|
Post by kiwibutterfly on Nov 16, 2021 0:45:00 GMT -6
Thank you
|
|
|
Post by udwe on Nov 16, 2021 6:48:42 GMT -6
Yum!
|
|
|
Post by gipsy on Nov 16, 2021 9:41:38 GMT -6
Thanks for the update.
|
|
|
Post by cavsgt on Nov 16, 2021 9:59:47 GMT -6
Thank You again
|
|
|
Post by texican on Nov 16, 2021 10:49:52 GMT -6
Gil got a pair of garden shears out of Grace's bucket and began cutting okra pods into a river cane hand basket.
My maternal grandmother always had okra in her garden. Love okra fried, boiled, anyway but stewed with tomatoes even if my grandmother cooked it. When I picked okra it was with gloves and long sleeve shirts for the okra plants would eat on your arms and hands. Grandmother would just pick the okra without protecting her hands or arms. Had no idea how she did that. Probably in her genes for grandmother lived two weeks short of being 103.
Laser to cut stone. Would work.
Thanks iam for the chapters.
Texican....
|
|
|
Post by freebirde on Nov 16, 2021 12:28:56 GMT -6
"Laser to cut stone. Would work."
Primitive mining was done by building a fire against a rock face then throwing water on it.
|
|
|
Post by biggkidd on Nov 16, 2021 13:47:11 GMT -6
"Laser to cut stone. Would work." Primitive mining was done by building a fire against a rock face then throwing water on it.Interesting!
|
|
|
Post by ydderf on Nov 16, 2021 13:54:27 GMT -6
Thanks for the update.
|
|
|
Post by papaof2 on Nov 16, 2021 17:24:50 GMT -6
"Laser to cut stone. Would work." Primitive mining was done by building a fire against a rock face then throwing water on it. Laser + water is just updating the tools used in the process centuries ago by having the "fire" in the generator produce heat through the laser. And speeding the process up quite a bit ;-) When the final team of "carvers" was finishing up the carving on Georgia's Stone Mountain, they were using jet torches. We were camped out there for a week during that time - "sort of" camped out, as the wife's uncle took his self-contained trailer out there and set it up for us ;-) It was noisy during the day but seeing the work done was also interesting for a shadetree engineer.
|
|
|
Post by ncsfsgm on Nov 16, 2021 20:16:45 GMT -6
Chapter 83
Brad and Billy were sitting around drinking coffee when Gil, Steve and Harold got to the Chamber. Brad paired off with Harold and Gil, Billy began working with Steve. Harold went over all the peculiarities of the laser and the safety features. It really was simple to operate and was basically "point and shoot." You just had to make sure you had on protective goggles or you could burn your retina. Harold ran the GPR and found a fold in the rock that overlapped and formed the crack he had found the day before. They decided that would be where they would start. Gil took welders chalk and squared out a doorway. He then drew a grid with 1' grid squares and the next had 6" grid squares. They would see which design would remove rock the quickest. Putting their goggles on, Harold turned the laser on and it began slicing through the rock. As it was automatically cut the 1' square out, Brad stood by with the water hose, ready to spray the cracks with cold water. As the laser finished the cut, Brad sprayed a narrow, heavy stream of water into the crack and they heard a "POP."
Gil took a wedge bar and worked the block of stone out of the wall, letting it drop to the floor. It wasn't quite a cube, being only 10" deep. They decided to keep going with the 12x12 squares. It was a steady process after that. Gil and Brad took turns taking the dislodged stone blocks outside in a wheelbarrow and dumping them off the edge of the shelf. By lunch time, they were already over 24" in and the crack had gotten bigger and bigger. Grace, the babies, Mollie and Allie arrived with the makings of burgers to grill on the firepit. Mollie started a fire with the hickory branches and everyone took a break to have large glasses of tea.
"How's it going Steve?" Gil asked.
"We've got the cameras in place, cables run, I'll start setting up the computer after lunch. It really feels good to do some real work."
