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Today we talk about projects on the homestead, sheep, coyotes, squirrels, homegrown meals and more.

Sponsor 1: The Wealthsteading Podcast (InvestableWealth.com)

Sponsor 2: Agorist Tax Advice (AgoristTaxAdvice.vcom/LFTN)

Winter is here — brr

Branding talk

Long term picture is coming together, repairing things all the way

Forage

  • Field Hay
  • Jerusalem Artichoke\
  • Ferns – looking into what kind (Sheep are eating it)
  • Watercress got beaten back

Livestock

  • Duck Jail has finally happened
  • Sheep need minerals – staying in again
  • Sheep eating more than expected which is great for clearing
  • Hawk Stories
  • Rabbits – Poop is adding Up
  • LGDS, Guns, and Coyotes
  • Time to process more roosters

Grow

  • Planning to get the indoor lettuce grow operation going in January
  • Still need to plant garlic

Harvest Meals

  • Taco Salad
  • Easy Pork Loin
  • Workshop Leftover Lamb Stew With Radishes

Holler Neighbors/Community

  • Secret Santa
  • Holler Neighbors and DAS PROJECT
  • Squirrel Issue at the Duplex and tapping the network
  • Dan starting a welding/repair business with a friend

Infrastructure

  • Floor Update
  • One more stretch of hard fencing

Finances

  • Cow update likely for the next show
  • Spending $$ on woodworking tools to work on building things from her (Furniture, etc)

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

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Today, as promised, we will talk about what is changing as we move into next year, the why, as well as our usual Monday segments.

Featured Event: LFTN Spring Workshop – April 25-27, 2024

Sponsor 1: DiscountMylarBags.com

Sponsor 2: EMPShield.com Coupon Code LFTN

Livestream Schedule

Tuesday Live, 12:30PM Central, Nicole Sauce and John Willis welcome Porterhouse!

Friday Homestead Happenings, 9:30am Central

Sunday: Monetizing Sunshine – Join us for an INTERVENTION with Willow to help her monetize what she does best – spreading Sunshine. I will be joined by a mastermind panel: Toolman tim Cook, Brian Aleksivich, Kerry Brown and 

TORNADO UPDATE

Tales from the Prepper Pantry

  • We fit 2.5 cows in the freezer by playing freezer tetris – yolink
  • Pulled a PILE OF MEAT OUT for this week to stay on plan despite the ongoing construction chaos
  • Crockpot roast: onion, garlic, cumin, 1 jar tomato sauce, salt and pepper. Add carrots 4 hours before finish or if you fumble that ball, precook them and add them in

Weekly Shopping Report

12/11/2023

We took our usual trip on Saturday. It was a rather gloomy day, but not truly yucky, and we stayed dry. Traffic was light.
Dollar Tree was first. The coolers (food and drink) are all in decent shape, as though perhaps an effort is being made. The store has become a LOT busier over the past few weeks, and three cashiers were open. Amidst the junk, there are some good finds here. Feel free to listen to Jinne on her “Homestead Corner” YouTube channel; she often does budget Dollar Tree prepper hauls.
Home Depot was second. FYI, they will shake your own paint cans for you, and I don’t think there’s a charge. The tag was missing in the store, but looking online it looks like a 2x4x8 has gone up 7 cents to $3.25.
Aldi was last. We found everything we wanted, but the chocolate is dwindling again. We got the last small piece of Atlantic Salmon, but the cashier said they were expecting a truck. There were some price adjustments. Staple prices were: milk: $3.02, eggs: $1.66, heavy cream: $4.69, OJ: $3.29, butter: $2.99 (-), bacon: $4.25, potatoes: $3.99 (+), sugar: $3.09, four: $1.99, 80% ground beef: $4.19.
A gallon of untainted regular gasoline is $3.699.
I made a quick second trip to Walgreen’s on Sunday to restock vitamin C; somehow our last bottle was nearly empty. FYI, they typically have BOGO deals on vitamins and supplements, or buy one at full price, and the second is half price. The C was BOGO, so we now have a couple years’ worth, for around $21. There were holes here and there for certain brands or sizes of various vitamins and supplements, but overall the selection looked complete.

