Phoenix Survival - Pallet Projects, Chickens, and Meshtastic

[00:00:00] Back to Stability. You're listening to PBN. Your path back to stability here.

[00:01:16] I am so happy to be back. And just to let you know, I will get all this set up even better. But I am now the Phoenix Homestead. And any of those who have been following, there's been a lot that's been going on personally, internationally. The world is chaos. And I don't try to say it with a smile, but the fact that it's madness.

[00:01:44] Firewolf Forge, let me know how the audio is doing. I only was able to stream on YouTube and X right now. And I'll have to post it later on Rumble. And again, I have a child who wants to push every button he can while I'm on the computer.

[00:02:07] Because he thinks mommy has a toy, he should have a toy. Okay. Let me know if the sound goes out in any sort of way. Okay. Again, I'm trying to get all this where I like the sound and it sounds too. There we go. That's a little bit better. All right. Well, I think what it is, it's where the microphone is. I have to adjust, but I only have one place to put it right now.

[00:02:32] So I apologize. I think it's also all the open space. I'm used to a smaller space to podcast in, so I'll have to set up in the other room.

[00:02:43] Okay, good. So we're seeing what's going on with the world. I have seen a number of recalls, be it bottled water, tomatoes, packaged food, frozen food, chicken, all sorts of things with huge issues of E.coli.

[00:03:05] And then the manufacturer of Niagara water and all of the subwaters that they package have been known to cause other illnesses along with E.coli. And then there was another water brand that was causing bloodborne illnesses, which is interesting that we say it as preppers, as long as we've been preppers, that in essence, the government's trying to kill you.

[00:03:34] And in its own way, it kind of is. If you think about it, the whole issue of people are getting sick off of what's supposed to be safe to eat or drink. So I am, we've been saying this for years, those who knew me when I was a family affair for my previous podcast, now that I'm in Phoenix,

[00:03:57] I am always pushing self-sustainability and self-reliance, being able to do it yourself, being able to provide for your family, being able to offer more than what you can get at the store. One, it's more cost efficient to be able to grow it yourself. Yes, it's hard work. No one said being able to grow your own plants and being able to process your own animals is easy, but it's well worth the hard work.

[00:04:26] It is worth being able to provide and feed your family. And I tell you what, it really does take the strain off of versus going to the store. Most of the fruit that you get or berries are covered in pesticides. And a lot of those pesticides have been known to interact and affect the human body.

[00:04:47] So I think strawberries and blueberries are some of the worst fruit you can get from the market because it has the heaviest and most toxic type of pesticides on it, that it does affect the reproductive system for males in certain degrees and females. It causes other health issues. So we as a culture, especially in the U.S., we use a lot of things that are not allowed in other countries, which is funny considering we are considered a first world.

[00:05:16] But what we need to do is look at being able to self-sustain for ourselves. So those of you who have been following my Instagram, I planted some banana trees in the garden that I got locally. There was a gentleman who lives here who actually grows several sets of banana trees in his yard. And he says they produce small bananas. And we'll see how they do. I plan on actually ordering another set of bananas.

[00:05:41] But apparently it's very common for people to have their own banana trees here, which is interesting. It's Western North Carolina, remote Western North Carolina. We're going to keep that always on the DL because I do want to keep our privacy here. I had no quarrels about being open about living in Myrtle, which we left Myrtle Beach at exactly the right time.

[00:06:05] The number of shootings that have happened out in the open, the number of injuries and fatalities, human trafficking, which they were all there, but it's gotten even progressively worse. The city itself has grown to a point that it wasn't self-sustainable.

[00:06:28] And it definitely wasn't well for us being able to garden and have our animals and not have people in our stuff, which was a big issue of people always want what you have. People want to benefit from what you have. And that's the problem is I'm just trying to provide for my family, not feed everybody else around me who wants what I have and thinks that they can take it.

[00:06:58] I don't know if you can hear him in the background, but he's definitely, definitely singing around. But no, so we were out here. My older children loved it. They loved, my oldest one loved to be able to hunt squirrel. We were able to, you know, if we had to trap raccoon, which we have to keep an eye out because we do have predatorial animals here.

[00:07:26] So raccoon, foxes, coyotes, bobcats. These are things we have to keep out for, keep mindful for. Bear watch. There is a mother bear with her cub wandering around. Again, I'm not out to kill these animals. I will defend myself. I will defend my livestock. But we had a great day yesterday. We were butchering turkeys. And I tell you what, it was, it was actually fun. I enjoy it.

[00:07:55] But I've never had an issue with butchering animals. And for me, my partner grew up inner city Baltimore and had worked at a kosher butcher, but had never actually done it. Now, mind you, yes, I ended up being a bit of a control freak. He helped me put the turkeys into the kill box or the kill cone so I could comb. And then I'd make them carry them over. And I was the one processing out the meat. But for me, it's been something I've done for years.

[00:08:24] Now, mind you, it's been a large gap of years in between the last time I butchered to now. But it was, it was a lot of fun. We had a great day. And for those of you who don't have this lifestyle, I tell you, you're really missing out. And maybe not on the animal part. But for me, knowing that I'm doing something good for my family or my friends or whomever I'm handling this for, it makes a huge step.

[00:08:55] Being able to start over. Being able to even just get things to where you want them to be. Wow. I just realized my camera makes me look really, like, blurred too. I feel like it's a bad drawing or animation. So, sorry, I digress. I got distracted by seeing myself on the camera for a moment. All right.

[00:09:21] So, for example, I am hatching a bunch of chickens from the incubator. And those chickens, yep, that's the problem. I need to put up a blocker on here so it sounds clearer now to me. I hatched quite a few, well, I had several eggs that I got from Ohio. Dale's Avery. Look her up on Facebook. She's amazing.

[00:09:48] When I was up there at the Heartland of Self-Reliance Expo. Let's see if I can lean this down without dropping it on me. I've already dropped it once. All right. There we go. No, it's better this way. I don't know. We'll figure it out. I went to the Heartland of Self-Reliance Expo in Ohio. And I was teaching Spinning Up there. And I met a lot of amazing people.

