Hi Everyone,
NOTES:
**The following is from Survival Mom by Lisa Bedford.
When the toilet won’t flush, or when flushing toilets aren’t within driving distance, having a good, sturdy shovel on hand would be a good idea.
1) Dig a hole. In fact, you can dig a trench and heap the dirt upon the side. As you do your business in one end of the trench, you cover it up with dirt.
2) Make a substitute toilet with a 5 gallon bucket. Line the bucket with 2 heavy-duty trash bags. Commercial liners specifically designed for the purpose can be purchased also.Reliance Products Double Doodie | Portable Toilet Waste Bags | No Gel | 6 Pack, Black, (2683-13) : Pet Supplies
3) Snap on the toilet lid. Triptips: Bucket Toilet Seat (I think I bought mine at Walmart.)
4) Sprinkle a cup or two of kitty litter in the bottom of the bag and after each “Number 2”.
5) In addition, make a solution of 1 part bleach and 10 parts water. Put it in a squirt bottle. Spray on each “Number 2” to kill bacteria.
6) If your own bathroom is available, you can set up a similar system by first emptying the toilet bowl of as much water as possible. Then, line the bowl with trash bags and follow the same steps listed above. Be sure and keep the lid closed and use air freshener!
7) Each day, these emergency toilets will have to be emptied by sealing the inside bag with a plastic tie and taking it outside. So many diseases can originate in human waste. If you have to bury the bags on your property, bury it deep enough that rodents, insects or other animals can’t dig it up – 2 to 3 feet deep.
The days of tossing the chamber pots into the streets were the days of typhoid fever, cholera, and the plague.
** Quick List of Non-edibles you should think about storing
Bars of soap
Ziploc bags of all sizes
Rope for clothesline and clothespins
Tylenol, Tylenol PM
Multivitamins
Duct tape
Hydrogen peroxide
Bleach
Feminine products
Toilet paper
Start with 3 months worth. Add more to make 6 months. Add more to make 1 year.
GARDEN HAPPENINGS:
* I went out last night about 8:30 to make sure I hadn’t left the water on in the garden. I took a flashlight and EWWW, I found slugs and earwigs and roly polies EVERYWHERE! I took out a box of tissues because there’s no way I was going to touch them. EWWW. But picking them up in a tissue wasn’t much better. Craig finally came out (I think he heard me making disgusting noises) and offered to put on a glove, put them in a garbage bag, and save the remainder of the kleenex. We debugged the whole garden, and when I went back to the beginning to get the kleenex, there were MORE! Eww Eww Eww! Luckily, I have some Sluggo Plus. You can get it at Armstrong Nursery, but I’m not sure about Lowes or Home Depot. It is organic, and kills slugs, snails, earwigs, AND roly polys. You only need a little sprinkle. I put some in EVERY grow bag! According to the container, it is supposed to work even if it gets wet. (Post Script: I went out the next night and still found a few slugs and roly polys, but not NEAR as many.)
* What can you plant in April? In my area you can plant–Cucumbers, pumpkins, zucchini, yellow squash and any other “warm weather” crop.
* In MY garden, the flowers on the orange tree are opening and I have bees! The beans that I planted a few weeks ago are finally popping up. I think the dirt is just now warming up for them.
I have this old wash tub that we drilled holes in. I planted beets one year and they didn’t do very well. I planted carrots last year and they grew SO Well!!! I decided to plant the whole thing in wildflowers this year. I’m excited to see them bloom.
The blueberries have baby berries. Once they begin to darken, I have to use bird netting to cover the bushes. One year, the birds stripped the entire bush in ONE day!
It’s so exciting to see the garden start to “come alive”.
THIS WEEK’S PURCHASE: peanut butter
“Peanut butter is loaded with so many good, health-promoting nutrients, including vitamin E, magnesium, iron, selenium and vitamin B6. Research shows that people who regularly eat nuts and nut butter, including peanut butter, are less likely to develop heart disease and type 2 diabetes.” The Healthy Perks of Peanut Butter | Denver Health Medical Plan
MISC. PURCHASE:
I don’t use Chapstick. I prefer Carmex lip balm. This isn’t important. What IS important, is that you can become addicted to lip balm. The Truth About Your Lip Balm Addiction | Epiphany Dermatology
So, I don’t use it very often, BUT I do use it at night just before bed. Dry lips are one of those things that will keep me awake. It’s a good idea to keep some type of lip balm in the glove box of the car. AND it’s a REALLY good idea to keep something in your 72 hour kit. HOWEVER, I recommend NOT storing a tube of chapstick in the car–it will melt and make a mess. Better to get a tube of something.
FOOD STORAGE RECIPES:
Rice-A-Roni
My grandkids LOVE rice-a-roni meatballs.
1 lb. ground beef
1 egg
rice from the Beef rice-a-roni boxes.
Mix together and make walnut-size balls. Brown in a little oil. Drain oil. Add the water and sauce packet. Simmer for 20 minutes (whatever the directions call for).
In an emergency situation, you may not have fresh ground beef. You can still make this, but add 1 jar of ground beef.
Add corn, small pieces of diced carrots, or whatever else sounds good.
You can also make this with Chicken Rice-A-Roni and a can of chicken.
Homemade Granola Bars
2 1/2 c. old fashioned rolled oats
1/2 c. whole almonds, coarsely chopped
Put on a cookie sheet and bake for 5 minutes at 350˚. Stir and bake another 3-5 minutes until lightly toasted. Transfer to a large bowl.
In a saucepan:
1/3 c. honey
1/4 c. butter
1/4 c. packed light brown sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla
1/4 tsp salt
Heat until the butter melts and the sugar dissolves. Pour the butter mix into the bowl with the oats and almonds. Cool for 5 minutes.
1/2 dried cranberries, coarsely chopped
1/4 c. mini chocolate chips
(Don’t worry if the chocolate melts. It helps hold the bars together.)
Transfer to a 8 or 9 inch square pan lined with aluminum foil or parchment paper and sprayed lightly with oil.
Scatter another 2 TB of chocolate chips and press in with a rubber spatula. Cover and refrigerate for 2 hours. Remove the block of granola mixture and peel away the foil or parchment. Cut into 12 bars.
Easy Split Pea, Lentil, and Grain Soup
1/2 c. alphabet macaroni
1/2 c. green and yellow split peas
1/2 c. lentils or red lentils
1/2 c. pearl barley
1/2 c. rice
3-4 bouillon cubes or 3-4 tsp bouillon granules or soup base
3-4 c. water.
Salt and pepper to taste
Combine all ingredients in a large pot. Bring water to a boil and reduce to simmer. Cook until tender, about 1 1/2 to 2 hours. Serves 6.
Optional: Add 1 can chicken, or 1 pint ground beef.
Marti
