Prepare yourselves...

...life is going to be very different on Mother Earth.  It would appear that we have passed the point of no return, and there is no going back.

This is seriously scary stuff...

'Unprecedented': Scientists Declare Global Climate Emergency After Jet Stream Crosses Equator

http://www.rawstory.com/2016/06/unprecedented-scientists-declare-global-climate-emergency-after-jet-stream-crosses-equator/
 or if you want to watch this on YouTube:
 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CKasUm77D0U

Take the time to consider how this change in our weather / climate / jet stream is going to affect you, and how you, personally, can mitigate the changes to enable you to continue to grow your own produce and provide for yourselves.


I wrote this posting above before :

1) I lost my internet connection for 3 days due to vandalism
2) I discovered that there is no need to panic - jet streams moving from the northern to southern hemispere, and back are apparently "normal" (https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/capital-weather-gang/wp/2016/06/30/claim-that-jet-stream-crossing-equator-is-climate-emergency-is-utter-nonsense/) 

But, the original article does raise a point.  Actually, a couple of points.

Climate change, is, I believe, irrefutable, and with that in mind, the more steps we all take to prepare ourselves for the difficulties that lie ahead, the better off we will be to assist those in need / without knowledge when the time comes.  Standing back and waiting for someone else to solve our problems is the normal reaction.  But, being proactive, and starting the process for ourselves - and for our children - will stand us in better stead.

What can you do I hear some of you ask?

1)  Conserve water - don't take your access to water for granted, not even if you have a crystal clear stream passing through your property.

i)  Source (if necessary) and seriously apply mulch around your plants
ii)  Collect and store whatever rainwater falls in whichever way you can
iii)  Experiment with a simple hydroponic / aquaponic system - don't let the fear of the unknown stop you from investigating this food growing avenue. Experimenting now will allow you to become more "qualified" and able to use this method confidentially in the future.  (note - we have had to make an adjustment with our hydroponic experiment - more news coming up in a future posting).

2) Adapt

i) Be prepared to change the types of crops that you normally grow - for instance consider growing different crops that are suitable for the changing weather in your area
ii) Invest in shade netting / greenhouse tunnels to assist your plants in performing / providing to their maximum ability.
iii)  If there are crops that require a certain amount of rainfall, start researching similar alternatives which will provide you with those nutrients / carbohydrates / proteins now - don't wait until TSHTF.

This charcoal cooler room reduces the outside
temperature from 30°C to 8°C
http://www.nation.co.ke/business/seedsofgold/Our-charcoal-cooler-keeps-produce-fresh-/-/2301238/2397960/-/119pv5mz/-/index.html

3 Look to the 3rd World people / underprivileged for idea's on how to cope in what will be, for you, "different" times but for them it is perfectly natural

i)  For storing food long(er) term without adding additional strain on the system / environment, their innovative ways are amazing e.g. charcoal cooler rooms for storing harvests.  Such a blooming simple idea, and it obviously works :)  And is a damn sight cheaper than (electric) refrigeration...
ii)  Learn to preserve your harvests via dehydration or canning - it's not difficult if you get yourself a reputable preserving book.  And is oh, so gratifying, to use those preserves out of season.  Plus you get the added benefit of knowing exactly what is in what you are eating and can be reassured that GMO and chemicals are not forming a hidden part of your or your family's nutritional intake.
iii)  Investigate (a.k.a. Google lol) how they manage to grow crops in their adverse climates (both extremely hot and cold) and what measures they take to ensure that they are able to harvest something / anything...

Those are just a few thoughts I wanted to share with you and they are just a few of the steps that can be taken now that will benefit you in future.

I leave you with this:

http://www.forbes.com/sites/marshallshepherd/2016/07/02/lessons-from-jet-stream-crossing-the-equator-mania/#8535b905a8c3

P.P.S.

This is what the vandals did - this little action affected at least 350 - 500 people!

The power junction box was ripped off
 the tower and the cables were
 disconnected.  I took Escom 4 days
to repair... :(

Alone

RMan and I have been watching the series "Alone" on the History Channel.

For those who haven't seen it, it is a series documenting how 10 individuals handle being alone for the summer - having to fend for themselves on Vancouver Island with only the 10 survival items they are allowed to take with them apart from a change of clothing.

The one who stays out in the wilderness the longest will receive $500 000.

The latest episode we watched here was # 4 and the 10 guys are now down to 5.

To me it has been fascinating to watch their initial reactions when being placed alone at their different sites on Vancouver Island.

