Fire Starter

Even though I don't blog about it much anymore, I'm still working on my emergency preparation/survival skills.  Recently, I purchased fire steels.  I had been wanting to add these to our supplies for some time now because I realize that there are situations where matches wouldn't really work (like if the conditions are wet).  I was having trouble figuring out how to create sparks with the fire steel despite following the directions.  Luckily, there's YouTube.  Sorry I couldn't embed the video but Ray Mears, who does the video, has some other really good videos available on YouTube.  (Another interesting channel I found is NaturalBushCraft.)  Not only did I learn how to use my fire steel, I got a tutorial on how to start a fire, an invaluable survival skill.  It's really cold right now but I'm really looking forward to the spring so that I can practice starting fires in the backyard.   

I will freely admit . . .

This post comes about after reading two articles:  "I am a Radical Homemaker failure" and "Just Not Made that Way" (by one of my favorite writers on the topic of sustainable living).

Recently, my days have been filled with taking the kids here and there to keep them busy.  It seems that if we stay at home, Z1 only wants to watch shows or play games on the computer (which are one and the same to me, quite honestly).  I've been barely keeping up with my homemaking, keeping the house clean by skin of my teeth and cooking multiple meals at one time.  It's kind of a crazy pace I've been keeping but it's summer and the warm weather only lasts so long.

So a few days ago, I realized that my emergency preparation/self-sufficiency efforts have gone to the wayside quite a bit.  I'm still making yogurt, yes, but not bread.  I've been taking some shortcuts just because I'm so busy.  I'm not pleased about this and I'm sure that once winter comes around again, I will probably pick up the pace.  But I can't shake a feeling of being overwhelmed by all the goals I would like to achieve like having a vigorous and productive garden--enough to try my hand at canning.  Heck, I haven't even made it to ONE farmer's market yet mainly because there are none close by and they are all out of the way or on days where it's difficult for me to get to them.  This is making me sad to some extent but I have to just put things in perspective.  I *know* that when it's cold, I'll be home more to do more but this is the time that I need to be working hard.  I mean, I know I am working hard but not at self-sufficiency things and that worries me.

I know that as the times become more difficult, out of necessity, most likely everyone will buckle down and do the things they need to do to sustain themselves.  I think that we may be able to develop a community of sorts based up sustaining ourselves.  Or at least I hope.  I know that for me, I sometimes need a little pressure to get myself moving--and I can't think of a better motivator to do certain things like gardening (for real) and canning, than the possibility that we wouldn't be able to eat without them.  But who wants to really get good at these thing when it's a matter or life and death?  I hope I can motivate myself right now when making mistakes does not mean a sure death.  Any ideas?

Ready to give making soymilk and tofu a try

We had a soymilk maker that I returned because what I really wanted at the time was to make rice milk (which was a huge mess in the soy milk maker). Since I'm no longer as wary of soy as I once was and since we are eating tofu and drinking soy milk (in porridge and tea) regularly, I think I'm ready to give it another go. I think the hubby would be down for re-purchasing a soymilk maker (that's the link to the one we had before) but I'd like to give making it without one a try. I can get soybeans pretty inexpensively and I would need to find a tofu press (to get bricks of tofu as opposed to balls and other odd shapes) as well as an large inexpensive stainless steel pot (you need three stock type pots and I only have two). I may employ the hubby to think of some kind of homemade tofu press.

The process for making soy milk and tofu actually doesn't seem as daunting as it once did. However . . . this morning's workout was another bust since Z2 woke at 6 on the dot. Do I really want to add anything onto the hecticness of things right now?? We'll see. I'm really leaning towards it though. I think that would be a great step towards self-sufficiency especially if I could grow my own soybeans.

Photo Credit: "Tofu Press" by ashe-villain on Flickr.com

Refuse to Be a Victim Seminar

The hubby is anti-firearms, i.e. he doesn't want me to get a gun, doesn't want a gun in the house. I do. I want one and I want to learn to use one very well. I believe when children are young, you keep the firearm 100% out of their reach. As they get older and can understand a bit more and get the concept of death, you explain to them what it is.

Anyway, there are other means of self-defense and while I'm not really interested in taking a formal martial arts class, something really appealed to me. It's the "Refuse to Be a Victim" Seminar offered by the NRA which I discovered after following the link on the post "Somebody is Killing Black Mothers and Daughters" on the blog What About Our Daughters. I've already found the closest seminar to me and it seems like it is an ongoing thing. It's very reasonable price-wise too. Well, my emergency preparation goals this week include finding out the schedule and signing up. I still think a firearm has its place but I'm hoping this class will give me confidence in my ability to defend myself and my babies since so often it's just me and them.

