Trump posts this image of him as Jesus Christ…
And a lot of Christians now see this…
and this…
Patriot : 04/14/2026 (Q&A #1 for 04/13/2026)
This is a new format post as I described back on March 30th < Changing the website format ! >. The article below is more current events & opinion article as it applies to prepping vs a solely prepper article. Do not read the article if you are not interested in my view/opinion of current events and how they apply to prepping.
Click the above link to view the current events / opinion article.
< Related Post – Patriot 04/13/2026 >
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Q & A Time…Ask me a question or send me a message…
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GARDEN : Strawberries – Planting Bare Root
First time for everything! I’ve been sharing my love of strawberries for years, and my desire to have a strawberry patch. After years of learning about strawberries and how to grow them in this area, I think I finally have it figured out. This was the year!! Well, maybe…
I’ve got 5 raised beds set aside for my patch…about 150sq’ (+/-). They have great soil, well amended with about 30 – 35% coarse sand. I have a few plants carried over from last year…those were my test plants…proof of concept. I have settled on two varieties that should do well in the area…Albion (2 beds – 29 plants) and Eversweet (3 beds – 51 plants). Since I can’t afford 80 live plants to start with I decided to try out bare root strawberry plants…50 of them…½ & ½ of the two varieties.
An example of what quality bare root strawberry plants should look like.
I ordered the bare root plants from a vendor on Etsy…HandPickedNursery. It was a nightmare! Before I ordered them I asked the vendor what kind of shipping timing was I looking at. Their response “2 to 3-day processing time but usually ship right away.” Great…I placed the order.
The shipping information looked like they shipped within 4 days…okay, nothing special. But, ah, wrong! All they did was create a shipping label. I asked about that and they assured me they were shipped within 2 business days. Ah, wrong again. After 6 days I was just a wee bit upset…and messaged them. They were sorry that the process wasn’t “meeting my expectations”. Oh boy!
So…it wasn’t “1 – 2 days” to ship…it was 8. Then another 5 days to arrive. 13 days total. Yeah, not good. Their customer service was terrible. Then I looked at the plants…ouch. Now, remember I’ve never worked with bare root strawberry plants so I am not an expert on it by any stretch of the imagination. But, it looks as if only about ½ the plants have survived. Time will tell if more do well, but I am not hopeful.
Here’s what arrived…two rather shabby looking bags of supposedly dormant bare root strawberry plants.
Here’s what they look like while I re-hydrated them. You only re-hydrate for 1 – 2 hours…and only place the roots in the water.
Yes, to me the plants look terrible.
Raised bed boxes all prepped, soil amended, raked & leveled out…ready to go. Yes, I know…I need to do a bit of weeding outside of the boxes. That comes later before the veggies go in.
I use my hoe and simple draw my rows to ensure I get the row spacing right.
Then I come back and dig my holes properly spaced and deep enough. At this time I also add about 1/2 teaspoon of organic fertilizer in the bottom of the hole. I use a 4-4-4 fertilizer. I stir it around.
Next, I place a plant in each hole in one row.
Then I place each plant properly in the hole making sure to not bury the “crown”. I also make sure I fluff out the roots before putting them in the hole. I also make sure that the hole is plenty deep enough for the longest plant root.
Then mulch them in with wood chips, add drip irrigation…and done!
In a couple of days I will post an article that covers planting the live plants.
Why did I buy “bare root”? $1.21 per plant vs. $2.85 per plant. And the $2.85 was a “special” price for me…almost half-price to be exact. Normally, live strawberry plants run about $5 per plant.
And “No!” I will never ever do business with HandPickedNursery again…EVER!
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Patriot : 04/13/2026
This is a new format post as I described back on March 30th < Changing the website format ! >. The article below is more current events & opinion article as it applies to prepping vs a solely prepper article. Do not read the article if you are not interested in my view/opinion of current events and how they apply to prepping.
Click the above link to view the current events / opinion article.
