JonMagnus

Our wedding venue got double booked so we had to move the date. The next date that everyone could attend wasn’t until the end of October.

Well we both feel that God wants us to become one. So we didn’t want to put off doing what God wants for us. So on July 17th we had a simple wedding after church.

Our preacher, Chris, did a great job of showing how marriage is designed to show the relationship between Christ and the church. And because of Divine Providence it fit in with the message for that Sunday.

Recently I taught a class on food preservation for the preparedness group I’m part of. The class was too long so I’ve broken it up into 3 videos and this is the last part. In the last 2 videos I discussed canning, dehydrating and fermenting. In this part I talk about water storage, meal planning and some other stuff. It wraps up the methods that Sarah and I use to both store food and do meal prep at the same time. We don’t do this because we are worried about the world coming to an end. We do it to save time and money while storing the food that we already eat for every day emergencies. Stuff like job lost, a sick spouse or getting snowed in in the winter. I hope you find this as helpful as we do.

Recently I taught a class on food preservation for the preparedness group I’m part of. The class was too long so I’ve broken it up into 3 videos and this is the 2nd part. Sarah and I use these methods of food preparation not only to store food but also to do food prep with. When most people start doing food prep they only plan for a few days to a week. On the weekend they will cook a bunch of of food that they can use over the next week or so. But our strategy not only makes it easier to cook, it’s a part of our food storage strategy. That way we’re not storing things we’ll never eat only to have them expire or eating things that we’re not storing so if we need to rely on our stores we don’t have them. This will also be comforting to the kids because they’ll be used to the food. On top of all that it will also make it easier for us to keep an eye on the inventory because we’re getting in there and using it all the time. So far is it making our lives easier and helping us to prepare for the future all while also saving money and time. We still need to practice at it and get better. That’s part of the journey of life.

Recently I taught a class on food preservation for the preparedness group I’m part of.  The class was too long so I’ve broken it up into 3 videos and this is the 1st one of them.

Sarah and I use these methods of food preparation not only to store food but also to do food prep with. When most people start doing food prep they only plan for a few days to a week.   On the weekend they will cook a bunch of of food that they can they can use over the next week or so.   But our strategy not only makes it easier to cook, it’s a part of our food storage strategy.  That way we’re not storing things we’ll never eat only to have them expire or eating things that we’re not storing so if we need to rely on our stores we don’t have the foods we eat. This will also be comforting to the kids because they’ll be used to the food. On top of all that it will also make it easier for us to keep an eye on the inventory because we’re getting in there and using it all the time.

So far is it making our lives easier and helping us to prepare for the future all while also saving money and time.  We still need to practice at it and get better. That’s part of the journey of life. 

Sarah’s grandmother has a stray cat that had kittens underneath her shed.  I brought over my live trap to try to catch them to take them to a rescue. Unfortunately that’s not what we caught! Stay to the end of the video to see what we did get!

Live traps are a great tool to have around. They can be used to relocate problem animals or used to catch food.  I hope that things never get that bad but it’s still handy to have around just in case and they don’t take up much room or cost a lot.

Last weekend we moved pretty much my entire shed to Sarah’s house. The plan is to get slowly moved in a little at a time before the wedding in September.

Moving the shed and the stuff in it was a big step because that lets us organize other stuff as we move and organize stuff that is in her house.

We both believe that is important to have the supplies we need in case of emergency. But those supplies are pretty useless unless they’re organized well enough that we can get to them when we need them. So that’s why we’re going to spend so much effort on organizing as I move in.

Also she has a pretty small house by modern standards. With no basement and no garage. So her sons will be really happy when they don’t have to store family stuff in their closets anymore.

Remember that life’s a a journey and you’re either moving towards your goals or away from them. So I hope this helps inspire you some, and thank you for joining me on the journey to use God’s gifts to grow His kingdom, prepare for the future and live a better life.

I will be teaching sustainability merit badge at camp chief little turtle this summer. Some of the requirements are to have a family meeting so we won’t be able to do those up at camp. It be very helpful and Is beneficial if you did them beforehand. We will be going over all the other requirements and discussing the family meeting stuff as part of the merit badge. Below are a list of all the requirements if you have any questions please leave them in the comments section of this page or of the YouTube video. I hope you have a great time up at camp and hope to see you there.

