Post Apocalypse Job Search

Just remember ,when you butcher your rodent or any other mammals, to closely examine it's Liver.You want to check for discoloration or pale spots,these would indicate that the animal is diseased...

 

That is a very interesting piece of information, Carly. i did not realize that dogwood had medicinal properties until you mentioned it. I understand dogwood tea was used as a substitute for quinine during the war of Northern Aggression and that Indians used is for treating fevers.

 

I've heard that dogwood tea is also good for stomach problems, but I don't have any info to back that up yet.

 

Today has had many mixed blessings. I got lost and almost didn't find my way back here. it is amazing how much one tree can look just like another. I did have a successful day scavenging with many useful finds. Dandelion greens are a little bitter when they get larger so I am boiling some mixed with pokeweed and a bit of salt. I found some mint growing near the river and gathered several plants to see if I can grow them close to my camp. The leaves are refreshing to smell and chew.

My resin traps worked well and have nearly a pint of pine resin now and re-opened the wounds to keep them producing. I like the idea making torches from resin and birch-bark.
today's finds include a large tangle of monofiliment fishing line, maybe as much as a couple of hundred feet of it, if I can untangle it. I think this may be useful for small animal snare that Mr. Alphadog and others have mentioned and if I can locate more fishing hooks, can possibly set some fishing lines from tree limbs or maybe even a small trot-line. I did find two more hooks stuck in trees and a sort of fish-shaped lure that has three sets of triple-hooks that might be useful for something.

I managed to find several assorted lengths of rope, mostly polypropylene and pretty brittle, from UV exposure, I would imagine, but maybe still useful for lashing things together; maybe I can make a raft and use it fishing? i though about the turtle trapping thing and since I do not have a tub or other suitable container, decided to improvise and think that I might can drive stakes into the ground to form a pen in the water and place a balance board that will allow turtles to climb up and teeter over into the pen; Mr. Seacowboys? Do you think this could work?

I learned another valuable lesson today; cows are dangerous! I decided to try and catch a young one that I could lead back here and butcher but did not realize how protective they are and the herd mentality is something I had not considered. If I am to try this again, I will have to devise a means of separating a young cow from the rest of the herd. I have never climbed a tree so fast in my life but every cloud has a silver lining and being chased up an oak by mad cows is no exception. I now have my very own opossum! Yes, I am now the proud owner of a pet marsupial. I may dine well tomorrow; we intend to try our new stone oven out if I can bring myself to dispatch Molly. BTW, a divorce is almost never a no-contest. People don't generally walk into your office hand-in-hand, smiling and saying "we want a divorce. Usually the one will come in but I made them understand that if the other contested anything at all, we go on an hourly rate. and someone always does.

 

I have friends on the forum! I am truly a lucky lawyer.

 

Hey Frank I dated a girl that looked like Molly in my younger days same shifty eyes.(lol)

Have an idea for a trap for smal game, If you can find a couple empty cans like green bean cans the larger ones are better but the smaller ones work for smaller game. Take the metal can the end that hasn't been cut open cut from the center back in a pie slice form. You can get 4 to 8 slices. now at the center of the can the ends will be sharp push them in leaving a slight inward bend. Take the can and block the other end with a peice of wood or something to prevent entry from that end. Place the bate what ever it may be inside the can and place the back end you sealed off of the can up against a tree or rock to where it cant be pushed and use a peice of the rope you found or cover with rocks leaving the end you cut open. That will keep the can secure from rolling. and leave then after a few hours come back and check. The point of this trap is as the animal smell the bait it comes to the end of the can and starts to push it's head inside once the animals head is in it cant back because the sharp ends cut into the animals. My grandfather showed me this years ago the old timers use to use them as rat traps around the barn. The trap can be used over and over and most of the time the bate can to just remimber if you get blood on the trap clean very well to prevent smell to ward off other animals.

You would be in luck if you could find one of the large jucie metal cans.

 

That is a good question Mr. Ghrits; can I ask you one? Did you misspell Grits on purpose or are you just not from down South?

