THE Random Chat Thread - AKA "The RCT" - No shirt or shoes required - Open 24 / 7

[JVA5th]

Great morning all my friends. Hope you're doing well. I know it's been awhile since I've been posting here but I've been dealing with a lot and I struggle to be social as is and it's worse when I'm feeling low. Got out detecting in my favorite spot on my families land yesterday it will be the last time I get to. The last few searches left me with nothing I expect this thought as I've literally gone over these 20 acres probably a few hundred times. But it yesterday seemed to gave me a few things to say farewell to me. 2 things I've never found before and one I've never seen posted on here. I'll post pictures on here once I am motivated probably nothing very significant but was nice to find some neat stuff.

 

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[WannaDig3687]

Hang on or skip this post of a long rambling folks..

W.D.'s Gram's crock. Why wasn't it discarded long ago?

Ice tongs could wait in the barn after the rural electrification brought the magic to homesteads , eventually.. Just for insurance.
Everyone knew how to harvest and store ice.
For that window of time when a properly constructed root cellar and a springhouse were not enough during summers worse.
But , ice of old for putting in drinks or making ice cream was gone.
A market well beyond the U.S. itself for U.S. ice (even to the point a certain area's ice was held in esteem in England at high end events) soured as pollution fouled ice. Yet survival in comfort might be ahead if ice was wanted again...

Food. A good thing to have.
More so during a major weather event when the luxury and convenience of yesterday are gone. From tornado to a blizzard so bad shade trees near a home get thier tops (above the ground due to snow depth) cut off to feed the stove.
No , not due to laziness in stocking up wood for winter ;green wood is not preferred except to bank a fire for the night or when the stove will be unattended a good while. But out of necessity ,if not desperation.

Or during epidemics. Of which North America has seen a few.
Entire families on thier backs. With many dying.
Even entire communities.
Food put by not needing fuss to consume is vital at such times for survivors or the feeble. It may be a kind hearted community member stopping in to help by checking. Then feeding if required and food exists.

Historical accounts exist. I'm not making it up.

The winter without a summer.1816.
Think about a year with no "normal" crops.
By golly , a couple heads of cabbage put by would not have bothered me..

WW1.WW2.
WW1 citizens were encouraged to reduce or even stop the use of wheat and sugar. Our late entry into the war meant we were not affected the way others were. But it was a hint of what was to come.

WW2.
War rationing.
The words mean little today. But to those who experienced it , be well assured they understood having something put by. And of the oldest tradition of , 'makin do,"

Hooray war is over! (WW-1) For now.
Not everyone tossed money out the window or at flappers during the roaring twenties. As the old folks knew , what goes up does not always keep going up.
A great emotional sobriety was to slap a portion of this country with the arrival of the great dust bowl.
Humans can only thrive so much in ceaseless endless dust. Actually , they don't.
And tiptoeing onto the stage after the dustbowls intro? A ten year slide of the great depression. Malnutrition may have set a new record post native American era. Not due to neglect of diet. But of food scarcity . Period.
Historical accounts as ever ,exist.

Enter WW2. Now comes real wartime rationing America.
And generations of folks knowing what it's like to not have. To do without.
To tighten up thier belts till adding notches to tighten it up some more. Or at least to not buy tires.

What's a crock worth?
Well.....
A well waxed wooden bucket goes far.
But buckets have other uses and how many buckets are thrifty folk going to own? Of course they can be made. How many , when you're focus is on food for the winter?
And importantly , can they ( not unlike metal pails or iron kettles) sit unattended without concern in a springhouse or root celler without damage to them or thier contents?
Then too are crockery's charactoristic of thermal mass.
For kraut ,salted brines and saltpork or corned (large grained salt) beef ect. using a weight/rock to seal top plate , or at least keep it sunk below brine , the rock adds more thermal mass.
Meaning...Slower temperature swings.
A good thing when fermenting. A very good thing.
Also a couple warm hours a day during summer in a cellar or springhouse will have less effect on the slower temp change of mass,. And night times cooling will as slowly( like warmings effect did earlier) reduce the warmer stuff in the environment.

Gram knew the crocks qualities.
And multiple uses .
Probably recipes involved , easy like if asked.
And who had that crock fed when?
The crock held insurance. IF used right.
Or just a part of what food was stored for however long depending on a given food or amount or use.

Not many substitutes before plastic for a crock. And plastic might not match the thermal ability.
And making a bucket out of stone while done (as in horse troughs even) , is a luxury of time and labor. If tired hands were up to it.

