kappydell

Im happy to report that I saw an orthpedic surgeon today and he gave me a date for surgery to get my hip fixed. He also explained just what I did to it...when I fell back in 2008 I crushed the part of the hip where the blood flows to feed the cartilage, and the cartilage died. He said it takes a while (it did) and is painful (it certainly was) and not only am I bone on bone in the hip, my leg is considerably shorter from the loss of so much of the joint. He also marveled at how I am still able to walk on it, and for so long. I did have an answer for that one...when you think you have no choice, you find ways to keep going. Anyway, in a little over a month he told me I can have my life back. I am soooo excited! I not only will have the pain go away, but will be able to walk normally again, straighten out my leg, and, he says my legs will 'match' again, so my left knee (which has been doing considerable complaining lately...) will have the strain taken from it. Oh yes, I will be able to stand up straight! Imagine that! I haven't been able to do that since Feb 2008! And I won't have to feel like a burden anymore! Halleluia! He says I'll be able to do anything except impact type sports - no loss there and so much gained. Im so excited - Im making plans like a 20-year old!

the sales sure vary from area to area - around here it was ham that was on sale, not turkeys. we froze quite a few, knowing the processors were cutting down the herds due to the corn shortage and we would likely not see ham as cheap again. bittersweet.

How are you doing, chefddr?

Funny how that is....as long as I had fresh bread and thick gravy my husband said he would eat anything - even an old shoe - (his exact words).

'sniff' my husband made me quit buying canners after three....even though they were at St Veincent dePaul for only $20, he kept saying 'you don't NEED another one, leave it for someone else.... (I'd have let someone borrow it!)

Oh yeah, I forgot to mention the old remedy for anemia - put some iron nails into an apple for a few days, then remove and eat the apple. Supposedly some of the iron goes into the apple. Heard about it as a child, tried it. The apple tasted metallic, so it must have worked. I had less success with putting eggshells into vinegar for a calcium supplement - they were so disgusting I dared not try the liquid. Maybe I should have kept it in the refrigerator or rinsed out the shells better (ya' think???facepalm). The boiled bones did soften up nicely, and I did blend them into some soup, so that was my method of choice as a way to obtain calcium.

Its not just a southern thing...corn is one of the easiest grains to grow and harvest in large quantities without machinery and is extremely versatile, as you have so delightfully demonstrated! So it will be quite popular if the SHTF for both man and beast. Ive used both the lye and the baking soda techniques with success, but have never tried grinding it since I like hominy as-is. Somewhere in my collection I even have a recipe for using the crock pot....have to get looking for that one.

What a cool technique! I can draw, too, now I have a new and fattening skill to try out....

