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Post by cashless1 on Feb 22, 2024 11:07:28 GMT -6
I do not know where all of the readers and writers have gone. but here is a little bit of my story
CHAPTER 31
The next day Will and Julie came to our house to help us with the list. First thing we decided was to plan stocking 25 houses to be safe, the girls wanted canning jars, lids, and rings in pints and quarts and half gallon. Then, all American pressure canners and water bath canners. Juicers both manual and electric. George said if we are going to have to butcher hogs and beef, we will need commercial meat saws, grinders and slicers, don’t forget a lard press, 5-gallon mylar bags, Vacuum sealers, sealer bags of all sizes and more food grade buckets with Gamma seal lids. Hell, just raid a couple of butcher shops and clean them out, then get extra cutters and blades for the equipment. Do not forget butcher paper and freezer tape and marking pens. That only took about 15 minutes. Now to figure quantities of each, Jan said jars first 200 quarts 100 pints, 12 half gallons for each house, 25 of each type canners, preferably All-American pressure canners, and 25 juicers. I ask why so many juicers? Gabby said she did not want to clean up equipment after somebody did a half assed job of cleaned it. And not everybody took care of things like they should. We will need grain mills for making flour and cornmeal, try to get Diamant 525 mills. at least, 12 some people will have to share but Jan wants her own. Will ask about dehydrators? So, I put them on the list. Kay wanted to know why the all-American canners does it make a difference; don’t they all do the same thing? Jan told her they did not have a gasket to wear out. I told the girls to think about anything else we would need and add it to the list. Immediately they started to name more things, potato peelers, can openers, meat thermometers, candy thermometers tongs and ladles. I stopped them and said put it on a list, but we can probably find all you want of those things in houses. In fact, we can go looking in abandoned houses for jars and the other things on the lists, Sarge’s people can radio the Major to cancel anything we do not need. With that out of the way George, Will and I went to the barn to take inventory of what we had and what we needed; the list is growing.
I took the lists to the Major and told him every item had a number and we would not use the name only the item numbers. It had worked before doing it that way. He said he was leaving 6 more people here when he left.2 couples and 2 single men.
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Post by cavsgt on Feb 22, 2024 12:01:11 GMT -6
THANK YOU !!!!!!!!!!!!
Don't know where everybody went but we are still with you and enjoying your efforts.
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Post by gipsy on Feb 22, 2024 12:37:58 GMT -6
We are still here so just keep writing, please.
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Post by NCWEBNUT on Feb 22, 2024 13:18:04 GMT -6
We are still here so just keep writing, please. Yes This
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dannab1
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Post by dannab1 on Feb 22, 2024 13:55:55 GMT -6
I'm reading! Enjoying your work. But was sure wondering where the writers are myself!
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Post by gipsy on Feb 22, 2024 14:14:07 GMT -6
Perhaps they, unlike some of us, have real jobs?
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dannab1
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Post by dannab1 on Feb 22, 2024 21:34:39 GMT -6
Perhaps they, unlike some of us, have real jobs? Haha, so true!
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Post by feralferret on Feb 22, 2024 21:44:46 GMT -6
Those of us who are retired do have a bit more opportunity to monitor the board. Reading is also a lot faster than writing stories. Thank you to all of those who write the stories.
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Post by rep1270 on Feb 23, 2024 8:16:34 GMT -6
Thank you. Ralph
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Post by iamnobody on Feb 23, 2024 12:25:58 GMT -6
But was sure wondering where the writers are myself! Well my muse turned out to be one of those bad women. She left me and ran off with another writer. He promised her lots of expensive restaurants, fancy clothes, luxury vacations and a pampered life. So she dumped me, laughing and calling me a poor writer as she walked off hand in hand with him. Now she is calling me, saying she is so sorry and wants to come back to me. She says the writer turned out to write horror stories and keeps her chained to a wall, making her work 24/7 as he collects all the royalties from the stories.......
I refuse to take her back.
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Post by gipsy on Feb 23, 2024 14:16:50 GMT -6
Smart move.
