Bartering And Horse Trading (Part Duh)

“Anything that you have today will become your treasure tomorrow......being from Cuba I know what I am talking about, in Cuba to find a straight nail on the floor is like finding a dollar bill here in the states.....collect all the nick knacks that you can afford and simply put it away and forget about it.....they will be your salvation tomorrow....right Agnut?”
Ponce

That’s right Ponce. With every action there should be a well informed and well considered reasoning behind it.

Not everything is going to become valuable; only things that people will need and cannot either afford new or find. This does cover many, many items but some of them will not be highly valued until they have been largely consumed. When I think about it, these things except home grown food are non renewable resources. They will get consumed and then what ? Increasing scarcity with a continued demand yields higher prices.

And some items should be sold and the money obtained should be reinvested. For example, art. I had 30 paintings on eBay recently and only two of them sold. I did get some ridiculously low offers but I would rather keep them, come Hell or high water. I have been watching the art market for many years and have come to the conclusion that the prices will continue to fall as our economy worsens. In the past, some investors bought art for its potential but I don’t think that it will be wise in our current environment as well as for the future. One way or the other we will continue the slide into third world status. We are becoming a banana republic without the bananas. No export, no recovery. This time it is truly different and therefore we will be in uncharted waters. Probably explains all the anguish in making even the best calculated prep decisions.

So why am I writing such grim news in a bartering and horse trading thread ? Well, we must realize that even some of the things we may buy now that are considered a bargain will be offered at even better prices in a collapse. That is, if our society holds together so that we would be comfortable in dealing out there in the public. If things do fall apart, bartering may become difficult for a while.

Right now our local thrift store is having a new type of sale in which a bag of hard bound books is $7 and a bag of softbound books is $5. I bought 3 bags yesterday and am heading back with one of my sons to buy more. How to books and the classics will be our focus. Yesterday I got a mint copy of the works of Ralph Waldo Emerson for about 50 cents. Many of the books are normally priced at $5 to $10 each. They are having this sale because they are receiving so many donations that they are overstocked. So I would have to pay as much as $100 individually but only $7 in a sale bag.

Is this still a bargain with the view of a future collapse ? Only time will tell; and perhaps a long time at that.

What is going to be valuable in the future ? Building materials, clothing, tools, toilet paper (you’re welcome Ponce), food, fuels, tires, and many other items we cannot or will not do without.

In the past several months, items for sale have not been moving. Nobody has much or even any discretionary money. If they see a great bargain they may have to pass on it in order to buy something more important, say something like food to feed their family or gas to get around.

Now with this Obamacare “Affordable Care”, I believe that there will be a shock wave the likes of which we have never experienced in our lives. Let me explain this and what I have been pondering for some time.

Say Obamacare has been implemented and we are all forced to pay an average of $250 per month for our health insurance. What about the $14,000 deductible before they pay for a medical cost ? How can anyone manage to save that contingency money with the way the economy is, even now ?

But that is only the tip of the turdberg floating around in the punchbowl. With most everyone paying out this approximately $250 per month, who will be buying things other that paying for food, gas, housing, utilities ? Can you imagine the multitude of stores that would suddenly find themselves with a disastrous drop in sales ? Would anyone go to the Hallmark store to buy a birthday card for $5 ? Or to the clothing store for designer clothing ? Or to the shoe store ? Movie theatres ? Sporting goods ? Fuggetaboutit !

Are you getting the picture of just how devastating the added costs of Obamacare will be to your local community as well as throughout the whole nation ?

McDonald’s, Burger King, Wendy’s, all other fast food outlets ? And what about all the middle class sit down restaurants and upper scale fine dining places ?

Who could afford a vacation to Hawaii or to visit a distant relative ? Are the airlines going to do better or much worse ? A no brainer, huh ?

We are talking about tearing some $3,000 off the yearly take home pay of the American worker or retired person. And from what I have been reading, it may be much higher in some financial situations.

What to do, what to do.

Well, since we are being herded into what has been described as “austerity”, we should make the best of it. Why drive ourselves crazy to “get ahead” ? Why buy a new car rather than fix the old one ? Why remodel the kitchen instead of keep the one we have in tip top condition ? Why buy new clothes when we have a closet full of used clothing ?

In fact, why spend any money for anything new except socks and underwear (and some other personal necessities that even I am too squeamish about mentioning) ?

