B Knesek

I have been married 47 years to the same man. I am sooo thankful not to be on the dating scene now days!  There are loads of issues to have to look out for and avoid not only for your own safety but also to have a life not full of stress. Addictions of all kind to name a few common ones.... drugs, alcohol, gambling,. Then there are the behaviors that are not always visible even after a few months into a relationship.
  I told my husband the other day... thank you for not having a man bun, a man purse, not having us live in a home on wheels, no addictions, a kind heart and never being physically abusive.
   I have talked to loads of women that just don't look at the person they are checking out in a way to avoid so many of these life problems. I am a traditionalist for sure but tradition many times is just that because it works in most cases.
  I talked to one young woman. I asked her what are your requirements in a man? She said what do you mean? I said have you made a list of things that you are looking for and a list of things that are a absolute no go? She still had no clue what I was talking about. When I said well when you look at him how does he dress? Hat on backwards? How do his clothes fit, baggy pants? Is the clothing clean and worn well? When he talks about money does he talk about people in his family and where they work or how many are getting money from the government? How does he treat his mother, sisters and other family? How does the other men in the family treat the women? Does he have a car or truck ? Is it clean and kept in good shape and paid for?
   All these are basic things most people would think a person would know to look for but the answers I get to most of these questions other than I don't know is... I don't judge people! Crazy! That is the reason why this one person has had 3 men that beat the living daylights out of her and stalks her trying to kill her!
   Not all women or men for that matter are that totally unaware of the things to look out for.  I tell any woman you need a car and house in your name only. Credit cards are for you only not to pay off his bills. Bank accounts in your name only with your own money not his. If you really want to get to know a man or woman better before jumping in and wasting a lot of time have them fill out a bank loan form. This is not to see how much money they have but to see WHAT they do with their money and how they live their lives. How many toys they are paying on. How much child support ect. How many jobs they have had in the last few years. If you happen to see they actually have money saved in a bank account wonderful they can actually plan and control themselves!
     If you manage to figure all that out and get to the point of dating or spending time together then you may want to even think about sex with that person. I swear... I am not kidding... I would have them vet checked first for diseases. Life is hard enough with out getting something from romping in the hay with someone!
   Start looking local if your wanting someone to share your life or spend some time with. It's easier to check them out with the people in town and you can also check out the last relationship person. See what their problem was and if you can live with that issue. People rarely change. Usually the problems they had with the last few people are still going to be there for you to find and deal with.

Ranchmama

Grasshoppers like it when the weather is dry that is why you always see so many when it is a drought. They lay their eggs and when it is a rainy season the eggs are killed by the moisture due to mold, rot etc.
 So of course watering the soil should help but the problem is you can't water the world in your area and the darn things migrate! When watering watch the grasshoppers flee. Kind of satisfying to give chase to the critters with them running ahead of the water hose. LOL
  A decoy vegetation patch is a great option for them to chow down on. Attracting more wild birds with birdhouses  or maybe watering stations would help. If you can get the guineas to do the job great but sounds like you could have a flock of 20 hungry ones and still have grasshoppers to spare.
   I have heard of the ground up bugs keeping others away. Use a few drops of dishwasher soap to get the liquid to stick to plants if that is your desire. I don't know if you had enough to spray around the area like a fence barrier if that would work. Probably not so more than likely all around the plant targets would be best.
Love
Ranchmama
( with 800 acres we had to pick our battlefields you can only do so much!)[/size[/size]][/size]

I see so many good ideas as to where and how to find property on this list. There are some I don't see here. Our world is quickly changing as we all see on the news. That's why we all want to do our own thing and create our own safe space of course !
  Something I didn't notice in the ones I viewed was considering location as to the trending world views. Meaning.... politics. No matter what side of the fence a person is on in today's crazy totally upside down world we are seeing the political views of our government and others influence our daily lives. Depending on where your located an how you feel about things that can be a good thing or a terrible thing !
  No matter what your thoughts and beliefs are on politics and in some cases religion it is a good idea to live in a area that is similar in your way of doing and thinking about things. If you get a place that is totally different than what you feel like your beliefs are it can cause a lot of stress for you and your family that you don't need and may be so much less stress if you live in a area that is more along your families ideas and beliefs.
   If you really want to go crazy you may want to avoid locations within so many miles of or down wind of nuclear reactors and possible government targets that could effect your families safety if things went sideways some day.
  Other than that..... someplace you can easily grow food, good weather temps, moisture and depth of good growing dirt. Comfortable temps in cold or hot weather so you can afford any utilities you may require because the politics are determining that in some areas.  
   Maybe room for relatives close by or close to relatives to have the moral support and help if needed in those crazy times we all have sometimes.
Love
Ranchmama

This year  I made a variety of things but the favorite everyone loved was fudge. Super easy! Fast. It is still good a week later. My gifts were local so I didn't have to worry about shipping in warm weather anywhere.
   I bought some of the plastic 4 and 8 ounce containers online from https://www.webstaurantstore.com and used a ice cream scoop and scale to get everything perfect. Looked plum store bought and professional! It was also the easiest way to package for me I have found.
  This link https://www.shugarysweets.com/?s=fudge is a list of her fudge recipes. I have copied I think 60 ? of them and I am working my way through the list to see which ones I  and others like. So far they are all good.
   Her recipes are very easy and I don't think I have had a problem with any of them.
   I also provide a list of ingredients for those on a special diet or allergies so they can enjoy without problems.
  All natural no added preservatives from me. Absolutely melt in your mouth and nobody has turned them down! I get a smile and almost a drooling look from anyone receiving the gifts.
Love
Ranchmama