Today I made / bought / learnt .... (for a post oil world) 2

PeakOiler

That's a good idea kpeavey. I've been meaning to pick up some more worms too.

I haven't started my aquaculture project yet.

Today I filled the nearly empty 22 gal. tank of my F-150 in light of the oncoming hurricane and possible fuel shortages (or at least a jump in price at the pump). (Ouch! - I'm glad I don't drive THAT vehicle too much anymore...) The last time I put gas in the truck was on March 5th.

Also today, I continued working on the 3/4" PVC pipe "manifold" that will service 10 peach trees and one young pecan tree. (Only five of the newest peach trees are seen in the picture.) The picture shows part of the shallow trench I have hand-dug for burying the pipe. This evening, after it cools down a bit, I will glue more of the fittings together. There are "T's" at the trunk of most of the trees (but not at those at the "end of the line"). The caps on the pipe ends will just be dry-fitted and removed as needed when watering.

The plumbing will be connected to the 2" pipe of the gravity-fed part of the rainwater system.
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Wolfen30 · Coal Joined: May 25, 2008 Posts: 18

Peak oiler, I do something similar with that wire window screen but instead of putting a glass over the leaves, I tie the leaves together with string, use an old wire christmas orneament hook attached to the string, hang the window screen on the wall and hook the bunched plant to the screen. It not only makes for a great herb dryer indoors, but also makes great wall art!

PeakOiler

patience · Expert Joined: Jan 04, 2008 Posts: 1674

Canned 14 qts. of pears today, and got ready for roofing tomorrow on the barn addition. Will have that many more pears todo by the end of the week. Busy time. Harvest, and construction, all at once.
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Local fix-it guy..

vilemerchant · Heavy Crude Joined: Jul 07, 2008 Posts: 122

WisJim

We went to a potluck and produce/crafts sale tonite, featuring local foods and local products. Saw lots of friends and met some new folks from the area, and ate lots of good food, mostly from the immediate area.
Picked more apples and plums, tomatoes, potatoes, peppers, etc. Need to do more canning and drying.

PeakOiler, are you at all concerned about the effect of direct sunlight on your drying herbs? I have talked to folks who feel that is a concern, that UV will affect them quickly. Our solar dryer doesn't expose food directly to the sun and works well.

Thinking about another couple of kilowatts of PVs, but need to do an estimate to see if we can afford it right now. It would be nice to put up another wind generator, too, if I could just find a good tall cheap tower somewhere.

PeakOiler

patience · Expert Joined: Jan 04, 2008 Posts: 1674

Glass absorbs some UV, right? Varies with the type of glass, I guess, but any glass should help.
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Local fix-it guy..

patience · Expert Joined: Jan 04, 2008 Posts: 1674

Got the trusses up and some sheathing on the barn addition today with the help of a couple friends and my daughter minding the shop in between trips to provide drinks and food for us. Heat index over 100 degrees today, and not much of a breeze, so we took frequent breaks to cool down. I can finish it from here, but it will take several days of part time effort. Will try to do that mornings before it gets too hot.

Meanwhile, we have two 5 gallon buckets of pears in the basement that are ripening fast! Maybe I will take tomorrow to get them peeled and cored, then store them in salt and vinegar water in the fridge until Friday when my wife has a day off work. No way I can mind a canner and the shop business alone.
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Local fix-it guy..

strider3700

Today my new to me HF rig arrived, IC-745 transceiver (1.8 – 30.o MHz) plus General Coverage (0.1-30 MHz), ic-ps15 power supply, icom ah-2 antenna tuner. Icom SM-6 Desk Microphone.

So I'm just getting everything hooked up for initial power up checks. This weekend is the yearly ham swap meet so I'll be getting wire to throw a loop up in the back yard and hopefully I can be on the air Sunday evening.

Coupled with my yaesu ft-60R and a homemade "super j-pole" I should have everything covered coms wise except 6 meter with this setup.
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shame on us, doomed from the start
god have mercy on our dirty little hearts

AnIowan

Today I learned about:

1) The power of good seeds: Our corn is crap and we'll probably not be able to get more then a few quart bags filled. Potatoes are about as bad. A good garden starts with the right materials, so we'll be checking out for good seeds for our next garden.

2) The power of weeds: Damnit, I've mowed off a bunch of weeds, and have found them seeding out with a inch of space! Much more planning will need to be done for next year and the garden we'd like to have.

3) The power of what we have here: We spent three nights in a subdivision near Chicago (Johnsburg, IL) and I was amazed at how different things look through peak oil aware eyes. The massive houses (the house of our friends included), huge lawns, four car garages, boats, 4-wheeler, all in a suburban setting. It made me realize just how lucky myself and my family are living in our little acreage in a more rural area. True, if things go down, we are all screwed, regardless, however, I know that we'll be able to survive to live another day. I'm not so sure about that subdivision.

patience · Expert Joined: Jan 04, 2008 Posts: 1674

AnIowan,

Yeah, it scares me when I make a rare trip to the city, to see how all those people are crammed together in a completely unsustainable situation. Makes me glad to get home later.

Hand shelled a pound or so of Golden Bantam corn to palnt next year. Now it's off to work on the barn roof. By myself, that will take a while. Lots of running up and down the ladder.
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Local fix-it guy..

Wolfen30 · Coal Joined: May 25, 2008 Posts: 18

Today I went to Half Price Books bought three books.

1. Walking Softly in the Wilderness: The Sierra Club Guide to Backpacking. This one looks pretty good for general wilderness info for being made in 1991.

2. The Candle Maker: how to make candles in your own kitchen. Self explanitory.

3. The Complete Soapmaker: Tips, Techniques, and Recipes for making Luxurious Handmade Soaps. Again, self-explainitory, and it seems pretty detailed.

Any opinions on these books?

I was also looking for some canning books and other survival books, but those were GONE! It was really something to see. Sign of the times I guess.

patience · Expert Joined: Jan 04, 2008 Posts: 1674

RE: books out of stock.
Yes, I think more people are catching on, so it may be getting a bit late in the process for prepping. Time to get what you think you really need. And nothing else, BTW, since our money will have to really stretch in the near future, methinks.

I'm thinking that the first stages of PO will be largely economic, then sporadic shortages of goods and fuel, then severe shortages coupled with worse economic troubles. So, yes I think it's time to get what you need, while it is available, and you can afford it.
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Local fix-it guy..

Wolfen30 · Coal Joined: May 25, 2008 Posts: 18