What do you think I have been doing for years ? I drive a 23 year old truck that I bought for $2600. Paid cash so no interest payments and have only liability insurance. I buy my clothes at garage sales and thrift stores. I drive diesel and other high MPG cars and then only use them when absolutely needed. I rarely eat out. I buy most all food on sale and stock up enough until the next sale. And several other cost cutting habits.

On the other hand I do buy used books, records, CDs, DVDs and videotapes. That is my big extravagance; I cut out cable TV a few months ago and except for an occasional nature show and this season’s Big Bang Theory series I do not miss TV. I save $120 a month and this allows me to accumulate a library of entertainment far better than what the TV has to offer. Also I own a copy of it that I can watch any time I want or loan it to a friend or even sell it and get my money back for the next purchase. It is empowering. Oh; and no more commercials either. Take that Madison Avenue !

Also I barter for hay for our cattle. We get all kinds of fruits and veggies for free just by picking them up. Once in a while I get a car for free; sure it needs work but I am a mechanic and can fix it for my labor and parts at wholesale.

With the way I do all these things I have more time to do what I want when I want. I’m not saying I have lots of free time because I am busy every day. The key is I am getting to do what I want to do, not forced to do. Although I may not have a lot of money, I have never felt so rich in my life. Depends on what one defines as being rich. I’ve been financially rich and I’ve been happy but I have never been financially rich and happy at the same time. I guess it’s just not for me.

My family has been living in the future we perceive; this way the transition’s shock will hopefully be lessened.

In closing, does anyone in their right mind think that this Obamacare will be good for America’s future ?

Best wishes,

Agnut

Hi Agnut. I always enjoy your posts. Your thinking rings true to my Yankee instincts. To answer your question about Obama Care or Zero Care as it should be called; I agree that it is the absolute worst thing that could possibly be implemented, or attempted, because I believe it will be an enormous fiasco. I will not comply. I will eschew it for religious reasons if that is what it takes. I will not be forced to buy a product I do not want and feel is dangerous to my very existence.

'Land of the Free' my ass!

Hi gun driller, thanks, your post #199 made me think. Aluminum prices will rise as the dollar falls but if such a situation unfolds, will there be demand for scrap aluminum ? Seems like we are on the cusp of tremendous financial changes and I can’t envision a great revival of industrial activity. Rather the contrary. I feel that we have long ago passed below our having discretionary money to a level of day to day survival. This is what I see all around me, at least in my local area. And from what I read, other areas are experiencing the same or worse. I am not a gloomster but feel that I must face the facts as I see them and ACT accordingly.

With that said, I haven’t been going garage sailing for several weeks. In the first place, the pickings have been mighty slim with low volume of sales as well as high prices asked for goods. It seems to me that sellers perspective has changed from getting rid of unwanted items to trying to get the highest price they can. Behind this change may be a sense of desperation in their outlook for their future. It must have become obvious to even the most brain dead that things are bad and getting worse. There comes a time when the herd senses danger and stampedes.

This post is to put us all on notification that things have changed regarding bartering and horse trading. And we must understand the changes and their implications and adapt accordingly.

It has only been a few months since I ceased going to garage, estate and moving sales. First, they have been gradually getting less rewarding. Second, they have been getting less in number which would require my traveling much further distances in order to find good deals. More time and fuel burned always have to be considered.

So what to do, what to do.

Well, we are moving into the winter months when things traditionally slow down. So seasonality must be taken into account. However, last summer I noticed several garage sales in which there were ladies with small children selling a lot of items that had almost no value. It appeared as though they were trying to get even a few dollars out of desperation. I had not seen this in previous summer sales. What this means to me is that many folks are hanging on by their nails. The big monthly expenses such as rent, food, transportation may have been covered by a steady job but ongoing price increases have been eroding purchasing power to the point that many find themselves standing at their financial precipice.

We all are facing the Christmas that wasn’t or if you prefer the winter of our discontent. Regarding Christmas presents, I have been giving away items I had purchased over the years. Some of these items that were $50 new I had gotten for $5.

A while ago I wrote that I had ended cable TV, a monthly savings of $120. Now I buy DVD movies for $1 to $2 each. No commercials and a much more entertaining evening. I could buy over 60 movies a month and have no more expenses. But I don’t find that many DVDs (maybe 30 per month) ; after a while I have a huge library of great movies that can be shared, gifted and/or sold. Also high speed internet offers more entertainment than I have time for. This is a sign to me that I shouldn’t overindulge but rather take care of business. The business of preparing for the future. Entertainment to excess is a manifestation of denial. There I said it.

