Before we start with this weeks “what did you do to prep this week” segment I would like to thank K.Fields, Harold D, Tim D and Sergei B for their generous donations via PayPal this week. Thank you all it is very much appreciated. I’m glad you find the blog useful enough to call for a contribution.
If you would like to show your support for what we are doing here there are several ways that you can do that, with some costing no money at all. Read this post to find out how you can help keep The Survivalist Blog running.
Okay, let’s see what did I do to prep this week 
The first part of the week was spent working on my garden plot, digging in compost and turning the soil. It has been sunny here with unseasonably warm weather contributing to my catching “gardening fever” yep, I’m as excited as Bill Clinton in a room full of White House interns.
The soil I’m starting with here at my new property is of a good consistency, but as would be expected poor in nutrients, so I’ve added compost and I’ve been working on the soil PH level Overall everything seems to be coming along nicely.
But it still may take a couple of years of working the soil and growing in the area to get it in tip-top shape for maximum production.
I also ordered a couple of book through Amazon.com including; “Backyard Homesteading: A Back-to-Basics Guide to Self-Sufficiency” and “Self Sufficiency for the 21st Century“, I also ordered a Marine Raider Bowie Knife and replaced some storage foods that had been used.
Well that is it for me what did you do to prep this week?
{ 1261 comments… read them below or add one }
My dehydrator arrived this week. I started with 7 lbs. of carrots, which shrank to two quarts of dehydrated carrots. I dehydrated mushrooms and got three quarts finished product. I learned that it’s a good idea to rotate the trays 90 degrees, as the stuff in the back gets done much quicker. I also dehydrated a bunch of bananas. I followed a recipe I found online and soaked the slicked bananas in hot water mixed with two cups sugar, one up honey and two cups lemon juice. Bad idea. The banana chips caramelized on the trays, and it took forever to get them off. It also took 22 hours to dehydrate them. I did get four quarts of honey glazed bananas.
I canned 17 pints of pork roast. I did the math and a pint of pork cost $1.35 ($2.10 if you include the cost of the jar). A pint is plenty of meat for my dh and I. If we have company, I just add another pint. I did come up with another recipe for the pints of chicken—chicken tacos. This is so simple. Cook up an onion in some olive oil, dump in chicken and add taco seasoning and water. (I bought the big container of taco seasoning from Sam’s Club.)
The price of a gallon of gas pushed my dh over the edge and he is now on board with prepping. He helped me do an inventory on our food stores. I let him know that we have enough food on hand to last the two of us a year—with a bit of wiggle room. He asked what it would take to bring our stores up to the three-person level. So I did the analysis and said that we needed more grains and more powdered milk. He has a daughter that lives in town and eventually my mother will move in with us. So I will be upping our food stores even more.
I empted my bug-out-bag and showed him the contents. And I pointed out that I had already prepped a basic bag for him. We added a few things to his bag and made a list of things we need to get. We also started making a third bag for his dd.
I did pick up a few things this week. I got a 100-count box of Remmington hollow points and a 100-count box of FMJ for my Glock. And I got the only box of 12 gauge shells (#6 shot) that Walmart had in stock. I picked up the last two 7-gallon water containers as well.
For food preps, I picked up 60 boxes of cereal (BOGO), 25 lbs flour, 20 lbs. sugar, 2 cases ravioli, a case of mushrooms, a case of tomato paste, some spices, two cases of powdered milk, eight jars of pasta sauce, and 10 lbs. of butter.
I ordered and received some fish antibiotics through Cal. Vet.: 100 Capsules Amoxicillin (250 mg), 100 Capsules Ampicillin (250 mg) 60 Capsules Penicillin (250 mg). I also picked up additional allergy medicine and some hygiene supplies.
I had to go to three different stores to find canning jars. I picked up flat of quart canning jars and two flats pint canning jars.
I have not had time to make some homemade mozzarella. But I do have all the necessary ingredients on hand.
Most of my little plants are up. I need to go look at the diagram my dh drew to see what’s up and what’s not. I will be putting in my spring garden over the next two weeks. We’ve got an early spring here in Florida with humidity, a bit of rain and temperatures already in the 80s. It’s time to garden.
I have made contact with the Shelf Reliance Consultant Vienna recommended. They are having a special right now (available through their consultants): case of meat $144.60 and a case of cheese $154.65. I have never seen a price that good on freeze dried meat/cheese. I plan on ordering a case of meat and a case of cheese. If you are interested in the contact information, go to last week’s WDYDTPTW and do a search for “Cynthia”—that will bring up the contact information Vienna (Soggy Prepper) posted.
That’s it for me. I am making progress.
Robert,
Congratulations on getting out of unnecessary debt. That is one of the biggest steps in prepping in my book. A great accomplishment.
The way gas is getting we may all go into some unecesary debt.
thx much dave ramsey was teh key for me and have to give him a shout out whenever possible.
Nice going Gayle!
Dave Ramsey lol he helped me too. i love his program helped me get out of 20,000 dollars worth of debt. Congrats.
Gayle,
I hate the idea of higher gas prices, but CONGRATULATIONS on the news of hubby stepping onboard!!!! I long for the day that my DH joins him on the train!!! Keep us posted on his progress. It is inspirational to know that someone has managed to get a loved one onboard. I will take all of the encouragement I can get!
I have been watching the price of oil, copper, and freon. The r-22 freon that most of the older a/c and heatpump unit use has more than doubled this year. That coupled with the higher price for most conduits, fittings, and wire is about to kill us. Our profitt margin has been really small cause of the crash, shitty economy, and a new bunch of unlicesened guys are popping up all over the place that can work for a lot less because they have no license, insurance, or do they get a city business license and pay the taxes that they are suppose to is pushing the legal servicers to the wall. I am not sure how much longer we can hang on in this envoroment. I am not sure if the PTB even cares how the rest of us tax paying people are gonna take care of our families, and put food on the table. It is a struggle every month just to make the mortgage payments, and pay the truck loans, much less the auto insurance, house insurance, business liability insurance, flood insurance, unemployment insurance, worker’s comp insurance, life insurance, etc etc……………. (now i am depressed!)
oh anyway! 60 boxes of cereal??????? BOGO??????? YOU ROCK!!!!!
How do you store that for longer term? I have been getting some of the bag cereals at save a lot when they are marked $1.oo per bag. They are not out of date, just 1.00.
I wanted to know if you repack it with O2 obsorbers, or use the food saver to suck the air out. I would like to lay in more, but worry that it will go bad before it can be eaten. I love sweet cereal! and at a 1.00 per bag, how can I go wrong??
Sorry to go on and on,
Take care and again, COngrats!
Repair Mama,
The expiration date is 18 months out on the cereal we just bought (they were BOGO). We go through 2-3 boxes of cereal per week. (During warmer months we eat cereal for breakfast just about every morning. When it gets cold (that is, when it gets below 65 degrees) we eat oatmeal.
I think our spouses really listen to what we are saying and our reasons for prepping. But depending on their personality profile, especially if your spouse is an “S” (relies on senses to understand the world instead of using Intuition), it may take some visual cue for him to put two and two together. Someone mentioned last week that it took a can of corn to get her husband on board. Just keep making subtile comments and have faith that the comments are rattling around in his brain.
Gayle…cold… “below 65″?? LOL. :)
Also, I ask too: how do you store the cereal?
Mt. Woman,
It is freezing here today. It is damp, raining and the high today is only 60 degrees. I am lying in bed with four blankets and three cats. If it were any colder I would bust out my wool socks. As it is I am wearing a turtle neck and a hoodie and sweatpants.
Gayle,
You boiled peanut eaters are such a woos!
The cheesehead natives of Wisconsin (I’m not) are wearing parkas, short pants and tennies, it’s in the high 20′s.
That’s cold? Where on earth are you? My house is at 60 degrees all winter. The cat has a coat on and I can add a wool sweater if it gets below that. At that temp I can still get a bath comfortable. I don’t actually like being outside if it is much below 20 degrees. Then I have to bundle up, especially if hanging out at the barn.
lol its -4 where i’m at. last month it was -40. be happy. In weather that cold you want hair on your chest.
Thankfully it’s shorts and t-shirts in South Texas today. That cold spell where it got down below 60 almost killed me. We did make up almost 12″ of rain though, can’t be unhappy about that.
Mexneck,
I am afraid spring is over and we are heading into summer. (Here in Florida spring is the two weeks between cold weather and 90 degree weather with 100 percent humidity.)
Wow, Gayle, you accomplished a lot of stuff this week. So happy about dh. Now you have someone to share the burden with and share the accomplishments with – makes all the difference in the world IMHO. That is such a blessing. Thank God for this blog that gives everyone a sense of family even if you don’t have support in your real familly.
Gayle- how do you store all the cereal? I used my food saver and 2 months later went to try one out and the cereal was one hard ‘rock’. I thought after a couple days that it would change, but didn’t. I did about 10 boxes of cereal…..
kathleen,
Thanks for sharing that learning experience. Now the rest of us can avoid it.
One other thing- the cereal with fruit did not do so good– the fruit was all mushy. The cereal in the food saver bags is still edible–I just had to use a hammer to break up the “rocks”. So I have just ordered the half gallon canning jars and will use the jar attattchment, as I Love dry cereal, and do want some in my long term storage. I keep trying new things….. hopefully I’ll get it right one of these days….
kathleen,
We use the half gallon canning jars and jar vacuum attachment to store white and brown sugar, potato flakes and things we dehydrate.
Our tractor supply store keeps them in stock in ’6 packs’ year-round.
Hunker Down-Thank you! I ordered my online and they will deliver to the closest store so there wasn’t any shipping charges. I store brown sugar, white sugar, corn meal, oatmeal, choco chips, M&M’s, walnuts, pecans, dry milk, rice, hershey kisses, popcorn, noodles, beans, in vacuum-sealed jars. The only thing that hasn’t worked for me is flour. The lid seals and then about an hour later pops off. I love my jar attatchment!!! The best $7 I ever spent! I don’t have a Tractor Supply store by me so I used Ace Hardware. So I ‘collect’ any size of mason jars….
Kathleen,
Wow. I keep cereal for a year in its original packaging and it’s just fine. We are eating cereal now that I bought last summer. In fact, I don’t think I’ve ever had cereal (that hasn’t been opened) go bad.
I do wonder if there is a difference in packaging between name brands like Post and Kelloggs, and the store brand? (I read that Kelloggs in particular invested quite a bit to develop a package liner that increased shelf life.) I would also be curious to see if places like Save-a-lot are so much cheaper because the food are within three months or so of expiring–this would be worth investigating. Suppose you can pick up Save-a-lot off brand cereal for $1 but the cereal only lasts three months; alternatively, you could pick up name brand for $2 and the name brand cereal (because of the packaging and further-out expiration dates) lasts 18 months. Given the rate of inflation, at what point would it become more economical to spend twice as much for a longer shelf life? Where is O.P. when you’ve got a math problem to solve? LOL
Note: I do not think name brand products are necessarily “better” than store brand. I buy store brand most of the time. But with cereal, the name brand seems to have a longer shelf life.
HaHa. I was reading this back imaging I was O.P.–he would say, “Well the other variable is rate of consumption.” :)
I know the last Great Value double raisin bran was over a year on the expiration.
conmaze,
The Foodsaver works OK on simple non-sweetened cereal like corn flakes or wheaties; however, drawing a vacuum on anything can reduce the vapor pressure and dew point and that can cause condensation which when added to sweetened cereal can make a big block. The fruits in cereal are typically freeze dried, and the vacuum can shrink them into tiny hard bits. What we’ve done with cereal is to keep them in their original packaging, stored in a cool dry place, and they will typically last to their expiration date of beyond. Once we’ve opened them, they generally last a while here in winter, but in summer, we store them, box and all, in 5 gallon bucket with Gamma seal and large desiccant packages to keep the humidity low and prevent them from getting stale (as in losing their crunch). I’ve never stored cereal beyond 18-24 months because it gets used well before that.
