We want to discuss something that might irk a few of you. We hope not. But today we were chatting and realized that …
… ‘folks just don’t read.’
The discussion started when Ellie noticed how many folks on social media will be looking at an image, but instead of clicking on it to see the entire thing, they’ll simply comment “What date is it?” or “Where is this?” In this case, it was a poster for an event that unless you clicked to enlarge it, you couldn’t see all of it. If they don’t click on a pic, do they bother to click on a link, visit a website, actively research, etc? With so much info available at our fingertips (or even just talking into our phones), the huge majority of people will instead ‘just ask,’ never check a website, or even go to a favorite’s page.
When we get that lazy, we’re in BIG trouble. We love to share tidbits of info, ‘quickie lists,’ helpful guides and videos. But if you want to be truly successful, you must research what you need to do for your family and your situation. Reading, researching, and practicing will put you way ahead of the rest of your neighbors.
While watching the video, you can read the transcript by CLICKING HERE.
On top of reading and research, you must also ‘practice.’
We encourage you to include the entire family in the planning and the practice.
Following the recent fast and furious storm, broken pole with telephone, electric, and maybe even cable wires attached!
Small Practice Sessions
Just this past week our area was hit by a fast-moving storm that took out trees, some crashing on cars and houses, and, of course, the power was out. Some areas had it restored in 5-6 hours, while others have waited a couple of days.
I (Ellie) realized that this event was a perfect time to figure out what I had AND what I knew how to use. It also showed me where I wasn’t prepared or had no plan of action.
It was also a small example of what happens when our society feels inconvenienced – even when it’s Mother Nature! I saw a post where someone commented that they’d just arrived home from work and wanted to know “what restaurants were open!!!” No power – restaurants don’t fare well either!
Anyway, reading, learning, and practicing are KEY to your preparedness. Practice so that everyone’s comfortable and knows what to do.
These ‘inconvenient’ moments are a perfect opportunity to practice. If you found a hole in your preparedness, give each family member something to research. Then come back together and make a plan.
Read – Research – Plan – Pratice
You’ve got this. Sam and I believe in you. Start small and with each step you’ll become more proficient. You can do this! Think a weekend of ‘inconvenience.’ Then work toward 30-days! You’ll be surprised how easy it can be – one step at a time!
See you next Sunday Snacks with Sam and Ellie!
NOTE: If you enjoy our life hacks and simple common-sense approaches to sustainability and everyday life, please spread the word. Visit and like our youtube channel and our Facebook page. Sign up for our newsletter – the form’s on the HOME page. Share your thoughts with us on youtube or FB. And, please, share us with your friends. Here’s to your peace of mind because you’re prepared!
Between us, we have over 100 years of experience, and Sam’s only 40!
If you enjoy our life hacks and simple common-sense approaches to
sustainability and everyday life, please spread the word.
Kids love adventures. They love learning new things. But too often they can be easily disappointed by a failure that causes them to feel embarrassed or somehow silly, causing an unwillingness to try again. Or worse yet, that failure may cause them to never want to take on another adventure!
How do we really prepare our kids for adventures in life and do fun things? We think one of the biggest ways is to give them practical experiences, practical experiences including things like going to scouting events, having them take part in our day-to-day lives, and coping with the consequences when they don’t listen.
No, we’re not being harsh here. We’re saying that failing is part of learning. We all know that a baby falls many times before they walk, or a youngster skins their knees while learning to ride their bicycle. But, oh boy, once learned, they’re off and running – or biking – in no time at all. To be confident adults, we need to prepare our children with the tools and experiences to succeed. But we also must help them to see the consequences of choices and to take responsibility. They must experience failure in order to know how to overcome their disappointments.
Join our discussion as we discuss some examples. Then reach out to us and let us know what you think.
NOTE: If you enjoy our life hacks and simple common-sense approaches to sustainability and everyday life, please spread the word. Visit and like our youtube channel and our Facebook page. Sign up for our newsletter – the form’s on the HOME page. Share your thoughts with us on youtube or FB. And, please, share us with your friends. Here’s to your peace of mind because you’re prepared!
Between us, we have over 100-years of experience, and Sam’s only 40!
If you enjoy our life hacks and simple common-sense approaches to
sustainability and everyday life, please spread the word.
