Hitch Up the Horse, Ma...We're Goin' To Town!

Hitch Up the Horse, Ma...We're Goin' To Town!

You may laugh at the above absurdity, but in all reality, with soaring fuel costs, oil-producing countries in civil turmoil, and our own government blocking any oil or gas explorations in our own country, the days of hopping into the car to go wherever you want at a whim may be drawing to a close.

Gas may be dropping a bit, but it's still around $4.00 a gallon in most areas. Our modern lifestyles have to adapt to emerging realities and empty wallets. You have to make your dollars and purchasing power go much farther than you've traditionally done before. It doesn't matter if it's turning off the cable, disconnecting the cell phones and keeping the land line (or vice versa), eating out less (or not at all!), or using coupons and "Double Coupon" days to stretch a family grocery budget...

...prosperity, as we've known it in modern times, may be at an end.

But it doesn't mean that a different prosperity isn't yours!

As a nation and society, we have always judged success by the toys and possessions that we have accumulated. Let's admit it ... we're a VERY materialistic society. One only has to witness the bludgeoning at Walmarts across the nation on Black Fridays to realize this. People will trample each other to death to catch a deal on a toy, for heaven's sake!

But the day is coming when a different type of possession will classify you as rich or poor. What am I talking about? It's not something that any big box retailer has in stock. It's not anything that any public or private school will impart to you in class. And it's something that is so rare, that few people in this country possess it...

That possession is a back-to-basics knowledge...

...and your success at this lifestyle will determine whether you prosper or not in an economically depressed future.

For example, when gasoline prices rise enough to make trucking foods cost-prohibitive, what you can get locally will be your only option. There are many areas of the country where small farmers are next to non-existent. Skills you learn about gardening and preserving food will be the skills that keep you and your family from going hungry. Gardening, however, is making a resurgent comeback, and more and more people are learning how to grow their own vegetables.

But what about livestock? Do you have even a rudimentary knowledge about raising ducks or chickens? What about goats or sheep? Could you shear a sheep and spin the wool for yarn? Did you know that llamas can be used for wool as well?

Or if you or a loved one got sick, would you know which herbs to use to help comfort them? Could you make a tincture of herbs or use them cosmetically? Would you know how to build a composting toilet if the public sewage systems were to go offline?

Do you know how to build a smokehouse or a root cellar? Or how to make pickles or which vegetables should be eaten fresh as they don't freeze well?

We've lost the arts and skills that those people knew, the knowledge about how to make it out of hard times alive, with food in our bellies and clothes on our back.

Don't wait until all hell breaks loose before learning these skills for yourself. At the very least, you should have a book or two in your library to study and for reference, even if you don't plan on putting the things you learn into effect right away. From Off The Grid.

 

How are your gardens coming along? It doesn't matter if you're working an acre of dirt or a couple of container pots, this year may be the most important year for putting food by. Two extremes--droughts and floods--seem to be par for the course across the nation. If for some reason you can't garden because of circumstances, location, or the weather conditions, then begin buying canned foods in bulk now. Many farmers are reporting damaged and lost crops, and government regulations continues to turn perfectly good food into biofuel, lowering the availability of staples and increasing the prices on grocery items. Preparation is as much about keeping your finger damp and in the air, testing the way the economic winds are blowing, and then responding appropriately. Off the Grid.

 

Chicken Cordon Blue Casserole

8 boneless chicken breast

8 slices deli ham

8 thin slices Swiss cheese

1 1/2 cans cream chicken soup

1 cup sour cream

1 tsp garlic powder

1 tsp dried parsley

1 tsp salt

1 tsp black pepper

1 pkg. dry bread stuffing

 

Preheat oven 350 F. Place chicken in greased baking dish. Lay slice ham then cheese on top of each breast. Combine soup, sour cream, garlic powder, parsley, salt and pepper. Mix until well blended, pour over chicken. Cover tightly with foil and bake 30 min.

 

Mix bread stuffing mix with just enough hot water to moisten. Spread over top of casserole and bake uncovered 15-20 min until browned.