Frugality Tip: none this week

Operation Independence

Poverty Mindset, Project Fatigue, and the color of my floor

Main topic of the Show: 2024 Changes for LFTN

No – I am not pregnant LOL

Remember my epiphany from this year’s word: Breakthrough? Do Less

Healthier Nicole: fitness, family, food, time, Home

With that in mind and having tapped into some of the data for the podcast, your comments and interactions on social media, email requests and more, I realized that 2024 has to bring some changes so here they are:

LFTN, the podcast and show

  1. Tuesday Lives will Become a Stand Alone Podcast
  2. 3 shows a week on a schedule, Monday 2pm, Wednesday 2pm, Friday. 9:30am
  3. Tactical will join me weekly – sometimes one or the other will be solo
  4. Focus and topics: building freedom as an agorist, homesteading life and how to, community, creating success
  5. Weekly Mail and marketing/clerical help
  6. Increase Playfulness – or rather return to it, New shorts series
  7. Clarity on affiliate promotions

THE HOMESTEAD

Refocusing on the things we love most

Building the event center where Tactical lives

Acquiring more land

Collaboration with Dawn Gorham, Homegrown Cooking: Cooking from snout to tail, video based, membership, etc.

SRF and LFTN Spring Workshop (EVENT PLANNER?)

Fewer speaking engagements – why

THE BOOK – an update

Project Accelerators and Mastermind

Holler Roast Coffee – to the moon! (SELL IT?)

Membership

Membership schedule for the year – 12 webinars, not monthly

New value ads, youtube subscriptions

Rental properties (SELL IT?)

Make it a great week!

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

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Today we talk about meat, meat finances, balancing all the things and the phrase “when we catch up on large projects on the homestead

Sponsor 1: StrongRootsResources.com

Sponsor 2: DiscountMylarBags.com

Forage

  • Same as last week: tubers, roots, and winter hardy things

A word on SOCIAL

Livestock

  • Everyone has stayed in so far, sheep wise with the high volume of field hay
  • Working them through 3-4 times
  • Rabbits are doing well
  • THE HAWK

Grow

  • Confession about garlic

Harvest Meals

  • Lamb stew in the crock pot
  • Chinese and Mexican food harvested from a local restaurant

Holler Neighbors/Community

  • Trying to keep up while doing this project has gotten particularly hard
  • Christmas Concert this weekend

Infrastructure

  • Need a new fence charger and not sure which to get

Finances

  • Whole cow was $1900 (which is $158 a month)

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

Advisory Board

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Today we talk about reducing drama in your life, Gen X language and childhoods, The Clown Circus, and energy generation with Jack Spirko and John Willis.

Featured Event: Freedom Cell Event in Medina Ohio: https://www.yorkmeadowfarm.com/medina-freedom-cell-network-december-2023 

Sponsor 1: InvestableWealth.com  

Sponsor 2: HollerRoast.com

Show Resources

Special Operations Equipment

Living Free in Tennessee

The Survival Podcast

Main content of the show

Make it a great week!

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

Community

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Today, we dive more deeply into why having a home that works for you is so important to overall success.

Featured Event: Dec 9, Mastersingers Christmas Concert, Cookeville TN: https://mastersingersinc.com/product/christmas/

Sponsor 1: AgoristTaxAdvice.com

Sponsor 2: HollerRoast.com

Livestream Schedule

Tuesday, 9:30 Live with Jack Spirko and John Willis

Friday, 9:30 Live Homestead Happenings

Tales from the Prepper Pantry

  • 10 pound meatloaf
  • Awesome venison shin stew LOL
  • Waiting on plan despite the chaos went well but took work (The stir fry bail out)
  • Getting set for more cold AND to move back into my home this week
  • There will be a post Christmas Pantry Audit
  • 2 incoming cows this week and the ice cream freezer

Weekly Shopping Report: None posted

Frugality Tip: None Sent

Operation Independence

  • 90% of my focus is on Holler Roast Right Now
  • A work on podcast schedule: Dec 19 is the last show for 2023 aside from the Night Before Christmas series

Main topic of the Show: 

Usually when I talk about this topic, I am explaining how to transform your home from something that costs you money into something that brings YOU money – or at least pays for itself. A cornerstone of homesteading is finding ways to create value from your home no matter if you have 20 acres and a flock of sheep or if you live on a small urban lot or apartment, there are ways to glean value from your home.

But today, we have a different perspective. Remember how I said it is the many small choices you make each day that matter much more than the ones that seem huge?