Our children turn 18 and the expectation is that they are now ADULTS! Does it happen on their birthday? Of course not, we have to prepare them for the new adventure and journey of entering the adult world. If we’re unhappy that our children seem unprepared, what can we do?
Join Sam and Ellie during Sunday Snacks as they tackle the idea that “18 is NOT a magical number.”
You can follow the transcript by CLICKING HERE while listening to the video.
Our schools don’t teach Home Ec or Woodshop as requirements anymore. And in many homes, mom and dad ‘just do it’ because it’s easier than fighting with the kids.
But that does nothing to prepare our kids to enter the adult world! What can we do to help them out? And no – it’s not better to do it for them!
5 core elements:
Budgeting
Laundry
Cooking
Keeping a tidy home
Maintaining a kempt appearance
In no way, is this list complete. But it is a beginning. Listen in on our discussion. Then let us know what you think.
NOTE: If you enjoy our life hacks and simple common-sense approaches to sustainability and everyday life, please spread the word. Visit and like our youtube channel and our Facebook page. Sign up for our newsletter – the form’s on the HOME page. Share your thoughts with us on youtube or FB. And, please, share us with your friends. Here’s to your peace of mind because you’re prepared!
Between us, we have over 100-years of experience, and Sam’s only 40!
If you enjoy our life hacks and simple common-sense approaches to
sustainability and everyday life, please spread the word.
Today we’re taking the discussion about bug-out bags to the average family. While bug-out bags (or GO-bags) are always mentioned when talking with those who are preparing for the ‘end of the world’ scenario, we’d like to talk about a common sense approach to preparedness.
CLICK HERE to read the transcript while you listen to the video.
Remember, we started this blog shortly after the covid pandemic sent us all into a weird world of masks, shots, social distancing, many losing friends and relatives, and our daily lives interrupted! As is usual, especially in America, folks rushed to the grocery store where you found empty shelves for toilet paper, hand wipes, sanitizer, etc. We were really confused that this rush for toilet paper (and more) occurred all over the country. This led us to consider how we might be better prepared and that, just maybe, average families needed a little help.
Now going on three years of major changes and upheaval in our lifestyles due to the pandemic, we’ve also seen entire communities uprooted by weather disasters and fires. That started us thinking, “What if someone knocked on my door and told me I had 5 minutes – or less – to leave my house. Would I have what I needed to grab available in a matter of minutes?”
Just One Thing!
This video discusses that idea and encourages you to start today. Do one thing – ONE – to begin your bug-out bag escape. Then just keep adding another item. Consider some of the following to get started:
Initial Considerations for your bug-out bag:
Copies of important papers in a waterproof container for all family members (Soc. Sec. card, driver’s license or ID, Passport if you have one, medical information, insurance info, bank info, possibly passwords to accounts, contacts)
Medicines for at least a week, ideally 30 days.
Cash – you’ll need this to buy things when you get to safety.
Personal needs: toothpaste, toothbrush, sanitary items, etc. Travel sizes would work in this scenario.
Phone and Charger
If you have children, you might consider a small item for comfort and maybe a game that can easily be put in a backpack and played quietly. A kindle filled with stories for kids and adults may also help. Of course, you’ll want to be sure to take the charger.
Water – in a moment’s notice you can’t carry a lot, but add a few bottles
Munchies – granola bars, etc that will keep everyone going until you find help
Flashlight and batteries
Let’s not forget our furry friends. Dog/Cat dish, food, water, leash or carrier, etc.
And we added DUCT TAPE and TRASH BAGS! Why? Well, Sam will remind you that “McGyver” could fix anything with duct tape. But seriously, you can wrap a broken arm or leg with a trash bag and duct tape to keep it in place till you can get help. You can create a temporary toilet using a trash bag and a bucket or a hole in the ground. Duct tape can repair a broken handle, a hole in a sleeping bag or backpack, etc.
As we share in the video, preparedness is just thinking ahead. We’ve seen enough to know that, “Yes, it CAN happen to us!” Whether a hurricane or tornado, floods or fires, or even a tree bringing down power lines. You may only be in an emergency situation for a day or two, but it could also be a week or more. Start today to plan ahead. What would you need minimally? What would your children need? What does someone who might be trying to help you need? Then start your bug-out bags, one for each family member.