Unanimously, they all immediately tried to provide very basic shelter and then set about organizing heat and warmth for themselves.

Some were more successful than others.  Some didn't succeed at all.  Those that didn't left the show in the first and second episodes.

The next hurdle they tried to overcome was their fresh water requirement.  Most of them resorted to boiling water collected from nearby streams at low tide, or "straining" water through sorghum (sphagnum?) moss.

I was fascinated, whilst simultaneously irritated, that not one of them thought to use their tents for rain water collection.  It seems to have rained in every episode so far.  As it's not falling from a residential, tiled roof area and down into gutters, whilst collecting bird poop along the way, but directly from the heavens, momentarily onto their tent / shelter roof, they wouldn't even need to boil it, for goodness sake!

In the last episode we watched one of the contestants finally provided food for himself (how have the others survived for 6 days with nothing to eat - apart from the one guy eating seaweed and a couple of small crustaceans?)  Mitch managed to snare a fish in his net on the 5th day, and clean it and cook it.  The commentary was that high tide only happens at night thus that was the only time that he could inspect his net and collect whatever it had trapped?!?  Surely the tide rises and recedes twice a day?  It does where I live.

Also, why does Mitch collect the fish from the net at night, when predators prowl?  And cook it at night - thereby attracting predators (cougars) with the smell?

Sigh.

And these are survivalists?

I'm not, but even I know better than that.

Surely they should've done some research prior to taking part in this competition?  That would've made them more methodical, prepared and able to face the hardship which they suddenly experienced  e.g. what plants can be eaten?  How can they trap small animals / marine life?  How will they handle their shelter to protect them from the elements / predators?  And, shouldn't they (couldn't they?) have taken a large chunk of biltong (jerky) as one of their 10 items - which would've provided them with an all important source of protein / energy / nourishment whilst they orientated themselves in their unfamiliar surroundings / situation.

Don't get me wrong.  Hats off to them for being brave enough to take part.  I could not imagine being alone anywhere at night - on my own - unless it was inside my house.  I also don't envy them their "exposure" to bears, wolves or cougars.  I do understand the psychological impact of suddenly being completely on your own.  I have no problem being on my own - I enjoy my own company, and will always try and keep myself busy.  But they all knew that they were going to be on their own, and would have to survive on their own when they entered the competition.

Didn't they?

Given my (mostly mild, but at times intense) irritation, watching the series has been interesting as it has highlighted man's immediate need when out of their comfort zone / lost in the wilderness / in an unfamiliar situation for whatever reason.

Man's immediate requirements are:

1  Shelter and warmth / heat / fire (comfort / food preparation / protection from the elements and wild animals)

2  Water (to prevent dehydration)

3  Food (to feed their bodies / encourage / uplift their spirits)
4  Purpose (to keep the mind occupied and busy)

To my inexperienced mind, if they had concentrated on building themselves a strong, secure as possible shelter using the wood / tree trunks in the forest (which was evident around each and every one of them) together with the tents they took with them - and they completed that on their first day, they would've been better off when they started their 2nd day - searching for food.  I'm presuming here that they would've allowed for their tents to catch their drinking water - which they didn't.

My 10 survival items would've been:

1   Waterproof tent / tarpaulin

2   Waterproof sleeping bag

3   Knife - and a substantial one at that

4   Firestarter

5   Cooking pot - for heating water / cooking and eating whatever I managed to forage for / catch

6   A (preferably) large coil of nylon rope (30 - 50 mtrs?)  It doesn't weigh that much, and would just be bulky)

7   Ax or saw (not sure which one would be more useful, but, after some thought, my choice would probably be an axe)

8   Bright LED torch - for sparing use in emergency situations only in order to prolong it's battery life

9   Collapsible spade / shovel to dig for roots / holes / or fixed on the end of a piece of wood with some of the nylon rope as an additional form of defense against predators.  (Ditto the (substantial) knife could also be used as a harpoon / spear / weapon)

10  This will probably be a controversial one - a big slab of biltong (jerky), or a 5kg mixture of flour and dehydrated or powdered eggs (with which I could make some sort of flapjack / biscuit and which would provide me with protein and carbohydrates whilst I settled in to my new surroundings.)  If that was not allowed according to the "game rules" then I would probably replace that with a notebook and pencil - to record experiences I want to remember / internal feelings that occur on the spur of the moment and are then lost after that moment has passed.  How else can one learn from the experience? 

Alone provides a good lesson in preparedness for all of us I guess - be that for calamitous natural disasters, substantial unrest or a complete collapse of the grid.  The "predators" may be different, but the threat and emergency situation, especially in towns, would be enormous.  Town dwellers would face a completely different set of challenges, wouldn't they?!

