Author Topic: What did you do today to prep... (Read 5781080 times)

Redman · « **Reply #25410 on:** July 22, 2018, 02:44:15 AM »

Stew sounds good.

Visited Knecht's website and FB page. Interesting.

Knecht · « **Reply #25411 on:** July 22, 2018, 05:14:15 AM »

^^ Not exactly sure what the time was, but it sounds about right, I've been around the computer by that time.

The garden stew sounds interesting, guess I'll try something like that someday.

Knecht · « **Reply #25412 on:** July 22, 2018, 12:04:57 PM »

Restored and sharpened an old English saw I got from ebay. I really like old tools, plus they were made for people who actually used them for living, unlike today, when most tools are pretty much disposable hobby equipment. Modern saws are often partially hardened, so their teeth stay sharp somewhat longer, but once you dull them, you can't sharpen them anymore (yes, maybe with a diamond file etc.). Old saws are made of softer steel and the teeth are esily filed and bent to create a set. Saw sharpening is an often overlooked yet important skill I think. Once you have no electricity or gas to run power tools, you're back to handtools and that means you are back to sharpening them. I'm often amazed how many people, even people that enjoy outdoors activities, are unable to sharpen even a knife, not to mention axe, saw or chisel.
Can't wait to start using the new/old saw in my shop.

Stwood · « **Reply #25413 on:** July 22, 2018, 04:10:55 PM »

Worked in the garden.
Prepared more peppers and okra for the next round of canned stew.
Mowed the grass between the rows

........yes it's gotten away from me.
As the garden hasn't done well this year, I haven't maintained it well.
Its starting to produce now, after these last heavy, corn-knocking-down storms.

Sliced/floured/bagged a bunch of jalapeno peppers to freeze. Instead of making batter, dipping, then freezing it all, I've decided to just flour the peppers so they won't freeze together like 1 rock. Then, pull them, batter, then fry.

Redman · « **Reply #25414 on:** July 22, 2018, 05:37:46 PM »

Knecht, on the saws, you got it going on there.

Steve, on the peppers, that sounds like an excellent plan.

mountainmoma · « **Reply #25415 on:** July 23, 2018, 09:31:12 PM »

- House repair. Lots of time on the bathroom. My youngest and I just ripped down sheetrock and leveling stuff that I hired someone to install a few days ago. I actually need the wall to be all furred out to one flat plane. go figure. I can hardly do a thing myself, actually, so she ripped it off and I drove to the lumber yard and had them rip me some 3/4 inch plywood furring strips. Every single 2x4 butt end will have this, then it can be shimmed out. ( There is a 3/4 diameter 240 volt conduit crossing over a 4 inch drain pipe at one point in the 4" wall cavity --- somehow he missed this ! no, he hasnt been paid yet, and wont for that afternoon) She put up a few of the furring strips, I tried and failed and took naproxene. We did get the schluter panels on the opposite wall, the shower fixture side, looks good, light weight, easy to cut for us. This shower stall is only going to be 33x34 inside once all done, so less expensive to install kerdi than to hire out someone who can cut and hang up cement board. the opposite shower wall after the stall ends transitions to sheetrock and is the wall with issues. I think she got the 2 sheetrock pieces unscrewed and down without breakage, they may be able to be reused

Stwood, you are often around, should we be using screws for those strips, as we have started too, or nails ? Likely it doesnt matter.

- Garden is filling in

- Livestock -- Baby chicks ! Broody hen hatched 3 eggs last week, but after a day or two due to heat was off the nest alot and other hens were messing around, so I pulled the ignored eggs and put in a borrowed incubater. One was pipped when I took them, and looked touseled. That one hatched that night, and I put the chick, wet and new, under the sleeping hen. By the next night, no sign from the other eggs, and the house was hot, so I unplugged it. I was realy busy, so more than 20 hours later I go to get those eggs to bury them, and one cheeped at me ( hot enough in a non-air conditioned house to not cool off that insulated incubater very fast) ! I plugged the incubator back in. That one hatched, and that chick got snuck under the hen and took ! So, now, 5 little chicks, in July.

Stwood · « **Reply #25416 on:** July 24, 2018, 08:28:05 AM »

MM. Either one, whatever is handier for you.

Stwood · « **Reply #25417 on:** July 24, 2018, 12:51:35 PM »

Prepared and canned 8 quarts of garden stew. Very tasty this time around.

Had to eat quart #8 as it won't fit in the canner.

Redman · « **Reply #25418 on:** July 24, 2018, 04:13:27 PM »

Quote from: Stwood on July 24, 2018, 12:51:35 PM

Prepared and canned 8 quarts of garden stew. Very tasty this time around.

