K.A. Jordan's Blog, page 2
July 3, 2023
Senior in the Saddle 2
Goodbye old friends…I’ve had four saddles in my tack room, gathering dust for a decade. Three were good quality leather, two Western saddles from the early 1960’s, the one I’m keeping is a more modern Australian. The last one is an English all purpose saddle that’s synethic with an adjustable tree. I wasn’t able to identify the oldest, until the lady I sold it to called it out as a Bonna Allan. It is an artwork made from leather with desert flowers and leaves carved into it. Just lovely.
It’s a ‘tall man’s saddle’ not a good saddle for a small senior female. The stirrup leathers would have to be cut down a LOT for me to have them the right length. It would be a shame to cut the stirrup leathers to accommodate me.
That is the problem with the old Billy Royal that I used all during the old mare’s training days. I had the stirrups as short as I could get them, and it was just barely enough. She was a spooky horse that needed a secure seat for the rider so she could jump out from under me. An English saddle just wouldn’t have worked out for me. The Billy Royal saddle weighs at least 35 lbs, so at my age tossing it up on a tall horse is a major problem. It wasn’t easy to let these saddles go, but I finally did it.This is the one I kept.
This is another vintage saddle. Made by Sup-Territory this is an Australian Stock Saddle. Another heavy saddle, though a few pounds lighter. The leather is thick and sturdy, a bit stiff from years of disuse, but that will change with time and oil.Since I mostly ride English, this saddle works better for me. Plus it’s much more secure than the English saddles I used to ride, while being lighter than the Western saddles that I can’t lift and don’t fit my short legs.
It’s a ‘tall man’s saddle’ not a good saddle for a small senior female. The stirrup leathers would have to be cut down a LOT for me to have them the right length. It would be a shame to cut the stirrup leathers to accommodate me.
That is the problem with the old Billy Royal that I used all during the old mare’s training days. I had the stirrups as short as I could get them, and it was just barely enough. She was a spooky horse that needed a secure seat for the rider so she could jump out from under me. An English saddle just wouldn’t have worked out for me. The Billy Royal saddle weighs at least 35 lbs, so at my age tossing it up on a tall horse is a major problem. It wasn’t easy to let these saddles go, but I finally did it.This is the one I kept.
This is another vintage saddle. Made by Sup-Territory this is an Australian Stock Saddle. Another heavy saddle, though a few pounds lighter. The leather is thick and sturdy, a bit stiff from years of disuse, but that will change with time and oil.Since I mostly ride English, this saddle works better for me. Plus it’s much more secure than the English saddles I used to ride, while being lighter than the Western saddles that I can’t lift and don’t fit my short legs.
June 9, 2023
Senior in the Saddle
Saddles are a major part of horseback riding. The saddle we choose can make or break a riding experience. The photo is an Australian Stock Saddle, made by Sup-Territory in the 1990's. It's extremely comfortable and it is very hard to get me out of that saddle. I rode bareback as a kid on ponies. The first ride or two was in a saddle, because ponies are opinionated and giving them a break from riding usually means a rodeo for the first couple of rides.
As an adult, I rode English, Hunter under Saddle, and really loved the thrill of low jumps. I had a desk job, and never was fit enough to compete. But I loved the sport, then and now. Fast forward - and life happens - all the things that happen to middle-aged women. I'm over 60, and back in the saddle.
This saddle, in particular, is a big part of my return to riding.
Once the American Quarter Horse Association decided that their horses had to show with their heads dragging on the ground and that odd broken-neck lope. I stopped riding Western. It was an ugly thing to do to a horse then - and it's worse now.
So I ride in this old, heavy Australian Saddle, and let my horses lope with their heads high. It's a good feeling.
June 8, 2023
Back in the Saddle
Being over 60 years old is one of those wierd things that happens to most of us, if we are lucky. The trauma of losing my parents, then cleaning up The Hoard, then my horses and finally Covid 19, left me feeling old and very frail.
Frail?
Me?
Yep, and it sucks.
But a few months ago, I came to believe that I could get back in the saddle, if I was very careful how I did it. First I had to find source of horses. There's a lesson barn near us, a huge facility with a herd of horses that numbers somewhere between 50 and 75.