In the event that life as you knew it was thrown to the wind, would you know what to grab in a life and death situation to help you fend for yourself for an potentially extended period of time?

What would you do, and how / what would you prepare or take along?  Have you taken any steps already to ensure your continued existence in the case of a major natural disaster, substantial unrest or complete collapse of the grid?

Thought provoking - no?

We have episode 6 to watch tonight...

Prepared

I take note of synchronicity.  And I especially take note of synchronicity when it involves health.  And / or safety.

Being 1/2 an hour out of town, and living in an area where there is limited emergency treatment available, I believe in being prepared - for any medical emergency.  That means I have most necessary items on hand - for any unforeseen accidents around the home, or sudden ailments such as vomiting, diarrhoea, eye infections, etc.  I did a CPR course many, many years ago when our children were small and we installed a pool in our garden, and that kind of knowledge you don't forget easily.

I think I wanted to be a nurse when I was a teenager, but nothing came of that. But, unlike RMan, I am not queasy at the sight of blood (how can any mother be LOL?)  So, medical preparedness has always been left up to me.

Back to synchronicity...

My first indication was when I read 1st Man's posting on the 15 September 2014.

I replied to 1st Man's post with the following comment:

"Cool box :)

I'm embarrassed to confess I have an entire medicine cupboard in our bathroom. Medicines, tablets, ointments, suntan lotions, antiseptic - you name, it's in my cupboard.

To hide it, I've used a decorative cupboard. You wouldn't know what it contains unless you snoop and open the drawer / doors. Being so far out of town having a comprehensive medical supply is important."

The health and safety questionnaire my grandson composed

The second synchronistic moment was when my 11-year-old grandson, Mike, sent RMan and I an e-mail on the 21st September (exactly a week later) asking us to complete a questionnaire he had devised for a school project.

Both were to do with health and safety in the home.

Health.

And safety.

I was suddenly brought up short when I realised that I wasn't being terribly careful - especially as far as my granddaughter, HJG, is concerned.  Being 10 months old, she started crawling a couple of months ago, and, from the looks of her, walking is not far off.

The drawer, although not easy to pull
open, was full of potentially toxic tablets
and medicines.  As we are GP has given
me a broad spectrum antibiotic script
- for emergency situations only

My unlocked (and unlockable) bathroom cupboard full of medicines was not secure enough!  And the drawer full of tablets was an accident waiting to happen.

My only excuse is that I haven't been around small children for years, and I got comfortable.  But, that is no excuse!

The cupboard door are far easier to open
and inside there were filing shelves
filled with ointments, tablets,
lotions, etc.

So a radical re-think / re-organisation was in order.

Last weekend I spent Sunday doing just that.

High enough that little fingers can't access, and,
being in our linen cupboard, this is actually
a far easier option for us adults to access too :)
No more bending down to find what we are
looking for.  Different medical supplies are
in their respective trays.

I moved all the medicine items from the bathroom drawer and cupboard to a shelf I cleared out in my linen cupboard which is in our bedroom.  The shelf is more than a metre above floor level, so I'm not concerned that she will be able to access that anytime soon.

A safer bathroom cupboard

What I now have is a bathroom cupboard filled with hot water bottles, a back massage machine and infra-red light (both sealed in their boxes), aqueous hand lotion, and a left over bean bag which we cannot heat in our microwave as we don't have one anymore LOL

And the drawer.

That now houses suntan lotions, tubes of cal-c-vita (RMan believes in vitamin supplements - I leave that to what I eat ;) ), hand towels, baby oil and a pack of cotton wool.

Our quick-grab medical "toolbox"

But, I also have a quick-grab medical "toolbox".  It is kept right next to the linen cupboard by our bedroom door.  Easy to grab and move around with, it is invaluable - especially if it is needed outside in a rush :)

The large "toolbox" contains:

Anything and (almost) everything needed to
close / protect a wound

Various sized crepe bandages, burn dressings (antiseptic and paraffin), swabs, dressing tape, various sized elastic adhesive bandages, sterile gloves, micropore dressing tape, blister kit, Steri-Strip skin closures and a sling (which can double up into a tourniquet).

A good selection of anti-inflammatory patches
and burn dressings -
historically, RMan has not always been
that careful when it comes to fire, etc ;)

The inlay tray contains: antiseptic and antibiotic ointments, sterile wipes, scissors, quick grab sterile gloves, tweezers, tongue depressor (a.k.a. boiled ice lolly stick) antiseptic cleansing spray and lotion, scissors, sterile needles, quick grab Steri-Strip skin closures and a caustic pencil.  And a infection control mouth to mouth device.

