'Turkey mites'--myth or reality?
dirtgirl
16 years ago
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Elly_NJ
16 years agojeannek_NEPA
16 years agoRelated Discussions
Dream vs reality
Comments (24)I can offer you up a couple of viewpoints. I grew up on a farm and I was prepared for what life about 30 minutes outside the city would be like. I was prepared for the idea of NOT being prepared for everything because I've lived hard, but I never owned a home before this one. My wife, complete city girl AND total apron-string nutcase with her mother, says she loves it but over time has proved otherwise. My step-mother, now in her 80's, also moved from the city down to the farm where I grew up. In her words, "I hated it for the first two or three years, but now I couldn't imagine going back to the city. I'd just die." Things my wife hates: - getting up extra early in case of inclement weather, accounting for that additional driving time. More often than not she stays with her parents in the city if bad weather is coming, with the result that I end up left alone, sometimes for weeks at a time in winter, and I hate this. On the other hand life in the city is poor planning AND would eventually kill my soul, so I hope for the best here. - She hates all our neighbors/friends being generally so far away. - She hates that we can't just jump up and go out to a movie without planning, or to a particular restaurant. - She hates the grocery being off a ways, but I chalk this up to poor planning and her inability to just make stops on the way home from work. - We live by a cornfield, and we have a HUGE mouse problem. On the other hand I'm learning how to get rid of the mice, but it's taking time and planning. Still, it's a pain to deal with initially. - Septic system: If you're building, then take pains to make sure you have a good system AND that you MAINTAIN it regularly to ensure long life. The former owners said they did (they SAID lots of things), but a few months into our life here the toilet didn't flush very well. Fortunately a few doses of Rid-X did the trick, and I apply regularly now. - Learning how to deal with a well. I grew up with well water, but we had a LOT of top quality water. Many wells do NOT have great water, and digging a well can be dauntingly expensive. If you plan on digging a well, make CERTAIN it's not near your septic. Also, while you may lose water in the event of a power failure, there is an alternative: Since you're digging the well anyway, have a hand-pump installed outside, for emergency use. It's not that much more expensive, and if another Hurricane Ike comes through, you'll be glad you did. Power is one thing, water is quite another. - Propane: You will obviously want to insulate your house as well as possible. Propane is NOT cheap if you use it to heat. I HIGHLY recommend having a fireplace insert installed for home heating, and I recommend researching a model which can act as a practical fireplace in the event of power loss (after all, what drives that circulating fan?) so you can still heat. As for cooking, it's great with propane or natural gas, BUT keep one thing in mind: If you lose power, you lose your oven UNLESS you get a dial-controlled oven you can light rather than an electronically-controlled oven you cannot use during a power outage. - Using your land: I have ten million ideas for what I WANT my homestead to look like, and I have tons of know-how. I lack, however, some of the simplest pieces of equipment to do the jobs I want, such as a tractor. Finding neighbors to do jobs for me isn't as easy as I'd hoped originally, so don't COUNT on it. Bearing that in mind, getting started is much, much harder than you might think (especially if you're like me and have to do it all alone). Another thing which lacks sometimes is TIME, since you have the commute. It's one thing to tell yourself you'll be diligently in the yard nightly after work, another thing to arrive home tired, need to prepare supper AND get outside to take care of projects. Great on paper, difficult in application. - Costs of commuting as gas prices rise. Commutes aren't just gas, they're also time and effort. - Childcare if you have that issue. If you have to leave work to pick up your child, is he home and local, so you have a 30-minute drive BACK to him/her, then BACK to the city for a doctor, all because someone local babysits at a feasible price? Or do you opt for in-city childcare at outrageous prices? I shell out nearly $800 per month for my son's daycare. That may not be a concern for you at all, if you're not far from retirement, but it's definitely something to consider IF you plan to pass the homestead on to your kids. - Also, as pointed out, your 30 minute from the city may be a mere 15 or even 10 minutes in just a few years, and you may be IN the city by the time you're old and pass the land on to your kids. I've only had this place 1.5 years and already, farms nearby are selling and subdividing. It won't be long before 10 acres will be a LOT of land, and that's sad....See MoreTurning the vision into reality - why is this so hard?
