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Last night, my bottle-fed Ewe went into labor. She never got as big as the naturally raised ewes and this ended up being a problem. We will talk about the long night in the pasture, as well as tales from the prepper pantry, a shopping report, operation independence, and more.

Featured Event: Exit ad Build Land Summit at Polyface, May 23 & 24: https://courses.livefree.academy/land-summit-5-polyface-farms

Sponsor 1: AgoristTaxAdvice.com/LFTN

Sponsor 2: DiscountMylarBags.com

Tales from the Prepper Pantry

• Progress Report
• Preparing From The Pantry
• High End Cured Meats Wholesale
• Egg prep for the spring workshop – link to the spring workshop: https://www.livingfreeintennessee.com/spring-workshop-2025/

Weekly Shopping Report from Joe

Dollar Tree was first.  They’re finally out of the big non-carbonated Monsters I was getting, but there were plenty of other choices.  Stock levels throughout the store looked good.  Sonia has been able to find some craft items in there lately.

We also went to Hobby Lobby for some acrylic paint.  We didn’t walk around the whole store looking at other stock, but I didn’t see empty sections or anything else odd.  Things may change with the tariffs on Dragon Country, but not yet.  They were “normal-busy” with a short wait to check out.

The online price of a 2x4x8 stud at Home Depot is still $3.85.

Aldi was last.  We found everything we wanted.  Staple prices were: bread (20 oz. white): $1.39; eggs: $4.97; whole milk: $2.92; heavy cream: $5.29; OJ: $4.09; butter: $3.49 (-); bacon: $3.99; potatoes: $4.39; sugar: $2.99; flour: $2.35; and 80% ground beef: $4.59.

Untainted regular gasoline at Weigels is still $3.59/gallon.

Operation Independence

2 lambs born, so $800 goes into the independence fund

Main topic of the Show: A Wonderful, Horrible Livestock Experience

Make it a great week!

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

 

Community

• Follow me on Nostr: npub1u2vu695j5wfnxsxpwpth2jnzwxx5fat7vc63eth07dez9arnrezsdeafsv
• Mewe Group: https://mewe.com/join/lftn
• Telegram Group: https://t.me/LFTNGroup
• Odysee: https://odysee.com/$/invite/@livingfree:b

Resources

• Membership Sign Up

• Holler Roast Coffee

• Harvest Right Affiliate Link

 

Direct Download

Today we’re talking about busting through analysis paralysis and, of course, all our usual Monday segments.

Featured Event

Member Webinar – Homeopathy for Urgent and Emergent Situations

Don’t miss this week’s member webinar! Learn practical ways to approach health challenges using homeopathy.

Details & Sign-Up: https://www.livingfreeintennessee.com/event/homeopathy-for-urgent-and-emergent-situations/

Sponsor 1: The Wealthsteading Podcast

Insightful discussions on wealth-building and independent living.

🔗 https://investablewealth.com/

Sponsor 2: AbovePhone

Secure, freedom-minded communications.

Get $50 off your device with coupon code LiveFreeTN

🔗 https://abovephone.com/?above=104

Tales from the Prepper Pantry

• Cooking for people from the pantry
• Chaos of storing things everywhere – Nicole needs a wife
• Moving back into the prepper pantry
• About to unload a bunch of stored grain—we don’t eat grain anymore
• The “oh shit” story

Weekly Shopping Report

This one will be short and boring; no major changes (I don’t need a Wahhmbulance for my chocolate price, at least not yet). Dollar Tree was the usual first stop. The drink product mix is shifting, but stock levels remain excellent.

The online price of a 2x4x8 stud at Home Depot is still $3.85.

Aldi was last. We found everything we wanted, but my preferred chocolate has gone up again to $2.69. Staple prices were:

• Bread (20 oz. white): $1.39
• Eggs: $4.97 (limit 2)
• Whole milk: $2.84 (-)
• Heavy cream: $5.29
• OJ: $4.09
• Butter: $3.75
• Bacon: $3.99
• Potatoes: $4.39
• Sugar: $2.99
• Flour: $2.35
• 80% ground beef: $4.59

Untainted regular gasoline at Weigels is still $3.59/gallon.

Frugality Tip

No listener tips this week—send yours to nicole@livingfreeintennessee.com!

Nicole’s Tip: Audit your insurances annually. I’m doing that right now and it’s one of those boring-but-worth-it money wins.

Operation Independence

Update on the GSD weekend! Huge thanks to Valerie, Lynne, Tracy, Steve, Bryan, Tactical, and Knighthawk—and of course Bob, who we tried to kill. It was a solid weekend of getting things done and building community.