Quick grab items to dress a wound

When I was browsing a pharmacy a few years back I spotted this mouth-to-mouth / CPR device which will assist in preventing the spread of infection - if, and when, I ever need to give a stranger mouth-to-mouth.

Easy to use, this mouth-to-mouth gadget will
help prevent the spread of infection via mouth

Finally, for those little accidents, which require a bit of a love and a cuddle, and a modicum of first aid, there is this little box.

Granny's quick-fix, "love you" box of plasters
for those little mishaps :)

It contains sticky plasters, Germolene antiseptic cream and a roll of micropore - just in case the plaster doesn't stick properly.

Thanks 1st Man and Mike.  I now have a safe home again :)

Welcoming unexpected visitors

Our family doctor, Dr A, who has become a family friend, paid us the honour of arriving on Friday, with his wife, to spend the weekend with us - our first farm guests.  Dr A does not like driving long distances, and 300-odd kilometers from town to us is a long distance as far as he's concerned.  How wonderful it has been to spend some time with them both after 4 long months away.

Yesterday, we decided to show them a little of the area, and took them to Wildebraam - the local berry farm.  Just as I thought, the wife couldn't resist the goodies on offer, and with a severely lightened purse we all returned home "all shopped out" LOL

Relaxing on our front patio, there was a sudden commotion at our neighbours plot.  Our dogs reacted by leaping up and barking, and, after a casual glance around the corner of our house, I dismissed the noise as a chicken having difficulty producing an egg - our neighbour, CGuy has these odd chickens which really screech when it comes time to produce their daily offering.

About 10 minutes later we were startled to hear RMan being urgently called.  Opening the back door we found Robert, a worker from CGuy's plot, standing outside with a bloody cloth wrapped round his arm.  He had apparently been carrying two 4ltr glass bottles of water when one slipped, slid down, and smashed into the lower bottle, and breaking it.  The broken glass had then severed the skin of his right wrist - deeply and extremely seriously.

Thank goodness our GP was here!  According to Dr A it appeared as though Robert had cut his radial and ulna artery in his right wrist.  And he fears that he may have severed one of his tendons which controls the up / down movement of his hand.  But, keeping calm, I assisted Dr A in applying a tourniquet whilst Dr A applied pressure to the wound to staunch the bleeding.  D A then applied a packed bandage to the wound and RMan and Dr A rushed Robert to the local hospital.  Dr A reckons that a vascular surgeon will have to repair the damage.

But - what  if Dr A had not been here?  I fear that ill-equipped as I was, Robert may have bled to death.

And, it highlighted the inadequacy of my medical supplies.  Being as remotely situated as we are, I have to be better equipped - and mentally prepared!  And, with Dr A guidance, the medical supply list is currently being compiled :)

But, we have also had other guests.

This large lizard decided to play building inspector when Phase 2 was being built.  We passed inspection apparently :)

A large lizard managed to
camouflage itself against the
brickwork

Our dam also had the rare honour of being visited by an African Spoonbill.  I have never seen one before!

An African Spoonbill

RMan and I were tickled pink :)

You can make out the spoonbill easier
in this photo

And finally, we spied either a Blue Crane, our National bird, or a Blackheaded Heron.  The fading light left the question, but either are welcome to make the dam their watering hole. 

Blue Crane or Blackheaded Heron?

This has certainly been an important weekend - and left me without a doubt that, although I was prepared for a medical emergency in a town situation, I was not adequately equipped for what happened here yesterday.  I will be tomorrow though - once I have visited our local pharmacy...

And Dr A has assured me that he will always be at the end of the telephone connection to give me whatever medical advice / assistance I require, should another incident of this ilk occur in the future.  I am fortunate that I remain calm during an emergency, and only allow myself to react (fall apart LOL) once the situation is under control.  RMan, on the other hand, goes white and shaky at the first sign of blood.  But - he can perform the other important functions such as phoning to alert those concerned of the incoming emergency.

I believe that Dr A's unexpected visit was guided by the Highest power, and that God sent him here to help preserve a life.  For Robert may not have been as lucky had he only had RMan and I to help him given yesterday's situation...  The grateful lesson I (in fact both RMan and I) learnt yesterday will remain with me for the rest of my life.  Anticipate the worst, be prepared for it, and you will have a better chance of having a win-win outcome.