Some cereals like oatmeal will last 30 years when packaged with O2 absorbers and stored properly.
Gayle, did you buy the Teflon leather sheets with your Excalibur? When I dry something like bananas (sticky) or celery (gets really small) I use the Teflon sheets. I also don’t dip my bananas any more. I think they turn out better without the dip.
Judy,
I will check out the Teflon sheets. I am learning a lot–some things are worth spending the time to dehydrate and other things (like celery and onions) are so cheap, it’s better to buy them from EE. I did four sleeves of celery and didn’t even get a quart of finished product.
I don’t have the brand dehydrator you do Gayle, but I can get the ‘teflon’ fruit-leather sheets, and some sheets with holes in them for mine. See my post above about an alternative.
Also remember that goods can still be bought right now (EE), but who knows how it will be later on, and you’ll want the means to dehydrate things yourself. With my (non)budget, dehydrating bits and pieces has been a good way to add to my food stores.
Gayle,
I have a round dehydrator with five trays. It came with two trays for making leathers and two plastic mesh trays. I read somewhere (seems like I’m always saying that (o:) that you can use waxed paper to line the trays. I tried it on my fifth tray and it worked great! I would probably use the waxed paper for sticky stuff (your honey coated bananas?) so you can just peel off the paper and toss it away. As it stands now, I’ve used the same waxed paper “tray” seven or eight times and it’s still going strong. Just an FYI that might save you some bucks that could be better spent elsewhere.
Let me just add that I cut the paper a little smaller than the actual tray thinking the air might circulate a little better. Left about a quarter-inch gap around the edge. Don’t know if I needed to do that or not.
If waxed paper works, maybe parchment paper would too?
For small things, I went to Michael’s, a craft store, and bought a couple sheets of plastic needlepoint mesh, and cut it to fit in the trays, with a hole in the center to match the hole in the trays. I have a round dehydrator. Works great. You can also use window screen mesh.
Mt. Woman,
Thanks for this tip. The celery I dehydrated fell through the screen and made a mess. I will definitely get something with smaller screens.
When you buy the window screen material, make sure you get plastic or nylon and not steel or aluminum.
O.P.,
Plastic or nylon–thanks for the heads up.
Don Mercer one of the authers for the dehrdrator bible recommended the plastic needle point screens, cut to fit as a great frugal way to get a very fine screen for the dryers at the seminar I took this past weekend, I have not tried it but others in the crowd had…
BTW…in case you might wonder: the needlepoint mesh hasn’t melted on me. I don’t use it on the bottom screens, only 2 or 3 up. Also, I always put an empty tray in first anyway…I don’t have a temp regulator on my dehydrator, so use this to keep the lowest filled tray from “roasting” the food.
Gayle… you are amazing! Not only to have brought your dh out of the pit of denial so many of our spouses seem to inhabit, but to have the most incredibly productive week possible – Wow.
Thank you for sharing your great week. (I know there is pantry envy… also garden envy… is there now…. prepper envy? Must be a better way to phrase it!)
God Bless,
Cat
Alikaat,
My dh helps me in most of these endeavors. Whenever I can or dehydrate or do anything in the kitchen, he cleans up. But since Tuesday we have been working non-stop. We are going to take today to just rest. I said to my dh last night, “Do we ever have a day when we do nothing.” He laughed and said he didn’t think I was capable of “doing nothing”.
It does help that one day of the week I get to work from home.
Gayle,
“It does help that one day of the week I get to work from home”. I work from home every day (telecommute, and I’d like to know your secret. It seems there’s always one more thing to do at work and when the office is just steps away . . . LOL
O.P.,
I think my secret is that I have a hard time sitting still. As bad as this is to admit, I get so bored in church and think about all the preps I could be doing.
Gayle,
Dehydrativing bananas can be made simpler by cutting a bit bigger slices, dropping them in an acidified water ( lemon juice and water), letting them air dry on the dehydration racks on the counter a bit then sprinkling them with some granulated “Tang” (orange). Half way through the deyhydrating I turn them over. There is no problem getting them off he rack. They are very tasty as a snack and you could even use the for breads. I have found the acidified water works well with zucchini slices (they don’t brown) and it does not affect the taste.
Regarding the celery…if you shop at Sams or Costco you can actually save and get a better producet by doing it youself. You can also customize the size, small for soups, larger for stews or salads. I have “read” reviews that purchaseing the canned varieties are often bitter and disappointing. From experiencee I have found when dehydrating onions the same is true and move your dehydrator outside on a nice day because it can really stick up the house. With Spring coming green onions are especiallly good to dehydrate.
Crisco,
Thanks for the info. Here in Florida green onions and celery will grow throughout the winter. I just go out and cut a bit off. I suspect that as soon as the temperatures get much above 90, the onions and celery will die.
I have a bunch of green onions and will try those next. (I just buy a bunch from the store, cut off the root part, stick it in water for a couple of days and then stick them in the ground–they regrow.) Do green onions stink up the house? I will try the lemon juice. I think I will get a food grade spray bottle and fill it with lemon juice so I can just spray the lemon juice. I will try the Tang. Powdered Gatoraid seems like it would be good as well.
Gayle,
Last summer we did a batch of onions in the garage, using the Excalibur. The garage STUNK for almost 4 days.
For OPSEC purposes, we had the garage door down while the dehydrator was in use.
H-D,
And you don’t think your neighbors smelled the onions? LOL
Stink is an OPSEC tool.
Hunker Down
While this does not count for the onions, as they will smell as they dry, I took a seminar this past saturday with one of the authers of The dehrdrator bible, and one of the things he stressed at least three times, is that most folks dry things to fast and at to high of a temp..
The statement was if you are drying herbs for sure but also most other foods, if you walk in and think.. Wow, does that ever smell good.. stop, mark down what the temp was and next time go a little lower/longer because if you can smell it like that, you are in fact losing food value with to high of a temp.
Farmgal,
Good to know. Thanks for sharing that.
Ok…now tell us EVERYTHING else you learned at the seminar…Please?
Here is my overview I did up on my notes:
“Food drying is something everyone tries at least once but rarely do it well.”
The main goal regardless of what you are drying is working to that magical sweet spot of getting your foods down to 10 percent of their wet weight, but as most folks are not going to do the math, the experts have taken that to explain we are looking for a leathery feel with some flexiblity.
According to him, if you are wanting to bring juice out of berries to then added and use in your leathers, freeze them first before simmering them, that you will get a better, higher yield in regards to the juice vs the fiber, this is interesting, and the other would be the case for drying. If you want to make a berry paste, freezing will therefore remove more juice, and allow you to dry your fruit leathers faster.
He says the hardest thing to dry is the Tomato as it’s typically 95% water, roma’s are typically 92% water, where apples are 84%.
Always be flexible, while it’s worth writing down what worked last year, it won’t be the same this year, according to him, each season is different, as everything you are working with will have different weights, thicker or thinner skins due to the changes in growing season to growing season, so something that worked last year at seven hour, might take six or eight this year.
If you are in a market for a dryer, he recommends that you look for one that will blow the heated air ACROSS in the airflow, not the Top or Bottom Airflows.
Higher temp are not better, as once you cross over that 50 to 55c line (which many dryers will do) you are looking at Nutritional degradation. Also the higher the temp, the more likely you are to be baking them, rather then drying them, the higher temps used in drying in a regular oven or in a improperly made solar oven is the fact that you don’t get enough air movement, and create a stagnant boundry layer. Getting solar fans to make sure you are having the correct air movement in your solar dryer is critical.
If you have improper high heat or a stagnant boundry layer, then you are looking at Case Hardening, which in a nut shell, means that by either of the ones listed above, you have created a hard outer shell that prevents or restricts moisture from leaving.
Solar dryers: We are in a good area in regards to the amount of daylight, however most commonly built solar dryers take good air movment, and have a hard time with temp control, highly recommends you have one or two built in solar fans in your homemade solar dryers.
If possible use stainless steel baking racks from old ovens as the main racks, then get 1/4 inches plastic mesh, if you are drying in larger amount for critter feed, then you can move over to steel window mesh for reasonable prices and large space. For indoor dryers, he says that plastic needle point canvas cut to fit, works very well.
Herbs should never been done higher then 45c, and if you walk in and it fills your whole house with lovely smells, it’s too high, reduce your heat. Example given was mint, if you dry your mint too high, the house will smell wonderful but the tea won’t taste much like mint because you have released most of the oils in the drying process instead of saving them.
Ideally you should have no more smell in the dryer than if you hanged to dry the herbs by air if at all possible.
Over and over, this was the key message: Longer times and slower temps will give you the best result!
Gayle, where are you looking for a food grade spray bottle? All I’ve found so far is a metal one for spraying oils, but that doesn’t seem good for lemon juice?
Lantana,
I was just going to go to Walmart and get a spray bottle.
Gayle,
“7 lbs. of carrots, which shrank to two quarts of dehydrated carrots”, is the exact reason I get my dehydrated carrots and onions from the LDS cannery. A lot more product for a lot less effort.
O.P.,
The nearest LDS cannery is two hours away. I wish I knew someone who lives around here who is a Mormon. I think I would have a blast at the cannery. I will definitely order the celery and the onions from EE. (Celery is on sale this month for something like $12 for a #10 can.) The carrots were not bad at all. I have a salad shooter which makes it a lot easier to chop the carrots.
Gayle,
The local LDS cannery here is about an hour away. The key is to get the order form, decide what you want, save up the money, and make the appointment and that 1 trip every 3-6 months. A group of us have been going quarterly, and I only spent $160 my last trip, although trips a year ago were in the $500 range. At some point you start getting those long term preps filled and can cut back the frequency of the trips and the amount you spend.
Gayle,
Had to laugh at this one. LDS is three hours for me. Too bad we’re so far away from each other. I was actually looking for someone to take the ride with me before gas goes up much higher. But then I looked at their prices, added in the cost of the gas and figuring six hours on the road and it just seemed silly not to dehydrate my own homegrown veggies. I know they’re organic, non-GMO and fresh. The extra $$ for running the dehydrator won’t come close to the $$ I would spend on the gas.
Canmaze,
You go to the one in Jax, right? Are you a Mormon? My folks live half an hour from Jax airpot.
Gayle,
No, I’m not Mormom, but I don’t think you have to be to go to the cannery. I hope someone here corrects me if I’m wrong.
To pick up food from the storehouse you do not need to be mormon. To use the cannery is by appointment only (to can the food into #10 cans), I believe. But I do not believe there is a requirement to have been baptized. :)
Gayle, you get 6 oz of celery in that big number 10 can, Approx 26 1/3rd cup servings.
I do not understand the need for such excessive large packaging.
Ron,
I can use 9 cups of celery in two or three months. (I cook a lot of Cajun foods. My was a musician in New Orleans as a young man. So onions, celery and green pepper and basic cooking ingredients for me. I have six celery plants growing right now and another four that I am rooting.
Wolf pack you don’t have to be a Mormon to you use their cannery. Here’s a link:
http://www.providentliving.org/
Once you get to this page look at the bottom left hand side click on : Home Storage Center,
then click on the top Home storage form.
Also available on this page, on the right hand side: Home Storage Centers locations,
click here to locate the center closest to you. By all means call the location near you, ask how your center works, their canning hours, their bulk pickup days, they are very helpful. NO, I’m not Mormon, I just called to ask how the system works, they are very nice people, they do have a dress code, what you can and can’t wear when canning, ie jewelry, hair net, beard net, apron, how you have to clean, plus how to work with others folks that are there canning. Once you open a box or bag the entire box or bag must be canned, if someone else wishes to can that item you can share the box or bag. It doesn’t mean you must purchase all that you can. I will add that out of respect to the Mormons, I do not wear shorts on my canning day, but I do wear pants, most of the Mormon ladies working in my center only wear long dresses or skirts & blouses.
