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Post by Admin on Dec 1, 2020 7:48:31 GMT -6
December prep journal and to-do lists.
Everyone is welcome.
Are you prepared for the month, the year?
Has the pandemic changed your preparations?
What are you planning to get done this December?
Any other unforeseen circumstances change your plans?
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Post by feather on Dec 1, 2020 12:25:46 GMT -6
Bake list for gifts. Peppernuts Shortcake cookies Cheese snack peppernuts Nougat Cooking-orange and lime candied fruit peels Put up the tree or not. Curtains for family room Blinds for family room Canning Chickpeas, quarts and pints, about 3 cases. Keep my eyes open for sales on lemons (peels and fruit), cranberries (for canning), dried fruits to eat for variety, lumber for shelving replacements (some are plywood and have or will sag at some point). Keep the garbage bin full by Wednesdays with junk to get rid of from the basement and boxes near the book corner. Assemble office supplies to be stored in the big desk in the family room. Find the missing medical and bathroom supplies that were boxed up and then never found for more than a year now. Reduce the file folders in the file cabinet that are now unnecessary. Archive tax forms from more than 7 years ago. More floor and wall and woodwork washing and wear out the rubber gloves.  |
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Post by adinwnc on Dec 1, 2020 12:56:49 GMT -6
feather how do you candy fruit peel? How long does it store? What recipes do you use for all of those chick peas? My December list is short: 1) Get the farm ready to sell. Pack & move boxes and furniture, clean, replace carpet & vinyl, paint walls, replace appliances and kitchen cabinets, replace bathroom cabinets. Empty the barn and replace the rotted support beams. Pressure wash the house, prune bushes, fix the driveway... I've probably forgotten half of what needs to be done. 2) Find a new job. They only good thing about being laid off during the holidays is that they paid severance and I have so much to do. Maybe I will wrap Christmas gifts, or maybe not. The gifts are all purchased and I will only have to ship the ones to my sister.
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Post by feather on Dec 1, 2020 13:24:18 GMT -6
feather how do you candy fruit peel? How long does it store? What recipes do you use for all of those chick peas? Your list seems unfathomable. 1.Redo or fix everything. 2. New job.
Now I'm tired just from imagining how that will all get done. We are here. We really do need a place to let off steam or frustration, somewhere on the forum.
The large amount of peels I made last year, grapefruit, lemon, lime, and orange, I stored in glass jars and with food saver vacuum bags. It has lasted all year. I just went to the pantry and grabbed a jar, ate a piece, it is still crunchy in a thin layer on the outside where it was dusted in ground up sugar, but soft and chewy on the peel itself, very nice flavor and texture.
This link isn't always working. may work better.
I did alter the directions, and thinly filleted off the pith all the way down to just the zest, HOWEVER, then they are easier to break and fall apart with all that cooking. So if you reduce the pith, then shorten the cooking times so they don't break up. This year, now, I'm just taking off 2/3rds to 1/2 the pith, so they won't break up so easily.
The pith has most of the bitter flavor, so when it is reduced, it tastes more like sweetened fruit zest w/o the bitterness.
I gave some to my son in north dakota, and he was thrilled with the taste and texture, so I'm making more now. Mr feather and I like a piece now and then. Oranges are easiest to peel and fillet. Limes are impossible so I peel them like an apple peel. Lemons are easy. Grapefruit has a very thick pith, and since it isn't anyone's favorite, we aren't making those this year.
Chickpeas: I can them plain, no salt. I use 5 pints each time I make hummus, in the food processor w/garlic and lemon, and it freezes well, so I have some fresh hummus on hand. This can be spread on bread, used in dips, or thinned for salad dressings on lettuce salads or cold pasta veg salads. I also put them in soups and stews, sprinkled over salads. (Chickpeas and white beans are the mildest tasting and most often used in dips and sauces) midtnmama , do you have any other suggestions for chickpeas?
Also, I dried chickpeas in the oven to crisp, then melted a no added oil or dairy dark chocolate, and mixed them, and dropped those on parchment. Once last year. They are crispy and good.
