I saw Toilet Paper in Fred Meyer today and rain in the valley!

There was some Quilted Northern TP in Fred Meyers today.  About 10- 20 of box cases of the 4 packs but it is the first time in a few weeks I saw toilet paper on the shelves.  The facial tissue area was better stocked and there was even an “end cap” full of the facial tissue boxes.  Perhaps the run on Tissue paper is starting to slow down or at least people have enough TP already on hand they no longer feel the need to buy/store more Tissue paper at home.  Bottled water shelves also seem to be returning to pre-Wuflu levels and that is all to the good!  People need to return to buying stuff they need, rather than following the “herd” and buying items based on panic and fear.    I’m seeing food prices start to go up and it will probably get worse over the summer. It is a double whammy to people out of work that right at the time they have very little money on hand the food and products they need to live are in the store but have start going up in price. Me telling some one they can save money baking bread at home does not help if they can’t buy yeast because all the stores are sold out of yeast.  I don’t have a sourdough starter to share but I was able to give Mom a small 4 oz jar of some yeast I have stored in the freezer.  Baking bread takes a little bit of practice and add in trying to make a sourdough starter for a new baker really increases the learning curve.

I am seeing more people wearing masks, scarf and bandannas here in SW Idaho.  I’m guessing about 40-50% range.  Not everyone but it is much better than I saw on a shopping trip a couple of weeks ago!  Wearing a mask is irritating to me even though I advocate it being the easy/simplest method to help stop the spread of the virus.  I now have a weird feeling of something coating my face and when I get home I have to wash my face along with my hands.  I’m packing my own groceries in the new reusable plastic coated bags I sanitize before I shop and again before the bags get loaded in the mini-van.  I understand stores not trusting customer’s reusable bags.  I don’t trust store’s plastic bags because those bags are probably made in China.  For now I can use a Lysol type spray, but I may have to move to a diluted bleach spray bottle to disinfect my bags before the come into the house.  Yep, I’m being a little OCD but I’d rather get a small dose of any virus and give my body more time to build a good immuno-response to this virus rather than deal with a huge viral load.  I shop at stores where I have a good relationship with the cashiers, butchers and deli and I don’t want them to get sick and hopefully me wearing a mask will reduce their stress level about catching the virus.

Some of the starting plants are growing and I had to take off the cover as the plants are getting to tall.  The starter plants are still a bit too delicate to transplant but the stuff that is growing is growing great. The tomitillos I bought are growing like crazy and I still need to add fences around my garden beds to try and stop the cats doing the cat things to my garden beds.  Mom is now fully cleared to lift more than 15 pounds from her surgery recovery limitation.  She is ready to do some raised beds and I suggested she get the local big box store cut the lumber to size for her raised beds.  I prefer raised beds to be 3 foot or under in width but Mom want’s to go with 4 feet of width.  It should not make that much difference if you can reach all of the bed from both sides. Speaking only for myself I think a raised bed garden should be 3 foot or less wide.

I don’t know if you feel it but I feel planting a home garden of any sort is critical this year. My long term food storage is pretty good but having those fresh herbs, greens and crops that add not only calories, vitamins and variety of vegetables/herbs can’t buy in stores for any price. Buy the things the USA can not grow such as coffee, chocolate and the things you want to have for yourself.

 

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It is starting to warm up in SW Idaho

The weather is getting warmer!  Forecast are for a week of 65-70 degree F. days and the night time temps dropping only to the low 40 degree F. range.  Today was cloudy with some rain but it was warm enough for me to open a couple of windows and get some fresh air in the house.  Nothing like a warm spring rain to bring out all the plant growing aromas and wash the dust, dirt and  smoke out of the atmosphere.

I got most of my basic cleaning done of the bathrooms, vacuum the carpets and change and wash bedding and wash towels.  I got a little “burned out” trying to keep everything clean and slacked off on some of the daily/weekly cleaning chores. I have read about the cleaning chores of people in the 1800’s doing laundry by hand, sweeping floors and beating rugs. Rather than dumping clothes in a washing machine or dryer.  Having a vacuum to clean carpets or a quick mop to clean floors.  Plus I have hot water on tap at my sink to help with my cleaning!  It is not the end of the world if you don’t dust but you want to make your home a virus-free safe zone. Being human you may slack off a bit on cleaning. I know I did after 3 weeks. That is okay as long as you get back to work keeping your home a “Safe Zone”

