Ex-John Edwards mistress Rielle Hunter tries to block ‘private and personal’ video | The Daily Caller - Breaking News, Opinion, Research, and Entertainment
is there anyone left in the public eye that hasn't made a sex tape with someone other than their spouse?
Friday, January 29, 2010
hmm, starting to think about spring!
So I'm starting to think about spring already. I always plant flowers and a small garden each year. This year I'm thinking a bit bigger. I've read several gardening books so far. My favorites so far are "The Backyard Homestead" and "The Self-Sufficient Life and How to Live It." I have a few others on my list at the local library. ***Key*** Check out what your local library has to offer before you hit Amazon. There are some really good materials out there, and some that are not so hot, at least for me. So I check out a book from the library, pour some time into and then decide if I think I need to purchase it for my stockpile. Sure, living in a rural area my selections are limited, but the library combined from reviews and recommendations on line are helping me streamline what I think I should have on hand for reference.I don't see much point in spending a bunch of money on books that I may or may not glean anything from when that money would be better spent on rice or building a dehydrator.
So, I have a nice big backyard, for living in town, I am working on a plan to convert more of my yard to food production than I have in the past. I'm not super woman, nor do I plan to do this all at once. I have prioritized what I feel I should definitely get moved or started this year, and what can wait until next year.
First, flowers that serve no purpose other than decoration-bye bye! There are plenty of fruit bearing plants and herbs that will produce beauty with a purpose. Given that I live toward the northern end of Zone 5 I need to be careful when considering my choices. Along with books, I am utilizing my University Extension website for tips and ideas on what grows best in my area. But, I must also consider what I've grown in the past, what's done well, and what hasn't.
For example, I live in the corn capital of the universe, however, after several failed attempts I know that corn doesn't like my backyard. However, if I go a mile down the road to my in-laws, corn grows easily. So, I'll use that space in my yard for something else and convince my mother-in-law to let me use some of her lawn to grow corn. (wish me luck on that one!)
My husband works for one of the largest fertilizer producers in the country, yet this year I plan to start composting so that down the road, I'll have what I need, just in case.
Plus, in the past I've grown things that I like, but most of my household won't touch - green peppers - so I'm going to container a few things that aren't well received and give that space over to something we go through tons of - like more onions.
I'll post my crop plan when I get it finalized. If you have any ideas, please leave me a note.
So, I have a nice big backyard, for living in town, I am working on a plan to convert more of my yard to food production than I have in the past. I'm not super woman, nor do I plan to do this all at once. I have prioritized what I feel I should definitely get moved or started this year, and what can wait until next year.
First, flowers that serve no purpose other than decoration-bye bye! There are plenty of fruit bearing plants and herbs that will produce beauty with a purpose. Given that I live toward the northern end of Zone 5 I need to be careful when considering my choices. Along with books, I am utilizing my University Extension website for tips and ideas on what grows best in my area. But, I must also consider what I've grown in the past, what's done well, and what hasn't.
For example, I live in the corn capital of the universe, however, after several failed attempts I know that corn doesn't like my backyard. However, if I go a mile down the road to my in-laws, corn grows easily. So, I'll use that space in my yard for something else and convince my mother-in-law to let me use some of her lawn to grow corn. (wish me luck on that one!)
My husband works for one of the largest fertilizer producers in the country, yet this year I plan to start composting so that down the road, I'll have what I need, just in case.
Plus, in the past I've grown things that I like, but most of my household won't touch - green peppers - so I'm going to container a few things that aren't well received and give that space over to something we go through tons of - like more onions.
I'll post my crop plan when I get it finalized. If you have any ideas, please leave me a note.
Thursday, January 28, 2010
dont romanticize.
There was a grandma I adored, and one - not so much. Now, I can glean lessons from her - kinda.
