PM's Self Reliance Tools: grocery savings

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Saturday, April 28, 2012

Easy Corn on the Cob for a Crowd, Frugal Food Storage. Grocery Cycles

Bruce’s Poor Man Survival Bulletin

A Digest of Urban Survival Resources

http://www.PoorManSurvival.com

For Independent Minded People!

ISSN 2161-5543

In This Issue:

1. Best way to cook corn on the cob for a crowd

2. Grocery Sale Cycles, Frugal storage tips

3. Hide in Plain Sight

4. Free know-how from Tractor Supply

5. If I wanted America to Fail-Panic Now-Avoid the Rush

No matter what anyone may say
about making the rich and the corporations pay taxes,
in the end they come out of the people who toil."
-- Calvin Coolidge
(1873-1933), 30th US President

We live in an age of paranoia where many of us believe that foods go bad long before their time is up. We confuse sell-by and best-by dates with expiration, and doing so involves tossing out an item when it's still entirely edible. We often refrigerate foods that don't require refrigeration.

When a food looks and smells fine, chances are it is but I found that many people don't think that's true. I left out cooked green beans overnight and asked people on Twitter and Facebook to take bets if I would get sick. While many people assumed I'd be fine, about as many figured I was headed for disaster. If you believe leaving a vegetable out on the counter for about a day is going to result in it going bad, you're wrong. I was fine, even though it is recommended to refrigerate after just two hours.

Sites like Still Tasty seeks to provide recommendations for how long food can survive under various conditions, but in my tests I found these estimates to be overly cautious. It's probably in Still Tasty's best interest to err on the side of safety, but generally you're a pretty good judge of what's good and what isn't. If it's not growing mold, it smells fine, and a taste test reveals nothing out of the ordinary, chances are you're good to go. In the end, safety is the most important thing but don't go throwing out perfectly good food out of paranoia. Check if it's still good first.

StillTasty.com has comprehensive information about how long you can keep thousands of foods and beverages.

Kill poison ivy by drenching the plants with a solution of salt and a little dishwashing liquid; also works on poison oak.

PM’s Compendium of Useful Resources

Finding reliable, trusted babysitters…UrbanSitter uses Facebook Connect to access, with permission, the networks of parents and babysitters, and bring the two together. UrbanSitter.com

The Best Way to Cook Corn on the Cob for a Crowd?
It's Cooler Corn…

We like corn on the cob. And with eight adults at the table, that means a
couple of dozen ears. We would have used the lobster pot to cook them all,
but the lobster pot was busy steaming lobster…

Use a Coleman cooler and wipe it clean, then fill
with the shucked ears. Next, two kettles-full of boiling water are poured
over the corn and the top closed.
The corn will remain at the perfect level of doneness for a couple of hours

Grocery Sales Cycles

If your favorite cereal is on sale this week, do you know how many weeks it will be before it goes on sale again? Find out, and you'll know how many boxes you should buy.

Start a Price Book

How to Build a Grocery Stockpile

More Stockpiling Resources

http://frugalliving.about.com/od/grocerysavings/tp/Build_a_Stockpile.htm?nl=1

Frugal Food Storage Tips
How do you take advantage of food sales when you have little food storage space? Get creative with these food storage ideas!

http://www.stretcher.com/stories/08/08apr28a.cfm?STT

Tractor Supply also Provides Know-How

Be sure to check how their “Know-How Central” section for useful DIY information.

Livestock, garden, building resources and more…

http://www.tractorsupply.com/

Hide In Plain Sight
A lot of people are trying to make themselves very visible on the internet so they learn how to use SEO to make sure they are found. You can use those same principles to blend in among the noise of the internet and make yourself very hard to find.

Some people want to be seen. Others want to fly under the radar. Most of us want a little bit of both. The real issue that most people have in the fight between public and private personal information is control over who has access to what information. We want the ability to reach out to the public at times, and at other times retreat into our sanctuary. Retreating is more and more difficult in a digital world. More at:

http://www.howtovanish.com/2010/09/reverse-seo-3-ways-to-hide-in-plain-sight/?awt_l=9mqfI&awt_m=1pyFop_cFyxNxm

The Constitution should not be cast aside so quickly to achieve political ends, and its meaning must be carefully understood and respected. That's why The Heritage Foundation is proud to announce a new resource to help the American people and their elected representatives learn more about the history of our founding document. Heritage's Online Guide to the Constitution is a comprehensive and authoritative analysis of every single clause in the Constitution -- and it's available for free at ConstitutionOnline.com.

