Category: Happy Accidents: Gardening & Projects for Self-Reliance

Finding a way to tackle reducing food costs and better organizing at the same time

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This is something that hit me the other night and I started working on it yesterday afternoon (would've done it earlier except tired and getting over a chest cold). But of course, my odd desire to color-code the hell out of everything might actually come in handy in a most unexpected way. I don't remember … Continue reading Finding a way to tackle reducing food costs and better organizing at the same time

Q #178– If you’ve tried canning your own food, did it really help with expenses & do you think it’s really worth it today?

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I guess this is the perfect corollary to my previous question about freezing and batch cooking, and makes more sense for me to try as a long-term solution to keeping food handy and keeping costs down. At least, that's the theory. What really made me think hard about it was the fact that having a … Continue reading Q #178– If you’ve tried canning your own food, did it really help with expenses & do you think it’s really worth it today?

Q#177–Have you ever tried “batch cooking” a month’s worth of reheat-able meals, & how did that work out?

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I was going back and forth working on financial crap (commence with the weeping, wailing, gnashing of teeth... and junk food consumption... dammit) and listening to some Reddit advice threads on YouTube. (Sometimes it's enlightening, sometimes it's trashy junk food for the brain... especially the caught "SO" cheating stories. Today I needed both after a … Continue reading Q#177–Have you ever tried “batch cooking” a month’s worth of reheat-able meals, & how did that work out?

Feeling Oddly Triumphant After Being Out-of-Sorts All Day; or, Fixing Things Really Boosts That Self-Esteem…

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This was turning out very crappy today. And no, I don't mean it's because I'm single and it's that damned Valentine's Day. Hell, I almost forgot about it til I saw kids coming off the bus with heart-shaped chocolate boxes this afternoon. That's more like it. I'd love an anatomically correct heart for V-day. I … Continue reading Feeling Oddly Triumphant After Being Out-of-Sorts All Day; or, Fixing Things Really Boosts That Self-Esteem…

My DIY Faucet Replacement (Part 2); or, some glue-happy sumbitch really made my night interesting… & painful.

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I'm starting to develop a major appreciation for plumbers and the know-how they have, and the skills and time it takes for their labor, because my hands are sore as hell after all the pulling and tugging and the like I had to do the past several hours. Also explains why they seem to all … Continue reading My DIY Faucet Replacement (Part 2); or, some glue-happy sumbitch really made my night interesting… & painful.

My DIY faucet replacement; or, where I remember that valve shut-offs exist for a reason…

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(image from diy.stackexchange.com) Well, it was bound to happen, I suppose. I'm just glad things didn't end up broken and I just had to not use my bathroom a few days (and run a fan to dry the cabinets out, and use oodles of towels to mop up the mess, and remove a rug to … Continue reading My DIY faucet replacement; or, where I remember that valve shut-offs exist for a reason…

Learned to replace my mason bee house tubes & checked suet stations before the rain came…

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It's a bit frustrating when you think you're doing something good in the yard for the wildlife, only to maybe be making things worse because there's a lot you don't know. Makes me shudder to think of folks who buy the bee houses from the dollar store--half the holes aren't even drilled out properly and … Continue reading Learned to replace my mason bee house tubes & checked suet stations before the rain came…

Q#160: Which is a better squirrel & critter deterrent: sound, light, or water?

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I'd been thinking about this a while, after finding one of my corn stalks knocked over the other day. I'm annoyed as all hell and while I'd like to expand on getting lots of corn in the coming years (I'm dreaming of some of the varieties I'm planting), it's not gonna do a lick of … Continue reading Q#160: Which is a better squirrel & critter deterrent: sound, light, or water?

Oops, I did it again… hopefully for the last time this year.

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I'm getting the sneaking suspicion that I should maybe get off this "I want to be a writer for a living" kick and try and save up money for a farm, because plants seem to be all I've focused on this past month. Somehow, without planning on it, I started thinking of nearly every size … Continue reading Oops, I did it again… hopefully for the last time this year.