Anne Miller

Thanks, everyone for your help in 2025.  Lets make 2026 even better!

A New Year is an option to get a fresh start and make 2026 better than 2025...

Have a good one, everyone!

Alley Cat wrote:While I am here, we have both expressed interest in converting the business into a cooperative or pirate-ship model, where the booty from jobs is split equally amongst workers, perhaps with set pay increases on the interval of 1 year during the apprenticeship period and lower - but still regular - pay increases after the completion of the worker's apprenticeship. Obviously some profit will have to be retained by the company to cover overhead. Will such a conversion take a great amount of time and resources, or will it only require to will to see it done? Can it be done at the same time as we shift business 'ownership' over to me, or perhaps just after?

As the ownership shift to you an LLC might be a good step in the right direction.

Making the business model an employee owned LLC could be handled by the same lawyer who does the LLC.

Take into consideration that things happen so do something before something happens and the estate goes to probate court.

Dareios Alexandre wrote:Thanks for your thoughts, although I'm not sure I agree about the power lines, and for me, being off grid is a priority. For me, my priority is to grow a wide range of diverse fruit varieties with maximum self sufficiency as the main goal.

Anne Miller wrote:Power lines close to the property is a must even if a person is off grid as that is something that might be added as folks age and running electric from the nearest pole is expensive.

I wasn't considering high lines as suggest by someone.  I was thinking the normal electric lines.  Lines that don't obstruct views.

We have owned an off grid property for over 30 years,  There is a power line though we just did not want to pay that expense.

It was my dream to live off grid.  The property was not set up to maintain electric, etc so Dear Hubby just could not pull the power cord from the TV.

We have enjoyed that property and our daughter fell in love with it so the property has been well loved and now serve a BnB business.

If the goal is to grow fruit  and live a self sufficient lifestyle then that makes water a major priority.  Of course water catchment is very possible with enough rainfall.

similar to Catie, I used human shears to groom dogs.

And on dear hubby ....

I use a razor to cut mine and other`s hair.

When the trim combs came out I was sold.

Dear hubby has not been to a barber shop since we got married.

Water is a necessity and hauling water is no fun.

For most folks road noise is a deal breaker, especially from a very busy road or if there are small children.

Being off a paved road with light traffic sounds okay to me.

Power lines close to the property is a must even if a person is off grid as that is something that might be added as folks age and running electric from the nearest pole is expensive.

Flooding is a deal breaker as it is not possible to predict what Mother Nature is going to do even if the cause was a broken dam.  Loss of property and lives are too precious.

I love a gentle slope and I live on top of a mountain.

What else?  It depends on what you want the land for. A permaculture project is could mean different strokes for different folks ...

Gardening and animals or one or the other or living a sustainable life?

My property came with a water well, a pond, electricity, and sewer ... all the comfort of home, including an unfinished house.  The ultimately, best purchase we have ever made.

Marshmallow Almond Raisin Baked Apples Recipe

This recipe is a variation of classic baked apples, incorporating the specific user-requested ingredients.

Ingredients

   4 large, firm baking apples (such as Granny Smith, Gala, or Fuji)
   4 tbsp brown sugar
   1 tsp ground cinnamon
   ¼ cup raisins
   ¼ cup chopped almonds
   2 tbsp butter, cut into 4 small pieces
   ½ cup water or apple juice
   1 cup mini marshmallows

Instructions

   Preheat Oven: Preheat your oven to 375°F (190°C).

   Prepare Apples: Wash the apples. Use an apple corer or paring knife to remove the core from each apple, leaving the bottom intact to create a well for the filling.

   Mix Filling: In a small bowl, combine the brown sugar, cinnamon, raisins, and chopped almonds.

   Stuff Apples: Spoon the filling mixture evenly into the center of each apple, pressing it down gently.

   Arrange and Bake: Place the stuffed apples in a baking dish. Pour the water or apple juice into the bottom of the dish to keep the apples moist. Top each filled apple with a small piece of butter.

   Bake until Tender: Cover the dish loosely with foil and bake for 30-40 minutes, or until the apples are tender when pierced with a fork but still hold their shape.

   Add Marshmallows: Remove the apples from the oven. Discard the foil. Top each apple generously with mini marshmallows.

   Broil to Toast: Place the dish under the broiler for 1-2 minutes, watching very carefully, until the marshmallows are toasted and golden brown.

   Serve: Serve the marshmallow almond raisin baked apples warm, drizzled with the juices from the pan, and optionally topped with vanilla ice cream or whipped cream.

Recipe courtesy Google AI  

What is a camel`s favorite day of the week?

Hump day ...

I live near the tragic flood this years at Kerrville, Tx.

I feel that many folks do not understand about wet weather creeks that can cause tragic deaths and destruction of a lot of property.

Then there are 100 year flood plains that are also misunderstood.

Both are quite different from each other though the end result might be the same.

For the first time this year the wet weather creek that is at the front of our house turned into a raging river.  We have been here since 2013 and I have never seen that happen.

The year we moved here in 2013 we could not get to our property because the wet weather creek that is on our road was flooded.

Folks need to remember that Mother Nature is a might force.

One of the Permaculture Design Principles is Observation.

If folks would take the time before building and planning to use this principle it might save them a lot of time and money.

Waldorf Salad ...

Pecan Pie ...

Turkey ...