High fuel cost and wood

[Jstpssng]

What's your age range if you don't mind? Can't say it enough, folks don't realize how recent story's like this are, and how they need to know the lessons.

I agree. I hate to admit that I lead a sheltered life. I used to whine (to myself) if we had scrambled eggs for supper... not realizing how lucky I was that we always had decent food on the table, and there were always 2 cookies or some other sweet for dessert.

I moved up here and people my age grew up using out houses, and would poach a deer so that they had food on the table. Now that isn't socially acceptable, yet living on food stamps is.

 

[tjandrews]

What's your age range if you don't mind? Can't say it enough, folks don't realize how recent story's like this are, and how they need to know the lessons.

I'm 72.

 

[51allis]

I agree. I hate to admit that I lead a sheltered life. I used to whine (to myself) if we had scrambled eggs for supper... not realizing how lucky I was that we always had decent food on the table, and there were always 2 cookies or some other sweet for dessert.

I moved up here and people my age grew up using out houses, and would poach a deer so that they had food on the table. Now that isn't socially acceptable, yet living on food stamps is.

I think the whole problem with our country is that things need to be "socially acceptable", I don't care how the rest of society lives so long as they stay away from me. Can't be the only one who feels this way, I'm sure there are quite a few who get disgusted on how things are going, no matter your political affiliation (don't want to make this political). Not that Im unfriendly, ill shoot the crap with anyone but don't need to be told or forced to live life the way others think is best, I do learn from posts, even negative ones.

 

[shooterdon]

I agree. I hate to admit that I lead a sheltered life. I used to whine (to myself) if we had scrambled eggs for supper... not realizing how lucky I was that we always had decent food on the table, and there were always 2 cookies or some other sweet for dessert.

I moved up here and people my age grew up using out houses, and would poach a deer so that they had food on the table. Now that isn't socially acceptable, yet living on food stamps is.

I am against poaching but I accept it when a family needs to eat. There used to be a lot of poaching in my area decades ago as I live in a very poor area. Today, very little poaching is due to necessity. But it is not a good idea to report it when the chances of retribution are high. I know at least 5 people who poach and none of them need to. For many, it has become a lifestyle from decades of families doing it.

 

[OzarkChris]

There was a time back in the '70s when beef got expensive, and horse meat was being sold as an inexpensive alternative. I'm not sure where it came from, but I am certain that we never tried it.

There are still a really large flock/herd of wild mustangs in the desert SW (South East CA, AZ, NM, ETC)

 

[Jstpssng]

I am against poaching but I accept it when a family needs to eat. There used to be a lot of poaching in my area decades ago as I live in a very poor area. Today, very little poaching is due to necessity. But it is not a good idea to report it when the chances of retribution are high. I know at least 5 people who poach and none of them need to. For many, it has become a lifestyle from decades of families doing it.

I agree with you 100%. When I started hunting back in 1974 we would go to my uncle's hunting camp. Tracks were everywhere and the first time that I ever went my uncle shot a deer, which spoiled me into thinking that was normal. There was a family in town which had a strange malady... they were allergic to work. They started going into deer yards in winter, shooting the deer and bringing them out of state to sell to restaurants. After a while there wasn't a deer to be found,,, go figure.

Talking to one of the locals up here who grew up in Connecticut but used to come up in the summer, before finally moving out. He told of going to a certain lake and catching white perch by the bucketful every day. "Now, there's none there."
Imagine that...

 

[tjandrews]

Hi' The reason we have these high fuel costs is not based on a shortage ,supply problems or the usual greed of oil producers it's got to do with human nature, quite simply the fear of the possibility of all out war, the cost is a measure to prevent Hording and there is no better way to stop hording than vastly increasing fuel costs.
If any one doubts this cast your minds back to the 70s when there were real shortages prices were only slightly higher and fuel was rationed with long ques to get a few litres before service stations ran out of fuel, Small car sales boomed how ever that lesson was soon forgotten, diesels became the way to go for most commercial transport.
Then there was the most Pointless dumbest most insane hording of toilet paper started by some nut case in the recent pandemic, and that's all it takes is some dooms day nut case, to get on the net and spread fear to get people pannick buying.

Sure there is a real threat to the stability of us all, but it's mostly by home grown nut cases with access to the media, these sky high fuel prices are to protect us from our selves and will be hear for a long time in to the future.

Ah yes, the Oil Crisis, caused by our then-heavy dependence on foreign oil, and OPEC countries cutting back production to bring up the price of crude. Prices didn't go up so awful much, if you could get the fuel. We were using all gasoline back then, and we felt the pinch, too. Because they couldn't get enough gas to supply all customers, just like everybody else, we were given an "allocation" of what we could buy, based on our past purchases. If weather allowed us to use less than normal to get the job done, we were OK. If it didn't, we were out of luck.
Adjusted for inflation, fuel prices now, while high, are lower than they were just before the Great Recession. All things considered, we were better off then, and now, than we were during the Oil Shortage. It may have cost a LOT, but at least we could/can get what we need to get the job done.

