Yesterday I brought home the guitar that I put on layaway last month. We did borrow some money through our credit union to make the purchase because, as we have learned, having no debt is actually bad for your credit. (WTF?!?) Yes, it turns out that if you are not beholden to anyone the lenders don't like you. They also don't like it if you pay things off early because they don't make as much interest so, while we could pay off the small sum we borrowed in short order, we are going to make the minimum payments and drag it out for a full year to help reestablish our credit. Blood sucking bastards!
(A quick note on the guitar -- I have yet to take it to work, but I did do a small bit of recording with it and it blew me away. I do believe it will indeed be the last performance guitar I ever need!)
I had made a deal with the wife that, if I get another guitar (yes, I have a few, but they all do something unique. I am not a collector, each has it's utility), she gets to book a trip she's been wanting to take for some time to visit a friend overseas. Our original plan was to pay off the first loan, then take out a second for the trip, thus establishing credit. It turns out it doesn't work that way. After talking with our person at the credit union we have decided to drag the first loan out, save for the trip then take a out a second loan secured by the money we saved. Effectively, we are paying our credit union to help us show lenders that we are good little consumers (what a crazy system!). Hopefully by doing this, though, a farm will not be out of future reach!
I got my tracks back from the studio and the project I recorded almost 17 years ago is now in my studio program on my laptop. I have plans to meet with a co-producer for the redux to listen to them and make decisions about what to keep, what can be fixed, what to re-record, and anything else later this week. It's happening!
The move out of the old house is more-or-less complete. There is a small amount of uncut firewood, a garden cart, the compost pile (hell yes we're taking it with us!), and the pen in which we kept the chickens (which we thought could be converted into a temporary/moveable greenhouse, but we're not sure if we can carry it over in the pickup truck) still at the old place. All evidence suggests that our old landlords have defaulted on the property, so we don't feel a particular hurry to have it all removed by any deadline. We will be collecting it all soon -- we need to get a garden started here and we need that compost! Now we need to sort and organize the boxes of stuff here at the new house...
In sad news, we lost another chicken this week. Dumpling, one of our Ameraucanas, was acting like she was sneezing at first. Then she started opening her beak and stretching out her neck and I thought she maybe had something stuck in her craw. Then she began to cough up blood and we became very concerned. I tried to see if there was anything I could do but it soon became obvious that she wasn't going to make it. I ended up having to put her out of her misery. The whole thing was awful. My son and I patrolled the backyard the next day and hopefully removed anything that might be harmful. They are not the most selective when it comes to what they'll eat. I am guessing she found a piece of something she thought was food that was instead sharp and dangerous (I was surprised to find many things in the yard that matched that description).
The pantry is going to be much more user-friendly at this new place. I am looking forward not just to stocking it, but actually looking forward to USING it. That's going to be huge!
I still need to complete our taxes. The move really put a wrench in things there. Hopefully I can get that done over Easter weekend.
Lots on the plate. It's all about finding balance right now.
Showing posts with label chickens. Show all posts
Showing posts with label chickens. Show all posts
Wednesday, April 4, 2012
Monday, March 19, 2012
Update
We've been pretty busy. Moving really makes one aware of just how many hobbies and activities one has. Each one takes it's own gear and I seem to have acquired a lot of it.
I think it's fair to say I have gotten back into homebrewing full-bore. I have not been able to establish and maintain a single day of the week as "Brew Day" with the hectic moving schedule, but I have managed to brew five batches so far and keep a couple of yeast packs going.
In my resolutions I mentioned an expensive guitar that I was hoping to acquire this year. The other day I got a call from a local music store to inform me that they had one of these rare guitars in. I have not been able to save enough money to buy it, but I did go play it, made a deal, and had enough to put it on layaway. Unbelievable. This will likely be the nicest instrument I ever own.
The garden is going to be a challenge. We will be starting from scratch at the new house and we're already behind. We do have a lot more space to organize things and having a garage really makes a huge difference for me! Since the backyard is fenced, we have given the chickens free reign of that space. We are talking about possibly getting new chicks this spring and increasing the flock.
In my resolutions I also talked about reworking an older recording project. Before I am able to do that I need to transfer the original tracks from their old, outdated format to a format I can work with. As I write this, the tapes are at a studio where (hopefully) they can do just that. Once that is done I will be able to load the tracks into my computer and then I have no excuses for not completing that project.
I have teamed up with a like-minded person and started a social network page with the goal of promoting public discussion of electing citizens over professional politicians. I have not been very involved with that as I have been busy with other things, but I am thrilled that something is happening!
I knew this year was going to be busy. I'm not sure I knew how time-consuming it was going to be. (heh)
I think it's fair to say I have gotten back into homebrewing full-bore. I have not been able to establish and maintain a single day of the week as "Brew Day" with the hectic moving schedule, but I have managed to brew five batches so far and keep a couple of yeast packs going.
In my resolutions I mentioned an expensive guitar that I was hoping to acquire this year. The other day I got a call from a local music store to inform me that they had one of these rare guitars in. I have not been able to save enough money to buy it, but I did go play it, made a deal, and had enough to put it on layaway. Unbelievable. This will likely be the nicest instrument I ever own.
The garden is going to be a challenge. We will be starting from scratch at the new house and we're already behind. We do have a lot more space to organize things and having a garage really makes a huge difference for me! Since the backyard is fenced, we have given the chickens free reign of that space. We are talking about possibly getting new chicks this spring and increasing the flock.
In my resolutions I also talked about reworking an older recording project. Before I am able to do that I need to transfer the original tracks from their old, outdated format to a format I can work with. As I write this, the tapes are at a studio where (hopefully) they can do just that. Once that is done I will be able to load the tracks into my computer and then I have no excuses for not completing that project.
I have teamed up with a like-minded person and started a social network page with the goal of promoting public discussion of electing citizens over professional politicians. I have not been very involved with that as I have been busy with other things, but I am thrilled that something is happening!
I knew this year was going to be busy. I'm not sure I knew how time-consuming it was going to be. (heh)
Wednesday, February 29, 2012
Busy, busy, busy...
I'm not getting any better at posting regularly here, am I?
Here's what's going on: I got the beer brewing kickstarted three weeks ago and have brewed a batch each week. I currently have three different batches at various stages of fermentation and will begin kegging and bottling next week.
One of our chickens died just last week. Like Ginger, we have no idea of the cause, but Omelet was found dead in the hen house last Saturday. Omelet was a Rhode Island Red, a good layer, and an entertaining bird. We are down to four chickens no, which, in hindsight, would probably have been plenty to supply our family of three with eggs the first couple years. Now the girls are slowing down. I doubt we will get new chicks this year, but probably one or two next year.
My career has also been keeping me busy. The company that I primarily work for is going through some changes (good things) and while I have not been directly involved in the majority of the work, it has occupied my time nonetheless.
A potential move has been the main focus of my time and energy. Are we moving onto a farm?!? While that would be great, that hasn't happened just yet. We have been presented with an opportunity to move into a house that would be a small step up from where we are now in many ways. Things like a garage to keep our VW bus and various other things that are currently rusting outside or cluttering up our utility room/pantry, more storage inside for things like backpacking gear and crafty stuff, and lower rent are all motivators. The deal is a little unconventional, so there were many details to consider, but we are at the point now where it is time to pack up and move.