Get those gardens and pots planting started!  My garden seeds seemed to have failed to germinate.  These were old seeds and if anything had germinated I would be ahead of the game.  Unlike some people think that think starting a garden only requires a bit of digging dirt, dropping a seed and some water.  A productive garden needs a little more effort, experience and knowledge.  Baking bread for the first time may result in flour bricks suitable for use as a door stop.  It is okay to screw up while you are learning stuff!  If you want to bake Whole Wheat flour bread for the first time after eating store bought bread.  Please mix white flour 1/2 with whole wheat flour. Whole wheat flour can mess up your guts for several days if your guts are not ready for all that additional fiber.  It may seem counter-intuitive but moving to a non-processed food diet “might” mess with your digestive track until it learns to deal with your new diet.

I’m getting a local business to cut down my less than healthy elm tree.  This will be my use of the Trump bux coming in a month or two.  I’m going to ask my local hair dresser if she has a gift card option for hair cuts in the future? Paying a few dollars now for a “gift card/gift certificate might keep her business going during the “lock down”.  Small businesses need cash flow now!  Not two months from now, if/when the government decides to cancel it’s “shelter-in-place order”.  I’m not a fan of the “Lock Downs” though I understand the orders because many people are idiots.  The government can’t protect you from idiots.  You must protect yourself from idiots.

Wear a mask of some sort, protect your eyes from the coofers of all sorts. Make your home a Sanctuary/Safe place from the virus.  Stay at home and mask up when shopping isn’t hard it’s just inconvenient.

I’m having a great time playing Fortnite video game though I suck at it.  Play a video game, read a book, paint a room, learn sewing, plant a garden.  My gosh there is so much you can do if you think “outside the box”.

What Can You Do?   What can’t you do?

Earthquake, snow and new seeds to start

It has been wild the last couple of days here at Casa de Chaos!  A 6.5 earthquake hit about 120 miles from my place the other day and I had no idea what had happened.  All I heard was a very loud bang/boom noise and my flat screen TV was wobbling a little bit.  I though for a moment that the big elm tree in my yard had hit my neighbor’s house or a large branch had hit my roof.  I did not know that some earthquakes have a booming sound that accompanies the quake.

The tree is fine for the moment but I called up Tucker’s Timbers my local wood supplier to have them come and cut down that old elm.  It’s been a good tree but she is dying and splitting through the trunk.  The tree roots are starting to come through the lawn and not holding the tree strong with a deep root system.  I want to keep the stump and make a flower planting area in the middle of the stump and leave a border area of wood for something like a patio table/bar for sitting around this summer.  Perhaps add a large shade umbrella to help with the loss of that big shade tree.

It is Spring time in Idaho and we got some of that pellet/”corn” snow today.  It is over 43 degrees F. so the snow can’t stick but it adds to my feeling of a long winter if not a cold winter for SW Idaho.  We have had snowfall every month this 2019/2020 winter going back to Sept. of 2019!  Thank goodness it was not a cold winter.

I have trying to start plants indoors using some older seeds and it does not seem to be working out well. I’m new at doing this and my spot could use a heat mat to maintain a consistent warm temperature.  I bought a lot of new seeds to try in another starting box this week.  I have time as the frost date here is about May 10th.  That will give the older starts more time to grow and the new plant startsshould be ready to plant in about 6 weeks.

I have some root crops to plant next week in two of the raised beds.  One bed will get covered with frost cloth and the other bed in clear poly sheeting like a mini-green house. That should give me a good idea what bed works best for early cool weather crops.

Last but not least I took a couple of n95 masks over to a few neighbors that were at home.  I explained how to sanitize them in a low heat oven of at least 167 degrees F. for 30 minutes.  Now that I can safely and easily sanitize my masks for the Wu-Flu/Covid 19 virus. I can safely share out a few masks with my neighbors.

I’m don’t have enough masks to give away to first responders.  I do have a few masks to share with my local network of people that may have missed getting masks in January.  I think everyone must start wearing masks of some sort even a bandana and sunglasses will protect you and the people around you better than nothing.  Canyon county now has community spread infections and this flu spreads even if you don’t feel sick.  So that means you assume everyone is infected including yourself.  Allergy season is starting and you can have both allergies and the flu. Without a mask you are potentially spreading  those tiny flu virus particles with every sniffle, sneeze and cough!