 

[tjandrews]

Talking to one of the locals up here who grew up in Connecticut but used to come up in the summer, before finally moving out. He told of going to a certain lake and catching white perch by the bucketful every day. "Now, there's none there."
Imagine that...

Other things than overfishing can cause that. We've been taking an annual fishing trip to the St. Lawrence River since the 60s. 50 years ago, you could easily fill a bucket with yellow perch and rock bass. Not so now, but it's not because of overfishing. It's because of invasive species, like the round goby, a baitfish-sized "immigrant" from Russia that stowed away in the ballast water of ships passing through the Seaway. They are all over the Great Lakes now, and it's almost impossible to find a rock bass any more.
On the plus side though, walleyes and smallmouthed bass love 'em, growing bigger faster because food is now so plentiful.

 

[bdhsfz6]

Nice idea, but in my area good plumbers/hvac are just not available to install a system like that, even if they were, the cost to hire them would be outrageous. My retirement home has R29 walls and an R60 ceiling...most of it is done and trying to keep the costs down by doing all the work on my own, so far the total cost to build it will meet our budgeted price of 37K and that includes well and septic for a home that is 1208 sq' in size. I could build a wood boiler, just a plain simple one for less than $900 and install it myself saving money that way. Projected wood usage with my own homemade wood boiler would be about 3 full cord a year, 3.5 if I use a indirect water heater for domestic hot water. I'm sure a heat pump system would cost many many thousands of dollars...which I dont want to pay for if I can build my own wood boiler and just pay for the electric to run the circulator pump, I love cutting wood/splitting wood every year...its a chore that takes my mind off things and is peaceful...kinda like cutting n bailing hay. Glad your heat pump is working out for you tho'.

If you can build your own wood boiler and cut your own wood, the economy is hard to beat. I used the same approach when I built my place 40 years ago. Over the years, I found out my ability to manhandle firewood wasn't going to last as long as the house. I eventually converted from wood to coal which is easier to handle. Yes, the coal cost $$ but I live in the anthracite coal region of PA. which keeps the price down. It also supports the local economy.

I recently installed a mini split system in my shop for heat & AC. I did the work myself in a weekend. If you're able to build a house, you can easily install one of these systems. They come pre charged with refrigerant and the only special tools you need are a gauge set and a vacuum pump. I bought the gauge for $89 and rented the pump for half a day. The total cost for the 15,000 BTU system was $2100.

The system operates so efficiently, I'm going to install another for the rest of the house. I figure it's insurance against the day when the coal becomes too much to handle.

 

[OzarkChris]

I know cows gotta hang for a certain amount of time before butchering etc.

but someday Im going to volunteer to work at a butcher shop just to learn the basics of cow/pig/big animal butchering,

I volunteer 1 day a week at a butcher shop except during the busiest part of the farm season (non-USDA) - Used to do more, but can't anymore. Have learned a lot over the past several years.

For example, You don't "have to" hang beef, but it does taste much better if you do. Big corporate shops (Tyson, etc - what you get in stores) typically don't hang meat, they wet age it - vac pack primals while fresh and let it soak in the blood till it gets to the store where it gets cut into steaks, roasts etc.

The other thing I've learned is that hanging more than 10-12 days is really a waste. At around 7-10 days the fat is firm, blood has dried and/or redistributed back into muscle and the meat hasn't started to mold. Letting it hang 3 weeks + (what most big city folk say they have to get) causes a lot of exterior mold that has to be cut off and trashed (making yield much less - anywhere from 10-30# of meat in the trash).

One of the side benefits I get from helping them out is that I only get charged for supply costs when I get things processed - vac bags, spices (sausages, ham etc), etc. For me it's a win, win situation I learn, help him out and get almost free processing. During COVID when Tyson was shut down, the shop was able to get pigs from Nebraska off the feed lots delivered down here in AR for $150 ea because they got to big for Tysons equipment. I bought two, processed them and now have a 29 ft3 chest freezer full of pig (one was nothing but sausages (country & Italian), grind & smoke (ham, bacon,picnic etc) the other was mostly chops, roasts ribs etc - of course the hams & bacon and any scraps went to more sausage, plus I kept all the bones for stock. All total (less the cost of another chest freezer), the two pigs cost me ~$350 and should last the wife & I about 2 years. One of our cows just got processed that filled another 29 ft3 chest and that cost me ~$100 in processing fees. Not bad for 2-2 1/2 years of prime quality meat. Once a year we process a lamb (around easter) at the shop. I've also learned how NOT to mangle my deer, another added advantage. For chicken, we still process that ourself as we need it he only processes 4 legged farm critters & deer.

You'll have fun (if you like to learn), it can be hard work (especially in the kill room), and typically shops will let you in on some of the perks.