tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1185219031783989911.post4524671497628000966..comments2023-12-23T02:16:43.463-08:00Comments on "Rational Preparedness" : The Blog: Noticing Disturbing TrendsJaneofVirginiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15320442534060401465noreply@blogger.comBlogger14125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1185219031783989911.post-27948655708131548592013-03-07T15:16:02.419-08:002013-03-07T15:16:02.419-08:00Kristin, Yes, a lot of people think that the duck ...Kristin, Yes, a lot of people think that the duck eggs taste gamey and whether they have tasted them or not, they don't eat them. This is foolish because with onions and cheese they make fabulous omelets and quiches. I actually freeze the quiches after cooking to eat later. Some of the African American families like to pickle the duck eggs, as it's apparently a regional delicacy here. I actually prefer to cook with duck eggs. With higher protein, they produce a much higher lighter cake.JaneofVirginiahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15320442534060401465noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1185219031783989911.post-52657293604159346992013-03-07T05:52:59.724-08:002013-03-07T05:52:59.724-08:00People seem skeptical about the duck eggs. We end ...People seem skeptical about the duck eggs. We end up eating them. <br /><br />As for making money doing it...that's a novel concept. $3.50 lb may seem expensive unless people realize that I spend a small fortune on feed, move them, feed and water them twice a day for 8 weeks then recruit 3 other people to spend an entire day butchering. Then there's the cost of the tractors, plucker, shrink bags and ice. For all that, I make about $280 on 30 broilers. Makes me wonder if it's worth it. Kristinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09845268534571646512noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1185219031783989911.post-89289722523711250692013-03-02T06:32:14.090-08:002013-03-02T06:32:14.090-08:00No you're not, and you have to make some money...No you're not, and you have to make some money doing it. I suspect my duck eggs are more cost effective than my chicken. Do you think there is a market where you are for duck eggs ? I add chives and a little cheese to mine, and they make great omelets, quiches and cakes.JaneofVirginiahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15320442534060401465noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1185219031783989911.post-85324033111164170432013-03-02T05:50:23.004-08:002013-03-02T05:50:23.004-08:00It's going on here too. The 2 houses closest t...It's going on here too. The 2 houses closest to me have both been foreclosed on. I'm sure that doesn't help my value at all. It's a good thing I'm not planning to sell. <br /><br />As for the feed costs...tell me about it! Chicken feed got so high I am raising the prices on my broilers and eggs just to turn a profit. I know people are strapped and I have held off as long as I can, but I am not running a charity. Kristinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09845268534571646512noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1185219031783989911.post-23798753612622704782013-03-01T10:35:57.743-08:002013-03-01T10:35:57.743-08:00Mamma Bear, Sorry about that. The book publisher ...Mamma Bear, Sorry about that. The book publisher manages the BUY IT HERE site and I don't have any control over it. The cheapest place to buy the book is, and has always been Amazon. I am more interested in getting the book out there, than in maximizing what little profit I might get. You can send me comments here, or by clocking "Send feedback to me" above. If that doesn't work, then it's a blogger glitch and should be fixed fairly quickly. Thanks for your post !JaneofVirginiahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15320442534060401465noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1185219031783989911.post-68559107128648555192013-03-01T06:29:44.621-08:002013-03-01T06:29:44.621-08:00Jane..I tried to send you a comment through your b...Jane..I tried to send you a comment through your book promotion site and it did not go through (at least on my end) I got the dreaded 404 error codeMamma Bearhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10781533611079940480noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1185219031783989911.post-5759599357053653812013-02-28T16:17:26.647-08:002013-02-28T16:17:26.647-08:00Locally, they don't tax buildings without foun...Locally, they don't tax buildings without foundations here. However, many times the larger farms, which is principally what we have here, have multiple houses. People with large acreage who were career farmers had a house for the family, and a house for their parents a distance away, and perhaps a house for an aunt. (My farm had five houses and a barn at one time.) These houses can be really quite nice or less than attractive, and a few are hazardous. In this era, it is not uncommon for the family house to be occupied, but after the farmer's parents have passed and the aunt has passed