I have had some other interesting developments in respect to this year's resolutions, but I will save that for another post. Right now, I need to pack.
Here's what's going on: I got the beer brewing kickstarted three weeks ago and have brewed a batch each week. I currently have three different batches at various stages of fermentation and will begin kegging and bottling next week.
One of our chickens died just last week. Like Ginger, we have no idea of the cause, but Omelet was found dead in the hen house last Saturday. Omelet was a Rhode Island Red, a good layer, and an entertaining bird. We are down to four chickens no, which, in hindsight, would probably have been plenty to supply our family of three with eggs the first couple years. Now the girls are slowing down. I doubt we will get new chicks this year, but probably one or two next year.
My career has also been keeping me busy. The company that I primarily work for is going through some changes (good things) and while I have not been directly involved in the majority of the work, it has occupied my time nonetheless.
A potential move has been the main focus of my time and energy. Are we moving onto a farm?!? While that would be great, that hasn't happened just yet. We have been presented with an opportunity to move into a house that would be a small step up from where we are now in many ways. Things like a garage to keep our VW bus and various other things that are currently rusting outside or cluttering up our utility room/pantry, more storage inside for things like backpacking gear and crafty stuff, and lower rent are all motivators. The deal is a little unconventional, so there were many details to consider, but we are at the point now where it is time to pack up and move.
I have had some other interesting developments in respect to this year's resolutions, but I will save that for another post. Right now, I need to pack.
Wednesday, May 11, 2011
Weekend Update
Tonight brings to an end a three-night weekend, something of an event of late. The weather wasn't as great as forecast, but this afternoon was beautiful. Our backpacking tent which was washed a couple weeks ago finally got the seams sealed and treated with Nikwax Solarproof
. After last week's trip to Mt. Rainier we are talking about a camping trip with day hikes around the Longmire/Paradise area. Since the weather is looking like that won't be in the cards this month I am hoping to put together a backpacking excursion to Upper Lena Lake in the Olympic National Park before we hit Mt. Rainier.
While waiting for the weather to improve we did some laundry, dishes, picked up the wife's serger from the shop, and backed-up the wife's desktop.We are now ready to start consolidating some hardware, moving some furniture, and making room to create a new sewing/craft space in the living room.
The pepper and tomato sprouts are doing great inside. Unfortunately, the weather is not cooperating to move them outside yet. We picked up peat pots and some organic soil for the bigger plants, but have yet to transplant them.
I was able to erect the tee-pee trellis for the peas that are starting to come up in the garden, sweep the driveway, do some edging, seed the bare spots in the lawn, fill in some of the larger chicken divots in the lawn, and do a little rough mowing (I'm saving the real mowing for when the grass gets too tall for the chickens).
Speaking of chickens, the neighbor's dog was inside this afternoon, so we were able to let the girls free-range for a while today. I tipped up some pallets where the firewood was stacked and it was all-you-can eat-buffet.
For dinner tonight the wife made dough while I picked a couple cups of fresh oregano that is still going strong from last year's garden and we had homemade pizza.
Yum!
. After last week's trip to Mt. Rainier we are talking about a camping trip with day hikes around the Longmire/Paradise area. Since the weather is looking like that won't be in the cards this month I am hoping to put together a backpacking excursion to Upper Lena Lake in the Olympic National Park before we hit Mt. Rainier.While waiting for the weather to improve we did some laundry, dishes, picked up the wife's serger from the shop, and backed-up the wife's desktop.We are now ready to start consolidating some hardware, moving some furniture, and making room to create a new sewing/craft space in the living room.
I was able to erect the tee-pee trellis for the peas that are starting to come up in the garden, sweep the driveway, do some edging, seed the bare spots in the lawn, fill in some of the larger chicken divots in the lawn, and do a little rough mowing (I'm saving the real mowing for when the grass gets too tall for the chickens).
Speaking of chickens, the neighbor's dog was inside this afternoon, so we were able to let the girls free-range for a while today. I tipped up some pallets where the firewood was stacked and it was all-you-can eat-buffet.
For dinner tonight the wife made dough while I picked a couple cups of fresh oregano that is still going strong from last year's garden and we had homemade pizza.
Yum!
Thursday, April 28, 2011
General Update
Here's what's up in our world:
The wife's serger is still in the shop. Turns out it needs a needle plate (?), so that's going to take another 7-10 days. Bummer. It's just as well as the sewing table probably won't be here for another couple weeks (being delivered by mother-in-law from Oregon) and we're not making speedy progress in getting the computer backed up that is currently on the desk where the sewing table will go. We need to get on that.
The outdoor seeds have not sprouted. The weather is continuing to dip 5-10 degrees below normal every night and sunshine is still sparse. It's almost May! C'mon, spring! The indoor seeds are doing well -- all but the wonderberry and marmande tomatoes. I have replanted marmande seeds (again). Hopefully the weather will warm up before the tomatoes and peppers get too big!
The CDs we hung around the garden seem to be doing an excellent job. I've seen the crows several times but have yet to see a bird in our front yard.
The chickens were moved this afternoon from the side yard to the backyard. The backyard still has spots that haven't fully recovered, but we'll try to keep the chicken tractor away from those areas this round. The side yard is not flat and the neighbors have a new puppy that makes us (and the chickens) a little nervous, so it's nice to get them out of there.
I am just waiting for one sunny day to take the tent and backpacks outside and treat them with UV/waterproof spray. If I can make time and the weather cooperates Monday or Tuesday, perhaps the family and I will take a drive and possibly do a day hike up around Mt. Rainier. Here's hoping!
Tomorrow I plan to make the final payment and close the account on a loan I've been nursing for 16 years! I'm not proud to have has this debt for so long, but I am thrilled to be putting it behind me. It's amazing how easy it is to pay things off when there are less of them to pay each month!
The wife's serger is still in the shop. Turns out it needs a needle plate (?), so that's going to take another 7-10 days. Bummer. It's just as well as the sewing table probably won't be here for another couple weeks (being delivered by mother-in-law from Oregon) and we're not making speedy progress in getting the computer backed up that is currently on the desk where the sewing table will go. We need to get on that.
The outdoor seeds have not sprouted. The weather is continuing to dip 5-10 degrees below normal every night and sunshine is still sparse. It's almost May! C'mon, spring! The indoor seeds are doing well -- all but the wonderberry and marmande tomatoes. I have replanted marmande seeds (again). Hopefully the weather will warm up before the tomatoes and peppers get too big!
The CDs we hung around the garden seem to be doing an excellent job. I've seen the crows several times but have yet to see a bird in our front yard.
The chickens were moved this afternoon from the side yard to the backyard. The backyard still has spots that haven't fully recovered, but we'll try to keep the chicken tractor away from those areas this round. The side yard is not flat and the neighbors have a new puppy that makes us (and the chickens) a little nervous, so it's nice to get them out of there.
I am just waiting for one sunny day to take the tent and backpacks outside and treat them with UV/waterproof spray. If I can make time and the weather cooperates Monday or Tuesday, perhaps the family and I will take a drive and possibly do a day hike up around Mt. Rainier. Here's hoping!
