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Living Free in Tennessee - Nicole Sauce

Homesteading, food, freedom and fun!
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Living Free in Tennessee - Nicole Sauce
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Now displaying: May, 2020
May 29, 2020

Today, I share with you the story behind my mysterious fundraising efforts 2.5 years ago, as well as let you know what your funds helped make happen.

Announcements:

  • Reminder that no episodes the week of June 9
  • Canning Webinar in June

The tale of a woman and dog who needed our help and what happened next.

Make it a great week!

GUYS! Don’t forget about the cookbook, Cook With What You Have by Nicole Sauce and Mama Sauce. It makes a great Christmas Gift!

Advisory Board

Resources

May 27, 2020

Today, I will review five things to consider regarding visitors to your farm or homestead s that you can navigate this slippery slope with grace and humor.

Thursday at 7pm - Live with the Holler Neighbors on Youtube: https://youtu.be/nhm-S4xbDuA

Email feedback to nicole@livingfreeintennessee.com

Stump the Sauce

  • From Hunter: When to Work With an Established Vendor on Website Redos

What’s Up in the Garden

  • Green beans and beets are up
  • All tomatoes and peppers are out - tomatoes have their first tiny green tomatoes which means hopefully four more weeks until harvest
  • Rapidly seeding things all over the garden spaces in hopes of more production - we have fallen behind due to a fencing issue
  • Lettuce is about to bolt and I have not organized my lettuce growing rotation very well to keep us in greens (luckily the chard will save my butt)

Main topic of the Show: Managing Visitors to Your Farmstead

  1. Learn to say NO
  2. Set Up Touring Hours That Work For You
    1. Agrotourism
    2. Rental cabins
    3. “fun “ projects
    4. Petting zoo
    5. Seasonal fin like pumpkins or baby chicks
    6. Classes
  3. Consider Visits as a Profit Center
    1. Clear Objective
    2. Many Inexperienced Hands Make Longer Work
    3. List what you will provide vs what they need to bring
    4. Treat it like a workshop
  4. How to Set Up Farm Work Days
    1. Ongoing weekly schedule
    2. Usual versus New tasks
    3. Clarity of expectations on both sides (what they provide vs what you provide)
    4. Hands-on training
    5. Reality of the farm vs romanticized idea
  5. Internship Programs vs Farm Day

In the end, wether you decide to allow visitors or helpers to your homestead or farm or not is your decision and people who become pushy about visiting are probably not the kind of people you want. On the other hand, inviting people in to see what the lifestyle is like, or to learn a bit about what you do can be great for business - both from a tourism profit standpoint and to sell what you produce. But be mindful of the roi on your time for tours, visits and helpers - many time the help that comes is more work than doing the task for yourself would be and at that point you are providing a training service - which can be great because then folks learn how much work all this growing food stuff is and are more understanding of the farm to table price point.

Make it a great week!

GUYS! Don’t forget about the cookbook, Cook With What You Have by Nicole Sauce and Mama Sauce. 

Advisory Board

 

Resources

 

May 22, 2020

Today is a Friday so we have an interview show today and I am joined by Joshua Sloan, also known as PA Prepper on the TSP Zello channel to talk about SEO and increasing your online visibility. This is something we could all improve on!

Show Resources

Sloantech Website

Main content of the show

Joshua started out in political activism and learned along the way that he was suited to digital marketing. After working for a large online website development firm, Joshua launched his own consultancy, Sloantech and provides hosting, website development and online marketing services from his home on Pennsylvania.

Make it a great week!

GUYS! Don’t forget about the cookbook, Cook With What You Have by Nicole Sauce and Mama Sauce. 

Advisory Board

Resources

 

May 21, 2020

Today I looked around the homestead and wondered what is going on that might be a good topic for a homestead-focused podcast and it occurred to me – I have been planting sweet potatoes all week. Why not talk about how to set yourself up for success with them on the podcast. 

Stump the Sauce

  • From Janet: How do I grind Pork?

Link to the meat grinder I use: https://www.amazon.com/STX-International-STX-3000-TF-Turboforce-Electric/dp/B0012KJBR0/ref=sr_1_42?dchild=1&keywords=meat+grinder&qid=1589918357&sr=8-42

What’s Up in the Garden

  • Cucumbers are NOT YET PLANTED and I am freaking out
  • Hydro tomato system looks great
  • Putting up shade cloth on the AP
  • Cilantro is flowering so we will soon have coriander
  • Making sure herbs are out 
  • Winter squash is looking good

Main topic of the Show: Planting Sweet Potatoes

  • Why Plant them
  • How they fit into our strategy of food production (even though I am keto)
  • How I make slips
  • What to do if you buy slips
  • When to plant 
  • How to prepare the ground
  • Post planting care
  • Propagation
  • Harvesting
  • Curing

Make it a great week!

GUYS! Don’t forget about the cookbook, Cook With What You Have by Nicole Sauce and Mama Sauce. 