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Post by adinwnc on Dec 1, 2020 13:56:10 GMT -6
feather I am sorry if I came across as complaining! I have most of my to do items paid, or traded, for already. Do I not expect to finish everything in December, but I hope to get close. Thanks for the recipes and tips on the fruit peel and chick peas. I lived in Hawaii for several years and they did something with lemon peels that was fermented and salt based that was enough to curl your teeth! I appreciate your thoughts on limes, since they are my favorite and on sale at the grocery store this week.😉
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Post by Ohio Dreamer on Dec 1, 2020 13:59:49 GMT -6
December...this is my "prep lite" month. The biggest thing I do is make sure all baking supplies are topped off since the prices will be low. 2nd thing is to finalize my garden plans.
2020 made us change directions, quickly. That is not something I handle well, lol. We expanded our garden space, raised meat birds for the first time, and expanded out laying flock...twice. None of which had been the plan in December 2019. We also had our house re-wired and then insulated. Both things we planned on getting done some time but fast tracked it into 2020. I hope 2021 is more predictable!
Like so many others I need to keep my eyes open for the "re-stock" of canning lids in 2021. I'm ok on the regular mouth (I ordered 2 sleeves in spring 2020 when I saw how fast garden seeds were selling)...but I'm almost out of wide mouth lids.
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Post by feather on Dec 1, 2020 14:05:54 GMT -6
feather I am sorry if I came across as complaining! I have most of my to do items paid, or traded, for already. Do I not expect to finish everything in December, but I hope to get close. Thanks for the recipes and tips on the fruit peel and chick peas. I lived in Hawaii for several years and they did something with lemon peels that was fermented and salt based that was enough to curl your teeth! I appreciate your thoughts on limes, since they are my favorite and on sale at the grocery store this week.😉 Oh no you didn't come across as complaining. You just are so ambitious and you work so hard and consistently as many do, and it has come to my attention dozens of times, we need a place to blow off steam or frustration. Your post just reminded me of it again. |
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Post by useless on Dec 1, 2020 16:52:40 GMT -6
adinwnc, I can't quite fathom preparing a place for sale while also continuing to prep foodstuffs. I've liked candied peel when I had it, but I'd have a hard time making time for that at the same time as the "big-ticket" tasks you list. I haven't quite followed the story. I hope this farm sale in something you are content with?
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Post by adinwnc on Dec 1, 2020 20:05:07 GMT -6
feather Your encouragement and kind words really help! Thanks! I have a time advantage that most of you all don't, I'm single and live alone. I don't have to cook large meals or wash lots of clothes or 'help' a spouse with his projects. I can vacuum at 5am and have a sandwich for supper and no one gets in my way. Since March I have worked from home. That allowed me to check my dehydrator everytime I got a cup of tea. I dehydrated 350+ servings of vegetables between August and October in a dehydrator the size of a piece of printer paper with 5 trays. That's plenty for me for one year. useless My ex and I had planned to move to the country for several years before he left me. When I convinced my only child to go to college in the mountains, I moved to the college town too. Twenty years later, the yard is impossible for me to manage and he and I are allergic to grass (and sheep & goats). I have already rolled down my front yard with the lawnmower and slid down that same hill on a riding mower, sideways. It is time to make another change before I get seriously hurt. Since I moved to the mountains I have prepared for another 1918 pandemic-six months of not leaving my farm. Funny, huh? When Covid hit, I was astonished that it wasn't as bad as I had feared. Stores stayed open. Most jobs kept working. I could stock up the new house a little bit at a time, while others were complaining about toilet paper. The hard part is moving the 'things that I might need' into a smaller house. Really who needs 6 incubators when living in a town that doesn't allow for chickens? Besides I don't even like chicken. I'll keep one incubator to use for quail (which I can raise in the garage) and sell the rest. Fortunately I have a garage and an attic (that I don't have to share). The sorting and eliminating what I don't need has taken up my weekends since March and kept me from being terribly lonely in the new town. I have traded things with a friend and he will do a lot of the maintenance and painting so I have reduced my cash outlay. But I will have to play helper for every project. Giving up my freezer was hard, but I can can the meat before it gets old and not have to worry about the power going out. Yes, I do have a portable generator, but I can't pull it to get it started, so what is the point in keeping it? I am told that I would need to be 5 inches taller to physically be able to make the motor turn over. Not much chance of me growing in that direction at this stage of life😉. I know that my approach is a bit different from most people's. You have to adjust to what you are given. I was not given lots of physical size and the muscle mass to go with it. I have lots of allergies and I can't function in summer heat. I was given the ability to put away a little bit at a time and not draw any attention to what and how much I have stored in the house. Hiding in plain site has always been my favorite plan.