Tomorrow I plan to make the final payment and close the account on a loan I've been nursing for 16 years! I'm not proud to have has this debt for so long, but I am thrilled to be putting it behind me. It's amazing how easy it is to pay things off when there are less of them to pay each month!
Wednesday, April 27, 2011
Easter
The Family and I spent Easter with family in Portland. I missed the early Sunday festivities (it's difficult to work into the wee hours in Seattle and attend morning appointments in Portland), but was mostly present for the family gathering afterward (in all honesty my sleep schedule is still off). We had a nice evening just wife, son, mother-in-law, and myself. The wife and I talked about how our jobs are up and down. Mother-in-law had great stories of poor-laid plans, misplaced dogs, and over-abundances of ducks. By the time we retired to bed we had all been up later than expected.
Monday morning we bid farewell to mother-in-law as we departed town and headed north. We made a few stops, including lunch at McMenamins. I popped into REI to pick up a hiking map and book for Mt. Rainier. Not sure what this backpacking season has in store -- I'm not abandoning the Olympics, but I like the idea of exploring new territory. I also picked up a filter replacement for the water filter and stuff to clean and treat the tent. I washed the tent but will have to wait until the weather is more stable to take it outside, treat it with UV and water-proofing, and reseal the seams.
The chickens are well. The garden hasn't begun to sprout yet, but the indoor sprouts are doing very well! I've been spending as much time in my new "five-finger" running/hiking shoes as possible. I think it's time to start exploring day-hikes around Mt. Rainier!
I have some new ideas about the music/writing project I committed to choosing that I might decide to take on. I am disappointed that the writing (and the exercise, for that matter) has taken so long to start in on. I have let enough time lapse that spring and summer will now overtake any indoor project. That's fine, though, I now have several options to mull over while toiling in the garden and exploring the great outdoors.
I'm so happy spring is finally here.
Monday morning we bid farewell to mother-in-law as we departed town and headed north. We made a few stops, including lunch at McMenamins. I popped into REI to pick up a hiking map and book for Mt. Rainier. Not sure what this backpacking season has in store -- I'm not abandoning the Olympics, but I like the idea of exploring new territory. I also picked up a filter replacement for the water filter and stuff to clean and treat the tent. I washed the tent but will have to wait until the weather is more stable to take it outside, treat it with UV and water-proofing, and reseal the seams.
The chickens are well. The garden hasn't begun to sprout yet, but the indoor sprouts are doing very well! I've been spending as much time in my new "five-finger" running/hiking shoes as possible. I think it's time to start exploring day-hikes around Mt. Rainier!
I have some new ideas about the music/writing project I committed to choosing that I might decide to take on. I am disappointed that the writing (and the exercise, for that matter) has taken so long to start in on. I have let enough time lapse that spring and summer will now overtake any indoor project. That's fine, though, I now have several options to mull over while toiling in the garden and exploring the great outdoors.
I'm so happy spring is finally here.
Monday, April 18, 2011
Another Productive Day
This morning the house was cold. Yesterday had been an usually long Sunday and I lacked the ambition to get a fire going in the wood stove. So I woke up this morning, made coffee, and cranked up the wood stove. Once the wife and son were up we loaded in a supply of firewood and had breakfast.
Then we set outside where the garden beds were waiting for us. They had been mulched, composted, and turned and all that was left was to put seeds in the ground. We've been patiently watching the weather forecast and putting off planting. Today was the day!
The hops were way ahead of us...
In the picture you can see last year's oregano still going strong in the foreground. Some of the herbs are in the pots under the tree. The CDs are hung up to deter the crows and other neighborhood birds.
Speaking of neighborhood birds, the chickens were also waiting for us this morning. Here they are scratching in the new grass just after being moved.
We did a few more chores around the yard. While we were out the mail came and along with it...
Before calling it a day we prepped some pinto beans for canning tomorrow.
Tomorrow's going to be another big day!
Tuesday, March 8, 2011
Pictures!
Happy Fat Tuesday!
Today the weather was nice so we headed out to get some chores done around the house. Things like raking up after the chickens, finally picking up the chicken infirmary we had set up for Little, turning the compost pile, seeding the lawn where the chickens have gotten a bit over-zealous, and just doing some general clean-up.
We let the chickens run loose while we worked and I turned my son loose with the camera. Here's some of what he came up with...
Finally, a couple of shots of the yard, all picked up and the chickens put away...
Today the weather was nice so we headed out to get some chores done around the house. Things like raking up after the chickens, finally picking up the chicken infirmary we had set up for Little, turning the compost pile, seeding the lawn where the chickens have gotten a bit over-zealous, and just doing some general clean-up.
We let the chickens run loose while we worked and I turned my son loose with the camera. Here's some of what he came up with...
Finally, a couple of shots of the yard, all picked up and the chickens put away...
Sunday, February 6, 2011
Chicken Little: Update II
The continuing saga...
Little has been returned to the flock. She spent most of the first day back trying to get out of the pen, but seemed to settle down after one night (I would love to let them free range, but I'm afraid they would not survive long with the local predators and limited space we have). The other hens still pick on her, but the wound on her back appears to be healing. She's still laying regularly, so that's a good sign.
We'll have to keep an eye on her, but for the moment all seems well in the coop.
Little has been returned to the flock. She spent most of the first day back trying to get out of the pen, but seemed to settle down after one night (I would love to let them free range, but I'm afraid they would not survive long with the local predators and limited space we have). The other hens still pick on her, but the wound on her back appears to be healing. She's still laying regularly, so that's a good sign.
We'll have to keep an eye on her, but for the moment all seems well in the coop.
Tuesday, February 1, 2011
Chicken Little: Update
An update from the chicken infirmary, Dumpling and Little seemed to have weathered the night separated from the rest of the flock just fine. When we checked on them this morning they had knocked their food and water over, Little had already laid an egg on the ground, and both were happy to see us.
We moved Dumpling back with the rest of the flock and Little didn't appear to mind being on her own now. The wound on her back looked to be healing well beyond what we expected, so we hope to have her moved back in with the other hens in a few days.
I let her out this afternoon to free range in the yard while I took care of some chores. That seemed to make her happy.
Like I said, she's spoiled.
We moved Dumpling back with the rest of the flock and Little didn't appear to mind being on her own now. The wound on her back looked to be healing well beyond what we expected, so we hope to have her moved back in with the other hens in a few days.
I let her out this afternoon to free range in the yard while I took care of some chores. That seemed to make her happy.
Like I said, she's spoiled.
Monday, January 31, 2011
Chicken Infirmary
Our most spoiled chicken, Little, is an Ameraucana and gets picked on (pecked on?) by the other chickens. I feel partly responsible because Little has always been the favorite with the humans and I assume the other chickens have singled her out because of this. My wife agrees that it's my fault.
Anyway, today we discovered a wound on Little's back where the other hens peck at her. We decided it was time to set up a chicken infirmary and separate Little from the rest of the flock for a while. Unfortunately the decision was made when we moved the chicken tractor late this afternoon, so we had to race to get it set up before dark.
Of course, we had given our extra chicken wire to my wife's cousin for their coop, so my wife ran to the hardware store while I made preparations. We moved a wood and wire bin previously used for scrap wood to a safe spot in the yard, wrapped it with chicken netting, put in some food, water, a perch, and Little. We covered it with a solid pallet so nothing can get in (or out).
