Can we have a thread about what the hell to do right now?
🗣️ DISCUSSION 💬
First of all, I'm an idiot when it comes to anything financial. I know many of you aren't. What is the safest thing to do with the money (fiat) that we do have right now? Leave it in our local bank? Credit union? Keep it as cash in my sock drawer? Also, the money in my 401k? Switch it over to bonds or something else I don't fully understand? Any thoughts from someone who's been paying better attention to these things than I?
For what it's worth: I fell for the "sky is about to fall" pushed by a friend; even though I had no witness to it. I stocked up - a lot of the stuff went out of date. Got some silver and stashed some cash. Still have a freezer filled, larder stocked and got loads of vegetable seeds.
What next? No idea, but I am at peace. I pray for the satanic system to fall and proclaim Ps 94 daily. Whatever comes, I know the Lord will see me through. Rest and trust in Him, stay alert and listen out for the still small voice.
This is the best advice one could give. The PRIMARY point.
When evil is crashing all around you, turn your heart to the good above all else.
I feel oddly calm right now.
There is a church across the street from my house. Seventh Day Adventist. Their practice for funerals- at least this parish- is to have basically a wake/viewing but the body remains at the church and loved ones stay overnight with it and then the funeral is the following morning.
The church has a stained glass window that is beautiful, especially at night. It is rare to see it back-lit at night though simply because usually no one is there at night. Last night, they had a wake so there will be a funeral this AM, thus they have been there all night. I got up early because my body clock is off from the time change. But I just looked out the window and enjoyed the peace of it.
Knowing this is going to be a wild week, I found it grounding. Yes, it will be rough, but basically, God has this. I would encourage all of us to find that little thing to hold onto because the news will be flying fast and it is easy to get caught up in the panic. But also find the peace of the "unconnected world". Play with the dog and watch him smile. Let your cat sit on you and listen to her low contented purr. Enjoy the first cup of coffee as the sun rises. Whatever does it for you....just remember - WWG1WGA!
💕 to my fellow 🐸.
I can assure you this is not their practice. It's the practice of that church.
I think Catholics practice that too.
The definition of wake is "sittin' up with the dead." My grandfather's viewing was in his living room, as it was next door to the church where the funeral was held.
Here's a funny recording about "Sittin' Up With The Dead" by Jerry Clower.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R_YGdTndf4E
Ok since you said turn hour heart to good when evil is crashing around. I've thought about this scenario for a while and Im not sure what is the right way. What are your thoughts...
Ok shit hit the fan, there's only chaos and every man for himself. You have your stash and some ammo. Someone tries to come in and ask for food and shelter. You only have enough for you for lets say a month. Adding the extra person will cut that into two weeks. What do you do?
Or lets say you run through your food and only have ammo, you see someone else with food, what would you do? Go rob them or starve?
Only Do what you can live with. Keep in mind that whatever you choose to do, there are repercussions. If you always do what is right, and you die doing it, I don't consider that a life wasted. If you do what is wrong, you may continue to live, but at what cost? Just something to think about. I have enough stored for a bunch of my neighbors and friends. Not enough to survive forever, but enough to give some breathing room to find the next solution.
Thanks for the thoughtful reply. It’s a Good answer. I thought about the last scenario a lot. Would I ever hurt someone else in order to survive? I guess I can only truly find out who I am when those primal instincts kick in. At this point in time I seriously think I’d rather starve than hurt someone else. But then when you have to care for your young what do you do then? I pray these questions only stay a philosophical exercise.
Romans 8:28. ALL things work to good for those who love the Lord.
We’ve been prepping since Obama. We try to rotate stock but some things pass the date stamped on the item. We grew up before expiration dates were put on foods. We learned to tell if something has gone ‘bad’. This is something everyone should learn. Know too that you can freeze eggs. I used to just put them in baggies. Now I freeze in muffin tins, pop out and put in baggies…just something good to know. Cheers!
Your pantry should be your normal food baseline. IOW what you can eat alongside meat & fresh/seasonal produce. This means you need to learn how to cook and meal plan. You should be able to look at your pantry and make a meal based on what you see there and in your fridge. Stock rotation key.