Brad began flipping the burgers and the ladies set out bowls of chips. After everyone had eaten a couple of burgers, Billy three, they took 30 more minutes and went back to work. Several times, Harold ran the GPR and they would change the direction of the cuts and followed the crack, trying to find its exit. Steve and Harold were having such a good time they decided to stay another day. Of course, the ladies' cooking didn't run them off either.
The next afternoon, Gil turned from the water pump when Brad called out, "Look Out!"
Running over, he saw where Brad had been prying with the bar but instead of the block falling into the chamber, it it split into three pieces and fell out…. through a hole. They pulled the laser away from the wall and Gil peeked through the opening. He could see shaded daylight, but most of his view was of small branches, lots of them. Gil took a tape measure and measured the length of the tunnel and it came out to be 26 feet. The wall was a little thinner here, Gil thought. They continued removing the rest of the stone from the doorway opening. When they finally finished cleaning the doorway up, Gil looked through the Rhododendron branches and thought he could see a tiny glimpse of the 344 bridge through the branches, These bushes had been there a long, long time to have grown this tall. They'd have to trim them back to make an exit. He looked left and right and saw what could be a stone bench, three, sometimes four feet wide running along the side of the ridge.
"Brad, hand me a shovel!"
Brad handed Gil a flat shovel and Gil cleared some of the shelf. As he had thought, it was mostly soil that had come off the ridgeline, mixed with leaves. He walked a little further down and checked again.
"This will make a good route to evade on, or set up a hell of an ambush. The only way to get off the ridge easily and quickly on this side is on this shelf."
Gil squatted with his back against a small tree and visualized what needed to be done here. They needed to get the hole closed or raccoons were sure to find it for sure. They would need to trim the Rhododendrons back also.
"Hey! Are you okay?" Brad called out.
"Yeah, I'm coming!"
"What did you find""
"There's a rock bench going down the ridge toward the river. It would make a decent egress route and if we had Claymore mines, wipe out anyone trying to follow us."
Harold's eyes lit up, ideas rushing through his mind.
"Brad, let's get some lumber and close off this hole or we'll have all kinds of little visitors."
It only took a little while to build a tight fitting door they could close off the tunnel with.
"I'll get a door ordered and get the chamber secured. I guess I'll have to build another wooden door to secure the opening to the bench to keep the bats out."
"Why?" Brad asked. "I've seen those electronic bat repellents down at the Co-op you could put in there. Save yourself, and me, some work."
They quickly put together a door to secure the chamber from the outside. Steve and Billy came in.
"Whoa! You broke through?" Steve asked.
"Yep, worked like a charm!" Gil said. "Are you finished?"
"Absolutely. Come on out and let me show you."
Steve took them to an industrial wall-mounted flat computer with a 20' touchscreen mounted on the wall next to the front tunnel. There were six different camera views showing on the screen.
"These will automatically switch to the night vision cameras after nightfall. If you want to examine a particular camera view, just touch the view and it will go full-screen."
"This is good." Gil said. "This is good."
"I've got another computer on a wireless link I'll mount in the house. It will give you the same view down there."
"Well, let's close up and go down to celebrate."
They all went down to the house and while Billy and Steve installed the computer, Grace made a pitcher iced tea and one of lemonade. Gil added six ounces of the 148 proof 'shine to the tea and took the pitchers and glasses out on the deck.
Steve and Billy were soon back and reached to fill a glass. When Billy reached for the tea pitcher, Gil stopped him.
"Nein, der Tee ist für Erwachsene. Die Limonade ist für dich." (No, the tea is for adults. The lemonade is for you.)
Billy looked at Gil and nodded.
"Woo Hoo! This tea has a little kick!" Grinned Brad.
"Now this I can drink!" Steve said. I'm with good friends, we've successfully completed project, and everyone is happy. However, I will limit myself to one glass. Like Brad said, this stuff has a little kick. "An abwesende Genossen. Prost!" (To absent Comrades. Cheers!)
"Prost!"
|
|
|
Post by ncsfsgm on Nov 16, 2021 20:19:35 GMT -6
Chapter 84
The next morning They hauled the cutter back down to the airfield. Before crating it, Brad and Billy helped Harold wipe it down. Replacing the hold-down bolts and the top and sides, they finished preparing the load for transport. "Jim will be here at 10:30 with the gear, The heavy-lift will be here at 1300." Steve said.
