This weekend, I had some pretty cool bartering opportunities and with everything changing so quickly, it occurred to me that we have not talked much about barter around here and how you can build it into your lifestyle, as well as why you should consider doing so…
LFTN Highlights this week
Tales from the Prepper Pantry
Featured Forrage: Wild Sumac
The waving red berry tops reminded me of this wonderful wild forage - wild sumac. This is definitely a plant you want to cultivate in your food forest.
Edible uses:
Nutritional
Medicinals
>>A word on poison sumac<<
Operation Independence
Main topic of the Show: Barter Builds Community
How can we set ourselves up for stability no matter what the powers that be decide? How can we be ready for the coming economic downturn or depression that is certainly coming our way? How can we help those in our community make it through tough times?
These questions have been rattling around in my head as well as my email inbox from all of you for weeks.
Right now you cannot buy ball jar lids anywhere for a reasonable price. But last spring, we did an LFTN bulk buy and some of us have lids, so we have been offering a few dozen to people who need them at a reasonable price or for trade.
There have been som significant crop failures this year and with the oligarchy shutting down trade to a trickle in some parts of our trade system, this will mean price increases in the future -- unless you do not need to buy those crops, or unless you find another way to weather the spare time.
Our money is limping along, trying not to inflate too rapidly or deflate suddenly through lots of strings being pulled by those in power. And it looks more and more like they really do want to crash our economy.
Scary isn’t it.
Yet here we are, with a powerful community of doers, all communicating, getting things done despite what is happening, doing our best to build the life we want to live on our terms.
So back to the question - how can we increase stability in our network. Well, why not barter more. The monetary system can go screw if you don't need money to get what you need or want.
Buying $5 in squash gives me about 5 squash. Buying $5 chicken eggs gives me about a dozen eggs. Trading 5 squash for 12 eggs, then is a wash, no matter what inflation or deflation does to their value. If a year from now the $5 amount becomes $20,000, a direct barter is still a squash for eggs trade, no matter what we decide to call the value.
But barter is much more than a more stable way to exchange value for value, it is also a great tool for building community.
So many times people ask me how to build community. They see what we do here and want to have that in their life. A strong community takes effort, trust and strong relationships. When I can really trust you, it is easier for me to want to invest my most valuable resource, my time, into interacting and transacting with you.
If you think about it, the same goes for bartering. If I do not trust you, how do I know you will live up to your end of a barter agreement? Especially if we are trading non-tangible things like video production for web development work.
Now sure, the crypto world has some create tools to address the trust problem. But here we are at LFTN. A solid community that over the years has developed strong relationships. A strong community where one or another member has stepped up to posit new ideas then run with it.
Just last week over on the mewe group, I say Amy and Ken get all organized about creating a listing of all the LFTN businesses so that we can do business with one another. I mean, if you are going to buy spices, why not get them from Melissa, right? So now there is a growing spreadsheet with folks listing their businesses and side hustles.
So why not add to that momentum through barter? Why not add a columns that says “takes barter?” in the spreadsheet so that folks know if that is a conversation they can have with that person?
How Barter Furthers Independence
How Barter Furthers Community
Why this matters to you:
We have a good thing going here with our community and we can see what is happening in the world around us. And Barter is a tool we really have not much explored to help all of us stay stable through life’s ups and downs.
I mean sure, if what you are bartering is electrical work and you need to use money to buy parts, perhaps your agreement is that the person buys the parts and barters the time. But that is the glory of barter: You can do with it what you want. You can set it up how you want. And as you do this, you are building trust with another person. A person who may become part of your inter circle network. A person who just may drive out to your homestead to make sure you are ok when that tornado hits and you lose all comms in the region.
And it also lets you take full advantage of your creativity and labor. Because no one is there to take a piece from you in most cases. It is aaaaaal yours. And this make barter even more beautiful.
Think about it next time you decide to do something - ask yourself - is this the time I want to barter. And if it is, see if the other person is interested.
Make it a great week!
Song: Every Way by Sauce
GUYS! Don’t forget about the cookbook, Cook With What You Have by Nicole Sauce and Mama Sauce.
Community
Advisory Board
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Today, I am joined by a visitor to the Holler Homestead to do a thought of the walk on the concept of filling your cup. You can't pour from an empty cup, so the saying goes and lately I have been burning the candle at both ends - to use way too many cliche sayings in one sentence. So as I navigate a busy fall, I wanted to talk about ways to fill the cup and find balance.
Fair warning: If you visit the Holler on podcast day, sometimes you end up on the podcast, right Ken Eash?
