Tuesday, June 14, 2022

We Shall Overcome

 Heys gals - we got this!  Do not fret and worry about the situations of the world.  YOU can't fix them - you CAN pray for them and pray HARD!  Otherwise, you CAN only control your little plot of land in this big old world.  Do what you can do.  Learn new things.  Looks at things differently.  Learn to bend and adjust.  Learn to improvise.  Learn to be more self-sufficient.
We got this.  We can do it.  We surely didn't get this far in life to be knocked down by a bad economy or bad governments or some shortages!!!!!

I think this speaks volumes.  Not just by growing a garden or having chickens or whatever - your hands NEED to be productive.  You can make GOOD from almost nothing.  Re-inventing, re-thinking, and re-using things is the key!

When you have meat scraps - you have stock!!!!  I don't care if it is chicken, ham, beef, or turkey bones and fat - you can 'cook' them down with water and you have hearty stock!
You have food scraps from preparing veggies - you have stock.  Do the same things with these.

Buy the clearance fruit and veggies - day old stuff.  You can preserve it for the future.  Can, dehydrate or freeze.  Buy the mis-shaped items.  Inside they are still good!

Do what you can to keep things longer and fresher.  I wrap celery in foil - it makes it last much, much longer.  I keep lettuce in a closed container, or a gallon zip-lock bag (with air removed) and I always add a paper towel to absorb moisture.  That and air is what turns the lettuce.
I keep potatoes and onions (apart from each other) in a dark cool spot (not frig).
I wrap bananas in a plastic bag and tightly seal at the stem end - they last 3-4 times longer

Berries - I finally tried the thing I keep seeing.  Keeping fresh berries in a jar!  IT WORKS!  Now I did it differently than some.  I remove berries from pack - did nothing to them and place in a jar and closed.  I will wash and clean when ready to eat.
These are almost 3 weeks old!  I placed in 3 quart jars and refrigerated.  I have one and a half jars left and they are perfect.  I would think this would work for about any berries.
I saw yesterday where a gal did this with cherry tomatoes (just picked) and had kept them for a month on the shelf.  Not sure if I would trust that - but she swore it worked.
Keeping the items out of the air is the key!

Banana peels in water - sit for a few days and you have free fertilizer for plants and garden.  *Don't do this too often or it will burn plants.  Compost the peels then.

Not just bread!  I froze for future use (double bagged).   I see 4 French bread pizzas with a salad for me!!!!  I can cut that loaf in quarters and BOOM pizza.  Fix and freeze.  I see breakfast sandwiches or snacks with the bagels.  I also see a meal with cream cheese and sliced veggies and maybe some meat on a bagel.  I see garlic toasted bagels.  I could make a version of French toast.  THINK DIFFERNTLY!!!!!!

I have a portable dehumidifier in basement - I use that water in the washer.  If no laundry, I pour into a bucket and use to water plants or throw in the rain barrel.
If you have no rain barrels and live in a dry area - just place a bucket in your shower.  That catches all that clean water that just runs down the drain!  Use it to water garden plants.

You all know my mantra by now!!!
Use less meat
Use ALL leftovers in a new way
Buy cheaply
Shop HOME first
Quit being brand loyal
Grow whatever you can
Make sacrifices - you can get by just fine with less
Plate smaller serving sizes - most eat too much, because it is on the plate!!!!!

HUMMUS
It is easy to make at home and is pretty costly at the store.  This is just one tiny example

Now here is the thing!!!!  Many don't have Tahini in the pantry - any nut butters will work!  Cashew, almond, peanut........  I actually use sesame 'oil' - but only about a tablespoon or less, as it is strong.  I use bottled lemon juice as well.  
Save the liquid from the chickpeas (garbanzo beans) and it can be used as a substitute for eggs in baking.
You can flavor hummus with what you have.  Use a little garlic powder or onion powder (if no minced garlic).  Add a little hot sauce if desired.  Maybe some roasted tomatoes or peppers.  
This is just a little example showing that you can make at home - be creative - use everything and save money!!!!!

Do you have freezer fruit that you have been sitting on for a while?  Make jam, jelly, syrup or preserves.  This is a great way to use it up and make something new and useful.  You can even turn this into gifts or barter items.  Maybe sell a few jars.

Here are a couple of things we just don't talk about.  AMERICA still has the cheapest food prices in the world - even with inflation.  YES, that is a fact.  Inflation can continue (hopefully not) and we still would have an advantage on much of the world.

About 50% of the items that people buy at the grocery with their hard earned money is TRASHED!!!  They throw out leftovers, let things go bad, have no vision of what to do with things, throw it away because it hit some 'magic' date!!!!!!  That is disgusting and unacceptable to me.  What they heck is wrong with people?  Would these people be willing to drive down the street and just throw dollar bills out their windows?  Doubtful.
It is shameful and disgusting.