I even boil bones from our KFC chicken when we get it - they add nice seasonings to the broth. Bone broth: Bones from chicken and pork for light broth; from beef, pork, and/or veal for dark broth (as many as you have or will fit in the crock pot) water to cover bones (including liquids drained from canned veggies and cooking liquid from cooked veggies) white vinegar, 4 TB for each quart of water in the crock. This helps dissolve out some calcium and minerals from the bones. Vegetable trimmings (wash carrots & potatoes before peeling): peels, celery leaves, onion skins, pea pods (washed), green onion tops, parsley stems, in short anything raw but not moldy, diseased, or otherwise inedible. Brassica family trimmings are simmered in a separate broth. Salt to taste (draws out nutrients and flavor into the liquid Combine, simmer in crockpot a good 24 hours or so. Strain and put liquid in refrigerator 12 hours. Any fat will harden and rise to the top where you can remove it by hand. Toss vegetable trimmings, but you can re-boil the bones at least once more. Taste your broth. If it seems weak, add bouillon cubes to flavor it up (you still have those extra good nutrients in there, even if you cant taste them). I use as a soup base for my whatchagot soups; use as a gravy base; use in my tomato paste spaghetti sauce; and for hot light broths to drink. Whatchagot soup - (ultra cheap food takes ultra creativity) Bone broth (free) leftover cooked veggies (free) leftover meat, cut up fine (free) any leftover gravy that 'matches' the broth flavor (free) a handful of any leftover starches - pasta, rice, barley, etc (free) cooked dried beans are especially nice to give extra body to the soup Combine, heat through, dine away. Thicken if you like, using 2 TB flour for each cup liquid in the soup (shake in a jar with cold liquid, then stir in). Season to taste, if it needs it. Bone broth gravy 2 1/2 cups bone broth bouillon cube if it is weak tasting (i like chicken, beef, the tomato-chicken from Wal-Mart for a tomatoey gravy) 5-6 TB flour (I like my gravies thick) Set aside 1/2 cup of the broth in a small jar. Add the flour and shake it until there are no lumps. Meanwhile, heat the remaining 2 cups broth, the bouillon if you use it, in a saucepan. When the flour mixture is smooth, stir in. Heat over med heat, stirring often, until it starts to boil, then boil 2 minutes to cook flour, while stirring constantly. Serve. Cream soup from bone broth 1 1/2 cups bone broth 1 c milk (from dry is OK) bouillon or soup base (I sometimes use seafood flavor for 'clam' chowder, adding a little dill weed to season) Heat the broth in a saucepan with the bouillon or soup base flavor of choice. Shake the flour with the milk, then stir in. Season to taste. Add minced leftover cooked vegetables (mushrooms, broccoli for broccoli soup, onions, etc)and meats to fit the soup you are having (minced fish for seafood chowder; minced chicken for chicken-corn chowder, etc. Cook like gravy. (The cream soups are a good place to use cooking water from cabbage family veggies for part or all of bone broth - then chop up cauliflower or broccoli leftovers for cream of cauli soup. Shredded cheese on each serving puts it over the top.) Drinkin' Broth or Sippin' Soup (whatever you choose to call it, its tasty) Combine bone broth with soup base or bouillon of choice and enjoy. Good while cooking, to keep from nibbling so much when you are dieting. Low in calories too if not thickened. Other Uses for Bone Broth Use as liquid for boiling rice If mild flavored, may be used in strong flavored jello Use to baste cooking meats, or as liquid when braising tough meats Combine with tomato juice for a different hot drink Im out of ideas...anyone else?

Oh, that smells just wonderful! How bout that? I use the hot & sour soup all the time to melt sinus crud!! I like mine stronger though, so I add double the vinegar and tabasco. it also takes all manner of chopped leftovers, kind of like a chinese everything but the kitchen sink soup, but with a kick. I cheat occasionally though and make just hot and sour broth - adding tabasco & vinegar to just the bouillon. The soup and nice hot kung-po chicken keeps my sinses cleared up nicely. Im practicing egg rolls now, learning to make the wrappers.

I always did like to play with my food, and asian food is one of my new playgrounds! Send me an e-taste! I think the last thing I tried was my sweet potato sprouts...they were delicious! Im growing more this year (just bought the sweet potato, as a matter of fact...) The re-growing of the celery root and the green onions was interesting, but I neglected to re-plant the celery and the green onions were too ditsy (not to mention I kept tipping over their water bowl). Im a klutz - what I don't spill the cats do. But we have fun.