It wasn't easy to go. I cried a lot that first visit. The memories of those first years with my old mare when she was young and difficult...sweet and sour. It was a rollercoaster.
So I signed up, and got a date for my lesson.
I have to admit that, my total lack of physical strength was frightening. I'd suspected that I'd lost all my muscle tone, but the proof was shocking. I could barely lift a light saddle, bridling the horse was a struggle and I needed help to tighten the girth. Getting into the saddle was iffy, I was unbalanced as soon as the horse moved. Two months have passed, and I'm getting back my strength and balance. It's been slow, and I go from being sore and tired to tired and starving.
I have persistened and my balance has returned, with some of my strength.
The best part is the knowledge of how to ride is still there. I can hold a fussing house, ride a canter and direct a horse. I can saddle and bridle and so on. I know what I see and I remember how my horses behaved.
It's pretty neat.
January 4, 2022
Happy New Year
This blog has languished for many years. All but forgotten for a couple of reasons. Life has happened. Lots and lots of happenings. So let's see if we can take this off the shelf and try again.
Last July, I bought a Dungeons and Dragons module, The Dragon of Icespire Peak. Then I found a few people interested in getting together for a game. It went pretty well. We played the module out, and really enjoyed it. Now I'm working out of a couple different books, to see what people enjoy playing. Of course, Covid isn't cutting us any slack, but we'll see how this goes. The main thing is that I've finally got something worth blogging about again.
Last July, I bought a Dungeons and Dragons module, The Dragon of Icespire Peak. Then I found a few people interested in getting together for a game. It went pretty well. We played the module out, and really enjoyed it. Now I'm working out of a couple different books, to see what people enjoy playing. Of course, Covid isn't cutting us any slack, but we'll see how this goes. The main thing is that I've finally got something worth blogging about again.
May 26, 2020
A Brief Rant -- America Needs to Vote
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This weekend, the Kentucky Governor was hung in effigy, in the front yard of the Governor's Manson, where he and his family are living.
Fortunately, his children weren't home when armed terrorists invaded their private space and stood on the front porch.
Now I'm gonna get on my soapbox, because these terrorists aren't operating in a vacuum. These guys were whipped up a couple weeks ago, by other elected officials. Republican officials, who don't give a damn about saving lives. They are merely more GOP sociopaths drunk on power.
The pattern was set in stone years and years ago, by the likes of Newt Gingrich, and the cancer that has eaten the soul of America has continued unchecked since the creation of Fox News.
Why has this minority, because this emotionally dead contingent IS the minority, been allowed to take power?
Because not enough Americans vote.
Americans, especially those of us in #FlyOverAmerica, need to get off our asses and vote, in every election, every time. We have to take back our cities, towns, hamlets and townships by voting.
If everybody in America voted in every election, we wouldn't have ANY of the problems we have today. Because America isn't a nation of extremists, it's a nation of middle-of-the-road, good people who have forgotten their power is in unity.
OUR power is in the ballot box.
[image error]
This weekend, the Kentucky Governor was hung in effigy, in the front yard of the Governor's Manson, where he and his family are living.
Fortunately, his children weren't home when armed terrorists invaded their private space and stood on the front porch.
Now I'm gonna get on my soapbox, because these terrorists aren't operating in a vacuum. These guys were whipped up a couple weeks ago, by other elected officials. Republican officials, who don't give a damn about saving lives. They are merely more GOP sociopaths drunk on power.
The pattern was set in stone years and years ago, by the likes of Newt Gingrich, and the cancer that has eaten the soul of America has continued unchecked since the creation of Fox News.
Why has this minority, because this emotionally dead contingent IS the minority, been allowed to take power?
Because not enough Americans vote.
Americans, especially those of us in #FlyOverAmerica, need to get off our asses and vote, in every election, every time. We have to take back our cities, towns, hamlets and townships by voting.
If everybody in America voted in every election, we wouldn't have ANY of the problems we have today. Because America isn't a nation of extremists, it's a nation of middle-of-the-road, good people who have forgotten their power is in unity.
OUR power is in the ballot box.
