The Prepping Thread - A Newer Beginning ;)

grunnie

Bedsit_Bob wrote: »

I didn't know that, but now that I do, I shan't bother with this thread again.

Bye everyone.

Don,t be silly just pop round to visit me and help count my pills. I !ike my local council as long as they do not close my librarythen i am happy.but they are going to charge me to empty my brown bin but then now i am disabled they will take my bin from the back of the house pull it to the front empty it and take it back to the back garden.

Karmacat

What Grunnie said. And Grunnie, oh my word! That's a true SHTF situation for you, no mistake - you sound like you're coping with it really well.

Bob, don't go - maybe tone down the "teasing"? Face to face, it might be fine, but its online, and teasing often doesn't come over well. You're a valued member of the thread, especially for your active experiments with kit, and your reporting of what's going on in your neck of the woods. GQ is also a valued member of the thread, for her descriptions of her adjustments and expansion of her prepping (expansion particularly means allotments, here!) and her magazine-quality articles about our subject matter in terms of history and current events. You're both really good for the thread.

I'm **horrified** at myself for writing this, I've been burned so badly in the past by online carp, and certainly stepped back myself recently here, but I'm standing up on this one, come what may. If it gets too bad, I'll just step back again.

thriftwizard

Don't worry about me, guys, I'm doing OK! I did spend a few days in hospital two weeks back, for the silliest of reasons, & now I've got a cold on top of my treatment, but basically I'm more than half-way through now and doing pretty well. The storecupboard & freezer have taken a bashing but the family have rallied round & got stuck in; I'm very much luckier than most patients who are going home to empty, unprepared houses and unreliable help. Wishing you swift & capable help, grunnie; sounds like you are well-prepared!

If I've been a bit quiet it's mostly because I was digging up figures for the taxman, trying to sort my van insurance (£150 saved!) and chasing up contributions for & producing a quarterly newsletter, then trying to mail it out when my mail server's outgoing "allowance" seems to shrink every time... I do love January...

Karmacat

Thanks thriftwizard! Good to know you're doing okay, given your situation

My garden preps need me ... got to get going!

Goldiegirl

An advance warning of snow in the south eastern corner of the country, Tuesday evening into Wednesday

https://www.metoffice.gov.uk/public/weather/warnings#?date=2019-01-30

herbily

Jojo_the_Tightfisted wrote: »

The expected SHTF situation is now a reality. Got our 'At Risk' notifications today (which is pretty pointless, as it's blatantly obvious they've already made their minds up and won't be changing them).

In theory they have to go through a consultation period and announce if it's a full-scale shutdown or reduced numbers, and if the latter, make all of you go through interviews to get your old job back. It ain't over till it's over... but a full larder is a good thing to have.

GreyQueen

(((grunnie))))) and ((((thriftwizard))) thanks for checking in and I'm so sorry to hear of your health troubles. Thank goodness you're both preppers and have your homes and your stocks in order.



Ahem, I was going to do something I do from time to time, I call it Screen Free Sunday. Keeping the pooter off so I don't fall down the rabbit hole of the interwebulator and not get anything else done.


I lasted until about 5.30 pm before I decided to have at the rest of the world. Almost-entirely-screen-free-Sunday doesn't have quite the same ring to it, does it?:rotfl:


Have de-shooted the last of the HG spuds, only just over a week since last done, but they needed it. Have also slaughtered the last of the HG 2018 pumpkins and prepped that for the freezer. An experienced pumpkin growing pal gave me a tip that if you bake the pumpkin in the oven for 15 mins (I used Gas 6) it will be a lot easier to peel and the pulp and seeds will separate much more easily, and I have found this to be true. Have also cooked the last HG beetroots, there's slim pickings on the lotties now, just leeks, chard and some edible weeds.


We're heading into the time of year historically referred to as the Hungry Gap, when the last of the stored foods are running out and the new crops won't be ready. Soon it will be the celtic festival of Imbolc, christianised as Candlemas. Celebration of the first ewes' milk and the coming spring.


Allotment is sopping wet, the north wind is blowing hard but the daffodils I planted last autumn are now 3 inches tall and the flowerbud has started to form. Spring's incoming, can't wait!


Oh, and I added some more imported shelf-stable foods to my Armageddon Cupboard; tinned passata and brined olives.

DawnW

Do you bake the pumpkin whole, GQ, or chop it into bits first?

GreyQueen

DawnW wrote: »

Do you bake the pumpkin whole, GQ, or chop it into bits first?

Whole. I put it on a baking sheet in the centre of the oven. The top half browned ever-so-slightly and the peel came of a bit more easily than the bottom half, which makes me wonder if a 20 minute bake (10 mins, then turn it upside down) might be a better option.


When I next have a pumpkin to play with, I shall do that and see how it goes.

Jojo_the_Tightfisted

herbily wrote: »

In theory they have to go through a consultation period and announce if it's a full-scale shutdown or reduced numbers, and if the latter, make all of you go through interviews to get your old job back. It ain't over till it's over... but a full larder is a good thing to have.

Theory is nice, herblily.

In reality, though, their 'consultation period' is lip service to the law. They are effectively closing my faculty (and all but closing everything else other than their legally required provision, the remaining slack being taken up by non specialists who will retain their employed positions but be expected to cover the other ones for which they don't have experience in) other than keeping on one single member of staff who has other duties they still need outside the department (and neither of their equals have the qualifications or experience to do both parts, so when that level shrinks down to two instead of four, one already going through natural wastage). The only other person with a vaguely similar position that is remaining in another faculty has been directly matched to it, as it's her job already.

The most annoying thing is some of us are earmarked for disposal in June, the better paid ones in September - and the ones who are kept and stay for the next year until closure, despite there apparently not being enough money to pay the lower ranks, get a bonus on termination of redundancy PLUS six months' of their significantly higher salary to say thank you. Oh, and we're not allowed to say anything about it. Because the 'customers' might be a little peeved that they are going to be given substandard delivery with next to no specialists.


To give an example, it's the equivalent of a hospital getting rid of the specialists, nurses, technicians and admin staff, leaving everybody to be treated by five psychiatrists, two GPs and a couple of part time HCAs performing neurosurgery. But where nobody is allowed to go to another hospital. And the patients can't know. And the psychs/GPs/HCA get paid 133% of their annual salary whilst most the ones that have been booted out on the grounds of there not being enough money to pay them aren't being given a penny if the law doesn't compel them to do so.