I know people that sit around all day and watch the TV. It appears as though they are standing still while life’s changes are overtaking them. And lately I have seen that they are in financial difficulties. It has finally caught up to them. They have lived the good life until now and put aside no savings for emergencies. The first major expense will be like running into a brick wall. I have a lot of compassion for them since I have in the past year experienced more difficulty in maintaining stability in my own life. Even with the mental tools I have developed for dealing I have felt the recent difference. I can only imagine the desperation of those who have no abilities to adapt to the changes.

Instead of going to garage sales I have been going to thrift stores buying many items. 12 pairs of blue jeans for about $1 each. DVD movies for $1 to $2. Appliances for 5 to 10 percent of their new price. Lots of little gadgets I need or will need. Things to barter later.

I wrote that connections we make can become invaluable. The other day I was offered a Kubota diesel tractor with a Woods brush hog and a German 4 foot tiller. I jumped on it and it sits outside my front door. I don’t know how soon I can get to it but it is an asset that I can use here on the ranch. By the way, I got it for $100 plus another $100 to have it all moved.

And speaking of “the ranch”, I am planning to not replace our steers but to slowly let them decrease while building a hog enclosure. Lots less land use which may instead be for several earth berm greenhouses in the future. You see, the beef from the steers is not really profitable but the only advantage is that we know what our steers have been eating; no chemicals either. Also, raising pigs is known as a “mortgage mender”. It should greatly help expenses around here. I have checked around and piglets are spoken for long before they are ready for market (the freezer). Food, shelter, transportation and clothing. The first is food because without it, nothing else matters. What will be in demand in the future ? Raising pigs sounds like a good idea. I will let you know as I find out more. Raising pigs is a renewable resource just as raising fruits and vegetables.

By the way, you may have read that Smithfield, the largest hog raising and processing outfit, has been sold to the Chinese. Do you think that we will get the pork or the Chinese will ? Right !

We are almost finished with building a 10 by 12 foot shed for fruit and veggie storage. Many of the materials I bought in the past have gone into the shed. I have an excellent carpenter who I have been trading some woodworking equipment and some cash for his building the shed. Even the foam insulation sheets that were almost $20 new that I bought for $1 are being used. And instead of using 2x4s we are using 2x6s that I got for about 60 cents in a past deal. So it isn’t costing near as much as if I had to buy all the materials at retail. And I’m getting a much more durable building. Next year if things go as planned, this carpenter will build the pig enclosure.

With all of the threats of Nuclear war or EMP disaster, do you think that America will be destroyed with all the foreign investments here ? That would be about as intelligent a rich man blowing up his own bank. And besides if I am wrong, it won’t matter. There is nothing I can do about it except move out of country and that is just not acceptable. No, no, I think things will be very hard for those in debt (aka financial slavery) and unprepared but for those of us who prepared we will be needed and rewarded.

The filthiest four letter word in the English language is debt.

I make up these little quotes to remind myself to stay focused on the future and what kind of life I want to live. As best as I could I lived life in the way I envisioned how life would be in the future. This way the transition would be much easier for my family and me. And it hasn’t been bad along the way. An old Dodge diesel truck but no debt. Used items, more than I could afford if bought new. But no debt. Food stored away but no debt. And many prep and bartering items put away for the future. And again no debt.

I know this post has rambled on but there are some things I felt I had to say. The whole playing field is changing and we must change in order to win. The deals are out there but perhaps in different locations and different situations; you need to be resourceful in seeking them out. This is the fun of bartering and horse trading; the challenging ourselves in what we can do. I still surprise myself with all there is just laying out there waiting for someone with the imagination to turn a sow’s ear into a silk purse. Jingling with gold and silver coins, of course.

Best wishes,

Agnut

"To laugh often and much; to win the respect of intelligent people and the affection of children; to earn the appreciation of honest critics and endure the betrayal of false friends; to appreciate beauty, to find the best in others; to leave the world a little better; whether by a healthy child, a garden patch or a redeemed social condition; to know even one life has breathed easier because you have lived. This is the meaning of success. "
Ralph Waldo Emerson

I have seen the same thing in northeast CT Agnut. Garbage being sold... little plastic toys, christmas lights, worthless things that at best could be burned for heat.

The hunt requires much travel and many visits. My hit/miss ratio has gone down so much that I stopped going out too. Also, I have little space for anything more. I hate buying things new at retail stores, but I may have to resort to a few.