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Post by jwal10 on Dec 1, 2020 21:46:32 GMT -6
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Post by mogal on Dec 2, 2020 5:42:53 GMT -6
ADINWNC, well thought out plan, well stated, well implemented especially since you're taking into account your limitations.
A lot of our preps are geared to DH's size and strength. I'm 11" shorter than he is so I am up a creek when it comes to doing some things he finds easy, like starting a generator or any tool that requires a pull start. We've discussed it but it seems most tools don't come in women's sizes--grin.
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Post by adinwnc on Dec 2, 2020 7:55:13 GMT -6
jwal10 thanks for the generator tip! That looks like something that I can manage. Have you used that particular brand? mogal thank you! My dad was one of those big boys - he could not understand why I couldn't do all of the things that he found so easy...Some manufacturers are making tools for aging baby boomers which help us smaller folks. I do have a pull start wheeled weed whacker by cub cadet that I can start easily. Stihl has an 'easy start' line of products that I can start as well, but their quality is horrible (like the chainsaw goes to the repair shop before each use). So some help is coming.
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Post by jwal10 on Dec 2, 2020 9:26:25 GMT -6
I have not used one but have heard good things about them. They are a cheaper alternative and have good features. A lot of RVer's use them but they are not the real quiet generators....James
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Post by feather on Dec 2, 2020 9:40:01 GMT -6
I have not used one but have heard good things about them. They are a cheaper alternative and have good features. A lot of RVer's use them but they are not the real quiet generators....James adinwnc, you might want to also consider Generac as a brand. I have heard many good things about them however we don't own one. They are produced by Generac which happens to be in our local area, which is why I've heard of them. When the power goes out here, there are many generators running throughout the neighborhood area. They are loud. They make whole house generators, portable, and commercial generators.
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Post by jwal10 on Dec 2, 2020 9:55:21 GMT -6
If money is no object Honda is the best. Best engine, best service....James
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Post by adinwnc on Dec 2, 2020 11:13:00 GMT -6
jwal10 I drove Hondas for many years. Their major issue has always been how touchy they are about maintenance and how needed parts are not available except through a dealership. I would hate to have to stock a large number of maintenance parts just in case I had to run the generator. I like your Champion generator suggestion. Real people like it and use it. Reviews are very good, and so is the price.
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Post by jwal10 on Dec 2, 2020 13:22:10 GMT -6
You can get parts for the little Honda engines at any parts house. Plus there are Honda dealers everywhere for their consumer goods, Lawn and garden equipment uses the same engines too. These engines are the best. I used Honda engines exclusively on the farm. At the city it was Honda and Stihl for the best.