"Gil, thank you for the opportunity to come here. After seeing what you've set up here, I've got a lot of reworking of my plans to do."
"Steve, It was great having you around, and thank you for the loan of the cutter. Anything we can do to help you, let me know." Gil replied. "Oh, I've got something for you."
Gil reached in the back of the Power Wagon and took out a long box containing a Mississippi Rifle, a Whitworth, bullet molds and the Beals with a spare cylinder.
"You've probably got a good place to hang these. Just don't say where you got them."
Steve grinned. "Thanks Gil. Let's get together some time."
"Will do, Buddy."
They watched as the heavy-lift and Steve's helicopter turned slowly and headed west.
"Well, what now?" Brad asked.
"I've got to put the potato plow on the tractor. I want to get the red potatoes out of the ground today."
The women came down and helped Brad pick up potatoes and place them in ½ bushel baskets. They ended up with almost seven bushels of potatoes. They hauled the potatoes over next to the greenhouse to start brushing the dirt off of them with a soft brush. Gil had a sudden epiphany.
"Grace, Brad and I will get the potatoes cleaned, Why don't ya'll start on the carrots?"
"Okay."
Gil got two 12' 2x4s and three 8' 2x4s and a roll of ½" mesh wire cloth and he and Brad built a cleaning table. They could clean the potatoes and leave them to let the breeze blow them completely dry, which would take less than a half of an hour, place them in 5-lb capacity net bags and tie them shut. While the potatoes were drying, they could begin cutting the dried roots and scapes and peeling the husks off of the onions. The husks were saved for later to store the carrots. The finally had the onions and garlic bagged and continued working with the potatoes.
The girls came over and began trimming the tops off of the carrots and discarding the tops into a basket, to be tossed on the compost pile. As they cleaned and bagged the carrots, they added the onion husks to the bags to keep the carrots from rotting. When Billy came down after finishing his studies for the day, Gil had him start hauling bags of vegetables to the storage chamber to hang on the racks they had built there just for that purpose.
"Gil, we're going to do the broccoli tomorrow. I'd like to set the gas burner outside again to do the blanching."
"No problem. I'll set it up first thing in the morning."
They were tired at the end of the day, but happy and satisfied they had gotten so much accomplished.
Gil got the gas burner set up ad already filled a large pot with water and had it simmering. Getting out another large pot he got four gallon jugs of ice from the freezer and hit each jug several times with the spike, breaking the ice up in the jug, split the plastic and poured the ice into the shock pot. When he was done, Gil went inside for another cup of coffee.
"The blanching and shock pots are ready. Is there anything else you need before we go pick up the pig?"
"No, I can't think of anything. Allie and Mollie are down cutting the broccoli now. "Did you know Allie spent the night in Brad's trailer?" Grace whispered.
"Nope. Gil said, taking a sip of coffee. "None of MY business."
"Yes, you're right. Are you going to salt cure the hams?"
"Yes, salt cure and smoke them, which is my next project. I want to build a smoker and smoke some jerky this year."
"When is deer season?"
"Bow season starts in two weeks. I'm glad you mentioned that. I need to replace the mineral blocks."
Gil went out and hooked the tilt trailer to the Power Wagon. Stopping by to pick up Brad, they went to pick up a 250 pound hog to take to Hirschfeld's for processing.
They got the hog loaded in the trailer, tied quarter inch ropes onto the legs of the hog, jerked and brought the hog down on it's side. Quickly tying the feet together they headed for the processor
"Guten Morgen, Herr Hirschfeld!" (Good Morning Mr. Hirschfeld!)
"Guten Morgen Herr Conner! Was haben Sie heute für mich?" (Good Morning Mr. Conner! What have you for me today?")
"A live pig." Gil said.
"Gut!" Do you wish pudding made with the blood?"
"No, you can keep it. I do want the legs and shoulders set aside whole for curing and smoking."