At first Little was very anxious and kept trying to get out. We set up some boards around the side with the perch hoping that closing it in would make it feel more like the hen house and she would settle down. When that didn't work, we agreed to take Dumpling -- our other Ameraucana and probably most docile hen -- and put her in the infirmary with Little. That seemed to do the trick and once Dumpling found the food, water, and perch, they both seemed to settle in fine.
We plan to move Dumpling back with the rest of the flock tomorrow. Hopefully Little will be okay by herself and we can keep her separated for a few days while her wound heals.
I'll post updates as they happen.
Anyway, today we discovered a wound on Little's back where the other hens peck at her. We decided it was time to set up a chicken infirmary and separate Little from the rest of the flock for a while. Unfortunately the decision was made when we moved the chicken tractor late this afternoon, so we had to race to get it set up before dark.
Of course, we had given our extra chicken wire to my wife's cousin for their coop, so my wife ran to the hardware store while I made preparations. We moved a wood and wire bin previously used for scrap wood to a safe spot in the yard, wrapped it with chicken netting, put in some food, water, a perch, and Little. We covered it with a solid pallet so nothing can get in (or out).
At first Little was very anxious and kept trying to get out. We set up some boards around the side with the perch hoping that closing it in would make it feel more like the hen house and she would settle down. When that didn't work, we agreed to take Dumpling -- our other Ameraucana and probably most docile hen -- and put her in the infirmary with Little. That seemed to do the trick and once Dumpling found the food, water, and perch, they both seemed to settle in fine.
We plan to move Dumpling back with the rest of the flock tomorrow. Hopefully Little will be okay by herself and we can keep her separated for a few days while her wound heals.
I'll post updates as they happen.
Friday, November 12, 2010
Elk, Mayo, and Potato Salad
Elk season opened this past Saturday. One person in our party spotted several cows over the course of the weekend. I saw a buck Sunday and with a quick call I was able to give him to pause and present me with a perfect target; too bad it wasn't deer season. On Monday we did not see or hear anything but other hunters and logging in the distance. Tuesday morning I decided to try a new area and heard a cow calling repeatedly. I adjusted my position just in time to see a herd of elk parade into the trees. I followed their trail for about a mile into the woods, but never saw them again. Still, I know where I'm going this weekend.
In lieu of packing the freezer with elk, today I decided to make potato salad. I was inspired recently during our visit to the east coast by tales of a friend in Alabama who has taken to making everything from scratch. I did can some relish this season, but the idea of making almost everything from scratch captured my imagination and I started looking into canning recipes for things like mustard and catsup. What I discovered is that homemade mayonnaise cannot be preserved -- it can only be made fresh and refrigerated for use over a few days. Seriously makes me wonder what's in commercial mayo that can sit on a grocery store shelf.
Anyway, this afternoon I made potato salad with local potatoes, eggs from the chickens, last season's pickles, and homemade mayo. It took me a while to get the proportions worked out with the mayo, so I ended up with more than I intended.
I guess I'll have plenty for sandwiches while I'm out trying to get one of those elk!
In lieu of packing the freezer with elk, today I decided to make potato salad. I was inspired recently during our visit to the east coast by tales of a friend in Alabama who has taken to making everything from scratch. I did can some relish this season, but the idea of making almost everything from scratch captured my imagination and I started looking into canning recipes for things like mustard and catsup. What I discovered is that homemade mayonnaise cannot be preserved -- it can only be made fresh and refrigerated for use over a few days. Seriously makes me wonder what's in commercial mayo that can sit on a grocery store shelf.
Anyway, this afternoon I made potato salad with local potatoes, eggs from the chickens, last season's pickles, and homemade mayo. It took me a while to get the proportions worked out with the mayo, so I ended up with more than I intended.
I guess I'll have plenty for sandwiches while I'm out trying to get one of those elk!
Thursday, October 14, 2010
Ten Days on the East Coast
Today I find myself back home across the Sound from Seattle after ten days on the coast of North Carolina. From sunny, humid mid-80's to overcast, drizzly mid-50's -- a stark reminder that I do not yet have enough firewood for the winter. The storm windows have been closed over the screens for winter and the woodstove has been slowly bringing the house back up to a comfortable 68 degrees. Someone stole several pumpkins from the garden while we were away, leaving us with only one small pumpkin. I believe we are missing some squash as well. As I've said before, it's been a disappointing year in the garden, but we were still able to harvest carrots, cabbage, and onions for tonight's dinner. The chickens seem to be doing fine, though they were very happy to be moved out from behind the shed and back onto the now overgrown lawn. I am perfectly fine letting them handle the mowing for the time being. The neighbor's maple tree has started to blanket the side yard with leaves that will become the foundation of next year's compost pile while this year's pile continues to break down for use as winter mulch and later for spring planting. It seems the summer -- such as it was -- is conclusively over. Despite all efforts to prepare before leaving home, I find that I have returned to a backlog of projects.
It's been two years since I've been back to coastal Carolina. While I have several good friends there and it is great to be able to spend time with them once again, my trip reminds me of the reasons I jumped at the opportunity to return to the Pacific Northwest. During our ten-day visit just about everyone commented on how lucky we were to be there after the summer heat had finally let up. I was still uncomfortable any time I had to be outside except for the afternoon we spent at the beach, swimming in the ocean. It's just hot there and I have never been comfortable in the heat.
Besides the heat and humidity, I find it very difficult to eat responsibly in the south eastern United States. It took a while living in North Carolina for me to understand that part of this is because of pigs. Pork production, processing, and packing make up a huge chunk of North Carolina's industry. In fact, North Carolina is the largest pork producer in the U.S. (according to the EPA). As a result, big business has had big influence on state agriculture and, ultimately, on consumer options.
Just a quick comparison of Washington State and North Carolina: in 2008, Washington had 697 certified organic operations totaling 96,166 acres. NC had 156 certified organic operations totaling 5,243 acres. Washington had 39,500 farms while NC had 52,500. Washington's total agricultural area in 2007 was approximately 42,540,079 acres while North Carolina's was 31,113,828 acres. Possibly the most staggering figure is that of those total agricultural acres, 4,775,287 were pastureland in Washington while only 941,609 were pastureland in NC. Read those numbers again and then realize that chickens and hogs are North Carolina's top commodities and second only to tobacco in exports while Washington's top commodity is apples. Meat ranks fifth in the state's exports behind fruits, vegetables, "other" (most likely hops), and wheat. In general, Washington and North Carolina go about producing food very differently. (All of these stats come from the USDA)
When we lived in North Carolina, we were members of a local food co-op where we shopped regularly. We were also lucky to have a farmer's market where we could get fresh, local food. When one is traveling it is not as easy to avail one's self of these options. Traveling on a budget presents another hurdle as the worst food is almost always the cheapest and easiest. We were fortunate to have hosts with which to stay during most of our trip and thereby have the capacity for food storage and prep, but we were also dependent one the good will of said hosts to get around the sprawl of town. Since the co-op was on the far side of town and we were not in town on Saturday during the farmer's market, we had to make due with what we could find in the grocery stores. I soon I found I just had to let it go, make the best of it, and be thankful to the good friends we have for putting us up, driving us around, and opening their homes and kitchens to us. We tried to spend what little money we had in a direction to support healthy and responsible food systems.