Yes- the times are getting desperate. My wife wanted to chip in and help a young family. I told her to be very cautious about doing this anymore. It must be in secret and it must be assured that you are doing the right thing. Also, we are not flooded with funds... especially since we still have mortgage debt and college costs staring us in the face. I have to keep telling her... if you think there are desperate people now, you haven't seen anything yet.

No debt. That is also my mantra here. NO DEBT!

Thanks woodman. I noticed that you joined GS-US the same month I did but you have over 6 times the posts I do. I guess I’m more long winded. HaHa

Yeah, this Obamacare (Obama scare or Obama scar your choice) looks like a healthcare version of the Syrian attack fiasco. And now with the impending Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP for short. Sounds like we will need extra TP for the TPP), I expect another fiasco in the making.

In my last post I said that I haven’t been going to garage sales but finding other opportunities. The other day someone told me that he was wanting to get rid of all kinds of construction parts. I went over there and got thousands of nails, many new hinges, PVC pipe connectors, new stovepipes and fittings, buckets of washers, concrete nails and shot charges, and a whole lot of other odds and ends. I also got a 4 step staircase that can be modified for our new storage shed. I asked around and he also had a tractor plow blade that may be used on the Kubota tractor I just got. He said that I could have it and he would load it onto my trailer. He is really a great guy, the same one my son and I took our log splitter to his place a couple of days and helped him. What goes around comes around.

Gotta go; my carpenter friend should be coming over soon to put up the shed shelves and finish the insulation.

Don’t be concerned about the Oblamacare; it will probably be put off till after the 2016 elections when Hillary comes to bat. Just kidding (I hope).

Best wishes,
Agnut

Land of the flee and home of the slave ? Not on my watch !

when i was in college, i used to sell scrap.

i remember steel got about 1 cent a pound, and aluminum maybe 50 cents a pound - depending on the grade.

now steel gets about 5 cents a pound (dirty scrap, AKA 'baling') and aluminum - the same.


i'm not sure why steel has climbed the last 20-30 years, but not aluminum. must have something to do with mine supply & the cost of energy.


i have a neighbor who wants a "gaming computer" - but has no money. he works part time (would like more, but that's the employment situation in the US)

i'm thinking about building him one from old parts and then trading that for his TIME. heck, i'd be happy to get 3 hours out of an old Athlon system with a faster AGP graphics card.

so that may be part of the way it is in the Bush-Obama economy.

of course, i don't want him to hurt himself working for me. so i'll probably just having him carry buckets of sand uphill (up the driveway), and "bagged and tagged" (IAW Mil-STD-130, i spent 9 years of my life working somewhere where EVERY drawing had the "Bag and Tag IAW Mil-STD-130" Note on it) boxes to my storage side yard.

i have a problem with condensing humidity, so i am learning to wrap things in dry burlap (like a painting drop cloth) and then bag them.


i lost a few $1000 of machine tools to rust in 2012, actually i can use them but i couldn't sell them.


i am taking a pile of things to another neighbor who has had a permanent garage sale the last 6 weeks. he is very knowledgeable about machine tools so i am basically trying to score brownie points. some people call this 'social capital'. e.g. a set of tire chains that isn't rusty is a good thing to donate to a neighbor's garage sale. they can sell them for $20 and still save money for the buyer, who would pay $50+ for good chains.


so i guess if you can use bartered items to trade for a neighbor's labor, or to help a neighbor whom you plan on hiring a few months in the future (sounds kind of Machiavellian, i guess), well, even in a Depression-ish economy, those bartered items are still worth something.

something else i found is that some things really make an impression. one of the guys at the scrap yard, his wife likes a certain size of Christmas tree lights. so i gave him every pack of bulbs that size i had.

he, in turn, gave me 60% as a grade for copper wire, for a box of wire that his co-worker said could only get 30% (which they used to pay 60% for). 60% gets about $1 a pound, so that little change in grade makes a difference.


perhaps another example of "Barter-ology" -

http://s403998394.onlinehome.us/DSCN8302_+__.jpg
http://s403998394.onlinehome.us/DSCN8310_+_+__.jpg

... the willingness to fix things ... but don't spend too much time because there's PLENTY of work to do.


i didn't want to spend $10 to $20 on a new good USB mouse, so i fixed a broken one. took about 20 minutes.

Hi Spectrism. Maybe visiting the thrift stores would yield some bargains. I haven’t been to an auction for years but hear of some great deals being made there. Also, some companies closing down and liquidating inventory and furniture and shelving could be good. There is an outfit that deals in shelving only and seems to be doing well. Maybe finding a good car deal and reselling could work.