[00:10:16] A lot of people in the Amish community. Very nice folks. Did some bartering. And it was great. It really was amazing. Well, I met Miss Christine from Dale's Avery. And she was like, here, I brought eggs to send home with people. I don't know if they're going to hatch. We had seven hatch.

[00:10:38] One was a Seramo chicken, which, mind you, their chicks are like this big compared to a normal-sized chick. And my partner didn't know they had hatched on a week. And I had to be out of town. So I'm trying to drive back. And he thought he was helping. So I can't be angry. But he stuck that little chick in the brooding box with the regular-sized chicks.

[00:11:04] And one of my Polish chicks used it as a warming spot. And laid on top of it or stayed on top of it under the heat lamp and ended up suffocating the little one. It happens. If you've got different breeds, then you do have to be mindful and keep them separated. Or you'll lose them like we did. And so another one died, which sometimes happens. I mean, unfortunately, it is sad. But it is the way of the world.

[00:11:34] Some of the chicks are strong enough to just hatch but not actually keep going. And even though, you know, you want chicks and you want to see them survive, sometimes it's better to let the weaker ones weep themselves out. Well, so I've got five Polish chicks right now at two weeks old. Is that right? Yes, two weeks old today.

[00:12:00] And so I've got another set of six-week-old chicks. No, eight-week-old chicks. I've got some older ones down the hill with the bigger girls, but they're in a containment coop. So then the bigger girls get acclimated to them before we add them in. And then I have more eggs in the incubator, but none of my goose eggs hatched.

[00:12:21] And the reason for that is anytime you order eggs to ship, it is a gamble of whether or not they are going to be still viable. And it's not just the gamble of whether they were viable in the first place. It's the fact that the shipping process can't shake them so hard it literally scrambles them. So out of seven, no, eight eggs I received, one was cracked and chipping.

[00:12:47] The other six were so badly shaken that none of them took him. We ran it through the full amount of time. I had one become a bomb egg. If anybody knows what a bomb egg is, when it's sitting in the incubator, it starts to ooze and little bubbles of liquid on the side. That is literally a ticking time bomb.

[00:13:14] You want to get those eggs out as quickly, that egg especially, that egg out as quickly as possible. Because at any point in time, it could literally explode. And then the bacteria that's built up in it will ruin all the other eggs. And they won't be viable because that bacteria can seep into the other eggs. So it's been very interesting. I've heard great things about Nurture Right, which is what I had for the goose eggs.

[00:13:44] And then I have my farm Innovative. And I'm finding I'm having better humidity control in my farm Innovative than my Nurture Right. So it's definitely a learning curve. But I have at least 12 out of 22 eggs in the farm Innovative that seem viable. I haven't checked every single one, but I checked a few. I'll check the rest once we get to the 10-day period.

[00:14:10] And then any non-viable eggs will come out at that point. But it's a mixture. Buckeye, Black Copper Moran. I have a couple. The Buckeye is a heritage. I would love to get my hands on some more Rhode Island Reds because that's what I had previously. And they have some of the best egg productions.

[00:14:34] So in our house, you know, it goes a long way, especially when I have a little one who eats four eggs a day for breakfast. Three to four. Usually four, depending on how he's feeling. So eggs are a huge thing in our house. I don't know if you can hear them. And then it goes quiet. So mind my egg journey.

[00:15:04] We have... You know what? I could tell you this. If you get an opportunity to live more towards the lifestyle you want it, take it. Because I can tell you, moving from Myrtle Beach to North Carolina to the type of land I wanted to...

[00:15:25] Even if not 100%, regardless of what it is, being able to move out to the country and to the lifestyle I'm accustomed and more comfortable with has actually helped my mental health immensely. And it just... I felt like I was becoming more depressed in the city. It was taken away from our wellness. Your mental fortitude is really what gets you around, right? Well, I flourish in this environment.

[00:15:54] I am happy in this environment. So yes, we have a broken washing machine. So as soon as I'm done here, I have to go to the laundromat. I actually need to take apart the washer before I go so I can go by the parts store to see what it is I need to replace. And you know what? It's just a part of it. There for a moment when we first moved out, I was hand washing the clothes, which mind you, I don't mind doing.

[00:16:23] But I did let some of the clothes stack up. And when I had four kids in tow, it just wasn't feasible to hand wash everything. So now I'm just going to take a quick load to the washing machine at the laundromat and then just bring it home in the dryer. Yeah, there's no shaming going to the laundromat. Just... It's... I mean, it's fine. I just have to have quarters on hand.

[00:16:50] So I've cashed out like $20 in quarters just so I have a bag full of quarters to be able to do it. But I don't mind it. But it is take away the convenience of being able just to wash my stuff here and throw it in the dryer. But at least it doesn't get my house hot. You know, that's someone else's problem now. I don't know if you can hear him. He's a squeaky little thing. But... But...

[00:17:18] So I've had a lot of... There's a lot of current events going on besides the current events in my life. I've received lots of messages. I have my friend who is back towards Myrtle message me about Israel and... Is it Tehran? And it's just interesting that... Yes, the world is a bit chaotic. Things are a bit crazy. Oh, you can't hear him. Okay.

[00:17:46] $18 a quarters. Yes. I feel like especially since... I'm going to jump back again. The laundry, the work clothes. And I find that since I work remote during the day, I usually stay pretty comfortable. So I don't get too many clothes dirty. But my partner is in construction. And so that's one of those things.

[00:18:11] I'm not going to slack on making sure he has clean clothes, let alone stinky clothes left in the house if I can help it. Let me pull this up. Yeah. I had a friend reach out to me talking about Israel is dropping bombs on Tehran right now, which we have all seen. They dropped one. I saw an article recently. They dropped one that caused a 3.0 earthquake because they hit Iran's nuclear...

[00:18:43] Right. Sorry, Firewolf. I just saw. We... Let me see if I can pull this up. I think I saved it. I'm trying to get this pulled up. They hit their nuclear structures or their factory. And it caused a 3.0 earthquake.

[00:19:11] So we're seeing madness on the other side of the world. But we're not talking about... We're seeing madness here. We've got the No Kings rallies hitting all over places today. We've seen protests and ICE and everything else in Los Angeles. And the... Yeah. So, yeah.

