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Spring is the time for New Beginnings: amending our garden soil

Simply put, amending our soil means improving it in texture and fertility. Soil amendment should be looked at as a long term solution with ongoing continual effort and ongoing continual results. If we’re looking for a quick fix, we’ve chosen the wrong hobby. Even if our soil was great five years ago, its not reasonable to expect it to remain that way without continuing to replenish it. Plants use nutrients; water and winter leach out nutrients – it’s simple math. Making our gardens the BEST that they can be begins with healthy soil, and that means we do what we can to continually replenish what is continually being used or lost.

How do I know if my garden soil is good?

The primary way to understand your soil is to check its texture and structure. Good soil has a healthy balance of organic matter, sand, silt, and clay. It should also be moist but not soggy. To determine the texture of your soil, take a handful of damp garden soil and squeeze it into a ball. If it breaks apart easily our soil is on the sandy side. If it clings together, our soil is more clay. Why does this matter? Proper soil texture is essential to allowing roots to take up moisture and air. Most soils contain a mixture of clay, organic matter and sand. Whatever your soil is currently, the objective it to ‘amend’ it so that it is more humus-y. Humus is the result of a long process of decomposition, the combined efforts of earthworms, bacteria, fungi and other microorganisms and time. It is loose, crumbly and spongy and usually dark brown or black in colour. Good soil could have as much as 25% compost and will hold together loosely if we squeeze it into a ball. Ideal soil for growing vegetables could be as high as 50% compost in the soil. This helps hold the moisture in a way that plants can readily access it. Ultimately, it is our goal.

Let’s talk about Clay first:

Clay is a fine grained mineral made when rocks break down. It acts as a binding agent giving the soil elasticity and allowing the soil particles to stick together. Clay soils can be difficult to till, and will not drain quickly after a heavy rain, often hardening when dry.

I remember a certain area near a creek close to my childhood home. We kids called it the ‘clay pit’, and I have no idea who discovered it, but new kids were constantly introduced to it. In the spring we would walk down with pails and (if I was to be totally honest) our mothers’ serving spoons, to dig some clay. We had to go after a rain when the clay was perfect, other wise it would be like cement and good luck getting any out with a serving spoon. It was heavy so we couldn’t bring a lot home in our little pails, but no matter – we didn’t need a heckuva lot.
We would get more water and knead it in like we were making bread. When it was the texture of plasticine, we formed small bowls out of it and left them to dry in the sun. I don’t recall how long they took to dry, probably a day or two if it was nice and sunny. Then we’d give them to our mothers (who were always so ‘appreciative‘) as gifts. They used them as ashtrays – which in the world in which I grew up, was a valuable household ornament. When I was much older and observed old indigenous pottery in museums, made in areas further south of where I lived, I remembered that clay pit and our rudimentary attempts at using the clay – and I felt one with the world.

I cannot say anything really ‘bad’ about clay lol, because it holds such fond childhood memories for me. But on the other hand, I didn’t have to grow a garden in it. And I sure wouldn’t want to. Dense clay soil compacts easily, restricting the movement of water, nutrients and air throughout, making it inhospitable for your plants. Roots hit a hard clay floor or wall when they try to grow, and the clay retains too much moisture drowning or rotting roots. Sandy soil is the exact opposite.

to amend clay soil –

add organic matter – like compost, dried grass clippings, shredded leaves, aged horse manure, and compost. That’s pretty much it. Sounds simple doesn’t it? Well you’d be surprised at how many problems can be solved by compost. My advice – after some very positive personal experience – is this three layer lasagna recipe.

1. Distribute a nice deep layer of straw (3 to 4 inches is a good start) over the surface of your garden area in the early spring.
2, On top of that, distribute another 3-4 inches of well aged horse manure. Why horse manure? Because it is a beautiful natural fertilizer rich in nitrogen and perfect for earthworms. (tip: horse manure is a good thing to add to your soil frequently, so make friends with a horse owner and plan to add a top layer every year or two). Your leafy green garden vegetables will be very happy.
3. On top of that – like the shredded cheese on your lasagna, broadcast the clippings of the first mowing of your spring lawn – with all the leftover fall leaves and snow mold and all the other things you thought were ugly when the snow finally melted. All organic grass clippings are wonderful, but the first mowing is full of microscopic critters that make the world go ’round. Their job is to break down organic material and they’re very good at it.

I am reminded that many years ago when our kids were young – for a different reason entirely, we layered a few bales of ‘hay’ all over the top of our backyard garden (yes, I mean hay as opposed to straw). Hay is grass, less coarse than straw (which is the dried stocks of grain) so it breaks down easier than straw. I hear all the time that one should avoid hay in a garden because of the amount of ‘seeds’ in it that are obviously going to grow, but I found that not to be a problem at all. The types of seeds you can expect to find in hay are the type of hay it is – perhaps Timothy Hay, perhaps Alfalfa. Those seeds are going to grow so LOOSELY in the hay itself that they’re easy to pull out as you’re walking by. Nothing to worry about. Don’t avoid hay for that reason.

Over the course of that summer the hay created a marvelous mulch for us, while it began the process of breaking down under the surface.
Benefits:
– It kept the weeds down, and those that did grow were rooted in the hay so super easy to pull out.
– It helped keep the moisture from evaporating.
– It was excellent mulch for our potatoes. They literally grew IN the hay, shielded from the sun.
– In many ways that was one of the best gardens we’ve every had, and I was anxious to repeat it.
– By the next growing season the hay was almost completely assimilated into the garden, and I needed more. But we couldn’t find more that year – we live in the city, so don’t have easy access to things like this. We found straw instead however, and while we understood the difference, didn’t fully envision the significance of that difference. While it looked good initially, it didn’t readily break down like the hay had, and after another growing season and winter, when Dan rototilled the garden the following spring, it got all tangled up in the tines of the rototiller – very frustrating for him. I agreed to not use straw anymore. In retrospect however, understanding it so much more now, I could have done things a little differently. We gave up too easily. All these years later, it is interesting to me that we’re returning to a method we had unwitting success with decades ago, but we’re understanding more about why it worked and that is helping. Such is the nature of gardening: one lesson at a time.

Sand:

Unlike clay, sandy soil allows water to drain more easily, but that requires a lot more water to sustain plant growth, and the constant draining washes nutrients away. My 9 year old Zack, once asked “Why doesn’t the ocean drain out?” He had noted that the sand on the beach didn’t hold water. I thought that was a brilliant question but of course I didn’t have a brilliant answer. The good news is that it is a relatively easy remedy in the garden; but again, don’t confuse ‘easy’ for ‘quick’. Looking for a one time fix is far too simplistic.

Amending sandy soil –

is necessary to help create a happy, healthy home for our garden vegetables. Adding organic material to the soil will not only add important nutrients, but will also help maintain them. It will also help with moisture retention. Compost is the best amendment. How ironic that for these two extremes of inhospitable soil, the solution is the same: COMPOST and other organic matter.

The best quality compost is made of many different types of material: garden greens, shredded leaves, dried grass, as well as kitchen waste of all kinds, and everything else that goes into a homemade compost. If you don’t have a good supply of homemade compost at your disposal, start by using city compost, or commercially purchased compost. Then immediately start your own compost so you can supply yourself every year after this. If you live in a place that isn’t conducive to compost, consider donating your kitchen scrapes to your local community garden. At the very least, donate it to your city’s green bin program if you have one.

Peat moss aids in moisture retention, helps increase the acidic soil level, and we can still buy huge bags of it quite affordably. I use it in my many pots and window boxes – pots of flowers, pots with peppers or tomatoes – all traditionally places that I have a hard time keeping moist. I use a wheelbarrow as a big mixing bowl. Equal parts potting soil, peat moss and compost – pretty much following my mother-in-law’s recipe. Then I add a LOT of water. It will absorb more than you think it will, and I constantly work the water in with my hands till the mixture is very moist but not dripping wet. Then I put it into my pots and plant my plants or seeds in it. It is a lot easier to keep peat moss moist than it is to get it wet in the first place – it’s first reaction is to repel the water, before it finally gives up and absorbs it. If you let it dry out, you’ll be starting again with that process.

Aged horse manure is an excellent compostable material to either mix into our compost or layer over top of our garden surface. Again, avoid the temptation to work it in. Have a little faith and give it time to amaze you.

Ultimately – this simple rule applies: the best way to improve soil texture is by adding organic material, such as compost. Decaying organic matter loosens clay-dense soil helping air and water move more freely so that roots can penetrate easily. It also helps sandy soil by holding water and nutrients that would otherwise drain away. In each soil extreme, it encourages beneficial microbial activity and provides nutritional benefits.

All soil requires amending from time to time – if only just to KEEP it good. And of course there are all sorts of other issues like ‘heavy feeders’, and crop rotation which continually benefit the soil. Gardens are living breathing entities and part of the cycle of life. Though we cannot see most of that life – it is there nonetheless, and living in harmony with it makes life a lot gentler.

Testing your soil for specific nutrient issues

You can test your own soil using a basic soil test kit from your local hardware or garden store. Inexpensive, easy and relatively accurate, soil tests provide good insight about what’s going on under your feet, including the levels of pH, calcium, lime, gypsum and potassium. I have only tested my soil once, the year after we took our spruce trees out. And after a year of fussing about this nutrient or that nutrient, the only thing that made a sustainable difference was something as simple as that garden lasagna recipe – which added compostable material in a very big way.

5 easy tips for healthy soil in your garden

  1. continually add organic matter – every year, and throughout the year by incorporating compost and compostables – which increases air, water and nutrients
  2. try to get out of the habit of using a rototiller, especially in smaller gardens where they aren’t necessary. Breaking up all that soil isn’t helping it.
  3. protect your topsoil from sunburn with mulch
  4. don’t use chemicals unless there’s absolutely no alternative
  5. rotate crops so that they are naturally both using up and replacing nutrients

Crop rotation:

The concept of crop rotation is simple: avoid planting the same crops in the same area every year. Different types of plants require different nutrients from the soil, and in return – provide different nutrients. By not planting the same vegetables in the same spot year after year, new plants will benefit from what the former plants leave behind, and we will discourage pests and diseases from building up in the soil. Ideally, we should rotate a vegetable family so that it grows in an area only once every three or four years.