The other was quite a bit older than my favorite and had survived the dust bowl in eastern Colorado dirt poor with just her, her sister and their young widowed mother. I'm not sure if it was the debt their much older father left her mother with when he keeled over (he was an awful man by all accounts) which led to both of the girls growing up so malnourished for so long that neither one would ever be able to bear a child. Or the fact that after years of work and sacrifice by them and their mother, my grandmother within months of graduating from college found herself and everyone they knew struggling yet again as the Depression gripped America that led her down the path which eventually turned her into, well, just a miserable person.
This particular woman, and I mean that in EVERY sense, had money stashed in banks in 3 different states, not to mention physical cash hidden in 2 houses, yet she still felt the need to stand in the back yard over an open fire with a giant pot making her own lye soap. She still drove the car her husband had purchased in 1965. She even saved the foil wrappers that margarine sticks came in and would wrap potatoes in them for baking stating that that was plenty of butter on a potato for anyone. In a sense now I appreciate her frugality.
I also now recognize that she was also a tad bat-shit crazy. I spent A LOT of time with this woman - A LOT. This was a woman that only purchased clothes from The Jones Store, only bought the same kind of nylons and undergarments year after year, meticulously pined her hair every single night of her life and slept like a corpse in casket. You know, flat on the back, hands folded across the chest - super creepy. She also measured herself each and every day of her adult life as far as I know. Let me explain. She had this long metal ruler in the top drawer of her dresser. Each morning she would take out the ruler, lie back down and place the ruler across her hips. If her belly came close to touching the ruler, that day she worked twice as hard and ate half as much as the day before.
As an adult now, I'm pretty sure there's a clinical term for her - probably several (not to mention drama queen of the universe) . Still now, for all her strange meanness, I can kind of see some things I should have paid more attention too.
She never through anything away until it was worn out past the point of repair. She did all her own yard work, mending, cooking, canning, cleaning, preserving and financial planning. She survived her husband by 30 years yet I have no doubt that she was this kind of driver long before he was gone. I'm not sure whose idea it was to adopt a child, but I've always had an inkling that it wasn't her. Even though she was a teacher, I always got the impression that she had a certain distaste for children. She didn't like to go anywhere in public with my younger siblings. She thought they had been babied to the point of uselessness. Me, well, she tolerated me. I don't think out of any real affection, but because she had me so much of the time that I was properly trained. I was dressed by her in clothes far beyond anything my parents could afford. My hair was perfectly set every night I stayed at her home. My little black patent mary jane's were shined spotlessly. My coat and pocketbook always matched and I wore jewelry which I was never allowed to wear out of her sight. Precious little necklaces, bracelets and my gold "baby" ring which was always tied to my wrist with a pink ribbon. I was taken to church, to ladies circle, to visit at her friends and relatives homes. My siblings and mother were never brought along. I was the little doll to show off and therefore acceptable to be seen with.
Why am I droning on about this? Well, first off I guess I haven't thought about any of this in probably 10 years and now that I have it's just sort of all pouring out. Also because as some of us are looking back to a "simpler" time for guidance on how to be prepared, yes, there are valuable lessons to be learned. But I think it's important not to romanticize the past. Our grandparents, and great grandparents did not live inside Rockwell painting. They were real people-just like us. And they were just as messed up as we are. So if you can't seem to work on your "old skool" skills 10 hours a day like "grandmother" did, don't sweat it. They weren't all that we would like to make them into.
The other was quite a bit older than my favorite and had survived the dust bowl in eastern Colorado dirt poor with just her, her sister and their young widowed mother. I'm not sure if it was the debt their much older father left her mother with when he keeled over (he was an awful man by all accounts) which led to both of the girls growing up so malnourished for so long that neither one would ever be able to bear a child. Or the fact that after years of work and sacrifice by them and their mother, my grandmother within months of graduating from college found herself and everyone they knew struggling yet again as the Depression gripped America that led her down the path which eventually turned her into, well, just a miserable person.