Direct Download
Chicken Processing Workshop is Sold Out
Main topic of the Show: TOTW on Filling Your Cup with Ken Eash
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
Pressure canning really freaks some people out. We have all heard stories of the famous exploding pressure canner. But to safely process green beans, aside from making dilly beans, you need to use a pressure canner or freeze them. Today, I will walk you through the pressure canning process, using green beans as the example.
#HollerHatWednesday: What is she up to now?
Unloose the Goose tonight at 7:30pm
Stump the Sauce
Tales from Another Booze Whisperer
What’s Up in the Garden
Episode 339: Canning Green Beans
When to pressure can
Equipment needed
Annual Safety Check
Gage vs weighted canners
Canning Resources: National Center for Home Food Preservation
The Process
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
Today is a variety show where I take questions and share thoughts about: Podcasting, wholesale pricing in your business, the coin shortage, what is up with our food supply outages, strawberries and getting ready for what may happen.
Holler Neighbor Livestream: https://youtu.be/69ISRhuVluw
Poultry Processing Workshop: https://www.livingfreeintennessee.com/2020/08/17/chicken-processing-workshop-september-21-2020/
Tales from the Prepper Pantry
Featured Forrage: Paw Paw
Operation Independence
Main topic of the Show: A Variety Show
Podcasting questions
Wholesale pricing in your business
The coin shortage
Debi on shortages
The chicken story
FROM MARK:
We are trying to get 2 strawberry wicking beds constructed per month. At the moment we have 3 different varieties of plants to spread out the harvest window.
Does it make sense for each bed to be dedicated to a single type of berry or should we plant 2-3 varieties in each bed?
Getting ready for what may happen: Talk with my sister
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
Today is a Thought of the Walk (TOTW) episode. Every so often, I go on a walk. Sometimes I have a thought to share. Opportunity is the Friday thought - and how to make room for it in your life -- or how to choose which one is best when all of them come at once.
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
Today, as promised, I have a very special interview with none other than Gregg Yows about his creative side hustle, prepping, transition and with a special launch of something new.
Chicken Processing Workshop: https://www.livingfreeintennessee.com/2020/08/17/chicken-processing-workshop-september-21-2020/
Show Resources
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/gyows
https://www.facebook.com/yowsmusic/
Main content of the show
Gregg Yows is a creative guy who ties flies, loves the outdoors and has a mysterious hobby that is slowly growing into a business. Hear all about it on today's show. Ok fine. He's a AWESOME musician. He just released a song today that I think y'all will like.
Download Five Gallon Bucket
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
Today is a Friday so we have an interview show today. And today I talk with Ken Eash about building to your life’s purpose and more.
Show Resources
Connect With Ken Eash
https://www.facebook.com/groups/challengegrowthmastery
https://www.facebook.com/empoweringforwardmomentum
https://www.facebook.com/constructionandhandymanservices/
Topic
Do work that inspires you.
Kenneth and Carmel Eash packed up and moved from south Georgia to rural Kentucky in 2016 to live a homesteading lifestyle, chasing the time and freedom for the things in life that truly matter. Kenneth currently runs a small construction/handyman business as well as part time teen life/career coaching. Carmel spends her time gardening, taking care of animals, and managing her house cleaning biz.
Together their mission in life is to inspire others to live healthier, happier, and do everything possible to escape the rat-race.
Interview
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
Today, we will talk through the basics of starting a podcast because so many of you have asked of late. Since this is live on Youtube, I will take live q & A from there if any shows up.
#HollerHatWednesday: Where is she and who is she with?
Unloose the Goose tonight at 7:30pm: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UChLkn_5InomdoHWmgMiECfQ
Holler Neighbor Livestream - shared pantry discussion: https://youtu.be/qST--X-xCiI
Stump the Sauce
From Chris: Recently a friend gave me a large bucket of fresh figs. I made some jam but still have a lot left. Do you have some ideas for fig recipes? Thank you Nicole.
What’s Up in the Garden
Main topic of the Show: How to Start a Podcast
Episode 20: https://www.livingfreeintennessee.com/2017/01/23/episode-20-8-lessons-learned-from-starting-a-podcast/
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
Today, I was going to talk with you about how to start a podcast because multiple people have asked me this question. But then a homestead day happened. Got up, had quiet coffee, started roasting, missed a call. We are doing a round of meat chickens. I plan to also do a processing class. They are going to arrive Thursday this week.
And in true homesteading colors, the things that happen on the days they are supposed to happen don’t. So I picked up chicks this morning a day early -- and this is a good thing, but my benchmark for coffee volume is now going to be a push. A push that will happen no matter what because it has to.
As I showed Tactical how to get the chicks going, I realized that lots of folks are starting birds for the first time, so today I will share how I raise baby chickens.
Stump the Sauce
From Dori: Freezer questions
What’s Up in the Garden
Main topic of the Show: Getting and Raising Baby Chicks. For meat.
