Harvest Time

It's that time of the year again, when the days start getting shorter, and the fruits (and vegetables) of your labor finish ripening and are ready to harvest. Part of living providently and being self-sufficient is keeping food on the table throughout the winter and spring. There is no better way to do this than to can your food so you can enjoy it all throughout the year. It is a great source of comfort to see all the beautiful jars of fruits and vegetables lining your shelves, knowing that you will have food in times of want.

Even if you have never canned before, you will find it is easy and cheap. Here is a list of some great websites compiled by The Kitchn Blog that will give you  the information and recipes you need, and get you going on the right foot:

1) National Center for Home Food Preservation is a wonderful first resource as it's exhaustive in its coverage of so many elements of preservation (freezing, fermenting, drying, pickling, and storing). They offer a list of publications and fact sheets on canning along with an informative FAQ and Links page. If you're looking for sensuous photos, you won't find that here. But rock-solid canning information and inspiration to get started? Yes, indeed.
2) Food in Jars is one of the first canning blogs I started reading because they don't just focus on recipes. You'll find everything from book reviews to profiles of great canners to "Canning 101" posts that deal with a lot of preservation basics. And when you are just seeking out a wonderful recipe, Food in Jars delves far beyond the expected with recipes including Honey-Sweetend Skillet Stonefruit Jam and Yellow Tomato and Basil Jam.

3) Punk Domestics is unique in that you can contribute content and recipes! Once you register with the site, you can submit recipes that you've come to love. They also have a searchable "Topics" list so you can learn more about specific elements of canning you're curious about (pickling, home brewing, cheese making). Since September is National Honey Month, Punk Domestics is featuring a great line-up of recipes for honey and using honey.
4) Canning Across America (CAA) is put together by a group of chefs, gardeners, and food lovers who enjoy canning and putting up food the old-fashioned way. In their words, "our goal is to promote safe food preservation and the joys of community building through food." They feature events on the site that are region specific or open to anyone nation-wide and a wide range of recipes split into the categories "Fruit" and "Vegetable." I think the true strength of this website is its resources page, with information on books, blogs, and videos that deal with canning. Oh, and songs to can to!
5) Well Preserved is a website devoted to food, cooking, and design with a definite focus on preserving. The element that I admire about this site is they don't just deal with making jam or simple canning; this duo sets out to tackle dehydrating watermelons . Informative, well-designed, and approachable.

Food Storage Program

Click here to download the food storage program that was mentioned in the 5th Sunday talk.

And click here to view the slideshow

Grandpa, tell me 'bout the good old days.

There was a phrase that was frequently used in years past. It became a motto of sorts for pioneers and those who survived the depression and even into World War II. It highlighted the need to be frugal in all that you do it went like this:

Use it up,

Wear it out,

Make it do,

Or do without

You do not need to wear a tin-foil hat, or be a "survivalist" to be preapredness minded. Was your Grandma viewed as a wacko because she canned tomatos, and beans, and jams? Was your Grandpa a little off kilter because he planted a garden, and built his own home?

About ten years ago, we bought a brand new iron for my wife's grandparents. Theirs was a bit old and dated, so we thought they needed a new one. But they grew up during the depression, and volunteered to serve when World War II occured. So it even though it has been ten years since we bought them the iron, it still is sitting on the laundry room shelf unopened, because the one they have still works fine. They know what it is like to not have things. And using things up is ingrained and is a part of who they are. When their iron finally does break, I'm sure they will open the one we bought them, but until it does, they are just fine using the one they have.

Being self sufficient isn't so about buying a bunch or wheat and then thinking that you will change your lifestyle when the situation demands it. It is changing it now, so when things get really bad, the shift will not be quite so dramitic. It means going back to the way your grandparents lived.

I think often of my Grandpa, who built his home with his own hands; Who built his own car; Grew a 2 acre garden; Was self employed his entire life; Fed and housed countless hungry and homeless people; Served faithfully in his Church to his dying day. He worked hard and lived a hard life, but he was always happy. He knew that whatever hardship came his way, he would figure a way out of it.

Living providently means getting back to the basics. It means throwing off the disposable society we live in. It means go back to the basics. One way you can do this would be to go to your grandparents, or some other "seasoned" person, and ask them to show you how to:

• Sew, and make and repair clothes.


• Crochet


• Prepare and cook a meal with basic food.


• Plant a garden.


• Raise chickens or rabbits or bees.


• Wash your laundry without using the machine, then hang it outside to dry.


• Fix your broken washing machine (or research how to do it on the internet).


• Can food and put it away for the future.


• Play games that don't require electronics


• Skin and field dress a deer/elk/cow/fish etc.


