Monday, July 20, 2009

Thoughts on Saving Money & Stocking up

http://jordansfarm.wordpress.com/2008/10/10/economic-situation-recession-life-ahead/

I love reading (and printing) things over at Becky's Farm Life. She just seems to flow into being frugally prepared so easily. Ideas, thoughts and tips, outloud ponderings...she has her mind always working ahead.
The post link above was shared a while ago. The thoughts are just plain common sense practical, but even now, in the middle of heavy financial struggles, most folks just don't get it. A job isn't some magic guarantee for long range income, certainly not these days.

Being prepared and living a more traditional back to basics life isn't somehow lacking in faith. Sure, God has His Plans and He can and will provide for a great many things in your life. But there is a good deal of personal footwork I believe He expects you to do for yourself.

If you have space, grow something. You don't have to invest in Master Gardener status to have a few tomato plants, or a row of onions, or such. Flowers are pretty, but you most likely aren't going to stock enough of them in the larder for winter sustenance, kwim?
Down here folks have planted those annual flower beds with practical things, like cabbage, peppers, strawberries and the like.

If you have the internet at home, look for practical 'hard times' information and print it off or take plenty of notes. I'm not that proficient with the wood cookstove yet where it's just second nature to fire up and cook a pan of biscuits. I printed a lot of stuff from Granny Miller and other sites to have handy and refer to. There is a lot of information and shared ideas out there -- yahoo and other groups are great, I spend time with that as well, but don't just waste time 9hatting and visiting, make the most of those internet payments and glean information for some new skills.

We are always printing off and writing down notes on things like cookstove tips, garden amendments for this clay muck I have, references for homeschooling, recipes using homemade and natural things (I want to leave the grocery store far behind me soon), crochet and knit patterns (I want to get better with knitting), herbal information (I have 2 large spiral notebooks filled), animal information (now adding to the dairy goat book again, vet tips, book suggestions, etc)...there are so many things I am constantly hunting down to take note of.

I don't believe we'll ever get back to what we might call 'life as normal' in the US again. Some believe this is just a financial bump (mountain!) in the road and recovery is coming. I don't see that, but hey, that's what hope is, right? I am preparing, haphazardly as it may seem to some, for a new 'normal' here. Maybe in your visionary worldview you just need to prepare for the hurricane season, or winter lay-offs/slow downs, or the like.

Whatever *it* is that moves you to think a bit ahead of your current step, don't just take one step toward it, start heading there full bore. Glean glean glean. It isn't as though it's useless information. If a time comes when you simply don't feel you need 4 binders of cooking from scratch ideas and garden tips, email me and I'll barter with you to take them off your hands :o)

1 comment:

Captain Hook and Lady Crochet said...

Amen Sister! And on that note...I believe we should bring back barter. It will not take care of everything we need...but it will certainly help as well as help out others. And isn't that what it is all about? Loved this post! =0)

Jer.6:16

Jeremiah 6:16
Thus saith the LORD, Stand ye in the ways, and see, and ask for the old paths, where is the good way, and walk therein, and ye shall find rest for your souls.

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