DIY Snack for Better Flowers

Before planting flowers this spring, mix 1 cup of sugar, 3 cups bone meal, and 1 cup of Epsom salts in an old bucket. Sprinkle a pinch into the bottom of each hole as you’re planting. The result? A more colorful garden.

2 Liter Bottles of Light

The slums of the Philippines are getting an extreme home makeover in the form of two liter bottles in their ceilings. The bottles function as 60-watt lights powered by 100% solar energy. Refraction is an amazing thing. If you drilled a hole in your ceiling light would drop directly through the opening in a straight line casting a shadow on the ground in the shape of the hole. By placing a bottle filled with water into the hole, the light is refracted by the water and emitted at 360 degrees like a light bulb. Light bulbs are taken for granted in America, yet are luxury item for the Philippines slums. The two liter bottles filled with water and a small amount of bleach to keep algae from growing, act as a light in the often-unlit slums.

The initiative in the Philippines to provide these lights to those who need them is known as “A liter of light”. It is estimated that each bottle light will last for about five years, which is more than any store-bought light bulb will do you for.

Read more AND find other useful, free how-to and DIY reports and resources at:

http://www.poormansurvival.com/Pages/diylinks.aspx

Get more creative and successful by carrying a personalized journal with you. Put your name on the journal and make entries each time that creative light bulb goes off, even if at the moment is seems silly.

The Nanny State Updates…

Panic Now…Avoid the Rush!

Why is the DHS buying so much ammo for domestic use?

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS), an agency that says its main purpose now is to thwart "homegrown terrorism," has awarded a contract to ammunition manufacturer ATK for acquiring 450 million rounds of .40 caliber hollow point ammo. You can view the announcement of the ammunition purchase at this press release: http://www.marketwatch.com/story/atk-secures-40-caliber-ammunition-co...

"Hollow point" ammunition is never purchased for practice or training. This ammunition is purchased for the sole purpose of being used in active fighting. At the same time, it is a violation of the Geneva Convention to use hollow point ammunition on the battle field.

The greatest global debt bubble in human history is showing signs that it is getting ready to burst…

According to CNN, the level of selling by insiders at corporations listed on the S&P 500 is the highest that it has been in almost a decade. Do those insiders know something that the rest of us do not?

The Parting Thought –

The Fall of the Soviet Union, If I wanted America to Fail & Cycles of Life

Does it seem there is more bad news today than ever before? It sure seems that way to me. Of course, our planet has a bigger population so the sheer numbers would indicate more bad things will happen and with the immediacy of news today, we hear about nearly every bad thing from car accidents in India to the sick things people do to their fellow citizen.

When the Berlin Wall fell and the Soviet empire collapsed the world was supposed to collect a peace dividend from the end of the cold war - and we did for awhile.

It didn’t take long for a new bogey man to appear, terrorists. Our government now spends more on ‘security and preserving our freedom’ than we did for all of WWII and WWI combined…but somehow, I don’t feel any safer and as most would agree, we’ve sacrificed our freedoms and privacy in the name of security.

For decades, it has seemed as though history has been slowly building toward some sort of crescendo. The pace of change just keeps getting faster and faster and faster, and our world is becoming unstable…and it’s not just the Mayan 20212 prediction that seems to be wreaking havoc with our climate and weather.

The economy is falling apart, the fabric of society is starting to come apart at the seams, war in the Middle East could erupt at any moment and the planet itself is shaking in unprecedented ways.

Everything is cyclical. Empires rise and fall. The American way of life, thanks in large part to political greed and stupidity, is slipping away. There is no doubt in my mind our climate is changing. People throughout the world seem to be increasingly unhappy.

Over the years I have noted the cycles in my life. They always seem to come in three’s…three good things, three negative cycles. Is this just the natural rhythm of the cosmos or is it perhaps, the Mayan predictions coming true? If the Mayans are indeed correct, how did they acquire this knowledge?

We certainly live in interesting times. If you’re inclined to believe in such cycles both for the planet and for your own life, you may be interested in learning more about the seven cycles of life at: http://www.life-cycles-destiny.com/for/yearly-life-cycles.htm

For another interesting take on what’s taking place in America as to why our country is slipping away today, view If I Wanted America to Fail:

http://times247.com/24-7-videos/if-i-wanted-america-to-fail

“Until the next revolution”, the Poor Man

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A Shallow Planet Production

Saturday, April 7, 2012

Resources to Start a Farm Market, Telecommuting, Home Schooling

Bruce’s Poor Man Survival Bulletin

A Digest of Urban Survival Resources

http://www.PoorManSurvival.com

For Independent Minded People!

