Micah Wotring - Weathering Winter

[CntryBoy777]

I just wish I could find one that had PS, PB, AC, and Radio, it doesn't matter if manual or auto transmission....and has manual roll-up/down windows. I don't require the "Bells & Whistles", just reliable get from poit A to point B. The only problem with older vehicles is parts, finding them is getting harder and harder....going the way of the old TV repairman.

 

[Pastor Dave]

Ah yes, Dave Ramsey. Mostly very good advice. Everything you have said Pastor Dave. We have done it a little differently with the farming, but could pay off all our debt tomorrow if we sold out... not counting the mortgages, or selling the properties.

We do finance our fertilizer, seed, even cattle purchases.....

I perfectly understand having to buy on credit for farming and paying at end of season. That is why it was common to understand agriculture was investing in live stock. The stock was taken to market, and it was a gamble based off trends and futures. It is still pretty much the same.

Hopefully household can be kept separate from corporation/business expenses and not be run on credit. Credit has killed the country, so getting away from it or as a young person, not getting started down that path, is the goal. If we could just get elected officials to agree and comply to this principle.

 

[CntryBoy777]

We have been "Debt Free" and "Cash Only" for around 10yrs. I don't have to worry about debt, because I have no credit, credit score, or any ability to qualify for any kind of loan. This includes any loan for anything....even an emergency. So, it is a slippery slope to navigate. In order to have "Credit" you must be a participant in the "Credit Game", if there isn't an "Active History", you have "No Credit" and will not qualify to any lender for a loan....

 

[Bruce]

Bruce, I can see what you are saying about the new vehicle, BUT, there is no way I can sit here and say that buying the 1984 4x4 ford ranger for $500 and then putting $1,000 into a rebuild of the engine was not still a much better investment than a newer one that will not go where this one will. I bought 1 new vehicle, 1979 F-150 pickup, $3100, and drove it til it died. Insurance back then was still too much on a new vehicle. Today, noway is a 25,00-50,000 truck justified.

Nowadays, the new vehicles require a rocket scientist to diagnose and fix anything that goes wrong. They are made out of more plastic than metal, and at the costs today, there is no way I would ever buy anything new. Same with the vehicles we use on the farm for trailer pulling, feeding etc. We can fix and rebuild most stuff earlier than the mid 1990's. The one truck that is 2000 seems to spend more time getting diagnostics than running....all stupid little stuff.

No arguments with any of that but where do you find that 1984 Ranger that needs not only the engine rebuild but also the transmission and most other major parts? And the frame and body aren't rusting out? Yep, hard to fix much on new vehicles anymore plus as @CntryBoy777 said, finding parts for all that breaks? Likely going to be spending a lot of time contacting junk yards across the country and fixing stuff. Has to be a balance of time, money and reliability. If one can't get to work because the vehicle is needing to be fixed AGAIN, life doesn't go well.

I do remember back when a truck was basic and cheap transportation that could also haul a load if one needed. Some people bought them because they were cheaper than cars. Now they seem to have moved up into the pseudo luxury level, as you say STARTING at $25K.

 

[Bruce]

We have been "Debt Free" and "Cash Only" for around 10yrs. I don't have to worry about debt, because I have no credit, credit score, or any ability to qualify for any kind of loan. This includes any loan for anything....even an emergency. So, it is a slippery slope to navigate. In order to have "Credit" you must be a participant in the "Credit Game", if there isn't an "Active History", you have "No Credit" and will not qualify to any lender for a loan....

You can do the "credit thing" at no cost Never charge anything you can't afford to pay cash for and have that cash parked somewhere safe. Pay the bill every month, never pay a finance charge. Et voila, Credit history! BTW I think paying your electric, phone, water (whichever one has) on time every month is also credit history. I guess one wouldn't have those if they are off grid, have their own well and use a "pay as you go" cell phone. We do have 1 debt, there is a mortgage on this house, it will be paid off in Nov 2026. 15 year loan at 3.25%.

 

[NH homesteader]

Other than our 1960's IH Scout (I miss that thing!), we have never had issues finding parts for old vehicles. Unless I win the lottery, I will never buy a new car again. Or a vehicle I need a loan to get. But my husband is a mechanic... That helps.

Hey Micah, how are the turkeys?

 

[CntryBoy777]

You can do the "credit thing" at no cost Never charge anything you can't afford to pay cash for and have that cash parked somewhere safe. Pay the bill every month, never pay a finance charge. Et voila, Credit history! BTW I think paying your electric, phone, water (whichever one has) on time every month is also credit history. I guess one wouldn't have those if they are off grid, have their own well and use a "pay as you go" cell phone. We do have 1 debt, there is a mortgage on this house, it will be paid off in Nov 2026. 15 year loan at 3.25%.