Yes the Champion are well liked and for the price are a bargain....James
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Post by feather on Dec 3, 2020 18:05:04 GMT -6
Picture of the last of the candied citrus peel from last year.  |
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Post by Ohio Dreamer on Dec 4, 2020 8:36:20 GMT -6
When it rains it pours. At least it's raining food for us, lol. DD got the free turkey, another friend gave us a pork butt he bought, but can't eat, lol. His wife is "off" pork so they wanted it out of the freezer. I canned 100 jars of food just to get our side of beef to fit in the freezer 2 weeks ago. This is "gun week", DH takes the week off to sit in the woods. Well, work was such that he couldn't get the week off. THEN....this week of work was H-E- double hockey sticks!! An example....after working 9 hrs from home on Wednesday he went into the plant and worked 4 more!! He said forget this and took Thursday and Friday off to sit in the woods. Of course he had to work for the first 3 hours of his vacation day. I overheard those meetings.....he works with some real idiots! Finally, he got out the door....after packing, buying food, etc....hour drive, unpack, then 90 min in the woods and he had a buck!! UM....NO freezer space, lol. Such a nice problem to have. The free turkey is leaving today and that pork butt will get ground with venison to make brats or some such. SO I have the kitchen all clean....tree limb picked (we cut the limb we use to use) and will be hanging a buck and butchering the rest of the day (and tomorrow). BUT....we will eat! OH....tossed a venison stew together and put on the wood burner. No-fuss food, otherwise we will end up running our for a pizza, lol  |
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Post by adinwnc on Dec 4, 2020 11:08:06 GMT -6
Ohio Dreamer Wow! Glad he got to the woods and really glad he got a buck! That's what I call work. I am canning three little pork loins, I can't imagine canning something as big as that deer!
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Post by Ohio Dreamer on Dec 4, 2020 12:50:46 GMT -6
adinwnc, I don't can it all, some gets frozen, too. But most of the roasts do get chunked and canned. Sure is nice having all that shelf-stable meat! Backstrap and tenderloins are cut packaged and in the freezer. Now to break down the "big meat". Chickens will get the ribcage to naw on.....they will be some happy birds!
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Post by manygoatsnomore on Dec 4, 2020 19:50:02 GMT -6
Hi, all! I'm baaaa-ack. 😁 I really needed to take a break from pretty much everything, for my mental health. But, I really missed all of you. I've been reading through all the main threads to catch up and there is a lot there. I'll post more later and go into more detail, but I just wanted to pop on and let you know I'm doing okay...still recovering from my lung issues, but getting there. 😊
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Post by feather on Dec 4, 2020 20:04:18 GMT -6
Hi, all! I'm baaaa-ack. 😁 I really needed to take a break from pretty much everything, for my mental health. But, I really missed all of you. I've been reading through all the main threads to catch up and there is a lot there. I'll post more later and go into more detail, but I just wanted to pop on and let you know I'm doing okay...still recovering from my lung issues, but getting there. 😊 HEY, your baaaaaa-ak! You have been so missed! Can't wait to hear about your everything. |
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Post by mogal on Dec 4, 2020 20:31:12 GMT -6
Glad to see your...puppy face?
Take care and keep improving.
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Post by midtnmama on Dec 5, 2020 9:10:30 GMT -6
Hi, all! I'm baaaa-ack. 😁 I really needed to take a break from pretty much everything, for my mental health. But, I really missed all of you. I've been reading through all the main threads to catch up and there is a lot there. I'll post more later and go into more detail, but I just wanted to pop on and let you know I'm doing okay...still recovering from my lung issues, but getting there. 😊 HEY, your baaaaaa-ak! You have been so missed! Can't wait to hear about your everything. Manygoats: An answer to prayers!!! Wooohooo! Best news all day! |
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Post by manygoatsnomore on Dec 5, 2020 17:43:48 GMT -6
Glad to see your...puppy face? Take care and keep improving. Lol, Russell the Muttley Wonder's face always makes me glad to see him, too! Thanks, and I will. 😊 |
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Post by manygoatsnomore on Dec 5, 2020 18:19:06 GMT -6