But disease and war reduced manpower on homesteads.
No reason to expect it not to again.
Having the skill to grow or barter or acquire food and then store some for lean times , during scarcity or illness or natural disasters and events was something you either did , or suffered the consequences.
What other option existed?
And had charity or a handout been available would Gram accept it?
And if it came from other than her hands or her family's , (danged unlikely beyond a neighbor( S) sharing a little of thier own little) would she trust it as secure for tomorrow?

So the crock stayed. Stored safely.
Not just due to grim great depression memories.
But as a valued item for doing things with certain foods.
Besides it's other uses.

Some folks still like to make a good batch of something like kraut. Tradition.
Corned beef brisket from a supermarket?
Brisket is no prime cut to be sure. But a market was found for it....
Corn a good cut of beef. And enjoy a slice of history.
Heck , have some kraut on it on a good homemade rye bread.

And if you bake that bread yourself , help me to ! l.o.l..
Kidding. I'll keep trying.

That is a mighty fine explanation/description of the times and needs for that crock. In addition to the general hard times families faced there were real personal situations, also.

To set the stage, both Grams and Gramps were immigrants from Poland. They met on this side of the pond and married. Roman Catholics = no contraception and no divorce. All in all there were 10 children.

 

[JVA5th]

Hang on or skip this post of a long rambling folks..

W.D.'s Gram's crock. Why wasn't it discarded long ago?

Ice tongs could wait in the barn after the rural electrification brought the magic to homesteads , eventually.. Just for insurance.
Everyone knew how to harvest and store ice.
For that window of time when a properly constructed root cellar and a springhouse were not enough during summers worse.
But , ice of old for putting in drinks or making ice cream was gone.
A market well beyond the U.S. itself for U.S. ice (even to the point a certain area's ice was held in esteem in England at high end events) soured as pollution fouled ice. Yet survival in comfort might be ahead if ice was wanted again...

Food. A good thing to have.
More so during a major weather event when the luxury and convenience of yesterday are gone. From tornado to a blizzard so bad shade trees near a home get thier tops (above the ground due to snow depth) cut off to feed the stove.
No , not due to laziness in stocking up wood for winter ;green wood is not preferred except to bank a fire for the night or when the stove will be unattended a good while. But out of necessity ,if not desperation.

Or during epidemics. Of which North America has seen a few.
Entire families on thier backs. With many dying.
Even entire communities.
Food put by not needing fuss to consume is vital at such times for survivors or the feeble. It may be a kind hearted community member stopping in to help by checking. Then feeding if required and food exists.

Historical accounts exist. I'm not making it up.

The winter without a summer.1816.
Think about a year with no "normal" crops.
By golly , a couple heads of cabbage put by would not have bothered me..

WW1.WW2.
WW1 citizens were encouraged to reduce or even stop the use of wheat and sugar. Our late entry into the war meant we were not affected the way others were. But it was a hint of what was to come.

WW2.
War rationing.
The words mean little today. But to those who experienced it , be well assured they understood having something put by. And of the oldest tradition of , 'makin do,"

Hooray war is over! (WW-1) For now.
Not everyone tossed money out the window or at flappers during the roaring twenties. As the old folks knew , what goes up does not always keep going up.
A great emotional sobriety was to slap a portion of this country with the arrival of the great dust bowl.
Humans can only thrive so much in ceaseless endless dust. Actually , they don't.
And tiptoeing onto the stage after the dustbowls intro? A ten year slide of the great depression. Malnutrition may have set a new record post native American era. Not due to neglect of diet. But of food scarcity . Period.
Historical accounts as ever ,exist.

Enter WW2. Now comes real wartime rationing America.
And generations of folks knowing what it's like to not have. To do without.
To tighten up thier belts till adding notches to tighten it up some more. Or at least to not buy tires.

What's a crock worth?
Well.....
A well waxed wooden bucket goes far.
But buckets have other uses and how many buckets are thrifty folk going to own? Of course they can be made. How many , when you're focus is on food for the winter?
And importantly , can they ( not unlike metal pails or iron kettles) sit unattended without concern in a springhouse or root celler without damage to them or thier contents?
Then too are crockery's charactoristic of thermal mass.
For kraut ,salted brines and saltpork or corned (large grained salt) beef ect. using a weight/rock to seal top plate , or at least keep it sunk below brine , the rock adds more thermal mass.
Meaning...Slower temperature swings.
A good thing when fermenting. A very good thing.
Also a couple warm hours a day during summer in a cellar or springhouse will have less effect on the slower temp change of mass,. And night times cooling will as slowly( like warmings effect did earlier) reduce the warmer stuff in the environment.

Gram knew the crocks qualities.
And multiple uses .
Probably recipes involved , easy like if asked.
And who had that crock fed when?
The crock held insurance. IF used right.
Or just a part of what food was stored for however long depending on a given food or amount or use.