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
Today, we hear from listeners about jumping in - getting going and addressing the thing that holds you back.
No Show Friday or Monday
Unloose the Goose is a hit! (Hosting update)
Tales from the Prepper Pantry
Operation Independence
Main topic of the Show: jump
Synchronicity - you know how it seems like when you think about something and then start talking about it that you find other people are also thinking about it? Last week I got pretty sick. It started the Friday before last, ebbed a bit over the weekend, then hit like a ton of bricks on Monday morning.
It completely derailed the day - I had been all excited to go into the week kicking ass and taking names. Instead I spent much of the day in bed. SO I thought I would see what would happen if I asked the community to do their own podcast segments on the topic of Jump. I am not sure how many “comment” submissions I got, -- too hard to keep track from bed -- but we got two audio clips that I thought I would play to kick us off.
So Jump. The topic from last week that is not this week. All year, I have shared with you ways to increase independence, shared my struggles and successes with my word of the year, grow.
And things have been really weird this year with coronavirus, rioting and an increasingly divided atmosphere.
Sometimes it really feels daunting to be out on my own in an an environment where the following is not only possible, but looking more and more likely:
Humans are still animals under our sophistication and sometimes animals lash out. But there is a bigger issue in society and that is the oligarchy that uses the ruse of division, the ruse of peaceful freedom, the ruse of progress and diversity to push an agenda that is the opposite. As we see more people willing to open fire on someone who is or is not wearing a mask, or to throw a child in juvie for not doing homework, we start to see the true colors of those in control.
And when you first see it, you just want to tear it down. But using their system to change their system is like heading to the casino and expecting to win against the house. You may have times where you get ahead for a bit, but house rules = house wins. The only way to get ahead for the long term is not to play the house.
You’ve heard me say freedom aint hard, but it takes work. That is because freedom is very very simple. It means that you have no business in other people’s business and they have no business in yours, so long as no one is getting hurt. And this thing is very very hard to do consistently in part because we have to let assholes be assholes so long as they are not causing harm.
But enough about that - as we navigate this coming instability in the economy and in society, how do we best set ourselves apart from the harm? Because as you dig deep into your fear of all that is going on, while there may be a fear of getting sick and dying under it all, the bigger fear is all these coming crashes that may happen might also cause you to struggle or fail.
Listen to that one again.
There is no certainty in anything in that sentence is there? Lots of maybes and mights. As we become more aware of patterns and impacts of the decisions that the oligarchy is forcing on the people, we can see where things will likely go and it is scary.
And this fear is holding you back. This fear is how you are controlled from the outside. This fear keeps you in your bad relationship, your go nowhere job, your habit of debt slavery.
And while the fear may be justified, fear is an emotion. One that should stop you from putting your head in a lions mouth, but not one that should stop you from handling that mud wasp nest on the wall outside your laundry room. (BTW I have a mud wasp nest to deal with outside my laundry door).
There is a difference between acting rashly consequences be damned and conquering your fear to take action on your own behalf.
So when I started thinking about this year, about my own choices, about the fear of failure, about the fear of a societal meltdown -- all I can see is a bunch of stuff out of my control. And the choice is clear: spend hours online fretting over what might happen, what probably will happen actually, -- or spend hours growing food, building Holler Roast Coffee.
But it is hard to jump. This jump is not a baby step toward more financial independence. What we are looking at now is a big ol’ jump into the great unknown. Is it good to jump or bad?
Alas, the answer is “It depends”. It is a gift to see the potential direction that all the societal division in the world is leading us to. Why a gift? Because that same skill that we have all been developing gives us the same sight into what is likely to happen when we take a jump.
So while you may be trying to decide if you should launch your new business,
While you are trying to make these decisions, I think you will find you already have. You have the ability to make things work. You have the ability to push through adversity. You have the ability to analyze what is likely to happen, to find someone who is more versed in a topic than you are and get their perspective, to weigh it then make your own decision.
So today, as you are looking at that next jump. Look hard - if the jump ahead of you is not right, then shift focus and take a different jump.
But dont dont dont let the current environment of division keep you from jumping. Don’t let them steal another moment of your time focusing on their theatrics. Don’t waste precious time on those who wish to enslave you, instead spend that time improving something, jumping toward something that makes your life better, more stable, closer to the life you want to live. Only you can build the things you want into your life and wasting time asking permission to do this is part of the problem.
As we look to the fast approaching end of the year, take a moment, look ahead and take that jump. Because you are the only person who can.
Thank you
Make it a great week!
Song:
GUYS! Don’t forget about the cookbook, Cook With What You Have by Nicole Sauce and Mama Sauce.
Community
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