Prep Genrl Weekly Prep Thread: March 15 to March 21, 2026

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Crazy weather for us for sure. 80 degrees today with tornadic storms possible for tonight. After the front passes our temps will drop like a rock. We are forecast to get snow early tomorrow morning! No accumulation, though. I've only seen this setup once before. A town near us got hit by a tornado. After the front passed, it got hit with 6 inches of snow that laid on the ground for several days. 6 people were killed in the tornado.

Home fellowship this morning. Afterwards, it will be getting things set up for tonight in case we have tornadic weather here. Batteries all charged, generator ready to go, flashlights and oil lamps at the ready, and we'll most likely be up most of the night. If there is an outbreak of severe or tornadic storms approaching, our weather radio and phones will keep us up all night going off anyway.
 
Wind advisory today, warm Temps, freeze warning after midnight. March is so bipolar and schizophrenic.

Finishing Corp taxes today - they are due tomorrow. Taking a test for a proofreading gig - love dealing with clients who have simple, common sense rules and tasks that do not require dealing with people.

Probably should pick up a few groceries today but will put it off until tomorrow. Will have to get out to mail taxes certified at usps.

No word from family of friend with brain aneurysm. Will try to call her myself tomorrow.

Got more stuff moved yesterday. Love seeing space open up. Dealing with inlaws place now that DH is ready.

Be safe everyone.
 
There was a thunder storm early this morning, so we really are getting a little bit of everything this week!

I sliced up the rest of the apples and loaded them into the dehydrator. I also baked two more loaves of bread, which will go into the freezer. It stopped raining, so I drove out to the trail and got in a short walk. It's now raining again, but I've got a good start on my steps for this week. I suspect that I won't be going anywhere tomorrow or Tuesday.
 
Finishing up a large Walmart order. We are using down the pantry and cleaning out the freezer to replace it.
Dh has gotten his tomatoes started and flowers for the meadow we started two years ago. He has 9 raised beds and a large garden for potatoes or corn. We've also gotten 4 more blackberry bushes.
We're replacing the old shed and the back deck.
Has anyone grown Huckleberry plants before?
I've missed being here and reading about your lives.
 
Cloudy with LOTS of cold wind here. I would be happy to have some moisture. This week should be a little calmer - not as much at the main job, but lots of little here and there at the little ones. As long as I can stay organized, it should be OK. Fixed DH corned beef and cabbage and potatoes for lunch with chocolate chip cookies for dessert. He probably thinks I'm trying to bribe him!
 
Blizzard here. 29º/feels like -6º with wind steady at 29 mph and gusting to 55 to 65 mph. All my windows are covered with snow so I can't see out much and can't tell if it's still snowing or just blowing. Wind is really howling and I cannot see half a block. So thankful that I do not have to be out in this mess. Church was cancelled this morning.

I've not accomplished anything yet today and since it's now 5:30 it is unlikely I will!

Stay aware and stay safe from mother nature's fury.
 
It's 26 degrees with a howling wind here, maybe 2" of snow on the ground? It's drifting, so I'm not really sure.

Lots of roads are closed, including sections of I-35 and I-80. Photo from earlier accident:

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Meemur I don’t miss that kind of weather at ALL! Meanwhile the garden is doing well. Picking brussel sprouts for dinner tomorrow. Weather is cloudy with a chance of meatballs! Expecting horrid weather around 2 AM then cold. Fruit trees already have little plums and peaches on them. We think Blueberries and blackberries will be ok. Unsure about the rest. Have a safe productive week!!
 
Well, I'm back among the living and glad to be...my second round of flu in three months. Not my normal MO. I've had much worse but I wasn't this old lol. I turned the corner late today and pray I don't have a backset as my grandma use to say.

I did manage to get all my veggies started so it wasn't a complete loss. I still need to start some flowers and a few special projects I'm working on. I have some seeds here I predict are at least thirty years old and I'm going to do my best to germinate them. They are in envelopes with my mother's handwriting on them. I've done it before so we will see. My DIL is germinating seeds from her aunt who passed that are from 2013. It was her aunt's favorite okra and DIL has been pretty excited.

Tomorrow I am digging through my seed trunk and finishing my order list for seeds. I will probably wait and see what my germination rates are on what I've planted but I should know in a week. I used the last of my seeds on many things I planted so I'll go ahead and reorder those too.