I believe in self-defense and self-love. To me, self-defense and self-love go hand-in-hand. Yes, I'm all about peace and harmony. But you can't practice peace and harmony if you're dead. And in these difficult times, I know we'll start to see more and more acts of desperation, sometimes violent. It only makes sense to learn how to keep you and yours safe.

How do you feel about firearms? Self-defense classes? Home security systems? Etc . . . ?

Sq. Ft. Gardening Sustainability

We're doing a square foot garden as I've said before. I was concerned about the sustainability of the method and while listening to the Survival Podcast, was pleased to run across one that covers this very topic. A very informative post that also covers HR875.

Growing your own food is indeed bloodless revolution. Check it out: Cuba Got Those Greens. Even a small window box . . . survival mindedness so that we can thrive.

Photo Credit: "Square Foot Garden Box"on Flickr by amber in norfolk

This week's preparation goal . . .

Was to find out places where I could safely fish that are close by. It seems that fish caught in the wild are very toxic and the emphasis is more on sportfishing than on fishing for food. That is a real shame. I'm turning my focus to beans and legumes.

Here are some emergency preparedness/self-sufficiency/survival resources:
Survival Podcast
Causubon's Book (I added a gadget to my sidebar: 100 Ways to Prepare for Peak Oil)

I like both of these because they appeal to your common sense and intellect.

Thought this was interesting . . .

Wonderwash--a portable washing machine that uses no electricity but claims to get clothes as clean as a conventional washing machine.

Description

Why Use the Wonder Wash?

• Washes a 5-lb. load super clean in just a couple of minutes.
• Has a patented pressure system that forces detergent into the fabric at high speed for a fast, efficient, economic and very easy wash
• Is ideal for campers, single persons and even for the housewife with small frequent loads like hand washables and diapers.
• Is ideal for delicates such as woolens, silks, knitted dresses and cashmere garments.
• Uses far less water than even hand washing.

Pretty cool.

Ooooh-weee!

Just wanted to report that this morning, my legs are on fire! This is as a result of yesterday's workout. I'm glad too . . . it means I worked something that I haven't been working on.

I am seeing results, by the way. I'm losing weight slowly but I'm also getting toned up. More than all of that, I feel strong and energetic.

I'm not sure if I can get my stomach back to being the way it was pre-children because there's a lot of stretched out skin. I can feel the muscles underneath are getting more toned but overall, my stomach doesn't look much different. That's a bummer but oh well. I'm surprisingly comfortable and accepting of my stomach the way it is because it reminds me of what my body did.

On another note, I was looking in The Reader's Digest Back to Basics book (which has everything you ever wanted to know about back to basics/off the grid/back country living) curious about how to make perfume at home. Very interesting if not gross. You use lard to make it. You can get your scent from flowers or herbs/spices. Basically, you take lard that has absorbed the scent from the flowers and mix it with alcohol. That's back-to-basic perfume. I'm not so sure I can get with that. But then again, lard was originally used for making soap.

I woke up an hour late today I guess making up for the hour that was lost. I'm not sure if the boys will sleep till 7:45/8:00 today because of daylight savings or not so I'm off to try to squeeze in Radiant Heart Yoga before they get up.

-----------------------------
It's 7:11 right now and everyone is still asleep. I just finished Radiant Heart Yoga by Shiva Rea.
Since I've been learning about the chakras (currently learning about the throat chakra), I was intrigued by this DVD which focuses on the "heart center" or heart chakra. Overall, I feel this is an excellent offering by Shiva Rea who has a very peaceful and detailed way of instructing. The poses/moves she uses were at times challenging for me so I did the best I could. It is definitely not a DVD for pure beginners. My only qualm with the DVD is the way it was shot. I get that they wanted it to be artsy and the background to be calming (it was a very beautiful background indeed) but it was kind of dark and shadowy and I had a difficult time seeing what Rea was actually doing. That's my only real complaint.