Not many substitutes before plastic for a crock. And plastic might not match the thermal ability.
And making a bucket out of stone while done (as in horse troughs even) , is a luxury of time and labor. If tired hands were up to it.

But disease and war reduced manpower on homesteads.
No reason to expect it not to again.
Having the skill to grow or barter or acquire food and then store some for lean times , during scarcity or illness or natural disasters and events was something you either did , or suffered the consequences.
What other option existed?
And had charity or a handout been available would Gram accept it?
And if it came from other than her hands or her family's , (danged unlikely beyond a neighbor( S) sharing a little of thier own little) would she trust it as secure for tomorrow?

So the crock stayed. Stored safely.
Not just due to grim great depression memories.
But as a valued item for doing things with certain foods.
Besides it's other uses.

Some folks still like to make a good batch of something like kraut. Tradition.
Corned beef brisket from a supermarket?
Brisket is no prime cut to be sure. But a market was found for it....
Corn a good cut of beef. And enjoy a slice of history.
Heck , have some kraut on it on a good homemade rye bread.

And if you bake that bread yourself , help me to ! l.o.l..
Kidding. I'll keep trying.

I have a big ol crock pot passed on from generation to generation. I've always wondered how old it is maybe I'll post it. I'll snag it before someone in my family takes it that doesn't appreciate it.

 

[releventchair]

Great morning all my friends. Hope you're doing well. I know it's been awhile since I've been posting here but I've been dealing with a lot and I struggle to be social as is and it's worse when I'm feeling low. Got out detecting in my favorite spot on my families land yesterday it will be the last time I get to. The last few searches left me with nothing I expect this thought as I've literally gone over these 20 acres probably a few hundred times. But it yesterday seemed to gave me a few things to say farewell to me. 2 things I've never found before and one I've never seen posted on here. I'll post pictures on here once I am motivated probably nothing very significant but was nice to find some neat stuff.

JVA is in the house!

Hey JVA.
You social butterfly you!

Hang in there. Let the wind whirl. No sense fighting it too much.
If it don't lift you , you're going to end up elsewhere anyways.
You'll land again.

The Tree and The Reed - Fables of Aesop

Obscurity often brings safety. In a gale, a tree fell but reeds did not. It was observed that reeds can bend in the wind but trees can't.

fablesofaesop.com

 

[JVA5th]

JVA is in the house!

Hey JVA.
You social butterfly you!

Hang in there. Let the wind whirl. No sense fighting it too much.
If it don't lift you , you're going to end up elsewhere anyways.
You'll land again.

[In a gale, a tree fell but reeds did not. It was observed that reeds can bend in the wind but trees can’t.

Obscurity often brings safety.]

I'm just struggling right now. Lots of things on my mind. Been rough times.

 

[pepperj]

Morning RC, OTex. John

 

[releventchair]

I'm just struggling right now. Lots of things on my mind. Been rough times.

Don't let go of the rope.
You've made it far already.
Someday it'll be (or at least feel) better if you make it so.

All that rough grinds your edge. And it's the sharp axe that's most effective.
We don't know tomorrow yet.
Just show up and be your best for yourself.

I know..... Only as good as my worst day sometimes when measured by someone else's standard. And I've had some bad ones.
They (worse days) are not a threshold / upper limit I strive for though. And I don't live to meet someone else's standards when they are not me anyways. (!)

 

[releventchair]

Morning RC, OTex. John

Mornin P.J.!

 

[JVA5th]

Morning RC, OTex. John

Good morning Pepper hope you're doing well

 

[pepperj]

Good morning, me hearties!

Miserable night. slept for 3 hours, up for 4-1/2, slept for 2 more hours. I can tell it is not going to be a very productive day.

I do want to rat someone out. @Oregon Viking posted a couple music videos. I couldn't listen to them for fear of waking the MR (no headphones to be found here). I log on when MR goes to work. I am thinking ,"I will listen to OV's music." OH BUT NO! HE DELETED THEM! What the heck! What'd you do that for? "Well, fine! I'll go back to sleep!" So, yea. it's OV's fault I didn't give you an earlier greeting. He done , ahem, ruined my corn flakes.

Morning WD
That big moon messing with you again?
I see the music, then I thought it was deleted, now I see it again.
Have a look, Heart, Stevie Nick's, Traveling Willbury's, Fleetwood Mac, a few others.

 

[pepperj]

Well it looks like it stopped raining.
Damp/dark cool day outside.
Had to put some heat on to take the chill out of the air.
62F inside I was hearing rumblings from the other half.
Feels like 40F outside right now.
Not that great for motivation.
It was my 35th anniversary yesterday for the drugs.
I usually take a day to go digging in the dirt.
Threatening weather till Monday or Tuesday.
Maybe I will make one of those days the day.
Rather have a sunny than a cloudy/rainy play day.
Then again beggers can't be choosers.

