I had plans for a video but my thoughts are just too scattered, as of late. I have dug into so much information that it has overwhelmed me and required me to take a bit of a step back. It's difficult when you see things you can't unsee! I want to cover several areas in this blog: gardening, livestock, food supply, the concerns within our country, the distractions, and much more.
Starting with the overwhelming amount of videos you can watch. I have cut back to only following a couple of people that aren't in all out "end-of-the-world" mode. Anyone paying attention knows things aren't good. Having hundreds of "preppers" talking about bug out bags, raiding the homes of those that have prepared for hard times, thinking you're going to go live in the woods with your nifty little backpack and hand full of childrens supplies...along with a thousand other people, or some saying you should only be stocking up on certain brands/organic/whatever specialty foods....it's frustrating and dangerous! If you think a few cans of spam, a rope, a few carabiners, a hatchet and sleeping bag are going to help you bug out...boy, have you got a lot to learn! I've seen the thumbnails for so many videos, and they are nothing more than attention grabbing. There is rarely true content that is helpful to anyone looking to get prepared or stocked up. I guess if you are looking for fear mongering...a bunch of those videos will have ya covered. I prefer real information, real content and less drama!
I'm a bit irritated today by the snark and ignorance out there. If you don't believe our country is heading down a very dark and troubling path, then keep doing what you have always done. Keep watching the MSM shit shows and believe our inflation rate is only 8.6% and that we haven't been in a recession since late October 2021. That is your choice. We are still a free country for the moment. For the rest of us that are seeing the writing on the wall, I know what I am seeing. I know the amount of increase in my own budget is unsustainable. I know the dead cat bounce of supplies is about to come to an abrupt end. I know the garden seed has been severely bad for 2-3 years. I know that the 100+ food processing plant fires were not a coincidence. I know the pain facing momma's as they try to find formula for their babies. I know the strain the increased fuel/diesel and food costs have put on limited income households. I know the volatility in the housing and stock markets are all pointing to a massive bottoming out in the not too distance future. I know the mortgage rate increases will help to fuel the fall of the housing market, and loans in general. I know this inflation and recession will result in more closed businesses and unemployment. I know that the failed policies from the past 18-24 months will continue to contribute to all of this and more. Here's the thing, if you believe everything is still sunshine and roses...bless your heart. I can't imagine living in such blissful ignorance.
My reality looks like this: My grocery bill has increased from less than $300 per month for a family of 6, to now it ranges from $800-$900 PER MONTH! AND we grow and raise much of what we eat! My 50 pounds of flour has increased from $18.50 per bad to $43.50 now. The 50 pound bags of sugar I buy, when I can get them, have gone from $24.95 per bag to $48.75. I went to our local Aldi 2 weeks ago. I bought several canned goods, some spice packets, and some chips. That bill was $128. I went to the same store, this past Saturday, bought the same number of items and roughly the same types of items that bill was $208. My animal feed bill....OMG! In January, I was buying 100 pounds of chicken feed and 100 pounds of cracked corn, for $28.17. My bill today: $52.19, for 100 pounds of feed and 50 pounds of corn. Our sheep and cattle feed...$300 per load increase. Dog food: $4 per bag increase. Our Fuel and Diesel bills: $120 per month in January to almost $700 in June. The most irritating part of all of it....our income has not increased, our bills have. Our personal property tax bills have increased, our taxes have increased. So, just going off my own budget....How is someone on a fixed income expected to pay their bills, buy their medications, and eat??? It pisses me off that while so many are arguing about Democrat or Republican, that have head-up-the-ass syndrome to even see THEY ARE ALL THE PROBLEM!!! THEY have a spending problem. They have legislated printing money out of thin air, lining their pockets, and are not being held accountable.
I am spitting nails over this pathetic "create the problem then institute their solution" plan. We, as a generalized people, have forgotten, don't care or not been taught how the American government is supposed to work. We have 3 separate branches of government, each one has a job. The Supreme Court is their ONLY to rule on the Constitutionality of the cases they hear. I think a whole lot of people better go reeducate themselves on the constitution. It has been trampled on for decades, and now it is in our faces.
Because of the issues I have seen, read about and researched...I have done what I can to prepare my family. We have made cuts where we can. We are paying for a vehicle we rarely use because diesel is too high. I personally, don't leave the farm but maybe a day or two A MONTH! I expanded my gardens again this year, and realistically should have expanded more! I am learning everything I can possibly learn about doing things the "old fashioned way." I am writing down recipes for meals that will stretch, that can be frozen for later use, and preserving foods I didn't know could be preserved. I am educating myself on the actual legislation coming out of our government. I'm networking with other individuals that are learning and sharing garden advice, preservation ideas, frugal living, and community empowerment. I am keeping an open mind about things I don't know or understand, yet. Y'all, I refuse to be a victim or have a victim mentality!
