be had for the same price as factory breads that have been shipped across the country.

Not only do these products taste great, and competivly priced but when you shop at this local business that stocks its shelves with local products you are supporting your neighbors and keeping the enconomy of east TN thriving. Let us all pull together and support our local farmers! Keep your hard earned cash local.

Happy New Year

Well we are off and running in this new year. I feel a sense of urgancy that I haven't felt before and it does seem like "it's for real now." Last weekend we made what I am sure is the first of many drafts of the garden plan and I have spent more time that what some would think is healthy with seed catalogs. we are tripling the garden. So lots more to plant/pick/can. I'll post some pics when we get the beds in. I was thinking about some "patio" sized peach trees but they are so expensive that I think maybe the money would be better spent at a local pick your own farm. I know it isn't providing for ourselves but it does help out a local farmer and i know that if I go there I am sure of the fruit, not making a bet that my new tree would make enough. There are plans for a few chickens. We are thinking about 4 would be good for our litttle family. I am looking at plans for different coops. I would like to have something attractive and not just slapped together since I do have a neighbor I don't want the place looking shoddy. I think it's just being a good neighbor to think that while I don't really care and I am sure that the chickens would care even less, I wouldn't want to look at their place if it was a mess. i have a site picked out that wouldn't be in the direct line of view so that helps too. We are still kidless. We got our doe back in September and the guy was sure that she was "in a family way" but still no show. If she doesn't have a kid by the end of Feb. then we are going to have to decide what the heck to do with her. do we look for someone with a buck and breed her so that she has kids in say Aug/Sep or do we sell her and try again to get a doe that is ready to kid? I just hope that she does go ahead a have kids and be done with it. I thought sure that she was going to have them last weekend. She is always very quiet even when bleating it's like she doesn't open her mouth (unlike the weather who is a HUGE cry baby) but last weekend she just opened her mouth and yelled! It was quiet something. She was up and down and panting and I thought "good she has picked a warm dry day to give birth"..but after about 30 mins of this she was back to her same old self...looking at me like I was out of my mind.

Why we bother

"why bother can't you just get milk from the store?"

I get this question a lot. Sometimes the items changes but the question never does. So why do I bother? Number one reason is food security. Yes today I could go down to the store and purchase what I needed. But, what about tomorrow? What about the next tomato/onion/pepper scare? Knowing that safe fresh food is only a few feet away is a comforting thought. The economy is in the toilet and whose job will be gone next no one knows. Not to mention prices for basic food stuff going up. Maybe I could afford the stores prices maybe not. Not to dwell on the scary things in life, I also just really enjoy watching things grow. It is so amazing to me that I plant a little tiny seed and out grows a plant with so much fruit. So maybe the satisfaction of knowing that my work will result in food for my family and friends is the best part of all.

So lots of people have a garden why bother to can? Well for the same reasons mostly. Seeing the jars of veggies and jams and fruits standing like jewels in the cupboard just gives a warm fuzzy feeling. Makes me smile. It's almost like opening a jar of summer time.

So maybe I am a "cheap date" a little dirt a few seeds some water and I'm having a good time. Maybe some folks see it as a little bit weird. That's all right. I am happy with what I am doing and feeling good that I can provide my family with a brilliant variety of fruits and veggies all year long.