I was too sick to get my fencing this past weekend...I'm aiming for next weekend. We are cutting two walnut trees down...one too close to the garden and we have to do that before we can put up the fence and the other too close to the foundation on DH's shop. They will be my future kitchen cabinets. They will not be missed...we have many others. There was a huge ancient walnut tree in our yard when we moved here and a previous owner made it their hobby and mission to germinate those walnuts and plant trees all over the property. They were more like saplings when we moved here in 1987.
 
Yep! And the winds are finally dying down a bit, back into the 30s/40s here with something like a -14 chill factor in Central Iowa, with 6 degrees actual. I'm guessing the total snow might be a hair over 2". I can't really tell because it has drifted. There is a thin layer of ice under it.

I will bundle up and go out around 1:00 pm and check the furnace vent, but I suspect that it's fine.

Per the news, pretty much everything in the area is either closed or on a delay, including grocery stores, which is really rare, but it was a good call: the roads are icy and impassable in a lot of places. The schools are already out on spring break, so that will help.

I've got a pot of veggie beef soup simmering. I'm going to eat some breakfast and putter in the kitchen.
 
We made it through 2 severe thunderstorm warnings and one tornado warning last night. No damage, but we did lose power. Lots of trees down on power lines and such. So thankful we have power this morning. Cary had the wood heater ready to go this morning, too. High of only 43, today. We are under a freeze warning tonight and tomorrow night. By the end of the week, we'll be back in the 80's. Go figure.

I'll be spending most of my day in the kitchen, today. I have several things I want to make. Some for the freezer. A load of laundry to fold and put away, and another load to do. I might be able to squeeze in a manicure if I have time.
 
Currently 8º/feels like -18º and windy. High today 15º but at least it's sunny. Highway through town has "travel not advised" but most people have to drive for work so I'm sure they are traveling. One reason I retired was not to have to drive that road another winter although primary reason was dh's health issues. Supposed to be 60º by Friday.
 
Wildwood said:
There was a huge ancient walnut tree in our yard when we moved here and a previous owner made it their hobby and mission to germinate those walnuts and plant trees all over the property. They were more like saplings when we moved here in 1987.
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The squirrels plant walnuts everywhere. I have them in flower beds, the garden and all over the place. Without the lawn being mowed I would have a forest of walnut trees!
 
anna43 said:
The squirrels plant walnuts everywhere. I have them in flower beds, the garden and all over the place. Without the lawn being mowed I would have a forest of walnut trees!
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The guy that owns the land on the other side of our property line has an old ancient black walnut tree. He has told us that we can have all we want. I've never cared for walnuts of any kind, but we have a huge pecan tree in our backyard. It gives us all the nuts we want. The sapling tree came from my grandfather's farm over 40 years ago. Gosh, that makes me seem old!
 
Not much going on today. Everything I had planned wmu circle and quilt guild was canceled because of the threat of bad weather. Is it me or are they over reacting more and more to possible bad weather? I don't ever remember having school canceled because of a tornado watch. We did tornado drills instead. Oh well. I got the kitchen clean at least. I was in a mood yesterday and didn't do a thing. I'm having my last cup of coffee for the day and then I think I'm going to go work on a quilt I need to finish. I'm not enthused lol.
I've been doing some research on plants to put near the chicken run. Dh bought me a small metal raised bed last year that I never put up. I'm thinking about putting it up now and starting an herb garden it. One that will be for us and the chickens. I was also thinking maybe blackberries?
Oh well time to get off the computer, find my raincoat and go tend to said chickens...
 
We are having bands of heavy rain roll through...then just mello rain in between...which we need...it is predicted to get to 76 today...we are under a thunderstorm warning and a tornado watch until this evening...then a rapid drop into the 20s...record cold for a day or 2 then warming up..crazy stuff..
 
ginnie6 said:
I don't ever remember having school canceled because of a tornado watch. We did tornado drills instead.
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When I was in school, we had tornado drills, too. Here in Mississippi, after several schools were hit by tornadoes while children were present over the years, they started cancelling schools any time a watch was issued. Some schools cancel for the day, and others will wait, until the actual watch is issued. I always felt better when my boys were home with me if the weather was going to be bad.
 
I'm done for today. I've ran out of energy, but still have the kitchen to clean after supper. Supper is on cooking now. I dumped a family pack of boneless pork chops in the crockpot and made onion gravy that I poured over them. They are still cooking. I made myself a garden salad, and will make Cary mashed potatoes to go with his gravy and pork chops, later.

I'm looking forward to early bedtime, tonight.
 