Actually, I have three light sources, one of which I am very proud of. I have never been a very good shot, so I have a Streamlight Tactical light with strobe and laser mounted on my Benelli but it is way too bright to use as a general purpose flashlight. There are also two spare bulbs with it but I am reluctant to use it because once they are gone, may prove very difficult to replace. My second light source is a ball-cap that I bought in a Lowes Hardware store that has a row of LED lights in the bill; it is very handy and almost always with me and it did, in fact, survive the swim. I suppose since it was worn correctly with the bill pointing forward and did not advertise sports products, the zombies had no use for it. I am concerned about how long the watch battery that operates it will last? I may have a spare that can be adapted but it is another size. The light source that I am most pleased with is one I devised myself. I used my knife to cut down the side of an aluminum can to near the bottom and spread the sides open as a reflector. The small porting of the bottom makes a great reservoir for a pine-resin lamp and conducts heat well enough to keep the resin fluid so that only a wick burns, much like an old kerosene lantern. It smokes a bit and the reflector has to be cleaned and isn’t very effective after only a short while but the smoke helps keep some of these vicious little biting gnats at bay.
That is an excellent idea about the can trap, Mr. Dog. I wonder if I can find a can large enough to catch muskrats? or Squirrels. I am going to try to set snares for squirrels today but I do not know where they are feeding?

 

A large Metal coffee can will work for larger game just make sure to have it tied down.

 

There is a variation of that trap that uses a hole bored into a log or a wood block chained to a log over a stream. In the bottom of the hole, a shiny object, maybe a piece of aluminum is placed. Fence staples or nails are then driven at either side of the hole. A raccoon will supposedly reach into the hole and grasp the shiny object and cannot extract his paw past the staples without releasing his fist. They also use a similar means of trapping monkeys in African dry regions except the hole is bored into a termite mound. The monkey is then fed salt for a day then released so that they can follow it back to it's water source. Mr. Ticious, you might start looking for a stand of cane or bamboo, it grows in your region near rivers and streams and makes excellent fishing poles, fish and frog spears, arrows, water vessels, and building materials. It may well be one of the handiest plants in your area.

 

I spoke last evening, of every cloud having a silver lining and today was no exception. All the torrential rains we have had for the last week has brought a wealth of salvage to my door. I will spend the next several days finding more as the water recedes but just today's finds will greatly improve my chances of long term comfort. I found most of what appears to be a boat dock that has many usable boards and a great number of nails but the best part was that there were a pair of perfectly good plastic drums providing the buoyancy! They will hold water! And as unbelievable as it sounds, this was being held on the bottom by something dragging from ropes. I almost cut the ropes and abandoned the portion underwater but decided to swim down to take a look and you will never, ever on the longest day of you lives, guess what was holding the dock in place? I now have a grand companion to my wheel-barrow! There was a four wheel cart hanging by the ropes tied to the broken dock. I don't know what use it will be yet, but I am sure it will come in very handy.
I also found a heavy canvass tarpaulin that is torn badly but still serviceable. And I found an old boat, I think it is some sort of single-seat canoe but it has a large hole torn in the bottom. The boat is made of plastic. I wonder if I might melt the edges of the tear together and repair it? I am beginning to feel a lot like Robinson Caruso with a law degree.

 

Oh, Mr. Ghrits? I am using a cotton ball that was in a bottle of multivitamins for a wick in my lamp but might try a strip from underwear. Ms. RH? There is a whole small forrest of bamboo by the river but it is on the other side and the current is still pretty strong so I might have to wait until the water drops to bring much back.
P.S.
I caught a large viper of some sort. I believe it is venomous. I know that people eat rattle snakes but this one does not appear to have rattles and it smells bad; is it safe to eat?

 

Here is a picture of my viper

 

No Ms, RH, it is not a rat snake; it definitely is a pit-viper of some sort. I suspect it might be a water moccasin of some sort but I do not believe it is a cotton-mouth variety.

 

Unless you are absolutely starving I would not eat it. Also, I would not hunt vipers of any sort unless you have a lot of snake handling experience.

If your nose says don't eat it...don't eat it.