ISSN 2161-5543

In This Issue:

1. How to start your own farmer’s market

2. Social Gifting

3. Telecommuting Resources

4. What happens when our trucking system stops

5. Homeschooling Resources

The truth will set you free. But first, it will piss you off!

--Gloria Steinem

MIT researchers predict ‘global economic collapse’ by 2030

A new study from researchers at Jay W. Forrester's institute at MIT says that the world could suffer from "global economic collapse" and "precipitous population decline" if people continue to consume the world's resources at the current pace.

Smithsonian Magazine writes that Australian physicist Graham Turner says "the world is on track for disaster" and that current evidence coincides with a famous, and in some quarters, infamous, academic report from 1972 entitled, "The Limits to Growth."

Our readers know I’ve been suggesting a financial collapse will hit most of the world, including America, far sooner…as soon as this year perhaps. Frankly, I don’t know how the Fed manages to keep propping up the economy. As we’ve reported in previous issues, several other countries have plans to replace the US dollar as the currency of choice for international trading and that would spell disaster for our economy.

Everyone has experienced first-hand the destruction of the buying power of our dollar – filled your gas tank yet or visit the supermarket recently?

Economic freedom in the US continues to decline. This is the 5^th year in a row we’ve declined. (View the video/report at: heritage.org/index).

The United States has not slowed its deficit spending or borrowing. What’s worse is most of us feel powerless to stop the destructive policies of Washington politicians and bureaucrats which continually undermine our financial future - Or as

Hans-Hermann Hoppe's book, Democracy: The God That Failed states,

"The mass of people, as La Boetie and Mises recognized, always and everywhere consists of "brutes", "dullards", and "fools", easily deluded and sunk into habitual submission. Thus today, inundated from early childhood with government propaganda in public schools and educational institutions by legions of publicly certified intellectuals, most people mindlessly accept and repeat nonsense such as that democracy is self-rule and government is of, by, and for the people."

You may feel powerless, but you are not. You can take control of your personal situation by taking the steps necessary for the survival of you and your family…if you haven’t started preparing, don’t put it off any longer.

You are only as powerless as you let yourself be.

Listing an item on Craigslist? Compare it to a popular brand. EX: Selling a ‘Pottery Barn’ style sofa is likely to bring a better price and attention to your listing.

PM’s Compendium of Useful Resources

For Social Gifting, It's a Wrapp
''Social gifting'' app Wrapp.com, which allows users to send free
gift cards to friends and family, is now preparing for
introduction in Germany, France, the Netherlands and the U.S.
http://www.auctionbytes.com/cab/abn/y12/m04/i02/s03

MORE TELECOMMUTING AND COWORKING RESOURCES

If you'd like more news and tips on telecommuting, coworking, and related trends, here are some worthwhile resources to check out.

John Niles' "Gateway to Telecommuting News"

Deskmag, a magazine for the coworking movement

Telework Exchange, for arguments in favor of telework to hit crustaceous bosses with, big-picture news, etc.

How to start a farmers market

Step one: Get your peas lined up in their pods

“When we started, I thought ‘Everybody’s going to love this idea!’" says Crawford. “I was shocked to find out I was wrong.”

Local merchants worried about parking and competing products being offered at lower prices, and neighbors worried about early morning noise, foot traffic, and the possibility of vermin showing up to snack on the mess the market would leave behind.

So do your homework before you begin. Have the answers to the following questions at your fingertips before you meet with neighborhood organizations and representatives:

>Consider whether there are other established options in the neighborhood already. Is the proposed market meeting a real need?

>How big do you want this to be? Provide a map of where you want your market, know your square footage, and have some sense of how many vendors you can accommodate.

>Is the property you have in mind for a market private land or public land? The rules differ according to where you want to pitch your tent. The NVFM is on private land, which, says Crawford, threw the city for a loop because most farmers’ markets operate on public or city-owned property.

And one more thing before you even really get started: The swift establishment of the NVFM notwithstanding, you should expect at least a year’s wait between starting this process and opening your market.

Read Step two and the rest here:

http://www.mnn.com/food/healthy-eating/stories/how-to-start-a-farmers-market

If you feel your child is better served with an education outside of the mainstream, you're not alone. Millions of Americans take advantage of homeschooling. In fact, it is quite common today to find many home-schooled students attending the top universities. Children schooled at home excel in university and afterward.

