Coffee Chat

 

A coffee chat to start the day. My least favorite couple of weeks each year, is now upon us. Which is strange since my youngest child loves Halloween. Locally, the city offers a trunk or treat, usually the day before Halloween so kids can go to other towns. This to me is ridiculous, but whatever. It gets me past it one day sooner. I know a lot of people that love Halloween, I just don't like to be scared, and that is what that holiday is all about. So, I pull on my mom pants, and we go to hand out candy/decorate the car(a little)/she dresses up...and the best part for me - I get to make a trip to the local coffee shop. Then, the next day...I start decorating for my favorite season.

I have been following the hurricane clean up/relief efforts of Helene. Ya'll it's terrifying what they have experienced, but seeing them pull together and entire country donating to help our own citizens has been incredible! It's terribly sad how many lives were lost, homes lost, and entire towns wiped out. The resilience, determination, and grit of the folks in Appalachia is unmatched! It has brought home several important thoughts. Through all the destruction, they have pulled together, helping each other. Those left completely isolated - most were well prepared in the sense of having backup supplies for an emergency situation. Another thought, the American people have incredibly generous hearts. To see semi loads of food, water, pet supplies, medicine, blankets, and a couple of notable companies that stepped up...The Buddy Heater company and the Rocket Stove company; have made generous donations. The people of those areas are building back roads and bridges to get to those still isolated. Most of them, are regular citizens utilizing what they can to help their neighbors. The Cajun Navy, and so many with pack mules and horses have takes supplies across treacherous terrain to get help to those unreachable due to roads/bridges being wiped out. It will take a long time for the people of Appalachia to rebuilt, but they have proven to the entire nation, what is possible when we help each other! 

This brings me back to preparing. I know I get a lot of grief about this. The one thing I can attest to, on a personal level, is the importance of preparedness. Where I live, is kind of a crap shoot, on what the winter weather will be. It's been brutally cold, super snowy, warm, wet, and even dangerously dry. Having spent the better part of 26 years living in a rural setting, preparation is not an option. If we get snow, it could be days before we see a plow. If there's ice...no one is going anywhere until it thaws. Just last winter, we had a major snow storm, and lost power for 27 hours. We would not have been that long without power, except the state snow plows had not even tried to get down our roads, until the electric company started insisting they needed to get power restored; that meant they had to get to our location. We were prepared for a lot of possibilities, but that long without heat in January, was a hole in our preparations. We have a generator, we had means to cook and the pans to do so, but we didn't have everything in place to actually be able to utilize it. We had snow drifts over 6 foot tall, had we had everything in place...it would have been buried under snow anyway. We did find holes though. No matter how prepared, you will always find a hole, but the importance of doing what you can, can not be stressed enough. We spend half a year getting our preparations in place each year. It's a cycle that makes sense. We prepare April, May, June, July, August, September and sometime October - for November, December, January, February and March.I try to make sure to have enough supplies for several months, although that has become more difficult in this economy. Things like: food, water, pet supplies, live stock feed, hay, straw, mineral, medical supplies for humans and animals, wood for the furnace and if necessary a fire, propane for grills/griddle, candles, batteries, flashlights, lots of blankets, warm clothes, hats/gloves/insulated clothing for everyone in the house, thick socks, food that can be eaten without being cooked, OTC meds(allergy, Tylonal, Aspirin), extra fuel/diesel for the tractor, and keeping our vehicles/tractor full of fuel. Don't forget treatments for anything with a diesel engine...they gum up in the cold! I learned to can the vegetables from the garden, fruits, jellies, soups and meats too. This helps a lot if you do not have power. Anything in jars, can be eaten right from the jar. As I said, we keep cast iron for cooking outdoors and some foil pans too. Cast iron can be used on a grill or over an open fire. Plus, the taste of foods out of cast, is amazing. Having printed information is great in a situation without power. We all love the online recipes and sites for getting them, but if there is no power...that won't work very good. Having holistic knowledge is immeasurable. Keeping books that can tell you how to mix up a remedy for coughs, colds, or any number of illness is life saving. If you want to find your holes in preparation...take at least 24 hours dark. No electric, no internet, nothing. 