This is the way many think, and I did too until 11yrs ago. My Dad did exactly as you stated...used charge card and paid balance off each month, always paid bills ahead of due date, and had "History" of timely payments. When he went to get a loan to pay for the trlr....I was waiting for the cash settlement on Workers Comp....we found out it was quite the opposite and he had No "Credit History". The only way he got the loan was thru his personal bank, at an increased interest rate. Unless ya play "Their Game" and pay some finance charges, there simply is no credit history that is maintained, because when ya pay the balance off each month, it is considered by the "Creditors" as the same as Cash, because there are never any "Carrying Charges" that are documented. They don't give ya "Credit History" unless ya "Pay" for it. Remember, they are a "For Profit" business, and if ya ain't giving them "Profit", then they certainly aren't going to give ya the benefit for Free. It is a much Different world we are living in, than what most truly think it is....

 

[Pastor Dave]

All this advice for Micah, and he probably hasn't seen any of it yet. Lol

 

[micah wotring]

Okay, so, thank you for all this advice! I think it is wise to stay as debt-free as possible and I am very blessed to have parents who know a lot about this sort of thing and are willing to help explain often. I am trying to learn what I can from them and be able to make wise decisions down the road. As far as vehicles I agree with what @Bruce said here: (mostly pointing to the part in bold)

If you keep your vehicles until they can't reasonably be fixed any more, don't shy away from buying new if the new vehicles have features you want that aren't in older vehicles. You don't care what the depreciation is when the first tire hits the public road because you won't be selling it for 15 years anyway. Now if you CAN find those things in a 3 year old vehicle, it should be cheaper to buy. But figure out the $/year of ownership because the 3 Y/O vehicle is going to need maintenance sooner. But if you can afford to buy it for cash, you'll be able to save up for those repairs instead of paying interest on a loan or lease.

The turkeys are doing great! I've still just got the trio. The two hens are laying at least 10 eggs per week most of the time. I guess I was kinda impatient and set some of the first few eggs (6) and now my incubator is in use until they hatch so I can't set all these eggs I'm getting! Haha, didn't really think that through...Anyway, they should hatch in another week or two(I forget the exact date(I have it written down someplace)).

So, my brother had rabbits and owed me a trio so I got to pick them out of one of his litters last fall. I traded the buck to him for one of his fully grown does and then he sold all his 'cept one that was blind which he gave to me which I will butcher soon. I also got a real pretty buck off of my cousin to breed my does with. Then my brother sold all his.
So, that prolly didn't make a lick of sense so here's the summary: I used to have 3 kits. Now I have a doe, a buck, two does that are almost of breeding size, and one blind kit which I will butcher soon. I bred the large doe (woopy pie) a few days ago so I should have kits sometime the beginning of May. (Again, I have specific dates written down someplace)

I'll put a few rabbit pics in here for ya:
Here's the new buck I got from my cousin

Here's a pic of my two young does.

Here's a pic of Fudge, one of my brother's old bucks. He's sold and gone now but he was too pretty not to share a pic of

Here's the cages I have ATM (Not including the 3 hutches in a different corner) I'm also thinking of building a colony for growing out the kits. This pic is from before my bro sold his so there's quite a few in the pic.

I am going to build some saw-horses like the one on the far right eventually in place of the barrels but for now I fixed up a board to keep all the manure from rusting the barrels(more).

And here's a pic of my sister's two new calves from this year. Their names are Ferdinand and Isabella.
Ferdinand (steer) on the right and Isabella (heifer) on the left.

And I'll leave you with a pic of a faint sunset. Not the most vibrent I've seen but beautiful none-the-less.

Still waiting for my chickens to go broody. I have all kinds of broody breeds but they never want to go broody for me. When one does I'm going to put some turkey or duck eggs under her. Oh, speaking of ducks, I'll include a few pics of them! I've got one Muscovy drake, 1 magpie hen, and 3 Muscovy hens. I saw Philip (The drake) 'earning his keep' a few days ago so I'm hoping for some eggs soon. As of now I have two turkeys, two brown-egg-layers, and one bantam laying. Anyway, I know y'all are probably bored listening to me so ON TO THE PICS!

And here is Buttercup. She's a silkie/Duccle mix and my favorite chicken!

 

[NH homesteader]

Everyone looks great! Still working on getting sheep?

I should have waited a week on my incubator. One started laying and I got all excited, now I'm getting tons of eggs too, so I know how you feel! But I'm on a time crunch for getting the chicks grown out to butcher in fall, plus I need the incubator for chicken eggs right after these guys hatch.