To see a list of all “Patriot” articles click on the “Patriot” option in the “Categories” list on the left-hand side of the screen.
Feedback : Trump’s Oath & Bible Controversy
FROM: inventivebuttery720185c096
I completely understand what you are saying and tend to agree with you about a lot. I personally don’t like Trump and didn’t vote for him. I do agree with some of what he is trying to do but not all.
However, if you remember the inauguration at that precise moment, there is a little bit of confusion as he starts without Melanie being there with the Bibles. It was a quick transition and I don’t think she had time to get up there before he started. I personally think it was an oversight and not deliberate at all. I believe most people can see this if they take a closer look. Tucker could be taking this idea of Trump purposefully not putting his hand on the Bibles out of context of what was really happening. I remember thinking at the time it happened that it was strange that Chief Justice Roberts started without her being at Trump’s side.
Glad to hear we are mostly on the same page 😉
I can’t stand Trump the “man”, I don’t see a single quality as a person or leader that I admire. As a President…well, I think he is one of the worse, if not the worse, in the last 100 years. Besides him wrecking the economy, he has gotten us into a
war we will not will. I will give him credit, it appears he has secured the southern border and has gotten rid of some bad guy criminal illegal aliens. Too bad so many US citizens got injured and killed in the process.
As for the ceremony…
There was some confusion at the start of the “oath”…however, Melania got there before Trump started reciting but after Roberts started speaking. Trump, being the man that he is and if he had wanted to, he would have delayed Roberts till Melania got there…or put his hand on the Bible after she got there and before he started reciting the oath…in my opinion.
What I find interesting…he doesn’t even look for Melania and/or the Bibles while taking his position for the oath. If he had any respect for the Bibles or his wife…don’t you think he would have looked for her…or at least acknowledged her when she stepped up beside him?
If he was a meek man I could see him being overwhelmed by the whole event and lose track of what was happening…but Trump is anything but meek and humble…and it was his second time doing this.
While we agree on a lot…we ain’t gonna agree on this one. I think Trump could have cared less about Melania being there. And if he cared about God and the importance of the Bible in regards to the oath…he would not have sworn the oath without them. Then again…what the heck do I know!
Related Article –
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Patriot : 04/08/2026
This is a new format post as I described back on March 30th < Changing the website format ! >. The article below is more current events & opinion article as it applies to prepping vs a solely prepper article. Do not read the article if you are not interested in my view/opinion of current events and how they apply to prepping.
Click the above link to view the current events / opinion article.
Related Articles –
Project ‘26 – Question #2 (Violence)
This article will only make sense if you have read the Introduction < click here to read >
This question is probably the single most important one since it carries the most risk, the highest threat…and can affect not just you, but your entire family. The question is “Are you ready to protect your family from violence?”
Silly question? I think not. When people are in emergency/disaster situations I’ve found the top 10 reason people turn violent are:
- Fear and Survival Instinct – When people feel their life is at risk, the brain shifts into “fight-or-flight.” Violence can come from a raw survival response rather than deliberate intent.
- Protection of Loved Ones – People will most likely become violent if they perceive a threat to family or group, even if the threat is not clear and not absolute.
- Mistrust of Others – Uncertainty about others’ intentions (“Are they going to take what I have?” or “Are they going to hurt my family?”) can lead to preemptive violence.
- Misinformation and Rumors – False information or intentional disinformation can escalate fear into desperation…which then usually leads to aggression..which will probably escalate into violence.
- Scarcity of Resources – Shortages of food, water, fuel, or shelter can trigger conflict, especially if people believe supplies are running out. Especially true is they think their kids will go hungry.
- Breakdown of Social Order – When normal rules and/or authority (i.e. law enforcement) disappear, some individuals feel less constrained and may act more aggressively.
- Group Behavior / Crowd Dynamics / Mob Mentality – In crowds/mobs, individuals may lose a sense of personal responsibility making aggressive behavior more likely which can quickly escalate into violence.