Had to eat quart #8 as it won't fit in the canner.

BTDT

Stwood · « **Reply #25419 on:** July 24, 2018, 04:19:05 PM »

Built 3 *more* nest boxes for the hens.
They've decided to *all* sit at the same time.

Carl · « **Reply #25420 on:** July 24, 2018, 05:51:13 PM »

Them wemmin' tend to sync up....

Knecht · « **Reply #25421 on:** July 25, 2018, 02:00:26 PM »

Sewing a full set of clothes for around 1420's. Handsewn of course. Not only is handsewing great skill to know, but the old patterns are also often quite easy to make and are very practical (agreed, not ALL of them are, every era had some stupid fashion ideas), so in bad times you are easily able to make simple and durable clothes from whatever fabric you find. Not to mention making turnover shoes, about the most usable type of footwear that you can make without any special equipment, such as shoemaking lasts.

mountainmoma · « **Reply #25422 on:** July 25, 2018, 02:36:07 PM »

Quote from: Knecht on July 25, 2018, 02:00:26 PM

Sewing a full set of clothes for around 1420's. Handsewn of course. Not only is handsewing great skill to know, but the old patterns are also often quite easy to make and are very practical (agreed, not ALL of them are, every era had some stupid fashion ideas), so in bad times you are easily able to make simple and durable clothes from whatever fabric you find. Not to mention making turnover shoes, about the most usable type of footwear that you can make without any special equipment, such as shoemaking lasts.

can you start a thread in DIY skills area about turnover shoes ? I am very curious hat that is and how to do it

Knecht · « **Reply #25423 on:** July 25, 2018, 03:32:44 PM »

^ guess I could start a shoemaking thread, why not... it's not a big deal to make them, but you definitely need to master the saddler's stitch. There are easier things to practice it on than shoes for sure.

Stwood · « **Reply #25424 on:** July 25, 2018, 04:01:40 PM »

Restocked canning supplies today. Sugar, vinegar, lemon juice, etc.

Having to revamp the front bumper on one of the nest boxes. She's kickin eggs *out* of the nest box.

I make the fronts 1" high, so the chicks can get back in the box when they are out and about, eating feed and candy bars......drinking water...
I'll raise it up another inch.

Redman · « **Reply #25425 on:** July 25, 2018, 04:50:31 PM »

Quote from: Knecht on July 25, 2018, 03:32:44 PM

^ guess I could start a shoemaking thread, why not... it's not a big deal to make them, but you definitely need to master the saddler's stitch. There are easier things to practice it on than shoes for sure.

That would be appreciated Knecht I'm sure. I have a copy of the Foxfire books and I believe it delves into shoemaking. If your are not familiar with them they are a set of books originally started by a group of high school English class students. The books are written from interviews with older residents of the US Appalachian Mt. region and concern the skills needed to survive. Skills including lye soap making, shoemaking, wagon wheel making, butchering I think and others. It's been a long time since I looked at them. I need to get them out again and read them.

Canadian Prepper · « **Reply #25426 on:** July 29, 2018, 08:11:22 PM »

Yesterday I set up my portable antenna to check out the HF Ham bands. I only tried to make contact a couple of times without success, but I really just wanted to see how the ham bands are, as I had been offline for a while. Conditions weren't great but I heard lots on 80, 40 and 20m.

I went out to a military range today for some long range practice at 900 and 1000 yards. Never having shot that far, I only got about 3 shots on target out of my first 43 rounds. Once we figured out the precise hold over on the tactical scope (complicated by the fact that I had sighted it in to shoot about two inches high at 100 yards) I hit on four of my last five shots, with the last in the most inner ring. It made for some good learning, teamwork and networking.

Redman · « **Reply #25427 on:** July 30, 2018, 02:29:09 AM »

Finished canning 9 quarts of chicken soup yesterday.

Stwood · « **Reply #25428 on:** July 30, 2018, 04:23:07 AM »

Yesterday, picked the garden and prepared peppers and okra for stew.

Frugal Upstate · « **Reply #25429 on:** July 30, 2018, 05:14:53 AM »

Canned 4 pints of pickerel— it’s an experiment to see if it softens the bones. Because pickerels are so boney that pretty much the only way people eat it around here is to grind it and make patties.

Otherwise just kept on with the new puppy monitoring and training.

Redman · « **Reply #25430 on:** July 30, 2018, 07:18:59 AM »

Pickerel, that's a fish I've seldom heard of. Don't think they exist in Texas. I'm interested in how your experiment turns out.

