Hunting and Fishing Gear, Fuel

We are living in tough economic times, but hopefully through some things we’ve done, and through our great reader response, (can’t thank you guys enough for your participation), we’re making an attempt to possibly show ways for you to become a little more self-sufficient. Maybe you’ll see the importance of buying a little extra each and every trip to the grocer of your choice. Food is going up in price my friends, and in most cases what you bought last week will cost you more this week. We’ve come to the realization that in these times food is literally an investment, and a very good one at that! So please try to add more to your pantry if at all possible. The day may come that you’ll be thankful you did. Simply in order to conduct your daily lives, you have to eat. In the same breath you have to insure your family has enough to weather the tough times that lay ahead as well. Deb and I decided over two years ago, (remember we didn’t work for almost two years after the housing bubble burst as we’re a construction based business), that we’d immediately start becoming much more self-reliant than we’d been in the past! We started gardening, home canning, Foodsavering, watching for food sales and purchasing more of it, stocking much more firewood than we normally kept on hand, put in hand operated pitcher pumps so we’d have water even during power outages, and purchased more manual hand tools. We did these things for but one reason, we felt it better to prepare for the worst, but indeed, hope for the best! You’ve heard that old saying, “Getting caught with your britches down?” That’s exactly what Deb and I didn’t want to see happen, and by feeling this way, we started taking a whole different outlook on our, and our family’s lives. Be aware, be smart, and do what your heart tells you to do to in regards to the subject matter being discussed. Over two years ago, people would look at us like we were crazy, honestly they would. They’d never considered things getting so bad, after all…this was America! Yes we’d tell them, it sure is, but you know what? Even though we’re living in America as you guys say, we haven’t been working or have you noticed? So with this taking place, how about telling us how we’re supposed to have food on the table, if there’s no income being generated? You gonna’ give it to us? Well Deb and I were steady “doin our thing,” trying to cover the bases, if you will, in our situation and the ole economy kept getting worse, job loss kept getting higher, and the faith and comfort our friends were getting from, “this is America,” had become not quite so comforting, nor was it putting paychecks on their table. All of a sudden more were beginning to listen, to ask questions, become concerned. Crazy had become more along the lines of crazy…but like a fox! Let me say this, this morning. To everyone out there who is trying to prepare for the worst, but hoping for the best, do what feels good to you, and don’t let others influence your decisions. We hear all the time readers making the statement, “We’ve tried to convince our neighbors to possibly buying a little extra, or tell them to grow a garden, but they just look at us, no response. My answer to that question is really very simple…”let em’ look!” Who cares what they think, and why do you? Your concern is you and yours, right? Okay then, look at it this way. If everything turns absolutely rosy overnight, guess what? You’ll be eating food you’ve bought at a cheaper price than you’ll buy it for today won’t you? You won’t be going grocery shopping for awhile, which means more money in your pocket that may be needed elsewhere, correct? You’ve learned how to grow a garden again, and really it’s a “no-brainer,” when deciding which tastes better, store bought vegetables, or home-grown isn’t it? You’ve learned how to home can or vacuum seal your food for preserving it for longer periods, but look at the convenience of having prepared meals simply sitting on your shelves or in your freezer, this is a good thing too, is it not? You’ll have become more self-reliant in many new ways and forms, which in itself is a confidence builder simply by knowing there’s not too much that can be thrown your way that in fact you can’t handle! Knowing that fact feels pretty good too, doesn’t it? Finally, in times such as these, and in our quest for knowledge to learn more about these subjects, it’s shown us one and all, that living a little more simply is really a good thing too, wouldn’t you all agree with this statement as well? You see, it’s not about how many “toys” you end up with. It’s all about family, friends, and good neighbors. It’s about enjoying watching your garden grow, the gratification you feel by canning your own vegetables, and the quality times these things provide to spend with the “little fellers,” your kids or grandkids. So once you stop and think about all these things that have come to pass through your acts of trying to be a little more prepared, you should be able to see that shoot, these are all literally good things, huh? You know what? Deb and I feel exactly the same way! So in closing today, hear me well. Do not worry in the least what your friends or neighbors think about anything you do, because literally they’re the ones missing out on all the good things we just discussed aren’t they? Yes indeed, they surely are!