- Frustration and Helplessness – Blocked or delayed escape routes, delayed assistance, or situational confusion can quickly turn into anger leading to violence.
- Panic and Loss of Rational Thinking – High stress can overwhelm decision making, leading to impulsive, irrational actions…including aggression/violence.
- Exhaustion and Physical Stress – Lack of sleep, hunger, dehydration, and injury reduces control of a person’s emotions and clear thinking. Tunnel vision is a natural result and could almost immediately result in aggression/violence to “resolve” the perceived issue.
I’ve not placed those ‘top 10’ in any particular order, I kinda grouped them into similar concepts. Also, it is highly likely that in any given situation there will multiples of reasons present. The more “reasons” that are present, the more likely violence will occur and the more extreme it will be. And do not underestimate a source of violence coming from an unlikely source…such as a teenager or soccer mom.
What is the best way to handle violence, or even the threat of violence? Don’t be present in the above situation. Yup, simple as that. Okay, maybe not so simple. But, consider this:
- Fear and Survival Instinct – If you have prepared for emergencies you eliminate, or at least greatly reduce, “fear”. Example: If there is a shortage of food in an incident but you have 6 months of food stored…you probably won’t panic because you know you can feed your family.
- Protection of Loved Ones – If you have properly armed yourself and your family you have a high degree of confidence that you can protect yourselves. That confidence can go up considerably if you remove threats from the situation (i.e. don’t associate yourself with those that are a potential threat) and/or do associate yourself with like-mined people.
- Mistrust of Others – Know who you are dealing with. Don’t deal with, associate with, or even communicate with anyone you don’t know. While we need to be charitable, be very prudent with whom you help. Don’t let anyone know of your preps. Develop and maintain a high degree of situational security.
- Misinformation and Rumors – Don’t believe any information from any source unless you can verify it yourself…or you are 100% confident in the information source. Never trust rumors.
- Scarcity of Resources – Keep your preps situation to yourself, do not tell anyone from any organization, including churches, and especially any government anything. If you choose to be charitable, fine. But don’t reveal the extent of your preps to anyone ever. And yes, if you have prepared as you should have, you are less likely to become violent since you have confidence that you are providing for your family.
- Breakdown of Social Order – This is often the first thing to go in disasters and especially grid-down. Internalize this…”No one is coming to save you or protect you.” Do not depend on police, fire, EMS, FEMA, or any other group is coming to help your situation. Be prepared as a family to take care of yourselves. If you have similar-minded folks around you…work together to establish your own social order.
- Group Behavior / Crowd Dynamics / Mob Mentality – This can get out of hand very quickly! Mobs can go from mildly frustrated to lynching in just a few minutes. Avoid groups, crowds, and mobs…just don’t be there. If one forms, leave.
- Frustration and Helplessness – An easy one…if you have prepared and food is short, there is no power, and the only water are puddles and a stream…no problem. You won’t feel helpless or frustrated…because you have what you need to take care of your family. Don’t get sucked into feeling sorry for someone who is helpless. You can be charitable if you wish…but they are responsible for their situation.
- Panic and Loss of Rational Thinking – I’ve seen panic and have panicked. It’s ugly and quickly taps into our primitive core. Your preps should help you stave off panic. Do not associate with, or even be around, those who are panicking. If you are, watch closely for escalation to aggression and violence…even from friends and/or neighbors.
- Exhaustion and Physical Stress – This can be a tough one. If you don’t take care of yourself you ability to function physically will dramatically decrease; something as simple as mild dehydration can cloud thinking. Lack of sleep is another killer…rotate responsibilities to ensure everyone is getting enough rest. Lack of proper food will dramatically decrease physical abilities…eat enough, eat regularly. Consider this when doing food sorage.
The risk of violence is always present in any emergency/disaster situation. There is always someone that is ready, willing, able, and depraved enough to take your stuff and hurt you or your family doing so. The severity, and potential finality, of the end result. In a matter of seconds your stuff could be taken and/or your life ended. A year’s worth of food storage is worthless if someone steals it or kills your family over it. You must be able to prevent violence from happening to you and your family.