>Roaster story vs. spending an extra hour each day communicating about what Holler Roast has to offer for the holidays

>Building a root cellar vs making your meal plan each day or week BEFORE you are hungry

Which brings me to today’s true purpose: Your home provides a solid foundation for your success when done right, and it can hinder your progress if done poorly. #funfacts

Look at power couples: often one addresses the domestic foundation either through personal attention or outsourcing so that the other is freed to focus on financial success – but both are successful at what they do.

Each day, we need some things to happen and this list can be different for everyone, but there are themes:

  1. Proper sleep and activity
  2. Nutritious food and hydration
  3. Clean clothing, grooming, etc
  4. Systems for finding information, managing things that happen

And for the solopreneur: Uninterrupted time to accomplish important tasks (I would say this is necessary for everyone, really) which means nOt hAvinG tO Put oUt fYres aLL tHe thYme.)

Why I am thinking about this topic: 

  • I had things set pretty much

Why is this a thing?

  • CEO Story: Leaving on trips to close deals – the extreme example
  • Home chef for Scott – the intermediate example
  • Your domestic situation vastly impacts your day. It sets wether you are tired, healthy, put together, worried and so much more – so while it may seem counter intuitive, puttin attention to your home and how it supports your priorities is rarely discussed but very important.

SOE Land: the brilliance of the Employee Lunch

Thoughts on a MESSY vs a CLEANY and how to transform your home into something that works for you (Choose standards you are OK with vs museum standards – or embrace your museumness) 

Things you can do to address this – my initial list while I put my life back together

  • Follow One Course Until Successful
    • Email
    • Bill and filing system
    • Laundry mountain
    • The one messy room
    • Backlog balance
    • Remember to eat on plan
    • Etc
  • Journaling to identify what is most important – it may be personal habits, it may be a spatial issue
  • You make space for what is important to you – are you making space for success or failure
  • Phone a friend

>Land on something that includes OMG THE CLUTTER

Membership Plug

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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Today we talk about asking for help on the homestead, escaping sheep, much needed rain and more.

Featured event: Dec 3 gathering at Kerry Brown’s, 12pm-5pm near Knoxville, 

Please RSVP to Kerry: strongrootsresources@gmail.com

Sponsor 1: Discountmylarbags.com

Sponsor 2: AgoristTaxAdvice.com: https://bit.ly/3hDFWpa 

Forage

  • Returned to underground things
  • Wild game

Livestock

  • LGD Story
  • Fence charger issue and discussions of pasture improvement
  • Eggless birds and nutrition

Harvest Meals

  • Final round of deer shin stew
  • Bought commercial food to eat on plan through the next three days

Heating with wood 

Holler Neighbors/Community

  • ADHD Meltdown and Tracy (doubling)

Finances

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

Advisory Board

Resources

 


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Today we have an interview with AJ Harrison from Preparing4Prosperity all about propane and its many applications, safety, and more.

Featured Event: Dec 6-10, Live Free Academy Online Health Summit (1st 2 days are FREE): https://livefree.academy/op/exit-and-build-health-summit/?ref=183

AJ’s BIO

AJ’s life journey began with learning bullet casting and knife making in his youth. At 17, he explored Africa on a six-month safari, a transformative experience. He later became a volunteer firefighter, dedicating two decades to community service while diversifying his career in construction and plumbing. Capitalizing on a business opportunity, AJ acquired a catering company during Covid, focusing on sustainable practices and using homegrown ingredients. He also embraced homesteading, turning a small land into a self-sufficient property. AJ shares his wide-ranging insights and experiences through his podcast, inspiring others in pursuits like homesteading, family life, and entrepreneurial ventures.

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

Community

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Join me for our annual brainstorm for homegrown gift ideas for the holiday – because allowing gift giving season to bring you down is no good. Better is to choose some things you can hand-make and give to a community of others who appreciate the care over the commercialism.