Today I am glad to be home with the chickens, the garden, the produce markets, and the local butcher. I do miss my friends back east. I hope they can come visit soon.
It's been two years since I've been back to coastal Carolina. While I have several good friends there and it is great to be able to spend time with them once again, my trip reminds me of the reasons I jumped at the opportunity to return to the Pacific Northwest. During our ten-day visit just about everyone commented on how lucky we were to be there after the summer heat had finally let up. I was still uncomfortable any time I had to be outside except for the afternoon we spent at the beach, swimming in the ocean. It's just hot there and I have never been comfortable in the heat.
Besides the heat and humidity, I find it very difficult to eat responsibly in the south eastern United States. It took a while living in North Carolina for me to understand that part of this is because of pigs. Pork production, processing, and packing make up a huge chunk of North Carolina's industry. In fact, North Carolina is the largest pork producer in the U.S. (according to the EPA). As a result, big business has had big influence on state agriculture and, ultimately, on consumer options.
Just a quick comparison of Washington State and North Carolina: in 2008, Washington had 697 certified organic operations totaling 96,166 acres. NC had 156 certified organic operations totaling 5,243 acres. Washington had 39,500 farms while NC had 52,500. Washington's total agricultural area in 2007 was approximately 42,540,079 acres while North Carolina's was 31,113,828 acres. Possibly the most staggering figure is that of those total agricultural acres, 4,775,287 were pastureland in Washington while only 941,609 were pastureland in NC. Read those numbers again and then realize that chickens and hogs are North Carolina's top commodities and second only to tobacco in exports while Washington's top commodity is apples. Meat ranks fifth in the state's exports behind fruits, vegetables, "other" (most likely hops), and wheat. In general, Washington and North Carolina go about producing food very differently. (All of these stats come from the USDA)
When we lived in North Carolina, we were members of a local food co-op where we shopped regularly. We were also lucky to have a farmer's market where we could get fresh, local food. When one is traveling it is not as easy to avail one's self of these options. Traveling on a budget presents another hurdle as the worst food is almost always the cheapest and easiest. We were fortunate to have hosts with which to stay during most of our trip and thereby have the capacity for food storage and prep, but we were also dependent one the good will of said hosts to get around the sprawl of town. Since the co-op was on the far side of town and we were not in town on Saturday during the farmer's market, we had to make due with what we could find in the grocery stores. I soon I found I just had to let it go, make the best of it, and be thankful to the good friends we have for putting us up, driving us around, and opening their homes and kitchens to us. We tried to spend what little money we had in a direction to support healthy and responsible food systems.
Today I am glad to be home with the chickens, the garden, the produce markets, and the local butcher. I do miss my friends back east. I hope they can come visit soon.
Saturday, October 2, 2010
Garden Notes, End of September 2010
A disappointing year in the garden. Temperatures stayed right around 70 dF with only a few exceptions of days into the 80's and 90's.
Still, here's something to show for it:
Cucumbers!
We either need a larger fermenting crock or, better yet, more smaller ones because these cukes got too big while we we fermenting our first batch of dills. They are still yummy and we'll share what we can't eat fresh with friends and neighbors.
Green tomatoes.
A whole lotta green tomatoes this year. I think we harvested less than five ripe tomatoes this year, but we pulled in just over 30 pounds of green tomatoes. I said earlier I was torn between trying dill pickled green tomatoes and green tomato salsa -- I had enough to do a LOT of both and still had some left over...
Dill green tomatoes and green tomato salsa.
More dill green tomatoes and still more green tomatoes!
Green tomato relish.
Not that one might presume from appearances, but the last of the green tomatoes went into this relish. The red color comes from the red cabbage -- another crop of which we had abundance.
We still need to can some staples like chicken soup broth (we have everything we need, we just need to do it) and beef stew (hopefully the carrots in the garden will still be useful when we are able to get the meat and potatoes and time).
Considering what we had to work with this season, I think we have done just fine.
More to come...
Still, here's something to show for it:
We either need a larger fermenting crock or, better yet, more smaller ones because these cukes got too big while we we fermenting our first batch of dills. They are still yummy and we'll share what we can't eat fresh with friends and neighbors.
A whole lotta green tomatoes this year. I think we harvested less than five ripe tomatoes this year, but we pulled in just over 30 pounds of green tomatoes. I said earlier I was torn between trying dill pickled green tomatoes and green tomato salsa -- I had enough to do a LOT of both and still had some left over...
Dill green tomatoes and green tomato salsa.
More dill green tomatoes and still more green tomatoes!
Not that one might presume from appearances, but the last of the green tomatoes went into this relish. The red color comes from the red cabbage -- another crop of which we had abundance.
We still need to can some staples like chicken soup broth (we have everything we need, we just need to do it) and beef stew (hopefully the carrots in the garden will still be useful when we are able to get the meat and potatoes and time).
Considering what we had to work with this season, I think we have done just fine.
More to come...
Friday, September 24, 2010
Harvest Season
A disappointing garden season thus far.
Still, there is this...
Sixteen pints of corn and eight quarts of pickles. The corn and cucumbers were purchased locally and not from the garden, but it's food in the pantry nonetheless. These were processed on the 18th.
Earlier today, I made a salad and found these in our garden:
The season may be disappointing, but there is still a little satisfaction. There is still a promise of pumpkins, squash, and radishes, with cabbage, carrots, onions, and green tomatoes ready to harvest. I am currently debating between green tomato salsa and pickled dill green tomatoes...
The lawn is making a comeback after the dry season and the chickens are loving it. Egg production has dropped slightly with the shortening of the days, but keeping them on the move around the yard helps keep them active! Chicken treats from the garden have already began to increase as crops are pulled. The compost pile of non-feed scraps, yard waste, and chicken manure are ready and waiting to cover the garden beds for winter.
We will be leaving for North Carolina in a little over a week. Hopefully I will have time and news before then!
Eat well in the meantime!
Still, there is this...
Sixteen pints of corn and eight quarts of pickles. The corn and cucumbers were purchased locally and not from the garden, but it's food in the pantry nonetheless. These were processed on the 18th.
Earlier today, I made a salad and found these in our garden:
The season may be disappointing, but there is still a little satisfaction. There is still a promise of pumpkins, squash, and radishes, with cabbage, carrots, onions, and green tomatoes ready to harvest. I am currently debating between green tomato salsa and pickled dill green tomatoes...
The lawn is making a comeback after the dry season and the chickens are loving it. Egg production has dropped slightly with the shortening of the days, but keeping them on the move around the yard helps keep them active! Chicken treats from the garden have already began to increase as crops are pulled. The compost pile of non-feed scraps, yard waste, and chicken manure are ready and waiting to cover the garden beds for winter.
We will be leaving for North Carolina in a little over a week. Hopefully I will have time and news before then!
Eat well in the meantime!
Wednesday, August 25, 2010
Deal With The Problem
From the AP article, "Eggs in the raw? Experts say give them a pass" :
"HARTFORD, Conn. — Experts have some simple advice when it comes to eating runny eggs these days: Run away.