Main Topic of the Day: Busting Through Analysis Paralysis

I Why We Get Stuck in Analysis Paralysis

• Fear of making the wrong move or wasting resources
• Drowning in too much information and too many choices
• Perfectionism in disguise—waiting until it’s “just right”
• Pressure from external voices: what you should do versus what you want to do

II How to Align Your Efforts for Real Progress

• Start by documenting where you spend your time
• Revisit your vision and purpose
• Know your own wiring—planner, doer, thinker?
• Identify leverage points that’ll ease other areas

III Tips & Tricks to Break Free (My3Things Method + More)

• Use the My3Things Method—3 high-impact tasks per day
• Do the worksheet—focus and prioritize
• Join our communities—get support and ideas
• Call a friend who can help you think clearly
• Pay for help if it moves you forward
• Break things down to minimum viable steps (An American Homestead story)
• Ask if you’re delaying because you don’t actually want it
• Try body doubling—just work alongside someone
• Just do one thing now—progress over perfection
• Reset your brain—take a walk, listen to music, work out
• And above all: Commit and don’t look back. Nothing replaces just deciding to move.

Sign up for the weekly mail – Stay updated on events, products, and local opportunities.

This week’s tip: Peter Hutchings from Terre Power in Sparta, TN reached out with a deal on used solar panels—around $0.15/kWh or less.

If you’re interested, email him at phutchings@terrepower.com

Make it a great week.

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

Community

• Follow me on Nostr: npub1u2vu695j5wfnxsxpwpth2jnzwxx5fat7vc63eth07dez9arnrezsdeafsv
• Mewe Group: https://mewe.com/join/lftn
• Telegram Group: https://t.me/LFTNGroup
• Odysee: https://odysee.com/$/invite/@livingfree:b

Resources

• Membership Sign Up

• Holler Roast Coffee

• Harvest Right Affiliate Link

 

Direct Download

Today, we begin to explore a bigger picture question about AI: Will it make us more or less free?

Featured Event: Member Webinar on Homeopathy

Sponsor 1: HollerRoast.com

Sponsor 2: AbovePhone.com, Coupon code LivefreeTN

Will AI Make Us More Or Less Free?

First, how do we define freedom?

The counter tension is those who wish to control and build power bases.

So this question is a pretty big question: Will AI make us more or less free?

AI’s Inherent Bias
AI as a Search Engine Replacement
Technocracy vs. Liberty
AI as a Creation Tool vs. Scam Weapon

Recommended Steps to Stay Free

1. USE AI but with a critical
2. Learn to protect your privacy, Use tools like Above Phone
3. Be wary of too-good-to-be-true offers—even from people you know
4. Set up a family/friend safe word
5. Don’t blindly trust outputs—verify and think – especially the smaller details
6. Avoid emotional or functional dependency
7. Stay capable without the tool; don’t let it run your life

AI can help you build the life you want—or quietly undermine it – and if we just ignore it, it will move toward the status quo: empowering the oligarchs not the individual. Freedom means staying awake and staying critical without burying your head in the sand.

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!

Community
Mewe Group: https://mewe.com/join/lftn
Telegram Group: https://t.me/LFTNGroup
Odysee: https://odysee.com/$/invite/@livingfree:b
Advisory Board
The Booze Whisperer
The Tactical Redneck
Chef Brett
Samantha the Savings Ninja
Resources
Membership Sign Up
Holler Roast Coffee
Harvest Right Affiliate Link

 

Direct Download

First day of spring and it is 26 degrees out there. Find out how the plants weathers this latest yucky frost, progress on the prepper pantry, a garden update, and more today on our weekly homestead update show.

Featured Event: Solstice Gathering at Haven Earth Trade School in Old Fort, tn (nearish Chattanooga). Use the contact form on the website to RSVP and get additional information.

Sponsor 1: AbovePhone.com: https://abovephone.com/?above=104
Use coupon code for $50 off: LiveFreeTN

Sponsor 2: EMPShield.com

Fallen Ewe, Hoof Trimming and Selenium
The Great Vehicle Scam of 2025
Frosty First Day of Spring
Flood Damage Report
Garden Bed 3 is up – stupid dog
Duck egg production update with supplementation – it was pretty instant
Prepper Pantry Update
Holler Comms in the storm
The Round Roast that became Rouladen
What happens to a spring with 6-8 inches of rain in 1 day and what we did about it
Erosion Remediation Projects Update Post Flood
Tomato seedlings are up and looking good
Gifting 6 chards to a friend this week and hopefully planting the last 8 in bed 4
Lighting and the fence charger – community
Watercress patch is not coming back yet which is slower than usual
Tempting to dig up the old garden and seed with gourds and runner beans
Holler Game Night tonight

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!