I gave myself a rule:  If I go out in public, I have to wear my mask and glasses/goggles. Wearing a N95 mask is annoying and bit unpleasant, so it is very easy for me to find a reason not to go out in the public or shopping unless I  must get something I need like seeds for the garden.  Goodness knows I have plenty of jobs that need to get done inside and outside of my house that I don’t need to wear a mask!

 

New ways to sanitize masks from MIT!

The Corona virus/Covid -19 can be eliminated or rendered (dead) with your oven set to warm/200 degrees F. for 30 minutes.  Pre-heat the oven to 200 degrees F.  place the masks on a tray for 30 minutes and all virus particles on the mask are now inert/dead!  This great news for people that have a limited number of masks on hand.  Your masks can now be effective protection and reused a few times as long as the basic structure of the mask stays in good shape.  If a mask gets very dirty or the fabric starts to break down after use, toss the used mask in the trash.

Your mask should not catch on fire in a warm oven as it takes over 450 degrees of heat to get paper to burn.  I would use an oven safe pan like a pie pan to hold your masks and not place the mask directly on your oven grates/racks.  Using a gas/propane oven to sanitize masks might be an issue as gas ovens use an open flame but I think you should be okay as long as you pre-heat the oven and place the masks in an oven safe pan far from the gas flame.  Even a toaster oven on the WARM setting should work if the oven can maintain at least 170 degrees F. for 30 minutes.

There is some research that suggests 60 minutes under UV light might neutralize the virus. It is early days for this research and I can’t confirm that UV light kills the virus off of surfaces like a N95 mask.  I’m very excited to see a way to re-use masks and that a normal oven can neutralize any viruses on a mask.  I have a few masks on hand and knowing I can reuse my masks safely means I can give the neighbors a mask or two to help keep them safe and limit the spread of the Wu-Flu if they did not get masks a couple of months ago.

Most people will keep touching their face. I’ve probably reduced touching my nose, mouth and around my eyes about 25-50% less than I did in February and I still touch my face a lot!  ( I bet your nose itches now) LOL!   I don’t worry about my face touches at home as I am making my home a “Safe Zone”.  I spritz the mail box with a bleach solution, wash down the door handles and light switches with a anti viral/anti-bacterial cleaner. I need to add gloves to my shopping gear to minimize the potential of bringing the virus home. Because many people cough sneeze in stores and don’t wear a mask!  I have bought some plastic coated reusable bags that are easy to sanitize with a little Lysol/bleach spray.  I have only one person I interact with closely, that person uses a mask in public, and does not have a “cold/Flu/Allergies” so I’m not going doing a “Total Lock down” at this time.

What I’m doing my shopping to stop the spread of the virus. I don’t drive with a mask on as my vehicle is a bit of a safe zone because it is not used more than 1-2 times a week at most for shopping.

1.  I clean my glasses before driving and before I go into the store I use hand sanitizer then put on my mask.
2. After leaving the store I use hand sanitizer before I remove my mask and glasses and the wash my glasses.  I don’t know why but my nose seems to get all leaky after wearing the mask so I use a tissue to wipe my nose and hand sanitize again.
3. It basically the same steps for every store I go to when shopping.
4. When I get home I put away groceries, the mask gets sanitized, the grocery bags get a sanitizing spray and the glasses get a wash.  This is probably a weak point as I should spray everything with sanitizer before it comes in the house.

I don’t think you have to go all OCD cleaning everything all the time. A few spritzes with bleach, using a good anti-bacterial/anti-viral cleaner 2-3 times a week in your home cleaning, washing hands a few more times per day should be adequate for making the home a virus free safe space.  Getting out in the yard and doing some work growing garden is good and talking over a fence to a neighbor is a good thing!  I never cared for the High people density life-style of people that live in Urban areas.  I’m not sure how those people will cope with a Stay at home Orders that last over two weeks.

 

 

Canyon county Idaho has a “community spread” case of the Wu-Flu

We have had a few deaths here in Idaho and the rate of infection is growing fast from 3 cases to over 100 cases in less than a couple of weeks.  I am very glad I have started wearing my masks during shopping trips last week. You can’t outrun this virus you have to take steps to limit your exposure as much as you can by staying home, wearing a mask, using hand sanitizer and keeping extra social distance when you have to go out among the public.  Now I wear glasses and they provide some protection for my eyes, but if you go out add sun glasses, goggles of some sort to protect your eyes from any coughs and sneezing people in the public.