Beans – include all sorts of beans, peas and other legumes. They are easy to grow and don’t require anything specific in the soil – just lots of sun. They’ll replace the nitrogen that high feeders use up.

Greens – include anything green and leafy: lettuces, spinach, swiss chard etc. They are easy to grow and not too demanding, but will benefit from nitrogen and phosphorus. Beans and peas are known for fixing nitrogen in the soil, so follow them with greens.

Roots – are obviously potatoes, carrots, beets, and other vegetables that grow IN the ground.
Phosphorus promotes strong root growth. Bone meal is a good source of it, but don’t over use. 1 Tablespoon mixed into about 2 square feet of soil is a good amount. It’s not fast acting so the sooner you can apply it the better.

Fruits – includes any type of garden produce that produces ‘fruit’ like tomatoes, squash, cucumbers etc. They are heavy eaters so give them lots of attention. Brassicas like broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage etc are also high feeders so I’m including them in with fruits. They want phosphorus – and good sources are chicken and horse manure and fish fertilizer (fish emulsion). For several years I have planted a raw broken whole egg with my tomato plants because I had heard that the protein in the egg was beneficial, and I knew that calcium was – which the shelf provides. I had not taken the time to conduct any experiments but I’ve always had good eggs. Last year (2023 I didn’t take the time to use any raw eggs. I noticed at the end of the year that my tomato harvest was disappointing but I didn’t make a connection right away – and who’s to know if there even was one? . . . A good friend of mine conducted an experiment last season with three sets of three tomato plants each. In one set she planted each tomato in a deep hole with a fish head at the bottom (sprinkle a little compost). Same types of tomatoes, everything else the same, but different things ‘planted’ with the tomatoes. She noted that the set of three with the fish heads had considerably more fruit than the others. That is what made me think about my last season’s disappointing harvest.

This year I will be using eggs again – and in half of my tomatoes, I’ll also be including fish remains. I’ll keep track and watch for any changes. Stay tuned.

Gardening is about learning new things Every. Single. Year! So keep your eyes open, listen to others and pay attention.

Personally I avoid growing most vegetables from the brassica family: broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, kale, brussels sprouts, radishes, mustard greens, and collards. Not to say I don’t like them, I DO. But I despise the ugly voracious caterpillars that come from the cabbage moths – which always seem to find my plants no matter how well I think I’ve hidden them. I have tried every potential solution I’ve heard or read about but in the end, each success is limited and unsustainable. I finally gave up years ago and I’m at peace with that. However, I have three exceptions to my ‘no-brassica’ rule: kale, radish greens and mustard greens (which I have recently discovered). These I plant dispersed throughout my garden – especially kale, which are planted here a few, there a few in the vegetable garden, herb garden, flower gardens, front yard, back yard, . . . . wherever I can find a spot for one or two plants. I do this because I’ve noticed that the cabbage moth will take the easy path of going down a row laying their eggs. If my kale are not in a row, I have a chance of saving more of them. I am ruthless though – if a plant shows evidence of being eaten, I quickly pull it out and get rid of it – saving its neighbours from a similar fate. I tell them “Sacrificing for the greater good is noble“. I don’t know if that helps them or not lol.

Radishes I plant sprinkled among my lettuce and carrots. I don’t really care for radish roots, but I do like their green tops so its worth it to me.
Mustard greens – I have only recently discovered mustard greens and I really like them. I haven’t developed a routine for them yet however, still working on that.

For years Dan and I have maintained what I (playfully) refer to as the “grass war”. Its a complicated conflict. He loves his grass and I sorta like it too. I love my garden and he sorta likes it too. I would like more garden and less grass. He would like more grass and less garden. The war has never been won; we remain in a tenuous semi-permanent truce, each awaiting the other to weaken or concede on small issues. Maintaining a healthy balance of both, our yard successfully accommodates every demographic in our family: the little kids who need a play area and a yard to run around in, the bigger kids and Grampa who need a trampoline with water and a treehouse, the young adults and Grampa who need space to set up some yard games and roast hot dogs, Gramma who needs a place to grow food for them all, and the Gramma Great who needs a place to sit and watch the whole goings on.

So far mutual respect is the keeping the peace. However, the ‘conflict’ is further complicated by our opposing views on a few major points – like compost. They’re not irreconcilable differences, just differences of basic idealisms. We both believe in composting – me radically, and him conservatively. It is my insistence on keeping grass clipping IN the yard, being lightly distributed as mulch throughout the gardens and adding the rest to our ongoing compost. His position is that we have too much of it, and some of it has to go. Consequently, he’s motivated to mow the lawn when I’m not around to get the bags of a freshly mowed grass out into the alley for pick up, before I notice and go rescue them – hauling them back in and dumping them out in the compost area.

For years, the quiet but simmering conflict came to the surface every spring with the first mowing. My instincts told me that the first mowing was a gold mine of grass clippings, and his instincts told him it was dangerous – full of snow mold and other bad things that had to be eliminated. This remained a stale mate issue since time immemorial UNTIL a mutual friend unwittingly weighed in. Our friend Scott took a stance firmly on my side – stating emphatically that snow mold was a garden’s friend, and that the first mowing was full of hidden treasure. I should state here that Scott and his wife Alana are excellent gardeners with more formal education on the subject than either Dan or myself. It was Scott who prescribed our garden lasagna recipe above, and we both respected his opinion. The success of that ‘experiment’ has become the stuff of legend in our garden. But that’s perhaps a story for another time. Suffice it to say, that since that supreme success, we have agreed on the issue of the first mowing. Score one point for Cindy (not that I’m keeping track of course lol).

Back to the lasagna recipe –
I understand that it is tempting to want to “work in” all that additional material you just put on your garden. I admit I was sorely tempted the first time we did this too. My opinion was influenced by many years of tradition – as no doubt, is your’s. But DON’T DO IT! In fact, you will actually do damage to the very thing you’re trying to nurture. The natural state of a soil’s structure is alive and loaded with organic material – bacteria, nutrients, worms and other creatures, and microorganisms all working together in the great cycle of life. As we rototill or dig that wonderful material in, attempting to distribute it, we are actually disrupting and destroying instead of repairing. All those channels that worms and other critters create when they chew through the soil, help to bring oxygen and water into the ground below, making it easier for our plants to develop healthy root systems and find the nutrients they need. With our shovel, fork or (heaven forbid) our rototiller, we will break all that up – destroying colonies and disrupting harmony. Let nature do what she does best, and leave well enough alone.

Let the rain do its job of washing the nutrients from the top layer down into the layers below. If we’re having a dry spring, maybe we can help it out a little by watering from time to time. Yes, I know the wind will blow some of the straw around. Calm down. Just mow it up when you mow your grass and sprinkle it over the top again. In a matter of only a few weeks it will all settle in and make itself at home. We can trust the natural process beneath the surface; leave this part up to God and all his little critters.

If we intend to plant this area right away, we may be obliged to work some of this material in with a shovel or fork. We must do what we must do, but be cautious. In the past, I’ve marked my rows and gently moved the straw mixture away from the row line – to plant my seeds or seedlings, gently pushing it back around the seedlings when they come up. For potatoes, I keep the straw in place. Potatoes are tough; they’re gonna grow through it all, but I’m not as confident about more delicate seedlings, so I baby them a little.

Yes, our garden will be several inches higher than it used to be, but over the season the straw will break down, the aged manure will be distributed into it and and the top layer will become indistinguishable. It will remain a fantastic mulch. By the next year we won’t see any evidence of it – testimony to all that subterranean community effort that went on undisturbed and unseen from the surface.

~

In the process of amending our soil, we may be tempted from time to time by the lure of a ‘quick fix’. This can sometimes look like synthetic fertilizers, which can be relatively cheap and promise to act quickly. (To be fair, I am not opposed to fertilizers but take care in their selection). Fertilizers don’t amend the soil, they feed the plants. A synthetic fertilizer might help us within a couple of weeks, but its usually a single use result, needing reapplication. Organic fertilizers on the other hand, release their nutrients over a period of time. We won’t get the instant fix, but we will get a longer, sustained feeding. Several years ago we had a problem area in our garden, caused by three 40 year old spruce trees that we had removed the previous year. Whatever we were doing to help the shrubs and other plants we planted in their place wasn’t working; it became clear we had a soil problem. We went to a few local nurseries to ask for advice and suggestions for soil amendment, but the best we received were recommendations of fertilizers to help specific plants in our problem area. This was not helpful, as the foundational issue remained ‘poor SOIL’; the plants were just falling victim to it. That is when Scott and I discussed our problem, and he prescribed our lasagna recipe above – which in a single season, transformed our dead zone into a rain forest.

disclaimer:
While I believe there is a place for natural fertilizers AFTER the soil has been improved, and I use them from time to time, I don’t pretend to be an expert on the subject. This is primarily a discussion on soil amendment.

Tips for ongoing success

  1. Adding compost or another organic material like horse manure, chicken scratchings, grass clippings, or straw or . . . . any other number of sources, is the easiest way to continually nourish your soil. An annual application of spring compost and an occasional top dressing of aged horse manure should in most cases, eliminate the need for any other form of amendment.
  2. The least expensive soil amendment is your own home produced compost using kitchen scraps and yard waste.
  3. While fertilizers temporarily add nutrients directly to the area, amendments improve the nature and characteristics of the soil while additionally adding nutrients.
  4. Don’t expect a quick fix. Soils cannot be changed in a single gardening season; it will take years of continually adding organic material to prevent your garden from returning to its former heavy clay state. The action of compost and garden plant matter breaking down and working its way into the soil is a process not an event.
  5. When clearing out your garden in the fall, consider allowing leaves and other plant material to decay naturally becoming part of the ongoing ecosystem. In the spring, you can rake out what you need to, mow it up and add it back in as mulch once you’ve planted your rows.