As I said earlier, we are less than 2 weeks from my favorite time of the year; Thanksgiving, Christmas, my birthday and New Years. To me, they are one giant holiday, that stretches to my birthday and on to the New Year. It takes me weeks to get all my decor out and put up. My kids tell me, Christmas explodes on our house every year. I believe in being grateful everyday, but Thanksgiving to me, is about the kick off to family/holiday get togethers. I love our gatherings, even if they were difficult for a few years. It has changed for me this year, since I only have one child left at home. For several years, we had a house full! I love that, and hope they are all able to still spend time here. A lot changes when your "Mom role" changes. Like I said, I still have one at home, but 2 are now adults with their own homes, and my other bonus kids have all gotten engaged this year...so, I'm sure they will be super busy. I am excited that my youngest is as excited, as I am, for Christmas this year. It is definitely making it easier, for me, to get excited too. I can't wait to start putting up lights, decorations and the trees. My house always seems to pretty, to me, with all Christmas stuff up. I decided to go ahead with some gatherings this year, that I had actually decided not to do previously. Thanksgiving is the first. I love our traditional meals! I never bought into the story told of how Thanksgiving started. It just never felt right. So, for us, it's always been about being grateful for all we have, sharing the day with our loved ones, and kicking off Christmas season. After that, will be our annual open house. This was something we started when we first moved to our farm. We welcomed our neighbors, friends and family to our home, prepared soups/lots of cookies/fudge/candies/breads to share with everyone. There are no gifts, other than good old fashioned visiting. Years ago, we had a lot of little people, most of those little people are now nearly adults. Then comes our Christmas Eve. When the kids were little, we started a tradition of opening a gift on Christmas eve. It was always a gift that contained new PJ's, some microwave popcorn, a box of candies, and sometimes a mug and hot chocolate. We'd open that gift, go put on our new duds, pop some popcorn or make hot cocoa, and settle in to watch Christmas movies until bed. Christmas day, has always been an early start for us. If it's not one of the kids...it was me, to get the kids up by 4 am to see what Santa brought. We'd get our coffee, and then the kids would take turns opening a gift and "oohing and ahing" each others gifts until all were open. There were years that gifts were all very practical because money was tight, and that practical gifting has stayed in our traditions too. We do not buy technology or electronic, they always get a few gifts of need(socks, underwear, etc.) and a couple of gifts that are just fun. I always tried to get a least one gift each, that was educational be it a book, or learning project. Moving on, a few days later is my birthday. So many people who have December birthday's really hate it. I don't. I love my birthday, even so close to Christmas. I love each new one, knowing I get another year to do better. Although my family doesn't ever do much for my birthday, I still love it. This year I hit the 50 mark! I am super excited. I keep thinking, maybe this year I won't have to bake a cake for myself, and can get some friends here to celebrate with me. Anyway, then we are on to New Year's Eve...that is always fun. We make up lots of snack foods, and have a night of board games, card games, New Year's Rockin' Eve on the noise box...until midnight. Even if I am the only one still awake, I toast a new year, and a new journey. So, there you have it. Why I love the last 2 months of the year.

Since we are still in full harvest mode, all the windows have been locked up, and the air was turned back on. My allergies are not handling all the crop dust/dust this year. Everything is so dry and dirty. They have begun harvesting here around the house, and the dust clouds get a bit wild. I am ready to be past harvest this year. Richard has been working his butt off, lots of long hours and working entire weekends. He deserves a break when harvest is done! He stepped up and took on running a service truck, and I really hope those in charge appreciate it. I can tell you, it was not anywhere near his list of "want-to-do things." 

I believe I will end this blog here for today. I have so much I want to get accomplished, I just have to be off my backside to do it! HA! So, I hope you have an incredible week!