Leaving the Armchair Prepper Behind

One of the greatest concerns I have as I prepare for future challenges is being able to implement what I have “learned.”  My recall isn’t what it used to be.  I write things down to help me learn, and I can remember having studied and written on a subject so that I can find the article and refresh my memory.

However, whenever I “do” something that I have written or read about, I not only remember it better, I add it to my database of skills.  It is the same for all of us, and I fear that too many are not taking the time to practice new skills now.  It’s time to leave the armchair prepper in all of us behind. 

Of course, some things can’t be tried out now.  No one wants to get injured just so we can practice wound cleaning, bandaging, or suturing skills in real life.  Those have to be practiced without the actual injuries, but it just isn’t the same. 

Fortunately, much newfound knowledge can be applied before disaster strikes.  I feel so blessed for the opportunity writing this blog gives me to actually practice things now.  And while I am grateful each day for each new bit of knowledge, the following topics made my top ten list of favorites for various reasons that I will share below.  Only one of them actually made the top ten list of most read articles this year. 

My favorite articles of 2021:

10.  Reusing Exam Gloves.  This decidedly unexciting topic made the list because I have not been able to find any boxes of exam gloves in stores this year.  Because we have a generous supply here, I don’t know that I would have purchased any, but I don’t like the idea of not seeing them in stores.  To be fair, we only had two or three trips to Sam’s this year, so maybe we just hit them at the wrong time.  I avoid Walmart like the plague, but it’s possible that gloves are in stock there.  At any rate, it’s comforting to know that in dire straits, exam gloves can be washed and reused to some extent.

9.  Water Pie was my favorite of the several Depression-era recipes I tried for the first time this year.  I loved the intriguing name, the fact that it involved only basic ingredients, and it tasted like a sugar cookie.  And the family all liked it, too.  I’ve been trying to be more open towards Depression-era cooking.

8.  Nasturtiums protected much of my broccoli and cabbage from cabbage butterflies this year.  I loved learning and implementing that tidbit of knowledge. 

7.  The Rabbit Effect reminded me that some of the most important preventative medicine lies in caring family relationships.  And I need to express that better to my family and friends.

6.  DIY Soil Tests were an interesting science experiment we performed on our really poor soil.  They’re just as easy as the store-bought tests and every bit as accurate. 

5.  Nursemaid’s Elbow as one of my favorite topics is raising your eyebrows, I’m sure.  However, my daughter-in-law called while I was out grocery shopping last month.  Buttercup had been playing on the floor with eight-month-old Sweet Pea and gently pulling her to a stand.  Then Buttercup heard a loud “pop” and Sweet Pea started wailing.  It had been about 15 minutes and Sweet Pea was refusing to use her arm.  Buttercup was starting to freak out.  I told her exactly what had happened, that it was called nursemaid’s elbow, and that we could pop it back into place (even though I was pretty sure she’d want to go to urgent care).    I also told her what the doctor would do and that Sweet Pea would cry briefly, but then all would be well.  The doctor there “wasn’t quite sure” it was nursemaid’s elbow, so of course he needed an x-ray.  And then after the x-ray ($$$) he popped it back into place. 

4.  The Medicinal Uses of Elder.  I loved learning about the medicinal uses of this plant, and especially love that the leaves are more medicinal than the berries.  I planted four in our yard this past summer.  I also learned that the deer are illiterate.  The labels on these shrubs clearly indicate that elder bushes are deer-resistant.  So I had to drape netting over the branches after freezing temperatures hit and the motion-activated sprinklers couldn’t be used anymore. 

3.  The Medicinal Uses of Isatis.  While I didn’t get to harvest any of the roots and leaves this year, I did collect the seeds and scattered them in the front along the driveway where the soil is poor and the sun abundant (their favorite place to grow).  This coming summer we should have an abundant harvest.

2.  Zoodles became an instant favorite around here.  Whereas 2-3 zucchini plants were previously more than enough for the family, now I’m thinking we’ll require about 25 to satisfy our needs for zucchini noodles this year.  And I’m trying to figure out the best way to get a jump start on at least one plant, something I never considered in the past.  It’s a good thing zucchini plants are a beautiful addition to the yard.

1.  Stealth Gardening is actually the only article in my personal top ten list that made the list of most read articles for 2021, coming in at #2.  We filled the entire back yard with vegetables, medicinal shrubs, edible and medicinal flowers, a couple of fruit trees, as well as structures and some strictly ornamental flowers to aid in the camouflage.  It was beautiful and I’d say entirely successful.  The few visitors we had saw only the flowers and didn’t recognize the vegetables growing everywhere. 

I hope you’ll consider reading some of the articles you might have missed and trying a few ideas out in order to get better prepared.  The world situation isn’t looking all that good and our window for preparing is closing.  It’s time to leave the armchair prepper behind.

17 march 2024