News from the CDC!  Us serfs should wear mask to limit the spread of the Corona virus!  A bandana and sunglasses will give you some protection if an infected person coughs or sneezes at you and your coughs and sneeze particles will be limited by wearing a mask. People catch the Corona virus can be exposing people for days and not know they are because they don’t feel sick, don’t have a fever, cough or even the sniffles.  If you have Spring allergies, you can also have the Corona virus and spread it even if you don’t feel sick.  Wear some sort of mask and eye protection not only to protect yourself but to protect people in your community!   Perhaps Idaho is different but I did not have people stare or mock me for wearing a mask.  In fact a couple of cashiers thanked me for wearing a mask on my last shopping trip.

My skin was destroyed by all the extra hand washing I was doing the last 6 weeks. Cracked, drying or scaly skin is not good in Pandemic situation so I stopped washing my hands a 20 times a day, used less liquid soap per washing and added a skin cream/lotion to my hands and arms.  Good news!  It only took a couple of days for my skin to recover from drying out and getting scaly.  If you are staying home and you are keeping the house clean, you probably don’t need to go all OCD about hand washing.  Wash your hands before prepping food, eating food and after you use the bathroom should be enough to be clean/safe and your skin won’t get dry and cracked.

Every day, average people must do what they can to stop the spread of the virus. Stay home/self quarantine if you can, especially if you are in a high risk group.  If you have to go shopping wear a mask and some sort of eye protection and have a list of the items you need so you can limit your exposure.  Spray down your door knobs, mail box and clean your house so it is a safe place/sanctuary for you not to worry about the virus.  If you have not done it before set up an online bill pay for utilities, internet and other monthly payments.  I don’t like auto pays because what I need each month can change, but I think online bill pay and banking can be great for convenience and keeping people safe.

Internet and cell phone service may get a little glitchy as many people are working from home, home schooling and bingeing on Netflix and playing games.  Give the companies a little bit of time (2-4 weeks) to rework the data and voice traffic demands.  This virus is not going away in a couple of weeks.  Life will change in the USA and the economy will tank as Corana virus is a flock of black swans hitting the world economy.   Start thinking about how you will live in this new economy.  Sending your children off to child day care or a school will bring this virus into your home.  Schools are human petri-dishes of infections.  Spring break is now Summer break but kids can be asymptomatic carriers of this flu that might kill grandma/pa.  Start thinking about what you will do stop the spread, not only through April but into September.

I could be wrong and the Wu-Flu disappears in July and never comes back. How many family members, neighbors are you willing to risk because you did not like wearing a mask, goggles, or look like a goof? Masks are uncomfortable, I don’t want to wear safety goggles.  I’ll look silly to other people.  Those sentiments are correct and you will probably get infected and infect others close to you and in your neighborhood.

If I am wrong about wearing masks and goggles I may look a bit silly.  If I’m correct that wearing masks and goggles stop the spread of this virus in the USA. Everyone is a hero that masks up and shows the world how to stop this pandemic!  If you are out in the public wear a mask to protect yourself and protect others because you don’t know if you are an asymptomatic carrier or if other people are an asymptomatic carriers.

People are getting tense, stressed and frustrated around here (SW Idaho)

I admit that I’m one of those people getting frustrated because I’m not seeing much in the way of social distancing. I stopped at the Family Dollar because Mom wanted a comforter she saw on Friday.  The parking lot wasn’t full and the amount of people in the store did not seem excessive when I got in the check out line.  Things changed quickly and the checkout line started stacking up behind me and no one was keeping any real “social” distance.  Many people were in and out of the store searching for toilet paper, wipes or other items that had sold out and leaving empty handed.  Some of the shelves were empty but there were plenty of OTC meds, cleaning supplies heck even some milk, beer and wine on the shelves.

It was like people had tunnel vision to get one or two items. If that item wasn’t available they were off to another store.  This is why I think you need to make a list of all the items you want to buy/have at home.  Every time you go shopping you are taking a risk. I think it is better to try and get as many items on your list at any one store, rather than focus on getting one or two items but going into many different stores.  I was committed to the check out line but while I was at the store I picked up some red pepper flake, a 15 pack of beer along with Mom’s bedspread set. I wanted the red pepper flake and the beer was just a spur of the moment purchase that might become important if I have to keep dealing with idiots.