I hope this helps some of ya’ll!! Don’t be afraid, just call them, they will walk you through how they work. The gentleman who has always helped us flat out told us that their canning and bulk sells have double and tripled in the last year. They couldn’t get their own members in to canning and now they have had to add additional days. I live 2.5 hours from my cannery, they encourage me to call the day before to insure they have what I wish to can or buy in bulk. This is a wonderful resource each and everyone of you who live close to a cannery should take advantage of it.
Keep the faith and keep on prepping!
Texas Nana,
Thank you for posting this information. The canneries are such an important public service that the LDS Church does. I will give the Jax cannery a call to see what their policy is.
I ordered and received a Speedy Stitcher Sewing Awl for heavy fabrics and the shirt pocket size Frontier Filter emergency water filter from Cheaper Than Dirt. The next step is to practice with the sewing awl.
When I was learning to use a hand awl to make holsters, I made them from three layers of cardboard. Two of shoebox type and middle layer of corrugated. This allowed me to mockup many styles cheap, and to learn saddlemaker knots.
SLHaynes
I also just received the Frontier Filter. Has anyone had any experience with one of these? My testing of my purchases is on hold for a few months.
had a pretty good week here, still working twelve hour days but only five not six days a week. two weeks of 72 hours plus got the income taxes back means i had some cash to play with. me and the wife decided to spend our income taxes on preps this year but i did not want to buy all food. i wanted to get the things that are hard to come up with the large outlay of cash for.
wondermill jr deluxe was the big purchase. it came thursday and i set it up last night and broke in the stones last night going to make some bread later in the day. heres hoping i like it( yeah dont think that will be an issue) had to have some wheat to grind so i bought 100 lbs of hard white, and a 50lb of popcorn.
we were hit by a snow storm yesterday and was predicted to be worse than it was got worried about losing power and by extension heat so i purchased a mr heater big buddy propane heater with tank hose. menards had them on sale for 83.00 with the six tanks I have it claims i can get 600 plus hours if i am only using the low setting and if we need it we will only be using it to heat the living room closed off so about 200 square feet. so should be able to cover that area for some time.
bought a food saver with the jar attachments from amazon this will allow me to put up smaller batches of dried food stuffs pretty easily and it wont make me think long and hard about opening up a number 10 can, or a mylar bag.
paid off the last credit card save the one i use for gas and pay off every week. so officially out of debt except for the house.
bought seed to seed
4 lbs of bullion
3 lbs gravy mix
100 lbs meat bundle to be canned
renewed my sams club membership so i can continue to order my auguson farms. need to place an order for that today.
have to order the burkey water filter elements to make my water filter system.
a little spooked by the whole iran oil thing as prices skyrocket meaning its harder for all of us to make ends meet. and putting a lot more preasure on the eu bringing everyone else closer to a economic situation that will require the us to print more money to keep the system limping along a little longer.
keep prepping
keep praying we are the crazy people
god knows we dont want to be the Geniuses
god bless
md used your link for amazon for most of the big purchases cant reallya fford to donate but ill help where i can. thx for a great site
Robert,
Congratulations on the $$. Sounds like you really put some good thought into what needed to be done. You and yours sounds like you are well on your way to being safe and fed. We were suppose to get some heavy thunderstorms and wind the other night, during the night. I dont have a noaa weather radio to wake us up if needed, so in a pinch I signed up for text allerts on my cell phone from the weather channel online sight. Greatfully, the storm did not hit us and the shingles are still on the house, and the trees are still planted firmly in the yard.
And I agree…….. I do hope that we are the crazy people, but I’m afraid that we are not.
Happy prepping and enjot that little heater. I think I need to get us one or two as well.
Have a great weekend
thx alot repair mama on the congrats, a lot of thought went into it or we would have lost everything.
as far as your problem with the uninsured musceling in on your turf, a lot of the contractors around here got together and decided to fight them by informing thier customers on thier bid process showing that they were licensed, and insured and pointed out that if your cement contractor hurt his back on your property they can sue you, if they make a msitake thier is no legal recourse as they are unlicensed (friends) helping you not a buisiness. they also called in the city everytime they did get a job. they didnt get all of them but a lot did move on.
i keep praying we are the crazy ones but as time rolls forward i dont think we are either.
I do try to educate the public, but they would rather take their chances on the guy that will burn them for 10.00 per hour. go figure.
Congratulations on paying off your credit card debt! That’s such a huge thing!
And robert in mid, didn’t you know? It’s NOT Iran blocking oil, cutting off distribution to France and Britain causing our gas prices to sky rocket here! Pffft. The Dark Lord says it’s because industry is Booming here in America! That’s why prices are up! Everything is fiiiine, move along now…
sorry must have missed that little bit of info. well peoples the pres says everything is great we can quit worrying and go back into debt with all the extra cash we are now making. move along nothing to see gere.
lol i wish i could live in the world dc see’s because it is a lot better than the one i live in.
My hubby read in the paper this weekend that our oil we are producing here in the USA is actually being sold overseas. If they sold it to us in the USA, wouldn’t our prices go down???????????
Ooooh. Do we have a bunch of closet Obama supporters? I thought most of you all were very far to the right. LOL. To impose export taxes on oil companies is to advocate increased regulation and taxation of the free market. (I am just picking at you since I am not very far to the right myself.)
robert in mid michigan,
I have the Little Buddy and like it a lot for spot heating. The big buddy propane heater is a good appliance, especially with the accessory hose. One caution is that you should not operate heater with a 20 pound tank in the home. The heater can be in the home; but you should try and put the tank outside.
As for how long the propane will last, there is a simple calculation you can do. Propane contains 91,500 BTU per gallon, and a gallon of propane weighs 4.24 pounds.
That means that a standard small cylinder (16.4 ounces) contains about 22,120 BTU of energy, and a 20 pound tank contains about 431,600 BTU of energy.
Your buddy heater has three settings of 4000, 9000, and 18000 BTU/hour; so, a simple division will tell you how many hours to expect from the propane at each heat setting.
At 4000 the cylinder should last about 5.5 hours and about 108 hours on the 20# tank.
At 9000 the cylinder should last about 2.5 hours and about 48 hours on the 20# tank.
At 18000 the cylinder should last about 1.25 hours and about 24 hours on the 20# tank.
Got a question. All the small Coleman tanks say do not refill. I just bought a adapter to fill the small tanks from the big tanks. Has anyone done this and is it o.k. even though it says not to?
Semper Gumby,
I built an adapter from some fittings and tubing and have filled these little canisters in the past. They are not DOT rated for being refilled and under federal law may not be transported after filling them; however, I’ve refilled them numerous times without incident. It has to do with the expansion coefficients of the metal and the container design. The larger tanks (20# and up) are made of a different design and metal composition, but as long as you fill the canisters and don’t transport them they are generally OK. Also note that the larger tanks are all equipped with metal fittings and metal ball type valves, where the canisters use rubber ‘O’ rings that can wear out with use. Just make sure you keep an eye on the wear parts, and discard the canister when these parts show wear or begin leaking.
Never Ever exced 80% of the container. Leave room for Expansion.
Good point. The small ones I have are 16.4 ounces and if you can weigh them it’s the best way to know when they’re full. The same goes for the larger tanks. You also need the 20%+ head space to allow the liquid to convert to gas.
Hey ya’all, I have one for you this morning that totally blew my socks off!!! We had some neiborhood drama this week involving a threat to a family member. I left work early and went home to not expose my son to potential violence. I will be leaving work early again today and take little man home so he will not be here with me if something should happen. So here is the part where I got my shock of the morning.
I asked DH about how he wanted me to handle things should something happen today other than to keep all of the doors deadbolted, and sit here with a weapon to knock the crap out of this guy should he show up. He said, I need to get you a 380 or something. WHAT!!!!
I jumped all over that one!! “Hell honey, I would LOVE that!! I can get my CCW permit. You know I know how to use one. I could protect our son when you are working late or out of town.”
(Hope I did not blow it)
I would really love to get it or a 9mm for carry. He knows I can shoot, won’t even throw darts against me! But, I have not looked at handguns since I was in law enforcement training in my early 20′s.
Price is gonna be a big concern, but I can save up some. I dont know what to buy. My hands are not really large and I have fat fingers.
I just hope this really happens, but he is afraid I will pull it on him just because his ex did years ago. I told him that you dont mess around with guns. it is serious business.
I did not do much prepping this week other than cleaning out the coupon binder and cleaning up the pantry some. I moved one crappy shelf and added another clothing bar to the wall that our son can reach.
I bought and hid some butter beans. Purchased 2 pork loins and cut up into boneless chops to add to the freezer. Cleaned out some more juice bottles to pack up some sugar. purchased some more baking soda for the hidden pantry, Pulled some of my sons cloths to pack away for the baby grandsons (3). I have a carhardt coat my son wore that needs a new zipper, I will fix it and pack it away with the other cloths for grandsons.
Daughter that is expecting new baby is sick as a dog! my poor baby. I told her to try to take it as easy as possible, but she insists on trying to help her hubby at work as much as she can. She is a good girl, and I told her that I was proud of her for supporting her honey. He does carpentry and drywall and what ever else that will bring in a buck or two. She shops yard sales, coupons, and second hand stores for what she can.. She does try to stretch a dollar as far as she can, She even had the phone cut back to bare min, and had the cable shut off so they would have enough for her DH to buy tools for work and to make sure theyhave enough to make house payment. Good kids.
Sorry for the rambling. the possible aquisition of a hand gun has just totally made my day! Wish me luck ya’all! I’m gonna need it!
Have a fantastic weekend everyone.
Repair Mama,
Sorry to hear about the threat to your family member but that’s great that your dh is coming on board with being okay with you having a gun in the house. If you need gun advice, Jarhead, O.P., and M.D. have great things to say. I was going to take the class at the gun range that let you fire a whole mess of different guns so you could decide which one you like. But then I handled my brother’s Glock and fell in love. HeeHeeHee. Did I just say that I fell in love with a gun? Ya’ll are rubbing off on me. LOL
I have always loved guns! especially handguns.
I really hope he will let me get one and a CCW permit. I have no fear of hand guns, have shot quite a bit in my younger days, and do really well.
Because of my job, havng a ccw would make me feel a little safer when driving by my self. I sure as hell will run a dangerous person down with the truck if I have to, or use the extraaaaa looonnngggg screwdriver that I keep in my seat if I have to , but why get that close to a danger if I dont have to???? just saying!
When my father was in law enforcement, he always carried a 357 mag. That was always his favorite. He was a big guy and had no problems carrying it. it even looked kinda small on his stocky 6 ft + frame!
I wish I had it now. He had to sell it to buy his heart meds years before he passed away. very sad!
I used to go to a shooting range that you could sign out different guns to shoot, but I dont think we have a place close to us that you can do that here. I will have to wait and see what the other recommend to me here. I really value our friends here and their knowledge on this subject.
thanks and happy prepping!!! have a good time with that dehydrator. I told DH I wanted one to make jerky!! He really likes Jerky!
Repair Mama,
My biological father was state trooper, 6 foot, 7 inches and carried a .357. He used to drop me off at preschool. I told the other kids that if they didn’t let me do this or play with that toy, my daddy would arrest them.
Gayle,
I bet you were really popular, eh? LOL
repair mama- stay safe and great news about the new gun.
Repair mama, I will keep my fingers crossed on the CCW permit and that the DH okays the handgun. You won’t go wrong with a Glock 19. I understand the rambling, you’re excited!
Nuttbush,
is the glock 19 the smaller of the 2. I think that I was looking at these when I wanted to go into law enforcement, but it was sooooo long ago that I cant remember. But, I think it was the smaller of the 2 that I wanted then. or a s&w
Repair Mama, the Glock 19 is the smaller of the two which holds 15 or 10 rounds depending on magazine. Its a great pistol, you can never go wrong with a Glock.