On the other hand, with winter coming, it may be a good time to organize and get ready for the after Christmas sales. I don’t mean the ones in the stores but the private sales by those who have to sell to pay for their foolish holiday buying. I think that there will be some opportunities there.

I have a VW Jetta to fix, a VW pop top camper to restore, a VW Scirocco (now diesel) to finish, a Kubota tractor to fix, eleven VW engine cases to line bore, loads of car parts, loads of other items to sell, lots of paintings to sell and so much more that I can’t keep it all in my head. Oh, loads of aluminum transmission cases to strip for a scrap load. Not to mention all the steel scrap I need to load and sell. This is only a small part of what I am looking at in the coming months. Lord have mercy !

So you see, the deals I made in the past are now accumulated so that I don’t have to search them out in the winter months. They are right here staring me in the face. This is why I haven’t written much lately; buried up to the eyeballs. And with winter coming I have to anticipate working mostly indoors and first finish several outside projects.

And yeah, the times are getting desperate. Now may be the time to appraise our connections with family and friends and how we will gather together for support and protection. As they say, there is strength in numbers. Spectrism, you told your wife to be very cautious in helping others. Almost invariably, they are in need because of the decisions they made in the past. These are lessons that have to be learned, sometimes the hard way.

I believe that so many Americans are and will be in such dire situations because they took from the future and spent it in the past and present. This is how debt is accumulated and it is manageable until it becomes unmanageable ( and therefore a horror show). Even ants and squirrels put away provisions for the winter. Says a lot about the lack of common sense among us humans, supposedly the most highly intelligent. A big double DUH goes out here.

Everything you give away will later be something that you may desperately need in the future. You may ask your wife how she or you will replace what she is thinking of giving away. Maybe getting a second job so that you could have more to give away ? You see my point ?

I don’t mean to be a curmudgeon here but there is charity and then there is giving away your own future. When I have given to others, they almost always want to give something in return. And we should let them, for it is a give and take relationship in which the books need to get balanced. It has to do with self respect and friendship. So giving without getting in return leaves the recipient feeling a lesser individual. I didn’t start out this way in my giving but through the years learned that this is the way it works.

I sometimes wonder if this huge welfare program to the gibsmedats is having a similar outcome. They feel lessened in their and others’ eyes when they cannot return the “favor”. By giving them money for no work, maybe we are saying that their work is worthless and the money is only given to keep them from hurting us. Of course this builds up tremendous resentment. Where there is no pride in one’s contribution to society there is no self respect. And where there is no self respect there is no legitimate society. Just a thought.

When I am overwhelmed with things to do, which is daily, I make a list with the date at the top. I list the things to do down the page. Next I write the numbers to the left of the thing to do in the order/priority in which they need to be done. When each one is done I draw a line through the chore. This is the best way I have found to keep my life organized and feel a sense of accomplishment when I look at the page with all the lines drawn through the chores. Sort of patting myself on the back. Also this clears my head from having to remember a multitude of details to do and I don’t forget some of the little things I have to do. At the end of the day I begin tomorrow’s page beginning with the things I didn’t get to. Hope this helps.

Best wishes,

Agnut

"To laugh often and much; to win the respect of intelligent people and the affection of children; to earn the appreciation of honest critics and endure the betrayal of false friends; to appreciate beauty, to find the best in others; to leave the world a little better; whether by a healthy child, a garden patch or a redeemed social condition; to know even one life has breathed easier because you have lived. This is the meaning of success. "
Ralph Waldo Emerson

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by agnut

When I am overwhelmed with things to do, which is daily, I make a list with the date at the top. I list the things to do down the page. Next I write the numbers to the left of the thing to do in the order/priority in which they need to be done. When each one is done I draw a line through the chore. This is the best way I have found to keep my life organized and feel a sense of accomplishment when I look at the page with all the lines drawn through the chores. Sort of patting myself on the back. Also this clears my head from having to remember a multitude of details to do and I don’t forget some of the little things I have to do. At the end of the day I begin tomorrow’s page beginning with the things I didn’t get to. Hope this helps.

---

that sounds like me, although my lists are not as organized as yours.

when the lists are done, i put them in a folder labelled "clipboard overflow" (literally.)

then i date the folders, and archive them.

about a month ago i was burning some wood and threw out a year's worth of "clipboard overflow" folders - it's a lot faster than a paper shredder AND the ash contains close to 100% organic potassium.


the ash from my wood fires goes into the compost piles.