Advisory Board

Resources

May 18, 2020

Today we explore the concept of silence used as a tool to teach, a tool to reflect, and a tool to manipulate.

Tales from the Prepper Pantry

  • Reorganizing canned goods for summer season
  • Setting up a canning station in the kitchen 
  • Focused on using up corn, beans, stewed tomatoes
  • Putting up 6 trays of foraged and dried herbs a week from my walk - mostly red clover and berry leaves (Explain why)

Featured Forage: Rose Petals

Herbal: https://commonwealthherbs.com/rose-herb-of-the-week/

SKIN Toner - rosewater - 

  • Acne
  • Wounds
  • Sunburn

Food: raw in salads, candies as dessert (petals)

Rose hip jam, jelly, or chutney, add them to muffins for a sweet-tart treat, and you can even dehydrate Rose hip puree to make Rose hip fruit leather

Stump the Sauce from Krystal

  • Herbal uses of scarlet clover??

Operation Independence

  • Resuming the writing of my book - MY3Things

Main topic of the Show: The Power and Danger of Silence

  1. Silence in a Sales Call
  2. Silence as a Tool of Manipulation
  3. Silence in the Middle of a Speech
  4. A Moment of Silence
  5. Silence to Get Your Head Right
  6. Silence as a Means to Keep the Peace
  7. Silence to Go Along to Get Along

Silence is a tool, it is something we need to be mentally healthy. But the cultural silence that occurs when people see a trend that may not be healthy, that people do when being polite - THAT silence is dangerous. It is a result of peer pressure. So look around you? And ask yourself - am I going along to get along right now? And is that the best course of action?

Make it a great week!

Song: Anonymous by Sauce

GUYS! Don’t forget about the cookbook, Cook With What You Have by Nicole Sauce and Mama Sauce. 

Community

Advisory Board

Resources

 

May 15, 2020

Today,  someone said something about a neighbor tattling on another neighbor and I thought we need to look deeper into tattling, what it is and is not, and why tattling is VIOLENT.

Stump the Sauce

  • How to transplant strawberries and a word on getting slugs drunk.

Main topic of the Show: Thought of the Walk on Tattlers

Make it a great week!

GUYS! Don’t forget about the cookbook, Cook With What You Have by Nicole Sauce and Mama Sauce. It makes a great Christmas Gift!

Advisory Board

Resources

 

May 13, 2020

Last fall, community member Kurt Dugger said: Screw the toolbox fallacy, I am going to try something big - really big. I want to raise awareness of the issues facing combat veterans and raise money for the Darkhorse Lodge - a veterans retreat in Tennessee. And he did. 

He set out on a journey across the state in a paramotor which basically looks like a lawn chair with a parachute and a giant fan. This multi-day effort ended prematurely due to weather, but it raised lots of money for the lodge. Fast forward to NOW. Kurt is embarking on this challenge a second  time - never give up - May 22-25 ish. 

But first: Stump the Sauce

From Mark: Spicing up feeding tube food

Show Resources

Freedom And Photography

Darkhorse 450 Facebook Page

Main content of the show

  • Introduce Kurt
  • Mention the date change and why

Make it a great week

GUYS! Don’t forget about the cookbook, Cook With What You Have by Nicole Sauce and Mama Sauce. 

Advisory Board

Resources

 

May 11, 2020

Today, we discuss five things to know about homesteading whether you want to live in the country or simply increase your stability wherever home is. Because creating value from what you have and getting control of your supply chain can only lead to good things.

  • Thursday at 7pm- Livestream with the Holler Neighbors - tear down this wall: https://youtu.be/8x6axBY3w1w
  • Webinar: May 28, 2020 at 3pm Central. Google My Business with Joshua Sloan

Tales from the Prepper Pantry

  • It worked! I was able to restock something on schedule! 
  • We have a number of spring dried herbs for teas - collecting more this week
  • Finalizing the workshop menu - ground 10 pounds of pasture raised chickens last night for tacos
  • Sous Vide Chicken Thighs - 4 thighs, ¼ lb butter, 1 tsp salt, 2 tsp curry - let it go for 6 hours and sear off. (Solves the tough as nails problem)

Featured Forage: Watercress - http://herbgarden.co.za/mountainherb/article.php?tag=Watercress

  • Nutrition: vitamin rich - High in Vitamin C and Vitamin A, calcium, Potassium, Vitamin E, K, B6
  • Superfood
  • Herbal Remedy: Detoxifying (mold story), Boosts immune system (C), Increases Skin Elasticity (fewer wrinkles), Natural source for calcium (bones), broad spectrum antibiotic and anti tumor, can help expel uric acid (joint pain) - can be eaten or used as a poultice for this -- used to heal skin blemishes and cuts.
  • Recipes: Cream of watercress soup