Problem: If you can’t defend yourself, your family, and your stuff…anyone can come along and take everything you hold dear in this life.
Solution: Don’t be seen, don’t be found, and properly arm yourself with the correct weapons and have proper training on how to use those weapons to defend yourself and your family.
For me, I will:
- Review all my appropriate tools, clean them, ensure they are in working order, batteries as needed, and inventory all accessories. Update shortage as needed.
- Make sure that not all of my tools are in one location.
- Practice appropriately with each tool.
What do you need to do?
<- Previous article in this series |
Articles in this Series –
- Project ’26 – Introduction
- Project ‘26 – Question #1 (Priorities)
- Project ‘26 – Question #2 (Violence)
Related Articles –
- Layering & the Common 7: Part #2 – Violence
- Grid-Down House Security : Strengthen your door…
- Tactical Vests
- Choosing the Right Gun
- Choosing the Right Pistols
- Choosing the Right Shotgun
- Choosing the Right Carbine/Rifle
- Aimpoint Micro T-1 Red Dot Optic
- Konus SightPro 7216 Red Dot Optic
Checklist –
Good Series Related to this Subject –
Send me some ideas and thoughts…
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I completely missed this !
I completely missed this subtle moment of truth and messaging…
This morning as I was going through my morning “wake up” process I saw Tucker Carlson’s video “Can You Still Support Trump?” Of course I had to watch it…I respect Tucker and his clear thinking and consistent principles and ethics. He is, in my opinion, level headed and insightful in all things politics.
At one point he mentioned something that I never realized, never thought about, never knew…and it was a profound point in history that now explains a lot…maybe everything that is happening right now in the US and in the world. Let me explain…
On January 20th, 2017 Donald J. Trump became the forty-fifth president of the United States. During his swearing in ceremony he took the oath of office. His wife Melania stood beside him and held a Bible on which Trump placed his left hand, raised his right hand to the square while reciting the oath of office.
Trump taking Oath of Office in 2017
On January 20th, 2025 Donald J. Trump became the forty-seventh president of the United States. During his swearing in ceremony he took the oath of office. His wife Melania holding two Bibles beside him: his family Bible (given to him by his mother) and the Lincoln Bible. Trump did NOT place his left hand on the Bible while he took the oath of office.
Trump taking oath of office in 2025.
That begs the question “Why didn’t he?” And that my friend is a very profound question…and the answer might explain the last 14 months in horrid clarity.
Clearly Trump was sending a message when he didn’t place his hand on the Bible during his oath of office. The reverse would be just as true…placing his hand on the Bible would send a message; 1) I am a Christian, 2) I believe in the Bible, 3) I acknowledge and accept its teachings, 4) I agree that there are higher laws, God’s laws, 5) I sustain America’s Oath of Office traditions and culture via its history. By NOT placing his hand on the Bible the opposite of that message would also then reasonably be true.
That sent chills down my spine…Trump was clearly and intentionally sending a message to not just US citizens but the entire world…especially to Christians.
There are a few specific events/actions that have taken place in the last 14 months that have most deeply concerned me about Trump:
- Publicly Trump was perfectly fine with ICE agents intentionally injuring and killing US citizens.
- Trump overthrew a sovereign nation, Venezuela. In Trump’s own words, he did it to take (i.e. steal) their oil and other natural resources.
- Trump started a war with Iran with no basis of imminent threat to the US and no nuclear weapons…while the US in direct negotiations with them (i.e. a Pearl Harbor event). He has recently stated that, in his own words, he could/would “take the oil” in Iran and that “to the victor belong the spoils.”
- Here is what really gets me…the US killed 160 young school girls in Iran. Trump has not even acknowledged it or expressed any kind of remorse regarding that incident.
