What Preps are you doing this week? Part 10

[Kiwififer]

Kiwififer have you tried any of the other chemists? Might just be Boots? I get mine on prescription down here but haven't ordered any lately.

A few and other than Solpadine you can’t get any.

I have till Friday to get some as they are for my holidays. Last thing I want is my back going ping over there.

[jansman]

Well,I am pleased to say that the vegetable garden is in good nick. Plants are all planted,and perennials are already cropping. Just got to keep the worst weeds at bay ( I don’t try to get a perfect picture-book garden) and keep watering in there. Doesn’t take long,and I find it therapeutic in an odd way. Once the end of June is here and gone there is very little watering needed,apart from the tunnel. Minimum work.

My Kitchen Project is all but completed now. I am pleased that the house,storage ,emergency supplies and equipment are now in a place for my wife when I eventually move on because of my illness- although I am hoping for longer than only another year!

Also,I will put the kitchen fire extinguisher and fire blanket in a suitable place. Along with emergency torches and headlight. They aren’t hidden in cupboards,but ready to grab when needed.
The battery powered approach lighting is now all over the house. It’s up to date and discreet too. In the event of a powercut we will not have to rifle around for torches!

At the back we have a broken guttering and a slipped slate. That’s tomorrow. No rain forecast,so slate first,then I’ll sort the gutter. I’ll nip round to my neighbour and borrow the roof ladder . We have a * borrow/ lend* arrangement. Have for the last thirty years.

That’ll do for this week. Fishing is now my priority.

[jennyjj01]

Had another hour dedicated to pulling out B*****d mares-tail shoots. This is going to be a lifetime running battle: ...
Objective: About an hour a week, NEVER to let any shoots reach 100mm above ground and pull out at least 100mm of root, each time.

And again, and again. and again!!!
... So an hour a week is not going to cut the mustard.

Done more weeding and sowing

My wonderful Mora knife arrived and has been christened as a marestail digger outer weapon, teasing out a nice 3" of root.

Last few days have been tied up in real life stuff, but I managed just a couple of weeding sessions of 2 hours each. over the course of 7 days. It's not enough, but take it or leave it, that's all I could spare. It is therapeutic, a mix between satisfaction and frustration.

Each time, again, I harvested a half bucket of marestail shoots up to about 4" high. I have done some experimental spraying with 'the good stuff' on a bed that I've yet to tackle, but I'm mostly attacking by knife.
My carrots have started to germinate, so I can't weed a big area. Damn!
Some critter has wiped out my peas included the second lot, though my beans seem to have mostly escaped. The courgettes seem to have got murdered too except the one in the compost tardis. I've planted out some tomatoes and they seem happy enough. Spuds are looking healthy. Strawbs are fighting it out with weeds without much help from me. Beetroot just starting to germinate in situ.

Weeds other than marestail and bindweed are being given a pass this week, cos I had no spare time to hoe.

[Medusa]

Life has been busy over the last few weeks so a few jobs have been neglected. We failed to plant any spuds this year, gave the squashes a miss as they spread everywhere but give a tiny harvest. Everything else is thriving. Planning for winter 23/24, need to chop the wood we have, order a couple of deliveries of logs and order a delivery of oil. Food stores are OK, still a bit of organising to do and continuing to top up other household essentials. Replaced a smoke alarm which had gone faulty and made me incredibly nervous until we replaced it and now have a fire blanket to go with the extinguisher. Still need to put up the additional CCTV camera which I have had for 6 months to cover the back garden. Security alarm was serviced today and the back up battery replaced.