"Very well. I will call you when everything is prepared."
Gil backed the trailer to the slaughter pen, tilted the trailer and slid the hog out.
Mr. Hirschfeld and his son came out, the son preparing a winch cable and single tree to haul the hog up and set a tin tub close by. Mr. Hirschfeld took a .22 pistol our of his pocket and shot the hog between the eyes, the son quickly slitting the legs and attaching the singletree. Pressing the winch button Mr. Hirschfeld hauled the hog into the air while his son kicked the tub under the hog. Grabbing the hog by the ear, the son slit its throat, draining the blood into the tub.
"We'll be going now, Mr. Hirschfeld." Gil said.
"I will call you."
Gil made two stops going home. First to the Farmer's Co-op to pick up the bat repellent and two 50-pound bags of curing salt, then to the building supply center to get materials to build a smoke house. He wanted to make it plenty big with adjustable vents.
|
|
|
Post by ncsfsgm on Nov 16, 2021 20:22:30 GMT -6
Chapter 85
The women came down and helped Brad pick up potatoes and place them in ½ bushel baskets. They ended up with almost seven bushels of potatoes, hauling the potatoes over next to the greenhouse to start brushing the dirt off of them with a soft brush. Gil had a sudden epiphany. "Grace, Brad and I will get the potatoes cleaned, Why don't ya'll start on the carrots?"
"Okay."
Gil got two 12' 2x4s and three 8' 2x4s and a roll of ½" mesh wire cloth and he and Brad built a cleaning table. They could clean the potatoes and leave them to let the breeze blow them completely dry, which would take less than a half of an hour, place them in 5-lb capacity net bags and tie them shut. While the potatoes were drying, they could begin cutting the dried roots and scapes and peeling the husks off of the onions. The husks were saved for later to store the carrots. The finally had the onions and garlic bagged and continued working with the potatoes.
The girls came over and began trimming the tops off of the carrots and discarding the tops into a basket, to be tossed on the compost pile. As they cleaned and bagged the carrots, they added the onion husks to the bags to keep the carrots from rotting. When Billy came down after finishing his studies for the day, Gil had him start hauling bags of vegetables to the storage chamber to hang on the racks they had built there just for that purpose.
"Gil, we're going to do the broccoli tomorrow. I'd like to set the gas burner outside again to do the blanching."
"No problem. I'll set it up first thing in the morning."
They were tired at the end of the day, but happy and satisfied they had gotten so much accomplished.
Gil got the gas burner set up and already filled a large pot with water and had it simmering. Getting out another large pot he got four gallon jugs of ice from the freezer and hit each jug several times with the spike of his tomahawk, breaking the ice up in the jug, split the plastic and poured the ice into the shock pot, then filling the pot with water. When he was done, Gil went inside for another cup of coffee.
"The blanching and shock pots are ready. Is there anything else you need before we go pick up the pig?"
"No, I can't think of anything. Allie and Mollie are down cutting the broccoli now. "Did you know Allie spent the night in Brad's trailer?" Grace whispered.
"Nope. Gil said, taking a sip of coffee. "None of MY business."
"Yes, you're right. Are you going to salt cure the hams?"
"Yes, salt cure and smoke them, which is my next project. I want to build a smoker and smoke some jerky this year."
"When is deer season?"
"Bow season starts in two weeks. I'm glad you mentioned that. I need to replace the mineral blocks."
Gil went out and hooked the tilt trailer to the Power Wagon. Stopping by to pick up Brad, they went to pick up a 250 pound hog to take to Hirschfeld's for processing.
They got the hog loaded in the trailer, tied quarter inch ropes onto the legs of the hog, jerked and brought the hog down on it's side. Quickly tying the feet together they headed for the processor
"Guten Morgen, Herr Hirschfeld!" (Good Morning Mr. Hirschfeld!)
"Guten Morgen Herr Conner! Was haben Sie heute für mich?" (Good Morning Mr. Conner! What have you for me today?")
"A live pig." Gil said.
"Gut!" Do you wish pudding made with the blood?"
