I am working 6+ days a week right now, but hope to do some work on the shed today.....
Starting to plant here. Garden peas and potatoes in the garden. The seeds for tomatoes and peppers in the greenhouse. Made the decision to plant sunflowers this year to add to the chicken feed. Still puzzling thru the thought of using fish to add protein to the chickens diet as we have a pond plus live on the river. Preps are up to snuff so to speak.
Doesn't that feel wonderful? It just makes life simpler if you know that you have backups for the necessities on hand...*** Patting myself on the back ***
(This doesn't happen very often!)
- Yesterday, when I was fixing breakfast, the bulb in the stove hood burned out. No problem! I reached into my kitchen utility drawer and pulled out a new one.
- A little later in the day, I ran out of shampoo. No problem! I reached into my bathroom pantry and got out a new bottle.
- This morning, my kitchen wall clock stopped running. No problem! I walked downstairs and got new batteries for it and for the hall clock. I'll bet that dies next.
It has been in the single digits in Central Iowa. The only place I've been is out to shovel. In no way would I have gone to the store to replace those items right now, yet not having them would've added up to some frustration. And, yes, replacements are on the list, but I have several still in reserve.
I know this is really random, but how is your cow, Miracle?Doesn't that feel wonderful? It just makes life simpler if you know that you have backups for the necessities on hand...
Summerthyme
We still have a few, probably very few, gallons of water stored, if/when that runs out I'll use the Berkey. I hate the taste of water from the berkey, but it would be okay for cooking if the tap water got bad or didn't run. We have tanks of stored water for various things so we could tap that. Of course, we'd have to run it through cheese cloth before I'd put it in the Berkey.I did end up going to the local grocery today: neighbor needed stuff and really shouldn't be outside in this cold. While I was there, I strongly felt I should get more drinking water, so I got several more gallons. Apparently others have heard there could be problems. I think most of the customers had a gallon or two in their carts.
We're going into the deep freeze starting Saturday, and plans to last through at least the first of next week. Our weather forecast doesn't go far enough out to see passed Monday. So, tomorrow, Cary is going to try and persuade his surgeon to postpone his surgery, until after this cold snap is gone. We are forecast temps down into the low teen's and possible single digits. We have animals and a house to keep from freezing, so surgery will have to wait if possible. It's sorta rare to have temps down here that cold, and I don't want to have to drive back and forth to the hospital everyday with the possibility of having ice on the roads. I have no experience.
Some of the local 4WD clubs chauffeur folks around in bad weather here. During one really bad storm, they were taking ALL the nurses to the hospital, and helping them inside. If you HAVE to go, maybe your son could drive you? I know that doesn't help with the pipes, but sometimes Drs. think the world revolves around them... I don't like to drive when there's black ice either.
Hopefully and prayerfully, his doctor will understand.
Also, is there anyone who can ride with or drive you? Sometimes having someone else along might ease some of the fears.
Before you consider making that daily drive, find out if the hospital would let you in with Cary. No point in going if you can't be in the room with him.
No, there isn't. Everyone works. We don't know any of our neighbors, either.
The problems we have with temps getting as cold as are predicted is that homes and water lines this far south are not built or buried to stand prolong periods of time with these kind of temps. We have to keep water dripping from our faucets just to keep the pipes from freezing when our temps drop into the low 20's at night. House is barely insulated, since it was built back in the 30's. We have added some, but not nearly enough. Since we heat with wood, someone has to be home to keep the fire going, or the house will be freezing cold. I just wish I knew how long this cold snap is supposed to last, so we can make arrangements.
Southern Breeze, from what I can see this really cold weather is supposed to last about 4 days.
God is good all the time
Judy
When things settle down, you might want to add more support to your circle. I've posted on other threads that singles should have three trusted people nearby, whether that's a couple and another single or some combination. That applies to married couples, too, when one spouse is in the hospital or deadly ill. We're all getting older, and we need a helping hand on occasion. In the old days, there were 6 - 7 "church ladies" who were always helping pick up the slack, but that's not the case much anymore.
shouldn't last much past next Monday - 20s F are predicted for us starting on the 17th >>> this kind of cold is really unusual for mid-February - I'm hoping for one of them freaky week of uber spring warm weather to help start melting down some of this snow
Oh it is nice to realize that someone else has tried the fish for chicken feed thing! TY! So far the chickens have not slacked off laying with this new feeding program.