May 25, 2020
Buttercup War
One of the worst things about country life, farm life and hobby farm life, is how equipment breakdowns bring a homestead chores to a crashing halt.
Two years ago my old tractor broke down, the same time as my lawn mower. The tractor went into the shop, and due to it's age and the expense of replacement parts, we didn't get it back until March of this year. The weeds, particularly creeping buttercups and a couple nameless Roundup resistant weeds, colonized the pasture and choked out the grass.
This made my old horses lose vast amounts of weight because buttercups are toxic. I lost my beloved black hunter to old age and blindness last spring.
I was behind on mowing, seeding, stall cleaning all year, two springs in a row. I got some help, we've got great neighbors, but getting half caught up is not the same as getting it right.
This year, we got the old tractor back, but it wasn't fixed. It shot out oil and oily smoke, which combined with vast quantities of buttercup pollen, aggravated my asthma and gave me migraine headaches. I was in danger of letting these toxic flowers, already covering 75% of the pasture, complete saturation.
But instead of losing the game, we decided to make an investment in equipment. The old tractor was replaced with a new one. The lawn mower will get a new deck, but is currently in use to haul things and run the manure spreader.
The first thing I did was mow down the buttercups, wearing a mask. The tractor, a new 19 Horsepower diesel with a 48" bushhog struggled at a few points, but the buttercups went down. After two days it was more yellow than red, and needed a rinse, but we got the buttercups down to the point where I can work outside without a mask.
It will need a second pass. But at last I have the right equipment for that job. It's a relief to know that I've won the war for the moment.
The old tractor has gone to a new owner. It's one of those things that couldn't be fixed easily, unless one could weld the wrenches oneself. I'm not that kind of woman. I can do a few things, but rebuilding engines isn't one of them.
May 10, 2020
Who Bugged Out?
Not long ago, there was an out-cry from resort towns, the wealthy 'summer people' were coming to their towns in droves, bringing their germs with them. There's nothing like importing your germs to a place with little access to healthcare to make you welcome in a small town.
Robert DeNiro was on Colbert's A Late Show -- from a quaint log cabin -- somewhere.
A Tennessee GOP Senator was also online from a quaint log cabin -- somewhere. He was bragging how the GOP was having the ACA gutted to uselessness.
I'm watching Meet The Press right now, with a rich black philanthropist who is obviously bugged-out in a quaint cabin -- somewhere. He even has his windows tightly shuttered so there's no telling where he really is, but the decor gives it away.
You know damn well the Tech Giants are ALL bugged-out of their city homes to somewhere.
Trust me, a Wal-Mart employee pays a higher percentage of their income in State and Federal Taxes (25% is average for us) than these Tax-Free parasites pay. Most of them paid nothing and got back BILLIONS of dollars of OUR tax dollars.
A few thousand people in a handful of states, people who don't think about the Common Good, don't care about real Americans who need things like jobs, roads, bridges, hospitals and schools have put into power a greedy, ruthless minority who are sucking the life out of OUR country.
Folks, this shit needs to change.
The only way it's gonna change is if everybody in America Votes in EVERY election. Right now, since so few people vote, the American Extremists have taken over State and Local Governments.
Vote in your local election.
Jump the hoops, sign the stupid documents. Get the ID and do it NOW.
November is coming, the virus will still be here, write your GOVERNOR, of your STATE and tell them you want to vote by MAIL.
At this time, more 80k Americans have died. Let their lives mean something.
Do what you have to do to Vote.
Every Election.
Every Time.
Robert DeNiro was on Colbert's A Late Show -- from a quaint log cabin -- somewhere.
A Tennessee GOP Senator was also online from a quaint log cabin -- somewhere. He was bragging how the GOP was having the ACA gutted to uselessness.
I'm watching Meet The Press right now, with a rich black philanthropist who is obviously bugged-out in a quaint cabin -- somewhere. He even has his windows tightly shuttered so there's no telling where he really is, but the decor gives it away.
You know damn well the Tech Giants are ALL bugged-out of their city homes to somewhere.
Trust me, a Wal-Mart employee pays a higher percentage of their income in State and Federal Taxes (25% is average for us) than these Tax-Free parasites pay. Most of them paid nothing and got back BILLIONS of dollars of OUR tax dollars.