 

Community

• Mewe Group: https://mewe.com/join/lftn
• Telegram Group: https://t.me/LFTNGroup
• Odysee: https://odysee.com/$/invite/@livingfree:b

Advisory Board

• The Booze Whisperer
• The Tactical Redneck
• Chef Brett
• Samantha the Savings Ninja

Resources

• Membership Sign Up

• Holler Roast Coffee
• Harvest Right Affiliate Link

 

Direct Download

Episode 1017: The Power Of Starting Strong: Make Your Own Mesophilic Culture

Today, we talk about how to make your own mesophilic culture at home so you can reduce save money and develop your own cheese flavors over time. Really having a strong start in cheese is as important as doing so in life, isn’t it? And nurturing your starts in life is as important as hitting things hard ever day. We will also cover our usual Monday segments.

Member Webinar: Building Small Scale Events On Your Homestead, Sunday, March 23 at 3pm Central: https://www.livingfreeintennessee.com/courses/creating-small-scale-events-on-your-homestead (Members you know what to do!)

• Sponsor 1: AgoristTaxAdvice.com/LFTN
• Sponsor 2: DiscountMylarBags.com

Do me a favor? Drop a review at iTunes and share this podcast out to your friends.

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Tales From The Prepper Pantry

• No progress on floor
• Spring Cleaning – Processing meat: Bacon, scotch eggs, grinding lamb, scotch eggs
• Tomato seedlings planted and germinated
• Looking to purge the grains from storage
• The tunnel

Weekly Shopping Report from Joe

Dollar Tree was the usual first stop.  I noted again that the Health aisle was stuffed.  In particular.

We didn’t go in, but the price of a 2x4x8 stud at Home Depot still shows $3.85 online.

Aldi was next.  We found everything we wanted, but there were only a few bars of my preferred chocolate (70% cacao) left.  Staple prices were: bread (20 oz. white): $1.39; eggs: $5.97 (limit 2); whole milk: $2.92 (+); heavy cream: $5.29; OJ: $4.09 (+, and very little); butter: $3.75; bacon: $3.99; potatoes: $4.39; sugar: $2.99; flour: $2.35; and 80% ground beef: $4.59.

Food City for a 22 lb. Bag of Meow Mix (that our cats ask for by name).  Pet foods were well-stocked.

Untainted regular gasoline at Weigels is still $3.59/gallon.

Frugality Tip From Jordon

St. Patrick’s Day is upon us, it’s a fairly big day up in Maine since there is a large Irish population here, so cabbages are on sale for the boiled dinner feast! Tonight we snagged 3 juicy cabbages at the grocery store for 39¢ a lb.  Made 3 half gallons of sauerkraut for $5!

Hope you have a lucky 🍀 Monday!

Jordan 

Operation Independence

• GSD Weekend March 29 & 30 in the Holler – Staining, building a composting outhouse deck, hauling off construction debris, building a new humanure barrel, setting up the classroom, hanging the presentation tv, etc.

Main Topic of Today’s Show.

What is a Mesophilic Culture and Why Should You Care?

• Mesophilic culture is a bacterial starter used for cheesemaking, cultured dairy, and fermentation. 70-85 for fermentation.
• Used as the base for feta, cultured cream cheese, chevre, farmer’s cheese, mozzarella, etc.
• Why: Saves money, adapted to your environment, adds resilience, it’s fun

How to Make It Making a Mesophilic Starter

1. Find Culture
2. Prepare the milk
3. Inoculate & Ferment:
4. Store & Maintain:

What If I Cant Get Culture or Cultured Buttermilk?

• Quality Raw Milk
• Leave at room temperature
• Smell/taste
• Treat like a cultured buttermilk starter

Thought Of The Walk On Cheese Culture

• This process is a perfect analogy for life.
• You get out what you put in—a weak start leads to weak results.
• Just like a good mesophilic culture ensures better cheese, a good mindset, strong habits, and the right influences ensure better outcomes in life.
• Sometimes we forget to nurture ourselves and those things that are most important to is, resulting in weak starts – and what do you do with a weak start?

Make it a great week!

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

Community

• Follow me on Nostr: npub1u2vu695j5wfnxsxpwpth2jnzwxx5fat7vc63eth07dez9arnrezsdeafsv
• Mewe Group: https://mewe.com/join/lftn
• Telegram Group: https://t.me/LFTNGroup
• Odysee: https://odysee.com/$/invite/@livingfree:b

Resources

• Membership Sign Up

• Holler Roast Coffee

• Harvest Right Affiliate Link