I have been tempted to carry a small spray bottle of water to spray people who don’t understand the concept of social distance in lines or other gathering spots.  A bit like spritzing your cat or dog when the pet goes where they should not!  I wonder if people would learn that the spray bottle of water droplet is sort of like if someone is coughing or sneezing on them and their grocery items?  The only reasons I am holding back is either I’d get arrested or sued.  So if you are out shopping, assume someone has a spray bottle of water or germs and keep your distance of 6 feet/2 yards or 2 meters.

I had a little tickle in my throat like I might be coming down with a cold on Sunday so my tolerance of idiots was very low. I got my humidifier fired up with a few drops of tea tree oil.  Today I got out and cut some wood for kindling and opened up the doors to get more fresh air moving through the house. The tickle is almost gone. Getting out in the sunshine, opening the house up to fresh air really helped boost my spirits as well as feeling much better physically.  I’m taking a B complex with vitamin C, a mineral compound of calcium, Magnesium and Zinc and I’m adding a some more D3 to that mix.  Be careful with vitamins and minerals as some are fat soluble like D3/calcium that you can overdose on.  B and C vitamins are water soluble so if you take a little to much you can pee away most of the vitamin your body does not use. Do your research because more of a good thing can become toxic in a larger dose.

I have to hit the bank on Tuesday and want to stock up on twenty and fifty dollar bills to have on hand.  I have one case lot sale Rain checks I want to buy.($20.00 cost) With the Stock market going crazy and many people out of work/laid off I think we are heading into economic recession if not something worse for the next few weeks.  I want to have some cash in $10, $20 and $50 dollar bills on hand.  I’m leaving some money in the bank for buying stuff online like e-books or it there are items I want to order online.  I don’t think you should try and screw anyone but there will probably be businesses that will start having sales on goods/services that will need some “cash flow” to keep going during economic hard times.  This can be a WIN/WIN for you and the business.  You get stuff done and the business keeps enough cash flow to pay employees and themselves during this economic hiccup.

Oh the Irony!!!

I have been pleased with my foresight on getting prepared and topping off with a few additional items specific to the Corona virus.  I added some more gloves, N95 masks, a P100 mask with extra filters. More vitamins, minerals along with extra fresh garlic and turmeric to add to my cooking spices.  Extra pet supplies for litter box and food for the dog and kitties.

I have been watching the news both mainstream and alternative news sites.  Most people still follow the main stream media during a “crisis”.  I can guess how most people will react in the early days of a crisis becoming mainstream.  We see this now with some items getting hoarded and resold to make a quick buck!

I am so brilliant (lol) that I go out with Mom and my aunt to celebrate Mom’s birthday.  Heck this is Idaho and so far no known cases within 300+ miles so it should be safe, RIGHT?

So we are just finishing up a lovely meal at a local buffet with everything from sushi to Mongolian BBQ and some great Chinese food and I kid you not, a tour bus load of Asian people come into the restaurant. The people looked more like business people rather than tourists college students but it was a bit of a surprise.  My Aunt’s eyes got a bit wide because I had mentioned the Corona virus and the USA government’s response to the virus was less than optimal in my opinion.

I don’t think there will be a problem as there were no masks and all those folks looked happy and healthy and were in the 20’s to 40 years old range.  It does show how quickly things can change and all the preparations in the world can’t account for random events.

FYI update on masks: There is a massive shortage in the USA of masks and people are asking for ways to prolong the effectiveness of theN95 masks they have on hand.  Chris Martensen of Peak Prosperity. com who is a microbiologist by schooling as well as a money/investment guru recommends rotating masks every 9 days. (The time that Corona virus lives on surfaces)

The N95 masks are good for about 8 hours of continuous wear. So wear the the mask when around groups people and then set it aside for 9 days and let any virus go away.  You might add UV light or an anti-viral surface spray like Lysol to give the mask a spritz to get rid of any viral contaminants and let the mask sit for a few days.

 

I think I got what I need on hand

If you are in a panic and have few preps on hand it can be daunting to try and prep for the Wu Flu/corona virus.  Take a moment and look at what you will need if you have to quarantine.  Separate what would be nice to have and you have to have.

You need food and I bet you already buy food. So buy more food that can be stretch for a month.  Pasta, sauces add meat to your freezer.  Eggs are a great source of protein. Add cheeses and spices/herbs.  Most likely the power and water will keep flowing so buying dehydrated food or MRE’s is not required to stock up for a 2-4 week quarantine.  Buy the foods you like just try and buy enough for an extra week or two.