A few thousand people in a handful of states, people who don't think about the Common Good, don't care about real Americans who need things like jobs, roads, bridges, hospitals and schools have put into power a greedy, ruthless minority who are sucking the life out of OUR country.
Folks, this shit needs to change.
The only way it's gonna change is if everybody in America Votes in EVERY election. Right now, since so few people vote, the American Extremists have taken over State and Local Governments.
Vote in your local election.
Jump the hoops, sign the stupid documents. Get the ID and do it NOW.
November is coming, the virus will still be here, write your GOVERNOR, of your STATE and tell them you want to vote by MAIL.
At this time, more 80k Americans have died. Let their lives mean something.
Do what you have to do to Vote.
Every Election.
Every Time.
May 4, 2020
College Sports - Creepy and Expensive
I'm no doubt the only one, but I find the fanatical worship of college sports creepy, and I think colleges spend WAY too much money on them.
How about we separate "Church and State" by separating Colleges into Academic and Athletic schools? Maybe not all sports, but certainly Football and Basketball are institutions that don't require academic affiliations.
Why would I see the American Athletic Apple-cart upset?
Well, I'd like to see America offer free college and technical college to all. That means minorities wouldn't HAVE sacrifice their children in the name of COLLEGE SPORTS. The economy would win, minorities would win, there would be a middle class again.
SPORTS FANS would have their own TEAM COLLEGE that could spend all the money it wanted on stadiums, endorsements, (don't forget drugs and hookers). There are only a few jobs in professional sports, a handful of young men get drafted to basketball and football teams every year. Let those who want that life go for it, just not in a college setting.
These Junior League sports teams can call themselves college teams, if they want. Whatever floats the boats of the sweaty old men who leer at young (mostly minority) men, calling them racial slurs and pretending it's about Higher Education, not betting, endorsements, drugs and hookers.
This would allow colleges to concentrate on Academics!
Imagine that! The price of college tuition would drop until it was free, or close to free.
Because, let's face it, a College Education is expensive MAINLY because the Sports Programs get all the money. Why should Jill Average pay for something she'll never do, (Football or Basketball) for the next 20 years of her life, so some handsome, athletic minority boys can be exploited by a bunch of old, sweaty, leering rich white men?
Jill wants a degree, AND a house for herself and her husband and children. Not a 20 year mortgage for a substandard education because SPORTS TEAM needed cars, stadiums, drugs and hookers.
It's silly for hundreds of students like our Jill to pay the inflated salary of a Rick Pitino or Jerry Sandusky - and their legal bills when the abuses come to light. Cut the Football and Basketball teams free, they earn plenty of money on their own and let Academics go their own way.
How about we separate "Church and State" by separating Colleges into Academic and Athletic schools? Maybe not all sports, but certainly Football and Basketball are institutions that don't require academic affiliations.
Why would I see the American Athletic Apple-cart upset?
Well, I'd like to see America offer free college and technical college to all. That means minorities wouldn't HAVE sacrifice their children in the name of COLLEGE SPORTS. The economy would win, minorities would win, there would be a middle class again.
SPORTS FANS would have their own TEAM COLLEGE that could spend all the money it wanted on stadiums, endorsements, (don't forget drugs and hookers). There are only a few jobs in professional sports, a handful of young men get drafted to basketball and football teams every year. Let those who want that life go for it, just not in a college setting.
These Junior League sports teams can call themselves college teams, if they want. Whatever floats the boats of the sweaty old men who leer at young (mostly minority) men, calling them racial slurs and pretending it's about Higher Education, not betting, endorsements, drugs and hookers.
This would allow colleges to concentrate on Academics!
Imagine that! The price of college tuition would drop until it was free, or close to free.
Because, let's face it, a College Education is expensive MAINLY because the Sports Programs get all the money. Why should Jill Average pay for something she'll never do, (Football or Basketball) for the next 20 years of her life, so some handsome, athletic minority boys can be exploited by a bunch of old, sweaty, leering rich white men?
Jill wants a degree, AND a house for herself and her husband and children. Not a 20 year mortgage for a substandard education because SPORTS TEAM needed cars, stadiums, drugs and hookers.