Gardening the past couple of years has been a lot of stress. I've personally experienced a lot seed that never germinates, both heirloom and hybrid. Each winter, I go through what the gardens did that summer, what issues we dealt with, weather patterns, etc. I learn what I can do better the next year. For 2-3 years, nothing I have done with some seeds has worked. Overall, green beans, beets, and corn have been big failures! This past Spring, I invested in a cheap little greenhouse to put on my deck. I decided to start some green bean seeds in it and see if they would grow that way. Oddly enough, I had 72 seeds sprout, get up about 2" tall and all but 8 plants died. This was another trial. Are the bean seeds tainted? Who knows...but they won't grow! Beets...I have planted beets for most of 20 years. The last few years, I can't get them to grow! Prior to the past few years, I had a massive over abundance of them. Now, all I end up with is tops or beets the size of a quarter. The sweet corn is another bomb. I bought heirloom seeds from a well known seed dealer, for a couple of years. What did grow was not edible, but a large amount...didn't grow. This year, I bought some hybrid corn to try. While we have a decent standing, there are still a lot of seeds that did not germinate. While a lot of times, weather will play into the growth of seeds - drought, too much rain, etc. This year we have been fortunate to end up with rain, at good intervals that should have made growing seeds work excellent. Not been the case. My kidney beans and horticulture beans have been another phenomenon this year. They decided to vine. I have never seen these types of beans vine, ever! Not sure what to make of that! Now, I typically will buy extra tomato and pepper plants, because not all of them stay alive during the transition from container to ground. This year, every stinking one of the plants I bought(except 1) have survived. I believe I have 49 tomato plants, 20 bell pepper(different colors), 4 banana pepper and 4 jalapeno plants. I think I might just have enough. (you could probably hear my eyes roll!) Anyway, I have found I am battling blight this year. I've not had this issue before. So, I went into study mode again, learned what I needed to do, how I needed to treat them, and got to work! I can tell you, when you have this issue, it's a lot more work and requires daily care or you could lose entire plants. I've trimmed branches, leaves and gotten stems up off the ground. Because I had so many plants survive, I didn't have near enough cages for the tomatoes. I had to improvise since those are another item that has gotten stupid expensive! I learned about garden clips, working with twine in the garden and bungee straps! Yeah, it's not ideal but it's a cheap alternative that appears to be working! I'm heading out today to water the plants, with a mix of water and epsom salts, and baking soda. If need be, I learned about a product called Captain Jacks Copper Fungicide that is awesome for blight. Hoping I can avoid having to purchase anything else though.
Finally, I want to touch on something I believe in and what I try to do. Community and local shopping. I have always tried to shop local, and utilize what is in my own community before going outside of it. Fortunately, I learned this years back so when all the illness crap came about, I didn't have to change too much. I will tell you, sometimes you do have to spend a little more locally, but once you figure in the extra fuel to go to another area...rarely is it worth it. Especially now! In my county, we have several options for shopping, and for me...I have several areas closer than within my county to shop local owned/run businesses too. I know I have heard people say they can't shop that way in their area, and that may be true...I can only speak of what I know. In my area, we have 3 counties and 2 states within just a few miles. That opens a door for us, even living as rural as we do. My thought is this, if you don't shop and support your local businesses, what are you going to do in an emergency when that's all you have left?! Here is a perfect example...In the county I live in, our main town offers a local owned farm/lumber store, a local owned grocery store, a local owned meat locker, a local owned car dealer, a local owned lumber yard, as well as a dollar general and a chain grocery store. Yet, a large majority are still traveling the 30-45 minutes to a bigger town to go to Walmart. Yes, I know there are something you can only get there now. It irritates me, but it's just the way it is. If you don't shop at those stores and support them, they will close. That not only means those stores not being available if you need them...but it also means jobs lost, industry in our small communities lost, and local revenue lost. Many of these small local owned businesses support events in our community from the school kids, to other events that matter. Plus you have the added bonus of these businesses knowing your name when you walk in the door. Having a community that is self-sustaining is trying the past 2 years. The illness has taken its toll on them. Many are struggling to get and keep help, many have lost a lot of income due to the economic downturn, and I expect there will be businesses that will have shutter if the current direction is not changed. If that happens, you have a lot of unemployed people in the communities. You will see crime increase, property values decrease, you will have to drive farther for everything, and these small communities will cease to exist. It is our responsibility to support our communities, our farmers markets, our local producers, and keep life in these small towns alive.
I'm going to end this for now. I am sure my brain will stay in motion, it always does. I hope you are able to stock up on what you can, that are are learning something new and useful every day, and that you are supporting your local businesses. Until next time, be safe, and be kind!
S.