Featured Event: Dec 6-10, Live Free Academy Online Health Summit (1st 2 days are FREE)

Sponsor 1: Paul Wheaton and Permise.com – Stocking Stuffer for the Gardeners in Your Life: https://gardener-gift.com?f=442 (2 for $50, 12 for $140, 100 for $805)

Sponsor 2: StrongRootsReources.com: https://bit.ly/42UPCgJ 

Livestream Schedule

Monday, 2pm: Homegrown Gift Ideas

Tuesday, 12:30pm: Tuesday Live with Toolman Tim Cook and John Willis

Wednesday, 1pm: Interview with AJ Harrison, Using Propane to Be Off Grid

Friday, 9:30am: Homestead Happenings

Tales from the Prepper Pantry

  • Meal planning strategy, no kitchen: Premade stews from freezer, a chicken, pulled pork
  • Incoming cows – not sure when!
  • Outfitting the camper: Crockpot cutting board, and sioux vide
  • Keeping resupply to a minimum through the renovation

Weekly Shopping Report

Black Friday deals going on.

Dollar Tree was first. Although we found parking easily enough, they were busy enough to have three lines open, which is rare, and I saw at least one person stocking shelves. One of the food coolers in the back appears to have croaked, as it was empty (“66” on its display), but all the others were 3/4 full. The drink coolers were in good shape too, except for one making a bad rattling noise intermittently as it tried to start.

Home Depot was next. Ryobi has a new line of USB-charged tools, and we picked up a rotating brush on the spur of the moment. The new batteries are NOT compatible with their old low-voltage ones. They have USB-C ports on them.

Aldi was last. We found everything we wanted. The only muzzle in sight the whole trip was the woman taking care of her mom with cancer, and she’d be wearing it without the scamdemic. Staple prices were: milk: $3.02, eggs: $1.24 (+), heavy cream: $4.69, OJ: $3.29, butter: $3.49 (+), potatoes: $3.49, bacon: $4.49, sugar: $3.09, flour: $1.99, 80% lean ground beef: $4.49.

A gallon of untainted gasoline remains at $3.899.

Frugality Tip from Margo

You can get yourself, or a friend, prepared for an upcoming surgery, life event, or just a day when you don’t want to think about what’s for dinner, by making up crockpot meals. Chop veggies, add seasonings and bag and freeze. Take the meat out the day before and add the frozen veggies with seasoning to the crockpot. I like to freeze bone broth in ice cube trays and throw a couple in the crockpot with a roast, stew meat or chicken, so add them to the bag of veggies for a quick and easy ready to go meal.  Saves you from ordering that take out, and saves you some time.

Operation Independence

Take advantage of cyber deals that are actual cyber deals – which requires pricing awareness. You can get $.99/lb turkey, 80% off at Wayfair, or other deals this week.

HRC has free gift wrapping through Friday.

Main topic of the Show: Homegrown Gift Ideas

  1. Custom Cutting board
  2. Cookie in a jar: Christmas Macaroon Mix
  3. Soup in a jar: Country Soup in a Jar
  4. Dried herbs in a jar
  5. Home canned goods basket
  6. Aprons and napkins
  7. Shapely Suet Treats
    Materials: 1 1/2 cups shortening (look for palm oil free options),  3/4 cups nut butter (any kind), 3 1/2 cups wild bird seed, 1 cup quick oats, 1/2 cup corn meal, mould
  8. Cookies, quickbreads, treats
  9. Sachet (with your dried herbs)
  10. Homemade tea blends
  11. Freeze Dried Anything (Affiliate Link: https://affiliates.harvestright.com/1095.html
  12. Service Coupons

What ideas do you have for homegrown gifts?

Make it a great week!

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

Community

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Today we talk about colder nights, harvest abundance, livestock hijinks and communications between the Redneck and Nicole.

Sponsor 1:Agoriat Tax Advice – Free Download:  https://bit.ly/agoristtax ; Website: AgoristTaxAdvice.com: https://bit.ly/3hDFWpa

Sponsor 2: DiscountMylarBags.com: https://bit.ly/43r4dkx 

Forage

  • Watercress
  • Oyster Mushrooms Should Be Popping

Livestock

  • Ducks wandering too far and duck jail
  • Helping with Duck Jail
  • Sheep are starting to eat hay – Need more hay (1.5 days per bail)
  • Your livestock will tell you what is needed to keep them if you listen. Sheep got out – a piece of hard fence was high and they let us know
  • Goat getting out
  • Escaped rabbit! (Bring up supplemental food)
  • Baby rabbits are well 
  • Reduction in roosters has greatly aided chicken dynamics

Grow

  • Time to plant garlic – gathering leaves for mulch
  • Hacking away at food forest maintenance a little at a time

Holler Neighbors/Community/Redneck & Nicole Communications

  • The house remodel talk
  • Communal Thanksgiving

Finances

  • It is nice to have savings
  • Help Inventorying freezer meat

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

Advisory Board

Resources

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Today we talk about the past few events and what we learned from them here in the holler. I will also go over our usual Monday segments.

