Friday, July 22, 2022

Boots on the Ground - My Personal Observations

7-22-2022   By Tim Gamble

SouthernPrepper1 is doing an ongoing "Boots on the Ground" series on his You Tube channel, chronicling the ongoing supply chain problems, inflation, crime, and other issues we are facing. He is using reports from ordinary people - boots on the ground - about what they are actually experiencing in their everyday lives. This eliminates the propaganda of the government and the bias of the mainstream media to give a more honest and realistic assessment of what is happening. You can follow his reports on his You Tube channel at https://www.youtube.com/user/southernprepper1

Here is my personal boots on the ground report of what I am seeing and experiencing in my area (small town in western North Carolina) over the last few weeks. Please feel free to leave your own reports in the new comments section (now unmoderated) of this website. 

First, some good news: Gas prices have dropped sharply in my area over the last few weeks. This morning, I paid $3.99 a gallon, down 50¢ from the high of $4.49 that I paid right before July 4th. Of course, this is still more than double the $1.84 a gallon I paid on Trump's last day in office. Let's go Brandon! 

Olive oil, any grade or brand, is almost impossible to find in my area. The Sam's Club I shop at had no olive oil whatsoever last week. My local Walmart grocery store had no olive oil when I was there earlier this week, and the large Walmart in the county just north of me had no Great Value brand olive oil yesterday, and only a handful of bottles of more expensive brands. 

Both my local Walmart grocery store and the large Walmart in the next county were completely out of Great Value brand loaf bread, both white and whole wheat, when I was at those stores this week. They were also out of Great Value hamburger and hot dog buns. 

Crime in my area is noticeably higher over the last few months, especially shop-lifting and vehicle break-ins. I've had conversations with a local law enforcement officer and a supermarket manager that confirm this fact. The vehicle break-ins are happening both overnight with vehicles parked in people's driveways, and during the day in parking lots. The LEO's suggestion is for people to always lock their doors, to have nothing of value be visible through the vehicle windows, and to park in highly visible areas. 

This may be a coincidence, or may point to a possible problem, but I have had serious problems with FedEx deliveries lately. A couple of weeks ago FedEx delivered a microwave oven I ordered from Target. The box it came in looked like it had been dropped and run over. Inside the box, the microwave had been crushed into hundreds of pieces. I cut my hand on broken glass inside the box. The box was left on my front porch (I wasn't home) with no note or explanation. Luckily, Target did refund my money. 

Earlier this week, FedEx delivered an oven broiler element I ordered for my Tappan oven. Again, an extremely crushed box was left on my front porch without note or explanation, and inside the oven element was badly bent and unusable.  Is this just coincidence and bad luck, or does it point to a problem with FedEx? Perhaps a worker shortage is leading to inexperienced and poorly trained loaders and drivers at FedEx? 

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Comments Section No Longer Moderated

7-22-2022

Ongoing problems with the comments section of my websites have caused me to make several changes and improvements. Most of the changes are "behind the scenes" and do not impact my readers. However, one change does impact readers: The comments sections are no longer moderated. 

This means anyone can post anything they want to post, and that post will appear almost instantly. If you don't see a post you just made, give it a minute and then refresh the page, and your post should appear. 

"Comments are posted without moderation. Use caution when following links, and beware of SPAM and fake links. Please keep discussions civil and on-topic."

Please note that links in the comments sections will not be checked, so always use caution. I personally recommend you NOT follow links posted by others in the comments section, out of an abundance of caution. Instead, use a search engine to look up the article, video, or website for yourself. 

I maintain the right to remove any comment or link for any reason, or to close down the comments sections entirely.

Thank you for your understanding,

Tim Gamble

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*** Please subscribe to Dystopian Survival by clicking here and by following me on social media (see list near top of right-hand column of this website). Thank you!

Friday, July 1, 2022

Gardening Questions

I have a couple of gardening-related questions I am hoping my readers can answer for me. Any information or suggestions would be greatly appreciated. 

1) Anyone know what this is? It has taken over my garden this year. Grows like mad. Weak stems, so the plant typically breaks when I pull it up, leaving the roots in the ground for more plants to grow... It is a short plant (only gets a couple inches or so tall) that quickly spreads out along the ground. I haven't seen any flowers on it yet.  

Click image to enlarge

Click image to enlarge

2) What can be done about voles? We've always had voles around here, but they weren't a big problem until this year. They have taken over not only my yard and garden area, but the entire neighborhood. You cannot walk around without sinking into the ground as their tunnels give way under your feet. I have lost seven tomato plants so far because they are eating the roots! Any suggestions? 

Here is one of the voles a neighborhood cat managed to kill.

Please leave any comments and suggestions below! 

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*** Please subscribe to Dystopian Survival by clicking here and by following me on social media (see list near top of right-hand column of this website). Thank you!