Building a Potato Garden Box, part 2

How to construct a potato bed from wooden pallets.

Tool A Longs

Almost three years ago I wrote a product review for the emergency rations that I found at a local Wal-Mart. They're produced by Ultimate Survival Technology (UST) and are still available through many stores, but recently I found another line of “survival” items that they produce and decided to test a few of them.

UST Tool A Longs

There are 36 different designs in this product line. I saw about 10 of them in a clearance aisle at a local home supply store and picked up four whose looks I liked. Once I got home and looked them up, I wished the store would've had a few of the other designs, but I found a few that I liked.

Designed to be hung by the included carabiner (very flimsy) from a pack or bag, the somewhat whimsical designs are decorative and some of the tools are actually usable. None of the designs have a blade of any kind so they are all TSA-safe to travel with. Here are the ones I picked up (pictures are from the maker's page).

Spork

Similar to the sporks that I reviewed here, the function is fairly simple: a stainless steel tool that will let your eat without using your fingers. This one has a functional bottle opener (B) and flat screwdriver (A) built in to the design, as well as a questionable can opener(D). The can opener works, but the design only allows a 1/8^th inch cut per cycle, so it's going to take a while to get a can open. The tool only weighs an once (30g) and is functional, so it may have a place in your kit.

Trout

A stamped-steel fish with 8 functions, 5 of which are useful or usable. The screwdrivers (D, F) and hex wrenches (B) work, the prying point (A) is strong enough to open a paint can, and the ruler (C) is accurate. However, the butterfly wrench (H) is designed for use with wing-nuts and is too small for most of the common sizes, the can opener (E) is completely useless due to the rear dorsal fin of the fish shape blocking the cutter from being able to actually penetrate the lid of a can, and the cord cutter (G) isn't sharp enough to cut anything I tried it on.

Sasquatch

I liked the look of this one and most of it actually works. Of the 8 tools in the design, 5 of them are usable. The flat screwdriver (E), ruler (D), hex wrenches (A), bottle opener (C), and can opener (H) all work quite well. The can opener actually surprised me at how well it worked, opening a steel can of fruit quite easily. The Phillips screwdriver (F) suffers from the same problem as the can opener on the trout design with another piece of the tool blocks its use (the other foot of the Sasquatch in this case). The butterfly wrench (G) is again too small for use, and the cord cutter (C) is dull.

Bass

With 10 tools on this one, it's the most ambitious of the batch I bought. Two flat screwdrivers (B, E), a Phillips screwdriver (D), a bottle opener (H), and a ruler (J) are the most useful of the choices. The fish scaler (A) is quite small and I'd rather use a camp knife to remove scales before cooking a fish. The cord cutter (C) is dull and the butterfly wrench (F) is too narrow for use. I'm undecided on the pick (I) and fish hook sharpener (G), as I haven't had a good chance to test them yet.

There's also a hidden tool that the maker doesn't point out: the end of the ruler/scaler has a notch in it which could be used as a hook remover quite easily. The trick to removing a hook after a fish has swallowed it to the point where you can't reach it is to wrap the line once around a hook remover and gently push on the remover, following the line to the hook. Once you have found the hook, twist the remover until it sits in the bend of the hook, push in just enough to dislodge the barbs of the hook and gently pull out the hook and remover at the same time.

Closing Thoughts

I don't understand the addition of butterfly/wing-nut wrenches on so many of the stamped-steel multi-tools on the market. I don't see wing-nuts in use very often, so I don't see the need for a wrench for them. The cord cutters could probably be sharpened with a round ceramic rod or a piece of emery paper wrapped around a small rod, making them useful. The functions blocked by the design of the tools is just poor planning on the part of the designers.

Normally I include links to Amazon for each of the items I review, because we get a few pennies when you purchase anything using our referral links and Amazon usually has fair prices. Their prices are close to MSRP, but Amazon only has a half-dozen of the designs listed, so I skipped the links. The maker has a list of“where to buy” on their webpage. Keep an eye out for them; they seem to be made of good steel and most of the functions actually work.

Prudent Prepping: Pantry Check

The dust has settled and the First 72 Hours have passed. Follow along as I build a long term plan via Prudent Prepping.

I am financially unable to transition to foods that have a very long shelf life, so normal grocery items are what are on my shelf and in my "Buckets of Holding" emergency gear. I've mentioned in many posts that the products in my pantry get rotated out before the Sell By date (even if we all know that does not affect quality) and I give them to my Food Bank, which is need of donations right now.

In With Some New
This is a one-for-one swap of the listed items. The next scheduled time for checking the other things in my stores is October/November.

Pacific Roasted Red Pepper & Tomato Soup

 Soup in a box, in a box!

You need to try this soup. It tastes wonderful, it comes in a really handy size, and it's easy to pack.

• Roasted red pepper and tomato creamy soup 
• Gluten-free 
• USDA organic 

This soup is almost worth the Sam's Club membership by itself, it's that good.