"With salmonella concerns triggering the recall of more than a half-billion eggs in more than a dozen states, warnings are becoming more dire every day against eating undercooked yolks and translucent egg whites."
Fear, fear, FEAR!
..."Don't eat any questionable eggs — cooked or otherwise — especially if they're part of the recall, but even if they're not on that list but are cracked or have been sitting in the refrigerator for a while (eggs remain fresh for about a month after purchase).
"'Eggs are cheap. Throw them away. It's that simple,' said Brad Barnes, an associate dean at the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, N.Y."
The article goes on to discuss how to use a thermometer to make sure your eggs are overcooked.
If you're into over-cooked eggs, that's fine, and for the most part, "don't eat questionable eggs" is probably the best advice this article offers. What is crazy is that the article does not offer a long-term solution and instead just adds to the media fear machine. How about this:
Don't buy eggs from large-scale egg producers.
We have seen over and over again that large-scale food production creates large-scale health risks. How about, instead of shrugging our shoulders and taking soft-boiled eggs off the menu for a while (the article makes no mention of how long we the sheeple should be over-cooking our eggs, by the way. Just be scared!), we look for better eggs? Keeping chickens, it turns out, is about as much work as keeping a cat, but I understand it's not practical for a lot of people. So why not suggest calling around your local community and finding local people who raise chickens and sell eggs? Go out, see how the chickens live and choose the eggs that come from a place you would most like to get them. They will be fresher, taste better, and if the chickens are being taken care of, will be cleaner without having to be chemically treated.
Don't live in fear -- take charge.
"HARTFORD, Conn. — Experts have some simple advice when it comes to eating runny eggs these days: Run away.
"With salmonella concerns triggering the recall of more than a half-billion eggs in more than a dozen states, warnings are becoming more dire every day against eating undercooked yolks and translucent egg whites."
Fear, fear, FEAR!
..."Don't eat any questionable eggs — cooked or otherwise — especially if they're part of the recall, but even if they're not on that list but are cracked or have been sitting in the refrigerator for a while (eggs remain fresh for about a month after purchase).
"'Eggs are cheap. Throw them away. It's that simple,' said Brad Barnes, an associate dean at the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, N.Y."
The article goes on to discuss how to use a thermometer to make sure your eggs are overcooked.
If you're into over-cooked eggs, that's fine, and for the most part, "don't eat questionable eggs" is probably the best advice this article offers. What is crazy is that the article does not offer a long-term solution and instead just adds to the media fear machine. How about this:
Don't buy eggs from large-scale egg producers.
We have seen over and over again that large-scale food production creates large-scale health risks. How about, instead of shrugging our shoulders and taking soft-boiled eggs off the menu for a while (the article makes no mention of how long we the sheeple should be over-cooking our eggs, by the way. Just be scared!), we look for better eggs? Keeping chickens, it turns out, is about as much work as keeping a cat, but I understand it's not practical for a lot of people. So why not suggest calling around your local community and finding local people who raise chickens and sell eggs? Go out, see how the chickens live and choose the eggs that come from a place you would most like to get them. They will be fresher, taste better, and if the chickens are being taken care of, will be cleaner without having to be chemically treated.
Don't live in fear -- take charge.
Contaminated Eggs Originate from Iowa's "Habitual Violator"
From: Food Democracy Now!
"Already more than 1,300 people have been sickened from salmonella poisoning and according to food safety experts, that number is likely to double. For every 1 person who reports the illness another 38.5 will become sick but never report the illness or be tested, meaning some 50,000 Americans have already been sickened by what is being called the largest egg recall in modern history.
While early reports initially confined the recall to 17 states, officials at the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and Centers for Disease Control (CDC) reported today that the recall has reached at least 22 states. Since news on the ground regarding illnesses is only beginning to reach federal authorities, this recall will most likely will spread further.
As the story continues to unfold, it’s clear that this could have been prevented.
As has already been widely reported, the owner of Wright County Eggs has a long rap sheet of violations of state and federal laws."
Read more...
"Already more than 1,300 people have been sickened from salmonella poisoning and according to food safety experts, that number is likely to double. For every 1 person who reports the illness another 38.5 will become sick but never report the illness or be tested, meaning some 50,000 Americans have already been sickened by what is being called the largest egg recall in modern history.
While early reports initially confined the recall to 17 states, officials at the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and Centers for Disease Control (CDC) reported today that the recall has reached at least 22 states. Since news on the ground regarding illnesses is only beginning to reach federal authorities, this recall will most likely will spread further.
As the story continues to unfold, it’s clear that this could have been prevented.
As has already been widely reported, the owner of Wright County Eggs has a long rap sheet of violations of state and federal laws."
Read more...
Thursday, August 19, 2010
Egg Recall Expands; CDC Expects More Illnesses
From WebMD today:
As the nationwide egg recall expands, the FDA has activated its emergency command center to direct its "extensive" investigation.
So far, some 380 million eggs have been recalled -- a number that is "evolving," Sherri McGarry, emergency coordinator for the FDA's Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition, said today at a joint FDA/CDC news teleconference.
"We would certainly characterize this as one of the largest shell egg recalls in recent history," McGarry said.
...the article goes on to say...
The FDA investigation is centered on five plants operated by the Iowa firm Wright County Egg. The firm distributes the eggs nationwide. Eggs included in the recall include a number of prominent brands.
---
Okay, okay, okay, okay... Somebody please explain to me how this centralized, mass-market food system is supposed to be safer? 380 million eggs (380,000,000), nationwide, including "a number of prominent brands" -- and they all came from only five (or possibly fewer) places operating under one company?!?
Follow me for a minute. If many small farmers operated on a diverse, local scale and there was an outbreak it might affect a few hundred eggs and maybe a hundred households. The problem would be small and a recall would be fairly inexpensive and quick. Instead what we have is a single operation -- Wright County Egg in Iowa -- affecting millions of people across the country, dozens of businesses, and is going to cost an unthinkable amount of money just to get control over the issue.
We have a "bigger is better" mentality in this country that needs to be overcome.
As the nationwide egg recall expands, the FDA has activated its emergency command center to direct its "extensive" investigation.
So far, some 380 million eggs have been recalled -- a number that is "evolving," Sherri McGarry, emergency coordinator for the FDA's Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition, said today at a joint FDA/CDC news teleconference.
"We would certainly characterize this as one of the largest shell egg recalls in recent history," McGarry said.
...the article goes on to say...
The FDA investigation is centered on five plants operated by the Iowa firm Wright County Egg. The firm distributes the eggs nationwide. Eggs included in the recall include a number of prominent brands.
---
Okay, okay, okay, okay... Somebody please explain to me how this centralized, mass-market food system is supposed to be safer? 380 million eggs (380,000,000), nationwide, including "a number of prominent brands" -- and they all came from only five (or possibly fewer) places operating under one company?!?
Follow me for a minute. If many small farmers operated on a diverse, local scale and there was an outbreak it might affect a few hundred eggs and maybe a hundred households. The problem would be small and a recall would be fairly inexpensive and quick. Instead what we have is a single operation -- Wright County Egg in Iowa -- affecting millions of people across the country, dozens of businesses, and is going to cost an unthinkable amount of money just to get control over the issue.
We have a "bigger is better" mentality in this country that needs to be overcome.