DeepSea1985 · « **Reply #25431 on:** July 30, 2018, 12:49:05 PM »

Bought 4 nice blueberry bushes, 2 concord grape vines and 2 blackberry bushes at Lowe's.......ON SALE, all for $26.00

Frugal Upstate · « **Reply #25432 on:** July 30, 2018, 02:08:06 PM »

Quote from: Redman on July 30, 2018, 07:18:59 AM

Pickerel, that's a fish I've seldom heard of. Don't think they exist in Texas. I'm interested in how your experiment turns out.

It’s common here in upstate NY, and kind of a nuisance as the eat & crowd out other fish, but aren’t good eating for us due to the bones. So I’ll be interested to see as well. I’m going to try one of the jars tonight.

Knecht · « **Reply #25433 on:** July 30, 2018, 04:39:23 PM »

Quote from: Redman on July 25, 2018, 04:50:31 PM

That would be appreciated Knecht I'm sure. I have a copy of the Foxfire books and I believe it delves into shoemaking. If your are not familiar with them they are a set of books originally started by a group of high school English class students. The books are written from interviews with older residents of the US Appalachian Mt. region and concern the skills needed to survive. Skills including lye soap making, shoemaking, wagon wheel making, butchering I think and others. It's been a long time since I looked at them. I need to get them out again and read them.

Sounds good, I'd love to read it.
Will see about a shoemaking thread once I get to making them. Currently i'm working on the clothes. Also finished my dusack, so I have another large fighting/survival/utility knife. Works in21st just as well as it did in 15th century.

Today I had a lucky find in local off-sale mix store: found a large spool of some nylon cord, pretty much like a thin paracord or something. Must be hundreds of meters on it. Paid about $10 for it.

Redman · « **Reply #25434 on:** July 30, 2018, 05:05:19 PM »

I think you might enjoy reading them Knecht. Seems the series has grown since I last bought any, I only have up to volume 7.

I don't know if Amazon ships to your country but for what it's worth.

https://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_ss_i_3_7?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=foxfire+books+complete+set&sprefix=foxfire%2Caps%2C298&crid=VYGUMGUAXJ9I

Redman · « **Reply #25435 on:** July 30, 2018, 05:08:50 PM »

Quote from: Frugal Upstate on July 30, 2018, 02:08:06 PM

It’s common here in upstate NY, and kind of a nuisance as the eat & crowd out other fish, but aren’t good eating for us due to the bones. So I’ll be interested to see as well. I’m going to try one of the jars tonight.

A quick google came up with a lot of links about preparing them. I didn't read any so FWIW.

Knecht · « **Reply #25436 on:** July 30, 2018, 07:04:49 PM »

Quote from: Redman on July 30, 2018, 05:05:19 PM

I think you might enjoy reading them Knecht. Seems the series has grown since I last bought any, I only have up to volume 7.

I don't know if Amazon ships to your country but for what it's worth.

https://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_ss_i_3_7?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=foxfire+books+complete+set&sprefix=foxfire%2Caps%2C298&crid=VYGUMGUAXJ9I

Thanks for the link. Yes, Amazon does ship to CZ, but this looks a little expensive (at least if I wanted the whole serie and I know I would if I started).

Redman · « **Reply #25437 on:** July 31, 2018, 01:55:29 AM »

Quote from: Knecht on July 30, 2018, 07:04:49 PM

Thanks for the link. Yes, Amazon does ship to CZ, but this looks a little expensive (at least if I wanted the whole serie and I know I would if I started).

Perhaps so. Looks like the price has doubled since I bought them in the mid 1970's.

Greekman · « **Reply #25438 on:** July 31, 2018, 03:04:14 AM »

the foxfire books can be found online too..

Stwood · « **Reply #25439 on:** July 31, 2018, 02:31:40 PM »

Lets see....
Canning 6 quarts of garden stew at the moment.
Picked elderberry's
Picked a few tomatoes. They are dwindling down already. May have to resort buying some to finish canning our salsa supply. Canned about 60 pints salsa last year, and only 10 of those left, so that's not a 2 year supply. + we've only canned 16? pints of it this year so far.
I cut the number of tomato plant down to half this year, and with a less than desirable garden this year, was a mistake. I should have went ahead and planted 100 again.

Smoked some maters for today's stew, + some for the next batch of salsa.
I've got some onions on the smoker, trying them, as I had some fire left and wanted to try smoked onions. They smell good.

Wife went to town so I told her to go to Wally's and grab the rest of the canned bbq pork that they had on closeout. $1.25 per can, should be a good storeroom item. Bought 2 cans last week and tried one as a sandwich. Pretty tasty and has a 2 year exp. Told her to buy all that was left.

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Author Topic: What did you do today to prep... (Read 5781080 times)