Trader Joe's Macaroni

1 lb Pasta

I'm on a budget, so if I can find a good value at a trendy place, I take advantage of it. Pasta is pretty much pasta, and Joe's has as low a price as anyone else here. It's a 1 lb package of macaroni, so what else is there to say?

Here's what I've always wondered:  How can this be sold for a buck after being manufactured and then shipped from Italy? What's the difference between this and similar brands selling for twice the price? Maybe someone can explain it to me.









Trader Giotto's Three Cheese Sauce

Really tasty!

There are several different sauces on the shelves there but this is my current favorite. Once again, this is priced within pennies of the national brands found in Sams's Club or Costco, and I can buy a jar at a time instead of a three pack. One jar over one pound of pasta works for me.

 No one in my current group has any food sensitivities, so wheat, nuts and dairy are not an issue.










Quaker Instant Oatmeal Variety 52 Pack 

Oatmeal

I eat oatmeal for breakfast at least twice a week, just not the instant variety. I take this in my lunch box for the mornings I get hungry at my coffee break and a doughnut doesn't sound good.

I know, the added sugar in the flavored varieties makes this nutritionally similar to a donut, but I like to think the oats balance things out!






Everything is dated at least one year out, with the pasta listed as good until 2021! Nothing will stay in the buckets that long, since I pull from them fairly regularly to save myself a trip to the store. Doing this means I've got to stay on top of the inventory -- which is simple, since I'm doing the pulling so I know which bucket is now short.

There's also a paper inside each bucket listing what is in each one. This is not a problem now as the member of the group with dietary restrictions moved and I don't need to worry as much about stomach issues.

Later this year I plan to start moving to some freeze-dried meals and doing some more product taste tests.

The Takeaway

• I have to buy what I need for the money available each month. Sometimes that is not much, and other times a little more.
• Check your shopping lists for the month. Having a membership to Costco could potentially save you cash if  you are buying the same items every trip to the store.

The Recap

• Eight 1lb packages of pasta from Trader Joe's at $0.99 each: total of $7.92
• Eight jars of pasta Sauce also from Joe's at $2.49 each: total of $19.92
• Two cases (24 total) Tomato Basil Soup from Sam's Club: $11.98 ea for a total of $23.96
• One case (52 count) Quaker Instant Oatmeal also from Sam's:  $9.87

Just a reminder: if you plan on buying anything through Amazon, please consider using our referral link. When you do, a portion of the sale comes back here to help keep this site running!

If you have comments, suggestions or corrections, please post them so we all can learn. And remember, Some Is Always Better Than None!

NOTE: All items tested were purchased by me. No products have been loaned in exchange for a favorable review. Any items sent to me for T&E will be listed as such. Suck it Feds.

Product Review: Washing Wand

Around January, my husband and I found out that we could finally buy our first home next year. I immediately went into "Where can we save money so that we can pay off everything possible between now and then?" mode.

One of those areas was laundry. We were spending upwards of $40 a month going to a laundromat. $40 plus the amount of time taken away from my husband's job because we only have one vehicle plus the extra miles on the vehicle equals me deciding I was going to do laundry the old-fashioned way (by hand) but with a modern twist.

The Washing Wand
Enter this doodad. It was an initial investment of $8 (I got it on sale) and the amount added to the water bill by doing laundry in the tub at home was $12. That's half of what we were spending per month at the laundromat, which means the Washing Wand has already paid for itself in the first month of use.

I know it looks like a toilet plunger, but it's better:

• I don't have to worry about someone forgetting there's one for the toilet and one specifically for laundry only. 
• It's designed to agitate water, not un-plug a toilet, so it agitates better than a plunger. 

Tips and Tricks

1. Let your laundry soak in the soapy water for five to ten minutes. 
2. Dump that water and replenish it with fresh, then agitate it for 40 motions (think 'churning butter') or two minutes, whichever is longer.
3. You may have to rinse twice, depending on how dirty the stuff was.

Q&A

Can it handle sheets and blankets? 
It can, if you have a large tub to let them soak in. You might have to work harder to get them clean, though. 

Has it proven to get the clothes clean?

Yes.

Would I trust it with the crocheted stuff I do for Jade Rose?

I haven't tried that yet, and am a little apprehensive about it.  Do you blame me?

My Rating: 7.5 out of 10

Pros:

• There's no "ick factor" of using a toilet plunger
• It gets things clean
• It breaks down easily for storage/transportation
• It's inexpensive

Cons:

• It's exhausting to use if you're out of shape.
• It's a bit hard on your hands if you're not used to gripping something for long periods of time.
• The cup could use a couple more holes added to it to aid in the agitation of the water.

I recommend this product.

Cheap Gear Review: Document Bags

I don’t know about you, but when I find myself opening a bug-out or get-home bag, I have a small problem. In fact, I have a lot of small problems: all the pieces that float to the bottom of the bag and are impossible to find quickly. Do you take allergy pills? Good luck finding that tiny bottle in less than five minutes, and if you (like me) are already itchy and miserable when you are looking for them, five minutes is a miserable thing.

