Author: timothyfrench15

Hello, my name is Timothy French.

Learn about clouds from the National Weather Service

Have you ever looked at a cloud and saw a face or an animal. I think most of us have, but clouds are more than their shapes.

Clouds can grow very tall or appear flat as a pancake. They are typically white in color but also appear in different shades of grey or in brilliant yellow, orange, or red. They can weigh tens of millions of tons yet float in the atmosphere.

Clouds can be harbingers of good weather or bad. Their absence can be a good thing after a flooding rain or bad during a drought.

They provide relief from the heat of direct sunlight but also act as a blanket to warm the earth.

Clouds help water the earth by providing precipitation but can hinder driving by reducing visibility.

They come in infinite shapes and sizes.

Clouds can be carried along by winds of up to 150 mph or can remain stationary while the wind passes through them.

They can form behind high flying aircraft or can dissipate as a plane flies through them. Clouds are not confined to earth but are found on other planets as well.

What are clouds? They are “the visible aggregate of minute particles of water and/or ice.” They form when water vapor condenses.

There is a lot to learn about clouds, but taking the time to do it will be time well spent.

Become “Cloudwise” by learning about clouds and how they form with this free course from the National Weather Service.

The Carrico sisters survival was no miracle

The Carrico sisters’ 44-hour survival in the wilderness was no miracle; they were well trained by their parents and 4-H Club.

The two girls became lost last Friday after following a deer trail from their home.

After realizing they were lost, the girls used their survival skills and chose to take shelter under a tree and drank water from huckleberry leaves.

They used their mental skills as well and remained calm. Huddling together for warmth, they told stories to one another to pass the time away.

Two firefighters found them Sunday by using their own set of skills and tracked them to their shelter location.

The girl’s parents are heroes too. They prepared the girls for a situation like this, and it paid off. The kids themselves said they learned a lot from camping with their parents.

Have you trained your kids to survive?

4‑H is a Community for all Kids

4-H kids learning is based on their interests and guided by adult mentors. They develop their own pathway and elect from a broad menu of local 4‑H programs.

Programs are available through local 4‑H clubs, 4‑H camps, in-school and after-school programs. With the support of adult mentors, youth select from a menu of hands-on project ideas to complete. 4‑H programs are available for children ages 8-18. 4‑H Cloverbud programs are available for children ages 5-7.

Is tornado ally shifting east

As I sit at my computer tonight and watch reports of tornadoes touching down along the southeast, I have to wonder if Harold Brooks and Victor Gensini might be on to something.

Their paper titled “Spatial trends in United States tornado frequency” has a lot of data that supports a shift of tornado ally toward the east with a decrease in the Plains. If this trend continues, states like Mississippi, Alabama, Arkansas, Missouri, Illinois, Indiana, Tennessee, and Kentucky will see a lot more activity in the future.

I guess time will tell. Regardless we should all be prepared for tornado activity because they can touch down in any state if conditions are right.

A tornado forms when a mesocyclone lowers below a cloud base and begins to take in cool, moist air from the downdraft region of a storm. The convergence of warm air in the updraft and cool air causes a rotating wall cloud to form. Then an area of quickly descending air known as the rear flank downdraft (RFD) focuses the mesocyclone’s base, causing it to draw air from a smaller and smaller area on the ground. As the updraft intensifies, it creates an area of low pressure at the surface. This pulls the focused mesocyclone down, in the form of a visible condensation funnel. As the funnel descends, the RFD also reaches the ground, fanning outward and creating a gust front that can cause severe damage a considerable distance from the tornado. Usually, the funnel cloud begins causing damage on the ground (becoming a tornado) within a few minutes of the RFD reaching the ground.

What I learned from AT hiker videos

Today, a large number of people headed north following a trail 2189 miles long, with nothing but a backpack. They are called thru-hikers, and out of the thousands who attempt it, only one in four will be successful.

I am going to make my own Appalachian Trail attempt in a few years. So I have been watching a lot of AT hiker videos. And I have noticed a couple of things about thru-hikers in general.

First, those who finish the trail have one thing in common, mental strength. While physical strength is essential, the ability to persevere is paramount. 

While there will undoubtedly be beautiful days on the trail, many of them will not be so pleasant. Hikers will have to walk long distances on a daily bases regardless of cold, wind, snow, rain, mud, lighting, etc. and will take around five to seven months to finish the trail. Injuries, bugs, and mosquitoes will taunt them as well, making life so miserable many will quit.

But not the trail survivors, they will continue on

The trip from Springer Mountain in Georgia to Katahdin Mountain, the trail’s northern terminus, in Maine will be a journey of ups and downs. Compared to trails in higher elevation mountain ranges, many falsely assume the AT to be relatively flat. But it’s not, throughout the Appalachian Trail’s 2,189 miles, thru-hikers will gain and lose over 464,464 ft. or more than 89 miles. The equivalent of climbing up Mount Everest 16 times.

Second, while hikers may claim their love for the trail and wilderness, most will seek out the comfort of civilization whenever and wherever they can. If towns are nearby, many will hitch a ride in to eat at local restaurants and often stay overnight in hotels.

The truth of the hiker videos is this

Very few have what it takes to make it to Katahdin, and all, no matter how bad they want to be off-grid, can live without it. They will resupply from grocery stores, use the postal service to pick up new shoes ordered online from smartphones. A GPS will mark their progress, and some will use Garmin’s inReach satellite technology to text their loved ones when cell service is unavailable. There is even a campsite along the trail from which you can have a pizza delivered.

In conclusion, civilization has made us soft. And for those who think they can just pick up their bug-out-bag and head into the woods, I suggest they try and make a thru-hike first.

Microgreens are miniature greens, herbs, and other vegetables

Microgreens are a year-round source of vegetable greens, harvested after sprouting as shoots.