the homes sit empty. There is no work here, and so no one rents, nor do they want the possibility of having rented to perhaps a drug dealer who wants that measure of privacy. Still, the two "extra homes" come with quite an extra tax bill, usually several thousand dollars annually. If the church comes by and does a stealth night demolition and gives everything salvageable to Habitat for Humanity's Recycling store 50 miles away, and then has the county out to inspect that "those two extra houses collapsed and were removed a long time ago", then the family can save 2-3K a year on taxes. This also saves the thousand dollar plus fee for each homes demolition permit. This can make the difference between the family being able to afford to remain on the farm in their old age, and their needing to sell it, in a terrible time to do so.JaneofVirginiahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15320442534060401465noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1185219031783989911.post-20139125666181968002013-02-28T15:32:00.964-08:002013-02-28T15:32:00.964-08:00They haven't thought about taxing on tearing d...They haven't thought about taxing on tearing down buildings here yet. When I build something like a chicken coop, I put it on an axle and wheels no matter that it doesn't move, it is a farm wagon and not a building.Sunnybrook Farmhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18135224259672444423noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1185219031783989911.post-69857318854471598032013-02-28T14:00:28.993-08:002013-02-28T14:00:28.993-08:00Thanks Gorges, I wonder if such a recovery exists ...Thanks Gorges, I wonder if such a recovery exists at all.JaneofVirginiahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15320442534060401465noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1185219031783989911.post-67577552655646395742013-02-28T10:32:18.473-08:002013-02-28T10:32:18.473-08:00Any "recovery" is at the top; The little...Any "recovery" is at the top; The little guy is worse off than ever. We have a lot of empty homes around here, too, and at all price levels. I think it's all over, but varies by area.Gorges Smythehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08777621500611603786noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1185219031783989911.post-81794126121058087502013-02-28T10:09:55.629-08:002013-02-28T10:09:55.629-08:00Exactly. So any "recovery" in the housin...Exactly. So any "recovery" in the housing market is actually "smoke and mirrors". Judging from where I am, there is no recovery, and more people who choose to leave their houses, to come.JaneofVirginiahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15320442534060401465noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1185219031783989911.post-28587839895793517522013-02-28T10:06:35.187-08:002013-02-28T10:06:35.187-08:00In North Carolina a lot of the county real estate ...In North Carolina a lot of the county real estate records are public and online which lets you track a little better what is going on.<br /><br />We are in the area where the finance people have felt its a good idea to buy up single family homes as rental investments.<br /><br />The problem with the banks is that they don't want to "realize" the loss on their balance sheet. Too many losses, too quickly means that they are insolvent, and more importantly, won't be giving out big bonuses. So they play games. The only reason there is a surge in housing is that stock is still held off the market, and the builders are going back to the easy finance of the boom years.russell1200https://www.blogger.com/profile/16258915475311426433noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1185219031783989911.post-65859974195631335532013-02-28T08:17:48.008-08:002013-02-28T08:17:48.008-08:00We also have our share of the older farm houses, b...We also have our share of the older farm houses, but they tend to fall in a few years. There is quite a county fee for a license to demolish a building, and so often the churches will take a building apart overnight, and salvage all the materials, as a gift to an elderly member who can no longer pay the taxes on a barn or a home which is coming down soon. By daylight, no one knows anything. Building ? What building ?JaneofVirginiahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15320442534060401465noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1185219031783989911.post-70249191401123575992013-02-28T07:32:55.232-08:002013-02-28T07:32:55.232-08:00We live in rural franklin county virginia and arou...We live in rural franklin county virginia and around us the empty houses are usually old farmhouses that are too expensive to heat or repair. Of course the barns are falling down as well. Lots of buildings get torn down to avoid taxes. We have a percheron cross that I got to plow with and he eats a lot but I cut his hay with a scythe and put it up loose. It takes about 17 pickup loads per winter but he wastes hardly any as it is so good of quality.Sunnybrook Farmhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18135224259672444423noreply@blogger.com