- But here is what gets me the most…Trump’s Easter Sunday message. I won’t repeat that vile and demonic message here < you can read it by clicking this link >.
Trump lost my support a while back when his actions didn’t match his campaign promises…and he was acting in direct opposition to my understanding of God’s law. As a Christian I could not, and do not, in good faith support Trump in what he has done and is doing as President of the United States.
And by his not taking the oath of office with his hand on the Bible finally explains it all to me in 100% clarity. To answer Tucker’s question, “Can You Still Support Trump?” Absolutely not! No, I can’t support Trump as President based on my understanding and practice of Christianity, Christ’s own words, my understanding of the Bible and it precepts and principles…and my own conscious.
And yes, we can expect a President to have Christian morals and ethics that are good and righteous…and abide by them in carrying out the duties of President of the United States.
Note: Early this morning Trump has posted his willingness to destroy a whole civilization (referring to Iran / the Persian civilization). What rational, decent, respectable, sane person says stuff like that? What leader in his right mind, supposedly the leader of the free world, threatens to destroy a whole civilization…and then says God bless them? What are we dealing with here?
We simply can’t dismiss this kind of behavior and thinking any more saying this is just Trump…or he is just venting…or he just says stuff without a filter…or he is playing 3D chess. At some point this clearly shows his mental health or his true character. Think about what he is saying…he is threatening to exterminate a country’s entire population…an entire civilization!! That is holocaust level evil…times 15.5 ! ! This time it is Muslims vs Jews…imagine that.
If you would like to view Tucker Carlson’s video…
2009 - 2026 Copyright © AHTrimble.com ~ All rights reserved No reproduction or other use of this content without expressed written permission from AHTrimble.com No legal, economic, or financial advice is given, no expertise to be assumed. I may receive compensation from advertised/mentioned products on this website. See Content Use Policy for more information.
GARDEN : Disaster Strikes !
Some days you just wanna…well, wonder what the heck is going on. Last Saturday morning was one of those days…disaster had struck in the garden the night before. Well, technically in the greenhouse…but it is all part of the “garden project.” Here what happened…
We’ve had an early spring, unseasonably warm…quite beautiful. On top of that I did my calculations based on the last few years and decided to start my seedlings in February, early February to be exact. Back in mid-February I posted an article showing my seedlings starts.
Garden in mid-February.
It was an overall huge success! I wanted lots of plants this year, not just for us for the most part…I wanted plenty of plants to give to others for them to grow their own food this season. With the economy/affordability in such bad shape and food inflation running so high, we thought it would be nice to help some folks out.
The transition from seedlings in the house on a heat mat to the greenhouse went really well. The plants were doing fantastic and this year I was able to spend enough time to do it right. We had lots of tomato plants, butternut squash, couple varieties of cantaloupe, and couple varieties of watermelon. The early start to cantaloupe and watermelon was based on our short growing season…I wanted to give us a jump start on it. We had about a total of 80 plant starts in the greenhouse.
Greenhouse Plants on March 22nd…before the Big Freeze.
We watch the weather reports pretty closely when we have plants in the greenhouse. We usually run about 2 – 4 degrees cooler than the predictions for the area. Friday night it was supposed to hit 31°. That is not a problem…we just turn on our greenhouse electric heater and we are good to go. Since moving the plants to the greenhouse we had a few night in the upper 20’s with no problem. About 8pm Friday night I turned on the heat, it was 48°. Wind was blowing a bit, but not bad.
I woke up at 1am and it was 30° outside, 34° in the greenhouse…cooler ahead of schedule. I turned the heat up to high. I woke up at 3am…it was now 26° outside, 30° in the greenhouse. Nothing more I could do…the heater was on high and damage done, if there was going to be any. I woke up at 5am…22° outside, 26° in the greenhouse. All is lost…I knew the damage wouldn’t show up till late in the afternoon, so I just started doing other shores…sick to my stomach.