The edible young greens and grains are produced from various kinds of vegetables, herbs, or other plants. They range in size from 1 to 3 inches (2.5 to 7.6 cm), including the stem and leaves. A microgreen has a single central stem that has been cut just above the soil line during harvesting. It has fully developed cotyledon leaves and usually has one pair of very small, partially developed true leaves. The average crop-time for most microgreens is 10–14 days from seeding to harvest.

Some popular types of microgreens include Arugula, Chives, Mizuna, Chard, Cabbage, Beets, Cilantro, Mint, Garden Cress, Sunflower, Kale, Parsley, Dill, Orach, Carrots, Celery, Basil, Chia, Mustard Greens, Fennel, Amaranth, Radish, and Watercress.

To grow

Fill a container with soil, making sure you don’t over-compress, and water lightly.

Scatter seeds over the surface.

Cover with a thin layer of soil and mist with water.

Place the container under a grow light or near the window.

Check daily and mist with water if needed.

Greens are usually ready to harvest in 2-4 weeks, depending on the type of seed used.

Below is an excellent video showing you how to do it.

Yes, you should add some tarps to your preps

The tarp is not as glamorous as guns and ammo, but having some around after a disaster will make life easier.

Even if you have a tent to sleep in after your house gets flattened, a tarp will come in handy for making a lounging or cooking space to use throughout the day.

If you don’t have a tent, you can make a trap-tent to sleep in.

If your house survived, but your roof is leaking, a tarp can be used as a temporary patch. You can also cover broken windows.

If the area has been flooded, you can use a tarp to make as a container for collecting rainwater to be used for drinking after purification.

You can also use tarps to create a stretcher for the injured. They are also useful for dragging storm debris and can be cut into strips for cordage as well.

There are many more uses, but I think you get the idea. Go into any disaster zone, and you will see them, and for a good reason, they work.

Buying A Tarp

Tarpaulins (Tarps) come in a variety of sizes. They are generally about three to five percent smaller than the advertised size. Thus, a tarp advertised as 20 ft × 20 ft will actually measure about 19 ft × 19 ft.

They come in different colors, thicknesses, and weave counts. Thicker and higher weave counts will be more durable.

Some stores will sell them in generalized categories such as “regular duty,” “heavy-duty,” “super heavy-duty,” etc.

They can also be bought with or without grommets. If you buy them with grommets, I suggest you still buy a cheap grommet kit for repairs.

If you need seeds, check out this non-profit seed exchange.

Seed Savers Exchange is a community of gardeners and seed stewards, sharing and swapping rare seeds you might not find anywhere else.

Gardeners like you, from around the country, offer seeds they’ve grown (“homegrown seeds”) through the Exchange facilitated by Seed Savers Exchange, a nonprofit dedicated to preserving and sharing heirloom seeds.

Participants in the Exchange have saved thousands of rare heirlooms from extinction by connecting with new seed stewards to carry on seed saving traditions to the next generation. You can help preserve America’s gardening heritage for future generations by joining. The more people that participate, the stronger it will be.

Anyone can browse the Exchange, but you must create a free account on the Exchange to request or list seeds. Exchange community members offer thousands of homegrown, heirloom and open-pollinated seeds to other members. And all of the seeds provided by listers are open-pollinated and non-hybrid. If you grow these seeds into mature plants, the plants will produce seeds that you can harvest and plant again next year.

Beelining is a skill used to locate wild bee colonies

Beelining was a serious occupation in Appalachia back in the day, where it was used to obtain honey, and sometimes to capture wild colonies for domestication. 

Today people still practice this skill, and I think it would be a useful skill for preppers to have as well.

The word “beeline” comes from the belief that nectar-laden bees return to their hives in a direct line, and the definition of the word means: to go quickly in a straight direct course.

To find colonies, one has to capture and mark foraging worker bees in a box. Then release them from various points to establish (by elementary trigonometry) the direction and distance of the colony’s home.

If you would like to learn more about beelining, I suggest listing to the free audiobook “Bee Hunting” by John Ready Lockard (1858 – 1925).

You can also watch this video by Charles Wascott.

Powdered milk, great for long-term storage

Powdered milk is a dairy product that has been evaporating to dryness and includes such items as dry whole milk, nonfat (skimmed) dry milk, dry buttermilk, dry whey products, and dry dairy blends.

The resulting concentrated milk is then sprayed into a heated chamber where the water almost instantly evaporates, leaving fine particles of powdered milk solids.

It becomes nonperishable in powder form and makes an excellent long-term storage item. No refrigeration needed.

Milk powders contain all twenty-one standard amino acids and are high in soluble vitamins and minerals.

Below you will find a conversion chart for using non-instant powdered milk in recipes calling for milk.

1 cup of milk equals 1 cup of water + 3 tablespoons powdered milk

3/4 cup of milk equals 3/4 cup of water + 2 1/4 tablespoons powdered milk

2/3 cup of milk equals 2/3 cup of water + 2 tablespoons powdered milk

1/2 cup of milk equals 1/2 cup of water + 1 1/2 tablespoons powdered milk

1/3 cup of milk equals 1/3 cup of water + 1 tablespoon powdered milk

1/4 cup of milk equals 1/4 cup of water + 3/4 tablespoon powdered milk

With powdered milk, you can make yogurt, sour cream, cream cheese, buttermilk, and more.

So what is the difference between instant and powdered milk?

The main difference is in the way powdered milk is made?

Instant milk is as its name suggests – instant. You add water to the milk, and it “instantly” creates a milk product.

Powdered milk, on the other hand, needs more time to reconstitute, thus giving it a much better taste. It also keeps much more of the desirable vitamins and minerals.