This particular woman, and I mean that in EVERY sense, had money stashed in banks in 3 different states, not to mention physical cash hidden in 2 houses, yet she still felt the need to stand in the back yard over an open fire with a giant pot making her own lye soap. She still drove the car her husband had purchased in 1965. She even saved the foil wrappers that margarine sticks came in and would wrap potatoes in them for baking stating that that was plenty of butter on a potato for anyone. In a sense now I appreciate her frugality.
I also now recognize that she was also a tad bat-shit crazy. I spent A LOT of time with this woman - A LOT. This was a woman that only purchased clothes from The Jones Store, only bought the same kind of nylons and undergarments year after year, meticulously pined her hair every single night of her life and slept like a corpse in casket. You know, flat on the back, hands folded across the chest - super creepy. She also measured herself each and every day of her adult life as far as I know. Let me explain. She had this long metal ruler in the top drawer of her dresser. Each morning she would take out the ruler, lie back down and place the ruler across her hips. If her belly came close to touching the ruler, that day she worked twice as hard and ate half as much as the day before.
As an adult now, I'm pretty sure there's a clinical term for her - probably several (not to mention drama queen of the universe) . Still now, for all her strange meanness, I can kind of see some things I should have paid more attention too.
She never through anything away until it was worn out past the point of repair. She did all her own yard work, mending, cooking, canning, cleaning, preserving and financial planning. She survived her husband by 30 years yet I have no doubt that she was this kind of driver long before he was gone. I'm not sure whose idea it was to adopt a child, but I've always had an inkling that it wasn't her. Even though she was a teacher, I always got the impression that she had a certain distaste for children. She didn't like to go anywhere in public with my younger siblings. She thought they had been babied to the point of uselessness. Me, well, she tolerated me. I don't think out of any real affection, but because she had me so much of the time that I was properly trained. I was dressed by her in clothes far beyond anything my parents could afford. My hair was perfectly set every night I stayed at her home. My little black patent mary jane's were shined spotlessly. My coat and pocketbook always matched and I wore jewelry which I was never allowed to wear out of her sight. Precious little necklaces, bracelets and my gold "baby" ring which was always tied to my wrist with a pink ribbon. I was taken to church, to ladies circle, to visit at her friends and relatives homes. My siblings and mother were never brought along. I was the little doll to show off and therefore acceptable to be seen with.
Why am I droning on about this? Well, first off I guess I haven't thought about any of this in probably 10 years and now that I have it's just sort of all pouring out. Also because as some of us are looking back to a "simpler" time for guidance on how to be prepared, yes, there are valuable lessons to be learned. But I think it's important not to romanticize the past. Our grandparents, and great grandparents did not live inside Rockwell painting. They were real people-just like us. And they were just as messed up as we are. So if you can't seem to work on your "old skool" skills 10 hours a day like "grandmother" did, don't sweat it. They weren't all that we would like to make them into.
Hi. Its Me!!!
Hi there everybody! (more like the 2 people that have actually looked at this blog.) I just wanted to point out the link on M.D. Creekmore's site. I think you might recognize the author of this reader feedback.
Friday, January 22, 2010
This is a site that I have found helpful.
I'm not sure why with the thousands and thousands of survivalist, prepper, preparedness (yada yada) sites out there why I return to this one over and over. Oh, I know. Perhaps it's because M.D. Creekmore doesn't preach gold and guns at me with every post. I mean he's a guy so yes, guns make him giddy. But this site doesn't make me feel that because I'm not living on a compound in the wilderness I'm somehow not taking any of this very seriously. There are other sites that I find useful and I'll post those from time to time. I just want you to know that Creekmore has an e-book called, "It's the end of the world as we know it - and I feel fine." available for free download on his site. It's pretty concise, which I appreciate, because I don't have hours and hours each day to spend doing this stuff. I do still have a life...and a job...and 3 kids...and, and, and!
I'll start reviewing some of the multitude of books I have read next week.
