Smoked Meat

It's been raining for the past couple of days.  We need it to be sure.
The DH fired up the pit yesterday and smoked a chicken (the neighbor put one on too.... heck why waste fire!) He also did a rack of baby backs.  Needless to say, it came out wonderful.  And was joined by some blackeyed peas with bacon and onion for seasoning, as well as some fried squash and homemade chili bread.
 
I wonder what the rich people ate?

Something Wicked This Way Comes

The DH has made a decision which I wholeheartedly agree with.  We will, from this day forward, not be saving money.  We are going to put every nickle and every dime into preps. 
The dollar is tanking as we speak.  I think its wiser to use it before all it is good for is toilet paper.  I wish we had done this a whole lot sooner. 

 

I also wish I hadn't been so hardheaded and listened to the DH more closely.   He has been trying to warn me for years.  He  never pushed  it hard because he knew that  one day I would "get" it.  I had my head planted firmly in the sand and wasted precious time and money for years.  
That I didn't wake up soon enough is glaringly obvious.  But I did wake up, finally. 
I just wish I hadn't slept in so late!


All those years he was buying camping gear and the like, I  just figured it was because we love to camp.  The tools I wrote off as "its a guy thing".  The gardening he always did was just a cool hobby, right?  The fact that he is an excellent horse and cattleman I chalked up to his living on ranches all his young life.   That he can handle just about any problem that needs solving I chalked up to his life skills. I never gave a second thought about how he fixed all our cars, or how we have NEVER called a plumber or an electrician. 

Until last year. 


He shared something with me something that he had never discussed with anyone before. He told me that when he was a little kid he can remember he wanted to learn "everything".  And that he knew, instinctively, that there was a purpose for this mindset. He has been on a lifequest to be ready for "something" even while not knowing what that something was.

The man has essentially been prepping all his life. 


For that , I am grateful.

Because I believe , in my heart of hearts, that we are running out of time.  Something wicked this way comes and I am not prepared. 

Dehydrating Day

  I can't believe how fast this month flew by.  October is upon us.

We put in some broccoli, cabbage and  brussel sprouts last week.  I've never grown fall veggies so I am looking forward to watching them grow.  The tomato's are putting out a few flowers so I have my fingers crossed that we will get some more.  


We put up another 2 pounds of blackeyed peas this week.  They are still producing!  YaY!! The okra is still producing like wildfire.  We don't like boiled okra so other than freezing I didn't know what to do with it all. Both of us love it fried though.

And then I had a "lightbulb" moment.  Why not try dehydrating some?  I dried one tray as an experiment.  The result was pretty cool.  The dried okra makes a really neat snack treat.  Quite tasty! (the next batch got a sprinkling of salt) 
So on to the next test.  How would it rehydrate?  I was pleased to find that it rehydrated just fine.It was even slimey.
And then for the last test.  How would it fry up?  You guessed it!  It was wonderful.  I wish I had taken pictures now but we pretty much grazed the experiment with no leftovers!

I've got three trays of okra in the dehydrator this time around.  I'm sure there will be more to follow.
I'm also working on another experiment.  I have a dozen eggs in the dehydrator as well.  I finally broke down and decided to try my hand at it just to see how it will work.  I've been thinking about it for awhile now after seeing one of Dean in AZ posts over at Stealth Survivor.  I'll take pic's when its done.  Tomorrow I am going to be drying some more carrots.


I can't believe how big a fan of dehydrating I have become.  There are just so many things you can dry!  The space it saves is a huge plus. And it weighs next to nothing!   I'm still scouring the Thrift Stores for a second machine for the "stinky" stuff like onions, peppers, and garlic.  I'll find one though.  I've learned to be patient but diligent in my search!

The State of the Union

I am overwhelmed.


There is so much going on around us these days that I sometimes feel like I am drowning.  Here is just a short list.  There are many more but these are just the ones I thought of "off the cuff" so to speak.  I can't see anything good coming out of any of this.   Can you?


A war in the works with Iran.
40,000 more troops to be sent to Afghanistan.
Mandatory Flu Shots
Defamation of our constitutional rights
Pittsburgh Pa (jackbooted thugs denying free speech)
Hottest summer on record in Texas
Extreme Drought
Fema Camps
Martial Law
World Health Orginization
Government takeover of private industry. (GM)
Banker bail-outs
Federal Reserve hands out trillions to foreign banks
Bernanke
NAIS
RFID chips (mark of the beast)
Foreign military on our soil
Kids to start year round school with longer hours (nanny-state)
Chemtrails
We are considered terrorists for believing in the constitution
Gun Grabs
Vets denied gun permits
Forced Health Care
Old people being turned down for medical care....Just give them a pill and let them die
Guardasil killing teen age girls
The fall of the dollar
Mortgage Crisis- commercial real estate is next
Skyrocketing Inflation
Vaccinating pregnant women and little childern
Mercury and squaline in vaccinations
Bioterrorism
GPS'ed by census workers
Hardin Montanna - the new Gitmo
The trampling of the 2nd Amendment (Supreme Court to rule on Wednesday)
Gardening to become illegal
Man made drought in California (just the beginning)
Pakistan
Israel
9/11 coverup
Our new Socialist/Facist President
Sound Cannons used on US citizens
Terrorist List of US citizens growing at an alarming rate




Stay tuned.  This is just the tip of the iceberg. You know as well as I do there is more to come.  What say you?