Ditto with Jarhead03. I’ve never had a failure to feed with a Glock. The 19 is also a natural pointer for me. (Point and then check the sights. Browning Hi-Powers are also that way.) Glocks are ugly, but they work unfailingly. Cos
Repair mama, the Glock 19 is smaller than the 17 but bigger than my old Glock 26. I tried the DH’s 17 and it is a little heavy for me. Another thing I liked about the 19 is it doesn’t seem to have as much recoil.
Nuttbush and Repair Mama,
That’s what my dh picked out for me. It is so easy to shoot.
Hi Repair Mama-
No one ever wishes for drama, but as long as no permanent harm comes of it, we can say… maybe God has a plan for everything? Even some unfortunate family drama may provide means to allow you to protect your family.
Prayers,
Cat
Repair Mama,
Good to hear that you are on the way to a handgun. Sorry that it had to take a turn to trouble to get there.
Try going to a gun store and ask to handle several guns. You may have to try several stores to get a variety. Some ranges will let you rent a gun to shoot. That will let you see what fits your hand(s) and see how they shoot.
Learn to shoot with either hand. That way if your primary shooting hand/arm is not usable for any reason (ie. restrained, injured, holding something) you can still shoot.
Repair Mama,
I agree with Papabear in that you should find a store or preferably a range that will let you try some different firearms. I’m one of those folks who aren’t against Glock’s; I just prefer more traditional controls on my firearms, like an external hammer and safety. In the end you need to find a gun that fits:
• Your hand,
• Your ability to shoot it accurately and handle the recoil.
• And your wallet.
Depending on how much tactical practice you will be able to afford (in both dollars and more importantly time), you might even consider a revolver, which requires target practice, but less tactical (clearing, malfunctions) skill. Assuming you’re planning on purchasing only one gun, take your time and get the right one for YOU.
Try a Sig P250 sub compact in 9mm. I just bought one for my wife and she loves it.
whew,what a week! well, i recalled the gas lines of ’76 i believe it was, in line for a 5 gallon limit. so i went to tractor supply and purchased a 100 gal fuel cell, set it in a good place and filled it up. treated it with pri-g preservative. i will build a sand box around it for bulletproffing and concealment. that was the biggest thing. went to the tax man, i have to pay this year instead of the refund i thought i would get. don’t know how much yet but it ain’t looking good:( oh well, i got’em good the last couple years so i guess it evens out…..got my spagetti and combat bacon from ee, 4 pair of bdu pants(to fit my ever increasing waist), a large metal medical case from sg, a case of ova easy eggs, some individual camo nets, some non-iodized salt. ordered a security setup with 8 sensors, 2 large alice rucks, couple of poncho liners and some arrows for my crossbow….slacked on the PT this week, no excuse just laziness. i will hit it again monday n try to get back on my schedule. my breathing is better already even having slacked this week. come to think of it i did do a 4 mile ruckmarch in the snow sunday….as soon as i find out how bad the tax bill is, i’m hitting the preps hard again. more food, fencing and building materials. ammo too as there seems to be a movement to tax the heck out of it. gunshow nex weekend too:) stack it high folks, trouble, she’s acomin’……now i have to go get ready to attend my cousins funeral. 55yo, killed in a car wreck. take care all.
riverrider, i’m sorry to hear about your cousin’s death. my prayers are with you and your family.
Sorry to hear about your cousin. Loss is never easy, especially when it’s unexpected.
I am soooo sorry to hear about your cousin. We will pray for the comfort of the family in this time of sorrow.
sounds like you hit the preps good. and 4 miles in the snow!!! wow! that that is physical fitness at its finest! 4 miles with no pack would kill my fat but!
Have a good time at the gun show and keep an ear in the air to catch the gossip of the group. You can learn alot of what others are thinking and doing and then let us know if you hear anything interesting.
Happy prepping!
I am soooo sorry to hear about your cousin. We will pray for the comfort of the family in this time of sorrow.
sounds like you hit the preps good. and 4 miles in the snow!!! wow! that that is physical fitness at its finest! 4 miles with no pack would kill my fat butt!
Have a good time at the gun show and keep an ear in the air to catch the gossip of the group. You can learn alot of what others are thinking and doing and then let us know if you hear anything interesting.
Happy prepping!
thanks all. we grew up together but went our seperate ways as teenagers. come to find out we had been just yards apart on literally hundreds of times. he was a good man by all accounts. got killed on his way to do good deeds for a friend.
River rider:
Sorry to hear of your loss….
Riverrider. I hope that your cousin did not suffer much before he passed.
My sympathy to you, riverrider.
Praying for you and your cousin’s family, Riverrider. So sorry about your loss.
RR, sorry about your loss, prayers for you and your family.
River, first of all I’m sorry for the loss of your cousin. You and your family is in my prayers.
With filling the fuel barrier with sand have you thought of how you are going to do it?
I’m thinking maybe cinder block wall with rebar and with cement in the gaps then fill the inside with sand. If a bullet gets through the blocks, the sand will certainly stop the bullet or slow it down depending on depth.
Sometimes its good to take a few days off from working out, just don’t drop the pack.
j, 6th try….i build two walls spaced apart like concrete forms, fill them up w/sand. works like a charm. i’ll put a top on this one, with foil backed rigid foam to keep the fuel chillin’.
River, great idea with the foam. I thought of that but was thinking in the event of a round getting through completely forgetting about temp control. All basis are covered.
RR,
I think that was 1978 because we were living in Mumford, Tenn., a small town outside Memphis. My dad would have to wait in line twice so he could get 10 cans which he could later siphon into my mom’s car. He did my us a candy bar which was a real treat for us. But to be a kid and to have to wait in line for gas for hours really sucked.
Oops. I meant to say, “10 gallons”.
One more thing about the gas rationing back in the 70s. I mention this to my students (most of whom are under 25) and their eyes bug out. The idea of stores not having enough of what they need is completely foreign to them.
r/rider…sincerest condolences on the loss of your cousin.
Take it easy, provide/protect/prep for your family – your post reminds me that we need to live each day like it is our last, yet still have hope and plans for our future.
chloe, so true. i’m wide open prepping until spring. then its party time. traveling, canoeing, riding the harley, smelling the roses.
riverrider,sorry to hear of your loss.You will be in my prayers.Be Safe.
RR,
Truth is that you got them good this year. They loaned you money at 0% interest where in the past you loaned it to them at the same rate.
op, LOL, yes i suppose you’re right. kinda like wyatt earp putting a positive spin to anything:) still, i was hoping to get some of my money back from them this year too.
Ordered a propane generator off ebay to run our well if grid goes down . At our retreat property we have a huge propane tank that is almost full.
Bought cattle fencing panels to add to the greenhouse frame. Last step will be to cover everything with greenhouse plastic and then start the seedlings.
We are looking for a cheap 1950′s tractor with a plow & bush hog. Having trouble finding one that we can afford & like. Preferably I’d like a diesel so we can store a few barrels of fuel for it.
Found a source for 60 gallon pickle barrels & 45 gallon pepper barrels. Going to get about 10 of them for rain barrels & grain storage next week. They are only $15 each & have screw on lids. I’ll soak them in a combo of bleach, baking soda & water to get the smell out.
Headed to the Columbia, SC prepper conference next weekend. Let me know if you are going!
GA Mom, congrats on the generator. I am looking at tri fuel generators for the same purpose. What brand did you go with and do you have any recommendations?
Thanks!
Forgot to add. Took my 19 year old to vote for the first time today in the Republican primary (GA has Saturday voting today for people who are in college, work, etc).
So, what did I do to prep today? I voted for Ron Paul.
Here’s why. Because I feel equally positive about the other 3 candidates. No one stands out or under the other. I love Ron Paul’s message (though he is a bit soft on defense issues).
So, with my vote for Ron Paul, I am sending the establishment a message.
1. That we will not have you pick our candidates for us – simply ignoring Ron Paul will not make him go away. (Fox News, you are included in this issue)
2. The Tea Party fiscal conservatives are alive & well – and we vote.
3. The other 3 had better do the right thing if elected, the fiscal conservatives are watching your every move.
In the event that Paul is not the Republican nominee, I will vote for the person who is. Getting radical, marxist obama out of office is too important to be using write in votes this year.
Great lesson to teach the young one!!!! If you don’t vote you don’t have the right to bitch about the what the govt does to you(to you and not for you)!! Everyone needs to exercise your constitutional right to vote, that was won by blood , sweat and tears!!! There are Billions of people that do not get to vote and we should not take it for granted.
get to vote tuesday, not real set on who yet but i agree the tea party is alive and well.
we all have our personel favorites but come november we will vote for not obama no matter who it is. he has got to go.
I agree with you totally…
there should be a “none of the above” on the ballot.
Agreed, I may pencil in Ronald Reagan! None of these “candidates” are good enough to hold his jelly bean jar.
Its sad, these 3 are whats left to defeat Obama.
It’s sad indeed; I was pretty psyched when I saw the original nine candidates at the first debate.
But it is the reality we have to deal with and we must get the incumbent out of the WH, even if it means we have to vote for someone we’re not crazy about.
I hope you have luck with the pickle buckets, the ones I got never lost the smell. I ended up using them in the garden when I was weeding or needed something to put dirt in. Those you found would be a good size to try and make a composter out of them if you don’t get the smell completely out.
I guess that if it was water storage in a pinch, a pickle smell would beat the hell out of no drinking water or water for the food supply (to eat or grow). At least pickles are safe to eat! lol hahah
If you stuff the pickle barrel after washing/drying it good, with crumpled up newspapers, seal it up and let it sit in the sun, it will really help kill the smell. Leave it for about a week. Can be repeated, after washing it again with baking soda.
GA Mom and All,
Don’t remember where I came up with this. but it is an interesting and relatively inexpensive project. Texas Prepper’s Greenhouse (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gd9mNKuRtSE)
OP….that is great! And the duck house too. So easy…and portable. My father has wanted a greenhouse for a long time, but considers them too expensive….we may be able to do this. Thanks.
@OhioPrepper. We built one this weekend! It was not too hard and bit more than the $150 he spoke about. I think ours will be about $225 – but we used a higher grade of plastic and hard plastic panels for the doors & side. It’s a cute little greenhouse!
Gayle,
Yea, for starters he mentioned $15 for the 50″ x 16′ cattle panels. The local TSC has them for $22. Also, keep in mind that this video was recorded almost a year ago, and inflation may have worked on things a bit. Oh yea, what inflation?
GA Mom, have you used the bleach, baking soda, and water combination successfully before to get the pickle smell out? A few years ago, I came into a “gift” of several 5-gal. pickle buckets with the lids, but could not get the pickle smell out for the life of me. I ended up throwing them away. I don’t think I would throw them out now (that was before I took prepping as seriously as I have lately). But the smell is daunting every time I think of saving any container that once housed pickles!
mamabetsy, I have not tried pickle barrels but I inherited some old Tupperware (the real brand) from my grandmother and it was very smelly, despite washing it, putting baking soda in it or putting vinegar in it.
I read online that you can get the smell out of barrels by putting water, bleach & baking soda in them and sitting them in the sun for a week or so. You need to slosh it around from time to time. Just roll them around on the ground to do that.
I tried it with my Tupperware & it worked! Smell has never come back.
I turned in the recycling and bought some ammo and gas for my bike with the cash.I do not condone gambling however my son won some money on mens night where they give you some money to gamble with. He won enough to buy him this laser and flashlight setup that mounts to your scope on your rifle.It is a walmart item it is not expensive but it is pretty cool.I started a new job a few weeks ago and I like i t .It is good to live about a mile from work instead of 63.
Now the new job is WONDERFUL! congratulations. You will save a ton of money on gas!!!!!
gratz on the job, used to live 2 miles from work now 25 comuteing sucks. come nice weather you can walk to work im green with envy lol.
