Comments

Episode-2811- Expert Council Q&A for 1-22-21 — 3 Comments

  1. Concerning your comment that an “unarmed woman was shot thru a door holding a flag.” Ashli Babbitt was at the head of a crowd that was violently pounding on the doors and the glass in the doors at an Entrance to the Capitol near an area where Congressmen had not been evacuated yet. Police had piled furniture in front of the doors and had their guns drawn. Members of the crowd outside knew that. Several people yelled “He’s got a gun.” Using helmets, flagpoles, etc. the crowd was able to break the glass. Ms. Babbitt jumped up to climb thru the window and was partially inside when she was shot. It was very clear the crowd was not allowed in the Capitol. Video available on YouTube and other websites.

    • Sounds like no reason to shoot anyone to me honestly. Also YES THEY WERE LET IN, I have seen dozens of videos of them being let in and even directed. This was designed to go down the way it did.

  2. Comment on making maple syrup. The questioner seems to have sent some pictures of his plans for Ben to evaluate. I’d approach it differently – in fact, this is how I did approach it. Make syrup the first time using what you already have, or is very inexpensive to add, be it a stockpot on the stove or a Camp Chef outdoor cookstove with a restaurant pan. Then you will know if you like doing it and if it fits in your seasonal round.

    I started with the first and scaled up to the second. That’s about all the sap hauling I really feel like doing and I make about 2-3 quarts a year.

    So you don’t end up hating yourself, get a book (I like the one published by Storey), a good “candy” thermometer, a felt filter, and ALWAYS stand right there as you finish a batch (this is why you read the book and have the thermometer). Do not
    leave, not even for a minute, because that is the minute it will go from near-syrup to asphalt.

    I enjoy doing it the same way, and at the same time of year, that I enjoy pruning the fruit trees and bushes; a nice way to get outdoors in the late winter. The question is less about whether it’s economical than is it an aspect of homesteading that you enjoy and fits your life.

    And Jack is spot-on in saying the concentrated sap is good on its own. I missed if he mentioned that in Korea drinking maple sap is a spring tradition, just as it used to be here, as a “tonic.” You get minerals and it seems to satisfy some late-winter craving. I would probably end up with more syrup if I did not use partially boiled sap to make tea or coffee, but that’s one of the great bonuses.