The best way for canned food is take a Sharpie to the label and put the use by date there so you can see it on the shelves. Then the oldest are easily visible when you need to use them. The other thing is "Use By" is really just a suggestion. Most canned goods are good 5+ years (or more) beyond date. Same for pasta, white rice, & grains, that have been kept dry. Taste may be blander and nutritional value less but still safe to eat. Obviously avoid anything that looks bad from the outside (bulged, rusted out cans, strange discoloration, brown rice seepage.)
Excellent information. We keep a sharpie in our prep area too. Husband is in charge of that and he puts the date we purchased the food…that system works for us…Meal planning is important and not as easy as most people think. We go to our cabin in rural Alaska for a month at a time. No stores. I must plan, but have to be flexible. If something freezes that shouldn’t, you have to re-evaluate. That’s what got me to start researching freezing eggs.
Thank you. I didn't get serious about dating until I began evaluating what we had on hand. So many things in the pantry that had been overlooked or just a bad/impulse buy. That was my first clue not to buy what we don't eat. From that I eventually started thinking a week+ out and meal planning came online. I don't do it every week but Sunday night I usually have a rough idea on what we are doing thru Saturday.
Canned food will last way past expy if stored in a cool and dry place (basement).
If dents go in most likely its good and only cosmetic from rough handling. If dents go out give it to your enemy cuz there's gonna be some food poisoning.
That's a good tip, thanks.
so you break the egg open, put it in a muffin tin, freeze it, then bag them up?...good for baking?
You have to beat it first I'm pretty sure. We used to beat them (like for scrambling) before freezing.
yes scramble a little before freezing... if you don't still good to thaw and cook with but the yolk will be tough. I use a silicone ice cube tray that makes extra-large ice cubes, lightly spritz with olive oil, add egg, scramble a bit, freeze, pop out and into a freezer bag once frozen....
Great tip.Ty.
And that's all on you. You don't pile it up in a dark corner and stop thinking about it. You make what you bought part of your regular meal plan, eat it, and restock.
That was because I got things I don't usually eat, thought they'd do in an emergency
You wouldn't be the first to have done that either. But, you learned the basic -
Don't Buy What You Don't Already Eat
Hilarious thread on another forum of someone who bought up piles of Datrex bars. They're meant for boating and leaving them stored for true emergency use. They are also expensive. Guy tries one and discovers they are gross, surprise! He wished he'd spent on stuff he liked.
I have a whole slew of dishes I can make up using canned beans (kidney, red, black, & cannelini), canned potatoes, green chilis, tomatoes, corn, cornmeal, oats, other grains & rice, evap & condensed milk, and so on. All (except tomatoes) have long shelf dates and they can be omitted if they fail. Add regular store meat (or squirrel, pigeon, wild turkey, or deer if that's the situation) and you've got chili, soups, Mexican & Thai style dishes, stews, Cajun, you name it.
The key though is learning to cook based on what you have on hand. It takes about 6 months of practice* before it clicks and you start having epiphanies. "Ah, I have this on hand so I can make that." It's great when it happens and you start using up your older stored food and replacing it with newer. Also lay in on the spices, they never go bad and they will transform bland to good. They're cheap in bulk too, look for a market that carries Badia brand.
*Start watching cooking vids on youtube. Search "cooking with canned food", "using oats in cooking", "economy cooking", etc. A great channel is Atomic Shrimp. He has self-challenges like 3 meals on 1 UK pound per day, etc. Much of it is not what I'd want to eat but you'll learn much about the mindset needed to be flexible.
spices do lose a lot of their taste after a few months....BUY SEEDS when you can...pepper, mustard, allspice, etc....grind them as needed...seeds last a long time.
These are all great suggestions, thanks for posting.
Which is why I don't stock beans no matter what anyone says, I hate them and won't eat them unless I'm already starving so they'll just sit there and go bad. Find out ways to long-term store foods that you will actually want to eat so that they don't go bad and you end up rotating the stock.
Amen. The peace that you have knowing God has your back is amazing.