I’d love to hear your tips for a healthier garden.
Feel free to comment below.

Warmly,

Cindy Suelzle

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Building your 72 Hour Kit

Q: What is it?
A: a disaster supplies pack that you and your family WILL need in the event of evacuation.
Q: Why is it called a 72 hour kit?
A: because it should contain a minimum of three days supplies.

Okay, I’ll start by confessing the truth – I’d rather not leave my house for anything. In most emergencies, people would prefer to ‘shelter-in-place’ at home, where they’re more in control. With or without power, sheltering in place is still where one would rather ride out just about anything. However, there are times when that simply isn’t possible. And while I’m ‘truthing‘, if I had to evacuate my house, I’d really rather NOT do it in the winter. But since emergencies rarely make appointments, and we likely wouldn’t get our choice, its something we have to strongly consider since (at least for me) winter takes up close to half my year. One last truth: MY evacuation plan may not be the same as yours.

I live in a city, so I won’t be heading out to the great outdoors if I have to evacuate my house, and I don’t have any little kids or pets in my house. There was a time we lived in the country, and a time we had little kids at home, and we did have pets, which made my 72 hour kit then, look a lot different than it does now. Though the basic essentials may be the same, everyone’s kit will be unique to them.
Do you have dental appliances?
Do you have dentures?
Do you have allergies? Or special medications?
Do you wear glasses?
You get the picture. We’re all different, and so our kits and our plans are going to look different too, but there are some things that are pretty basic.

So what is magic about 72 HOURS anyway?  Why choose that length of time?  

Three days (72 hours) has long been a minimum guideline to be self sufficient, and its recognized as a standard worldwide.   Whatever the disaster, no matter what help might be coming – it is unlikely to arrive inside of 72 hours.   Three days is also a manageable time frame that is easy for people to wrap their minds around, and fairly reasonable to plan for.   Experts recognize that the first 72 hours are often the most critical, so having an emergency kit ensures that individuals and families are adequately equipped to manage the initial chaos and uncertainty that lie in the aftermath of a disaster.   Bottom line – YOU’RE ON YOUR OWN for at least three days.

A supply of food, water, medication and other essential items for three days may be intimidating, but it is entirely manageable in terms of storage space, portability and cost.   It is just the beginning though; you should consider it a foundation upon which to build a more comprehensive preparedness plan, as the situation that causes the emergency is not likely to magically end in three days.   You should add to your plan – evacuation routes and destinations, communication strategies and community resources as well as how you can lend a hand to your neighbours.  These are proactive preparedness steps that when followed will mitigate your family’s risks, enhance your resilience and increase the level of your comfort and security.   

For me, our first option after evacuation would be to go to our son’s house – four blocks away. In the likely event that it won’t be far enough away, we’d all head to our other son’s house about 20 minutes away. If that is not far enough, we have another destination 40 minutes away. And so it goes.
Worst case scenario – we’d end up sitting on some gym floor somewhere with a hundred other people.

What are YOUR destination options? First choice, second choice, and so forth . . .

Terms to be familiar with:
SHELTER IN PLACE – means to remain indoors, or if outside to go indoors immediately. You should follow all instructions and watch your news source for updates. These situations can last hours or days. It is suggested to have enough supplies on hand to last a minimum of 14 days without needing to go to a store.

EVACUATION – evacuating a place – leaving it. Could be temporary, or long term, and can sometimes get quite stressful.

Looking at our Rule of 3’s:

1. AIR
– not likely to be a problem UNLESS our need to evacuate is related to air quality – which happened to us many years ago. In an oil town about three hours west of us – Lodgepole (close to Drayton Valley) was a tragedy that ultimately caused some significant future changes to sour gas safety regulations in Alberta. The well blew out of control for 68 days, spewing toxic hydrogen sulphide across west-central Alberta, making thousands of people ill. It caught fire and killed two workers who tried to cap it. Many people with breathing issues or other health concerns chose to leave the area.

2. SHELTER
– This always gives me pause to consider the circumstances of the many people without houses right now. Every winter day it seems, I hear about another death or two in the ‘tent cities’ in Edmonton. People just trying to stay warm in the most difficult situations.

Generally, if we need to evacuate our homes there will be temporary shelters set up. Its up to us to provide our own comfort within that temporary shelter though – blankets, food, water, things to occupy our time, etc.

3. WATER
– Bottled water should be on the top of your list of important items to include in your 72 hour kit. Whether you’re in a temporary shelter or driving to a distant destination you’ll want to have a supply of drinking water. In the winter time, melting snow may be an option if you have a way to clean it. But for most of THIS winter in my home city – good luck finding snow.

4. FOOD
– We have more flexibility with food than anything else. Instant freeze dried meals in a pouch provide tasty and nutritious hearty meals with nothing more than added water. Excellent option to have in your 72 kits. If you have the ability to heat the water, then all the better (a nice HOT meal), and with a 20 year shelf life you don’t have to be constantly switching it out. Other meals that require little preparation are of benefit too.
*pro tip: TRY THEM OUT AT HOME FIRST. Don’t ever pack a food that you have not first sampled. While you’re sitting on some gymnasium floor is NOT the time you want to find out you don’t like it. And don’t give me that “we won’t care what it tastes like, we’ll eat it anyway”, because that totally depends on how bad it really is! And even if you could choke it down – you’re not gonna be happy about it. Trust me, you’ll have enough things to worry about without hating your food.

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The RULE OF 3 is a good measure when coming up with a game plan for any emergency. Remember, you may be left to your own devises for several days before help can get to you. Being prepared means having enough food, water and other necessities to last for as long as you need them. Three days is the MINIMUM to plan for.

Below is a sample supply list. You’ll want to customize it to your own circumstances – but it’s a good place to start. Compile your own list and take it shopping with you to make sure you pick up things you want. Keep it handy as sometimes its a matter of being in the right place at the right time. Consider the unique needs of your family – children, disabled persons, elderly, pets etc.

ESSENTIALS

*pro tip: when assembling your kit, store items in airtight plastic bags inside an easy-to-carry (or pull) container.
Container suggestions: back packs, rolling bags for elderly, duffel bag, plastic bins (in the car).

* FULL GAS TANK. I’m just putting this at the top of my list right off the bat. Nobody’s going very far without gas in the tank.
*battery-powered or hand crank radio
*flashlight for each adult and older child
*lighters or matches in sealed zip lock bags; I prefer lighters
*small candles with something for them to sit in while burning
*pocket knife
*nylon cord to use as a clothes line, and clothes pins
*First aid kit
*hand sanitizer and disinfecting wipes to disinfect surfaces
*extra batteries
*whistle (to signal for help)
*paper and pencil or pen to leave messages for people
*note paper and pen for your own personal writing
*dust mask (to help filter contaminated air)
*plastic sheeting and duct tape (to prepare some kind of shelter)
*moist wipes, garbage bags and plastic ties (for personal sanitation)
*small ax – may come in handy for more than just chopping wood
*bungee cords of various sizes
*duct tape

**Local maps (and don’t say ‘google maps‘)
**List of your emergency contacts (don’t say they’re on your phone)
**Cell phone with chargers and a battery power bank for back up
**Cash. Yes $$$.

BASIC PERSONAL SUPPLIES

* Water – 2 liters per person per day for drinking. Another liter for cooking, another liter for basic sanitation. I know, it’s heavy. Plan accordingly.

* Food – non perishable. Instant meals, preferably freeze dried for long term storage and ease of preparation. Plan for no less than three days. Consider the high probability that you will be near someone else who doesn’t have food. Are you really gonna eat in front of them without offering to share?
*Favourite snacks: dried fruit, individual packages of nuts.
*cooking pot and spoon, dishes and utensils for each person
*ideally – a small portable stove to heat water
*manual can opener (even if you aren’t bringing canned food – trust me)
*dish soap and cloth

* Personal hygiene supplies: toothbrush and tooth paste, mouthwash, deodorant, comb or brush, shampoo & conditioner, chapstick, nail clippers, emery board, razor if you need it, hand soap, face cloth and hand towel, toilet paper flattened and in a plastic bag, baby wipes, and feminine supplies. Pack these items together in a ziplock plastic bag or other sealed bag.

*Laundry soap. I am not suggesting that we’ll be doing laundry, but lets face it, we may be wearing the same clothes for a few days. It’s nice to be able to spot clean as needed. I recommend Tru Earth Laundry strips. They are easy to store and transport, and fit into a sandwich bag. There is zero waste, no measuring, no mess and they dissolve in hot or cold water. And they are biodegradable. I have used these terrific laundry strips in my every day laundry for over three years, and have a year’s supply of laundry soap in a box the size of tissue box. I am NEVER going back to the way I used to do laundry.
Click here to find out more https://bit.ly/backyardcityhomestead

* 2 pairs of socks and 2 pairs of underwear for each person
*optional: a change of clothes can take a lot of room, and it doesn’t do any good if it doesn’t fit – so particular care must be given here. For these reasons I say “optional”. You simply may not have the ability to pack additional clothing – but at least you have underwear and extra socks – right?
If you have children, clothes are more important, but they’ll have to be switched out every year – perhaps more often at different stages. For my husband, its a piece of cake – throw in a pair of jeans and a t shirt. For me – not so easy; I’m a little more complicated lol.
Regardless of who its for, you’ll need to pick something that isn’t bulky; fold or roll it tightly and put in a plastic bag.
* A light jacket. Something that can be rolled up tightly and crammed into a corner hopefully. If you have to evacuate in the winter, you’ll likely be grabbing your winter coat, footwear, hat, scarf and mitts on your way out – especially if you’re also grabbing your 72 hour kit. But in other seasons it best to have a jacket or hoodie packed into your backpack.
* A light fleece blanket. Don’t underestimate the value of something warm and soft. It does more than take the chill off, its comforting. Fleece blankets can be rolled tightly, packed into a plastic bag and if necessary strapped onto the outside of your backpack.