Hey all, I just read this thread and thought it would be good for some reflecting about our own world :

When people from Glasnost Eastern Europe first came here, they could not believe it.

http://www.timebomb2000.com/vb/showt...not-believe-it.

One sentence especially struck me :

“We are the envy of the world and the only people who do not know it is us.”


Best wishes,

Agnut

PS I still owe a response to gundriller two posts and will respond as soon as time permits.

Hi gun driller, some very good ideas in your posts. The information we share can be so uplifting to others that it is impossible to estimate how much effect we are having upon others both in its enormity of impact as well as its possible wide dissemination. This is why my closing quote is what it is. Emerson lived in a time in which there was no television, radio, telephone and other distractions from truths. When everyone was not looking at their watch continually, timing all their actions like racehorses.

I cannot emphasize this enough that we MUST help others whenever and wherever we can do so. I feel that this caring for those around us and helping others is a mindset that has been largely lost in the confusion of our whirlwind lives. Relative to Emerson’s time we are like the old cowboy observation that “he is going so fast that he is passing up more than he is catching up to”. Well, we are missing so much in our haste to “get ahead” that we lose our head in the endeavors. What a funny way of imprisoning ourselves; not haha funny but odd funny.

It is 3:30 AM and I have slept only a few hours but my mind is clear ( take this with a grain of salt since my mind is telling me that my mind is clear) and I can’t refuse sharing some thoughts. First one is that earlier this evening a recent friend brought a friend of hers over to meet me. She was so excited over the phone that she wanted to come over right away and introduce this friend of hers. Well, when she arrived I was in my workshop building a transmission and when this yet to be introduced friend walked in, we both looked at each other and laughed because we already knew each other ! My new friend hesitated and then began laughing too when she got the good natured social joke as it were. Just then as we were all laughing I felt an uplifting that I can only described as pure joy.

We talked for a while and then went into the house where I began talking about colloidal silver first and then about a new personal discovery; diatomaceous earth (DE for short). I pulled up some DE websites from Google that had lists of testimonials which we read together. You see, I have been taking DE daily for 157 days and counting. My personal results have been new hair growth, 20 pounds weight loss, increased stamina, and regular bowel movements. DE carries off heavy metals which may have protective properties against aluminum poisoning which has been linked to Alzheimer’s disease. DE also kills all kinds of parasites such as round worms, pin worms and others. I have read that about 85 to 90 percent of folks have parasites but most don’t know it. There are many other benefits from using DE and they are found in the testimonials of the websites below. But the best I saved for last.

For the past 10 years or so I have had outbreaks on my hands which specialists diagnosed as either psoriasis or eczema. Ugly and painful is the best description. Nothing they prescribed helped. For a longtime I did not notice that my recurring bouts with my hand outbreaks had ceased after taking DE. I felt foolish to have not picked up on it earlier but the nature of healing from a malady is its absence. No more hands with sores all over them taking several weeks to go away. No more embarrassment when shopping or with friends. The only relief when afflicted was that I could hold my hands under a stream of very hot water where the relief was indescribable except to say almost orgasmic.

So if you have or a friend has either psoriasis or eczema, tell them about DE and what it can do. And don’t neglect to read of all the other benefits of using DE; they are many I haven’t covered.



I made up a couple of bottles of DE and gave them to the ladies who were now very excited to try this new potent relief.

By the way I bought my DE at the local feed store although I don’t necessarily recommend it as opposed to buying what is called human grade DE. Personally I don’t see the difference except cost. But that is for you to decide. If it is good enough for my cows, chickens, dog and cat it is good enough for me. Just do not use the swimming pool filter DE; it is very bad for you from what I have read.

As I have been writing this post I have been making side notes of who to call to tell them about DE and what it can do for their health.


http://www.earthworkshealth.com/huma...stimonials.php

http://totalyouwellness.com/?cat=12

I know that this post isn’t exactly about bartering and horse trading in the usual sense but when I think about it, aren’t all of the interactions we have with each other a sort of trading knowledge and experiences ?

So here’s hoping that this DE post gets disseminated virally (so to speak).

Best wishes,

agnut

"To laugh often and much; to win the respect of intelligent people and the affection of children; to earn the appreciation of honest critics and endure the betrayal of false friends; to appreciate beauty, to find the best in others; to leave the world a little better; whether by a healthy child, a garden patch or a redeemed social condition; to know even one life has breathed easier because you have lived. This is the meaning of success. "
Ralph Waldo Emerson

“Be the change that you wish to see in the world.”
Mahatma Gandhi