HEY, your baaaaaa-ak! You have been so missed! Can't wait to hear about your everything. Manygoats: An answer to prayers!!! Wooohooo! Best news all day! Thanks, guys. I'm glad to be back. So, where to begin.... I turned 61 in October, so I'm on the countdown to drawing SS, woohoo! Only about 10 months to go. 😁 Question for any of you who might know...do you get to start drawing the month you turn 62, even if your actual birthday falls later in the month, or does it kick in the following month? I suppose I could just Google it, but I'm being lazy today, haha. Also on the financial prep side of things, it looks like I will come to the end of December within budget, even with some unexpected major expenses this year. I think it's because I didn't get to replace my roof this year as I'd hoped to do. I guess that money will need to be rolled over to 2021. Having Abby chipping in financially has taken a lot of the strain off of me, and I'm thankful for it. I ended up with 3, count 'em, THREE free turkeys at Thanksgiving, so we gave the bird from last year to my bff, since she hadn't had a chance to get one. Abby and I each bought more than $100 in groceries at Winco, so we each got a free turkey, plus my cousin gifted me one plus another pressure canner and a couple packages of pork. She and her SO received 4 turkeys(!), and were trying to make enough freezer space for them all. A huge turkey is way too much for the two of us, and I'm ashamed to say part of it went to waste when the carcass in the stockpot got left out on the stove. 😞 I should have just sucked it up and stayed up to can it. One thing I'm still battling is severe fatigue, and I just run out of oomph so suddenly. Canning lids are still nearly impossible to find locally, and my cousin mentioned that she couldn't find wide mouth flats anywhere. I gifted her a dozen from my dwindling stores of single use flats and told her about Tattler kids. I'm going to gift her the sampler pack I bought along with directions for Christmas. I was worried that she was giving up canning when she gave me her canner, but it turns out this one was a duplicate. She's still canning! Another prepper who doesn't even know she is one, lol. My to-do list for December is pretty simple...get my home tidied and decorated for Christmas, finish Christmas shopping for my kids and grands (really thinking about just giving them all Amazon gift cards, since we can't get together for Christmas anyway), keep working on increasing my lung function and stamina, can up a bunch of meat and broth to clear some freezer space, replace the broken tiles on my hearth and try to get my front porch reassembled. My porch is an eyesore and a hazard, but those blocks are really heavy when I'm this far out of shape! I also had filing receipts and paperwork on my list, but I already managed that one and found the receipts I needed to make a number of returns. I've made a couple of the returns already, and have 4 more to make on my next trip to town, probably Tuesday. |
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Post by feather on Dec 5, 2020 19:26:07 GMT -6
Welcome back and Happy Birthday manygoatsnomore,. SS is paid the month following your birthday. So for an April birthday, the check comes in May to pay for the previous month. It's paid on a Wednesday, and which Wednesday depends on where in the month the birthday falls. (there are special rules for being born the first of the month) We are just learning this stuff. Keep up the good work on your lung function and stamina. It takes a long continued effort from what I hear, to make those kinds of improvements (from heart disease patients reports). You're smart to keep working at it. |
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Post by manygoatsnomore on Dec 6, 2020 18:23:39 GMT -6
Thanks for the info, feather. I assume since my birthday is late in the month, my check will probably be deposited late the following month. That means about 10.5 months to go. Happy dance! 💃 One of the things I'm doing to improve my lung function is playing my clarinet again. I played in school band, but not since. I picked up a decent student clarinet at a garage sale a number of years ago, but kept putting off actually playing it. Now, it just seemed like the right time to pick it up again. My tone is better than I expected - this one is much easier to play than the one I learned on - but I have a long way to go to regain any measure of proficiency. I'm enjoying it, anyway, and it definitely gives my lungs a workout. 🎼🎶 Technology has come a long way in 40 some years, lol. I wish synthetic reeds had been available then! |
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Post by feather on Dec 6, 2020 18:46:31 GMT -6
manygoatsnomore, that's great, you are quite musical, a clarinet and bell choir, who knows what other musical talents you have! I have an online acquaintance, heart attack and stents, who is working on reversing some of the atherosclerosis. The blood vessels get partial blockages, so he does measured walking on a treadmill, (10 minutes, then 20 minutes, then 10) at different increasing inclines, pushing the limits for a short time before ending his walking every day. This taking it to the limit tells the body it needs more blood flow and it starts to grow collateral blood vessels to go to the areas on the other side of blockages which have been seen visually on certain types of cardiac tests (the blockages and new collateral vessels). It's really miraculous the way the body adjusts and wants to be in health. This same concept holds true for growing bone, using weight-bearing exercise tells the body to grow bone to support the additional weight. Same with muscle, using more muscles longer consistently grows more muscle. Cool stuff.
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