Please remember all of my opinions on sites, books, whatev- are based on my point of view. I'm just a middle class, middle of the road, middle of America mom. If you disagree, please feel free to jump ship and find another blog. I won't take it personally. However, if you do agree, please drop me a note and let me know.
OOOO, just remembered. I'm going to try really hard to give you some pictures of my favorite things this weekend. We'll see how far I get!
I'm not sure why with the thousands and thousands of survivalist, prepper, preparedness (yada yada) sites out there why I return to this one over and over. Oh, I know. Perhaps it's because M.D. Creekmore doesn't preach gold and guns at me with every post. I mean he's a guy so yes, guns make him giddy. But this site doesn't make me feel that because I'm not living on a compound in the wilderness I'm somehow not taking any of this very seriously. There are other sites that I find useful and I'll post those from time to time. I just want you to know that Creekmore has an e-book called, "It's the end of the world as we know it - and I feel fine." available for free download on his site. It's pretty concise, which I appreciate, because I don't have hours and hours each day to spend doing this stuff. I do still have a life...and a job...and 3 kids...and, and, and!
I'll start reviewing some of the multitude of books I have read next week.
Please remember all of my opinions on sites, books, whatev- are based on my point of view. I'm just a middle class, middle of the road, middle of America mom. If you disagree, please feel free to jump ship and find another blog. I won't take it personally. However, if you do agree, please drop me a note and let me know.
OOOO, just remembered. I'm going to try really hard to give you some pictures of my favorite things this weekend. We'll see how far I get!
Awake! Finally, took me long enough!
So, I woke up last year and started looking at the world around me. I'm not sure what took me so stinkin' long, but whatever, I'm awake now. And let me tell you, some of the things I see now scare the hell out of me. So what's the point? I mean, sure things stink on ice, but hey, what are you going to do about it. Well, that's just it. Or I should say this is just it.
First I decided to prepare myself and my family for whatever comes. It doesn't really matter what the "it" is. It could be economic collapse, pandemic, asteroid (not holding breath). Or just something as everyday as job loss or family illness. Whatever the "it" is, I am now convinced that most, if not all, of us face some sort of "it" during our life.
I then turned to "dear internet" as a source of planning, preparing, you name it. I found a lot of good solid stuff. I also found a lot of weirdo's. (a lot) Good stuff I found was in the form of a few well written, concise, non-sky is falling books. I will review some of them in upcoming posts. I also found a few really good sites that I felt better served a person like me. Middle of the road, in middle America.
Now that I am on this path, I get a few (ok, more than a few) strange looks from others that I have shared this information with. Most think I'm suffering from an early mid-life crisis or that I've gone off the religious deep end. Neither is true. I just woke up.
The purpose of this blog is more of a journal for myself. I want a record of where I started and where I'm going and how I get there. Perhaps a few will join me along the way. If so, come on along. I'm sure it's going to be one heck of a ride.
First I decided to prepare myself and my family for whatever comes. It doesn't really matter what the "it" is. It could be economic collapse, pandemic, asteroid (not holding breath). Or just something as everyday as job loss or family illness. Whatever the "it" is, I am now convinced that most, if not all, of us face some sort of "it" during our life.
I then turned to "dear internet" as a source of planning, preparing, you name it. I found a lot of good solid stuff. I also found a lot of weirdo's. (a lot) Good stuff I found was in the form of a few well written, concise, non-sky is falling books. I will review some of them in upcoming posts. I also found a few really good sites that I felt better served a person like me. Middle of the road, in middle America.
Now that I am on this path, I get a few (ok, more than a few) strange looks from others that I have shared this information with. Most think I'm suffering from an early mid-life crisis or that I've gone off the religious deep end. Neither is true. I just woke up.
The purpose of this blog is more of a journal for myself. I want a record of where I started and where I'm going and how I get there. Perhaps a few will join me along the way. If so, come on along. I'm sure it's going to be one heck of a ride.
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