Additional Emergency Supplies – consider adding based on your individual needs:
*Prescription and non prescription (pain relievers, anti-diarrhea, antacids) medications. An emergency can make it difficult to refill prescription or to find an open pharmacy. *Prescription eyeglasses and contact lens solution
*way to boil water and a small pot
*Infant formula, bottles, diapers, wipes and diaper rash cream
*Pet food and extra water for your pet – see below
*RED FILE: Important family documents such as copies of insurance policies, identification, bank info saved electronically or in a waterproof container
*warm blanket for each person
*change of clothing appropriate for your climate and sturdy shoes
*Feminine supplies and personal hygiene items
*books, games, puzzles to spend the time + activities for children (even if you don’t have children – there WILL be children)
*small pocket calendar (don’t say you’ve got one on your phone)

PETS

Knowing how to keep your pets safe and comfortable during and after an emergency is part of being a responsible pet owner.
My cousin has two golden labs who are important members of her family.
She surprised me one day by telling me she had 72 hour bags for each of them – which I thought was brilliant!

Having a plan for your pets can reduce the stress for both them and you during an emergency. Where will you go? How will you transport them? Is your destination pet friendly? Are your pets friendly with other people and/or other pets?
What kinds of things will you bring for them?
What stressors trigger your pet? and what calms him down?
Having a go-bag ready for your pet ready to grab on the way out will save you a lot of potential agony.

SANDIE ZOBELL’s Dog Pack:
in small backpack
individual small bags of dog food (about a cup of food in each)
jug of water
spare collars (put additional ID tags on them)
spare leashes
poop bags
bowl (collapsible bowls take up less room and are water proof)
treats
towel, brush/comb – depending on the type of pet
handy wipes or hand sanitizer
toy or ball

Sandie has a 5 gallon pail with a gamma lid (screw top) so that it won’t pop off. It is always by back door and always has food in it. If the top portion is empty then you can stash the go-bags in it if you’re going to be in a vehicle.
Original papers for her dogs are in her ‘red book’. Copies are in the go-bags.
Dogs are micro chipped in case they get separated.

Here is an excellent emergency checklist to print off for pet owners.

Personal – Personal Stuff

These are the things that are very specific to your comfort. The things that you know you’ll be unhappy without. Maybe its your face cream, or a type of soap, or a little bit of make up, or something you use in your hair, or something else that another might not find particular value in, but YOU do.

Don’t underestimate the psychological value of ‘comfort’, especially when your life has been turned upside down. If you feel that you need that little bit of make up to help you feel good about things – then you don’t owe anyone an apology or an explanation. Plan it in.
In the same way, allow your family members the same favour. Scriptures, a favourite paperback book, a favourite toy, a favourite game, a favourite . . . (fill in the blank). Obviously it has to fit into your backpack, so that’s your firm criteria. But don’t deny something you may at first convince yourself is frivolous, it may make all the difference to your (or their) state of mind. If you ever get to a situation that you actually have to grab your bag and leave your house, you’ve got enough to worry about, and enough to be scared of, and not feel comfortable with – you don’t need to have created some of that yourself by neglecting things you consider important. Cut yourself a break and give yourself a little bit of grace.

That’s just my way of looking at it, you can do whatever you want with it. No one has a right to judge what you decide is important.

I’d love to hear your thoughts on this list.
What would you add?
What would you not bother with?

Warmly,

Cindy Suelzle

resources:
basics list pdf to print off if desired. Copy the link below and paste it into a new tab file:///C:/Users/danan/Documents/72%20hour%20kit%20suggested%20list%20from%20Backyard%20City%20Homestead.pdf

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the Prairie Crocus – symbol of persistence

One of the first flowers I have a memory of feeling something special for is the simple, unassuming – prairie crocus.

I grew up on a military base in northern Alberta. Our house backed onto a field with woods bordering it, so as children we spent a lotta time playing in those woods, especially in the summer. We had a spattering of wild blueberries, even wild strawberries and raspberries, and we had wild flowers: roses, tiger lilies, crocuses and all sorts of other native plants that I didn’t know the name of. When I got older and a little more interested in native plants, I could identify yarrow, kinnikinnick, labrador tea, hyssop and a few others in ‘my’ woods where I would often waunder looking for plants I could call by name. But I have some big regrets related to those tiger lilies and crocuses. When I was a child I’d go out looking for flowers to pick for the purpose of putting in a cup of water on our table. I fear I was part of their near elimination in those wild areas near our home. I still love flowers, but I grow the ones I put on my table these days, rather than forage for them. I wish I knew then what I know now – enjoy them, but leave them where they are.

The wild crocus is not the most beautiful flower, nothing ostentatious or pretentious about her. She’s happy simply being herself, doing what she was designed to do – which apparently was not to “impress” us with her flamboyance. But her very appearance told me that “spring was finally here”, that “hope” had returned. She encouraged me not to be fooled by a cold snap or a spring snow storm – if the crocuses were out, I could know that winter was over. I could count on it. To this day – I am buffered against those empty threats by my memory of the brave little crocuses that would poke their pretty heads out of a fresh snow. They give me the confidence to say “Give it all you got Winter! You don’t scare me! We both know your days are numbered.”

Crocuses don’t make big announcements – you can look closely in all the same areas you saw them last year for some sign that they’re there, and then suddenly, before your very eyes, THREE OF THEM! Like girlfriends – always hanging out in clusters. One day there is nothing, and seemingly over night they’re in full bloom! Humble and yet stalwart. Warm and friendly, yet tough as a Canadian winter. Crocuses in snow and cold are resilient, they are the poster child for “persistence”; the foliage is cold-durable and can persist under a thick blanket of spring snow. Even if some dumb little kid picks they’re brand new blossoms – don’t despair, they’ll come back next spring. They’re forgiving that way, and – persistent. I’m sure there’s a life lesson for me in there somewhere.

They’ve become quite the symbol for me: persistent, trust-worthy, patient, long suffering. They’re not quitters. Extreme cold can damage crocus blossoms that are already open but will not affect the bulb or future flowers. Another life lesson: “Your past doesn’t determine your future.” When dahlias cry and give up, crocuses come back next year – bringing friends with them.

The crocuses we grow in our gardens now are not the native prairie crocuses I grew up with. The ones we buy are imported and from the iris family, they can be planted in full sun or partial shade. I don’t wish to sound disparaging about them; just because they aren’t purists doesn’t mean they don’t have value. They are still the same cheerful, encouraging sports, and are still among the earliest small, spring flowers – with the same cheery message about spring. They like to hang out in clusters, and you can still count on them. They’re brighter than their country cousins, wearing the vibrant Easter-egg colours of purple, lavender, yellow, cream and white, attracting and providing an important food source for the earliest bees of spring, who are drawn to their rich, golden pollen. Often their cheery blossoms will be open while there’s still snow on the ground, and in time their bulbs1 will multiply to produce more flowers. Because they bloom and die back before most trees and shrubs have even leafed out, areas that might be shaded later in the season, are still hospitable. 2

They are winter hardy in zones 3-8, and bloom best after a cold winter (generally that means 10 weeks of freezing), which makes them perfectly suited to the area I live in. 3 They’re forgiving, but they need well drained soil (they don’t like to be soggy). Plant a few handfuls of bulbs pointy end up, about three to four inches deep (yes I know, that’s DEEP) in the fall before freeze up. Tuck them into your flower beds, around rocks or along a walkway, keeping them to the front where they’ll be seen better because they’re short. They’re very social, and will be happier planted in clumps (just like you’d find them in the wild), filling your garden with flowers when you need them most before anybody else is awake. But don’t worry, after blooming they’ll fade away and make room for late spring flowers – the perfect room mates: respectful of your space, and charitable.

Persistence is essential to happiness; I’m convinced of it. And happiness is not situational, not dependent on sunshine and roses. Crocuses live by the motto “if you can’t change your circumstances, . . . change your outlook“. 4 They always see the sun notwithstanding the snow that surrounds them today. They don’t just survive in the snow – they thrive in the snow. And they thrive when the snow goes too. They’re okay either way. Another life lesson from crocuses.

Know what got me thinking about crocuses this week? I came across a quote in a book I was reading and it jumped out at me. It spoke to my heart, about persistence. Nothing fancy and spectacular – just good old fashioned, hardy “persistence”. Profoundly simple. “Press on” it said. Just what I needed to hear. I had a visual flashback to a small cluster of crocuses, on the edge of a field, surrounded by snow. I couldn’t have been older than 10 or 11 years, but I was struck by how out of place they were. Nothing else had woken up; even the nearby trees hadn’t budded out yet, but here they were! At first I thought they’d made a mistake; the recent spring snow must have surprised them. My older friend told me they were called ‘crocuses’, and that they grew very early in the spring, sometimes even with snow still on the ground. I felt some sort of kinship with them immediately.

“Nothing in the world can take the place of persistence. Talent will not; nothing is more common that unsuccessful men with talent. Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education will not; the world is full of educated derelicts. Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent. The slogan PRESS ON has solved and always will solve the problems of the human race.” – Calvin Coolidge

Crocuses inspire me. They don’t demand instant success. They appreciate the time, effort and sacrifice that go into success and they’re willing to go the distance, but they focus on what they do best – their job – trusting in the process. You could say they’re ACTION oriented – not focused on hoped-for results that are beyond anyone’s ability to control – no matter how well we do our job. Crocuses get that. They simply focus on the job at hand, going about making the world a better place, blooming where they are. The truth is, sometimes things happen: the winter is weird or some dumb kid picks their first-day flowers – but they Press On, continuing to do the right thing – being them, making sure they’re where they’re supposed to be when we most need to see them. They’re kind of a super hero that way; a quiet, unassuming – super hero, too shy to take the lime light, just doing what they’re wired to do. Ironically, most of their job is beneath the surface not readily apparent to the rest of us, getting things ready for their chance to say “Good Morning!“.

I would like to be like the prairie crocus. In the snow – brightening up someone’s day, reassuring them that no matter what else is going on – winter has fulfilled its job, and for all intents and purposes – is over! Spring is up ahead, just around the corner

Thank you to the sweet, humble prairie crocus for this other, important life lesson.

