Have you ever stepped into what dog owners call a "dog mine?" A while back I was in someone's yard and got that slow, sinking and sliding feeling, and I knew. I just knew.
Of course, dog poop isn't like other kinds of poop. It's sticky. I had to use a stick to scrape some of it off, but of course anything touching the bottom of my shoe was hard-pressed to come off. Worse than the mess, though, was the smell. Dog poop smells worse than other feces. I will take chicken or cow or goat excrement over dog poop any day. The odor followed me home on my foot, while I improvised a plastic bag barrier between my foot and our truck, to at least save my husband's nostrils for the next few days. What a smelly, long-lasting mess.
Well, folks, that's what it's like every time I write a blog post. In today's political climate, you never know what will land you in a pile of you-know-what. Will the after-effects linger for weeks, months and years? This week I was listening to the latest land mine in the Christian music industry. Matthew West dared to write a funny song about modesty, which everyone [now] knows is sexist and racist and all of the other "ists". John Cooper and Alisa Childers provide commentary below:
Of course, dog poop isn't like other kinds of poop. It's sticky. I had to use a stick to scrape some of it off, but of course anything touching the bottom of my shoe was hard-pressed to come off. Worse than the mess, though, was the smell. Dog poop smells worse than other feces. I will take chicken or cow or goat excrement over dog poop any day. The odor followed me home on my foot, while I improvised a plastic bag barrier between my foot and our truck, to at least save my husband's nostrils for the next few days. What a smelly, long-lasting mess.
Well, folks, that's what it's like every time I write a blog post. In today's political climate, you never know what will land you in a pile of you-know-what. Will the after-effects linger for weeks, months and years? This week I was listening to the latest land mine in the Christian music industry. Matthew West dared to write a funny song about modesty, which everyone [now] knows is sexist and racist and all of the other "ists". John Cooper and Alisa Childers provide commentary below:
Now, of course, this video is hopefully still up on Youtube. But today I found myself heading over to Rumble because one of my daily Youtubers has been put in "Youtube jail" for a week for talking about the vaccine. But thankfully I was already subscribed to him on Rumble. If you dare to say anything "they" don't like, they are coming for you. Who are they? Well, probably the same "they" that is running the country right now.
But yeah. Speaking of Rumble, I posted a June garden update there! I am loving my garden this year.
But yeah. Speaking of Rumble, I posted a June garden update there! I am loving my garden this year.
Some new things I tried were carrots, onions, leeks, turnips, amaranth, kohlrabi and potatoes. I've always had some volunteer potatoes and onions, but this is my first year growing them intentionally. This is also the first year I've had a decent amount of carrots germinate, and they are doing well.
One of my goals for 2021 was to grow more cold storage crops like onions, carrots and potatoes. I didn't plant much in the way of quantity, but rather just enough to figure out a good growing system and then, if necessary, plant on a larger scale next year. The onions, carrots and potatoes are all doing well so far.
One struggle I'm tackling is how to cook and use turnips. They are so bitter! I tried peeling the outer skin off, and that helped, but still they were very bitter. Which is sad, because they were so easy to grow! If you all have any tips for me, they will be greatly appreciated.
As I'm coming to the peak of a new gardening season, we've almost finished off the produce I canned and froze last year. Virtually all of the frozen produce is gone, and there are just a few jars of tomatoes left. I'm happy that there was just enough to get us through a year, rather than too much. It will be a relief to me when I can figure out how much time to spend on canning and freezing for the most impact.
Chickens
As you can see at the top of my post, one of our little hens hatched some chicks... all by herself! Out of several tries, this is the first time I/she has been successful as a chicken mama. I can't believe how easy and cheap it was compared to incubating or raising chicks from TSC. The only work I had to do was make sure Mama had food and water while she was brooding, and after the chicks hatched I did have to keep the little family separate from my other hens. When the chicks are old enough to defend themselves, I will put them and Mama back in with the flock.
Drawbacks to this method were 1) the hen only hatched three eggs, and 2) they are essentially free-range. Mama is teaching them how to wiggle through holes and fly over fences, which means they might be destructive to my gardens at some point. But I'm hopeful that they'll learn to be part of the flock. The last drawback is that I can't choose if Mama hatches little hens or roosters. However, since I'm not buying feed for these chicks, it doesn't matter to me what sex they are. If they turn out to be roosters, we can get rid of them before they start eating store-bought feed with the rest of the flock.
Back to Politics
Anyhow, I got sidetracked! I thought I'd drop a few political resources here, since politics really do matter to homemakers and Christians—especially now. While I think our regular homemaking tasks are most pressing and important, it's prudent to keep an eye out on what's going on in the wider world. If you want good, accurate news, switch from mainstream media to the Epoch Times or The Daily Wire. Many of the Daily Wire shows are available without a membership on Youtube (for now, that is). The Michael Knowles show is about an hour long and runs every weekday. The Andrew Klavan show runs once a week and is about two hours long. Every now and then I listen to Ben Shapiro, but his show is straight politics. Knowles and Klavan include a heavy dose of religion, culture and philosophy, which are a little more interesting to me.
Dan Bongino also has good content, and his entire show is available on Rumble. He's a little more abrasive, but funnier and easier to listen to than Shapiro. Lastly, if you're a Michigander, I would recommend joining a Stand Up Michigan group, if you can. They will keep you in the know on local issues, and you can find them on all the regular platforms: Facebook, Youtube, etc. Many states have similar grass roots movements going on that will keep you informed.