We are citizens of earth - and we need to be more mindful of it and its resources.  We need to be mindful of what we spend and what we use.  THAT, folks is what we CAN CONTROL!!!!!

So do not fret and worry.  We can do this.  We have each other for support and ideas.  We still have 'some' control - use it.
We shall overcome!
Be blessed!


  

30 comments:

  1. LOVE the verse today, Cheryl. I came from a very Catholic family and was taught from a young age that waste (especially of food) was a sin and keeping busy kept the devil away. ;-)

    You know I'm a BIG believer in homemade broth--of all kinds--to make use of scraps. It makes plain rice into something special, seasons veggies simply & deliciously, is a great staple for beans, soups, stews, etc. Bone broth also helps aching joints as we get older. Cold and flu season happens and it's wonderful to have plenty of homemade broth available in the freezer.

    Thank you so much for all of your tips. I'll be trying those out that I didn't know about before. Oh... and to add... if you're planning a garden, you can bury banana peels [at least 12 inches deep to keep pests away] with other kitchen scraps ahead of time. In about 5 weeks the banana peels will be fully broken down. Sooner if they're frozen in an airtight baggie 1st.

    Yes, we can DO this! --Elise
    P.S. Your blog is a lifesaver for me, Cheryl. It has kept me going.

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    1. Oops, thought you'd want to know (because it ties in), after one of your readers suggested the idea, I took a look at the ramshackle raised bed the previous owners of my son's house had built. The 4x4 posts are solid, sturdy and w/o weather damage; there are six of them. He wanted it all taken apart and removed. FREE wood for a short fence to protect the septic clean out pipes by our driveway! --Elise

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    2. Waste is sinful just as glutton is. We just need to be more mindful. I hope you found some good tips to use.
      We have such a good group here, I love how everyone tries to help the other. Thank you!!!!!

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    3. WOOHOO on the wood. That works out to a lot of money. Great re-use too!

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  2. Your readers are blessed by all the good things you share with us. Elise was talking about banana peels for the garden. We have done that for years along with egg shells. The Urban Farmer put a small can of sardines in each hole he dug for the tomatoes. Native Americans did this years ago. The tomatoes are really going to town!

    Gonna be hawt and muggy today and for a couple more days. Think I'll work inside, plenty to catch up on.

    So happy you could share your husband's things with someone who could use them. When the Urban Farmer's stepfather died, his mom had most of his things out of the house within two weeks.

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    1. Ah shucks - thank you. I have done that with egg shells too. I put Tums in my tomato plant holes - extra calcium! Hmmm, something to think about with the sardines! I can see every cat and racoon in the world being in my yard!!!! LOL
      Other than feeding the cats and keeping water fresh - this girl is in for the day. Walked out the back door this morning at 6:30 and it felt like I hit a muggy wall of moisture. YUK!

      If it says anything about me - I still have stuff of Moms I need to do something with and she passed in 2001!!!! I can't do these things fast - if people haven't noticed!
      Stay cool!

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    2. When I was growing up, my dad fished and we sometimes had blue gills or lake perch for dinner. The fish heads and other "stuff" from cleaning was always added to the vegetable garden and mulched in (or were used in the holes when planting in the Spring). That just brought back such good memories of my Dad. Thank you!

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    3. Lori - you just brought back a memory for me of MY dad fishing. Oh how I would love a mess of fresh caught blue gills. That was one of my favorite meals growing up - fresh fish my daddy caught. Funny how one thing leads to another - down the trail we go!!!!! LOL

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  3. Debby in Kansas USAJune 14, 2022 at 10:57 AM

    Donna, my friend from Vietnam buries fish heads and she has the prettiest roses I've ever seen. I wonder if sardines would do the same....

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  4. Debby in Kansas USAJune 14, 2022 at 11:03 AM

    Speaking of things left by our departed loved ones, my apologies if I already posted this...
    Saturday was yarn Bombing Day. My mom made me yarn placemats many years ago, but they're way to thick and lumpy. I decided to wrap the two that are American flags on my front maples for the summer. My official contribution to Yarn Bombing Day 2022. I'm sure my mama would love it!

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  5. I think if I just copied this post, I could do a lesson. Food waste is a biggie. I try very hard not to waste and almost all scraps go to my chickens so I really feel that I don't waste. I remember when hubs said I could finally sell his three pair of very expensive boots. I traded them to a yard man who almost cried when I showed them to him. His boots were a mess. Now he had three pair and one pair were corks, which are over $600.00 and help you to walk on logs and rough jobs with lots of brush, something he did on a regular basis. He had never owned a pair as he could not afford them. I was never so happy as when I was able to see him take those boots to his truck.

