THE Prepping thread - a new beginning :)

DigForVictory

An olive stash. There's a dream to yearn after (yes GQ you lead us merrily astray!) - and all power to your storing elbow. Do please keep the washing machine liquid at a judicious distance from the comestibles? I can't smell much but I can taste & those things register on my tastebuds when the packet is opened - I think I'd be storing them in another room to the olives, just in case...

To get my brain & body in synch I got up at 7 & had a cup of tea - my husband was Not Amused.

The olive stash thoughtfully yearned over, I have carefully boxed my acquisitions and the amount and quality of dark chocolate I have acquizzed from sundry emporia (Waitrose & Booths) and the local supermarkets plus the booty from the Duty Free - I confess I have rather startled myself.

In fact when I get the everyday and the ceremonial tea supplies together I blinked sightly & swiftly redistributed the everyday stuff back into its three distinct stashes. As the Festive Season stalks up on me, I must relocate the ceremonial stuff to where I can pack sundry gift cups (a variant on my default gift of nice mug filled with chocolates - and yes the "big tubs" are already in Tesco at a fiver a pop & my sons are already eyeing me hopefully - they got a tub each last year as I slightly overdid it). <blush>

I struggle to stash toilet paper as them blighters can see and reach it even more easily than I can. All I can do is fill the car when Costco has the promotion on - and of course the lads then play forts etc as well as using more because they can't see any reason to count the sheets. The eldest, who is paying keep, might. The other two - not a hope as yet.

Jojo_the_Tightfisted

I'm back in that there Sarf Lundun for the wretched work thing whilst Himself remains on the Moors for his father's treatment and planned rehabilitation - he's just waiting for a bed to become available and he'll be transferred.

My perfunctory attempts at prepping meant I had something to eat last night when I finally got back, even after having to reclean the downstairs because there was A Smell. I even got to the point of removing the (already broken) kickboard under the provisions cupboard in case an errant rodent had made the fatal mistake of gaining entry to a house with two bored cats and subsequently regretted its decision. No sign of the source of the smell, but it had disappeared by morning, so whatever I cleaned must have got it anyhow.


There are too many boozed up wasps in the garden to risk the remainder of the blackberries after a fortnight of the main crop being left untouched. And it would have been a magnificent harvest. But as I have to go out and get more strong flour and some veggies to try and overcome the effects of two weeks of eating on the run between hospital visits, I'm going to keep an eye out for a pan large enough for preserving what I can get reduced to clear in the meantime.


However, interesting developments from FIL. He's asked Himself if we want to have his car and will insure it/keep it running indefinitely. Himself hasn't driven daily for about twenty years and only drove occasionally up til about 8 years ago when he was last behind the wheel, but it would open up so many possibilities - he's planning proper little old man practice runs over the moors before he goes anywhere near civilisation, never mind driving back up here.

I am, naturally, already thinking of the opportunities for foraging and buying larger quantities of staples - and never having to rely upon the kindness of ticket gate staff in letting me through when my contactless card failed and nearly trapped me in the bowels of Zone 1 yesterday. Still had to walk home from the last station as this meant I couldn't use the buses, but had it not been for them, I'd never have escaped Paddington.


He is thinking in terms of being able to get to and from the hospital easier and possibly being able to take his Dad out when he's able to move around, whether under his own steam, with a stick or with a wheelchair, what with being a Much Nicer Person.


Anyhow, I must shift myself, as it's far too comfortable on the settee and I need to move around before I a) seize up from the last fortnight and can't move at all for days and b) starve.

Karmacat

We don't want you starving, Jojo! You sound a bit cheerier, but starving still isn't a good idea I'm definitely getting wasps here too - I was pulling open dried teabags this morning on my ashes from the little burns I've done, and the wasps were getting to me even there!

mardatha

Not seen any up here as yet - but am bound to be stung now I've said that. Feeling very like autumn now, I feel an urge to cosy in and light candles and burners.

thriftwizard

Wasps a-plenty down here, especially under the fig tree. It's a huge crop of figs this year and the wasps are making merry under there! Turns out the blackbird is also partial to a fig or two. Amongst the human population, only OH is much of a fig fan; I've tried drying them to keep some for winter, but they were "horrid" apparently. I've only just discovered you can make fig jam...

Must order in some wood next month; we've plenty of kindling, having demolished the old chicken shed, but not enough logs.

Jojo_the_Tightfisted

Braved a quick trip to the supermarket round the corner and was a little taken aback to see the shelves almost empty - hardly any fruit, very little veg, just one miserable set of packs of overpriced salmon, lots of spaces where meat/fish/ready meals should be and not much in the way of anything else edible. Not that I have anything to do with the dairy fridges or prepacked sandwiches/salads/sushi, but they were also almost empty, with just a couple of shelves with anything on and massive spaces on the rest.

Has something happened whilst I've been away?

NewShadow

NewShadow wrote: »

Someone on here will know...

Dried, chewy, apple rings and dried, hard and sweet, banana chips - when using in porridge in place of fresh fruit - add them before or after microwaving the oats/milk?

I add sultanas with the cold milk but wasn't sure given the different textures.

If no one knows I'll try adding before microwaving on Wednesday and report back

Okay - reporting time

I used 4 apple rings rough cut into chunks and around 40g of tesco value oats with a dash of cinnamon.

Microwaved with around double the volume of UHT skimmed milk for 3 minutes then added a spoon of 'vanilla protein powder' - which has been knocking around in a cupboard since it came free with a muscle food order - and the results were filling and tasty.

Apples plumped up but didn't dissolve, the texture was thick without being gloopy, and I lasted through to a late lunch at 3pm.

Definitely an option for shelf stable/refrigerator free breakfasts going forward.

mardatha

I've never seen or tasted a fig, or a damson. Stuff like that doesn't grow up here. Neighbours have apple and pear trees but they don't produce fruit, the neighbour said we're too high up.

DigForVictory

NewShadow thank you for your researches & will now go make porridge for all chaps current rently still snoozing..

Just realised - mine cannot be the exotic comfrey (Bocking 14), as I grew it myself from seed. Dash. Still, I am much better prepared for next year's nasturtiums as if they've left an unsnaffled seed, I have been remiss.

Also, my ChristmasPrep is struggling with the House of Fraser fuss. I depended on their sales, online wins delivered to the local Waitrose & that's closing too (just the store though). Time to prowl the Potteries online & see if I can find the fun mugs at penny rates & affordable shipping.

Karmacat

Great post, NewShadow, thanks for that - I've been using my dehydrator this week, I did carrots and blueberries, going to do some more broccoli today.

Mar, you get Asda deliveries, don't you? They've got dried figs - 500g for £2.68, or 2 x 200g for £4. In a true situation of shtf, they're completely unnecessary, of course, but right now, I have a sense that anything thats yummy, that has different trace nutrients, is good to stock up on. I'm dehydrating supermarket-bought foods myself, as half of my garden is still a wilderness, and the rest is just marking time


Another thing - with being away quite a bit at the moment, catsitting, I used some garden twine to start practising knots - there are two websites, netknots and animatedknots, that show them. I remember reef knots from Brownies, but thats it