sweet sour sauce for whatever I can find for a stir fry, hot and sour soup, or a rice salad. Would make an interesting addition to cole slaw, too, chopped up of course. HOT AND SOUR SOUP (cheap, too...) 1 qt water 4 bouillon cubes (32 cents) 1/2 tsp Tabasco sauce (5 cents) 1/2 teaspoon vinegar (3 cents) 1 egg, beaten (14 cents) 2 TB soy sauce (120 cents) 2 TB cornstarch (20 cents) optional: cooked leftovers (the gifted asian veggies and the pinapple)cut up to suit taste Combine all ingredients except eggs. Bring to boil over high heat, stirring until slightly thickened. Stir beaten eggs in stirring only one way, vigorously enough to make them spin threads as you add them gradually. Total recipe equals 84 cents, one cup is 21 cents. (I'd put the pineapple in too, and adjust the vinegar to taste). SWEET AND SOUR SAUCE (I like this one from cooks.com as a base) 2 tbsp. cornstarch 1/2 c. sugar 1/4 c. white vinegar 1/4 c. pineapple juice (I presume the pineapple & water chestnuts have pineapple juice in it) 2 tsp. soy sauce 1/4 c. water Combine ingredients in a small saucepan and bring to a boil. Simmer gently 5 minutes, remove from heat. Serve immediately or store in refrigerator and serve cold. Sweet sour sauce is variable from cook to cook. Chop up the pineapple bits and leave them in for a chunky sauce. Make a large batch, then use as sauce for the stir-fry made from the chinese veggies along with some thin sliced onions and cabbage, and put the whole thing over rice. Vegetarian delight - even cooler (and stretches farther) with softened TVP, cut up leftover meat, or what have you. Those water chestnuts & shoots are nice and crispy - would go well in a rice salad, too. Save the juice for the marinade/dressing. RICE SALAD 4 cups cooked rice 1 cup frozen mixed veggies, thawed 1 TB honey 1 TB teriyaki sauce 1 or 2 sliced green onions salt, sugar and pepper to taste optional: a shot of Tabasco or some hot chili pepper shreds for fire eaters or Thai food lovers 1/2 tsp fresh ginger chopped fine (or 1/4 tsp powdered - to taste) the gifted asian veggies, drained (save liquid) and chopped a bit Combine juice from cans, honey, teriyaki sauce and ginger. Adjust proportions to taste - some add a little vinegar, some add sugar, some don't. You want a salad dressing balance. Mix into remaining ingredients and let marinate in refrigerator.

Even when you know it is coming, it is hard to be a widow. My prayers are with you at this time. Try not to be too hard on yourself, don't be afraid to go slow if that is what you feel like doing. You will cry at odd times, but it is part of the healing of mourning. It will take a while to adjust, as well, so don't be surprised if things just seem haywire for a bit...it will pass. I am glad you had your special someone for the time you did, because so many people never find that someone at all. Treasure and hold tight to your happy memories; they will help you see past the sorrow you have now.

Hooray! It worked - I re-entered all the parameters in the sidebar that it asked for and surprise! All those unread posts suddenly popped up. Thank you all!!! (I was going into Mrs. S withdrawal...)

I bought more hams today to freeze and can. I have a (hopefully wrong) feeling meat prices (heck, all prices) will go crazy in January. I sure hope Im wrong, and all that happens is I have lots of stuff canned.

When I try to view new content on this site, all I get is "no new content found". Does that have something to do with the 'dangerous downloads' warning when I search Yahoo for Mrs. Survival? I have been using a back door to get in, now this 'no new content' thing....sheesh! Anybody else having this happen?

Very nice, crabby - I used that concept to put a compartment behind my medicine chest (really a cabinet on the wall). I hinged the medicine chest on one side to swing out. Makes a nice med sized hidden compartment.

Ive canned fully cooked hams, and yes they did darken a bit, but not really bad. What surprised me was that the water I canned them in turned reddish. They sure tasted fine though. I canned chunks for soup, scalloped potatoes, and to mash up for ham salad. Yummy!