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Post by sniper69 on Feb 23, 2024 14:56:51 GMT -6
But was sure wondering where the writers are myself! Well my muse turned out to be one of those bad women. She left me and ran off with another writer. He promised her lots of expensive restaurants, fancy clothes, luxury vacations and a pampered life. So she dumped me, laughing and calling me a poor writer as she walked off hand in hand with him. Now she is calling me, saying she is so sorry and wants to come back to me. She says the writer turned out to write horror stories and keeps her chained to a wall, making her work 24/7 as he collects all the royalties from the stories.......
I refuse to take her back. Maybe there will be a 2 for 1 loyal writing muse sale at the writers emporium. (yes, two muses means you would write twice as many stories, lol).
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Post by cashless1 on Feb 23, 2024 15:33:27 GMT -6
Sorry, I did not intend to start a riot with my comments.
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Post by iamnobody on Feb 23, 2024 18:10:29 GMT -6
Sorry, I did not intend to start a riot with my comments. Cashless, you have nothing to be sorry for.
I am sorry for hijacking your story with my poor attempt at humor. My apologies to you.
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Post by bluefox2 on Feb 23, 2024 19:49:28 GMT -6
Those of us who are retired do have a bit more opportunity to monitor the board. Reading is also a lot faster than writing stories. Thank you to all of those who write the stories. What is this retirement that you speak of? I have retired twice, still work full time and find time to read all of the stories here that I like
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Post by feralferret on Feb 23, 2024 20:16:44 GMT -6
Those of us who are retired do have a bit more opportunity to monitor the board. Reading is also a lot faster than writing stories. Thank you to all of those who write the stories. What is this retirement that you speak of? I have retired twice, still work full time and find time to read all of the stories here that I like It sounds like you haven't quite gotten the hang of retirement, or else you get bored mighty easily. Maybe you'll get it right the third time.
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Post by gipsy on Feb 23, 2024 20:19:36 GMT -6
I did it three time and now have it down pat. Keep trying.
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Post by 223shootersc on Feb 23, 2024 20:33:36 GMT -6
I retired last March for two weeks! Started back working part time and now it is almost full-time again and I think they really want be back 60 plus a week. That is not going to happen!
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Post by bluefox2 on Feb 23, 2024 21:29:14 GMT -6
What is this retirement that you speak of? I have retired twice, still work full time and find time to read all of the stories here that I like It sounds like you haven't quite gotten the hang of retirement, or else you get bored mighty easily. Maybe you'll get it right the third time. Being as I am 76, I am sure that this time around will be my final retirement. I have put 17 years in this time around. all of it driving time since I work for a delivery company.
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dannab1
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Post by dannab1 on Feb 23, 2024 22:42:59 GMT -6
Muses are some fickle creatures!
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Post by cashless1 on Feb 25, 2024 18:35:34 GMT -6
CHAPTER 32
The next morning, we left George and Kay to hold down the fort and watch the kids. We met up with 3 couples from the townies and went savaging for the things on the list. Up until now it had been mostly the men doing the salvage work, the women had a whole different outlook on things. And a different approach to gathering things.
The only thing the men had to do was give protection for the women and carry things to the trucks. When we got the suburbs, we could tell there had been nobody around for a long time, there were no footprints on the sidewalks or porches. We would split up, each couple taking a house. If the house was locked, we would break in, doing as little damage as possible. Jan had a 5-gallon bucket in each hand and headed straight to the kitchen. I was instructed to see if I could find laundry baskets or clothes hampers. She would just dump the silverware and kitchen utensils in a bucket, then sort through pots and pans, taking only the best. I gave her the baskets and she loaded up on dish towels. If she found a jar lifter or jar funnel or anything canning related, I was sent to look for jars and canners, usually in the basement. If I found any, we just left the canner in front of the door as we left, we would come back later with boxes and trailers. In the bathrooms she loaded the baskets with towels and wash cloths, then she started filling garbage bags with bedding. After we did 10 houses Freddy and Gabby stayed at the trailers trying to sort out and combining like items, while the rest of us continued gathering. We found such a volume of things, if we left a canner on the porch, we left the bagged clothes and bedding inside, for pick up later. We had 5 pickup trucks loaded to the gills and headed to a couple of restaurants to get some buss pans to help with the sorting and storing things in. We had gone through 34 houses and 3 restaurants; we were all exhausted by the time we got home, and it was almost dark, so we just put the trucks in the garages to unload tomorrow. We did take several things off the Majors list. Jan wanted to look through farmhouses and rural property for more canning things, she thought there would be more there than in the suburbs, and she was right AS USUAL. We can take jars and canners off the list. The girls took notes on things we did not take, just what was there and the addresses for the future.
