The Prepping Thread - A Newer Beginning ;)

wondercollie

One thing to think of stocking up on is tin foil.  
Today, the grocery store near me had a sign up "due to the shortage of aluminium, soft drink makers are only putting the best sellers into cans, this is why there is limited supplies"   Never saw that one coming.  But the mines and mills were closed for over two months, so there has to be a backlog.

GreyQueen

I was reading an article about this very thing, and some of the shortage is attributable to changed consumption patterns; i.e. more at-home beverage consuption as opposed to cafe and restaurant consumption. There are interesting outcomes of supply chain shortages; my haberdashery shop, when it re-opened, was rationing the amount of narrow elastic people could buy. The width of elastic suitable for making face masks.

euronorris

Hope you're feeling better soon Elaine. Take it easy.

Zentimes - fingers crossed for the result  and hope he feels better soon too. It's rotten being ill regardless.

Interesting re tin foil, and aluminium. Explains why my parents had difficulty getting my dads favourite for a while. Interestingly, I switched to 2l bottles once lockdown began. I only bought canned drinks for portability to take to office. 2l bottles always been better value, so once at home I just switched to them. Might be a different story once I have to start going back to the office - likely a couple days a week from September, unless things change.

One of my preparations now is weight loss and healthy eating. I've over indulged for far too long. And now everything feels a bit more under control, it's time to get my health back on track and lose the excess weight. I am in the obese category. Not by a lot, but any is too much, so needs to get back under control. Obesity is a big factor with Covid-19, so I need to be healthier before winter comes along! So I spent yesterday going through my healthy mummy apps and recipes and putting together a meal plan, and planning our food shop around that. Being delivered before 9am.

Local Facebook page, someone had two 12 packs of Ball jars, with lids, completely unopened for £20. So 24 for £20. Jumped on that straight away! Ready for jam making  and preserving garden produce. Didn't think about how heavy it would be to carry back  and walked there with DD. So got some unplanned exercise in! Lol And then DD and I went blackberry picking in the afternoon. Just ripening here, so managed one tub full. Plenty more on the way.

euronorris

Oh, and need to start getting DDs school uniform. I understand that Aldi is good for the basics, so planning to get from there and considering getting next size up at same time. That way, if DD catches me short with a growth spurt, we will be prepared and will have bought at this years prices. Might do same with shoes too, I remember going through mine regularly!

jamanda

Unfortunately no-one in this house likes blackberries.  It looks like there will be a superb crop this year (including in our hedges where they shouldn't be.

Zentimes

Good to hear you are feeling better Elaine and taking plenty of time to rest and recuperate. Glad your garden is producing so well! I don't blame your boys, just-shelled peas are really delicious.

Well good news here, after a day of temperatures of around 102'F, DP's temperature is back to 100'F today so falling, he is feeling more chipper, and just got the news that his test result is negative. Sighs of relief all around! Once his temperature is normal he can resume his usual activities again. He heard from a work colleague based in Barcelona that that city is under lockdown again as Covid-19 cases escalate in Catalonia.

CCW007

That's really interesting re tinfoil, I wouldn't have even thought of that.

Upgraded my round dehydrator with the fan at the bottom to a 9 tray dehydrator with the fan at the back - the difference is amazing.  So much quicker, better drying, more even.  It cost a fair chunk so it needs to earn it's money.  It has been going on stop since yesterday morning! I really like the idea of shelf stable produce that doesn't rely on electricity (although it obviously needs leccy for the dehydration process). 

I also made courgette crisps which won't store long but don't need to and they were fab. So I'm hoping for a glut.

Only growing stuff in (very large) containers this year but managed broad beans, lettuce, carrots, tomatoes, cucumbers and courgettes.  The chard bolted quite early so I'm looking for something leafy to replace it which will stand late into the year or into next year.  Will dig through my seeds and see what I have.

I ordered dried cat food this week for the first time since March, I always buy in bulk (9 cats plus 4 foster cats means we go through a lot) and managed to get an order in just before all the pet food suppliers went into meltdown.  I made sure that I placed this order when we got down to six weeks food because the lack of pet food worried me more than our food. The price has gone up from £34 a bag to £39 though, huge increase.

One thing that has interested me is the amount of people buying our eggs from the ducks and chickens.  Neighbours who never bought our eggs in five years have suddenly become regular customers.  I hope they understand that egg laying is seasonal and we probably won't be selling any eggs in December!

DigForVictory

School uniform is something we were canny with - we'd buy the cheapest that could withstand a machine wash for September but tried for on-sale M&S (or the like) for summer, as in winter shirt are hidden under other uniform tops whereas in summer, all more visible. That I had three lads & so was buying in 5s with an eye on if one grows the next can wear and if two grow, then youngest - who got new clothes for school only when he got to sixth form. Leg length is the most obvious growth to have to deal with - one term eldest went up two sizes as we were seeing too much sock before half term and Again before end of term - still, once youngest had outgrown things, if there was a puff of life left the charity shops had them (gleefully) and if not, the rag bin..
Brilliant on the Ball jars - and while they're heavy empty, they are So Satisfying when full!

euronorris

Great news Zentimes! Hope he continues to recover quickly!

Food shopping delivered and packed away. No substitutions! I did  however  have a pack of lemons delivered with a mouldy lemon it, yuck. And a bag of marks piper potatoes that I didn't order! Lol

CCW007

Euronorris, I'm with you on the weightloss and healthy eating.  Started off well at the beginning of lockdown but a bit too much drinking and not the most healthy food have taken their toll.  Great result on the ball jars!

Had anyone frozen eggs (whisked up), if so how did they turn out when used? I'm conscious we start getting fewer eggs from.l this point of the year on and then the ducks start up again in January / February so thinking if we start preserving some now we could use them over the autumn and winter to keep us going. It's usually scrambled egg, omelette or quiche / fritatta so whisking them won't be an issue.