It's silly for hundreds of students like our Jill to pay the inflated salary of a Rick Pitino or Jerry Sandusky - and their legal bills when the abuses come to light. Cut the Football and Basketball teams free, they earn plenty of money on their own and let Academics go their own way.
April 28, 2020
What To Do, Just In Case
How to be more Prepared, without becoming a right-wing nutcase?
Everyone has been affected by The Shutdown. Some of us have been knocked flat on our butts by it, scarcely able to understand what happened. Others are reeling, some drunkenly, just barely keeping their sanity as the world turns upside-down around them.
For some of us, this is another kick in the teeth, another devastating kidney punch that has kicked us off the ladder of 'Success' just as we were getting back on it. No one wants to get caught flat-footed again, but not many people want to become Survival Extremists, either.
What is a rational person gonna do, in case this horrendous virus comes back in the fall? Well, assuming that one is just looking ahead for a return of this pandemic in the fall, let's see what one could do - without going full Doomsday Prepper.
I'm gonna make a few assumptions: this virus will come back in October, my readers have a little bit of money and some room for storage, and are willing to learn to cook.
There's a lot of math involved with this, because everyone's situation is gonna be different. First thing is to read up on portion sizes, and figure out what's gonna work for your situation. Then get a few good recipes for soup, because that's the easiest way to cook several meals using dried foods. Get a crock pot, or some kind of slow cooker and learn to use it.
The easiest foods to put away for 'What If?' are dried foods. Since we are talking about food to buy over the summer, for use this fall and winter, shelf-life shouldn't be an issue. All this stuff will last a year as long as mice and bugs don't get in it. It's all something one could eat over the course of a winter, even if things don't go badly, this food doesn't have to go to waste.
Quick rolled oatmeal for breakfast, two big cans of it, raisins to flavor it, or packets of instant flavored oatmeal. More on that in a minute.
Dried peas, beans, barley, rice, soup starter/mixes, powdered beef and chicken broth, ramen, dried egg noodles, dried milk, dried herbs like bay leaf, basil, oregano, thyme, rosemary, vanilla, and chili powder for dinners. All these need to be in mouse-proof containers, but can be stashed in a tub until needed. I use recycled ice cream containers, and anything else I can get my hands on for this. It doesn't matter what it looks like, slap a label and a date on it, then tuck it into the tub for safekeeping.
Oatmeal in bulk containers needs flavoring. I've found that one packet of cheap instant oatmeal can flavor two cups of plain oatmeal. Just mix it together with water and nuke it according to directions for the bulk oatmeal. The fiber in the oatmeal is good for the digestion, cholesterol, and the carbs are good for energy.
Tissue paper, toilet tissue, laundry detergent, won't fit in a single tub, but pain/fever relieving medication, ant-acids, cold and allergy medicines, whatever your family uses over the course of the winter, will. Just buy an extra generic one, tuck the smaller boxes into the tub with the dried food.
One doesn't have to spend a fortune, just think about it and tuck away an extra bit here and there. I'm assuming money is gonna be tight all summer, so any "prepping" is gonna small scale.
We all know what is in short supply. So this summer pick up an extra one and stash it. Toilet paper, toothpaste, no need to buy a case, just pick up one or two small packages.
I was surprised at the absence of rice in general and brown rice in particular.
We eat a good bit of rice, I keep three or four different rice mixes, so I never thought to stock up on the plain brown rice, because I've got other types in storage. I'm gonna buy a two extra bags for the fall and winter. Just two extra bags, putting it in glass jars and stashing it away. I'm gonna get 5 lbs of white rice, 10 lbs of flour (I bake bread) and 10 lbs of sugar. I will need two large containers, which I don't have at the moment.
The point is to have a extra on hand. However, there's no point in buying things one or one's family won't eat. This is where the extra thought comes in, what and how to cook stuff that the family will eat?
Practice. It's the only way to learn.
Here at Jordan's Croft, I have a pantry. It was the first part of my kitchen that I fell in love with. I keep extras in the pantry. So I have two jars of peanut butter, two jars of jam, four kinds of rice mix, six types of noodles, a case of ramen noodles, an extra bottle of cooking oil, three types of flour, raisins and nuts as well as potatoes, white and sweet, garlic and onions.