"No, you can keep it. I do want the legs and shoulders set aside whole for curing and smoking."
"Very well. I will call you when everything is prepared."
Gil backed the trailer to the slaughter pen, tilted the trailer and slid the hog out.
Mr. Hirschfeld and his son came out, the son preparing a winch cable and single tree to haul the hog up and set a tin tub close by. Mr. Hirschfeld took a .22 pistol our of his pocket and shot the hog between the eyes, the son quickly slitting the legs and attaching the singletree. Pressing the winch button Mr. Hirschfeld hauled the hog into the air while his son kicked the tub under the hog. Grabbing the hog by the ear, the son slit its throat, draining the blood into the tub.
"We'll be going now, Mr. Hirschfeld." Gil said.
"I will call you."
Gil made two stops going home. First to the Farmer's Co-op to pick up the bat repellent and two 50-pound bags of curing salt, then to the building supply center to get materials to build a smoke house. He wanted to make it plenty big with adjustable vents.
Gil checked with the women to see if they needed anything then went out to search for a site for his smoker. He finally found the perfect place. He could place the smoker a foot above the fire box he would build with the blocks they cut out of the chamber. Coming up at an angle from the firebox would be clay pipes to carry smoke into the smoke box. Gil's mouth watered thinking of the things he could smoke.
Gil and Brad spent the rest of the afternoon digging holes for the corner posts and running clay pipes and leveling the angle vents. It was something on the order of a Dakota stove, but the emphasis was on smoke. They added notched rests to hang jerky and sausage links and the large jerky racks. They would finish up the walls the next day. Putting all their tools in the Gator, they parked it in the shop for the night.
The babies squealed when Gil came into the house.
"Let me washed up first guys!" Gil said, heading upstairs to grab a quick shower.
As he topped the stairs, he heard their wailing. Quickly taking a shower and putting on a T-shirt and running shorts, he headed back downstairs and with the help of a laughing Grace, got a baby in each arm, walked around the kitchen, talking to them.
The last of the vegetables were being harvested out of the garden. The Russet potatoes were to be taken up tomorrow. There were two long rows of those and it would take all day to get them up and bagged. He'd need to reattach the potato digger in the morning.
Grace and Gil were watching the news after the babies went down.
"Is there no common sense left in Washington?" Grace asked.
"Not that you could tell. There's either something in the water or they all are so drunk on power and the desire to maintain it, they've forgotten who they are representing."
"Can't someone do something?"
"What can you do? They have power, getting richer every day, and are already dyed in corruption. Nothing short of a neutron bomb will ever clean up Washington."
The next day after breakfast, Gil hooked up the potato plow, well that was actually a misnomer. It actually was a potato harvester, laying the potatoes out on the top of the ground. The digging of the potatoes didn't take that long and soon Gil was down with the rest, filling baskets with potatoes. Taking the potatoes to the cleaning table to clean the dirt from the potatoes, the spuds were inspected and were culled out if they hand any nicks or cuts, to be used as soon as possible. The rest were bagged and taken to the storge chamber and the bags hung on a rack.
Gil and Brad didn't get back to the smoker until the day after the Russet harvesting. Adding fireproof insulating panels and covering everything with a metal roof and board and batten siding made from the old barnwood, completed their project.
Gil got the meat back from Mr. Hirschfeld and immediately injected the hams and shoulders with his curing solution and laid them in prepared salt boxes covered by his special dry curing mixture. These would be kept in a freezer set at 38 degrees in the basement for 18 days. If the hams and shoulders were ready at that time, he would begin the smoking process.
Allie came to Gil and Grace's house after dinner.
"Gil? Do you have a minute?"
"Sure, come on in."
Gil guided her to the Great Room where Allie sat down next to Grace.
"Gil, I see on the inventory we have four canisters of black pepper. This will go stale pretty quick after breaking the seal. It would be better to stock peppercorns and grind fresh.. The pepper wouldn't go stale so quickly."
"You have my ear. Make it happen."
"We'll need to order pepper grinders."
"Like I said, make it happen. Anything else?"
"Baking soda. It has a lot more uses than just cooking. You have only two pounds in storage."