Rather than setting aside an hour every day to listen to politics, I just keep my phone running while I'm gardening or doing laundry or cleaning. The shows make the boring parts of my day a little more interesting, and they don't require the same concentration and focus that an audiobook does.
So what are we supposed to DO with all this information?
I try to keep an ear out for any easy or passive ways I can help win the "culture war". I've started listening to shows on Rumble and buying books on Ebay when possible, and deactivated my Facebook account. Last week I wrote my senator for the first time ever. It was very easy and only took 15 minutes. I don't wear a mask anywhere I don't have to. There are many things that we housewives can do to help turn the tide.
Being "in the know" has also led me toward some bigger changes that may also be necessary going forward. Choosing a parochial school or homeschooling will be prudent for the Christian family. I will be prescreening TV and books for our child, and choose those that promote traditional values. We were at a hotel last month, and I let our daughter watch a kids' show while I combed her hair. A commercial came on with a rainbow drag queen singing about families with two dads. I'm not even kidding.
The pandemic has schooled us in what it's like to live under the government's thumb, and I think we're headed for more of the same. I will continue to ramp up my homemaking skills, especially in regards to gardening and reading up on health topics.
I think that's about all I have for now. Hope you all are having a wonderful summer!
-Bethany
One of my goals for 2021 was to grow more cold storage crops like onions, carrots and potatoes. I didn't plant much in the way of quantity, but rather just enough to figure out a good growing system and then, if necessary, plant on a larger scale next year. The onions, carrots and potatoes are all doing well so far.
One struggle I'm tackling is how to cook and use turnips. They are so bitter! I tried peeling the outer skin off, and that helped, but still they were very bitter. Which is sad, because they were so easy to grow! If you all have any tips for me, they will be greatly appreciated.
As I'm coming to the peak of a new gardening season, we've almost finished off the produce I canned and froze last year. Virtually all of the frozen produce is gone, and there are just a few jars of tomatoes left. I'm happy that there was just enough to get us through a year, rather than too much. It will be a relief to me when I can figure out how much time to spend on canning and freezing for the most impact.
Chickens
As you can see at the top of my post, one of our little hens hatched some chicks... all by herself! Out of several tries, this is the first time I/she has been successful as a chicken mama. I can't believe how easy and cheap it was compared to incubating or raising chicks from TSC. The only work I had to do was make sure Mama had food and water while she was brooding, and after the chicks hatched I did have to keep the little family separate from my other hens. When the chicks are old enough to defend themselves, I will put them and Mama back in with the flock.
Drawbacks to this method were 1) the hen only hatched three eggs, and 2) they are essentially free-range. Mama is teaching them how to wiggle through holes and fly over fences, which means they might be destructive to my gardens at some point. But I'm hopeful that they'll learn to be part of the flock. The last drawback is that I can't choose if Mama hatches little hens or roosters. However, since I'm not buying feed for these chicks, it doesn't matter to me what sex they are. If they turn out to be roosters, we can get rid of them before they start eating store-bought feed with the rest of the flock.
Back to Politics
Anyhow, I got sidetracked! I thought I'd drop a few political resources here, since politics really do matter to homemakers and Christians—especially now. While I think our regular homemaking tasks are most pressing and important, it's prudent to keep an eye out on what's going on in the wider world. If you want good, accurate news, switch from mainstream media to the Epoch Times or The Daily Wire. Many of the Daily Wire shows are available without a membership on Youtube (for now, that is). The Michael Knowles show is about an hour long and runs every weekday. The Andrew Klavan show runs once a week and is about two hours long. Every now and then I listen to Ben Shapiro, but his show is straight politics. Knowles and Klavan include a heavy dose of religion, culture and philosophy, which are a little more interesting to me.
Dan Bongino also has good content, and his entire show is available on Rumble. He's a little more abrasive, but funnier and easier to listen to than Shapiro. Lastly, if you're a Michigander, I would recommend joining a Stand Up Michigan group, if you can. They will keep you in the know on local issues, and you can find them on all the regular platforms: Facebook, Youtube, etc. Many states have similar grass roots movements going on that will keep you informed.
Rather than setting aside an hour every day to listen to politics, I just keep my phone running while I'm gardening or doing laundry or cleaning. The shows make the boring parts of my day a little more interesting, and they don't require the same concentration and focus that an audiobook does.
So what are we supposed to DO with all this information?
I try to keep an ear out for any easy or passive ways I can help win the "culture war". I've started listening to shows on Rumble and buying books on Ebay when possible, and deactivated my Facebook account. Last week I wrote my senator for the first time ever. It was very easy and only took 15 minutes. I don't wear a mask anywhere I don't have to. There are many things that we housewives can do to help turn the tide.
Being "in the know" has also led me toward some bigger changes that may also be necessary going forward. Choosing a parochial school or homeschooling will be prudent for the Christian family. I will be prescreening TV and books for our child, and choose those that promote traditional values. We were at a hotel last month, and I let our daughter watch a kids' show while I combed her hair. A commercial came on with a rainbow drag queen singing about families with two dads. I'm not even kidding.
The pandemic has schooled us in what it's like to live under the government's thumb, and I think we're headed for more of the same. I will continue to ramp up my homemaking skills, especially in regards to gardening and reading up on health topics.
I think that's about all I have for now. Hope you all are having a wonderful summer!
-Bethany
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