Some of my food storage is the longer-term stuff, like if you were in CT and didn't have power for a few weeks, and then lost it again! This stuff comes in #10 cans, so opening one is a major commitment, not to be taken lightly!
One of my favorite sellers has started selling smaller cans (real metal cans) of some of the most popular ingredients. They average $5 a can, which is not a bad price to learn how to use the stuff and to have some on hand without the major commitment of buying a #10 can. I have experimented with a couple of products as a result.
First one was chopped dehydrated onions. They are great. Unlike the ones in the grocery store that cost about$5 for half an ounce, these are not as dry and rehydrate into pretty regular chopped raw onions. They saute and turn golden brown just fine. I'm sold because they also don't make you cry.
Second item was 'butter powder.' Sure, powdered butter -- or so I thought. No juke, this stuff is great but you must follow directions! After my first try I read and followed the instructions. It was butter! It even MELTED on a hot biscuit, unlike even some of the grocery-store products. I would NEVER have bought or opened a $20 dollar can of butter powder to find out thislittle fact, but could afford $5 worth of experiment. I now use both opened products in my regular cooking, or will until the cans are empty. It's nice not to have onions that are too far gone (surprise!) or butter that has taken on new flavors after sitting in the fridge a while. I'm thinking these cans may actually be more 'frugal' than I thought at first, as they may reduce the wasted regular items that sat too long on my shelf.
Saturday, November 26, 2011
Recent lessons learned
There is such a thing as being too frugal. I crossed that line recently, but was fortunate that I did not pay dearly for it. I bought a product over the internet that was a great deal for what was described. The 'cans' of product were about half the price of other similar items. $40 plus postage later, I had the items. I could have lived with the fact that the pictures on the internet made the 'cans' look a lot like #10 cans, which they were not. What I couldn't live with was that the 'cans' were cardboard sleeves. Not exactly a long-term food storage item.
Even in our low humidity, the product may have lasted a year. That did not fit my needs. I e-mailed the seller, who stood by the merchandise and provided a full refund, including the cost of return shipping. What I learned is to stick with my tried and true suppliers, be patient and wait for their sales and specials, and not go through this type of discovery to save a few bucks. I wasted a couple of hours of my time, some gas for the truck, and didn't save a nickel -- which was not what I planned.
Even in our low humidity, the product may have lasted a year. That did not fit my needs. I e-mailed the seller, who stood by the merchandise and provided a full refund, including the cost of return shipping. What I learned is to stick with my tried and true suppliers, be patient and wait for their sales and specials, and not go through this type of discovery to save a few bucks. I wasted a couple of hours of my time, some gas for the truck, and didn't save a nickel -- which was not what I planned.
Saturday, September 10, 2011
What have I done to prepare this YEAR?
Yup, National Preparedness Month reminds us to get with or stay with a program that will allow us to be somewhat self-sufficient while waiting for FEMA or other assistance in the event of a natural or man-caused disaster.
If you are new to home or family preparedness, FEMA and your state or local preparedness websites provide the basic information for getting started. My pages also have a guide to identifying priorities, setting goals and starting your process without breaking the bank.
So what did I do? First, I learned from my mistakes. We had two small but meaningful emergencies in my part of the world. One was a record-breaking cold-snap. We live in a community whose natural-gas was shut off to keep other lines pressurized so that other commmunites could have gas. We are near of the 'ends of the lines' so probably would not have had ehough pressure to heat anyway. Temps were below freezing for more than 36 consecutive hours, which is very rare in the desert southwest. Oops. Not prepared to heat my house without gas. Oops, during the process I realized I needed the electric too -- which we had but it was a good realization that without both, no heat. With no woodstove or fireplace, we bought a Buddy indoor portable propane heater. Not the best solution as it will heat about 2 of our rooms, but it will help keep the pipes from bursting next time and it was under $100 including a few small canisters of propane.
Second emergency was a world-class forest fire. Unlike most of us locals ever imagined, it jumped the highway and burned down in-town homes. We were briefly under evacuation order, but the Feds got the fire under control before we finished packing the car. OK, needed a new plan for that contingency!
We also paid off all our credit card debt! There wasn't much left, but it still felt good. That leaves us with just the mortgage. Then we can start saving for a new or newer vehicle.
I rotated my supplies (oops, some peanut butter with over due 'best by' dates). I bought a telephone that works without being plugged in to the 110 outlet. I packed an emergency kit in my car trunk (during the fire!) -- especially a pair of walking shoes and water jug to get home from work if there is a problem on the roads. I also had my office pay for enough jugs of water for each employee to have 72 hours of drinking water. I also sent an e-mail suggesting that each of us keep several meals of non-perishable food (mouse-proof, of course) in our desks, just in case.
Those are my highlights.
How about you?
If you are new to home or family preparedness, FEMA and your state or local preparedness websites provide the basic information for getting started. My pages also have a guide to identifying priorities, setting goals and starting your process without breaking the bank.
So what did I do? First, I learned from my mistakes. We had two small but meaningful emergencies in my part of the world. One was a record-breaking cold-snap. We live in a community whose natural-gas was shut off to keep other lines pressurized so that other commmunites could have gas. We are near of the 'ends of the lines' so probably would not have had ehough pressure to heat anyway. Temps were below freezing for more than 36 consecutive hours, which is very rare in the desert southwest. Oops. Not prepared to heat my house without gas. Oops, during the process I realized I needed the electric too -- which we had but it was a good realization that without both, no heat. With no woodstove or fireplace, we bought a Buddy indoor portable propane heater. Not the best solution as it will heat about 2 of our rooms, but it will help keep the pipes from bursting next time and it was under $100 including a few small canisters of propane.