You can make it a game for the kids. And now and then practice by grabbing the bags and heading to a park. This isn’t about being scared – but being prepared. Then … B. R. E. A. T. H. E. You may not have all the answers, but you’re thinking ahead and making plans. We’ll share more tips as we go along. But for now – let us know what your first item will be in your family’s go-bags.
Remember, a candle in the dark eases our fear. Knowing we’re prepared gives us a bit of that same security.
If you enjoy our life hacks and simple common sense approaches to sustainability and everyday life, please spread the word. Visit and like our youtube channel and our Facebook page. And sign up for our newsletter – the form’s on the HOME page. Share your thoughts with us on youtube or FB. Here’s to your peace of mind because you’re prepared!
I’m here doing a sustainability gardening channel. I am not thinking I am a cool beans. What I am is somebody who has epically failed at tomatoes multiple years in a row.
I used to love growing tomatoes.
Then the last four years, I have really just hated growing them. I grow them because I love to eat them. And they have a definitively different flavor than the ones you get from a hothouse and the grocery store. But what’s my problem. I have been gardening my entire life? Why have I struggled with tomatoes until this year?
Oh, until the end of last year, beginning of this year, I didn’t realize that there were different types of tomatoes. Obviously, I know that there are different breeds of tomatoes, but there are actually, definitively, two different types of tomatoes – actually three.
Determinate – INdeterminate and Semi-Determinate
I just learned that one while doing more research within the last week! The two types of tomatoes typically are determinate, which just flat out means “Bush.” Why can’t they just say, this is a “Bush tomato (determinate) vs indeterminate – vine” – tall, massive tree-like thing. It would make life so much easier if they wrote these things on the tags. Okay, maybe they do and I didn’t know what I was looking for.
If you try to plant them (determinate and indeterminate) the same way and you try to grow them the same way, you’ll have the epic failure that I’ve had every year.
So this year in my garden I put Amish paste tomatoes, and, um, I put six of them in one bed. There are bushing tomatoes. So I’m going to try to use the age-old theory of caging. We’ll see if that works. I’ll keep you posted.
Well, what I wanted to really let you know about in this video is that there are three types of tomatoes, they’re determinate, which are the short bushy ones. Then there are the semi-determinates, which are the three that I staked into my garden in a totally separate bed from the Amish paste tomatoes. They are a Celebrity tomato and are semi-determinate. So I put massive tree stakes and I’m not joking. I put massive tree stakes in the soil next to the plant so that as they grow up, I will be able to continue to trellis them for lack of a better term to that tree stake and not have it fall over every year.
Now, mind you, none of these, these tomato plants, have I grown from seed? I have not. I have bought them at a local nursery.
IMPORTANT: Um, now the one other thing that I learned about tomatoes is they’re in the nightshade family. Something about their leaves is toxic to specifically chickens and I will do more research and get back to you on that.
The Wrap UP
So to wrap up, there were three types of tomatoes. I am going to be trying different methods this year for different kinds of tomatoes. And I will keep you posted on our progress to see if we are successful or just epic failing.
Keep going and keep trying new things in your garden. Like this year, I’ve never potted tomatoes. We’re going to try something new and it’s making me happy. It’s exciting. You’ve got to find that loving thing for you because sustainability is about what lights you up and makes you happy.
If it’s the sustainability of knowing how to make bread in your kitchen when there’s no more yeast, you can do an awesome sourdough! Rock on! If that’s how to be able to wash your dishes or wash your clothes with a washboard when they decide to actually cut off all the water to your house, because wait, they have to replace fire hydrants.
That’s what sustainability is really – kind of going back to those grassroots skills-based things that we all kind of let lapse because of industrialization and just because of the convenience of things.
But as we’ve learned, hopefully, we’ve learned the resources aren’t always available, and sometimes we need to buckle down and know how to take care of ourselves. So enjoy tomatoes, enjoy gardening. Find that one thing that lights you up, people, talk to you later.
Bye bye.
Between us, we have over 100-years of experience, and Sam’s only 39! If you enjoy our life hacks and simple common sense approaches to sustainability and everyday life, please spread the word.