This will be my retirement home............one day Sounds pretty good!!!! No nursing home for us. We'll be checking into a Holiday Inn! With the average cost for a nursing home care costing $188.00 per day, there is a better way when we get old and too feeble. I've already checked on reservations at the Holiday Inn. For a combined long term stay discount and senior discount, it's $59.23 per night. Breakfast is included, and some have happy Hours in the afternoon. That leaves $128.77 a day for lunch and dinner in any restaurant we want, and/or room service, laundry, Gratuities and special TV movies. And don't forget the maid comes every day! Plus, they provide a spa, swimming pool, a workout room, A lounge and washer-dryer, etc. Most have free toothpaste and razors, and All have free shampoo and soap. $5 worth of tips a day you'll have the entire staff scrambling to help you. They treat you like a customer, not a patient. There's a city bus stop out front, and Seniors ride free. The handicap bus will also pick you up (if you fake a decent limp). To meet other nice people, call a church bus on Sundays. For a change of scenery, take the airport shuttle bus and eat at one of the nice restaurants there. While you're at the airport, fly somewhere. Otherwise, the cash keeps building up. It takes months to get into decent nursing homes. Holiday Inn will take your reservation today. And you're not stuck in one place forever -- you can move from Inn to Inn, or even from city to city. Want to see Hawaii ? They have Holiday Inn there too. TV broken? Light bulbs need changing? Need a mattress replaced? No problem.. They fix everything, and apologize for the inconvenience. The Inn has a night security person and daily room service. The maid checks to see if you are ok. If not, they'll call an ambulance . . Or the undertaker. If you fall and break a hip, Medicare will pay for the hip, and Holiday Inn will Upgrade you to a suite for the rest of your life. And no worries about visits from family. They will always be glad to find you, and probably check in for a few days mini-vacation. The grandkids can use the pool. What more could I ask for? So, when I reach that golden age, I'll face it with a grin.

Check at the local technical school. I know of one that teaches dental hygenist classes - get your teeth cleaned free. The same town has a dental college where you can get free dental checkups and often very low priced fillings, etc. They gotta practice on someone, and the teacher is right there.

Yes, I must confess, I do things not approved by the USDA, like canning butter and cheese, and canning in 1/2 gal jars occasionally. But I do use tender quick in my jerky, and salt...lots of it. I use Morton's recipe; and I also freeze my hamburger rocks for longest storage. The dehydration is more of a space saver than anything as they don't keep unfrozen or unrefrigerated all that long due to fat content. But I and my prep buddy are the only ones eating these (and she has been warned that it is not approved food and why...)so we accept these risks. BUT...! Violet is most knowledgeable about approved methods, so you should stick to her directions for safest results, especially if anyone other than yourself will be eating the grub. If you have children, stick with the approved recipes, there are soooo many good ones in the Blue Book alone. But the little fellers systems are vulnerable to bugs, so don't risk them, please. Sorry Vi - I'll keep my controversies down in the Edge.

Yup, I have canned over the gas grill as well as open fire. A little fussy, but it works with patience. And come to think of it, maybe I'll just 'clear out some more freezer room' with another canning cycle...you know, one canner full of stew meat, one of chicken, one of pork, one of ham...equals one 'cycle'. Repeat as desired. Some work, but I do love to see those jars on the shelves!Maybe I'll keep my eyes open for a small used freezer to convert to a chest refrigerator instead. Its supposed to save quite a bit on the electric bills...got the info from www.energyconservationinfo.orgIt also gave direction on how to put an on-off switch on the water heater to save $$ too, but the refrigerator looks easier and quicker - no wiring required.

You can dehydrate cooked food, but you have to make sure it is totally dry when you store it. Beans should shatter when struck with a hammer, for example, and you should always test to make sure they are dry enough. Many backpackers routinely dry pre-cooked foods for the trail. You might try looking for some books on it at the local library. However, home-dehydrated foods are NOT good for decades, like many storage foods. Be sure to rotate them earlier to get the best end product.

I have had excellent experiences with dehydrating canned beans...and chili....and split pea soup. The dehydrated beans cook up, or rather re-hydrated much faster than cooking dry beans from scratch and have been a standby of backpackers for years. In fact, at least one mail order house that caters to back packers carries dehydrated cooked beans in bulk! Just spread them out on a tray and dry until hard. They should shatter when struck with a hammer, like dried corn should. Or you can puree them in a blender, dry them like a leather, and grind up the dry chunks for a cooked bean flour that makes excelled 'instant' refried beans.

We bought 40 lb of hams at ridiculously low sale prices (farmers must be selling off livestock they cant get corn for) and cut them down. Froze and canned slices for scalloped potatoes & ham, chunks for soups, and froze the bones for the next broth making day. Going to get more, too, since we expect meat prices to climb with the crappy corn harvest. Some are already 'predicting' more drought this summer....do you guys think a third freezer would be 'too much'?