Hunting and Fishing Gear:

Most everyone I know likes to fish, and most of them like to hunt as well. With that being the case, you already have two things going for you in ridin’ out the recession. Both of these will put food on the table usually at little cost, especially fishing. If you live anywhere near an ocean, lake, river, or even a stream, you have a built in meat market. Who doesn’t like to go out a catch a few fish? Our whole family loves to fish, and this is a great way to spend really quality time with your children or grandchildren. Even if you just get ya’ a cane pole with a pail of crickets or tin can full of worms, you can spend a morning or afternoon literally having a ball. As Jerry Clower used to say in regards to catching little fish, “They’re just right for the small skillet!” Mom and Dad have a good friend who lives up in Alabama, named Wayne. Wayne was telling me one day that back when his Mama was still running the farm, they had an old man who had worked for the family for years. Wayne said he walked down to a little pond they had that had some bream in it. Wayne said he went up and looked down into a 5 gal. bucket the old man used as his “live well,” or where he kept the fish he’d caught. Wayne said he looked in the bucket and there was several little bream swimming around in there with three or four “good uns!” Wayne said, “Hey man…them sure is some little bream in there you’re keeping, why you keeping them?” He said that feller turned around and said, “You like butter beans, Wayne? Wayne said he told the man, “Why sure I like butterbeans, why do you ask?” He said the ole man told him, “Well they’re little ain’t they? But just because they’re little don’t mean they ain’t good, does it?” Wayne said after pondering that thought for a minute he told the old man, “You know what, I guess you’re right about that, it’s just I had never looked at it that way before.” Hunting is the same way. If you like to hunt, or it gets to the point you need to hunt, this on its own will help to supply you and your family with meat. So really, if you have fishing tackle, or guns and ammo, you have another way of feeding your family during tough times. When you take a look at Deb and I as an example, our whole lives we’ve always been around both, hunting and fishing. The only real change we’ve undergone in regards to either is that as we’ve gotten older, we’ve stopped the hunting and swapped it for more of the watching them. We today would rather feed the deer and turkey, and get the enjoyment of seeing them each day, than shooting them for meat. But, if the need arises where we had to have them for meat, it’d be a done deal then!

Fuel:

This is another example of what Deb and I both considered as being a priority…the storing of fuel. It also is a little trickier as well, especially gas. To all our readers; If you guys have any knowledge of storing gas safely, please help us out here. Let me start with diesel. Diesel is a lot easier to store than gas. Gas is very flammable, while diesel will burn, but not as good, or with the flash factor of gas! You get around gas, or gas fumes with a match, two things happen instantly, a fire, or an explosion and fire, this is not a good thing! We keep 425 gal. of diesel stored in a holding tank at all times. We’ve stored it for over a year before, without using it. This was done to see if we could store it for that length of time with no problems. After storing it, we then then fueled our work truck with it till we emptied the tank. No problems whatsoever, though we do use a diesel treatment in the tank to help the fuel last. All it is, is an additive to help the fuel store for longer periods of time. Now gas is a different story and one I’ve pondered over for some time. We have about 20 5 gal. cans plus a truck bed style tank that will hold 110 gal. None of the above have we filled up at one time, just to have stored. I’ve not come up with an idea to feel comfortable with at this point. I mean we always have 5-6 cans around here, but that’s about the extent of it. We’ve kicked around building a small concrete block shed with several 6” PVC pipes built in the sides covered with screen on the inside of the pipes and hardware cloth on the outside of the pipes. This we’d do for ventilation concerns, but I’m still not convinced even this will work. So as you see, gas to us, is still a problem from a storage standpoint. Again, if any of you readers have any input please advise, as I’m sure there are many who would like some good, solid information in this regard! I’m stumped! Well, I’m gonna shut her down for this time, but look forward to seeing you all again in a day or two. If anyone has any comments once more in regards to gas storage, and how to do it safely, please let us know… we’re all ears! One other item in this regard is kerosene, which by the way, have any of you guys priced lately? Here, it is up around $6 per gallon!I almost fell down when I found this out. I’m still going to get a 30 gallon drum here very shortly. Keep your eyes open, and your nose in the wind! God Bless each and every one of you, and God Bless America! Dub and Deb