Second emergency was a world-class forest fire. Unlike most of us locals ever imagined, it jumped the highway and burned down in-town homes. We were briefly under evacuation order, but the Feds got the fire under control before we finished packing the car. OK, needed a new plan for that contingency!
We also paid off all our credit card debt! There wasn't much left, but it still felt good. That leaves us with just the mortgage. Then we can start saving for a new or newer vehicle.
I rotated my supplies (oops, some peanut butter with over due 'best by' dates). I bought a telephone that works without being plugged in to the 110 outlet. I packed an emergency kit in my car trunk (during the fire!) -- especially a pair of walking shoes and water jug to get home from work if there is a problem on the roads. I also had my office pay for enough jugs of water for each employee to have 72 hours of drinking water. I also sent an e-mail suggesting that each of us keep several meals of non-perishable food (mouse-proof, of course) in our desks, just in case.
Those are my highlights.
How about you?
What have YOU done to prepare this YEAR?
It's National Preparedness Month once again! What have you done since the last one? Reduced your debt? Stored some provisions? Made a contingency plan based on your most likely emergency situations? Increased your rainy-day fund? Moved from a place that has a high occurrance of natural disasters?
If you read this post, please comment on your accomplishments.
If you read this post, please comment on your accomplishments.
Saturday, August 20, 2011
Get ahead of the game
September is National Preparedness Month. If you are new to having a prepared household, start by reviewing my 'Preparedness 101' page on this website. Visit some other beginner sites on the web as well.
Once your specific emergency has started, all you can begin to count on is what you have at the time. Make sure you have at least enough to get you through the reasonable expectation of time to restore normalcy. If your likely emergency is a power outage and it usually takes a day to repair, maybe have 2 days' supplies on hand -- stuff that doesn't require POWER to use. If all your cooking capability is electric, make sure you like cold canned food or have a BBQ grill AND charcoal or propane. Don't count on buying it after the fun begins, because several hundred or thousand people got 'there' first and bought it all.
Get the picture? For now, read and think so you can act and do. Take care of yourself and your family by thinking ahead.
Once your specific emergency has started, all you can begin to count on is what you have at the time. Make sure you have at least enough to get you through the reasonable expectation of time to restore normalcy. If your likely emergency is a power outage and it usually takes a day to repair, maybe have 2 days' supplies on hand -- stuff that doesn't require POWER to use. If all your cooking capability is electric, make sure you like cold canned food or have a BBQ grill AND charcoal or propane. Don't count on buying it after the fun begins, because several hundred or thousand people got 'there' first and bought it all.
Get the picture? For now, read and think so you can act and do. Take care of yourself and your family by thinking ahead.
Tuesday, August 16, 2011
Phone Home
These days, most land-line telephones have extra bells and whistles that require them to be plugged into power as well as the phone outlet. Some are remote cordless units that transmit and receive with a base unit. The original, plain old telephone service (POTS) requires no extra power. These simple phones get all the needed power from the 12 volts coming from the central office. If you have a POTS landline, be sure you have a plain old telephone to go with it! A plain old telephone is obvious because you only plug it into the phone jack and not also into the electrical outlet. If the power goes out, it still works. My preference is to buy an older but working AT&T or Western Electric on eBay because they were built to last. The local Big Lots or Target should have newer versions for less than $20.
During the first hour or two of an widespread emergency it will seem line the telephone service is 'out.' Simple explanation : central offices are sized to the population, using formulas for how many people will be on the phone at an average time. In an emergency, everyone picks up the phone at the same time and vastly exceeds the 'formula'. You don't hear dial tone because the switch is too full to provide it instantly. If you stay on the line, you will get Dial tone, possibly in a few minutes as others hang up. Unless you need 911 service immediately, hang up. Try again in an hour or two. By then the real emergency calls and general 'DID YOU FEEL THAT!?!' calls will have subsided and you should get dial tone fairly quickly.
Yes, I worked for the phone company at one time in my life... I also lived this phenomenon after the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake in the sf bay area. In a wide-spread emergency, be patient and HAVE A PLAN (that you have practiced) so you don't need to rely on cell phones or landlines to have some certainty about where your family members are.
During the first hour or two of an widespread emergency it will seem line the telephone service is 'out.' Simple explanation : central offices are sized to the population, using formulas for how many people will be on the phone at an average time. In an emergency, everyone picks up the phone at the same time and vastly exceeds the 'formula'. You don't hear dial tone because the switch is too full to provide it instantly. If you stay on the line, you will get Dial tone, possibly in a few minutes as others hang up. Unless you need 911 service immediately, hang up. Try again in an hour or two. By then the real emergency calls and general 'DID YOU FEEL THAT!?!' calls will have subsided and you should get dial tone fairly quickly.
Yes, I worked for the phone company at one time in my life... I also lived this phenomenon after the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake in the sf bay area. In a wide-spread emergency, be patient and HAVE A PLAN (that you have practiced) so you don't need to rely on cell phones or landlines to have some certainty about where your family members are.
Saturday, August 13, 2011
Preparedness Month Give Away Blow-out!
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