 

[releventchair]

Well it looks like it stopped raining.
Damp/dark cool day outside.
Had to put some heat on to take the chill out of the air.
62F inside I was hearing rumblings from the other half.
Feels like 40F outside right now.
Not that great for motivation.
It was my 35th anniversary yesterday for the drugs.
I usually take a day to go digging in the dirt.
Threatening weather till Monday or Tuesday.
Maybe I will make one of those days the day.
Rather have a sunny than a cloudy/rainy play day.
Then again beggers can't be choosers.

Where would you be , and with what to show for it , if you hadn't changed course 35 years ago?

You've certainly got it sorted out for the better.
Not that it didn't take life altering effort only you could control!

 

[JVA5th]

Here's yesterday's finds. A tiny babies spoon(plow was not kind to it), this I really like first I've ever seen like it a full metal Winchester 10 gauge shotgun shell sadly plowed to death as well but I'm happy to have it first I've seen( maybe more significant but so damaged), and a medallion that looks quite old afraid to mess with it much as I screw stuff up. Has moose head with a banner that goes down it that appears to have had something written on it but can't make it out say I O F across the top. I have till the 23rd to do more searching maybe I should. 23rd they plant sweet potatoes and once that happens my mine is up for metal detecting on this land.

 

[releventchair]

Here's yesterday's finds. A tiny babies spoon(plow was not kind to it), this I really like first I've ever seen like it a full metal Winchester 10 gauge shotgun shell sadly plowed to death as well but I'm happy to have it first I've seen( maybe more significant but so damaged), and a medallion that looks quite old afraid to mess with it much as I screw stuff up. Has moose head with a banner that goes down it that appears to have had something written on it but can't make it out say I O F across the top. I have till the 23rd to do more searching maybe I should. 23rd they plant sweet potatoes and once that happens my mine is up for metal detecting on this land.

Great recoveries!

Loyal Order of Moose Lodge probably....

Moose lodges are/were , lots of places. (But not that much...)
Still one left in my hometown.
Interesting place.

Wonder where the baby (s) is today that used the spoon last? And how old are they / did they make it?

A 10 gauge will get the cat out from under the bed..... Or put it there.

 

[JVA5th]

Great recoveries!

Loyal Order of Moose Lodge probably....

Moose lodges are/were , lots of places. (But not that much...)
Still one left in my hometown.
Interesting place.

Wonder where the baby (s) is today that used the spoon last? And how old are they / did they make it?

A 10 gauge will get the cat out from under the bed..... Or put it there.

I think I O F is Independent Order of Foresters. Age wise I have no idea how old this is but style wise like 1800s

 

[JVA5th]

Great recoveries!

Loyal Order of Moose Lodge probably....

Moose lodges are/were , lots of places. (But not that much...)
Still one left in my hometown.
Interesting place.

Wonder where the baby (s) is today that used the spoon last? And how old are they / did they make it?

A 10 gauge will get the cat out from under the bed..... Or put it there.

Also funnily enough have found a loyal order of the Moose belt buckle here in the property next to here. The thing looks to have age

 

[old texan]

I found this in dad’s attic. I don’t know how many times I have been up there and never noticed it. 🤪
View attachment 2027465

wd-that s a nice old crock-thanks for posting-we have a 30 gallon crock that was supposedly used in the winter to store cured hams packed in lard--i used it once to try to make watermelon wine-it was a total failure-i think it would have worked if i d done it right

 

[JVA5th]

Here's my old crock no idea how hold just know it's been in the family for awhile. Found a surprise on the bottom my grandmothers family members name could be her mother or grandmother's.

 

[WannaDig3687]

Sorry, peeps. There was more to the story. I was interrupted by company, and now I need to get my work done. So I will have to revist Gramps and Grams.

And Pepperj, There were two music videos between relevantchairs long post and the Cap'n's good mornings. The booger deleted them! I,m telling you what! LOL!

JVA5th, good to see you back. It is very understandable for you to be having down days right now. I am glad you found some keepers at the home site. I will look later. The topic of anxiety medication was revisited yesterday at the doctor's. ARGH! I don't want to be on any either. I used to take citalopram (SP?), I think it was.

Any who. I gots ta go!

 

[releventchair]

Here's my old crock no idea how hold just know it's been in the family for awhile. Found a surprise on the bottom my grandmothers family members name could be her mother or grandmother's.

It was highly valued , thus having a name put on it!

It has a lid too. Bonus!