[00:19:37] It is just crazy that everything that's going on... So, you know, it's one of those things where even more so now than ever, we need to... Woohoo! No Kings Day. And we're working in Uptown. Oh, no. Firewolf. Are you seeing that directly? And if so, can you tell me what it's like there?

[00:20:01] Because I've seen where there are different protests in different areas and some even near here in essence. So, I've been instructed... Well, not instructed. Requested not to go out today if I could help it. But life doesn't stop for me just because other people want to hold rallies. Now, I'm not going to go intentionally into the areas where those rallies are being held. I am staying armed and I'm keeping my head on a swivel.

[00:20:31] You won't see me walking around with my nose in my cell phone because, frankly, that does mean no good if someone's approaching. Let me see. I think I saved... Dallas is quiet. Okay. I... Yeah. I... God, I haven't been to Dallas in years. But we're not there yet. Okay. Right.

[00:21:04] We're holding some protest and rally. And you have these people who are illegal immigrants. And they admit that they're illegal immigrants. And they're holding the Guatemalan flag wrapped around their shoulders. And people say it's injustice. But if you're here illegally, what do you expect to happen? Other countries deport people for being there illegally. Even U.S. citizens.

[00:21:30] So why do you think this country would be any different on upholding rules or laws that are in place that other countries do not allow? U.S. citizens have been arrested for less in Mexico than we allow to get away with here. And how people were terrified. I saw a newscast where people were terrified that ICE was going to come to Raleigh, North Carolina, and seize individuals.

[00:21:59] But the thing is, is if you are absolutely out in the open that you are an illegal immigrant, what do you expect? And for those of you who don't realize, ICE got the way it was in Los Angeles because it got violent. Violence does not do any good purpose.

[00:22:24] A peaceful protest will be looked over a lot more than the violence that ensues. What do you expect? Violence begets violence. And I hate that. But at the same time, innocent people and pedestrians and standbys are getting hurt. For what? Now, on top of this, we are seeing a huge influx of AI.

[00:22:50] We're seeing where AI is being used to create a narrative that doesn't exist or isn't there or however you want to spin it. So AI is getting to be a very dangerous item. I'm not a huge AI person. I am not pro-AI in the sense, yes, I see there are some benefits to it. But at the same time, you are going to hit a point in time where you can't believe what you see or hear.

[00:23:17] Because AI has twisted things in a way that makes it almost impossible to believe. What got sent now? Hold on. One of the 2.1 billion machine behind. Oh, yeah. I saw that it's Christy Walton was behind the No Kings from the Walmart Empire.

[00:23:46] It's just it's it is just madness. And if that is not enough for you to start being proactive for your family, then what is it going to take? What chaos or what direct hit to your family is it going to take for you to start prepping for your family?

[00:24:07] Why are you know what Firewall Forge and anyone who's listening live, please jump in the comments and say, but what do you believe it's going to take for people to actually start being proactive? Prepping is a lifestyle, but it's also an insurance of being able to provide for your family because times get hard. Times get tough. And if anyone is a good example of it, I'm going to say it's myself.

[00:24:35] I have been through hell and back. And you know what? My preps and being able to feed my family and provide for my family, even when there is so much uncertainty, was my peace of mind, was my.

[00:24:52] I'm happy pill for those chaotic times that I could feed my family, that I had enough money put up to be able to save for a rainy day or if my car broke down or we didn't have enough money for gas. You know what? Having that 20, 40, 100 bucks, whatever it is, something is better than nothing. Having it put away is what gets you through those rainy days.

[00:25:19] And people just don't seem to realize that having that insurance is going to be the best thing. And I agree with you, Firewolf. I'm going to, let's see. Can I make this show on? There we go. I'm not prepared enough. And you know what? That is always my mindset on certain things of being able to make sure, hey, I need to do more. I need to make sure I've got this. I can always improve what I'm doing.

[00:25:49] But Firewolf, what do you think it's going to take for people just to start? Now, I've noticed our, I feel like our generation for the most part have started really putting in the effort to live a little more sustainable. We went out for the first time in a while for dinner last night. We butchered turkeys during the day. And I told my partner, I was like, I just don't want to cook. And we had a great evening out.

[00:26:17] And mind you, though, going to a restaurant with my food allergy, because I make everything here. I get there and they offer me food. And I tell them I have a soy allergy. And the girl goes, oh, we have street corn. I'm like, I would love that. But it's got mannings, which has soy. So you have to be proactive in what you do and what you eat and how you live.

[00:26:46] We attempted to go to breakfast somewhere that morning. And I can tell you this. I like doing my own breakfast at home. So after this, I am going to run by the butcher because I'm out of bacon. I have to get to a point to learn how to cure bacon. And which, James, I know you're listening. I need you to resend me how you cure your bacon because I definitely, I need that.

[00:27:08] Actually, I probably need that book he's always showing, the charcuterie board book on how to smoke your own meats. That is a goal and has been a goal for ages. So I do plan on building a smoker and slowly get into it. But I don't know where I went off topic. I'm so sorry.

[00:27:31] But yeah, finding that the modern world, how they eat versus how you eat was very interesting. We went to a cute little restaurant in the morning for breakfast. But it was just pure sugar that we all felt sick after a few bites. And it was good food, I guess. I mean, but yeah, we can't do sugary food.

[00:27:57] It's funny how once you live a certain way, even for us, even for a month or two, living the way we have, it's been phenomenal. I cook every night for supper. Yes, that seems like a lot. But when you live in a homestead and when you live in a means where you have to do everything, it's not as easy as driving down the street or ordering a pizza because you live somewhere where food just doesn't get delivered.

[00:28:26] It's nice to be away from the world of modern conveniences. My partner works all day, just about every day. And so being able to provide a hot meal at the end of the day when he comes home and gets off work, being able to pack his lunch for the next day.

[00:28:46] It's kind of it's it's gratifying to know that as my partner is providing for our family, I'm providing for my family as well. And yes, it turns into the whole role thing. But you know what? I don't care. I enjoy cooking. I enjoy feeding my family. I enjoy getting up first thing in the morning, making a little one breakfast, getting him situated for the day, tending to the chickens and then starting my day.