If you can’t find masks to buy, forget about buying them for now!  How many people in the USA do you see wearing masks daily?  Wear a scarf and keep your distance.  Get gloves and extra hand sanitizer. Wear glasses of some sort to protect your eyes from sneezes and coughs.  You are looking to limit your contact with groups of people.  So you don’t need a lot of masks. You need to be able to stay at home and avoid people.

Start thinking how you could stay at home via self-quarantine? Do the kids go to public school or could you set up an online course/school for the kids? Can you work from home and tel-commute?  Have you asked your supervisor about that as a possibility and what is needed to make it possible?  Never hurts to ask if your job does not require your physical presence.

I would love to tell people that everything will be fine and nothing will change in the USA.  I don’t think that is true. I think the economy will go lower and many people will be laid off for awhile because of lack of materials out of Asia.  I think four weeks of food should be good for any Quarantine, but paying the bills a month ahead or even the current month with out a paycheck will be tough for many people.

1. Pay to have food, water and electricity first!
2. Pay rent/mortgage as the second priority.  Talk with your bank or landlord and see if they will accept a partial payment or skip a month before the rent/payment is due.  Often your landlord also is trying to make payments on loans.  If you give him/her a heads up about a payment issue they will try and work with you.
3. Keep your bank account stocked up and pay bills via online banking.  I’m a big believer in paying with cash locally but having the option of paying bills online will limit your contact with the public.
4. Once you have your basics live cheap!  No delivery pizza or uber eats.  Live off your stockpiled food and stay at home.

Just a few ideas to get your “noggin joggin” on how to keep you and your family safe.  I’ll be starting my garden plants indoors.  A little garden of fresh lettuce, radishes, onions, and herbs will give you not only food but something to do when you get bored.

Added a little more to the preps.

I added a bit more bacon and couple more 5 gallon buckets for containing feed or tissues from sneezing.   I’m no expert virologist or microbiologist but I was the Field Sanitation for my Company/platoon.  I worked in food service and understand about cross contamination via you work surface.  I was a NBC/CBR NCO and learned about the possible use of a biological agent as a weapon.  What I think virus released may have happened or how it happened in China is irrelevant.  The virus is going global and you need to protect yourself.   The country (China) has literally placed a quarantine notice for half of China’s population, 10 % of the population on the earth.  Despite the platitudes of it is just the Flu or more people die from cancer.  China knows this virus is hard to contain.

My belief is the “Globalists” want to play down the extent of the virus spread.  I don’t think that is a good plan for most people.  I understand if you don’t work/ you don’t eat or pay the bills.  Few workers at the bottom of the economic chain are given paid “sick days”.  Nor do parents get paid time off for caring for sick family members.  Most people in the USA are still ignorant about this corona virus, how fast it spreads and how it will affect the supply chain/economy.

My recommendations:

• Get at 2-4 weeks worth of shelf stable food.
• Be prepared for interruptions of trash pick up.  Rather than once a week, perhaps every two-four weeks.
• Buy hand sanitizer, bleach, anti-viral cleaners you can afford/find.  A gallon of bleach and couple of bottles Hydrogen Peroxide should cost about $5.00.-10.00.
• Pay your bills, especially trash/water and electricity.
• Gas up your vehicles and any gas cans.  Fuel up generators.
• Pet food for at least a month.
• Get additional prescription meds for at least 30/60 days if possible.  Research herbal medications as an alternative to chronic illness.
• Few people in the USA are treating this virus as a BIG DEAL!  Now is the time to get stocked up on meds you need to live.  Nearly 85% of all prescription medications come from China or rely on raw materials from China.

You will be affected by this Corona virus.  The cheap china crap gee-gaws at your local dollar store or Walmart.  You want an Iphone/Ipad  or cheap PC parts.  NOPE, you ain’t getting it.

The tide is going out and we are going to see how many people are swimming nekid!