Steve,
Congratulations on the new job. It’s great you new job is so close to home.
Thank you everyone. I like my new job.
axelsteve,
Congrtaulations on the new job. It’s nice living so close to work.
Have a great weekend.
Ray
You Too Ray.
axelsteve
1 mile from work!! OMG!! Even I could limp to work everyday.
Congratulations! Sure cuts down on the items needed in your GHB.
Saratoga Prepper
Read what I sent GA Mom, I thought she was having the problem.
Below a couple on the lists..
Good Luck
it’s great to hear about you and the new job. take care
axelsteve…congratulations on your new job.
one door closes, another door opens…and the fact that you are so close to work is a bonus…fuel is expensive – going to save a lot on fuel and wear and tear on the vehicle…all good news…cheers.
Question I hope someone with experience can answer.
How do you eliminate the green onions in your pasture grass? If we get goats or cows, their milk will taste like onions. I love the taste, but not in my milk……..
I’m assuming that if you dig the bulbs up, they won’t re-grow.
Use Bayer Advanced weed control spray. Kills everything but grass, including crabgrass. Onions won’t come back. Don’t use it on centipede though, just about anything kills centipede…..
I was thinking of having goats come in and eat them. But wild onions are a different matter.
GA Mom
TSC has generic brands of farm chemicals. Much cheeper.
((Read the labels)) and ask the guys at you TSC or Local feed Mill.
The one I have always used on my pastures is called Pasture Pro.
It is made for pastures with cow,s horses & Other critter that can be effected by chemicals. And will tell you if you have to keep the critters of the pasture for very little time, a day or two..
It does kill weird grasses.
You need like a 20 gallon sprayer to pull behind a lawn tractor.
or atv tractor ect. Mix carefully.
If you live out a ways and it is not a yuppie TSC, but is a real one that sells farm tractor parts farm chemicals, and real farm tools & equipment the guy working there should be able to guide you.
Man time they are farmers or have worked on farm all there life’s. And it is much cheaper than name brands.. that I have tried.
When I need to use it I even mixed it a little light. and it still knock down 90 % of the weeds & crud. Ask the guy at the TSC store about onions?
I bet it will zap em. And it really is nice to have an almost weed-less pasture.. I actually had to reseed with grasses..
So make sure you have a lot of good grass. or you may have to plant grass.. Good time to check your soil to. I needed Nitrogen badly.. To bad it was not coco coco plants in you pasture chocolate milk. So that is how it is made. MMMM! Strawberry milk??
Good luck
Hmmm, Onion flavored goat cheese. Maybe start a new market, LOL.
Sour cream–just add the chives.
So Im new to the prepping world and ran across the site. Love the input from everyone. Which leads me to some questions….ethical questions. I work at a sporting goods/camping store. We have several locations and several days out of a normal work week I work at one of the other locations. Its a one man store and Im able to bring in merchandise to and from the stores. Heres the question….as a prepper…waiting for “the end” is it wrong to plunder the store a little every week or even once every month. And this isnt a post of admission…just a question for the masses.
If by “plunder” you really mean combine your employee discount with a really great sale and get a lot of whatever item you are purchasing? Not at all.
If, however you mean something different? Yeah, that’s wrong.
Do you mean stealing? Stealing is stealing.
Ditto
Pay cash.
If you don’t know the answer to this question, no amount of prepping will help you. Get with it man.
If you “Plunder” as in walking off with this item or that item, it is stealing. If you mean asking the bosses if you can have some things they are throwing away before they hit the dumpster, that is called “mooching” Mooching is good. I am the queen of the mooch.
You might even ask if you can buy damanged merchandise at a huge discount, so it is not a total waste to the store, that would be cool too.
Keep the job. it is too hard to find employment anyway, but with theft on your record, a new job will be even harder to find.
Good luck
Stay Honest! You have to look yourself in the mirror everyday!
if you are doing it legaly, using discount with sale items and such more power to you. stealing is stealing.
The New Guy, we would hate to hear on the news a worker loading things in his vehicle was shot for looting by police or National Guard. Looting during a crises is still punishable by death in this enlightened age. Especially if you were borrowing from the gun department.
I worked for a Outdoors company small chain that dealt in mostly hunting/fishing but also tactical weapons, less than lethal and some camping equipment.
The local PD in a major disaster is instructed hit and babysit it and the only other gun shop (Big 5) in our city because of the firearms. When we had a couple earthquakes in 97/98 we would strap on a pistol, grab a shotgun, close the store and wait for PD to arrive. They did it was well during the LA riots before I worked there, they forced the store to shut down for potential of looting as they babysat it with AR15s.
Do you want to risk it?
The word “plunder” means to rob, steal or otherwise take wrongfully. If you can’t answer this question yourself, you probably won’t find this site amenable to your sensibilities.
the new guy…
If your meaning of ‘plunder the store a little every week’ means taking employer’s/someone’s property without paying for it…then of course it is wrong – the word is stealing, and you know it; there is no need for you to be coy about it.
If you get an employee discount – then you pay the discount amount.
Your employer trusts you to tend to the store – you know what the right thing to do is – so do it, and hold yourself to a higher standard.
Also, the merchandise in the store may be on your employer’s credit card or overdraft for all you know – and he/she may just be making ends meet in this tough business world.
If you are a bona-fide prepper – and not just pulling all our chains with your post, then make a detailed list and set aside the $ amount each week for the goods (use your employee discount).
And by supporting your employer on a weekly basis, you will probably have your job for a lot longer, and your integrity as well.
However, the fact that you even posted such a question, gives me pause…cheers.
To the new guy, posting such a question is a “loser” way of getting attention. Forget doing that in the future, do things the correct way. If you even contemplate this “plundering the store a little every week…”, you dont belong here.
That’s exactly what I was thinking, AZ Rookie Prepper. I’m proud you said that, I’m kinda new and didn’t want to make any waves. I think I said enough last week.
Wave away, VI. Speak your mind. The rest of us do!!! LOL
VI,
I think you were giving me a hard time last week. LOL Speak your mind. Folks who can’t take it aren’t the ones dishing it out. And I certainly dish out my fair share.
New Guy,
I lurk and rarely post, just pick up on the info everyone shares. This time I feel I need to say something. We prep so we will never have to “plunder”. We do this so we can take care of our families. If we only have a buck or two extra one week, that is all we spend. We shop wisely and even buy used stuff if we get something in good shape. We add just a couple cans of soup if that is all we can afford. Each week, no matter how much money we have, we prep. We never want to be in the position you are.
Sorry dude, I think you should find another site.
First, welcome to the site, The New Guy.
No matter how you look at it, or how you justify it, if you are inferring that you plan to steal something – it is just plain wrong. If you compromise your integrity with justifying stealing, what is next on your agenda? How low will you sink? If TSHTF, and you are starving, will you justify killing your neighbor’s child to eat? I know what I just said is a shocking thing to say….but where are you going to draw the line?
An honest, upright man with integrity is an awesome thing.
Hello Wolf Pack! Got back from FL (helping my dd with kids after medical procedure). It is very uncomfortable to be away from home right now. I was excited to see all the packages had arrived in my absence. I received my spice grinder, garden seed order, lip balm tubes and putting food by book. Already made lip balm (so easy), read most of the book too. Yesterday I ordered more herbs to make a special mouthwash for people with gum problems (my DH). I hit the stores and bought more basic supplies. I bought a bunch of pork chops and divided them up and froze them. Picked up a couple of fryers too. Both my freezers are full so I’m limited on space. Took one of the fryers and made chicken and noodle soup from scratch and it is very good. Started buttermilk to keep by using and then “feeding the culture”. If this works I will have buttermilk without having to buy anymore. I’m starting my sourdough starter today, that will have the same result as the buttermilk. I’m trying to be as self sufficient as possible.
Gayle, I tried a glock 19 and loved it. I’m saving for it now.
Sounds like your doing great on self sufficiency. Kinda fun too! I’ve kinda been working on that area too.
How do you like your lip balm? I made some a couple weeks ago and Love it!!! Family thought I was a little nutty, I suppose chasing them around the house trying to apply it to them might have been over the top! They are using it now though, everyones lips still intact! lol
Vienna, I love my lip balm! I added a little spearmint essential oil and will never buy lip balm again. My DH did give me a strange look but I’m used to that. Two of the grand kids each made off with a tube so I didn’t have to chase anyone. They really like the smell. Self sufficiency rocks!
Mother Earth, have you thought about using the candy oils you can find in the baking isle? I love using them for lip balm.
TG, no I hadn’t thought of that…thanks for the tip. Sure to be cheaper than essential oils!
Vienna,
I could just see myself chasing my dh around the house with homemade lip balm. LOL “But this one is a manly strawberry scented lip balm.”
Mother Earth, how do you start your buttermilk? Your mouthwash concoction sounds interesting too.
Lantana, I took a cup of cultered buttermilk and added 3 cups of regular milk and let it sit on the counter for 24 hours. Now as I use it I will continue to save a “mother” cup to add to. The mouthwash recipe came from “herbmentor” news. I did have to order some of the herbs but spent about $30 and can make quite a bit from that. I need to buy vodka anyway to make my vanilla so I’ll get a bigger bottle.
Thanks, Mother Earth! My DH looked at the stash of vodka I’m building and asked “are we just planning to start drinking when TSHTF?”.
Lantana…that is so funny…
Lantana,
Thats hysterical, I think the liquor store owner thinks Im a complete lush because I bought 24 bottles of vodka at once so I could make the limoncello, orangecello, and grapefruitcello. I probably should have spread it out over several but it was a good sale and I had coupons.
DG
DG…there are LIQUOR coupons???? Wow…glad I didn’t know that when I used to drink.
Mt. Woman,
I had the same thought.
DG, how do you make limoncello? Most of our alcohol purchases are for cooking, but the occasional cordial is a nice treat–how fun to make it yourself!
And do tell about these liquor coupons of which you speak.
Gayle…great minds think alike…or drink alike? Or not drink alike? :)
Yep. Had I known about such coupons back in the day, I could have gotten myself into a hell of a lot more trouble. There will be no vanilla extract making for me.
Gayle..I’d like to share a private story with you. How would I do that?
Mt. Woman and M.D.,
Email M.D. and ask for my email address.
Mother Earth,
Good for you.
Would you post your mouthwash recipe? I’m curious to see what it is now. I’m SURE my DH will appreciate me taking on this interesting venture also.
And Lantana, Hahaha! When I bought the different vodka’s for my vanilla my DH said near the same thing!
Vienna, here is the recipe I copied but I haven’t tried it yet!
1/2 ounce echinacea tincture
1/4 ounce Oregon grape root tincture
1/8 ounce plantain tincture
1/8 ounce propolis tincture
Combine and add 30 drops to “mouthful” of water and rinse for at least 5 min or up to 20 if your gums are bad.
As soon as my order arrives, I will make some up to try out on the DH of course. Since its like $4000 for the dental work he will need if his gums now, I am willing to spend a little now to save $4000.
Oh and if the above isn’t something you want to try, I found a pine needle balm to make too!
Mother Earth, another thing that might help his gums is coconut oil; it’s anti- microbial and anti-fungal, and can be mixed with a bit of baking soda to make toothpaste, or put a teaspoon full in your mouth, let it melt (it’s solid below 76 degrees) and swish it around your mouth and through your teeth.
Look for a raw organic cold processed coconut oil like Nutiva. Processing destroys the enzymes and changes the length of the chain of molecules.
Lantana, great tip…I actually have organic coconut oil so I will use that too.
Lantana…thanks for that tip on coconut oil…I have a jar of cold pressed virgin coconut oil in fridge…definately going to make up some toothpaste…cheers.
Thanks for that tip. My DH will be giving this a try.
Thanks for the recipe. Now I have to go look up what all the ingredients is. I may be sticking to Listerene!