[00:29:16] It's just how it works. You find a flow that works for you and it just takes off. Let's see. Ta-da. Okay. Oh. Ha. People were ignorant. Yes, that is very, very true. So I have an example of I remember where I was going earlier on the chickens. So I have the five chicks that hatch the little Polish hens. And yes, they're for food birds.

[00:29:45] But when you're given free eggs that are fertilized, you don't look a gift horse in the mouth. All right. I had an issue of where I was keeping them in a brooding box in the house in a tote with a heat lamp. Mind you, this was where my pantry space was going to be. And I needed the space back.

[00:30:05] So I had seen this little project online where people had been using like the watermelon boxes or the fruit boxes or the fruit boxes or the stuff that things are stacked in because it's a giant cardboard box. So I go into Ollie's and I see that they have the carpet boxes and they're the giant boxes, but they have wood structure built inside. And I'm like, oh, that'd be perfect. I can easily lay something over it. I can attach the heat lamp to the wood.

[00:30:34] Nothing's getting overheated. Nothing's going to melt. So I go in there and I ask, can I have that box? And it was on a Friday. And she goes, yeah. I was like, but I can't do it today. Can I come pick it up tomorrow? Well, mind you, it's a giant box, like giant. Okay. I can easily sit down in it, lay down in it. No issues. I was like, I have to break it down.

[00:30:59] So she made sure nobody broke down that box and left it for me that I came before they opened the next day. And I picked up said box. Oh, there he is. I picked up said box. And the gentleman who wheeled it out says, how are you going to get that in your car? Mind you, I drive a little Nissan Rogue. And my partner's like, oh, strap it to the roof. No, it's cardboard.

[00:31:24] So I actually took my pocket knife and I scored where all the staples were originally and lifted that wood piece out of the box and fit that in the car. And then I broke down the box like you would any box. I cut the tape, folded it up, got it slid into my car because this gentleman's like, you're not going to fit that in your vehicle. I'll be surprised.

[00:31:47] And while I was doing that, I had a family and then other families pull up just sitting there watching me as I'm working on this giant box to collapse it down to fit it into my car. I got it into my car. And it is now my brood in box for my chicks out in the carport, which has been enclosed in a fence and covered over the top to keep the predators out. And I tell you what, it is been the best option for a brood in box ever.

[00:32:16] And the fact that this place asked me, do you need pallets too? It's like, absolutely. They go, well, come and get them anytime you want. So being able to find a local resource for items or things that I can use to make my life easier, it's just going to take a little work. I am absolutely fine with it. And I'm glad I didn't strap it to the top of my car because wind and rain do not work well with cardboard.

[00:32:46] So, oops, sorry, the lighting. Oh. Firewolf, where were you? Okay, back. Did you run off? Firewolf, where were you? But it goes to show a little ingenuity can go a long way. I mean, when I went in there and I saw that, I figured I'd ask. And the worst that they would say is no. And a lot of times these companies and businesses just don't want to have to deal with it. It's one less thing that they then have to break down. They're happy for you to take it off their hands.

[00:33:17] And it's one of those resources. Just like for me, I like to go to cattle feed stores. And if they have the empty molasses buckets, I'll ask if I can get the molasses buckets because those are what I prefer to grow my root vegetables in. So I only have two so far. But, I mean, it takes time to find it to get to know your surroundings and get used to the area that you live in.

[00:33:47] And he's just cramming things in my desk drawer. I can't even be mad. But, yeah, I'm going to have to fix this. I'll have to get one of those little wind sound things just to cover the back. I think that would help. Firewolf, with the hand up here, has that helped with the audio any? I feel like it has on my end. Effie's still there. So this morning we are only on YouTube and X.

[00:34:16] I didn't get Rumble or Instagram set up. And you know what? That's okay. It happens. I'm just glad to be back. I'm glad to have interesting things to tell y'all. What are you doing? Okay. It's been great, though, on the Phoenix Homestead. That's just what we're going to refer to it. If you're following my Instagram, you will see posts.

[00:34:42] I did post pictures of the turkeys that we ended up butchering. I ended up, for those of you who are not following me on Instagram, feel free to follow me. It is phoenix underscore survival. I am on Rumble, which I will probably, after this, post it up onto my personal Rumble. I am on TikTok, sort of. I haven't been posting. I need to. I have a Facebook. I haven't been.

[00:35:10] I'm not the world's best at posting on air. I've got to get my YouTube set up, too. But I do plan on putting more videos and content of the things that I'm putting into the ground or the animals that I'm processing out. And you will get to see those. And if you're squeamish, don't watch. I'm just going to say it that way. But for us, it's a part of our household. I have my bibs outside that are covered in blood that I have to definitely get washed.

[00:35:41] We ran into some situations with the turkeys where processing out six, four of them were viable. The only reason why the other two weren't processed, one had some serious wounds and infection that all I could do is give her a mercy kiln. It was healed that way, so it was an open wound. But you could see there was other issues, another infection forming.

[00:36:07] And then another one where the bird looked great, I cut her open and I find a pus pocket on one of her legs, which for those of you who know any birds that go broody, even with turkeys, they'll pluck out their feathers and then they'll use that and lay on it, which if they're broody too long can create sores. And sometimes you can't prevent that. And so the other bird who had the pus pocket on her leg, even though her breasts look great,

[00:36:37] those type of infections do end up becoming systematic and going through the bloodstream, that it just wasn't worth risking illness or potential sickness for anyone else. So those animals were put down and then will start over. And it just means those birds will be processed out sooner and not be allowed to go broody as long as they were the next go around.

[00:37:04] So everything that is done is done with making errors, learning, finding out what's best, but has not discouraged us in any bit. I mean, four out of six and one of them being a huge tom, like the turkey breasts were ginormous, like ginormous. Like when I say, when I say the turkey breast was big, it was big.

[00:37:35] So to sleep. It is 8.25 a.m. here. I have been awake since 5.40 a.m. My day is just going. Actually, if I'm on here too much longer, I'm probably going to have let most of my day go away. So good morning to you, though. If you don't like it, you can go to bed. But we are. Yeah, they were huge turkey breasts. I mean, when I say they were this big, they were literally that big.