Here's some information on homeschooling for beginners as well as links to find homeschool groups in your area:

http://www.homeschooling-ideas.com/homeschooling-for-beginners.html

https://www.homeschool.com/supportgroups/

https://www.home-school.com/groups/

How a recent trip to Sam’s Club convinced me to join Watkins.

I like to bake and use a variety of extracts and other ingredients. Sam’s Club is a long drive from where I live and the cost to renew a membership is $35 (going up soon). Several items I sought, including extracts, baking cups and even Heinz 57, are not carried by Sam’s.

Watkins has been around for more than 100 years and has a reputation for quality. They carry a number of items I like and the variety/quality of extracts is superior to most supermarkets (Kroger, for example, is very high priced). Watkins also sells many freeze dried soups and gravies and other items good for long term storage. Their first aid products (salves, in particular) are known to work well too.

A ‘membership’ to Watkins is $39.95 and includes samples of many products and you get a 25% discount on products…AND if you join before the end of April, you get a certificate good for $50 worth of products. That in essence paid for my membership. Watkins also provides a viable means of generating a sideline business and income from home. With the free website you get, it was a natural add-on profit center for me and it sure saves a whole lot of time and fuel costs! Learn more at:

http://www.tsginfo.com/bd6724a

Decode food labels by using the Label Lookup feature at: NRDC.org – Clear explanations on 200 claims

The Nanny State Updates…

Why the Washington-Wall Street Cartel is Bad for America

The biggest threats to U.S. national security are the nation's domestic policies and not Iran, China, North Korea or Russia says Richard Haass, the president of the Council on Foreign Relations.

In the United States today, big businesses and wealthy individuals fund the campaigns of our politicians, and in turn our politicians pass laws which rig the game in their favor. It is a symbiotic relationship which is very bad for America.

The following is how author Stephen D. Foster Jr. described the attitude toward corporations in the early years of the United States....

The East India Company was the largest corporation of its day and its dominance of trade angered the colonists so much, that they dumped the tea products it had on a ship into Boston Harbor which today is universally known as the Boston Tea Party. At the time, in Britain, large corporations funded elections generously and its stock was owned by nearly everyone in parliament. The founding fathers did not think much of these corporations that had great wealth and great influence in government. And that is precisely why they put restrictions upon them after the government was organized under the Constitution.

After the nation’s founding, corporations were granted charters by the state as they are today. Unlike today, however, corporations were only permitted to exist 20 or 30 years and could only deal in one commodity, could not hold stock in other companies, and their property holdings were limited to what they needed to accomplish their business goals. And perhaps the most important facet of all this is that most states in the early days of the nation had laws on the books that made any political contribution by corporations a criminal offense.

Here’s how effective the TSA has been at conditioning people. An associate of mine recently visited South America. On his return trip from Peru to the U.S., he said it was easy to spot the Americans on his flight: "They were the only ones, like Pavlov's dogs, that automatically took their shoes off to walk through security."

Spritz vodka on pesky soap scum on ceramic bath tiles. Wait 10 minutes, then scrub.

The Parting Thought – Just in time shipping could leave you helpless

What Happens when our trucking system stops…

Our "just in time" inventory and delivery systems leave us incredibly vulnerable to a nationwide disaster

A report put out by the American Trucker Associations entitled "When Trucks Stop, America Stops".

A Timeline Showing the Deterioration of Major Industries Following a Truck Stoppage

The first 24 hours

• Delivery of medical supplies to the affected area will cease.
• Hospitals will run out of basic supplies such as syringes and catheters within hours. Radiopharmaceuticals will deteriorate and become unusable.
• Service stations will begin to run out of fuel.
• Manufacturers using just-in-time manufacturing will develop component shortages.
• U.S. mail and other package delivery will cease.

Within one day

• Food shortages will begin to develop.
• Automobile fuel availability and delivery will dwindle, leading to skyrocketing prices and long lines at the gas pumps.
• Without manufacturing components and trucks for product delivery,
assembly lines will shut down, putting thousands out of work.

Within two to three days

• Food shortages will escalate, especially in the face of hoarding and consumer panic.
• Supplies of essentials—such as bottled water, powdered milk, and
canned meat—at major retailers will disappear.
• ATMs will run out of cash and banks will be unable to process
transactions.
• Service stations will completely run out of fuel for autos and trucks.

This is just a sampling of what their report suggests. Learn more at:

http://www.truckline.com/Newsroom/Trucks%20Are/When%20Trucks%20Stop%20America%20Stops.pdf