Finally decided on a retreat property up north. Hope to purchase it within the next month or so and begin planning for the land. It is only 7 acres with a fast moving creek that we will have about 600′ of frontage on. The property is heavily wooded with a small clearing over a 100 yds from the dead end road. The township that the land is in has only 1000 residents and the county has only 20,000 residents and he closest town is about 8 miles. There is power installed and we can begin planning for our retreat finally. It is not perfect, but it will be ours and that is important
Right there with ya Bob…
Been lookin’ for something around 10 acres, and maybe have a couple acres forested, use that money to put back on the land contract. Might have to size down though, either way, hope to have something by fall. Good luck.
Good luck to you as well. We have been looking since last spring and I was also looking for 10 acres, but settled on this piece of property due to the creek and price.
ok it has to be a michigan thing looking for land as well. gratz on the property the creek may be able to use this http://bluelivingideas.com/2009/09/29/floating-waterwheel-revolutionize-micro-hydroelectric-power-generation/
you could probably be able to make one, looks like it should work. looking at property that has a good size creek on it myself but he has to come down in price first
Looks interesting, thanks…
Congrats on finding the land! We are in MI also. My son has been looking for a house to buy for over two years…on at least 5-10 acres. All his realtor has shown him are dumps. I told him he needs a new realtor! It is so frustrating for him and he is very discouraged.
Just on a side note, gas here in town is $3.69 gal. DH went 15 miles north to work where gas us usually .10 cheaper, and said that gas there is now $3.75 gal. He told me to go now and top off. I will be out the door in about 5 mins to do that.
take care!
just got back from the station, and they had not raised the price yet. Paid 48.00 for a 1/2 tank of gas! I already had 1/2 tank.
OUCH!!!! WTF.
O.k. Sorry bout that.
I am gonna see if I can scratch together some cash and take the other truck to put some in it and fill all of the gas cans in the garage. I have some stabil in there I purchased for the cans.
Take care and take some heart meds if you are going to the gas station! love ya’all!
Repair Mama,
Two days ago, gas went up 6 cents. Yesterday we went to walmart and it was a dime more.
We live too far from any store, else I would get the bicycle fixed.
I just paid 4.39 for midgrade. They don`t even use lube.
Did you get dinner and a movie?? a back rub???
It is like being mugged and you cant even shoot them in self defence! assholes!
That is about right mama!!
Gas here in this part of Nebraska is $3.55 for super.
Funny thing Candy is I live about 100 miles from the darn oil is shipped and refined.
We live 15 miles from a pipeline. They say it cost to much to have fuel delivered.
Candy,
Poke a hole in it. Bring a bucket.
Hunker Down,
That is very tempting considering part of the line goes right by my small little town, just have to figure out exactly where so as not to get the curiousty of the neighbors…lol
Gas up here was 4.10 on Wed. and 4.15 on Thursday. I can only guess what it is up to today. I am almost to the point where I can not really go anywhere unless it is an important reason.
Mountain Lady….I have been in that position for a couple years now (not going anywhere not necessary). It has made me make sure I plan well, stay focused, and accomplish my ‘to-do’ list when I do go. Good practice, but I do get cabin fever!
MtWoman, I too, have been going through this for about 4 years. I was already prepped for an expected crash in 2008. It almost happened and knowing how they managed to extend and pretend, keeps me on my toes. I have adjusted well, but I do get cabin fever, too. Luckily, we don’t have much up here, so, not very many places to go.
Gas was $3.83 a gallon today. And that’s for the cheap stuff.
Gayle,
This to me signals bad news. Most of you know that this is going to increase the ost of EVERYTHING! I’m a late starter to prepping so I need to redouble my efforts to stock up before my buying power is cut in half. BTW, I personally was not drawn to this site by the DP on NG. My wife and I have talked about it for years but for reasons that everyone can relate to (unexpected bills, routine maintenance on everything) we haven’t had the extra cash to invest. It’s always a matter of priorities, but we were feeling the pressure to do something and so I cruised the net till I stumbled on this unique site. Needless to say, I thank God I did! How did you get started here? Thanks MD, I really mean it.
PSSUPT,
I got into prepping via couponing. I noticed the poor wheat yields in Russia a few years ago. (The banned all exports of wheat so they could be certain to feed their own people first.) I noticed the cost of food increasing. I put two and two together with the Arab Spring. Lots of unemployed young people with too much free time is not good. When they can’t afford to feed their families, they get angry.
I started buying a lot of food and hygiene products when they were at rock bottom prices. While researching the Arab Spring, wheat prices, food inflation, rising oil costs I stumbled upon this site. I think I was a lurker for about 10 minutes. I am not one to hold back what I think. LOL
Finally got my hands on a nice water filter from Katadyn. Been eyeing it for awhile. It will filter 500 gallons as is, and is easy to replace filter elements. Glad to finally check that off the list.
Also, sat down and plotted out on paper what I want to do with the garden this year, and what areas will be used for expansion this spring. Got some info on line printed out and decided to try a “three sisters” garden spot. Looks interesting, so I’m excited to see how that goes.
Dean in Michigan, a way to prolong your filter the coffee filters method.
I take two coffee filters pushed inward like a cone into a cup secured by a rubber band and pour water into the cup and it blocks out any bigger particles from rain water or stream water extending the filters life.
I own one, congrats, its a great filter.
I am doing a happy dance this week. My DH is fully on board now with my prepping and has been doing some prepping on his own this week. AND one of DD’s has made some baby steps. After a job loss of her DH, it gave me the way to urge her to see the light. She went with me to Sams this week and she bought a few things and brought a notebook along and made notes on items she normally buys to do some price checking. I explained to her what we have been doing and why, sent her some info by email and I think it finally clicked. Yay! Speaking of Sams, when we were there I noticed some big price increases since 4 weeks ago. Not good, but reinforced to DD when I pointed these out and how I had bought a years worth of the same item for x amount of dollars less.
While at Sams, I bought more trash bags, toilet paper, vitamins and then picked up a case of water on sale at the drugstore.
DH ordered 100 yards of paracord and some buckles to make some bracelets for us and ordered 2000 9mm. bullets for us to do some reloading. He already has the brass, primers and powder for the reloads. On Wednesday we went to the range and I tried out his Glock 19, and decided it is now MINE! He was fine with giving it up as he uses his Glock 17 more. We will keep the 26 but I was so much more comfortable shooting the 19. I will shoot with 5 rounds loaded and put all 5 in a 4 inch circle at 7 yards and a 5-6 inch circle at 10 yards. Up until now, using the 26, my grip wasn’t comfortable and I was slower shooting the 5 rounds. I feel so much more confident now and am glad I made the decision to change to the 19. Besides, with the way this country is heading, if they are rioting over athletic shoes, what will they do when there isn’t any food?
I hope everyone is doing well and getting over their illnesses. Stay safe out there!
I am sooooo happy for you. I am still waiting for my family to get the aaaahhhhhaaaaa moment. I hope they dont wait too long. It is almost to late.
I will have to check out this glock 19 everyone is ranting about. this must be one hell of a girls gun! Where can I find one to look at?
What price changes did you see at Sam’s Club. Make a list so we will know what to be looking for
Thanks for all of the help.
Take care and enjoy the family prepping together.
To see a description and a photo of the Glock 19 try this website: http://cheaperthandirt.com/blog/?p=6711
Not sure about ordering from them, I just googled “Glock 19″. I don’t know if I would call it a girl’s gun in fact it was my DH’s and that is what I shot the first time and then he bought the 26 which is more of a sub compact. I just don’t have little hands and the 26 seemed too small because it had a shorter grip.
The price increases seemed to be mostly on the canned veggies ( about 15 -25 cents a can more) and I also remember the Campbell’s soup packs were about 20 cents higher. And we all knew the peanut butter was going up but when I bought it, it was $7.98 for the 2 pack and now it was $10.98 for the 2 pack. I will see if I can remember any more of them and get back to you.
Repair Mama,
I think the gas prices will wake up a lot of people. When gas prices go up, transportation of food goes up, and food goes up. My dh about had a cow when he realized that a gallon of milk could go up to $5 a gallon. I fear we are in for a rough year. Plan your garden well. Because if gas prices go up to $6 a gallon, food costs will skyrocket.
Nuttbush, I have a question. What is the big deal about the paracord bracelet? Is it more than a bracelet?? Forgive me if this is a stupid question!
e, its a yuppie way of carrying a length of 550 cord:) i’m old school, i use my POCKETS, for free.
I’ve been working ten-hour days and away from home 11-1/2 hours a day. Exhausting to say the least. Weekends are so hectic trying to cram in what I can while still watching over grandson. He’s 15 and autistic with behavioral problems. It’s a tough row to hoe, but we’re doing it. DD works midnights so I have grandma duty until mid-afternoon on weekends. Can’t get much accomplished.
What did I do this week….I bought three boxes of canning jars, 12 pkgs of Bear Creek soups, 9 boxes of matches, Coleman single-burner stove, a great backpack with 2 ltr. water bladder built in, whistle, compass, canned 7 qts. of turkey broth/soup and 12 half-pints of butter, ordered/received knife and axe sharpener, 50 pounds white wheat, mylar bags and 6 pounds each of black and navy beans. Ordered a case of Zaycon chicken and will be placing an order for a case of the Shelf Reliance freeze dried chicken/beef.
Trying to get my bedroom organized. It has become the dumping ground for tools and preps when I walk in the door. I have to keep everything away/hidden from grandson. I had purchased a desk/work center months ago and haven’t been able to get time to get it set up. You see, I have a very important prep in the planning stages right now:
I work as a legal editor for a publishing company and because of the gasoline catastrophy on the horizon I asked my boss for a complete computer set up to mirror my system at work so I could work my overtime at home. He said yes! I have always been able to do a few hours of work per week at home on my laptop, but it was difficult to do, at best, and not very productive. I’m hoping that with the ability to show them the increase in my productivity I will eventually be able to work at least two days a week from home. Because of the nature of what I do, I will need to go in to the office at least twice a week to drop off proofs and pick up more work. Fingers crossed that my plan will work. What a blessing that would be – not only on my pocketbook, but my precious time that I seem to have very little of lately. While working at home I can multi-task (work while the canner is processing for 90 minutes, throw a load of laundry in, take a 15 min. break and water the garden/feed the chickens, etc.) Unfortunately, with these crazy work hours my sleep time is cut into to get my necessary daily/weekly chores accomplished and my physical and mental health is suffering. Being able to work from home will take such a stress load off.
Oh, I almost forgot! I forwarded an interview with one of the authors of the revised edition of “Aftershock” to each of my siblings as one more example of how things are on the downward spiral and letting them know that when they see the signs of tshtf they are welcome to bring all of their food and essentials and come to my house. Each lives hours away and brother is 22 hours away. I haven’t spoken to my brother in almost a year – we’re not very close. He responded to my email by letting me know he has been prepping for a year and has a year’s worth of food in store. He told me to get ready for bad times and to keep reading Psalms 91. Little did he know what I’ve been up to, but I was happy to hear at least one family member is awake. I’m just sad it’s the one that lives so far away and unable to team up with the rest of the family. My two sisters have listened to me, understand what is going on, agree with me, but have made no attempt to prepare. They claim they have no room to keep anything. Lame excuse.
My mother (87 years old) lives with one sister. She’s completely on board with me and sends me a little money once in a while to help with preps. She was so excited to hear I got the pump for the well. She doesn’t have much money, but she called me last night to tell me she just set up a savings account for me that is earmarked for the new metal roof to go on my home at some point in the future. My grandmother and mother were great role models for me learning to be a prepper. Living through the depression made people learn skills for living and surviving that fortunately rubbed off on me. I learned canning, home repair, sewing, cooking, baking, housekeeping skills from them. The only thing I’ve learned on my own is gardening. Neither of them had a green thumb nor had any interest in gardening.