[00:38:05] They were probably about five pounds each minimum. It took some work to butcher him to get every bit of viable meat. And then the legs and quarters were ginormous. I mean, he was a heavy bird. There was no me picking him up and moving him by myself at all. I was thankful I had two people to help. Yeah, he was huge. The girls were heavy too. So we have to fix our kill cone method.

[00:38:34] And I told my partner the kill cones, because I'm only five foot two, have to be much lower to the ground. Dishes are done. Dishes are always done first thing. And first thing in the morning after breakfast and right after supper at night, all dishes are done. But thank you. But, yeah, finding out what works for you on a homestead is number one.

[00:39:02] Making sure that everything's finished, everything's maintained. But for us, for the kill cones, is making sure they're at a level that I can easily process these animals out by myself. Thank you. Considering my nails are plain and not polished. Thank you.

[00:39:29] But, so for us, the kill cones have to be much lower. Just because if I am going to be the one, you know, if I'm processing animals out when he's not off work, I need to be able to manage it by myself and lifting a 40-pound bird above my head was not viable.

[00:39:49] And these birds flop and have talons and claws like crazy that I actually, actually, we had a moment where one of the bird's wings got loose when we were turning him into, or turning her upside down into the kill cone. And her wing got loose, and she smacked the crap out of all of us. And I thought I was going to have, like, a black eye because there's a lot of force in those birds.

[00:40:16] And turkeys are not weak animals by any means. And turkeys are very strong and very stout. And it is a, it's like wrestling an adult or a teenager. They are very, very stout and relentless and are going to do their best to get away from you. Chickens are, people say turkeys are easier than chickens.

[00:40:45] I like them both. I really do. So our goal is to get back to, we have the chickens. We're hopefully going to have more, but hopefully to have some turkeys and rabbits. Rabbits. Rabbit meat is amazing. Rabbit meat is super high in protein. They're super fast and easy to produce. And they're great all the way around.

[00:41:10] Eventually, though, my dream animal to have, even if it's just like two or three, would be a couple sheep. Yes. Oh, Firewarp, that's right. You do your videos on processing out rabbits, correct? Correct? Because I think I've followed some viewers on Instagram. No, on TikTok. And then I think I follow viewers on Instagram as well. But rabbits are super easy to process out.

[00:41:37] So our squirrel is like cheating the system with how easy they are to peel back and clean. But it's good meat. It may not be much meat. But if you're hungry, squirrel is actually very delicious. I have to say my 15-year-old, when he killed and processed out some squirrel, you let these kids cook what they kill so they can learn what to do and how to do it.

[00:42:02] You'd be surprised how well squirrel and raccoon cook up, especially if they're done correctly. The hardest part is rabbit is cute. I love that you said that. Rabbits are cute. For me, I don't know.

[00:42:21] I don't allow myself to get attached to my animals in the pet sense because all of my animals have a multipurpose of feeding my family or fiber rabbits being bred with a meat rabbit. So then I produce fiber and meat. Even though fiber rabbits can be eaten, they just don't produce as much meat in the long run. But neither do wild hares. Don't have a lot of meat on them either.

[00:42:49] But for us, I can see where rabbits are cute. I actually had a harder time butchering hogs when my friend had Cooney Cooney American Guinea Hogs. Because they were like giant pets who all they wanted was back scratches and tummy rubs. So that one was probably a little harder for me to process out than the rabbits were.

[00:43:14] But that's why we now make sure we have the proper tools to be able to do it quickly and to do it efficiently. And I am at a point where I actually need to sharpen my fillet knife. I need to get all of my tools back up because after the work we did yesterday, maintaining your gear is going to be number one. So cleaning up the area, making sure everything's disinfected and put up.

[00:43:43] We like to maintain a very clean work area and then clean everything up and resharpen all of our blades afterwards as well. Because you put it through some work. So the first thing you want to do is maintain your equipment and make sure everything's good for processing. I'm going to tell you right now. Yes. So we are talking. Hi, Donald. You are jumping on.

[00:44:10] I'm Phoenix Survival J. Ferg with Prepper Broadcasting Network. We are. I'm a prepper. And we're talking about preparedness. And I am just giving. I've been off air for a hot minute. So I'm just giving an update on what's been going on and processing animals. So prepping for us doesn't mean. Oh, you're not disturbing. I promise. Join in. I actually love the comments. Isn't necessarily for the end of the world, but we're ready in case the world doesn't.

[00:44:39] So it is a homesteading lifestyle for myself. And preparedness has been a lifestyle all my life. Okay. You skirted around Dallas. That's phenomenal. Being able to bypass those areas is amazing. For me, I'm thankful this isn't a weekend where I have to drive through Atlanta. Atlanta. Because with where I live now, there is no bypass in Atlanta. I have to go straight through the heart of it when I travel.

[00:45:07] And I can tell you, I don't care to drive through Atlanta at all. Oh, uptown is barely waking up. Oh, is it? Okay. So Firewolf says that Dallas is born with riots. It's always a flop. So we'll see. I'm hoping I don't run into anything when I run into town.

[00:45:31] I'm going to actually go out of my way to avoid the areas in which I know there's going to be some no king protests and other things going on. And I'm going to be in tow with a toddler and a pistol. So why risk or put myself in a potential danger? If you cannot stand Atlanta, never go to Philly. I'm not a big city person, to be honest with you, Donald.

[00:45:56] I like my country setting, but the traffic and the stops in Atlanta are just a little much. I've lived in Dallas. I've lived out towards Atlanta. I've lived near Memphis. I'm not a city person. And you know what? There's nothing against the people who like it. It's just not for me. Personal preference. But yes, I have no intentions. I can promise you I'll never go near Philly. But I won't go to New York. I won't go to New Jersey.

[00:46:27] Just not my bag. So maintaining good equipment is going to be a big one. I found, my partner found, I had some new loppers for the garden. And he used that after the kill cuts were done just to make it easier so the head wasn't flopping. He just cut the whole head off with the loppers. Which is fine because the turkey was so big to get him through the kill cone.

[00:46:55] His head got through, but there was no getting his head out to pull the whole bird out of the kill cone. So we actually had to take his head completely off after he had been dispatched to be able to remove him from the kill cone. So it is interesting, the different things you learn and use towards being able to butcher and process. Vinegar is an amazing friend for disinfectant and killing bacteria.