Meemur said:
I hear you, SB! I haven't been at full energy since the time change, although I am doing better than I was. I hate losing sleep for any reason. I hate dragging around all day. It's nice to be able to take naps or go back to bed.
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It was the storms that kept me up most of the night. Every time I would lay back down and doze off, the weather radio and phones would go off with another warning. Cary laid down for a nap, after he ate lunch, but I can't seem to do that. I've never been one to sleep in the daytime.

I got more done today than I thought I would, though.
 
If I'm tired enough, I can snooze in my recliner. The cat will often join me, but I put her over on her perch if I'm trying to sleep. She'll frequently sleep, too.

Just sharing: I'm thankful! The sun came out and melted all of the snow off the sidewalk, so I didn't have to do any shoveling. There's still a trace amount on the lawn, but that's fine. Also, the furnace vent was clear, which I expected, but nothing to do there, either.

It's about 20 degrees right now with a light wind. Tomorrow it will be in the 30s.
 
It's 13º/feels like -23º and still windy. The high today was 16º. I went to the mailbox around 5 p.m. because I knew the box would be full of snow and wanted it clear before tomorrow's mail delivery. THAT WIND WAS COLD!!! The sidewalk is mostly clear. It was shoveled poorly or it would have been dry. I did not want to push my luck (and back) by going out to finish the poor job. My daffodils were up 4 or 5 inches and are now under the snow. Hopefully they didn't get broken off.
I got my tomato seeds planted this afternoon. I also sorted seeds, dumped a lot of old ones and don't think I need to buy anything more this year. While downstairs, I did some sweeping, picking up and brought up a bag of plastic items for recycling.

My fatigue is slightly better today, and I accomplished the goals I set. Biggest job was three days of dishes, but they are done ready to put away. I have been eating leftovers the last several days so only had a couple pans but lots and lots of food storage containers that I emptied. Other jobs were time consuming not difficult ... done and physical therapy done as well. I'm finding the key to accomplishing things is to set smaller goals. I feel bad if I don't accomplish all I want/need to do so smaller goals allow me a better chance of a win and a win is better for mental health.
 
A tornado hit about 15 miles SW of SIL's house last night in Tennessee. It was headed for her but lifted. She lives in a trailer and won't budge.

OK here except cold and breezy. Received a little snow overnight. All melted this afternoon except a few shady spots. Severe missed us to the east yesterday.
 
Still have piles of hail here and there. Have a few limbs down here and there. More damage around us. 30's today, 90 by weekend. The cold really makes my leg ache.

2 trips to town today before and after a meeting with a realtor. Little bit of damage to inlaws place so picked up everything we will need to do the repairs. Realtor is my kind of people. I know a lot of realtors but only trust 3. This one recently sold a house with a foot of donkey manure in it. :D I chose her because I also know some of the popular, also nefarious, realtors in town absolutely hate her. The storm last night was bad enough to stampede her horses and damage her barn.

Back to work at 6:30 in the morning. 2 weeks of 6:30 then I can set my own schedule which will probably start at 7 am, lol.
 
hd5574 said:
We are having bands of heavy rain roll through...then just mello rain in between...which we need...it is predicted to get to 76 today...we are under a thunderstorm warning and a tornado watch until this evening...then a rapid drop into the 20s...record cold for a day or 2 then warming up..crazy stuff..
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Are you doing okay with the second line that came through? That was a bit intense for awhile.
 
I just realized, like a dummy, I can't smell a thing. I'm better but it's not like my usual rebound and my booty is still dragging bad. My nose is no longer stopped up or running. I'm back to cooking a little and just did hamburgers for supper. DH thought they were so good and I thought they were fair.

My first clue was just now when I stuck a piece of cinnamon red hot candy in my mouth for that lingering little nagging cough. That candy is so strong, you get an immediate very strong taste smell combo of sweet cinnamon. I only tested sweet and hot so I got up and tried smelling a few other things...nothing. As sick as I've been, I'm wondering if it could have been COVID...again.
 
This week is starting out so much better than last. Followed up about the guardianship gig - they want full time for about half of what I make now. "I don't think the job meets my current needs." It never hurts to be polite. Helping with the committee for the NE CO 'Junk Jaunt' - miles long garage sale in October. I'm hoping I can off load some of the Ebay stuff that is not moving.

More work tomorrow and working on cleaning a house. Yeah, the house next to it just sold and had about 4 inches of cat poo throughout the house. Oooofff! Better someone else than me!
 
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