We eat a lot of stir-fried foods with either rice or noodles. Years ago I decided that I liked to eat different vegetables stir-fried together instead of just carrots or peas or cabbage. So I just cut up whatever we've got on hand, stir-fry it, put it over either rice or noodles and enjoy.
We really like eating this way. A few staples in the fridge, a bit of rice, some flavorings and dinner!
Anyone can do this. One just needs to find out what works for you and your situation.
How does this work out?
When the store shelves were empty, we still had toilet paper, because there was an extra pack in the guest bathroom. We had everything we needed to make a big pot of beef soup and chicken soup three days later because we had powdered broth, noodles, dried vegetables and herbs, a little bit of beef and a couple chicken thighs stashed in the freezer.
By the the time we were running short, most of the things we really needed were back on the shelves. I needed fresh foods the most, carrots, celery, potatoes, and milk. Frozen vegetables and chicken thighs were enough to keep us eating. We're almost out of oatmeal, but it's back on the shelves, so we are fine. We picked up a small pack of toilet paper one week, and a larger one a week later, never opening the extra pack in the guest bath.
Hope this helps.
Everyone has been affected by The Shutdown. Some of us have been knocked flat on our butts by it, scarcely able to understand what happened. Others are reeling, some drunkenly, just barely keeping their sanity as the world turns upside-down around them.
For some of us, this is another kick in the teeth, another devastating kidney punch that has kicked us off the ladder of 'Success' just as we were getting back on it. No one wants to get caught flat-footed again, but not many people want to become Survival Extremists, either.
What is a rational person gonna do, in case this horrendous virus comes back in the fall? Well, assuming that one is just looking ahead for a return of this pandemic in the fall, let's see what one could do - without going full Doomsday Prepper.
I'm gonna make a few assumptions: this virus will come back in October, my readers have a little bit of money and some room for storage, and are willing to learn to cook.
There's a lot of math involved with this, because everyone's situation is gonna be different. First thing is to read up on portion sizes, and figure out what's gonna work for your situation. Then get a few good recipes for soup, because that's the easiest way to cook several meals using dried foods. Get a crock pot, or some kind of slow cooker and learn to use it.
The easiest foods to put away for 'What If?' are dried foods. Since we are talking about food to buy over the summer, for use this fall and winter, shelf-life shouldn't be an issue. All this stuff will last a year as long as mice and bugs don't get in it. It's all something one could eat over the course of a winter, even if things don't go badly, this food doesn't have to go to waste.
Quick rolled oatmeal for breakfast, two big cans of it, raisins to flavor it, or packets of instant flavored oatmeal. More on that in a minute.
Dried peas, beans, barley, rice, soup starter/mixes, powdered beef and chicken broth, ramen, dried egg noodles, dried milk, dried herbs like bay leaf, basil, oregano, thyme, rosemary, vanilla, and chili powder for dinners. All these need to be in mouse-proof containers, but can be stashed in a tub until needed. I use recycled ice cream containers, and anything else I can get my hands on for this. It doesn't matter what it looks like, slap a label and a date on it, then tuck it into the tub for safekeeping.
Oatmeal in bulk containers needs flavoring. I've found that one packet of cheap instant oatmeal can flavor two cups of plain oatmeal. Just mix it together with water and nuke it according to directions for the bulk oatmeal. The fiber in the oatmeal is good for the digestion, cholesterol, and the carbs are good for energy.
Tissue paper, toilet tissue, laundry detergent, won't fit in a single tub, but pain/fever relieving medication, ant-acids, cold and allergy medicines, whatever your family uses over the course of the winter, will. Just buy an extra generic one, tuck the smaller boxes into the tub with the dried food.
One doesn't have to spend a fortune, just think about it and tuck away an extra bit here and there. I'm assuming money is gonna be tight all summer, so any "prepping" is gonna small scale.
We all know what is in short supply. So this summer pick up an extra one and stash it. Toilet paper, toothpaste, no need to buy a case, just pick up one or two small packages.
I was surprised at the absence of rice in general and brown rice in particular.