Sustainability Merit Badge Requirements
1. Before starting work on any other requirements for this merit badge,
write in your own words the meaning of sustainability. Explain how you
think conservation and stewardship of our natural resources relate to
sustainability. Have a family meeting, and ask family members to write
down what they think sustainability means. Be sure to take notes. You
will need this information again for requirement 5.
2. Do the following:
Water. Do A AND either B OR C.
A. Develop and implement a plan that attempts to reduce your family’s
water usage. Examine your family’s water bills reflecting usage for
three months (past or current). As a family, choose three ways to
help reduce consumption. Implement those ideas for one month.
Share what you learn with your counselor, and tell how your plan
affected your family’s water usage.
B. Using a diagram you have created, explain to your counselor how
your household gets its clean water from a natural source and what
happens with the water after you use it. Include water that goes
down the kitchen, bathroom, and laundry drains, and any runoff from
watering the yard or washing the car. Tell two ways to preserve your
family’s access to clean water in the future.
C. Discuss with your counselor two areas in the world that have been
affected by drought over the last three years. For each area, identify
a water conservation practice (successful or unsuccessful) that has
been used. Tell whether the practice was effective and why. Discuss
what water conservation practice you would have tried and why.
Food. Do A AND either B OR C.
A. Develop and implement a plan that attempts to reduce your household
food waste. Establish a baseline and then track and record your results
for two weeks. Report your results to your family and counselor.
B. Discuss with your counselor the ways individuals, families, and
communities can create their own food sources (potted plants,
family garden, rooftop garden, neighborhood or community garden).
Tell how this plan might contribute to a more sustainable way of life if
practiced globally.
C. Discuss with your counselor factors that limit the availability of food
and food production in different regions of the world. Tell three ways
these factors influence the sustainability of worldwide food supplies.
Community. Do A AND either B OR C.
A. Draw a rough sketch depicting how you would design a sustainable
community. Share your sketch with your counselor, and explain how
the housing, work locations, shops, schools, and transportation
systems affect energy, pollution, natural resources, and the economy
of the community.
B. With your parent’s permission and your counselor’s approval,
interview a local architect, engineer, contractor, or building materials
supplier. Find out the factors that are considered when using
sustainable materials in renovating or building a home. Share what
you learn with your counselor.
C. Review a current housing needs assessment for your town, city, county,
or state. Discuss with your counselor how birth and death rates affect
sufficient housing, and how a lack of housing—or too much housing—
can influence the sustainability of a local or global area.
Energy. Do A AND either B OR C.
A. Learn about the sustainability of different energy sources, including
fossil fuels, solar, wind, nuclear, hydropower, and geothermal.
Find out how the production and consumption of each of these
energy sources affects the environment and what the term “carbon
footprint” means. Discuss what you learn with your counselor, and
explain how you think your family can reduce its carbon footprint.
B. Develop and implement a plan that attempts to reduce consumption
for one of your family’s household utilities. Examine your family’s
bills for that utility reflecting usage for three months (past or current).
As a family, choose three ways to help reduce consumption and be
a better steward of this resource. Implement those ideas for one
month. Share what you learn with your counselor, and tell how your
plan affected your family’s usage.
C. Evaluate your family’s fuel and transportation usage. Review your
family’s transportation-related bills (gasoline, diesel, electric, public
transportation, etc.) reflecting usage for three months (past or
current). As a family, choose three ways to help reduce consumption
and be a better steward of this resource. Implement those ideas for
one month. Share what you learn with your counselor, and tell how
your plan affected your family’s transportation habits.
Stuff. Do A AND either B OR C.
A. Keep a log of the “stuff” your family purchases (excluding food
items) for two weeks. In your log, categorize each purchase as an
essential need (such as soap) or a desirable want (such as a DVD).
Share what you learn with your counselor.
B. Plan a project that involves the participation of your family to identify
the “stuff” your family no longer needs. Complete your project by
donating, repurposing, or recycling these items.
C. Discuss with your counselor how having too much “stuff” affects
you, your family, and your community. Include the following: the
financial impact, time spent, maintenance, health, storage, and
waste. Include in your discussion the practices that can be used to
avoid accumulating too much “stuff.”
3. Do the following:
a. Explain to your counselor how the planetary life-support systems (soil,
climate, freshwater, atmospheric, nutrient, oceanic, ecosystems, and
species) support life on Earth and interact with one another.
b. Tell how the harvesting or production of raw materials (by extraction
or recycling), along with distribution of the resulting products,
consumption, and disposal/repurposing, influences current and
future sustainability thinking and planning.
4. Explore TWO of the following categories. Have a discussion with
your family about the two you select. In your discussion, include your
observations, and best and worst practices. Share what you learn with
your counselor.
a. Plastic waste. Discuss the impact plastic waste has on the
environment (land, water, air). Learn about the number system for
plastic recyclables, and determine which plastics are more commonly
recycled. Find out what the trash vortex is and how it was formed.
b. Electronic waste. Choose three electronic devices in your
household. Find out the average lifespan of each, what happens to
these devices once they pass their useful life, and whether they can
be recycled in whole or part. Discuss the impact of electronic waste
on the environment.
c. Food waste. Learn about the value of composting and how to start a
compost pile. Start a compost pile appropriate for your living situation.
Tell what can be done with the compost when it is ready for use.
d. Species decline. Explain the term species (plant or animal) decline.
Discuss the human activities that contribute to species decline,
what can be done to help reverse the decline, and its impact on a
sustainable environment.
e. World population. Learn how the world’s population affects the
sustainability of Earth. Discuss three human activities that may
contribute to putting Earth at risk, now and in the future.
f. Climate change. Find a world map that shows the pattern of
temperature change for a period of at least 100 years. Share this map
with your counselor, and discuss three factors that scientists believe
affect the global weather and temperature.
5. Do the following:
a. After completing requirements 1 through 4, have a family meeting.
Discuss what your family has learned about what it means to be
a sustainable citizen. Talk about the behavioral changes and life
choices your family can make to live more sustainably. Share what
you learn with your counselor.
b. Discuss with your counselor how living by the Scout Oath and Scout
Law in your daily life helps promote sustainability and good stewardship.
6. Learn about career opportunities in the sustainability field. Pick one and find
out the education, training, and experience required. Discuss what you have
learned with your counselor and explain why this career might interest you.