Warmly,

Cindy Suelzle

footnotes:

  1. their ‘bulbs are actually called “corms” ↩︎
  2. Prairie Crocuses have thick, woody taproots which make them difficult to transplant from the wild (so don’t risk killing one to try it), however, they’re fairly easy to grow from seed. If you want to grow a native prairie crocus, gather some seed and do it the more sure way. You can also contact your local chapter of ALBERTA NATIVE PLANTS SOCIETY, they probably have seeds to sell. Or just buy the non-native seedlings from your local greenhouse. ↩︎
  3. if you don’t know what ZONE you’re in, click this link. To provide some context, Edmonton is in its own little zone – considered 3b-4a. ↩︎
  4. Michelle McCullough – MAKE IT HAPPEN BLUEPRINT, pg 73 ↩︎

Find your growing zone.

Edmonton and the surrounding areas are in a unique micro-climate that puts them in a zone (4a) almost to themselves.

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the RULE of THREE in a Financial Freeze: Shelter

WHAT IF?

Playing the game of “What if?” can start to seem pretty real when the scenarios play out in the daily news. Here’s our current scenario – Financial Freeze: an economic downturn that hits hard, causing widespread unemployment and increased financial strain, especially with winter heating bills creeping up.

So – let’s talk about the potential of a financial down turn – the likes of what we saw in Alberta in the mid 1980’s. That’s still pretty fresh in my mind because that was when we lost our house. Actually, to be more precise – we didn’t lose it like so many others did at the time. We sold it in the 11th hour, for barely more than than what we owed on it – which was considerably more than what we paid for it six years prior. We owed more on it than we paid in 1979, because nearly a year after Dan was laid off from his job, and after a plan to go into business with our brother in law didn’t work out, with Dan looking for work and taking every side job he could find to bring in cash – we finally couldn’t make the mortgage payments anymore. So we didn’t. Interest multiplied, and what we owed added up.

We hadn’t seen this coming; a year before, it seemed Dan’s job was secure and he enjoyed it. Life was comfortable. We had three wonderful kids, had been fixing up our home as we could afford it, and were finding our way in the world. I picked up a few side jobs to bring additional money in; things were tight, but alright. And then suddenly, nothing looked the same; it was complicated and uncertain. We didn’t have much, or (thankfully), owe much at the time so the stress was mostly from not knowing what to do. At length we decided Dan needed to go back to school, which meant leaving our little house in Calmar and moving back into the city – temporarily we hoped. We put the house up for sale, and made plans to move as soon as possible. Dan got a part time job driving for Edmonton Transit that would work well around his class schedule at NAIT, we applied for subsidized housing in the city. We desperately didn’t want the complications involved with losing the house to the bank, and prayed earnestly for a buyer as we moved ahead with our plans. We did our best to live the gospel – being active in our church, faithful that God was in the details and trying to do all we could to meet our financial obligations. It was a trial – the biggest we’d had up to that point, and though we felt we were being tested, we never felt abandoned.

Two weeks before our scheduled move, a buyer came forward – making an offer slightly more than what we currently owed. The interest we had been paying on our mortgage was 10,5% A good rate at the time, almost half of what Dan’s dad locked into for five years. Not surprisingly he lost his house before those five years were up. By the time all the details were settled and additional fees were taken care of, we walked away with $42 more than what we paid the bank. We considered that no small miracle, and basked in the goodness of God for months afterward (and to this day) as we reflected on how much worse it could have been. We did our best to DO OUR BEST, and we knew that God knew it. He is our loving Heavenly Father, and He knew the desires of our hearts. He told us that “I the Lord am bound when ye do what I say; but when ye do not what I say, ye have no promise.” [D&C 82:10] We trusted Him. It seemed that while we went through those two years leading up to our leaving Calmar we’d been protected from being able to see the bigger picture. We’d been so involved in the micro picture of day-to-day life without employment and getting through one week at a time, that we didn’t have time to be scared, and to truly FEEL the ramifications of how life defining this time was to become for us. It became a life lesson that altered many things we did from that time forward. It was a tender mercy to us that we didn’t know the end from the beginning, or the fine print in-between – so we simply walked by faith.

Flash forward to this week February 5-11, 2024 – in the Preparedness Group I am part of “We’re All in This Together“, we are living with the hypothetical, but very plausible challenge of a Financial Freeze – a veritable “storm of economic struggle causing widespread unemployment and increased financial strain.” Huh. Imagine that.

We moved into Edmonton April 1, 1985. 1712 17 avenue, a townhouse in a subsidized small housing complex across the street from the elementary school our two older children would attend. Dan started working for ETS a few weeks before. We planted a vegetable garden in Dan’s mom’s backyard – within walking distance. Dan started school in September, our fourth baby (another son) was born in October. I’m not going to say things were easy (they weren’t) – but they were comfortable. We did our best to do our best. We made friends, we worked hard, we paid our tithing, our bills and avoided debt. We enjoyed good health, we obeyed the sabbath – there were times Dan had to work on Sundays, but he never did school work on Sundays. We put what little money we could manage away. In our second year, Dan had to let his job go and we took out a student loan. He started applying for jobs in January 1987 – hoping to walk out of class and into a job at the end of the term. It didn’t happen that way. It took till the end of the summer before he found employment in his chosen field. Immediately, we began looking for a house to buy. During the time we struggled with our loss, and re-entry into the work force, many other Albertans were doing the same thing. Many had walked away from their houses – letting them go because they simply couldn’t make the payments anymore. Using the money we saved to make the necessary small down payment, we moved into a small affordable house that sold for considerably less than the sellers had paid for it, but they were moving on to another house, and needed the sale. Generally with real estate, if you sell low you buy low, if you sell high, you buy high. They sold low, and we benefitted. We moved in on the Halloween weekend of that year; the weather was in our favour – staying mild till we were completely moved in. Funny how you remember stupid little details like that. We were very grateful and received plenty of help from ward members in the move. It was a happy day to be in our own home again.

📌 Reviewing the Rule of Three – the big one in this scenario for me is definitely SHELTER.
In our society, it is too easy to take some things for granted – like shelter. And yet, a conservative estimate of people without homes in Edmonton is currently well over 3000 – according to an article in the Edmonton Journal January 12, 2024. In a winter city! It is difficult to try to imagine what that might FEEL like, unless one truly has experienced it. I am so grateful not to have experienced it.

Right now Alberta is again going through a “storm of economic challenge causing widespread unemployment and increased financial strain“, and again people are struggling with housing. It seems the more things change, the more things stay the same. Some very dear friends who were renting a house in Edmonton, were recently given the unexpected news that due to his mortgage coming due, and the increased rate, their landlord had decided to sell the house they were living in. Suddenly they were scouring the market looking for anything affordable. Quite literally, in the few weeks they had – they could find nothing to accommodate them at a price they could afford. My friend told me “In all the efforts of trying to be prepared for an emergency, we hadn’t considered being houseless.” It was a sobering reality for me to listen to. Fortunately for them, a relative had an older small house empty, in a small town seven hours away. They packed up their belongings, left their jobs and their local family members and moved into it, to try to formulate a plan of what to do next. What. to. do. next?

This scenario is REAL for a lot of people. Without jobs in a very small town – with zero employment potential, how long can one continue to pay rent? – even if it is lower than in the city? And in the city with inadequate employment at best, how does one pay rent?

I’m not pretending to have any answers – the problem of affordable housing in our province (and country) is dismal, and we as a people need to start considering alternative ways to adjust. One such way may be multi generational family homes. Its a departure from what our society has become accustomed to in the last fifty or more years, but we see examples of three generation living situations around us all the time, mostly among newcomers to Canada. Perhaps we can learn some lessons from them. Perhaps we may need to.

For nearly eight years, my elderly mother has lived in our home, and yes there have been plenty of adjustments – on all parts. But all in all, it has been a good thing and we’re happy to be able to provide a safe home for her, for as long as that is possible.

In the year 2000, we owned a bookstore. We had just recently – after four years without a wage, putting every dime back into it and in paying off a bank loan – turned a corner and I began drawing a small wage from it. One year before then, we bought a house that we hoped we’d stay in till we died. With no expectation that it was coming – Dan got laid off. His position was dissolved and we suddenly found ourselves on strangely familiar ground. We truly believed he would eventually retire from that job. It took a few days to process it enough to be able to call our family together and tell them our news. Our oldest son was 22, our youngest was 10.

We had recently taken measures to follow prophetic counsel to “get out of debt”. We worked to pay off remaining credit cards and any other obligations we had. We had adjusted our spending to stay within our means, promising each other above all – that we would avoid future debt. I recall it had been important to us at the time, and we had felt an urgency to do so. Imagine our relief (and gratitude) that we had obeyed that counsel, as here we sat in the living room telling much bigger our kids what was going on.

Some of them asked fair questions: What does this mean? What is it going to look like?

We were happy to say “Except for this house, we owe no money. We have no credit card debt. If we did, we would be in SERIOUS trouble. If we’re careful, we should be able to ride this out in a way that won’t feel much different from our current day to day living, for as long as it takes Dad to find a job again.” I cannot verbalize how reassuring that was to be able to say that to our children. I cannot tell you how relieved we were to have taken the steps necessary to be able to say them. “The most important thing in our life at this time” we told them, “is THIS HOUSE! We cannot. lose. this house. Every effort will be dedicated to keeping this house safe.”

We knew first hand what it was like to lose a house, and we were determined to not go through that twice. It was clear to us, if we did lose the house – we would likely never recover from it. That was October. It’s a full time job looking for a full time job, and it went on a lot longer than we expected it to. Who knew? I recall saying aloud to whoever was near enough to hear – several time during those months “Who could have guessed this would go on as long as it has? There is no doubt in my mind, that if we had had credit card debt, we would have lost this house.”