[00:47:25] I know a lot of people like peroxide, but I like using vinegar. I always rinse off my tables with vinegar and wipe things down with it. I have a cooler that's kept nearby, gallon-sized bags. Nitrile gloves, folks. I use gloves in the kitchen when I'm cooking or handling raw meat just for my own peace of mind, less washing on my hands. I still wash my hands like crazy even after taking gloves off. But having that barrier kind of helps.

[00:47:53] So gloves are a staple in our house at all times. And actually, once I get off the air here with y'all, I will be jumping, well, laundry and then blackberry picking. I have had a huge uptick in deer around my blackberry bushes.

[00:48:13] I had that when I pulled in this morning, there was one laying down in the side yard that I was like, okay, I have to watch these berries every morning and every day as much as possible because the berries are on the verge of turning. And if I wait too long, the deer will out eat them or will beat me to them and eat all of them. So then there won't be any blackberry jam or jelly in the house. And blackberry jelly is my absolute favorite.

[00:48:41] I am a sucker for a good blackberry jelly or blackcurrant. And so my goal is to beat these deer to the berries so I can get enough to start canning and have some homemade jellies here. He's actually being phenomenal. And I can't believe he's not made a noise. But it is, it's going to be interesting. It's going to be, it's going to be good.

[00:49:10] I think for those of you who are following me on Instagram, you're going to see a lot more posts and upticks. I will have more actual content to speak to you about on the weekends. But it has been a crazy month and a half, two months. I don't know.

[00:49:26] I don't think the last time I popped on it was right before Ohio at the Heritage Self-Reliance Expo or, sorry, Self-Reliance Conference in Ohio. Which I will be there again next year if Jeff wants me there. Loved it. Loved the people there. Made some great friends. And then I'll be at Prepper Camp this year. So if you are not familiar with Prepper Camp, you need to check it out.

[00:49:57] Prepper Camp is amazing. It is a three-day event. The cheapest you'll ever pay for an event. Tickets will start to go up. There are, it's three days, 64 classes a day. So you can choose a class, you know, there's four, what is it, four classes? No, six classes every hour. It is amazing. So I do textiles.

[00:50:23] I talk about the different animals for homesteading, for making textiles, because I do spin wool. We have cheese making, self-defense, gray man, solar, herbal, cheese making, wine making, beekeeping, axe throwing, everything. Everything. Tannin hides. It is super family friendly. And you can camp on sites and there's food and people.

[00:50:53] It's probably the safest place in America that entire weekend. And I wouldn't, I wouldn't give it up for the world. The Rick and Jane Austen who have started it are some of the best people you can meet. It's a great event. Between that and Ohio, the Heritage Self-Reliance Conference. Those are two events I won't miss for the world. I make sure no matter what, I am there. You know, even if I weren't to present, I would be there.

[00:51:23] It's phenomenal. So look into it. Start prepping Jane Austen. No, not the 19th century author. She is an author, but she actually talks about homesteading and preparedness. They do look up the secret garden, secret cattle. Hey, Firewolf, do you happen to have a link to that that I could throw in here? Hold on. Let me pull something up for quick.

[00:51:54] They have some amazing books. Pride and Prejudice. No, no. I'm familiar with Pride and Prejudice. It's actually, I am a huge bookie. I love my books. I love the classics. But no, not the same author. This one is a modern Jane Austen, and she is a queen. She is a badass who does everything. She's ice cream, raises animals, runs a homestead. Like, she's a badass.

[00:52:24] Oh, crap. Firewolf, you usually have that. That's all right. But look them up. Hold on. Let me see. I'm afraid if I jump off the screen, I will lose people. So let me see if I can do this. I don't know if you can see me. I don't know if it's still there. But we are... This is why I need to get secondary screens. All right. Hold on.

[00:52:52] I'm going to look up this book real quick. I have actually one of his books behind me, and I should probably just grab that. But I want to grab a link and place it in here. So let me do this. Oh, folks.

[00:53:21] And mind you, I'm just grabbing a link. I'm not getting anything from this, even though I do have an affiliates page. This, for me, though, is just sharing. Mother of Pearl. Why is this being so difficult? What?

[00:53:52] Okay. All right. I don't know if I lost you at any point. Let me... I'm going to post this in here. I just did a copy and paste at the link. Oh, wow. That's huge. It's not what I wanted. And I put it twice. Anyways, so if you go to that link, it's Amazon Secret Garden Survival Camouflage Forest by Rick Austin. Look them up. This duo is the...

[00:54:20] He is known as the godfather of prepping, and she is just amazing. She has some books as well that she's written. You know what? I think I know what I need to do. Let me do it this way. But it is astounding what they do, the lifestyle that they have. They teach. They're probably one of the only camps around that doesn't charge people what other places do for the events.

[00:54:49] The tickets start out around, I believe, 60. They do go up over time, but they don't make profit off of what they do. They do it for the sharing education and helping other individuals. Let me see if I can... I'm trying to see if I... Here we go. I'm trying to see if I can get logged into...

[00:55:16] I hate to do it on my affiliate, but if I do it that way, it'll give a shorter link. I don't like this one. All right. Let's see.

[00:55:39] Yeah, they've got several books that they've actually published, and I absolutely love it. All right, here we go. Get link. I'm getting the link real quick, and I'll put a better one up. I apologize. Thank you all for... All right. Yeah, short link. Here we go. Copy.

[00:56:09] Okay. But yeah, look into their books. I did post that in here. I did do it through my affiliates because I knew it would give me a short link. If you'd like to support, please do. If not, no biggie. But there is the short link. I'm going to actually delete my previous one because it's too big on here. Perfect. All right.

[00:56:33] So for those of you who are not on YouTube and did not see the link, you can put this in. And this will show you one of Rick Austin's book, The Secret Garden Survival. And it actually talks about gardening out in the open and how you can form it around just other plants. And people don't realize it's a garden. And so there's...