Sarah and I traded some plants this weekend with a guy who runs a  Permaculture farm. We asked him if he would mind showing us around and answering a few questions.

We are planning on eventually having a farm that is at least similar in concept.  After the wedding I’m going to move in with her and we will start with pretty small farm activities like quail and micro greens or something along those lines.  After we get all the repairs that her house needs done we will be selling it it to buy a farm somewhere around the 5 acres mark. That should provide enough room for all the stuff we would like to do.

If you’re anything like me you’re fed up with dealing with uncooperative garden hoses. The kink to easy get tied in knots and always leak.

So I decided to fix that problem with good high quality hoses and quick releases on both ends along with a shut off valve.

And now we can easily take the two 50 foot garden hoses and turn them into one 100 foot hose.

And stay till the end where there’s a bonus on how to keep from losing sprayers. I’ve spent too many hours of my life looking for a sprayer to put on the end of the hose.

Sarah and I are getting married this September. So both our lives will be changing for the better. And because of that my YouTube channel will be changing as well. Between now and the wedding not only do we have to get everything for the wedding ready but I’ll also be slowly moving in to her place so we don’t have to do it all at once. So a lot of my videos are going to be about organizing moving and stuff like that.

After we’re married we’ll have an opportunity to do more videos about cooking with storable food. This is something that’s really missing in the prepper community. There are tons of videos about how to store food in various ways but very little on how to make that food taste good when its time to eat it. Nobody wants to eat bland rice and chicken or plain oatmeal for the 47th day in a row.

We are also planning on buying a farm. In one of my first videos I talked about my dream of running a small scale farm concentrating on highly productive farming both animals and plants. So over the course of the winter me and Sarah will be fixing up her house in order to sell it. We will be making some videos about what we’re doing there too.

We will start talking to you about doing some farming activities at her place in the meanwhile. Maybe raising Quail or something like that.

I sincerely hope that us working towards our goals inspires you to start working on making your life the way it was meant to be and making the world a better place because of it.