Wednesday, November 18, 2009

Can You Sleep When the Wind Blows?

I first heard this story while living in Northern Arizona. where the wind blows . . . sometimes for months on end, especially in the Spring when you are trying to get your gardens in. It would be so cold that if your baby goats were being born, a large puppy box became a baby goat box at night to save them. Yes, it was in the kitchen, with lots of old newspapers (=+}


I just ran across it on the Preparedness Pantry blog. Check it out HERE.

A farmer needed an extra hand to help on his farm. One young man came to interview for the job. "What are your qualifications?" the farmer asked. "I can sleep when the wind blows," the young man said. This simple reply confused the farmer, but he was desperate for help and the young man was hired.


The young man was a diligent worker through the harvest season, but the farmer still questioned his answer.

Autumn ended and the first cold storm of winter came late one night. The farmer panicked as the winds began to blow. Calling the young man for help, the farmer grabbed his coat and pulled heavy boots on his feet. He was disappointed to find the young man asleep in bed at a time like this. Grudgingly he ventured out alone planning to shuffle all of the animals in the barn and then fix that last hole in the roof. He mumbled about the young man sleeping and was sure all the farm equipment was left standing in the field, collecting rust from the snow.

However, when the farmer reached the barn all the animals were tucked safely inside. In fact, clean hay had already been set out for the new day. Not a single hole could be found in the roof, and the tractor was parked perfectly in the shed.

"Who could have done it?" the farmer wondered. And then, he realized what the young man's answer meant, "I can sleep when the wind blows."

Are You Stocking Up?

Have you noticed that there are times of the year that certain food items seem to go on sell? right now is the time to stock up on many of your favorite canned vegetables! How about that evaporated milk . . . . if you don't want to make your own.

Here is a partial list that you may want to watch the adds for:

  • sugar
  • flour
  • powdered sugar
  • canned milk
  • sweetened condensed milk (AKA Eagle brand)
  • all kinds of canned vegetables. check the ads and then go to Wally-World. they often cut just a few cents off.
  • nuts
  • corn syrup
  • chocolate chips, variety of flavors
  • canned pumpkin
  • butter, you can freeze it
  • beef, look for the boneless cuts. If you want wonderful gr. beef, have them trim surface fat and grind it!
  • pineapple and fruit cocktail, mandarin oranges and other canned fruits
  • Fresh produce, you can find wonderful bargains for the holiday cooking that can be (pressure) canned after Thanksgiving, yes! I said the "C" word! My daughter's idea, we're going to do potatoes together to make it go fast!
Now to go and make the corn bread for the stuffing next week! . . . . . . and yes, some brownies . . believe it or not.