The years that followed were difficult years – mostly emotionally. Dan was older and getting back into his profession proved harder than we expected. He had ‘specialized’ for too long, and his field of expertise was too specific, not currently marketable. It became evident that his career as he knew it, was over; he began looking elsewhere and finally took a temporary retail job to re-enter the workforce. The pay was inadequate, but our resources were running low and any money was money. In retrospect, it was the most difficult trial of our life together up till that point, and repercussions went on for years. We continued to be grateful for prophetic counsel to get out of debt. We were grateful for our commitment to follow that counsel – which ultimately saved us much unnecessary grief. It was hard enough without the extra pain that could have accompanied consumer debt. We were grateful for the promises that come with paying tithing. We learned empathy in a way that we never could have learned any other way. We felt we had been resourceful, but we learned to be more resourceful. Our kids – most of them being old enough to remember – came out of that time with a healthy respect for the dangers of credit card debt.

Truth is – as hard as those years were, I am glad for them, and would gladly re-do them for the lessons we learned, particularly for the lessons our kids learned – life lessons that they were able to learn from an arm’s length. Close enough, but not too close. I used to tell them “Don’t remake our mistakes. Make your own. Otherwise, you’re wasting them, and what a waste of time that would be.” If we would all follow the wise counsel of prophets, and learn from the experience of others, we might save ourselves grief that doesn’t need to be.

With the Rule of 3 in mind, specifically SHELTER –
consider the circumstances of the many people without houses right now.  In any season that’s a tragedy, but in winter in a city like ours its unthinkable. There are things we can do to ease the burdens of others; agencies we can serve with and donate to.
Ask yourself:
“Have I done any good in the world today? Have I helped anyone in need?
Have I cheered up the sad? and made someone feel glad?
If not, I have failed indeed.
Has anyone’s burden been lighter today because I was willing to share?
Have the sick and the weary been helped on their way?
When they needed my helped was I there?”
– Will L. Thompson

What is your plan to prepare yourself against any possibility of losing SHELTER for your family?

I’d love to hear your thoughts.

Warmly,

Cindy Suelzle

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Community CONNECTIONS – being a good neighbour in a water shortage

This week – coincidentally and conveniently, to coincide with a scenario in a Preparedness Group I’m part of – Edmonton and area cooperated by having a minor emergency that required citizens to step up and voluntarily reduce their normal water usage. The scenario we are living with at the time of this writing is WATER shortage. And as luck would have it, as we’re wrapping it up, a major pump in the water treatment plant shut down. While it is being repaired water availability to over a million homes and business became a worry. Fortunately, people responded well and there seemed to be an over all spirit of cooperation. Also fortunately, the problem is expected to be resolved in about a week – about as long as people’s patience could reasonably be expected to last.

To my knowledge, the situation never developed into an emergency or crises, but sometimes the transition can be over a very fine line, and the general public probably would never know how close we may have come to that. While it’s true that people often come together in an emergency, it is also true that patience can be stretched as time goes on, and good natures become less so, as inconveniences turn into real struggles. The line between selfless and selfish becomes blurred and everyone justifies their own focus on self.

I’m glad we didn’t go there – but on the other hand, as I write this, the situation hasn’t been resolved so we’re still yet to see how it ends.

This time of year in Edmonton, we generally have quite a bit of snow on the ground, and snow can be melted to provide water. But currently we have very little snow in our city, even our own backyard has hardly any snow after many days of melting temperatures. Things we might have counted on in the past, let us down this winter.

Having water storage is absolutely critical, and all must take this seriously. If our only source of drinkable or useable water comes from our taps, we can be in serious trouble with zero notice. Depending on our living situation – farms, acreages, rural, urban, single family dwellings, multi family complexes, apartments . . . we can all store something. Even if we’re only talking about an extra case of bottled water, a few extra cooler bottles, or a few jugs of water in the back of a closet, . . . everyone can and should do SOMETHING to store water.

When I was young I couldn’t even imagine a need for conserving water. It seemed like ‘air’ to me – constantly available, and I believed it should be FREE – for everyone. My father had a different outlook. He well remembered hauling water into the house as a young man to use for drinking, cooking, bathing, cleaning and laundry. I recall my gramma saying she used to feel bad for the boys especially on laundry day and she was very conscious to never waste a drop because they worked so hard to bring her the water. They pumped their water from a well in their backyard. Even as an adult living on a military base where we didn’t pay for water and it was in constant supply, he couldn’t break the habit of conservative water use. I love this quote from Benjamin Franklin. 300 years later, we’re still THAT close – whether we realize it or not . . . “When the well’s dry, we know the worth of water.”

Not wasting water is now a social responsibility. We recognize that clean water is not an inexhaustible resource, and it is a privilege that few in this world actually enjoy. In most cases, the water we rely on – especially in urban areas, is 100% dependent on systems you and I cannot control. Depending on someone else to fix our lack of planning problem is shortsighted and irresponsible, but at the same time we must be aware of those around us who are more vulnerable.

I don’t pretend to have the answers – but there should be some degree of responsibility we feel to help our neighbours.
We can start by getting to know them. Putting faces to names and sharing experiences with people in our neighbourhoods, humanizes them to us, and us to them. We naturally feel more desire to help those we know and recognize, than those we do not. Part of feeling part of a neighbourhood is that neighbours help neighbours.

I am completely against being neighbour natzis, and I hated the reports we heard during Covid about neighbours finking on neighbours and being afraid of neighbours. There is however, a certain degree of public accountability that can be positive when we’re all in this boat together. We’re a little less likely to water our lawns or wash our vehicles when we’re on a water advisory – because doing so would be visible, and we can expect some disapproval from our neighbours for doing so. Peer pressure isn’t always a bad thing – just sayin’ . . . .

We have EQUAL responsibility to use water resources wisely, and equal accountability for doing so. We have equal rights, and should have equal privileges.

Share Your Ideas:

Comment Below: Share your thoughts about how having strong community connections might help us with a prolonged water shortage.
Inspire Others:  Share ways you can make your neighbourhood a better place for you living in it?
Charity:  How can we help a neighbour when faced with a water shortage that affects us all?
Remember: preparedness can be a community effort! 🌟 By collaborating and sharing knowledge, we enhance our collective resilience.

· Now is the time to make a plan and extend the hand of friendship to our neighbours.
· Start with those on either side of us. If we don’t know their names yet – LEARN their names, and two more facts about them.
· Then reach out to those on the other side of each of them, and those across from us. LEARN their names and two facts about them. Make it a game to accomplish these goals, and then continue on with those on the other side of them, and so on.

Warmly,

Cindy Suelzle

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Community CONNECTIONS – good neighbours are an important resource

I think we might agree that Sesame Street was a great neighbourhood to live in; even Oscar was endearing.  But a good neighbourhood doesn’t have to be fictional.  A neighbourhood is made of real people like you and me.  And yes, each one may even have an Oscar, and its even possible he or she may not want to ‘partake’ of whatever you’re offering.  That’s okay.  He can do him, but that doesn’t mean others can’t enjoy the spirit of ‘community and neighbourliness with or without him. 

Sometimes people really do come together in an emergency or crises, but the better time to start building those relationships is long before – simply by BEING a good neighbour.  How do you do that? 

Here are 8 keys to being a good neighbour

1. Look UP. 
It’s not that hard – simply look up, open your eyes and notice things.  See people coming and going.  Say hello or at least give a wave.  You’re more likely to notice little details with your eyes open and a caring heart.  Perhaps someone could use a wave, or a smile, or a hand, or maybe something more.  Chat a bit in the driveway from time to time.  Chat in the front yard.  Chat with the neighbour down the street when you’re walking the dog. 

2. Smile.
It cannot be overstated – a smile really will make someone’s day better, and yours too. 

3.  Be kind.
Something so simple can really make all the difference.

4. Lend a hand.  Could they use a hand bringing some groceries to the door?  Would it really put you out if you pitched in?  What about offering to mow their lawn when they go away? 
What about bringing over a quart of homemade soup when you hear someone’s not feeling well?  A loaf of fresh bread?  When you’re shoveling your sidewalk, how difficult would it be to simply go a little further and shovel your neighbour’s.   

5. Be tolerant.  Not everyone’s gonna do things that way you do.  Your neighbour may have young kids when you don’t, that may mean more noise than you make.  Cool your jets, they won’t stay kids forever.  Your patience with bikes all over the front yard and kids shooting baskets in your driveway will go a long way.  Kids grow up, and those days will end.  It’s a lot easier for your neighbours to be tolerant of you and yours if you extend the same courtesy.  Learn to laugh it off – that’s where funny memories are born. 

6. Invite
Invite them over to sit around a backyard fire.  Invite them for dinner.  Invite them to go for a walk. Host a neighbourhood party. 

7. Work together.

Many years ago Dan decided it would be a helpful thing to have a snow blower, we live in a crescent and the snow plows rarely come into crescents.  But the half dozen times we might use it in a year hardly seemed worth the price.  But IF we could share that cost with others . . . he spoke with some neighbours, and four of us bought one together – with a few simple ground rules.  Still using it.  Still a good experience. 

The border between our front lawn and our neighbours front lawn is vague – so for nearly the whole time we’ve lived here, whoever mows the lawn – mows both.  Such a simple service – takes an extra five minutes, and both of us always have a mowed front lawn. When I do for walks and see front lawns with an obvious mowed border, I am always surprised. Such a small effort to make both yards look nicer and extend that hand of friendship and service.

8. Keep your house and yard neat and tidy.  No one wants to live beside or across from a slob.  It is respectful to your neighbours to take care of your property.  When we first moved back to the city many years ago, for Dan to go back to school – we lived in subsidized housing. As soon as the snow melted, we dug our small area of dirt in a sunny spot and planted flowers, some herbs and even a few tomatoes. We lived there for three summers and though we were the only ones that first summer to do so, I noticed that the following summer some of our neighbours planted flowers, and the next year even more did.

