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I've been thinking recently that my approach to living more self-sufficiently is rather slapdash. I hear about something, and if I think it sounds useful and good, I research it. If it looks plausible, I try it. And hopefully it works out well and brings me closer to being self sufficient. In...

I was wondering if there was anyone here who lives in the extremely rainy Pacific NW who has done straw bale gardening. I tried it in Colorado but it was SO dry and hot there that it didn't work well at all. I would think that the rain we get here (I'm in Oregon) would be ideal for straw bale...

I thought I was pretty well set for most common "emergencies" that are likely to happen around here. I have my supplies, I've read up on how to use them, I felt pretty good. So when the lights went out Christmas Day (after dark), I whipped out my stuff to put together olive oil lamps. I got...

I am looking for a better way to handle having a very, very, VERY many things to compost. I am happy to have this problem! I'm used to having a single pile, I just add new things to one side of it and sort of stir them in, and when I want a small amount of compost I just use a shovel to dig...

I am pressure canning some homemade dog food - a mix of rice, veggies, and turkey. It's my very first time canning. It's supposed to be canned at 11 lbs of pressure. But I can't get it to settle at 11 lbs. I know every time the pressure dips below 11 lbs, I have to start my timing over. That's...

Good afternoon, all! I have the opportunity to pick up two lambs at a really good price. Up to date on worming and vaccines. Four months old. What are the plain basics of lamb/sheep care that I would need to know? I believe I've read everything and am ready to handle this, but I'd hate to get...

I'm excited. My mom was going to give me her old one, but when I was there a couple weeks ago, she couldn't find it. So she told me to pick out one online and she'd buy it for me! Woohoo! BUT - I thought I knew what I was looking for, but the more I look the more questions I have. Hoping you all...

I am seriously considering toilet training my cats. I have three of them, all indoor. I'm TIRED of the cost of kitty litter. The stuff that actually does a good job on the odor is just too expensive. So - toilet training. I've read as many sites as I can find, watched videos, read tutorials...

I went swimming on Saturday for several hours, and got an awful sunburn. My face and chest are healing in the typical sunburn timeline, but my shoulders are still bright red and very tender. International date line stuff makes this confusing, but for me, the Saturday I got the burn was 84 hours...

My hands are sooo sore. :( I just completed three "loads" of manual laundry. I mean COMPLETELY manual laundry - no bucket, no plunger, no wringer, no laundry line! I do have a bathroom sink, and a shower stall, but both lack a plug to keep the water from draining out. We are currently in the...

I have been wondering about this a lot lately. Most of my self-sufficiency attempts are working well. I had no problem adding chickens to my lifestyle. Doing a compost heap worked almost textbook perfectly. The mealworm farm produced lots of bugs for the chickens to eat. Even after moving from...

OK. When I was young, I was raised that if a food item sat on the counter for more than an hour or so, that it might have gone bad and to throw it away. This applied ESPECIALLY to dairy items. Everybody knew somebody who ate egg salad at a picnic and ended up in the hospital, or someone who left...

I goofed yesterday and instead of putting some unused bread dough in the fridge overnight, I left it on the counter - and just found it now. So 24 hours on the counter instead of the fridge, and it smells very... "beery with an extra kick of sour" is probably the best description of the smell...

What do all of you use for daily storage in your kitchens? I mean for things like the few pounds of beans or rice or potatoes (or whatever) that you don't put up in long-term storage because you're going to use them in the next few days. I enjoy being able to see my stored edibles, so I keep...

I know there is likely to be a wide range of answers, because everyone's climate and tree size will be different, but that's OK. With the stores here selling shelled walnut meats at almost $10 per pound, it is becoming more tempting to buy the unprocessed ones fresh from the trees that people...

Today I made homemade sunflower-seed and honey bread. YUM! That said, I do have to add a bit of salt to each slice, because when I lowered the amount of salt in the recipe to account for the salt that was already on the sunflower seeds, I apparantly lowered it too much. So that brings me to my...

I have read a few how-to instructions on how to raise your own fish (usually tilapia) in an extra-large water trough in the yard. Seems completely doable, but the instructions are not too long on troubleshooting if something goes wrong. I'm hoping to find people who have done so in the past (or...

I have a quart of raw goat's milk in the refrigerator that isn't drinkable. I'm not the only one grouchy about this batch, apparantly the goats got into the molasses and it affected the milk's taste for a couple days. It's REALLY strong, and I don't like it. Smells fine, the taste is all wrong...

How do I get it off? I was making an overly-large batch of applesauce, and did not realize a ring of it was burning on the bottom of the pan. I can't get it off! It's been two days. Scrubbing, soaking, boiling, soap, detergent, baking soda, vinegar, more scrubbing... I get color in the water...

Hello! My name is Diane, and I have lurked on this board and its sister sites for a while now. Guess it's time to start a journal and begin keeping track of all the great things I'm learning! Plus, I just relocated from Colorado to Oregon. That means a new house, new yard, new foraging areas...