[00:56:59] I believe they actually live by the same system where they have this ton of acreage or a very small amount of acreage with lots and lots of food production, which is very similar to the way I'm trying. I have a large area, but we'll say it's around 20 to 80 feet in both directions. But what I'm doing is I am... I threw out a bunch of buckwheat and I let the buckwheat bloom, which I found out buckwheat

[00:57:26] is a natural and nitrogen fixer, which is great. And yes, people eat like buckwheat pancakes, but I did not throw it out for the purpose to harvest this year. I will find out how to harvest and process out, but I let my buckwheat grow and bloom and go to seed and letting it reseed itself to keep doing it because it's just fixing the soil. Well, the area had lots of plants and there's roots and all sorts of stuff in the way.

[00:57:56] And truth be told, I'm not worried about tilling it. So I'm doing a no-till method in which I am literally just digging up and clearing the spots where I planted things and I'm letting everything else die around it because it's just going to feed the soil. I don't care that there is grass or weeds or other plants growing as long as it's not interfering with the plants I'm growing. Because honestly, as it dies down, it's going to refeed the soil.

[00:58:25] It's going to replant itself. I mean, it's going to keep adding to the soil itself and it's just going to fix it. So yes, my garden's not a pretty picture tilled areas, but you know what? My garden is still producing. I've got bananas in one corner. I've got pumpkins in another and my squash and cucumber and tomatoes are starting to take off. And as long as my garden is producing and it's less work I have to worry about in the long

[00:58:54] time, in the long of the whole thing, then I'm just happy to be able to produce food for my family. I know some people are against machine. Are you against even shallow hand tilling with tools? I'm not. I'm really not. I do want to get one of the hand twist tillers or ground turners. I just don't have that anymore.

[00:59:22] Over the years, it got lost or it got broken. And mind you, I am not. I'm not against machine tilling. It's just where I have my garden, it's not feasible to machine till. I do have a tree that takes up part of the area and that tree has been for, yeah, I'm fine with the twister one. I don't have one. I need to get one. But it would make it easier for where I'm going to exactly plant.

[00:59:47] But a machine tilling is not feasible for the type of soil or the area I live in, which is fine. I can still produce a garden in this very clay dense soil with no issues. Just tilling is not feasible. I'd hit more rocks and roots than it's worth. Again, a hand twist till tool. I'm for absolutely for. I probably should get one while I'm out. I actually have a dry erase board right behind my computer. I need to write that down on there.

[01:00:14] But I'm not against the tools of it. Just there's no point in tilling up an entire area if you're not going to use every single square inch and truthfully, the trees or the weeds or the plants that live there, I mean, yes, I crumple them down and move them out of my way for where I'm going to put my garden. But all of that is going to get, you know, die and feed into the soil that I'm really not too worried about it.

[01:00:42] I like a little bit of an easier sense of gardening than more stressing about all the other plants. I live in southeast Pennsylvania. We got amazing soil here. Thank God you can till until here. No, that's wonderful. I have had gardens. Mind you, for those of you who don't know me who are new, I lived in Mississippi for 10 years. I'm originally from Arkansas. And the gardening is very different everywhere. I had a garden in Myrtle Beach. And in Mississippi, I did till.

[01:01:12] I had an entire area that I tilled it. And then I would mound garden and lay down plastic. And because that area was, I don't know, it worked for there. It worked great for there. But tilling does not work for here. And I'm fine with it. I am at a point in my life, I'm okay with there being weeds. The weeds are just going to die and feed the soil.

[01:01:40] So if it's one less thing I have to worry about, the only other thing I have to build is a compost. I'm going to use the pallets that I'm going to go pick up from Ollie's. And I'm going to make a two-bay compost. So then I can turn into the secondary bay. But yeah, my partner was like, oh, why don't you get a hand crank compost bin? And I'm like, why? I'm going to spend twice as much money for something that's going to rust in a very short period of time. I'm good with the physical labor.

[01:02:10] I grew up in the deep south. I am okay with the heat and the work because I grew up very poor in a very physical labor type of family where a good day's work is a hard work. So for me, I am flourishing in this. I love it. So now gardening, not everyone gardens the same. Some people do the back to Eden method.

[01:02:36] Some people, I don't mind actually taking old tree stumps and composting or breaking down into a garden. I've done that where I've done raised beds where I've put tree stumps or wood or even hay in there. So as it breaks down, it feeds the soil compost bin. Looks like something I need. I am learning here. Nope, that's fine. Feel free to ask questions. Compost bin is wonderful, especially so when I lived in Myrtle Beach and we mowed the yard

[01:03:05] and there was a lot of extra yard clippings, I actually tossed it into the chickens because the chickens love to scratch and pick through it. But a compost bin is wonderful because whatever can't be fed to the chickens, throw in the compost. So broken leaves and stems, we throw everything and let it break down and refeed the land here. It's how it was being done before we showed up here. It's how I'm going to continue doing it while I'm here just because it works.

[01:03:34] I mean, I live in a very dense forest area. So if the forest is flourishing the way it does from everything that breaks down that's left there, then I like it. Oh, Firewolf, you know a compost guy. Tell me more. Tell me more. Tell me more so we can share that information. But it's just one of those things. Some things I will let fall, die, and compost itself right where it lays.

[01:04:03] And other things, it's just easier to put into a compost bin. Most of my table, actually all of my table scraps go to my chickens. My chickens destroy it. Whatever is left of the scraps that they didn't eat, like the rinds or the cantaloupe, then I will... Spurko? What's Spurko? Is that a person? I will gather up the rinds and the things that they didn't pick at. And then those will actually go into the compost.

[01:04:33] So then one less thing, break it down even more. So do you mow your lawn with a bag and just cut the grass to remain where it is? Actually, so I live in a very hilly... Well, I live on a mountain. The terrain is sloped as I'll get out. Oh, it is a person. Jack Spurko. Okay, thank you.

[01:04:55] I actually use a weed eater and I manually go through and I cut things down. When my oldest was here between me and his fathers, he likes to do the yard work. I enjoy doing the yard work. So everything that we weed eat or mow down, depending on if it's in our lawn, I actually gather that up and that gets thrown into the compost.