Tuesday, March 16, 2010
“some kind of survivalist”
I was asked if I’m “some kind of survivalist” recently. If you’ve known me for ten years or more, this is surrealistically funny, but it’s a funny question anyway.
Let’s take a walk…
It is in our nature to survive and procreate. Did you eat today? Have you recently participated in any act that could possibly introduce a new mini-you into the gene pool? Does that make you a survivalist? Do you pay a little extra in loss of mileage by carrying a mounted spare tire, jack, and lug wrench in your car? Does that make you a survivalist? Am I a survivalist because I have AAA? Or because I carry a cell phone? Does deciding not to do my shopping in the bad part of town after midnight make me a survivalist? Aren’t we all survivalists to some extent?
Okay, okay, I understand the premise and I was being asked if I am a paranoid kook with a bunker under my house stocked with canned goods and ammo. I should probably start with the truth, but it’s much more entertaining to play devil’s advocate.
When did the Boy Scout motto of “be prepared” get demonized? No, I have no such bunker. I have food that I have canned and, sure, I have ammo. More than that I have a freezer stocked with food, a generator to run the freezer and refrigerator and fuel to run it in the event of a power outage, a couple hundred gallons of water in rain barrels, maybe a dozen oil lamps and enough oil to keep ‘em lit. I try to keep some emergency cash on hand in a fireproof safe and I keep emergency supplies in the car. I also have two vegetable gardens and half a dozen laying hens.
Now, if you just read the last paragraph without any other context, I can see how the average American might start to draw a mental stereotype. To my credit, I have a very earth-drawn wife who helps me keep things in perspective, so even if I were to suggest something such as a bunker it would likely get vetoed for being kooky. So let’s examine the “kooky” things that got through:
First off, my family and I enjoy camping, hiking, and hunting – all of which require a bit of preparedness. I put together a few things in the event that something goes wrong and one or more of us end up being in a place longer than anticipated. To me this is common sense. Hunting requires ammunition – be it arrows or bullet cartridges – and it tends to be cheaper to make your own, so I am learning to do so. There is an element of Do-It-Yourself involved that is all about economics. I like jerky, but it’s expensive. I can make it for a fraction of the price (and without all the chemicals), so why not make it myself? Same with beer, ammo, and many other things (before even taking external costs into account), plus it’s just fun.
When we lived in North Carolina, “hurricane lamps” were handy because hurricanes tended to happen and it’s nice to be able to see when the power goes out and the sun goes down. Flashlights and battery-powered lanterns are fine for short-term situations, but if you’re going to be without power for days, oil lamps do a better job with less waste. We acquired several oil lamps and a habit to stock up on oil while we were living in North Carolina. Ebay, craigslist, freecycle, and your local consignment shop are all great places to find some really cool oil lamps for only a few bucks. Now we’re back in the Northwest and when it’s a little chilly in the spring or fall but not cold enough to light up the woodstove a few oil lamps can make all the difference. So we like oil lamps.
When we got back to the Northwest we were confronted with some of the same power outage problems from hurricane country for different reasons. We were informed that the house we were moving into had not had power the previous three Christmases due to an outdated infrastructure. We bought a generator that fall, but no one knew what was to come that first winter.
The fireproof safe? One night in North Carolina, the apartment building we lived in caught on fire due to an electrical short. While the fire did not reach our apartment, our home did trade a tobacco bouquet for a more industrial scent after that. I am told it was entertaining watching me run keyboards and guitars from our apartment in bare feet where, at one point, carrying something through the glass storm door that I was unaware was closed at that moment, I cut my feet pretty badly. We later realized neither my wife nor I had thought to grab our wallets and we didn’t have a card or cash to buy bandages for my feet. A short time later we bought a fire safe to keep documents and cash and we tend to keep some essentials in a dedicated spot near the door. We also maintain renter’s insurance. Learning experience.
The freezer came from a family we knew in the area who was moving and generously gave it to us. When we discovered a local butcher that sold grass-fed beef packages when available, we decided to save up and stock up as we needed because the grass-fed beef sells out quickly. We save money and support a local and more sustainable beef market.
As far as canning and freezing goes, that is really about local, sustainable food and gardening. Of course, in the long run, all of that is about surviving on this planet, so I suppose it might be a survivalist thing in a weird, long-term global way. We grow veggies and buy local produce, but it’s all only available a short time of the year, so in an effort to eat more locally and sustainably, we started canning and freezing foods. Initially, we tried to not eat too much of what we had preserved in case of snow and floods and ended up with an abundance. We quickly discovered how easy it is to can and freeze enough food to feed a small family for a few weeks (or even months) and cut the grocery bill, all while eating better.
The rain barrels are more quirk than practical, but only because we live in a rainforest. We have four barrels that cost us $50 total – two 35-gallon barrels and two 55-gallon barrels. I have done some limited experiments with hoses and fittings and we currently conserve about 180 gallons of water at a time. If we had the storage I am quite confident we could gather more than ten times that amount just from our roof, but that is just not cost effective. Why? Because what we pay just to have water service is about four times what we pay during a heavy usage month. We get our water from a local system (which is great! – it’s local, but again, we live in a rainforest) and the infrastructure costs a lot more than the water. As a result, unless we turn our water service off, it would take years for the rain barrels to pay for themselves even if we never turned on the tap. The rain barrels are more about interacting and sharing notes with a friend from Portland who is actually saving a lot of money with his rain barrels, conserving water, and helping to curb flow into the overwhelmed storm drains. Our barrels support the garden and grass for the chickens, both of which need the most water during the driest months, but they aren’t really saving us any money.
Hopefully the progression of these things now seems rather ordinary. There is more to the story, though.
Here is what happened last winter:
We had a snow storm that shut down the Puget Sound area for two weeks in early December. The snow came and no one was too surprised, but then it kept coming. Then the temperature stayed low and the snow hung around. Here in the Northwest, in the rare event that snow comes, it might stay a couple days at best (or worst, depending on your perspective, of course). Usually, it comes down and there’s not enough time or snow to build a snowman before it’s filling the storm drains. Last winter we had two weeks of snow that shut us down. Christmas shopping and a two week shut down cleared out store shelves at a surprising rate. The snow was gone by Christmas and we had power on Christmas Day, but as it melted, we had flooding. As a result, there were no shipments from the east, which was closed due to snow over the pass, the southern route was flooded, and we don’t appear to get groceries from Canada or the Pacific Ocean. We all saw exactly what happens to a grocery store when nothing comes in for three days and the store shelves were virtually empty a second time. Again, we learned to do the Boy Scout thing and be prepared.
This year the weather here has been mild. The east coast has been beaten up by winter storms, but the Northwest has been pretty mild (I am knocking on the wood desk top right now). We actually have carrots that were planted late last fall and given up on that are coming up now. We have used about a third less firewood than we did last year, but winter isn’t over so it’s too early too say just how well we did.
Next year may not be so kind.
All in all, we are trying to be sustainable, eat local, and be prepared. Is that “some kind of survivalist”? Yes, it is some kind. Mostly it’s about living better on less money – not necessarily a bad thing in the current economy. If some people see that as being “kooky” what can I do?