A little snow today and a cold spell. Scored on some good FLU preps

We are having  “cold snap” at least in comparison to most of winter this year.  Got a little snow and Freezing temps with gusty winds to start off February.  I got out today and cut a box of kindling for Mom and a sweatshirt was all additional protection that was needed to stay warm.  25-30 degrees F. feels cold after a week of 50-55 degree F. temps last week.  It has been a long winter but it has not been a cold winter here in the Treasure valley.  I have used about 1/3-1/2 of my wood pile so far and that is with Mom buying a couple of pick up loads of wood from me.  I figure about 2-4 cords of wood will be the average wood use for winter heating.  Even the bad winter of 2016-17 wasn’t that bad except my wood was wet and did not have time to season/dry properly.   This will probably be the last month of winter weather, though March will have some damp chilly weather. I’ll be starting the fire just to take the chill off the house rather than starting a fire to warm the house.   Mom is having a problem keeping her wood dry so this summer we need to build a few wood racks and hopefully start stacking wood early to give it the maximal time to dry.  Rather than just buying buying wood to burn in the fall to burn that winter heating season.  It takes a bit of time to build up a  seasoned wood pile on a fixed income.

I’m splitting my Doug Fir for kindling and split a good size box of kindling for Mom but I’m now splitting and filling up a box of those split doug fir to go with the kindling as the in between size of chunks of firewood and kindling.  Of course it is logical how to make a good easy to start fire! It took me a couple of years to actually set aside and split wood to that in between size of kindling and normal firewood!  I think my idea of the kindling wood box was correct but I’ll be splitting most of the firewood and letting it dry for a bit and then split that wood into kindling.

I think both Mom and I are ready for the WUFLU.  I gave Mom some Tyvek suits, masks and a box of gloves that she was a little lacking on for her supplies.   I bought a few bottles of Hydrogen peroxide as most of bottles were older and probably not as effective.  I shopped Family Dollar and they had a store brand concentrated bleach in the 6% range.  Since unsealed bleach will lose effectiveness in 6-12 months I bought a couple of smaller bottles to make sanitizer.  Remember when using a hard surface sanitizer you want to spritz and don’t wipe it off the surface for at least a minute or two and give the sanitizer time to kill the virus/bacteria/bugs.  Let the sanitizer dry naturally if at all possible.   I’m a big fan of liquid soap pump bottles and washing your hands often.  I don’t care for anti-bacterial soaps or hand sanitizer as I think create super bugs.  I still carry and have started using hand sanitizer outside my home as a precaution.

You are the first aid/medical for a cold/flu or any illness.  You want to prevent infections if possible and if someone gets sick you want to support the patient’s immune system to get better.  I’ve made bone broth, I’ll be making Chicken soup.  You can add vitamins, essential oils, colloidal silver to help support a person’s immune system.  You can put yourself into a quarantine against the WUFLU if you see an outbreak within 100 miles of your home town.  You will have to decide the risk level you will accept,  While the number coming out of China is suspect I’m glad that the recovered now outnumber the dead.

FYI: I got the flu/cold and it developed into pneumonia and then it developed into my immune system attacking nervous system.  Guillaume Barre/CIDP.  I spent over 4 months in a VA Extended Care Unit. I was so weak I could not put on socks or lift cup of water.  You don’t want that to happen to you.  Don’t panic, just buy the basics of food cold medicine if you are low make some bone broth, real chicken soup and stay away from crowds.  Once the “Panic Buying” is over in 2-4 weeks, then start stocking up on masks and goggles and other Protective gear.  Protective gear does not spoil, so once you have the basics on hand you are good to go.

Don’t panic and don’t buy gear at the highest price.  Most likely you will “quarantine” yourself. So have your home self care maxed out with food, basic cold medicines. Stay safe and just wait for the Flu of any sort, burn itself out.  Already more people in China are being declared recovered than those that have died.  I know it is tough to wait and see what happens with this flu.  Heck I don’t trust the US government numbers little lone the Chi-coms info/numbers.  But look at what you can do with the info you have already on hand.

1. Treat the symptoms of the flu.
2. Stay away from crowds.
3. Wash your hands.
4. Sanitize work spaces or yourself.
5. Build up your immune system.

Nothing new with dealing with colds or the flu, except this flu seems to have a nasty pneumonia/bronchitis component as standard. It is a nasty flu bug but with good supportive health care in the home, it should not be as bad as what is happening in China.  Now if you are treating the flu and it gets worse as the patient is having problems breathing of can’t take fluids/food.  Call the hospital and let them know the symptoms before you self transport.  At that point it is best to be overly safe rather than sorry.

This post is getting into the TLDR territory but I don’t think anyone that has prepared should “freak out”.  It is just a cold, or just the flu until it is pneumonia and you need some additional health care.  300 people sick in a country of 330 million is not an epidemic.