Good neighbourhoods don’t just ‘happen’

My husband’s parents lived in a little house in a nice little neighbourhood.  They pretty much stuck to themselves, didn’t much care to get to know their neighbours.   They weren’t rude, they kept their yard tidy.  But they never reached out.  They never offered to lend a hand.  They just did what they did and minded their own business.  In time they got older and needed some help.  We drove an hour one way to mow their lawn when they couldn’t, to rototill their garden, and to do all sorts of little things that we were happy to help them with, but were too far away to be help on the day to day.  I marveled that there wasn’t a single nearby friend, church member, or neighbour that we maybe could have asked for a hand once in a while.   But their wasn’t.  After almost 40 years of living in and around that same general area, there wasn’t anyone they felt comfortable asking a favour of.  Why?  Because they weren’t really “good neighbours” themselves.  

Good neighbourhoods just don’t happen on their own.  They’re not magic like that.
Being a good neighbour is the building block of a good and friendly neighbourhood.  That doesn’t mean we have to all be the same, just be nice. 
Good neighbours watch out for each other. 
Good neighbours keep an eye on each other’s property when they’re away.
Good neighbours care about each other.
When emergencies happen, good neighbours pitch in and help each other through it, and THEREIN LIES THE KEY TO THIS CONVERSATION. 

You cannot live in a ‘good’ neighbourhood if you’re not a good neighbour.  It doesn’t work that way.  And you may think you don’t need your neighbours – until you fall on your icy sidewalk, or someone breaks into your house, or your spouse has a heart attack, or your house is on fire,
 . . . . or when any number of other reasonable and perfectly normal scenarios happen. 

Being a good neighbour is important for everyone because it makes good neighbourhoods. 
It means safety, a sense of belonging, a helping hand, purpose, charity, empathy and friendship.  It takes TIME, investment, kindness, charity, empathy and friendship.    

Share Your Ideas:

I’d love to hear your thoughts about how having strong community connections helps us, and ways you might make neighbourhood a better place. After all, WE’RE ALL IN THIS TOGETHER.

Now is the time to extend the hand of friendship to our neighbours – and yes, I even mean the ‘Oscar’ on your street. We can start with those who live on either side of us. If we don’t know their names yet, LEARN their names and two facts about them. Then reach out to those on the other side of each of them, and those across from us. Learn THEIR names and two facts about them. Make it a game to accomplish these goals, and then continue on with those on the other side of them, and so on.

Warmly,

Cindy Suelzle

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10 things to know, DO and NOT DO when buying emergency food

Years ago, I bought this Emergency Food bucket at Costco in Utah. It says it has 200 adult servings – pretty impressive. I think I paid almost $200 (cdn) for it. I tried one of the meals as soon as we got it, and I recall thinking it was ‘okay’ and in a real emergency if it was all we had, we’d probably be glad to have it. I liked the claim of a 20 year shelf life (still like that part).

To be fair, at the time there really weren’t too many alternatives on the market so its not like I had a whole lotta options and I considered myself lucky to make this find.

The label says 100% vegetarian and vitamin fortified. Each package contains 5 servings. All this appealed to me. I offered it to my son-in-law to use for backpacking trips he was taking in the mountains at the time. He took some meals once and reported that they were ‘alright’, but I noticed that he never asked to use them again. . . . huh.

So flash forward to now, I thought I’d start using some of them – as time is flying by and I did spend $200 on it after all. The first morning I tried one of the breakfast packages, oatmeal. The ingredients: oats, sugar and flavourings (natural and artificial). Instructions: add to 5 cups of boiling water and cook for one minute, stirring. This is much more water than I add to quick oats normally, so I was a little suspicious of the claim to five servings per package.

It wasn’t terrible, but it really wasn’t good either. No milk + no salt = kinda blah. I added some Thrive Instant Milk powder and a little salt and it was ‘better’, but not much. I would have preferred to have had the milk and salt already in the pkg. Gramma Great said it “wasn’t terrible”. but I’ll be glad when they’re all gone. I tried to serve it to my grandkids when the came for a sleep over a few days later, but though they are huge oatmeal fans, they disliked this profusely. Let they lose confidence in “Gramma’s oatmeal” (which they love and request every time they’re here), I promised to never make THIS kind for them again.

I tried a few different meals this week. They were all pretty yucky. I’m committed to try more meals so that I know better what I’ve got, and how to prepare it for my family. Then I’ll decide what I’ll do with what’s left. Dan says we could use it for chicken food.

From the perspective of TODAY (15 years after I bought it), I have 10 suggestions when buying long term, shelf stable emergency food:

1. CONFIDENCE

when you buy something you expect to last long term, you should really know what it’s like. You should be able to have confidence in it. That means you should sample some of those meals fairly soon after buying, so that you know what you’re dealing with. If its good, its good and its gonna stay good. If it’s yucky to start out with, its certainly not gonna get any better in 15 years.

2. STORE WHAT YOU EAT. AND EAT WHAT YOU STORE.

Use the food from time to time so that you’re aware of how it’s ’aging’. Yes, it’s got a long shelf life, but time has a way of passing before you know it. And I know it’s tempting to go with a “One and Done” mentality for food storage, and then forget about it. But I have seen the result of that way of thinking. . . food that you thought you could count on – only to find out too late that it was poor quality.

What if you really had needed it? It let you down. Simply because you didn’t really know what you had. You trusted something too much, something that had not earned your trust.

In the end, you’ll waste a lot of money if you don’t STORE WHAT YOU EAT, AND EAT WHAT YOU STORE.

Keeping it rotated (by using it) keeps it good, and eliminates the potential of waste if it expires.

3. USE IT

‘Protecting’ your food till the end of the world or when the zombies come, may seem like a good idea at first, but eventually it will expire. Even 20 years comes to an end one day – and then what?

If you have something similar to what I describe in this post in YOUR food storage – that you bought a loooong time ago – USE it. Now would be a good time to know whether you like it or not. Finding that out later when you need it is a terrible ‘failure to plan’.

Don’t let it go to waste. The money you spent then, was real money, and if the food expires, you’ve wasted those dollars $$$!

4. CHECK REVIEWS

Seek out ‘real’ reviews from ‘real’ people and better yet, recommendations from like-minded friends. If you find a good line of shelf stable food that you’ve tried and like – tell others. If an emergency supply of quick easy to prepare meals is important to you, and you find a line that you really like, tell others. Learning from each other saves a lotta time and effort for everyone. Personal recommendations from a friend COUNTS.

5. SALT?

The sodium in that package of oatmeal was ‘0’ (zero). Impressive until you tasted it. There’s a reason we use salt. Just sayin’ . . .

6. GOOD FOR YOU?

I really don’t like artificial ingredients. Of any kind: flavours, colours, anti-caking agents, preservatives, etc . . . That’s important to me, even in something I expect to last a long time; maybe ESPECIALLY in something I expect to last a long time.

It’s gotta be “good-for-you”, or what’s the point? In this regard, the food in that bucket is profoundly disappointing.

7. TASTE?

After trying the few meals I tried, I have to say I really dislike the artificial after-taste. Its gotta taste good, or again – what’s the point? Who want’s to eat it if it tastes bad? I seriously couldn’t bring myself to eat a bowl of the bowl of the soup I made last night.

8. TRIAL AND ERROR

When I first bought that bucket, I’ve since found a brand I like MUCH better – for taste and quality, but I did the best I knew at the time, so I don’t regret my choice to purchase the original one. You can’t win them all. I just would never do it again – with what I now know. And I’d be a little more careful to read the label better. I trusted the place I bought it, and sadly, I put too much trust in the labeling – it said things I like to read. But I didn’t take the time to look at the ingredients.

I made mistakes, and learned from them.

9. AVOID PANIC BUYING

To be fair – like I said at the start, there were very few options for emergency food at the time I invested in this one. I may have “panic purchased” for that reason, scarcity.

That’s no longer the case. There are options now. I recommend taking your time. Check out reviews. Ask for opinions. I still think emergency meals are important to have – but ask around first. Read reviews.

10. PAY ATTENTION TO THE DETAILS

Take the details seriously if you don’t want to waste money.
Preparedness is not a vacation; it’s a journey and an investment – so its worth investigating, reading and asking around. If all you’re concerned about is shelf life, then no worries – there are lots of things that will last a long time. But if you want it to be nutritious, read the labels. If you want it to be delicious, read the reviews. And don’t just put it away “in case of”.

My conclusion –
Don’t be afraid to try things – how else will we learn. Though I didn’t like anything about the package I bought 15+ years ago, I don’t regret buying it. It was important to me to invest in emergency planning and I did the best I could have at the time. I learned – and that made the purchase worth it (although I hate wasting money). However, if I can reduce my mistakes by learning from other people’s mistakes – all the better. Which is why I am writing this – so that you don’t have to make the same mistakes.

I am happy to see better options available now, and the BEST in my opinion – came on the market just a few years ago. Thrive Life Premium Meals – 12 individual meals available singly or in 5 assorted packages. What makes them different?

Well, for starters –
I have CONFIDENCE in the company as I’ve tried everything else they produce. They are INSTANT meals, meaning just add water, and ready in 10 minutes – much more suited to emergencies, and also suited to meal prep on those crazy busy days when you still have to feed the family. They are completely freeze dried (prepared as meals from nutritious ingredients, then freeze dried to preserve goodness and taste). I was fortunate enough to be able to taste a few before I invested in them, so I knew they tasted good, and now I can read reviews about them.
Yes, I STORE them for long term, but I still USE them at home when we need a quick meal, for camping trips, in the trailer, at the cabin, I even take them when I travel sometimes – because they’re so easy to prepare. In this way I keep them rotated and replenished.

*I like that they have a 20 year shelf life. *I like that they taste good. *I like that the ingredients are wholesome and nutritious. *I like the variety. *I like that there are many reviews – and more added constantly. *I like that they don’t require cooking, and that they can be refreshed in a bowl or their original package. *I like that each package has THREE servings, honest-to-goodness-hearty-real servings. *I like that they are available in an Emergency bucket very similar to the one I bought all those years ago – suitable to grab and go, or easy to send home with a College student or to take camping or whatever. *I like that I can order them to arrive right at my door. *I like that I can get FREE shipping (yes, even into Canada). Hey, I just plain LIKE them! And I highly recommend them.