Operation Independence

  • Side benefit of the wall coming down - workshop space in the house

Main topic of the Show: Homesteading 101 - Five Things To Know

  1. Your family needs to be on board and not just supportive of your idea, but willing to help
  2. You can begin where you are: herbs on the windowsill, raised beds, city-friendly livestock
  3. Spend time on other homesteads, getting to know homesteaders, and learning what they wish they had done differently - especially in land choice - before you buy. Take time finding your homestead. There is no rush. Also, it ain’t all roses.
  4. Habits of frugality are good no matter where you live. Choose them carefully
  5. Learn 1 thing per year, wether or not you have moved to your homestead: Cheesemaking, canning, soap making, pantry management, milking goats, growing vegetables, printing fruit trees, butchering chickens, herbal remedies, wild foraging, during herbs, growing and making tea. (Don't add more than 3 and be really careful about this)

In our modern day, homesteading has moved beyond getting a free piece of land from the government and living solely from what we produces to a mindset of self reliance, independence, creating value from what we have, and raising and storing good, healthy food. With the commercial food supply chains straining to pivot into a different delivery method - lots of people are interested in grabbing a piece of land and starting to be more independent. This is wonderful. Just know that taking time to find the right fit for you and your family will pay off in spades in the future. And almost anyone can start integrating homesteading practices into their current living situation, be it in an apartment, on a city lot, or on a large piece of land.

Make it a great week!

Song: Wolf by Sauce

GUYS! Don’t forget about the cookbook, Cook With What You Have by Nicole Sauce and Mama Sauce. 

Community

Advisory Board

Resources

 

May 6, 2020

Homesteading is work - there is no doubt. I mean, I am looking at mucking out the duck coop soon. But you can do things to make your life easier and one BIG thing to think about is how much your daily animal chores take and what you can do to improve your time spent on this.

A year ago, mine took 45 minutes to an hour - now they can be done as quickly as 15 minutes.

Stump the Sauce

  • Cow’s tongue

What’s Up in the Garden

  • A FROST IS COMING almost one month past our last frost date - cove your plants, bring things inside!
  • Holding off on the last round of transplanting AND decided to til where we have some compaction
  • Beans are up, tomatoes look OK - mostly, strawberries look GREAT
  • Doing an aqua and hydroponics update in the nest week or so

Main topic of the Show: Animal Chores on the Homestead

  • Easy
  • Efficient
  • Repeatable and Trainable

The typical morning

  1. Tether the goat or feed/water her (weather)
  2. Feed/pet the pig and check her giant waterer
  3. Let Ducks into pen
  4. Feed the fish
  5. Feed the cats and scoop their box
  6. Feed the dogs
  7. Work
  8. Go collect Duck Eggs, let them our/ scatter corn for poultry

Mid day: put feed or whatever where it needs to be and deal with any problems you saw in the morning.

Typical evening

  1. Feed the pig and check her water
  2. Put the goat away
  3. ALL DUCKS GO TO BED with food
  4. Check catfood
  5. Feed dogs

Make it a great week!

GUYS! Don’t forget about the cookbook, Cook With What You Have by Nicole Sauce and Mama Sauce. 

Advisory Board

Resources

 

May 4, 2020

Today, I talk through all the things you, the listener, have done in the last 30 days to get side hustles going or growing. Our community is resilient and this really inspired me to take on a new challenge this week!

Direct Download

Tales from the Prepper Pantry

  • We wasted food this week! FAIL
  • Assessing what I store that is used faster than I anticipated: Frozen breakfast meats
  • Building Workshop Menu From the Pantry due to unpredictable supplies
    • Venison ham
    • Meatloaf
    • Chicken Tacos
    • Smoke Pork Butt
    • Beef Stew
    • Duck Eggs
  • Getting the Canning Kitchen Set up for canning season (and moving jars around to new places

Featured Forage: Dandelion

Operation Independence

  • Relaunched Workshop registration - getting back into a normal

Main topic of the Show: Time to Start

Tell me, are you going to be in a better place this time next year, or still trudging along doing the same ol same ol? 

Make it a great week!

Song: Feed My Hunger - by Sauce

GUYS! Don’t forget about the cookbook, Cook With What You Have by Nicole Sauce and Mama Sauce. 

Community

Advisory Board

Resources

 

May 1, 2020

Today we have a thought of the walk. You see, these past four weeks I have been struggling with time management. While everyone has been home sharing which netflix series they intend to binge watch, complaining about being bored and so forth, I have been running around like a chicken with my head cut off getting little bits of lots of things done and nothing finished. So I will share some thoughts on time management later in the show.

Reminder - Workshop tickets are on sale - there are four available right now: https://www.livingfreeintennessee.com/spring-workshop-2020/

Main topic of the Show: TOTW on Time Management

Make it a great week!

GUYS! Don’t forget about the cookbook, Cook With What You Have by Nicole Sauce and Mama 

Sauce. 

Advisory Board

Resources

 

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