The Lizard

This recently resurfaced in my email.  I had forgotten how cute it was and so for your Sunday perusal..... The Lizard!


If you have raised kids (or been one), and gone through the pet syndrome, including toilet flush burials for dead Goldfish, the story below will have you laughing out LOUD!


Overview: I had to take my son's lizard to the vet.


Here's what happened:


Just after dinner one night, my son came up to tell me there was 'something wrong' with one of the two lizards he holds prisoner in his room.


'He's just lying there looking sick,' he told me. 'I'm serious, Dad. Can you help?'


I put my best lizard-healer expression on my face and followed him into his bedroom. One of the little lizards was indeed lying on his back, looking stressed. I immediately knew what to do.


'Honey,' I called, 'come look at the lizard!'


'Oh, my gosh!' my wife exclaimed. 'She's having Babies..'


'What?' my son demanded. 'But their names are Bert and Ernie, Mom!'


I was equally outraged.


'Hey, how can that be? I thought we said we didn't want them to reproduce,' I said accusingly to my wife


'Well, what do you want me to do, post a sign in their cage?' she inquired (I think she actually said this sarcastically!)


'No, but you were supposed to get two boys!' I reminded her, (in my most loving, calm, sweet voice, while gritting my teeth).


'Yeah, Bert and Ernie!' my son agreed.


'Well, it's just a little hard to tell on some guys, you know,' she informed me (Again with the sarcasm!).


By now the rest of the family had gathered to see what was going on. I shrugged, deciding to make the best of it.


'Kids, this is going to be a wondrous experience,' I announced. 'We're about to witness the miracle of birth.'


'Oh, gross!' they shrieked


'Well, isn't THAT just great? What are we going to do with a litter of tiny little lizard babies?' my wife wanted to know.


We peered at the patient ... After much struggling, what looked like a tiny foot would appear briefly, vanishing a scant second later.


'We don't appear to be making much progress,' I noted.


'It's breech,' my wife whispered , horrified.


'Do something, Dad!' my son urged.


'Okay, okay.' Squeamishly, I reached in and grabbed the foot when it next appeared, giving it a gentle tug. It disappeared I tried several more times with the same results.


'Should I call 911?' my eldest daughter wanted to know.


'Maybe they could talk us through the trauma.' (You see a pattern here with the females in my house?)


'Let's get Ernie to the vet,' I said grimly. We drove to the vet with my son hol ding the cage in his lap.


'Breathe, Ernie, breathe,' he urged.


'I don't think lizards do Lamaze ,' his mother noted to him. (Women can be so cruel to their own young. I mean what she does to me is one thing, but this boy is of her womb, for G~d's sake.).


The vet took Ernie back to the examining room and peered at the little animal through a magnifying glass.


'What do you think, Doc, a C-section?' I suggested scientifically.


'Oh, very interesting,' he murmured. 'Mr. And Mrs. Cameron, may I speak to you privately for a moment?'


I gulped, nodding for my son to step outside.


'Is Ernie going to be okay?' my wife aske d.


'Oh, perfectly,' the vet assured us. 'This lizard is not in labor. In fact, that isn't EVER going to happen. Ernie is a boy. You see, Ernie is a young male. And occasionally, as they come into maturity, like most male species, they um ..um .Masturbate. Just the way he did, lying on his back.' He blushed, glancing at my wife.


We were silent, absorbing this.


'So, Ernie's just, just...excited,' my wife offered.


'Exactly,' the vet replied, relieved that we understood.


More silence. Then my vicious, cruel wife started to giggle, and giggle. And then even laugh loudly.


'What's so funny?' I demanded, knowing, but not believing that the woman I married would commit the upcoming affront to my flawless manliness..


Tears were now running down her face. 'It's just that ...I'm picturing you pulling on its...its...teeny little... ' She gasped for more air to bellow in laughter once more.


'That's enough,' I warned. We thanked the vet and hurriedly bundled the lizard and our son back into the car. He was glad everything was going to be okay.


'I know Ernie's really thankful for what you did, Dad,' he told me.


'Oh, you have NO idea,' my wife agreed, collapsing with laughter.


Two lizards: $140.


One cage: $50.


Trip to the vet: $30.


Memory of your husband pulling on a lizard's winkie:


Priceless!


Moral of the story: Pay attention in biology class.


Lizards lay eggs!