Comments (20)never_ending, yes, upper cabinets are easy to make. There are reasons for this. Several reasons that all combine to make it worthwhile. -- The thing you can have is 1 big box as an upper cabinet (therefore continuous, long, shelves inside the 1 cabinet). The front cover could be *either* 2 or 3 sets of panels that open with Blum Aventos HF hinges, *or* several narrow (vertical) doors that hinge on a front frame. In either case, you have continuous shelves. At first glance it looks like wall "cabinets" but, it's a single entity, not a series of boxes stuck together. So the shelves are uninterrupted by cabinet sides. When you open door 2, you can reach things in sections 1 or 3 as well. Storing things is easier too since your things don't bump up against barriers. -- 1 big box is easy. Here is one of the several reasons why wall cabinets are easier to make than floor cabinets. A wall thingie has to look good (straight and level), and be well screwed to studs. Looking good is less demanding than being truly level to a fine "tolerance". A run of floor-standing boxes has to be far better aligned: it supports a level countertop. So, a 1/8" misalignment becomes a serious problem, even if the floor is perfect, rigid, flat. A floor-standing box has to hold up to max. physical stress AND could have an unstable (squishy, spongy) floor under some of its legs. So, it can be a chore. Or more. But a wall thingie doesn't have to be square or level, to the Nth degree. Executive Summary: wall cabs are a few panels joined at 90 degree angle. They hang on the wall. The cabinetmaker doesn't need to work to the same degree of "perfection" as for the cabinets that stand on the floor and become a base for countertops. I second the notion that "you may be able to go IKEA bottoms and custom uppers without breaking the bank." -- Open shelving is not as easy to make as 1 big box. Because each shelf has to get its entire support from the wall studs. With 1 big box, shelves are supported by the two sides of the big box. (Between the two sides at the ends of the long shelves, the shelves do need some support too) ((and this is "easy" or easier to arrange than for individual open shelves)) -- "They are spacious and operate so smoothly with the soft close feature." sample budget: $1500 Ikea cabs (floor-standing) $2000 any "front" from Scherr's, ikea or anywhere $1000 installation DIY along with a handyman helper who has a level...See MoreUsing expired lemon juice on my turkey
Comments (18)Linda- Aren't you being just a tad over-dramatic, possibly narrow minded, or do you really have such high standards that it causes you to become ill thinking someone uses an option to fresh citrus juice? As you can see from other posts in this thread, others happen to like (and use) TRUE products Here's a reality check, fresh citrus is often very expensive where I live, while a packet of TRUE lemon (lime or orange) will do just fine for small amounts of juice in recipes, sprinkled on fish, added to a dressing or spread for flavoring, making a quick recipe of Lemon Bars - or where a bottle of lemon juice gets wasted from neglect - as the original post indicated (wasted food is the most expensive food we buy). Those of use who are accustomed to home food storage try to have something that is a viable option that has a long shelf-life and still has good flavor and value. Our personal standards may be different - but different isn't right or wrong - just a choice. If you haven't actually tried the TRUE products, don't knock it - your criticism about the unknown isn't at all helpful in the conversation - it's just your preconceived notion without merit. If you try it, please have an open mind to those of us who don't have fresh citrus falling from trees in our back yards, and $1 (or more) for a tiny lemon when you need 1 teaspoon or 1 tablespoon of juice is just not going to happen. -Grainlady...See MoreFood Safety re: transporting a Thanksgiving partly cooked turkey
Comments (16)A basic cooler will keep something cold or hot for hours. Safely. We do it all the time for BBQs(hot) and frozen foods. Think your basic travel mugs. Hot coffee 2 hours later, iced tea in the summer...ice still solid cubes. If you are not sure about your coolers insulation, test it. (there is foam in the layers usually.) The manufacturers know what they are doing. No need to build your own. Put a towel in the bottom, then some newspaper, or cardboard...then a pot of hot water or tea kettle. Test the temp, then again in an hour, then two hours. Or four... Hot food will be safely hot for a long time. Depending on your cooler. I've never needed longer than 2-3 hours so not tested more than that...but I have traveled with a solid block of bagged cod frozen for four days and it was still solid. (dropped the block on a rock when home and put the frozen bagged portions into the freezer). Hot food above 140. Magic numbers are 40-140. Cold food under 40, hot food above 140. Cook your turkey to almost done 160. Covered, not crispy roasted yet. Cheese cloth butter soaked on the breast maybe. (foil over). Find a pan that fits your cooler over a towel and newspaper. Breast side down, (all the juices Weill keep the breast moist) cover with parchment/foil, then newspaper, another towel ...temp may drop to 155-160 in two hours. Safe temp. Oven roast half hour 375 ish when you arrive. Breast side up uncovered to brown. You can pre-heat your cooler with a pan of hot water or kettle if nervous. But you have an instant read so you can check it. Seems a bit of a pain-in-the-but though rather simple thought through the process and having it all ready to go....See Morebbcathy
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10 years agojeaninehull
8 years agoclaireplymouth z6b coastal MA
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8 years agoNeal Stewart
4 years ago
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