That’s it for me this week. I am procrastinating. I still have to get a gun.
I am so happy about news of your brother. Maybe now you have a basis to talk to each other more and bond again! Give thanks to God for this. It is great news.
Happy prepping
Thank you Repair Mama, and yes, indeed, it is a blessing. I responded to his email days ago and haven’t heard anything back yet, so I’m not sure if he’s wanting to bond. I’ll keep trying though!
I’ll be praying that your plan to work from home more pans out! That would be great.
I bet your daughter appreciates your help beyond words with your grandson with autism. You definitely need energy and your wits about you I’m sure!
I have a friend with a 7 yr old son with autism and the stories she has just wear me out listening to her. They had to move a few hours away from us for job reasons but we used to take turns watching each others kids for a couple hours a week just to be able to go do something alone. He’s in school now, which is a whole nother issue!
My son is 15 with Down syndrome and he is a much, much more laid back guy. We home school. Behavior’s he had ( in public school like the biting, hitting, sit in’s, snoting) are gone…
I just wish autism was as easy to correct behaviorally. Thanks for helping your daughter in that area! It’s not easy.
Vienna (Soggy prepper),
So nice to hear that keeping your son home helped him. I’m sure there is a lot of frustration with these kids that we just don’t know about. My grandson is mostly non-verbal so he can’t tell us when he’s mad or sad or if someone picked on him, etc. It’s so hard. He’s in a great school for special needs (public school) and his teachers are good, but when there are meltdowns there is never a clue as to what sparked it. He just got kicked off the bus for hitting and throwing. They are trying to figure out what to do and may opt for a small van to transport him alone. Hopefully, we’ll have an answer next week.
Is your son on any meds? My GS is on narcotics, of course, and we can’t stockpile. I lay awake at night frightened of what will become of him (and us) with no meds for him. They are the only thing that makes him somewhat manageable. We’ve tried every homeopathic treatment out there and nothing has worked. All we have left is prayer (and mayb a straight jacket – for me! heehee) I keep envisioning those movies of days of old where crazy Uncle Joe is chained up out in the little shed in the back or down in the basement or up in the attic and they slip a plate of food into him once a day. I can now see where that would sometimes be the only answer. Sad.
But I’m sure you feel the same about your DS as I feel about GS…they are truly angels sent here for a reason. I have learned soooo much from him and so much about myself. As hard as it is at times, when he’s “himself” he’s so sweet and thoughtful and kind. I just wish the monster would give up and just leave him alone!
Anyway, thanks for your post. It’s so nice to know when someone else out there gets it.
Conmaze and Vienna, are you aware of GAPS (gut and psychology syndrome) and the work of Dr. Natasha Campbell McBride?
Noone in our family faces the issues y’all have with autism, etc. But following ‘whole foods’ circles, I noticed that some people who do have been looking into her methods and seem to be finding them helpful.
As with any health matter, you’ll of course want to do your own investigation in consultation with your doctor. Here’s her book on Amazon, in case you have any interest in finding out whay she has to say:
http://www.amazon.com/Psychology-Syndrome-D-D-D-H-D-Schizophrenia/dp/0954852028/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1330273887&sr=8-2
Conmaze,
Check out the Glock 19. We have all been raving about it.
Gayle,
Don’t think all of the comments I’ve been reading for months now on the Glock 19 have gone unnoticed! I will start with a shotgun first. I’m used to a long gun from years ago. A handgun is a little scarier for me, but I am definitely going to look at the Glock. My second ex- was a LEO and he carried a Glock and loved it. Don’t worry, I’ll get there – one baby step at a time! LOL
Conmaze,
I didn’t know anything about guns just a few months ago. I took a pistol class. I used my dh’s little. 22 Beretta. I was discouraged because I was such a bad shot. Then I got a hold of my brother’s Glock. I told my dh I wanted a Glock for Christmas and that was that. My dh and I went to the range together. He fired both the Glock and the Beretta and now he wants to get rid of the Beretta. That’s how easy the Glock is to shoot.
conmaze,
“Drop off proofs”? Why don’t you see if you can connect your home system to the office system via a secure VPN. The boxes to do such things are relatively inexpensive, and you would then be on the local office network, meaning that instead of printing and dropping off the work, you could print it on a remote printer at work, and IM or Email the recipient to let them know it’s there. I work full time from home and use a similar arrangement that puts my local machine on the internal office network in AZ and it’s as if I were there.
Just a thought.
OhioPrepper,
I do work from home via VPN. My job is to supplement municipal codes of ordinances for the largest codification company in the country. I bring home these huge, heavy binders for each client, some are well over 1,000 pages. I edit the supplements, return the binders along with my edited pages to be proofread by someone in my office, get it all back to make my corrections, then it goes back to proofreading to make sure I did the corrections right. Finally, the printed pages get shipped to the client. I wish I could do everything via the internet and email. That would be heaven. Consider yourself very fortunate to be able to do everything from your home.
conmaze,
1000+ pages? Never mind!!! LOL
look at a KAHR CW45. theyre much more affordable then the glock 19 that everyone is talking about. My wife has small hands and it fits her perfectly. on the flip side, i have rather large hands. and it fits my hand a little better then my 1911 does. (not that i’ll ever admit that to her) She got hers with a 10% military discount. but the full price for it was about 350.
also forgot to mention… it comes in 9mm 40, and 45.
Thanks for the input, Luke. I’ll put it on my list to check out. Always good to have choices.
hope everyone had a good week. since we had good weather this week. i spent several days helping dh cut trees and today we will tackle the garden. i got the shipment of medical supplies and found a pair of crutches and a walker at a garage sale.(as clumsy as i am i will probably need them). just a note, if anyone hears from templar knight, bc truck, lint or anyone else that we haven’t heard from just let them know we miss them and m.d. has my email if i they ever need anything. everyone take care.
pam s
Easy on people with walkers! LOL!! Actually I graduated Friday from walker to cane!
SaratogaPrepper,
You cane do it. :)
saratoga-i bet even with you using the walker, you were still lighter on your feet than i am. i can just look crossed eyed and i’ll fall over.
saratoga prepper…way to go…next you will be training for the half marathon…hahahaha..
isn’t it good to get moving again…we take our health and mobility for granted everyday…until something happens…so, good to hear you are progressing so well…cheers.
Hope everyone had a great week of prepping. My week was somewhat light but valuable.
• Walked the soon to be new retreat property (in escrow) w current owners and am more excited than ever about taking possession in 2 weeks.
• Met with the owner of an emergency preparedness company (old friend) and picked up more good ideas on preps
• Picked up a miners head lamp and water preserving drops
• 1200 round ammo can for cheap
• A Kalifornia 10 round AR Mag
• Researched additional remote security monitoring solutions
• Still researching tri-fuel generators with at lest 6,000 watts. Would love input from anyone who has bought one.
“Met with the owner of an emergency preparedness company (old friend) and picked up more good ideas on preps”
Any chance you would share the ideas you picked up?
And congratulations on the new retreat property.
Hi Nuttbush, I am having trouble posting the response for some reason. I will get it on here shortly.
Absolutely Nuttbush, happy to share what I picked up. Typically my buddy challenges me on all aspects of my preparations to see if I have everything covered (which of course I don’t). Some of the things that we discussed Friday were the following:
I felt I had my first aid preps fairly well covered until he showed me Trauma Kits that they sell. There is so much more in these kits to treat serious injuries and wounds.
My buddy is also a security systems expert and one of my to do’s is set up a remote camera monitoring system for the new property that will alert me on my phone when an uninvited guests decides to visit my land. He pointed me in the direction of 2 companies with reputable products that may be a little pricey but probably worth it: Super circuits and here is the product I am looking at and Intellicam -USA is the other.
Another topic we covered was the practicality of silver vs. gold as currency in a SHTF world. Silver in his opinion will be much more practical as the denominations are smaller and you won’t have to overpay for things if you only had gold coins and the receiver did not have silver to give you change. Also, Silver is popping over $35 an ounce again as of Friday. I have purchased both in the past but will exclusively buy silver in the coming months. There a number of reputable brokers such as Gold Line that can answer all questions on costs and storage. Always take physical possession of your precious metals and lock them up.
Another important tidbit is to treat all your food preps like you would MRE’s, meaning that climate control is extremely important even for Mountain House 25 year shelf live cans. I had previously kept some of this in my garage. I am now in the process of moving these inside the house to a more suitable location. Not sure if this includes my long term chow that is stored in Mylar bags inside of food grade storage buckets. Probably would not hurt to move them in too.
I also picked up a miners head lamp at his retail store. We covered a great number of topics but these are the ones that stood out for me personally. I plan on meeting with him every other month to keep getting new ideas. He gets a place on my new land with all the good he could provide to my team!
d2 prep,
You definately need to move the rice, wheat and other items stored in mylar into a climate controled area. Remember to allow a little room between the cans and as with water storage etc. keep them off the concrete.
You are lucky to have a friend with such knowledge to keep your prepping up to date.
I hope you will continue to share with the tidbits you get from him.
Thanks d2 prep, I have been working on my first aid preps too, so I am going to check some trauma kits and what their contents list contain.
Nuttbush, here is the link to a similar trauma kit that I saw. It comes in a nice gym bag duffel that is not shown: http://www.yoursafetyplace.com/storefront/productdetail.aspx?idproduct=1994
d2, tri-fuel genny can be found at northerntool. check the reveiws first tho. there is a company that sells conversion kits for gasoline to gas also, propane-generators.com… let us know how it goes.
Thanks river, bookmarking the site now.
RR & d2 (or is that R2D2?),
Also check out http://uscarb.com for conversion kits.
OK, should have checked. Alternate URL for the same website.
Ohio Prepper, thanks I have bookmarked this site now as well.
D2, next time you hit a gun show or I can give you a link. There is a way to purchase legal hi caps in Kalifornia by way of high cap replacement kits.
It’s a disassembled high cap magazine. If you keep them up for a SHTF or rebuilding old worn out magazines with weak springs and followers. Copes is a great company for that. They ship at a firm $9.95 on all purchases regardless if one item or 20 items. NOT SUGGESTING by the way, merely saying is all lol.
I’m not affiliated as they are in OH and I am in CA, just a happy customer.
Thanks Jarhead. I was able to do a few “modifications” on a couple I already had by sliding the bottom plate off and removing the plastic pez machine stopper (non technical description) that was in there. I hope it works if needed in the SHTF world. I will check Copes out as well. I am up in Nor Cal and I believe the next big gun show I am aware of is late April in my area.
My friend is ETS ing (getting out of the military) and he wants to go back to Cali. He’s a bit of a prepper, and he hates the firearm laws but thats his home. I’ve been told thatthe M1 by springfield is cali legal. do yall know if this is true? also if it is do yall know if there’s a catch to that?
Luke if you mean the M1A the civilian M14 yes they are legal and sold at almost every gunshop. Magazines are 5 and 10 rounds and high capacity 20 round mags are sold disassembled as “repair kits” at gun shows and a few companies.
Kalifornia is tough but there worse states like New York and Hawaii and a few other states that prohibit or restrict handgun ownership. When our state makes new laws the lawyers and manufactures find a loophole or way around it to beat it.
Luke……
The M1A can be California legal. Depends on the mag. Maybe you should direct him to the M14Forum.com . About anything he’ll ever want to know about the M1A there!
Luke: They still sell them in the gun stores here. It may have to get a politically correct flash supressor if his has the bayonet lug. (They can’t even call them flash suppressors here ’cause that sounds too scary…) Cos
Son in Law found out that he is getting out of the military on a general with an honerable last Thursday. The plan is they are moving in with my family which will bring us to 7 adults and 4 children under the age of 3. So im back to de-cluttering, reorganizing, and giving myself a migraine trying to figure this all out. We only have a 4bdrm 2 bath house. So we are trying to figure out how to squeeze everyone in, and be able to support everyone on so little. I guess when the crap hits it stays for awhile. Going onto 3 years and we dont see the end of it coming soon enough.
