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    Prep for short and long term sustenance

    There are three kinds of scenarios for problems here. One is the short term, week or two power outage. I think I have that pretty well organized. Wood stove and water stored with food supplies. Second is the widespread damage to roads and infrastructure. No power and no way to drive to...
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    What's your areas most likely disaster and how are you prepared?

    I've been thinking about this for a bit lately. Probably due to the recent earth quakes. When I built my place, I put in a pellet stove for convenience and, to tell the truth, a little bit of fear as I never had a wood stove. Then we had a sudden microwind event (read an unforecasted wind of...
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    Winter Storm Thread....how deep is your snow?

    I heard on the news that Washington DC was expecting feet not inches. Wow. Snow does make taking care of animals harder- I remember from my student days in Michigan. Frozen hoses to drag intothe house to thaw out. Putting buckets full of snow in the house to get water for the horses. Just...
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    6.0 Earthquake of the CA Coast

    California geography- I'm about 80 miles from the Oregon border on the coast. About 10 miles from the center of this quake. San Franciso is about 260 miles south and the SO Cal people are at least 600-800 miles south from me. If I didn't feel it 14 miles away, it's unlikely anyone much south...
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    6.0 Earthquake of the CA Coast

    Right next to me again of course- but I didn't even feel it. I was walking around at the time. Must have been a slight rolly one. Sometimes they kind of bounce around the lowlands and we hardly feel them in the hills. That's for the concern though- you guys are so nice. :)
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    Manure, manure everywhere. Compost?

    My horse manure gets spread fresh in a paddock in winter where the horses will not be grazing for 6 mos. The rest is put in a compost heap in a band of trees- the seperation and shade helps keep the flies down (unfortunately not the gnats.) It is about 1/3 the volume by spring and can be used...
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    Wood burning savings

    And I have a $1100 tax credit from the installation of my wood stove last year. So this is the time to get one if you're going to.
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    Using wood ashes

    I don't think that would work very well- something like leaf mold or peat moss or pine needles would be better. I use redwood bark around mine to hold down the weeks.
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    Pruning Fruit Trees

    Most apple and pears tree fruit on very long lived spurs so you would only thin those out as needed. There are a couple of apples that I remember that fruit on short lived spurs ( I can't remember which apples- Spartan??) Peaches fruit on year old spurs so need more pruning if you want the...
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    Pruning Fruit Trees

    First I don't prune at all for a couple of years except to remove dead, diseased (!!!!) or broken branches. Then, you can prune winter or summer for different reasons. Winter is good to get your general shape and branch orientation as you can clearly see it but summer is good for holding down...
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    Dairy Goats?

    I love goat meat- I just made a batch of goat sloppy joes and have some chops marinating. Yum yum. But not everyone likes goat meat.
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    Six Meaningless Claims on Food Lables

    Let's see- Premium (on most things,) Harris Grass Feed Beef (well they ate some grass before they were put in the feed lot to grain up,) 100 % of your daily vitamin requirement (of one vitamin,) apple cider vinegar (made with artificial apple flavor and white vinegar,) etc. As my sister once...
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    Dairy Goats?

    Goats are so addictive as lupin said. They are funny and personable. I can't even see them without laughing at something and nothing in the world is as cute as a kid. And they are incredibly productive. But if you have a dairy goat, you will have kids. That's the way it works. And at...
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    Using deadfall sticks for kindling

    I feel so in touch with my ancestors. I went around my place for a couple of months picking up redwood and alder branches and twigs to use for kindling. Why have burn piles to clean up debris, putting carbon and ash into the air for no purpose? I simply cut up the branches into the right...
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    I did it, I did it, I finally did it......

    F-150 huh? I drive a Ram 2500- move over boys I'm coming through. Seriously- I coodinate the library with my shopping. No special trip. Our library has a renew by phone or on the web. And the loan period is 4 weeks. Good for my not having to make a special trip.
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    Using wood ashes

    I sprinkle mine in the paddocks when I manure them. Just a dustin. I also use some of the fine stuff from the pellet stove in potting soil I make each year. I have very accidic soil so I figure I could do this spread a loooooong time before it changes the ph too much.
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    I did it, I did it, I finally did it......

    Went to the library to check out books instead of buying some. I now have 6 books to read sitting on my side table. The thing that finally made me do it was not the saving of money but the headache of having a bazillion books piled everywhere. These library books will go back to their home in...
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    How do you spend your money to further your SS goals?

    OK- taxes are done- I'm getting a larger refund this year due to tax credit on new wood stove. So now is the moment to do a little planning before the money comes and goes. Only bill due soon is half the property tax due in April. 1) do a plan to fix that darn goat house so that I don't have...
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    Salt from sea water, the stove-top version

    I imagine that whatever local agency that measures ocean pollution can tell you what level of what's in the water- I think a fisheries monitoring agency would be a good place to start. Maybe a local university?
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    Salt from sea water, the stove-top version

    Why do you keep adding water? Have you thought about pollution adding heavy metals to your salt? How much salt per gallon of water? Do you think there could be metal from the pot from leaving it so long? I'm really interested in this - I live near one of the cleasest areas of ocean in the...
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