Friday, March 26, 2010

OOPS! Hybrid and non-hybrid seeds...my mistake

Hey everyone,
In my excitement to get that last email out to you, I made some mistakes with my verbage in regards to the hybrid (regular, one-season seeds) and the non-hybrid (heirloom) seeds. My bad! So if you are confused...you are not alone. Here is the difference between the 2:

Hybrid = type of seed that you canNOT harvest seeds that will harvest/grow again and bear fruit. You grow it, eat it, the end. You may get a volenter plant come up from it a time or two. But you cannot harvest seeds from it. This is the kind sold nearly exclusively at our stores. They have been breed to have certain desirable qualities. I have heard that they do not have as much nutrition for you as the other kind of plants made from the other seed, but they can be more disease resistant.


Non-hybrid = Heritage. It has not been 'bred.' It is in it's original unchanged form. Man has not done his stuff to this plant. These two words non-hybrid and Heritage are the same. You can use these words interchangably. Many of these seeds came over from the Mayflower. They are hardy. You can harvest their seeds, and they will reproduce (and put the seed growers out of business). Supposedly they are more "pure", meaning the fruit has a richer color and taste.


**For our emergency preparedness purposes, we are offering the HERITAGE, NON-HYRBRID seeds. Vegetables, 25 varieties, $37. Herbs, 11 varieties, $32. If you are interested, email me at foodstoragenow@gmail.com

Thursday, March 18, 2010

PREPAREDNESS FAIRS IN CACHE VALLEY

This Saturday
North Logan Preparedness Fair; Sat. March 20th; All invited! 11:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. at the LDS Church Building on 1800 N. 400 E. Will include info. about turning off utilities, food storage, power generators, 72-hr. kits, gardening, sanitation, financial aspects, fire extinguishers, building solar ovens and emergency handcarts etc. 12 and older. Direct questions: Jeff Jorgensen; City Administrator and Director of Emergency Services; 752-1310 ext. 14.

Next Saturday

CACHE COUNTY PREPAREDNESS FAIR
Saturday, March 27, 2010
1:00 to 6:00 p.m.
Mountainside Elementary
235 East 125 North
Mendon, UT

Wednesday, March 10, 2010

LESSONS LEARNED FROM A FIRSTHAND ACCOUNT OF THE CHILE EARTHQUAKE

I have a brother who experienced the earthquake in Chile, firsthand, as an LDS missionary. Not only that, he was in the most damaged area, Concepcion. So I wanted to take from his experiences and see if we could learn a few lessons that might help us in our preparedness efforts, since earthquakes seem to be happening on a more frequent and severe basis. It could happen to any of us.

1) They had to evacuate the area immediately because of the danger from aftershocks (falling buildings and debris) and even more perilous, the looters. From what I could gather, he only had time to grab a couple pair of extra underwear and his camera (the most important things LOL). Lesson learned: Have 72 hour kits and other important items accessible and ready to go at a moment’s notice. There may not be time to gather food, water, extra clothing if it is not close by.
2) They had to go to a neighboring city where the danger wasn’t so great and because public transportation was totally full, they ended up hitch-hiking and catching a ride with a horse drawn buggy (cool…but a little stressful under the circumstances. And last time I checked there weren’t a heck of a lot of horse drawn buggies in these parts.) Lesson learned: Have the car full of gas, an extra tank if possible, and even some cash available for travel (or to pay someone to get you there). Or even have another means of transportation available, i.e. four-wheelers, bicycles, etc.
3) The pre-determined meeting place was damaged to the point that they couldn’t gather there, so they ended up going to the neighboring city to find another. Lesson learned: Have a pre-determined plan in place of where you can meet up with your family; have a plan B and C also.
4) The utilities, including electric and phones, were out for a long period of time. Even cell phones were out of service. Lesson learned: Have back-up communication, and make sure you have a place to meet up if all communication is down. A good solar- or battery-powered radio is great to have when you need to know what’s going on. Also, be prepared to be without utilities and electricity. What will you do for warmth? Cooking? Light?
5) They had a major problem with looters which still continues. Lesson learned: Be prepared to be able to take care of your family and home in whatever way you think is best, and know that your home may be raided if you have left it.
6) Most stores are STILL not in operation, 2 weeks later. The group of missionaries pooled their money together to buy food and water, but many of the people are still struggling to find food; thus, the looting out of desperation in many cases. Lesson learned: Food and water storage are imperative, as well as all other items that you must have, i.e. medications, sanitation items, etc. How long could you live without a store? A good way to find out is to try it now; start small and learn to plan for longer and longer periods without visits to the store, i.e. start with one week, then 2, then a month, etc.
7) Aftershocks are happening on a daily basis; many are 6 and 7’s. They are constantly on the watch. Many of these happen during the night. Lesson learned: Once the “main” earthquake has hit, be prepared for more. Make sure falling hazards are secure, have an exit strategy wherever you are, have some shoes and a flashlight next to your bed in case you need to get out during the night.

Tuesday, March 2, 2010

CASE LOT DATES

If you miss out on some things during this months' caselot, or can't afford all that you want to get, Macey's is doing theirs during April so that may help in your planning. http://preparedldsfamily.blogspot.com/ has a great list of things that typically go on sale each month so you know what to be looking for.
Ridleys: March 2-16
Fresh Market: March 3 - 9
Macey's: April 7 - 27
Lees: March 1-14

Monday, March 1, 2010

MARCH PREPAREDNESS CHALLENGE

My goals for this month in preparedness...join me! I've heard of several people (myself included) that invest a portion of their tax return in preparedness each year...you might consider it for your family.

1) Stock up on food storage at case lot: If you saw my last post, you'll know that I'm actually excited for this...wierd. Anyway, case lot always seems to roll around right when my storage is looking pretty thin...so I'll go blow a couple hundred bucks and that might make me feel better :) We'll try and list some of the best deals.

2) Research back up cooking sources. We want to look at our options so when summer comes around with good pricing on camping gear, we will know what we want to purchase.

CASE LOT!

Hey folks, case lot sales are starting this week at Associated Food Stores in Utah! I know how strange I am when I get excited about this and it is re-affirmed when I get strange looks in the grocery store when I'm dragging around two carts full of goodies (like canned corn, yick :) Check out the ads and see what's on sale, and stock up while prices are good! If we see any fantastic, don't-miss-it-deals, we'll let you know. Happy shopping!