Live and learn I guess.

Warmly,

Cindy Suelzle

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Rule of THREE

When considering any emergency, I find it helpful to consider the RULE OF THREE to prioritize my means and my energies. 
*We can live up to 3 minutes without air.
*In extreme weather, we’ll be in trouble within 3 hours without shelter.
*We can go up to 3 days without water.
*Our bodies will start shutting down long before 3 weeks without food.
Variables include age, weight, health, activity level, environmental conditions and type of food of course. 

So with these priorities in mind – whether considering emergency scenarios – especially without POWER or fresh running WATER (both of which could go on several days), do you have plan in place? . . . .
I live in Edmonton, Alberta and in the winter we can experience some pretty severe cold weather from time to time.  To be without power during those times can be deadly, and yet it is precisely those times that we may have problems with our furnaces. Furnaces are not going to quit in the summer when they’re not being used, they’re going to quit in the winter when they’re being used daily, especially when it’s bitter cold outside. (sigh . . . . I know right?)

And if you don’t have heat in the winter, you will soon have a water problem as well. Regardless of the time of year, our water supply is precious yet volatile, always susceptible to restriction or contamination. It is worth protecting and having a clean supply on hand.

Rule of 3

AIR
– not likely to be a problem UNLESS we need to provide an alternate source of heat, at which time improper ventilation becomes a concern.  Carbon Monoxide is produced any time you burn fuel: in vehicles, stoves, lanterns, grills, fireplaces, gas ranges and furnaces.  It is a very real, very scary thing – which can kill. 
*NEVER bring in an outdoor heat source or cooking stove. NEVER EVER.  Those are not meant for indoors. 
link to my post THE NIGHT WE NEARLY WENT TO SLEEP FOREVER
https://backyardcityhomestead.com/2018/12/13/the-night-we-nearly-went-to-sleep-forever/

SHELTER
– This should give us pause to consider the circumstances of the many people without houses right now.  Every day I hear about another death or two in the ‘tent cities’ in Edmonton. People just trying to stay warm in the most difficult situation.
But if we’re sheltering in place during an extended power outage, there are things we need to take care of.  With no heat, it will take only hours for the inside of your house to be the same temperature as the outside.  If we don’t have an alternate source (fireplace or wood stove), we’ll need to leave the house in a short amount of time.  Hopefully we’ve got a place in mind that we can go.  We do – Right? And of course dressing for the weather is imperative.

Assuming we have a wood stove, lighting it when its really cold is not so easy.  The low temperature in our chimney will force the cold air down creating a blockage – that prevents the smoke from escaping.  Time to figure out how to light the fire and have it draw properly. 
Assuming that we’ve mastered that, we may find it a good idea to have everyone sleep in the room with the heat source.  We have a Carbon Monoxide detector right? One that is battery run and fully charged.  Right?
Dressing for the weather is important IN the house too – sweaters, slippers, blankets . . .

WATER

– If we have to leave our home because of no heat, we must ensure the water is turned off and the lines are drained.  Water will freeze in only hours and burst water pipes will cause terrible destruction.  (don’t ask me how I know this)
But even if we’re sheltering in place, there may be parts of our home that are at risk of freezing.  It may be advisable to shut the water off anyway.  We have another source of water in the house – Right? 

If we only have one area that is warm, bring containers of water into that area to prevent them from freezing. 

FOOD

We have more flexibility with this than anything else.  For the short term, open up a can of pork and beans or make yourself a sandwich.  (You have a hand operated can opener – Right?)  Eat up some leftovers in the fridge – it could be lost within a day or two.

If the power outage goes on for more than a few days – your frozen food is in jeopardy.  When its bitter cold, setting it all outside is an option – but that’s a terrible job!  If the weather isn’t cold enough, we better be able to cook – or we’ll lose a lot!  But that sounds like an arduous job too, and not very practical. I strongly advise AGAINST having your freezer contain the bulk of your food storage.  Not a good idea at all, and this is exactly why.  Having said that – I too have a freezer, and I use it. But depending on it alone for your food storage is a terrible idea.

Having some Meals in a Jar (MIJ) on hand will be a life saver if we have the ability to cook a one pot meal.  They are nutritious, delicious, easy to prepare, and provide variety to meals that we’ll be glad to have.  All we need is a pot, some water and a heat source.  15-20 minutes for most meals. 

Instant freeze dried meals-in-a-pouch provide tasty and nutritious hearty meals with nothing more than added water.  Excellent resource to have in your pantry or food storage.  If you have the ability to heat the water, then all the better.

Always consider the RULE OF THREE and use it to measure every emergency when coming up with a game plan. 

Warmly,

Cindy Suelzle

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does it work? heating water on a candle

I’d heard about heating water over top of a candle for a long time, and I’d been casually curious about it, but my recent involvement with our WE’RE ALL IN THIS TOGETHER Emergency Prep group seemed like a good time to try it myself.

Not coincidentally, the scenario we were focusing on the second week of January was LOSS OF POWER. As fortune would dictated, it happened to be our coldest week of the years with temperatures dipping to -40 Celcius, and we were feeling it. Church last week even got cancelled to prevent unnecessary exposure, it was a good week to stay home.

And with us trying to keep the house reasonably warm without straining the system with our electrical needs, it seemed like a perfect time. We lit a fire in the woodstove downstairs and enjoyed the coziness of that warmth for several days, burning up quite a lotta wood. And we had a brief concern that our hot water heater might be having issues, but it had a happy ending.

So the claim I saw was exactly this (see below). I recreated it as closely as I could, but think I had more water than the original test cases used. My smallest kitchen pot is 4 cups, so 4 cups of water was my test.

You can see the start of bubbles in the bottom and steam coming from the water. That’s pretty impressive for 4 cups of water over tea lights.

It took a lot longer than I expected, a couple of hours till it reached 197 degrees. But to be fair, 197 degrees is pretty hot, hot enough to heat some soup, and maybe to even cook some eggs. If you aren’t in a hurry that is.

I’ll be using this hack again in the future – even if just to show off to the grandkids. And its nice to know if we ever run out of power, that we can have hot water with little effort.

After I took the above video, I meant to blow the candles out but forgot. When I came back in about half an hour, I was surprised to see that it had reached a slow boil. I guess what they say about a watched pot not boiling is right. They’re so shy.

I think I’ll pick up another pack of tea lights when I see them. A good thing to have sitting in the linen closet for just such a time as this.

Warmly (in a very cold week),

Cindy Suelzle

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making old look like new again

“Use it up, wear it out. Make it do, or do without.”

For most of our married life – we’ve adhered to a continuous routine of fixing up our world as we could afford it. Our agreed upon routine has been one INDOOR project a year (usually done in the winter), and one OUTDOOR project a year (usually done in the summer). There’s never been a shortage of projects, and they move up and down the priority list according to need and affordability at the time.

This year our big indoor project was to refinish our dining room table. It had been moving up the list for a long time, well worn from 24 years of heavy use. Unfortunately, the time we chose ended up being the coldest weeks of the year – so opening the windows to get some air became a sketchy thing, but we had to a couple of times! The stain smell became very strong that we opened a few windows in -40C temperatures for a few hours to get rid of the worst of it, while Gramma Great watched tv in front of the woodstove downstairs.

As soon as the Christmas decorations were put away, we cleared the table, set in all four leaves and began a job we’d been putting off for years: that of refinishing our well worn oak table. We were nervous as heck which is why we procrastinated for a decade. But we’d collected advice and courage long enough – while our table continued to collect more scratches and worn areas – letting us know it needed a major face lift. Thank goodness it was only the top that needed attention.

Step 1 – Borrowing a friend’s super-duper sander/vacuum system, Dan sanded the top. That was the only area that needed refinishing. He did it in the house – right there in the dining area. We thought we’d need to hand plastic sheeting everywhere but as I said that sander was of the ‘super-duper’ variety, and it was fabulous.

Step 2 – We took a leaf to into a paint shop, trying to match the colour with stain. The leaf had the original colour still in the facing under the top.
Step 3 – With the help and encouragement of a talented friend, Dan applied the stain. But the colour was toooooo ‘red’ for me. Argh.
Step 4 – Back to the paint store to ‘brown up’ the stain colour. They did a great job.
Step 5 – Dan applied another coat of stain but sadly, didn’t apply it evenly enough which resulted in some splotches. We tried to fix them up by applying another coat but that didn’t work. By this time we were into a week or working on it – around our regular working / living obligations. I knew I wouldn’t be happy with it. Argh again.

Step 6 – Re-sand the whole stupid thing and start over. As frustrating as that it, I have learned with many other projects over the years, sometimes that is the ONLY way – and it’s far better to concede sooner than later.
Step 7 – Re-stain. But this time we did it together. Working quickly and efficiently together, we covered the table beautifully.
Step 8 – Still, a few uneven spots. Our friend and neighbour came back to assess and advise us. Back to the paint store to buy a matching stain in a spray bottle. We lightly touched up the spots. Wow! Great stuff.

Step 9 – Applied the first coat of Varathane – with our friend. We let it dry, then I lightly buffed with fine steel wool. We applied another layer, and let it dry – then lightly buffed again with steel wool. One more coat, let it dry – then gently rubbed with a piece of brown paper to smooth out the finished job.

Step 10 – We brought out our well worn chairs and after rubbing with steel wool, I gently sprayed the seats with our matching stain. Let dry, then smoothed with the steel wool again and applied a coat of Varathane.

It was a happy day to let the whole project harden over night, then removes some leaves to clear out the kitchen area. I happily vacuumed well, handwashed the floor and tucked the chairs around.

Done. Two full weeks later! So happy we finally DID it, and now its behind us. I still have three more chairs to finish, but that’ll be a piece of cake in the next week or so.

Not looking forward to the first scratch, but I’m resigned to it happening. And I have full confidence that we’ll be able to touch up as needed with the tools and confidence that we now have at our finger tips.

Welcome 2024. One big job down!

Warmly,

Cindy & Dan Suelzle