Featured Event: Dec 3 West Knox County Gathering, Email Kerry for address and directions 

Sponsor 1: FreeSteading.com

Sponsor 2: Strong Roots Resources

Livestream Schedule

Monday at 4pm Central: My Interview with The Rural Report with Debut on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bAAGcUEPzik 

Tuesday, 12:30: Live with Evan Dixon of Radio Made Easy and John Willis of Special Operations Equipment.

Friday, 9:30am: Homestead Happenings 

Tales from the Prepper Pantry

  • Processed 6 roosters for freezer camp (hand plucked them)
  • Went to smoke our bacon and it turns out there is only 3lbs cured so I will be doing a series on curing bacon as we cure the rest of the bellies
  • Been shopping at the grocery store for fresh veggies even though we usually do not do this
  • “Shepherd’s Pie” and “Stroganoff” to use up winter squash
  • Hoping to find wild mushrooms this week
  • Basing meals on odds and ends

Weekly Shopping Report from Joe

We made our usual three stops today. Dollar Tree was first. Though there is still a good variety there, the plastics area is again beginning to be depleted. We wanted a new trashcan for the bathroom, and we may have gotten the last one of its type. The coolers remain in decent shape for quantity and variety, but they’re still not putting any energy drinks in them. Oh well; in this weather, room temperature is okay. I saw the first cloth face-diaper I’ve seen in quite a while on a woman in here.

Home Depot was next, as I wanted a couple of things for a car toolbag. They have some “Black Friday” stuff out, so it might be worth a look. A 2x4x8 is still $3.18. They have good stocks of alkaline batteries, but still few lithium other than a normal amount of coin cells and CR123. I saw some deals on Ryobi and Milwaukee tool batteries as well.

Aldi was last. We found everything we wanted, including my preferred 70% chocolate. Staple prices were: eggs: $1.23 (decent increase; I hear the parasites have forced the slaughter of millions more birds); milk: $3.02; heavy cream: $4.69; OJ: $3.19; butter: $2.99; bacon: $4.49; potatoes: $3.49; flour: $1.99; sugar: $3.09; 80% lean ground beef: $4.19.

Untainted (i.e. no ethanol) regular gasoline remains at $3.899 per gallon.

Frugality Tip from Will

Last fall a friend of mine was processing turkeys for thanksgiving and she was overwhelmed and it was taking her far longer than expected. So she sent out a request for help. Having processed hundreds of birds I went over and helped get caught up. When we were done she asked “What do I owe you?” I pointed at her amazing garlic bed she has been growing for years and said a few of those. Well this fall I just planted bulbs I grew this year from that garlic. Not only did this help a fellow homesteader, but I now have a strain of garlic that I know grows here and it cost me nothing. As a bonus being 30 minutes apart if something ever happens to either of our garlic beds we can always help each other get restarted.

Operation Independence

  • Holler Repair Project on 2023, an update: Hearth being built this week for woodstove. No more electrical heaters!

Main topic of the Show: People often as WHY – WHY should I go to an event? It costs so much.

Poultry Processing with Joel

  • If you missed this class, you made a huge mistake 
  • Intro was amazing
  • Always something new to learn – I am rewriting my processing book as a result of this class
  • Took the fear out of the process
  • Met a local farmer who is growing chickens that rival Polyface ones: Hoff the Grid Homestead
  • We got praise third hand from Joel saying it was one of the best run classes

SRF

  • Best Team Ever! Things went so smoothly
  • Every. Single. Talk. changed someone’s life. From Joel Ryals Build a Niche Business, to Joel Salatin giving a talk he doesn’t usually give
  • More people skipped sessions and that is a good thing
  • Integrating art and music because we must balance our creative with our logical
  • Connections Session and stories pouring in after about what people are doing to change their lives- And therein lies our differentiator.
  • Things are taking their own shape: eg the onsite interview thing that happens, the nightly campfire

TSP

  • 1st time ever: no speech, just MCing
  • Family Reunion and new people
  • Do less
  • Steven Reisner’s session on growing plants
  • Network of big brothers at a time when things are hard for me = healing

Make it a great week!

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

Community

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