We eat a good bit of rice, I keep three or four different rice mixes, so I never thought to stock up on the plain brown rice, because I've got other types in storage. I'm gonna buy a two extra bags for the fall and winter. Just two extra bags, putting it in glass jars and stashing it away. I'm gonna get 5 lbs of white rice, 10 lbs of flour (I bake bread) and 10 lbs of sugar. I will need two large containers, which I don't have at the moment.
The point is to have a extra on hand. However, there's no point in buying things one or one's family won't eat. This is where the extra thought comes in, what and how to cook stuff that the family will eat?
Practice. It's the only way to learn.
Here at Jordan's Croft, I have a pantry. It was the first part of my kitchen that I fell in love with. I keep extras in the pantry. So I have two jars of peanut butter, two jars of jam, four kinds of rice mix, six types of noodles, a case of ramen noodles, an extra bottle of cooking oil, three types of flour, raisins and nuts as well as potatoes, white and sweet, garlic and onions.
We eat a lot of stir-fried foods with either rice or noodles. Years ago I decided that I liked to eat different vegetables stir-fried together instead of just carrots or peas or cabbage. So I just cut up whatever we've got on hand, stir-fry it, put it over either rice or noodles and enjoy.
We really like eating this way. A few staples in the fridge, a bit of rice, some flavorings and dinner!
Anyone can do this. One just needs to find out what works for you and your situation.
How does this work out?
When the store shelves were empty, we still had toilet paper, because there was an extra pack in the guest bathroom. We had everything we needed to make a big pot of beef soup and chicken soup three days later because we had powdered broth, noodles, dried vegetables and herbs, a little bit of beef and a couple chicken thighs stashed in the freezer.
By the the time we were running short, most of the things we really needed were back on the shelves. I needed fresh foods the most, carrots, celery, potatoes, and milk. Frozen vegetables and chicken thighs were enough to keep us eating. We're almost out of oatmeal, but it's back on the shelves, so we are fine. We picked up a small pack of toilet paper one week, and a larger one a week later, never opening the extra pack in the guest bath.
Hope this helps.
September 2, 2019
Food As Art? What?
Any one of this young woman's videos are enough to make one believe that food can be more than Drudgery. Watch several, and become convinced that American's are doing food all wrong.
I had given up gardening when my parents passed, because of The Hoard. It was so overwhelming that I couldn't function. But The Hoard has been gone for two years.
I started watching Liziqi about a year ago. I know nothing beyond what I've seen, but that doesn't matter. It doesn't matter that only a few videos have English sub-titles either. The important part is the inspiration.
Her garden is her back yard, or all her yard is a garden, I'm not sure which. But there are trellises of good things to eat right outside her door. Squashes, tomatoes, roses (she eats roses!), chickens and ducks, pigs and a cow are all right there, within reach. Noodle beans hang down, just begging to be eaten, or fermented, or dried, or a bit of both. I've watched her grind corn and soy beans into pulp and steamed into cakes filled with rose petals.
Most videos show simple food - the meat is chopped right in front of the camera, vegetables are diced or sliced and it all goes into a big Wok. But some dishes are elaborate. Grinding pulp looks like backbreaking work. Still there's something about this process that makes sense.
This food looks -- accessible? Is that a good word? That's what I find inspiring. Walking out of the house into a garden where one can pick dinner off the vine.
The point is this: I can grow the same vegetables that I like best in stir-fry and rice noodle dishes. This year the garden wasn't much. The carrots were tiny, the beets likewise, the Bok Choy was tough as nails. But the yellow and purple beans were great, cantaloupe grew up the trellis, as did the tomatoes.
It was so satisfying to pick it and cook it up, just like girl in the video. I can make my garden an interesting place and enjoy eating food that's a little tiny bit pretty.
This is about progress, not perfection.
So I'm very pleased with going from nasty, over-salted, soggy and disgusting pizza to home-grown and home-cooked food.
The funny thing was the grass that grew up in the garden space was greener than the rest. Even more interesting was the horses and alpacas came in to graze that grass down until it looked liked I'd mowed it. They ate the garlic (what?) and the carrots (I get that), but didn't touch anything else. So I guess that next year I'll put netting over the garlic and carrots and let the grazers enjoy the grass.