• Frame and build a fence or shed.


• Make soap


• Change the brakes or the oil on your car.

Learning the skills and gaining the knowledge that your grandparents posses is not about being extreme or becoming a survivalist. It is simply getting back to the basics. But the skills and knowledge you gain may save you and your family at some time in the future.

Free Food Storage Analyzer

I have a make-shift food storage analyzer I've created in excel, but after using the free food storage analyzer found at http://beprepared.com/analyzer, I'm sold that theirs is a much better way.

First of all you enter the number of family members and their ages, so you can get an accurate idea of the amount of daily needs and calories. Then you simply go through and enter what you currently have in your food storage. You can enter canned, foods, bulk foods, MRES, and even add your own items. It is also easy to order needed items directly from the site.

It makes it really easy to get an accurate idea of where you stand and what you need to do to fill in the gaps. Also, as your family grows you can change it to meet your needs.

All you need to do is go make a free account and get going. Good luck!

Top Ten Preparedness Myths

Here's the Powerpoint Presentation that I gave in my talk on Sunday regarding the top Ten Preparedness Myths. It was taken from info I gathered as well as info from Wendy Dewitt and Kellene Bishop blogs.

Top Ten Preparedness Myths

View more presentations from holyhabanero.

Also, I planned to show this video but ran out of time. If you are interested, you can view it below:

Free Giveaway over at Adventures in Self Reliance

Hey, just a heads up that our friends over at Adventures in Self Reliance are having a giveaway that is pretty neat. Stop over and take a look: http://selfrelianceadventures.blogspot.com/

Lessons learned from the recent Tornado

I found this interesting letter to the editor on Survivalblog.com that gives a good perspective of what to expect in the aftermath of a major disaster.

Dear Editor:
I have been reading your blog for a while but until Saturday, I never saw how a disaster could unhinge some people so quickly and what lack of preparedness can do to some people.

I went to deliver a chainsaw, some gas and water to a relative in Yazoo City and what is usually a 45 minute drive took over 2 hours. Land lines and cell towers were down, and if you had a phone with a certain carrier, the service was very spotty. The traffic was bad and the roads into the town were blocked and we were turned away twice by a motley group of authorities but mostly State police. One local deputy was sympathetic and told us a way to get in the town that was 35 miles out of our way and we eventually got close to the north side of town and we had to drive over live power lines and swerve around transformers. We got to the entrance of town and there were two State troopers blocking the exit but we told them we were delivering some supplies and they let us through. Eventually, we reached the home and there were trees and power lines everywhere. No power, no gas lines, homes and cars crushed, etc. One generator was being shared by neighbors and gas was being siphoned out of boats and cars to power it. There was one electric chainsaw that was plugged into the generator.

Things to note were that the authorities were very stressed out and not experienced with this kind of devastation and there were many people who tried to get to loved ones or family that couldn't get past the road blocks. Some people just left their cars on the sides of the road and were allowed to walk into town. One lady drove around the roadblock and was chased by a cop car. There were people panicking and the Red Cross got there and all they were doing was handing out water bottles. The power company was only responsible for getting the trees off the power lines. You could see people just staring at their crushed homes and houses wondering what to do. There were cops on four wheeler ATVs just riding around and eventually the National Guard showed up but they were just driving around.

Some lessons learned:

No one is getting into town right after a disaster

Have a big chainsaw and make sure there are no trees in your yard

Have a four-wheeler and a 15 foot trailer to haul out pieces of debris from your home/yard

Have a siphon and a generator

Know how to turn off your gas in your home because live wires and natural gas don't mix

Know beforehand that the authorities are not there to help you but to maintain order and the power company is not going to cut down that tree that is now in your dining room.

Brick homes fare better than stick ones

Anticipate that neighbors are going to freak out and run around like chickens with their heads cut off and try to do silly things like get in their cars and drive over debris in the road and get stuck and pop their tires.

Have gloves and chains in your truck and keep a full tank of gas at all times. Some people ran out of gas in the traffic.

Realize that tensions are going to be high and seeing weird things like one group of people having a barbecue and getting drunk and across the street one family was sitting on the lawn waiting for help is a recipe for a bad situation. I saw a kid in the road trying to flag us down and there were some guys leaning up against a house a bit out of sight. We just drove around him. I couldn't believe that it was already getting strange and the tornado was only a few hours earlier.

So in a nutshell, that was my experience and one more thing, the tornado hit so fast that the siren didn't give enough warning. And what was worse, people are conditioned to think the siren means thunderstorm or it could be a test or something else. So no one was prepared until they heard the freight train sound and with no one having basements in Mississippi, there isn't really a safe place to be.

Sincerely, - James H.