[01:05:22] But a lot of the times, if it's on a side region where we don't do anything on, we'll mow it down and we'll just kind of let it lay there for a little bit. And then we'll collect it up and put it over in the compost or toss it to the chickens. In the past, I have used a bag. But when I was mowing like three acres, we used a ride-in mower. And so we just gather up the clumps that way or try to blow them in a way where they'd clump so then we could rake them.

[01:05:51] But I don't have a push mower. I have a weed eater or one of the hand disc mowers in which then everything's gathered up afterwards. It is Jack Spurko. All right. Fire Wolf, you have to tell me more about Jack. Is he like a YouTuber? Is he a podcaster? Is he a website? If he's composting, I definitely need to look that up.

[01:06:23] Yeah. So, Donald, if you're leaving the grass where it is, in a sense it is. But composting, I let it break down where it's at. But actual composting is when you have an air. Ah, the survival podcast. Okay. Thank you. I will look into that. It is, composting is where you set everything and what it does is it's adding heat. That heat on top of itself is breaking it down twice as quick.

[01:06:52] And so, that is being turned into usable nutrient-rich soil that you can then use in your garden or wherever you're going to plant. And it feeds it. So, what it is, is you're breaking down all of the components of everything you're putting in there to feed your plants or promote good, healthy soil that you can use everywhere.

[01:07:14] So, I actually am one of those people that all of my goose eggs that did not hatch, well, none of the goose eggs hatched, but all the eggs that were bad that I pulled from the incubator before I planted my tomatoes, when I dug out all of the soil, I actually put the eggs in the soil and then planted my tomato plants on top of it. And the reason for this is the eggshells in our house from our chickens get recycled back into the garden

[01:07:43] and sometimes fed back to the chickens because the chickens need the calcium and the plants thrive off the calcium. Tomatoes love it. And as the eggs break down and rot in the soil, it feeds the soil. Oh no, Firewolf, I'm so sorry. Apparently, he made it all the way out to work to not even have work.

[01:08:10] So, why did they call you to come in if you can't go anything? I'm so sorry, man, to hear that. Oh my god. That is ridiculous, especially for a drive like that for you. But no, so everything that we use in our life here, in our garden, the eggshells can be fed back to the chickens. You can bake them, which I have done in the past, only because it makes it easier to absorb into the soil.

[01:08:38] It should pay you for your drive. Right, I agree. Firewolf, Donald says they should pay you. Let me make sure, sometimes ex's comments don't pop up. No, okay. You can feed the eggshells right back to the chickens. It is not going to hurt them. Actually, they need the calcium. When I give my chickens grit, I prefer giving oyster shells because it is calcium. It is going to break down.

[01:09:08] It is good for their system. You want them to have good, strong eggs. Not enough calcium affects the eggshell development. And sometimes you'll get soft eggs or crinkly eggs. They're just different factors. So you want to have good, healthy birds to be able to produce good, healthy eggs for you and your family. Yeah, is that so? But I have definitely rambled on for a good hour straight.

[01:09:38] No commercial breaks, no nothing. And I'm probably going to end it here because I am approaching on 9 o'clock, which is normally my normal show time. But today, and probably in the future, I'm going to go a bit earlier just so I have more time to do everything I need to here. I will be, yeah, if there's anything you're curious about or interested in, let me know. Check us out at PrepperBroadcasting.com if you want to become a member. Join us.

[01:10:07] It's cheap, all right? It really is. I think, what is it? Firewolf, is it five bucks a month? Is it even that? I don't know. And we have a promotion going on for Father's Day. So I should have all this on here. I don't know why I didn't put it up. But we have, here we go. Here's our banner. Become a member today at PBNFamily.com. You can use, I believe it's promo code PBN20.

[01:10:37] No, we have one, Dads. I will have to find it. We have a promotion going on for it. I believe it's PBN20, but I'm not 100% sure. But yes, go to PBNFamily.com. Become a member. Join us. Follow us at Prepper Broadcasting Network. We're on Instagram, YouTube, Rumble. I just did not go live on Rumble today, which is so unfortunate because I do see a good turnout on the numbers. But yeah, feel free to join us.

[01:11:06] We have lots of interest in stuff that we talk about. Each of the hosts are from very different walks of life. I just do a Saturday morning and I stream live on my Instagram. This is it for us. This is it for me. My life is this. So Donald, I'm going to put this up here before I go anywhere.

[01:11:29] And just say real quick, he says here, I like prepper stuff, but my wife is terrified of the woods and I can never take her out to nature, really. Baby steps. Because her being confident in what you do will make things a lot easier. The woods are not for everyone. I was married to a man who was not a prepper by any means. I am totally the prepper or was before my new partner. And yeah. Okay. She's from Liberia, Africa.

[01:11:59] No idea what happened there. They call it the bush. Yes. So things are very different. Just make sure your confidence in what you do and your skills and she will learn to trust your confidence. PTSD and trauma from whatever she went through or may have gone through or seen through someone else. Yeah. It's not something that goes away overnight. But your confidence will give her confidence to trust you should an emergency ever happen. Don't force it on her. It takes time.

[01:12:28] You know, you seem like a very, very sweet and understanding gentleman. So I imagine just be confident in what you do. She will learn to trust that. But yeah. So let me see. I am. Yeah. He's getting chatty. So we're going to definitely have to. Yeah. Let's see. Is this it?

[01:12:59] Yes. There we go. Look into going to if you're interested in Prepper Camp. Donald, if this is something you're interested in. It is in Saluda, North Carolina. But it is a three-day weekend. There are amenities around if this is not something that you think you could handle on its own. But hey, that nub. I am so sorry. I'm actually jumping off. I wish I had known that.

[01:13:27] I came on super early today. But I will make sure to set it up at a better time for me, even if I have to shoot you a message. Because I know you're a busy man like Firewolf. But I hope you all have a great weekend. Be on the lookout. If you're interested in following me on Instagram, it is phoenix underscore survival. It is my Phoenix survival emblem. Let me throw that up there real quick. And then there it is.

[01:13:55] That's the emblem you need to look for. All right, folks. I hope you have a great weekend. If you're interested in anything that we talked about or have questions on anything else, feel free to reach out to me. I am here on YouTube, Instagram, Rumble. You can reach us at Prepper Broadcasting Network or even pbnfamily.com. So take care. Have a great weekend. And just enjoy the day.