Okay, so this DVD is not necessarily something I'd add on as part of my fitness routine. It's more of a moving meditation and a powerful one at that. She incorporates the chanting of "Aum" into the routine and the sound "Ha" in the sun salutation part. I enjoyed this DVD but not because I felt like it burned calories or toned me up. It was perfect to do after yesterday's workout and the soreness I am feeling today. This yoga is all about the heart center (chakra) and focusing energy and healing towards the heart while calling up positive characteristics such as love, compassion, and forgiveness. I could feel love all around and inside me while doing it and even right now. So I would say that in doing this routine, my heart chakra opened up. Shiva Rea achieves what she set out to do. It would be so nice to find other yoga DVDs focused on specific chakras.

Anyway, today's practice left me feeling energetic and bright even though the day is quite dreary. I'm ready to start my day feeling positive and joyful. While I don't think I'll be purchasing this DVD, I'm adding it to my wish list and I'll definitely check it out from the library on a regular basis.

Back-to-Basic Ways to Keep Yourself Looking Good

One thing that's generally clear about women cross-culturally is the desire (or maybe even need) to feel lovely, beautiful, flawless. Most women like to walk into a room and have heads turn. We do all sorts of things to achieve this (especially pre-marriage and pre-children when we are free to focus 100% of our energies on us). Now that most of us are tightening our belts, we've had to chuck a lot of the things we may have been doing to help us achieve that sense of outward flawlessness. I know at Whole Foods the other day, I had to put back some very nice soaps that I wanted because my grocery bill was way over what I had on hand to spend. As I read folks' blogs, I hear ladies talk about cutting out manicure/pedicure visits, learning to do their own hair (and sometimes stumbling along the way) or going longer periods of time before paying the hairdresser a visit, and eliminating other things (they don't have to be huge things either) that used to help us achieve our signature flyness. So I got to thinking: if the shit really hit the fan and we were suddenly thrown into chaos, what are some practical ways that we as women could retain a sense of flyness? It's important to our survival as whole women (not just physical survivors).

Now, I'll be the first to admit, with a three year old and a one year old, and with only one household income, it's a challenge to make sure I feel good about how I look when I step out. It's much easier to throw on any old thing and go. But it's a challenge I at least try to meet just because for me personally, feeling positive abour how I look changes how I approach the world. If I feel good about how I look, even with two kids in tow, I have a spring in my step and I can turn heads. Wanting to feel good about how I look drives my physical fitness efforts. It's what makes me choose a pretty headwrap and make the effort to wrap it instead of tossing on a hat.

I've been getting into World Made by Hand recently and the words that come to mind are "stark" and "difficult". I think to myself: I already have limited resources and limited time . . . what if I had even less? What if most of the resources and time went into physically surviving? First off, would I even care how I look? Secondly, with nothing to really work with, if I did care, what could I do about it?

So I thought about it and came up with at least one way to feel beautiful despite whatever is going on: rose water. Out back we have an old rose bush that the hubby's grandmother used to tend. It no longer flowers but back when granny attended it, it was beautiful, so I hear. I don't know if it will happen this year as my focus is on vegetable gardening, but I am going to get that rose bush back to flowering (if not plant a new one). Why? Because it looks beautiful and being surrounded by beauty helps us feel the same but also to make rosewater. If you've ever smelled rosewater, it's divine. It is rosey but not overly so. And it's not too hard to make at home. You can use it as a toner/refresher or as a body spritz or as a linen spray. I buy commercially made rose water now but it's good to know that if I had to, I could make the stuff. I've tried my hand at making rosewater lotion (emulsion of rosewater and jojoba oil I think) . . . not so good.

You know, every time I hear a story of disaster or difficulty, what often strikes me most is people's desire to feel human. For women, one aspect of our humanity, it seems, is beauty. Often you hear that for women who have been through hard times, a little perfume or nail polish goes a long way to alleviate the suffering.

(I'm editing this post 03/10/09 in the interest of keeping my blog positive and not catty.)

I am interested in being the best we can be especially in difficult times. I'm not talking about being 100% perfect--no one is. I'm talking about you feeling good about how you look (really doesn't matter how anybody else feels). Ms. Erykah Badu sang one of my most favorite songs (Cleva) and I love how the words always apply. It's acknowledging that your dress may be $7 and your hair may not be quite right . . . and so what? I'm.still.flyy.

We hope for the best always but in the event of the worst, it's helpful, in my mind, to think about ways that we could still feel gorgeous in spite of. To me, a big part of emergency preparedness (aside from physical survival) is keeping your mentals intact so why not incorporate this aspect? It's imperative to meditate or pray or do whatever you do to ground yourself but it's also important to me as a woman to think of little back-to-basic ways to feel good about how I look.