Let’s take a walk…
It is in our nature to survive and procreate. Did you eat today? Have you recently participated in any act that could possibly introduce a new mini-you into the gene pool? Does that make you a survivalist? Do you pay a little extra in loss of mileage by carrying a mounted spare tire, jack, and lug wrench in your car? Does that make you a survivalist? Am I a survivalist because I have AAA? Or because I carry a cell phone? Does deciding not to do my shopping in the bad part of town after midnight make me a survivalist? Aren’t we all survivalists to some extent?
Okay, okay, I understand the premise and I was being asked if I am a paranoid kook with a bunker under my house stocked with canned goods and ammo. I should probably start with the truth, but it’s much more entertaining to play devil’s advocate.
When did the Boy Scout motto of “be prepared” get demonized? No, I have no such bunker. I have food that I have canned and, sure, I have ammo. More than that I have a freezer stocked with food, a generator to run the freezer and refrigerator and fuel to run it in the event of a power outage, a couple hundred gallons of water in rain barrels, maybe a dozen oil lamps and enough oil to keep ‘em lit. I try to keep some emergency cash on hand in a fireproof safe and I keep emergency supplies in the car. I also have two vegetable gardens and half a dozen laying hens.
Now, if you just read the last paragraph without any other context, I can see how the average American might start to draw a mental stereotype. To my credit, I have a very earth-drawn wife who helps me keep things in perspective, so even if I were to suggest something such as a bunker it would likely get vetoed for being kooky. So let’s examine the “kooky” things that got through:
First off, my family and I enjoy camping, hiking, and hunting – all of which require a bit of preparedness. I put together a few things in the event that something goes wrong and one or more of us end up being in a place longer than anticipated. To me this is common sense. Hunting requires ammunition – be it arrows or bullet cartridges – and it tends to be cheaper to make your own, so I am learning to do so. There is an element of Do-It-Yourself involved that is all about economics. I like jerky, but it’s expensive. I can make it for a fraction of the price (and without all the chemicals), so why not make it myself? Same with beer, ammo, and many other things (before even taking external costs into account), plus it’s just fun.
When we lived in North Carolina, “hurricane lamps” were handy because hurricanes tended to happen and it’s nice to be able to see when the power goes out and the sun goes down. Flashlights and battery-powered lanterns are fine for short-term situations, but if you’re going to be without power for days, oil lamps do a better job with less waste. We acquired several oil lamps and a habit to stock up on oil while we were living in North Carolina. Ebay, craigslist, freecycle, and your local consignment shop are all great places to find some really cool oil lamps for only a few bucks. Now we’re back in the Northwest and when it’s a little chilly in the spring or fall but not cold enough to light up the woodstove a few oil lamps can make all the difference. So we like oil lamps.
When we got back to the Northwest we were confronted with some of the same power outage problems from hurricane country for different reasons. We were informed that the house we were moving into had not had power the previous three Christmases due to an outdated infrastructure. We bought a generator that fall, but no one knew what was to come that first winter.
The fireproof safe? One night in North Carolina, the apartment building we lived in caught on fire due to an electrical short. While the fire did not reach our apartment, our home did trade a tobacco bouquet for a more industrial scent after that. I am told it was entertaining watching me run keyboards and guitars from our apartment in bare feet where, at one point, carrying something through the glass storm door that I was unaware was closed at that moment, I cut my feet pretty badly. We later realized neither my wife nor I had thought to grab our wallets and we didn’t have a card or cash to buy bandages for my feet. A short time later we bought a fire safe to keep documents and cash and we tend to keep some essentials in a dedicated spot near the door. We also maintain renter’s insurance. Learning experience.
The freezer came from a family we knew in the area who was moving and generously gave it to us. When we discovered a local butcher that sold grass-fed beef packages when available, we decided to save up and stock up as we needed because the grass-fed beef sells out quickly. We save money and support a local and more sustainable beef market.
As far as canning and freezing goes, that is really about local, sustainable food and gardening. Of course, in the long run, all of that is about surviving on this planet, so I suppose it might be a survivalist thing in a weird, long-term global way. We grow veggies and buy local produce, but it’s all only available a short time of the year, so in an effort to eat more locally and sustainably, we started canning and freezing foods. Initially, we tried to not eat too much of what we had preserved in case of snow and floods and ended up with an abundance. We quickly discovered how easy it is to can and freeze enough food to feed a small family for a few weeks (or even months) and cut the grocery bill, all while eating better.
The rain barrels are more quirk than practical, but only because we live in a rainforest. We have four barrels that cost us $50 total – two 35-gallon barrels and two 55-gallon barrels. I have done some limited experiments with hoses and fittings and we currently conserve about 180 gallons of water at a time. If we had the storage I am quite confident we could gather more than ten times that amount just from our roof, but that is just not cost effective. Why? Because what we pay just to have water service is about four times what we pay during a heavy usage month. We get our water from a local system (which is great! – it’s local, but again, we live in a rainforest) and the infrastructure costs a lot more than the water. As a result, unless we turn our water service off, it would take years for the rain barrels to pay for themselves even if we never turned on the tap. The rain barrels are more about interacting and sharing notes with a friend from Portland who is actually saving a lot of money with his rain barrels, conserving water, and helping to curb flow into the overwhelmed storm drains. Our barrels support the garden and grass for the chickens, both of which need the most water during the driest months, but they aren’t really saving us any money.
Hopefully the progression of these things now seems rather ordinary. There is more to the story, though.
Here is what happened last winter:
We had a snow storm that shut down the Puget Sound area for two weeks in early December. The snow came and no one was too surprised, but then it kept coming. Then the temperature stayed low and the snow hung around. Here in the Northwest, in the rare event that snow comes, it might stay a couple days at best (or worst, depending on your perspective, of course). Usually, it comes down and there’s not enough time or snow to build a snowman before it’s filling the storm drains. Last winter we had two weeks of snow that shut us down. Christmas shopping and a two week shut down cleared out store shelves at a surprising rate. The snow was gone by Christmas and we had power on Christmas Day, but as it melted, we had flooding. As a result, there were no shipments from the east, which was closed due to snow over the pass, the southern route was flooded, and we don’t appear to get groceries from Canada or the Pacific Ocean. We all saw exactly what happens to a grocery store when nothing comes in for three days and the store shelves were virtually empty a second time. Again, we learned to do the Boy Scout thing and be prepared.
This year the weather here has been mild. The east coast has been beaten up by winter storms, but the Northwest has been pretty mild (I am knocking on the wood desk top right now). We actually have carrots that were planted late last fall and given up on that are coming up now. We have used about a third less firewood than we did last year, but winter isn’t over so it’s too early too say just how well we did.
Next year may not be so kind.
All in all, we are trying to be sustainable, eat local, and be prepared. Is that “some kind of survivalist”? Yes, it is some kind. Mostly it’s about living better on less money – not necessarily a bad thing in the current economy. If some people see that as being “kooky” what can I do?
Tuesday, February 23, 2010
Backyard Chickens
I've been working on a post, but this gets priority. Someone in a neighborhood in Bremerton, Washington has four laying hens and there is a debate about the legality. Never mind the yappy dog, the gear-head weekend mechanic, the teenagers, or the local band practice -- Bremerton is worried about backyard clucking ecosystems.
This is ridiculous...
The Kitsap Sun
This is ridiculous...
The Kitsap Sun
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