Long story short…I thought everything was going to be dead…all the plants were young and 26° is a hard freeze any way you look at it. By the end of Saturday it looked as if ½ of the plants were dead. All put 2 of the tomatoes a lot of the melons and cantaloupe. The butternut squash was hit the least but some of them dead as well.
Well, it is Sunday morning…Yea! I went out and culled the sheep from the goats. Okay, it was the dead plants from the living plants. It is obvious that we lost about 20 – 25% of the plants, mostly tomatoes but melon and squash as well. We do have a variety of tomatoes left and a bunch of melon and squash are still good. It looks as if we might lose another 5 – 10 plants, mostly tomatoes but that won’t be intolerable.
Greenhouse plants on the morning of April 5th. The Big Freeze survivors.
Considering that a hard freeze should have killed it all…we may have a loss totaling no more than 40% of the plants when is all is said and done…not too bad. Lucky and blessed I would say.
The Big Freeze bone pile…April 5th.
What I haven’t been talking about was the over-wintered Big Jim pepper plants. Those plants are where Hatch green chili comes from. Best green chili in the universe…period!! I was doing some research last year and found out that pepper plants are actually perennials not annuals. Well, technically they are bi-annuals. So I followed the process last fall and over the winter. I put the first two plants into one of the raised beds about 6 weeks ago and covered them anytime it looked as if it would be 38° or below. Then 3 weeks ago I put out the last two. Yeah, I was so focused on the greenhouse Friday I completely forgot about those 4 pepper plants. Oooopppppsssss…frozen dead. Fortunately I had already started 10 new plants about 4 weeks ago just in case the overwinter process didn’t work. Those little seedlings are doing just fine…about ¾” – 1” tall and safely tucked away on a heat mat in a spot with a south facing window and grow light…in the house.
Overwintered Big Jim pepper plants post-freeze. Yeah, dead.
I didn’t even think about this till Saturday afternoon…the new bare-root strawberry plants! Thursday afternoon/evening I planted my brand new 50 bare root strawberry plants…25 Albion & 25 Eversweet. That was to be the foundation of my HUGE strawberry patch that I have been dreaming about for years.
Saturday afternoon I went out to the garden to check their moisture and then it hit me…they were in the ground 1 day before the freeze. Normally strawberry plants can handle some very cold temps…really cold…but mature plants properly cared for. These were brand new little guys, fresh in the ground. Some of the plants appear to be a bit brittle on the tops, but that may be just because of the nature of bare root plants. I don’t know their actual status as of now.
Bare root strawberry plants planted on April 2nd, one day before the Big Freeze. Yes, there are plants in there…basically by each watering head.
Good thing is I had about 3” of cedar wood chip mulch around them. This one step may have saved them. I don’t think I will know for sure for weeks…when they don’t turn green and don’t show new growth. Time will tell…patience is the name of the game now. Yeah, not my strong suit.
A small blessing…I have 20 Eversweet strawberry plants (not bare root) sitting at the mailbox in town. I will pick them up Monday and get them in the ground. They should be fine. So I might not have the HUGE patch this year I had planned on, but I will have some…better than a sharp stick in the eye.
I try to find lessons learned from any experience like this…
- Never, ever fully (or partially) trust the weather reports.
- When in doubt, overkill is the best option (I could have moved them to the house).
- Always have a Plan “B” & Plan “C”.
- Think about a better way to heat the greenhouse.
I am grateful for the blessing of apparently not losing all the plants. It appears we will have plenty of plants for our own garden and still have enough plants to share with others. And we will still have a strawberry patch…albeit small…but a patch all the same. Thank you Lord !
2009 - 2026 Copyright © AHTrimble.com ~ All rights reserved No reproduction or other use of this content without expressed written permission from AHTrimble.com No legal, economic, or financial advice is given, no expertise to be assumed. I may receive compensation from advertised/mentioned products on this website. See Content Use Policy for more information.
A.H. Trimble - Emergency preparedness information for disasters and grid-down 