really old style living?

D&DD

http://windupradio.com/FPwesa.htm

Heres a bit of info,its taken me a while to work mine out but a handy piece of kit I think considering all it can do (when you work out how)
This is now discontinued but there are similar things out there it just appealed to me because it doesn't have to be charged on the mains,although it can be.

Primrose

DD&D - have been away and just catching up on recent threads but I recommend you buy one of those little portable one-hob gas grills in its own carrying case for your emergency cooking in power cuts. You can get them in camping shops and other places like Robert Dyas. If you have one of those and a few little gas canisters, they last for quite a long time. Prices vary. I've seen them as cheap as £10 in special deals. You can probably buy them over the internet if you Google "portable camping gas cookers" or something similar.

D&DD

Thanks Primrose
I've got a double burner one with a few spare cannisters OH takes fishing so I'm fine for 'outside' stuff when the weathers ok,its more when its snowing outside and I'm too freezing to stand out there cooking lol I'm such a chilly mortal!

I also have a kettle/smoker bbq and dutch oven for outdoors although still learning how not to burn everything in the DO :o

I'm just dubious of using anything 'flamey' in the house with DS3,think the tealights would be ok as I can stand them on the cooker...AND :o:o:o I've just realised my hob would still work anyway as its dual fuel (gas hob) :rotfl::rotfl::rotfl:which I bought in case of power cuts!!

*If I had a brain I really would be dangerous*

mardatha

O thank god there are other people just like me !:rotfl:

ceridwen

zarazara wrote: »

How fabulous. I mention fish as its a protein source. People seem to always go on about blackberries and stuff,but not fish. Its a shame they cant be easily farmed on small holdings,dig a pond,chuck some trout in,it just doesnt work.Shame.

Actually - there ARE ways:

http://urbanhomestead.org/journal/2010/09/backyard-fish-farming/

I'd have a go myself if I had a bit bigger garden than I do - as I would eat fish per se (but I dont want fish thats been swimming round in our ruined Seas or come from a commercial fish farm - but this would do the trick for me personally).

*************

Having a heavy-duty spell of wishing for a bigger garden - having found that the last year or two of treating the Great Outdoors as one free food farm for me has been HARD WORK - as I go to a place where I know I can forage x and someone has beaten me to it. I then go to another place where I can forage it and someone has beaten me to it....I've had an awful lot of that happening the last year or two. I read summat today from a professional forager where he had "revised the rules" and stated people shouldnt take more than 10% of what they find anywhere (it used to be a third). Another professional forager I read recently stated he thinks rules will have to be introduced at a Government level for fungi at any rate - ie the closed season/quota/etc rules that have been introduced in recent years on the Continent because of the sheer number of people out foraging these days.

I'm still looking for a polite - but FIRM - answer to people accosting me when they spot me foraging. In the last week alone I've been asked "Whats that?" about something I've been gathering that no-one previously has been showing any interest in and what to do twice with something that other people could readily identify that I had just picked:mad:. I veer between pretending I'm deaf, pretending I dont understand the language (no good with someone who knows me....) and havent yet figured how to politely say "I dont wish to answer that" - it happens when one lives in an urban area with lots of people and not much there to forage.....:cool:

I do wonder whether I should just say "Read loads and loads of books on foraging and pay to go on various foraging courses - and then you'll know as much as I do" and just smile. I do feel I've put a lot of time/effort/money into finding out what I know about this - and that its a bit cheeky of people to expect to "tap into" what I have put all that money/effort into learning for nowt.....

Sorrees - rant over for the day...been a bad week for people trying to get my paid-for knowledge from me for free....and it would be at my expense...

Kiwisaver_2

mardatha wrote: »

DD&D, CC's post reminded me (god that sounds like Yes Minster doesnt it !) You can make a circle of tealights, at least 9 of them. Place a bit of 2x1" in a triangle shape around them, and an old oven or grill shelf over them, resting on the wood. Sit the pot or kettle on that and it will boil in 20 mins. I did it many times in winter because I wanted to see if I could ! (The RV was Not Amused) :rotfl:again !

That's just made me think, I have one of those food warmers that have tealight candles in a la Indian Restaurant stylie and a bazillion tealights. So I will experiment the practicalities with my emergency old style whistling kettle. It might take a while to boil a kettle but I reckon it might be a good option to cook slowly once you had brought it to the boil. When you think a slow cooker only gives out the heat equivalent of a lightbulb

I do have one of those camping stoves in a case and a few spare gas canister, it is excellent and I have used it for camping and in a power cut indoors in the past. :eek: Those gas cannisters give about 2 hours of cooking time, which is quite a long time if you're just using it to heat things or boil a kettle rather than actually cook. Perhaps shouldn't have used it indoors but it wasn't left unattended and it was only for a quick boil of a kettle.

Something else I bought after a severe storm a couple of years back was a portable gas heater. I know they are horribly dangerous things and they cause condensation in your home, but I can remember the winter of discontent when someone lent one to my mother and grateful for it we were. OH thought I was truly mental lugging it home on my own and can't see the need. Whilst yes, I admit, it is still in the garage in the original packaging, I still say there is every need and some day we will I am sure be glad that we have it.

mardatha

Ceridwen pet... up here that would be seen as "passing the time of day"...a nice way to open a conversation without being so rude as to just walk past them. But this is deeply rural so I suppose different rules apply... cant you just tell them you're a witch and its for the cauldron?
Kiwi, re the "bistro" type camp stove, I had one before we got the calor gas cooker and I used it on the breakfast bar with no problems at all.

D&DD

Aw Ceridwen its galling when that happens..we had been waiting for the walnuts last year and when they were ready we climbed up the tree to see they'd been totally stripped and the tree damaged too..

Last year we had kids knocking trying to sell us blackberries foraged from the field! Can't blame them for trying but wonder what happened to the stuff as noone I know bought any..we grow our own but top up from the field if needed.

I hate to see stuff rot on the branches so I'm glad to see others picking but it must be annoying when resources are scarce,you've used an area for years and now it's 'trendy' people have beaten you to it..*especially when they pick too early so their stuff isn't even usable!*
Makes you wonder what would happen if things got really bad..

JenniO

mardatha wrote: »

cant you just tell them you're a witch and its for the cauldron?

That's exactly what I was going to say to Ceridwen! :rotfl:

anguk

mardatha wrote: »

Ceridwen pet... up here that would be seen as "passing the time of day"...a nice way to open a conversation without being so rude as to just walk past them. But this is deeply rural so I suppose different rules apply... cant you just tell them you're a witch and its for the cauldron?
Kiwi, re the "bistro" type camp stove, I had one before we got the calor gas cooker and I used it on the breakfast bar with no problems at all.

Same as here, I guess we are semi-rural. I can understand it may be annoying if you've spent time and money learning something but personally I enjoy sharing what little knowledge I have. The outside world is a bit like these forums, if I don't know something I ask and many kind people will help,that's how we learn.

I don't know a great deal about foraging, other than the usual blackberries so if I saw someone doing it I'd probably be one of those cheeky people who asked. I'd respect their right to tell me to !!!!!! off and mind my own business though.