"Sounds like we need a Sam's and COSTCO run. Why don't you all get a list together and we'll go to Knoxville. Oh, and Allie, check and see if there's a local supplier of honey. It grows hair on my chest."
"You've got enough now, you goofball!" Grace said.
|
|
|
Post by gipsy on Nov 16, 2021 21:16:02 GMT -6
Thanks for the update.
|
|
|
Post by udwe on Nov 16, 2021 23:13:57 GMT -6
Thank you!
|
|
|
Post by kansasterri on Nov 17, 2021 19:29:59 GMT -6
I had no idea that onion husks would retard spoiling! I might try that next year: I already froze what we will not eat fresh
|
|
|
Post by gipsy on Nov 17, 2021 19:37:36 GMT -6
I did a search and there are several articles about that for you to peruse.
ncsfsgm I have a question as to what makes up your immunity supplement selection.
|
|
|
Post by ncsfsgm on Nov 17, 2021 20:19:38 GMT -6
I did a search and there are several articles about that for you to peruse.
ncsfsgm I have a question as to what makes up your immunity supplement selection. 1 Multivitamin 1000 mg Vitamin C 1000 mg Chaga 1000 mg Quercetin 200 mg Zinc 50 mg Vitamin D3 400 mg Magnesium 1000 mg Apple Cider Vinegar 500 mg Elderberry extract
I've been taking most of these supplements for over 30 years. I quit taking the flu shot around 30 years ago. The last time I can remember being sick, except for a bout of colon cancer in 2018, was a chest cold during a field exercise in the Appalachians back in 1978.
I first heard of the China virus back in December of 2019. I added some supplements after I realized there wasn't anything normal about the whole situation. I still consider the virus to be an experimental biological attack. I have not taken a jab, don't intend to, and will draw down on anyone who tries to to make me. I am 70 years of age. I've been shot, gored, stabbed, and injured in blasts. I'm not afraid of dying. If the Lord decides to use the virus to send me on my next PCS, then so be it.
|
|
|
Post by gipsy on Nov 17, 2021 20:30:02 GMT -6
I take half of those myself and am doing well. I have 6 years on you.
|
|
|
Post by gipsy on Nov 17, 2021 20:47:18 GMT -6
I have another question. What in the world is Liver pudding?
|
|
|
Post by iamnobody on Nov 17, 2021 21:02:34 GMT -6
I have another question. What in the world is Liver pudding? I hope you are ready for the answer.....
|
|
|
Post by biggkidd on Nov 17, 2021 21:39:20 GMT -6
Jeez we need to come up with some old prepper jokes like old fishermen jokes! lmao I can say that since I hit 50 this year. lol
|
|
|
Post by ncsfsgm on Nov 17, 2021 21:49:36 GMT -6
I have another question. What in the world is Liver pudding? Liver pudding, sometimes call "Liver Mush", is made up of cooked ground up pig liver, parts of pig heads, cornmeal and spices. Don't mistake it for Souse Meat or Head Cheese. Once cooked, it can be pressed into whatever form you want. It can be eaten cold or fried. Think of it as poor man's liver pâté.
|
|
|
Post by freebirde on Nov 17, 2021 22:16:08 GMT -6
Small electric coffee grinders make good spice grinders. Peppercorns are not the only spice that last longer if kept whole. If you like extra fine salt, like popcorn salt, have one just for salt.
|
|
|
Post by gipsy on Nov 17, 2021 22:18:17 GMT -6
Well I just had to ask didn't I.
|
|
|
Post by bluefox2 on Nov 18, 2021 6:49:25 GMT -6
Jeez we need to come up with some old prepper jokes like old fishermen jokes! lmao I can say that since I hit 50 this year. lol Kids I am with the author. I haven't taken a flu shot in 20-25 years. I dealt with two types of cancer about 20 years back and am still around to annoy people. My wife makes sure I get a fistful of vitamin supplements every morning. Only one person in my family has gotten the shot and doesn't push the rest of us about it. This thing is an experiment and I don't like to be part of experiments.
|
|