[Yorkshire Andy]

Few jobs this week allotment tinkering, sisters intruder alarm needs some TLC fortunately I can sort it ...
Got her some CCTV cameras to put up too been a few burglaries down her street closest next door but one.... Who's just had a local alarm firm fit a full system.... Sisters got one but she's inherited a cat so got pet friendly PIR's so flea ball can patrol the house without the alarm going off when he decides to do the curtains at 3am

Ordered a new rucksack for my holidays / edc less surplus looking for the airport

The boss lady has done her EFA@W course today so is a qualified first aider and I've my refresher / requalification next month 3 full days for me since work let it lapse .... So I get an extra days skiving for the admin Mistake


Ordered another couple of smart emergency lightbulbs so I've got most of the rooms covered in the event of power cuts this coming winter... I gave one to my dad last winter for the top of his stairs he was talking about putting up a emergency bulkhead light fitting so the bulb kept my mother happy over having an industrial light screwed to the ceiling ever the industrial sparky function and price over form

[jansman]

I am like you Yorkshire Andy. Always stuff to do around the house. Because we have a good weather forecast right now,I got my slipped slate sorted yesterday,and whilst up there replaced the lead flashing on the big chimney. Today further down and a section of guttering to replace. One thing a builder told me years ago - keep the house waterproof before anything else. So true.

An old schoolmate of mine is a landscape gardener,and he had a truck full of ash fence posts to move on. That’ll be a chainsaw job,so whacked and stacked ready for Winter burning. I like ash,good firewood. Good job we have a huge garden as we have a minimum of two Winters supply right now. Can’t beat warming the house up for zero costs!

I am glad that we reduced our food storage volume too this year. We are holding ample supply in the pantry for two of us. Also tastes have changed. So there is no wastage now,which is something that makes grocery shopping expensive.

Now I have finished fitting a new kitchen,the fire extinguisher and blanket have been put into a better position. It was no big deal without them,as we have three others in the house,but I prefer belt and braces! I don’t worry about fire safety in our home: it’s the idiot neighbours we are joined to. Their burning bathroom springs to mind, but thankfully we can now be amused by it.

That’s all the major DIY sorted for our Family Castle now. From next week I start regular fishing. I am a member of the disability group that I used to volunteer for and help . They pick me up and bring me home. Disability is an interesting concept. I used to help ex servicemen mainly ,and particularly blind or poor sighted ones. As I am ex service,we had a lot in common and some good fishing! Now the chap who will fish with me has been round to discuss my disability ( seizures) so he can deal with it if it rears it’s head. And the best? He was a Royal Marine too! We will have a laugh I am sure ,which is far better than whinging. We also have easy rules about what can and cannot be chatted about , as cheerfulness is the main target. So ironically NO politics or news! However,general blokey p*ss taking and effing and jeffing is.!

The prepping angle of that disability ? Not worrying about what I cannot change. Given that my MacMillan nurse told me that 1 in 2 born from 1960 is likely to get cancer,then ( for me) stressing about whatever is irrelevant. Indeed back in the day,the blind soldiers I fished with were the same.

Of to enjoy my garden now.

[diamond lil]

Attitude and mindset is also part of prepping JM, that sounds perfect what you're doing. Here chez Lil there isn't much prepping at all going on really. More a period of sitting back after major cut backs, and thinking what next.. Cos there's always a *next* isn't there

[jansman]

Attitude and mindset is also part of prepping JM, that sounds perfect what you're doing. Here chez Lil there isn't much prepping at all going on really. More a period of sitting back after major cut backs, and thinking what next.. Cos there's always a *next* isn't there

Absolutely Lil.x

[Vitamin c]

choping wood for next winter ,then felt guilty thinking of my chimneys emissions and its effects on our planet.

[jansman]

choping wood for next winter ,then felt guilty thinking of my chimneys emissions and its effects on our planet.

Well I am cutting wood at industrial level. Gonna get more smokeless coal in too. I don’t worry about emissions- it’s currently legal. We will use petrol to get shopping,take me to hospital and live now. A lot of houses have gas. Most have electricity. It has to come from somewhere!

The food we buy is formed via fossil fuel. The clothes and shoes need it. Even the water pumped to houses,and sewage being pumped away and treated are done via fossil fuels.

Even solar panels and wind turbines need fossils to be made ,maintained and replaced!

I don’t know about you,but my prepping is about staying alive now,not stressing about stuff a hundred years away and more.