PREPARATION TWO

 

It is cool and drizzly. It rained hard for 15 minutes; thunder and lightening, the works, but it must have been a fast moving system. It is still cool but it supposed to get in to the eighties. This has been an interesting Summer, weather-wise, we have alternating periods, of a few days, of below normal temperatures, then days of normal or above normal temps. The warm periods are accompanied by high humidity. High humidity is not unusual, for our Summers, but it is unusual to have no hot dry days. I don't remember a single hot day that wasn't humid.

It was a good year for thistles and burdock. We should re-name our farm Thistle Acres or Thistle Heaven. Then, next year, we may have a shortage of thistles. The Goldfinches sure like it. They do an arial dance around the thistles, right outside my window, in the North pasture.

I said I would write about preparing for a world wide currency reset. If the dollar lost much of its value on the world stage, suddenly, there would be a period of confusion, even if it was handled well. All imported goods, [most of what we buy] would raise in price; they could double. It is probable that banks would take a holiday to adjust. Some big stores may close to re-evaluate there goods. Warehouses may delay delivery until they are guaranteed payment on their new schedules. Commerce could shut down for awhile. I don't know that it is possible to predict. Commerce, as usual, may be restored in a few days or months. Our macro-banking system, is on life support, now, trillions of dollars in bad debts and securities, left over from the last crash; can they handle a hit of this magnitude? Local banks, if they are truly local, should be in much better shape. Are there any, truly, local banks left?

We can see the problem. A sudden drop in the dollar from 1/3 to 1/2 depending on where we live, will have consequences. How much? Your guess is as good as mine.

It wouldn't hurt to be prepared. Where I live, many folks, are used to having some reserves. We get snowed in sometimes. Thunderstorms interrupt our electric power. We have never been snowed in, longer than three days, and we have never lost our power for more than a day. We have a few bottles of water, stored in the basement, just in case.

A fiscal crunch shouldn't cause a loss of basic services, e.g, water, electricity etc. There are scenarios where it could happen. I am not anticipating that here. The main concern is that commerce may shut down for awhile until prices are re-established. Warehouses may halt deliveries. It would be wise to have stores of food that will last, at least two or three months, on hand.

It is a good time to think in terms of self-sufficiency. Obtain your seeds for next year. Where might you plant a garden? How about canning and other ways to preserve food? Do you have a pressure cooker? How about a good canning book?

Think in terms of storing non-perishable foods. Besides canned foods, there is rice, dried beans, flour, sugar, salt, vinegar, dried fruits [raisins] etc.

Many cities have Chinese groceries where one may purchase high quality rice in large quantities. I think we have bought it in 40 pound bags. If you are familiar with ordering through Amazon, you know you can obtain almost anything.

Remember, spices. What do you use frequently? Jamie just ordered cumin and curry because we were running low. We try to keep a stock of our favorite spices.

We don't have a good larder because we prepare for disaster. We just do it for comfort. There is nothing nicer, than an array of home-canned foods on the pantry shelf. It is similar to having a nice woodpile, if you depend on wood for warmth. It is nice to know we don't have to run to the store because supper is coming up. Jamie has many, many prepared meals in the freezer. Just the other day, she bought some green peppers at the farmers market and she made several meals of stuffed peppers and put them in the freezer. Yes, we tried them; wow, were they delicious.

Obviously, those living in the country, have advantage over those living in the city. Largely though, it is a matter of consciousness. We have met farmers wives who did not know how to can tomatoes. Many people, in the country, are as dependent on the day to day economic commerce, as city folk. Jamie and I became 'homesteaders' in the seventies. In our attempt to live off the land, we learned to value the rhythm of Nature. We loved gathering foods, both natural and planted, and storing them for a future time. If you have a bag of beans and some spices, perhaps a little meat for flavoring, you learn to cook differently, too.

I can't make a list of what folks should buy. Everybody is different. What do you like? What can you cook? Think of all the non-perishable foods; dried beans, peas, rice, dried fruits, etc., what do you like? What can you put in your freezer? We need to keep in mind, that if the disruption gets bad enough, and we lose electric power, we will need to can all that food in the freezer. I don't see why that would happen, but, depending on where we live, it may be a consideration.

We make sure we have enough canning jars, lids, rings etc. and salt and vinegar for pickling. We have flour and sugar in mouse proof containers.

Think of your community. What might your neighbors run out of? An extra supply of coffee or tea might be nice.

Think about it. Come up with some ideas for yourself. Think of it as an adventure! No fear. Let us love ourselves and take good care of ourselves and keep a loving eye on our neighbors.

The Sun has come out! It is shining brightly!

Love and Peace, Gregg