TOTM January 2015 Prepping/Survival Goals

Hunting and fishing skills and gear upgrade?
If you can't grow your own lettuce....learn to kill and eat the furries that do.

 

I have had a garden for a few years. Prior to putting in the planter boxes, I watched the sun for a season. I knew the sunniest spot on our property and we put the boxes there. I have had decent harvest from my garden but not great. @alaskachick had suggested a while back to plant in containers. I noticed that the containers do better. My garden is too hot. The elevation, heat is just hurting the plants. I have to move my garden. I don't know if I will be doing it this year because I cannot reuse all of the materials we used on our existing.

 

We will be cutting down the two boxes i made two years ago to be 1 2x6 high instead of 3. The good thing is we'll go from 2 boxes to 6.

 

Pulled the trigger on a place in the hills, garden beds in place, work shop, well under/in the house. Oppps opsec.
Plan to go to 75% grown on site, with 25% with father in a share crop deal in a adjoining county.

 

my goals are to learn how to survive in the woods and hopefully meet bigfoot (was just reading lots of stories).

 

Plans for 2015:
Gardening: increase yield by decreasing the variety of what I plant. I have found that I try to plant a little of a lot of stuff and as a result I don't get any real useful yields from the garden. I will keep one of my 2x8 beds as my "experimental bed" where I can try different varieties and types of veggies. I also tend to overcrowd some plants (like tomatoes), so I'll reduced the number of tomato plant I grow.

Health: Continue to work on dropping some unneeded weight. Trying to find that right Diet/Lifestyle that will help me with this.

Family: Continue to spend more time with my kids and wife. The kids are starting to get a "social" life, so having time to do things with them is starting to get into the planning stages instead of "hey, lets go do this".

Financial: Increase our savings and cash on hand.

Self-Reliance: On our hunting property, get water installed (city), get old well inspected, purchase and install solar/battery system. Our hunting property is off-grid and will remain that way for the electrical. Having the city water installed is the first step towards making it easier to spend time there. I am also planning (key word, planning) on getting food plots setup to help bring in more deer and wild animals to put meat in the freezer.

 

Much more intensive gardening is the main goal this year. Already inventoried my seed collection(do it late December/early January every year) so I know what I need to order this year. It's probably a good thing I don't have $500 available, or I would spend it all easily on the nursery catalogs. And hopefully teach the kittens to not mess with our stuff. Didn't do a Christmas tree this holiday season because they would have annihilated it.

 

Teac

teach me a language and I can teach you gardening

 

One more to add. After reading a post on the comms board last night I decided that I've put it off long enough. So, I found a few Ham clubs in this area and I'm going to contact a couple today. I will be a licensed ham by the end of the year...

 

Well My main goal is to finish a few of the 9 gazillion projects i have started or horded parts i had to have ...

But on a reacent trip through the hills of Mexico i realized that i just need to keep it simple to survive.
People are surviving all over the world every day using just the basics...



{on a side note: while riding threw the hills where horses are still the mane source of transpertation and the donkeys are hauling the milk and woman are caring some mushed up corn stuff in a bowl on there heads when school lets out there stands 25 kids on the side of the road TEXTING...
I yelled at my driver everone is here who the hell are they texting???}

Keep it simple!!!!!2015

 

Just knocked #1 off the list. Replacement flush mount charge controller panel on it's way. Now for the battery bank.

 

My to do list:

1. Empty the manure pit --- Done
2. Locate the short the gophers made in the underground cable to the birds and electric gate.
3. Locate the short the gophers made in the underground cable to the yard light.
4. Kill the gophers.
5. Remove 2 - 5,000 gallon underground rain water tanks melted in the wildfire.
6. Build 20'X20'X16' high underground cinder block room, install the 2 new water tanks, add 2 story BOL in the rest of the room.
no permit required for a "well house", build a ramada on top of the roof of the BOL (phase II), permit will be required.
7. Clean the sand out of the creek and use it to make the orchard (that I bought trees for 2 years ago).
8. The list goes on, get the Bronco running, sell the 2 - 240Z's, sell the Jag.

I'm tired just thinking about it, and then there's the 3 grain kits for the beer I haven't gotten to brew yet (stored in the Freezer, that should have food in it).

I think my todo list wins!!!

 

I'll help with #4

 

Had a 240 that I got from my Dad. Gave it to my kid brother and had to watch its slow demise... But, what did I expect out of a 19 yr old Airman??

 

Ahhh yes to watch the demise, they will arise again, the one I bought new in '71 is in need of new rubber to move again after the wild fire, but it didn't burn, the '72 needs less work, I had room for both of them in the 5 car garage until other stuff got put in there...

 

Just updated my original post, how is it going for the rest of you?

 

I have classes booked for January and February, plus I have knitting lessons. I will keep at knitting but I am secretly hoping my instructor will revoke my needles and tell me to go take archery lessons. My husband gave me the okay to move and expand the garden, I don't know if it will be complete and ready for Spring planting due to drainage issues. But it will give me hope, I am finally be getting closer to my dream garden.