Modular and Fast
My solution to this dilemma is a document bag. These bag are designed to hold receipts, passports, boarding passes, etc and are small, inexpensive, fairly durable, and easily labeled.Their modular nature allows you to identify, locate and retrieve them quickly and easily; a snake bite is something that you'll need to treat in a hurry and is a very different emergency than a burn.

For quick identification, I use a small description tag with the contents written on the back, or a title written on it with a paint pen, depending on the bag.

Example: “Medical” on the front in a large easy to read font, with “Inhaler, Epipen, painkiller (Advil), painkiller (Tylenol), Allergy medication (Zyrtec), Allergy medication (Allegra), bandaids, tiger balm, finger pulse oximeter.

I also have bags with my oral hygiene supplies, my computer cables, extra batteries etc. This gives me a full packing list of everything that I am supposed to have in it, which makes it easy to tell if I am missing something.

I Recommend

https://amzn.to/2KkEORf

This is the exact model that I use, a Husky-brand 12-inch bag. I like this style because I can connect a carabiner to the tab and clip it to my backpack, MOLLE webbing, hooks, and occasionally even a random twig. I recommend a cheap model, like these.

I've been using these document bags as sorters for over a year now and have yet to have one of them fail or rip, and I've even run them through the washing machine. I do not recommend the dryer for them, though, since the model I use is actually a plastic-based canvas and I had worries about it melting. I haven't put one through the dishwasher yet, although I will try to correct this.

https://amzn.to/2yJ3em1

If you are budget minded, you can get three bags of varying sizes for half the price of the Husky.

My Rating: 5/5

I highly recommend these bags. It saves me a lot of time and hassle to use them, and I can transport them between bags. My BoB is wonderful, but sometimes I need only one component from it, and these bags give me the freedom to take what I need and leave the rest behind.

Keep your powder dry, and don’t forget to practice.

Building a Potato Garden Box, part 1

I'm growing potatoes the easy way.

Vacation Time?

One of my friends recently asked for examples of why you might be separated from your wardrobe (and hence, why you should keep extra clothes in your car or Bug Out Bag). Fires, tornadoes, floods, and other disasters were all mentioned, but I was reminded of recent news articles and an old post of mine.

Back in September of 2016, I wrote about Unexploded Ordinance (UXO). Go back and read it for detailed information, but the TL;DR version is;

• Humans have been using explosives in war for a long time.
• Not all of those weapons went “boom” when they should have.
• Live explosives are scattered all over the world.
• If you find UXO, remember the Three Rs:
1. Recognize the threat,
2. Retreat to a safe distance,
3. Report it to authorities.

There have been a few similar articles in the past couple of months, but while they registered in my memory, they didn't set off any alarms. UXO pops up somewhere in the world at least once a week, but unless someone gets hurt by it you'll rarely see it reported in the news: 

• In April 2018, a large bomb left over from WW2 was found in Bologna, Italy. 
• Also in April 2018, a Civil War artillery shell was found near Myrtle Beach, SC when a family was building a patio next to their house. 
• The same month, a 500 kg (1100 pound) American bomb from WW2 was found in central Berlin, Germany.

The UXO found in Bologna caused the evacuation of about 10,000 people for most of a day while the disposal team removed it. The much smaller shell found near Myrtle Beach was removed without much inconvenience. But the bomb found in Berlin caused the evacuation of over 10,000 people from an area within 800 meters (half a mile) of the site, including the main train station. That meant no traffic in a circle a mile wide in a major metropolitan city. 

Some other things came to mind while I was thinking about this topic.

• Since WW1 and WW2 were so widespread, a lot of the fighting took place in, on, and over the oceans. This means that any beach on any ocean has a chance of UXO washing ashore, especially after a storm has stirred up the ocean floor and moved the sand around on the beach.
• Southeast Asia saw a lot of fighting in the last century, with an estimated fewer than 3% of the UXO being cleaned up in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia. 
• Many tropical islands saw action during WW2, including the smaller ones if they were strategically placed. 
• Hawaii is still cleaning up training ranges 70+ years after the end of WW2.

These are all tourist areas with blissfully ignorant people trying to enjoy themselves while on vacation. What are you going to do if the local police have cordoned off your hotel or campground for a day or two while they deal with the leftovers of war? I pray that, since you're reading a prepper blog, you'll have the resilience of mind to take it in stride and switch to an alternate plan while watching the unprepared fumble about trying to deal with the unexpected. Gather as much information as you can (how long is it going to take, where are the boundaries of the exclusion zone, etc.) and find somewhere else to be while the bomb squad is dealing with something your grandpa (or great-grandpa) dropped 50-150 years ago.

If you are traveling for vacation, don't forget your preps or situational awareness. We can't afford to completely turn off our minds, even when we're trying to relax.