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Post by feralferret on Feb 25, 2024 19:32:53 GMT -6
Cashless1, glad your muse stopped by. Thank you for the new chapter.
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Post by gipsy on Feb 25, 2024 20:20:05 GMT -6
Fine update.
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Post by ydderf on Feb 26, 2024 12:32:19 GMT -6
Thanks cashless1 for the update
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Post by cashless1 on Feb 26, 2024 16:30:44 GMT -6
CHAPTER 33
Every group now has a new pole barn built, green houses in operation, and we have enough canning supplies and equipment cleaned and stored to last a lifetime. The only thing missing is canning lids, we have plenty for current use, but they get old and do not seal. The Major is looking for tattler reusable lids for us. We did get a lot of things off his list. We now have a running list, if somebody thinks of something we need it goes on the list, then if we see something on the list, even if we are not exactly looking for it, we can grab it. We should have had the women involved from the start. Their needs and ideas are a lot different than the men’s. I guess hindsight is 20-20. Oh well live and learn.
We have gathered up lumber and now are putting a loft in our pole barn, so we have enough room for hay storage. The first cutting of hay will be the end of May, the wheat should be harvested in late June and the straw baled then. Then the second hay cutting is around the 4th of July. The townies and GIs help us get the big projects done. We also help them as needed. The women have taken over the green houses and the gardens, so that takes some of the pressure off the men. We help them as needed, but they have it under control. Fred is looking at pastures in the neighborhood to cut and bale this is the busiest part of the year for us. Late July and August will slow down some, but the gardens will be exploding, we will be helping pick and prepare things for canning. After Labor Day will be time to do the 3rd cutting of hay, picking corn and oats. In our spare time we have been helping the townies get a couple of root cellars built, they have been using Georges, but that is not big enough for all of them. Without concrete we are using railroad ties held together with 10-inch landscape spikes.
Our loft is complete. The loft is 18 ft wide down each side with an alley 12ft wide down the center and 72 ft long. That will store a lot of hay and straw. Plus my old pole barn, we built horse stalls on each side we made them 16x 14 ft each, 3 on each side of the alley, with doors to the outside of each stall. We have been rounding up water tanks and building feed troughs and hay mangers, so we will be ready when we get the horses. We even have enough lumber to build more stalls if needed. The townies have been doing the same thing, we do not want to get the horses and not have a proper place to keep them. We have been collecting grooming brushes and hoof picks when we found them. We are ready, NOW WE WAIT.
With horses coming we will need a lot more corn and oats. George is plowing some fields that have not been planted for a while. With all the chickens, turkeys milk cows and beef cattle plus pigs we are becoming a large operation, not even counting the horses.
George is training one of the teenage townies to help him and replace him when the time comes. All the kids are adapting to the old ways pretty good. I have not heard of any abuse going on, but if a butt needed spanked it got spanked. And the kids learned that lesson really quick.
Wills wife is trying to hold classes to keep the kids educated. She has been collecting schoolbooks and supplies every chance she gets. It is not mandatory, but every family just sends their kids. If things get busy, usually spring planting, and fall harvesting school is canceled for a few days. Julie set it up that way and no one complained, they were just happy the kids were getting some education. It is just a few hours a day because Julie has her own things to get done. The young girls are learning to cook and do the things their parents had to relearn, just to survive. The boys are not exempt from cooking and learning household chores either.
We are not teaching them how to do things, they are helping the adults and learning how. kind of on job training. It is not unusual to see a 14-year-old girl driving a tractor pulling a hay bailer with a couple boys riding the rack stacking hay. They have all done with the adults enough to know how to do it safely. It is not all work and no play for the kids they have time to do their own things after super is over and dishes are done, they are free to do whatever they chose. This is the way things were done 100 years ago. It worked then and it is working now. The young people get the respect they deserve and are not ignored. They are part of things, and it shows.
The Major is expected back in a couple of days, we have everything ready for when he returns.
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