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    1. Use whatever you can or want to!!! Yes, food waste is a huge waster of not only money but resources. We all have limited $ and there are so many who are hungry - waste just makes no sense.
      How wonderful for that guy. I bet he was super happy. Small gifts of love can be the greatest gifts ever received. Definitely a 'God' moment!

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  6. Just want to say that I really REALLY needed to read this today. I've been working on a "project" for the future, carrying out a dream that my late hubs and I had planned. It's looking more and more like it's not going to come to fruition right now. And, your post has really made me stop and reassess my current situation and how grateful I should be for what I DO have and that I CAN make a difference through my choices and abilities. So, thank you for your words of wisdom.

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    1. I am so happy it spoke to you. Sometimes - no matter how hard it is - plans change and go a different direction. I doubt that anyone who has lost a partner, ever suspected that this would be their life now.
      I am slowly learning that it is OK to change the plans and do something else - they would want us to.
      Huge hugs!!!!

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  7. What a positive and inspirational post, something we need more of these days. Being more self-sufficient gives us confidence and a sense that whatever comes along, we can handle it. Thank you for being a bright spot on my Instagram feed.

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    1. Thank you! Being a gloomy Gus serves no one. It gets us nothing and accomplished nothing.
      I prefer to put the other 'spin' on things. We got this. Self-sufficiency is so very important now and for tomorrow!
      Thanks for the sweet words!

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  8. The food boxes I get every Tues. come from a local organization called 412 Food Rescue. They take donations of food that would otherwise have been thrown in the dumpster from grocery stores and other food sellers and deliver them to coordinators in low-income neighborhoods. Volunteers in the neighborhood make up food boxes and hand them out (or deliver to shut-ins). There is no income requirement other than living in the target neighborhood. This organization also takes restaurant/catering food leftovers and makes meals out of them for delivery in certain city neighborhoods. This is a double blessing, as it keeps the food out of the landfill and gives it to those who need it. I imagine the donations are tax deductible, too. I wish more areas would do this.

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    1. That is wonderful and such an asset to the people. We have a place called 2nd Helping - that takes leftover food and remakes it. They give much away, and I think they have a small store front where they sell meals. The folks working, are generally homeless or ex-cons all learning a trade from skilled chefs. Such a worthwhile project.
      YES mam, more of this needs to be happening. I just love the re-use and no waste attitude.

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  9. I have gotten so much better about food waste, and now Harvey is on board as well. Prices for food here in Canada are much higher especially in the smaller towns and cities so waste is something your want to keep under control.

    I will need to try the banana peels in water.

    God bless.

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    1. Food is expensive everywhere - but I have so many stories about much higher prices other places. I guess it depends on location, location, location!
      Waste is not good. So glad Harvey is on board as well.

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  10. Thank you for this post - I really needed it today as I have been feeling a bit overwhelmed and this put things into perspective.

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    1. You are welcome. Baby steps, and slow and steady. We have this. Life can be flustering at times, and we just need to breathe and go on.

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  11. Years ago my children were enrolled in a bowling league on Friday afternoons. At the end of the year they had a "banquet" at the end of the last game with a buffet of hot roast beef sandwiches and some other things. So much food was left over that I asked if I could have it to take to a shelter or pantry. The manager said no. It was their policy not to give away food. I was so annoyed. What a waste of perfectly good food to have it thrown out.
    ~margaret

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    1. Oh my. That kind of mentality is just so wrong on many levels. Why not let someone use it. They could have people sign a waiver or something. People are so worried about being sued. What a shame this is how our world has become.

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  12. Great post Cheryl. I was brought up the same. I keep thinking that I was born for such a time as this and I have to step up to it. I know there are people around who have no idea and grew up with absolutely no common-sense or skills. But I see hope in more people wanting to learn to make soup, stock, cook and grow. And there is so much easy to get information on how to do anything which is good. I think being good stewards for what God has given us is important. Also I think that being busy at home has seen me build up a good pantry, gardens, chickens etc. Society has frowned on anyone who is happy and busy at home! Now old fashioned skills are going to come into their own. I am so glad of my parents and Grandparents who have taught me these things. They gave me good foundations. I put in a lot of effort and trust our Lord with the rest. Thank you for so much encouragement! xxx

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  13. I finally convinced Tommy that we were not wasting gallon storage bags by putting bags of produce in them and mashing the air out and storing in the refrigerator. He is amazed how long salad greens last. Besides, I bought the storage bags with Christmas designs on sale after Christmas. Before, he wanted to just fold the tops over and put them in the refrigerator. I am going to try putting berries into a jar. I have plenty of jars.

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