For prep I have been running my dehydrator 24/7 trying to get bell peppers, sweet banana peppers, chili peppers, corn, and anything else dried so we can turn our small freezer into a smoker this spring. Canned up 7 pints of Ham. We have decided to can up anything and everything or dehydrate to keep the freezer empty. With gas prices going up that means electric is going to go up and with 11 people in the house we will have a very high electric bill. Need to keep it below $400.00 in order to get stuff. We are even checking into solor power but DH feels he might not be able to do it. Scares him so I been printing off anything and everything dealing with solor.
Thats it for me this week, not near as most of you but we trying.
keep prepping it getting worse.
Can the women of this clan start extreme couponing to help with stuff. The stuff I have hidden in one closet was aquired with couponing and cost little. I thought that maybe everyone can pitch in by bringing home every coupon they can lay their hands on as well as current grocery ads. You are so organized, and maybe have time with their help to match up ads with coupons and get more and spend less when you can on the loss leaders and plan your needs and meals around specials and such??
Just a thought. I hope it works out well. I know that having the grandbabies here on some weekends, it modivates me to prep more so they can survive! I love them for it.
Repair Mama,
Couponing has really gone down hill in the last 6 months. If you check out the coupons from the paper, either the coupon is for weird stuff (not real food) or you have to purchase three items to save 40 cents. About the only way I have found to save money at the grocery store is to stock up big time on the BOGO sales and the meat sales. Boneless pork loin was on sale $1.99 lb. this week so I picked up 20 lbs. to can.
Oh, I have got to share another recipe with ya’ll: this is the bbq pork sammy, and it’s even better than the bbq chicken sammy. Fry up an onion in some oil, add a pint of pork, warm and then add bbq sauce. We had bbq pork sammies for supper tonight. I think my dh ate the leftovers from the pan instead of putting them away. LOL (I cook; he cleans up. I think I have the better end of the deal.)
Your DH is tongue cleaning the pots and you have the good job?
Michael C.,
HaaHaa. Yep. I grew up with two brothers who were bottomless pits. So I guess I am used to it. He still had to clean out the pan.
We have been couponing for awhile now, but I have to get them strictly off the internet now. All our local newspapers have stopped with the coupons pretty much, Only one newspaper in the state we have located Omaha World Harold. Come Sunday morning if I manage to be the one to pick up youngest daughter from work I can only locate it in 3 places. Surprisingly enough they are sold out at 6 a.m. If the vendor even delivers them that day. Been real weird because on the coupon tradeing place on facebook they have a coupon train and There happens to be the delivery person of the paper. Which tells me she is keeping a lot of the coupons for herself. I wont buy a paper out of the vending machines because someone likes to take the coupons out of several papers.
Also the Son in Law and Daughter that will be moving back home does help out already by using Cloth diapers on 2 of the 3 children and DD already makes her own Laundry Soap. DD uses coupons as well but living on Base has very little room, she stores food under her bed and in the 1 closet she has. I was glad to here of this so I know she will be bringing to the family something. Along with MRE’S and other equipment.
Candy,
Wouldn’t you like to get one of those wildlife cameras–but one that takes video. You could set it up pointed on the newspaper rack. Then when someone comes to buy a paper, the video starts recording. Once you get the footage, you could ask the newspaper to run a story exposing the person. Coupon fraud is actually a crime.
I called into the actual local paper and they told me they were in the process of finding a new vendor. I got my coupons today out of the Omaha paper and chewed out the delivery person. Back when I had to do papers we had to have all papers including the vending machines done by 7 a.m. it was almost 9 am when they were delivered today. I sat there waiting from 6 a.m. for the person. And yes she is the one on the coupon train. I told her it was not right to take the coupons when there is paying customers and that I would be reporting it to her supervisors come Monday morning. She said she gets the coupons for the train after they havent sold. I told her I had proff that people had been complaining for over a month that every place they went to was sold out. She started cussing and walked away. I will still be calling it in.
Im sorry but when you spend $3.00 on a dam paper you should get what you pay for.
I think the same thing is happening here because I rarely find coupons in our Sunday paper anymore. I wonder if a word to the newspaper office itself would help any?
I’ve been trying to coupon as much as I can and did end up getting about 80 bucks worth of groceries for $44 last week. The only way I was able to do that though was to split my order and have dh go thru the checkout behind me so that we could use more that “1 coupon per household per day” on most of the items. *sigh* Almost all of my coupons came from the internet. I did find a coupon clippers site and have been buying some coupons for things I normally use fairly cheap. Its worth it to me.
How do the “extreme couponers” manage to use so many of the same coupons at once with these limitations? Anybody know?
Becca,
The store is so happy to get publicity that they are willing to set aside their coupon policy. The couponing shows are misleading. They show someone buying $300 worth of stuff and only paying $13. What they don’t show is the folks going in all the months before that and buying random crap so they can get $5 off your next purchase coupon. When you total it all up, they are not getting as good of a deal.
Becca,
call your newspaper and ask them you may find out like I did that they to are looking for a new vendor. It took me a while to find out which paper to buy. We used to get several state papers but some thought it was to costly to send to western Nebraska. So they just stopped.
If you have the papers sent to your house on a daily basis or even on just Sundays you still do not recieve the coupons here they say it is to costly to them.
I’ve had to slow way down on my prepping endeavors, as I’ve had to re-prioritize my finances, such as they are. When I got the prepping ‘bug’, I was really scared by what I was seeing coming, and went whole hog, spending money that would have been better spent elsewise. Now I am facing my situation more realistically, and realizing that I have to take care of some basic ‘regular’ living stuff before doing any more prepping that takes money. I have some basic prepping things marked off my list now (KAITO radio, 3 months stock of food, BOB, 1st aid BOB, and some other things), so I am better off than I was when I started. I’m not any less concerned about the state of affairs in our country and the world, but my circumstances require I be reasonable about what I do with the very little bit of money I get.
Not being able to rush around buying things has put me into thinking more about WHY I prep. And that has led to some interesting thoughts. I have imagined, as many of us do, a collapse of society, and the ensuing chaos and hordes of “zombies” that that could portend (think “Arab Spring”, but here).What I think is happening instead is a long, slow descent into chaos, with different groups emerging as power-mongers. And along the way, everyday needs are becoming scarce and will become more so, starting with the means ($$) to take care of ourselves. In the course of this thinking, I’ve come to realize that my limited means and the circumstance I’m in (alone with my elder father), as well as the ‘late’ start I got on prepping have put me in a vulnerable position, about which I can do very little. This is a daily anxiety for me, especially when I read the posts here and see all that others are doing. The “collapse”, whether it be slow or fast, is not waiting for anyone to get prepared.
That being said, I will do what I can, and will add an extra piece or two to grocery shopping and continue to build the food stash. But I think for now, learning skills is the focus for me.
Here’s my list of skills to gain:
-renew Red Cross CPR & 1st Aid certificates. This will take some $ as they’re not free trainings any more, but it’s been many years since I was trained and things have changed, and I feel strongly that these skills are important….so I will find a way.
-weaving and pottery….two skills I think will be good for making needed items and items for trade/barter. This will take awhile and some $, so I will start by looking for people who practice these skills and see what I can gain from them. Maybe I can apprentice for awhile. Or maybe the local college or high school will have some classes. Hmmmm…just thought of that.
-Tai Chi. I’ve ordered a book and vid from the library to get started on this.
-Sign language. Just thought of this this week from a post on the blog here. Will look for books/vids in the library. Libraries are such great resources…as long as they last. I have many sheets of info in my prep binders that I’ve copied from library books.
-am beginning a strength training regime. I’ve lost some muscle strength being here with my father, as his lifestyle is slower and I’ve adjusted to that to keep pace with him. On the west coast, I lived in the mountains and walked an average of 4 miles a day, year-round, and up and down the hills. Here in Texas, I’ve had to adjust to the heat, the flat land and other factors and have lost my routine. I’m starting a new one.
-re-learning Spanish. I took 2 years of it in high school, and learned several words and phrases working in the restaurant and retail biz, but my skills are low these days. There are many, many Spanish-speaking folks here in Texas….would be good to be able to communicate with them. Yeah, I know…English is the language of the US, and anyone here should speak it…at least that’s what I believe. But they don’t, and things being what they are, speaking Spanish just might be a good skill. I’m looking into a local class, maybe at a high school. Sometimes they have classes open to the general public.
I got my Baker Creek Heirloom Seed catalog…and all I can say is WOW!! A beautiful catalog and seems to be a great company. I do question their flowers though…some seem to be hybrids..?? Like the “doubles” and multi-colored ones. They state in the front that ALL their seeds are not hybrid, GMO, etc, but I just don’t know.
Managed to buy a couple extra cans of soup this week as well as some batteries. I had coupons and they were on sale. Every little bit helps.
I also found the AC power source for my KAITO radio at a price I felt I could handle ($10), so went ahead & ordered it from Amazon.
I gave my “emergency preparedness” talk to the community ladies auxiliary group, and it went well. I might have learned as much from them as they from me! Seems most of them have water & food stored, and many are well-armed, and all have lived a country life their whole lives. But I was able to share some things they had not thought of, and it was a good experience. One great result is that one lady called me the day after and said she had several glass gallon and half-gallon jars if I wanted them. Heck yeah!! And when I got there, she also handed me a grocery bag of spinach she had grown. Good connections were made, and that’s always good.
-Dehydrated some Pippin apples with cinnamon-sugar on the slices. Yummy. I’d gotten them on sale awhile back, and they were starting to qualify for making “apple dolls”, so into the dehydrator they went. Also dehydrated some asparagus…it’s really good just to eat! Probably won’t re-hydrate well, so will eat as is or grind into powdered ‘instant’ soup mix with other veges. It was on sale for 99 cents a pound, so was able to get 5 lbs. Also dehydrating some sweet onions I got on sale. I was out of foodsaver bag material, so had to get some. But the secure feeling I get from knowing I have these food stores outweighs the anxiety of spending the money.
And then there’s this: http://charter.net/news/read.php?rip_id=%3CD9T3Q0GO2%40news.ap.org%3E&ps=1018
Thanks MD for this blog, and thanks to everyone for the great camaraderie and information. It sure helps to know I’m not the only “crazy” one! :)
Keep on prepping, keep on prepping, and keep LOVE in your heart!
Mtn.Woman, I think that learning skills like the ones you mentioned might be the ticket for someone who doesn’t have the funds to prepare properly. I’m pretty sure you would be able to hook up with someone who is already well-prepared but lacking in some fundamental skills. I think you have a pretty good idea here. But you can buy some food pretty cheaply, and water is pretty easy to store as well, so put the things back you can, but remember your skills are the one item no one can take away from you. No matter how much stuff you put back, a natural disaster, burglary, or some other things could cause you to lose them. Those skills you attain to are always with you, no matter what. And I don’t disagree with your idea of what is happening, as we could go the way of Venezuela and Argentina. Something to think about. Good luck.
Mt Woman, I live in Orlando and we were shocked at the behavior of the mob waiting to spend $220.00 on sneakers. The local news reported that 50 squad cars, swat team and patrols on horseback showed up when the store withdrew the sale and caused a riot. This was only a preview of what is in store for us when the riots are for food?
Exactly Marebear. And I think it will start happening soon. My firm belief is that (as always) Winter kinda holds everything back. This Spring & Summer, I do believe we are going to see a real SHTF situation….especially with food and the basics. I am quite anxious about it, but remind myself every day that there is a Higher Power that’s in charge, and I’ll place my trust in that….while I continue to ‘prep’.
And that brings up an interesting thought I had recently: is it still ‘prepping’ if the thing you’ve prepped for HAS ARRIVED???? I guess so if it’s arriving slowly like it seems to be. But I see things accelerating here in a pretty big way. People are losing patience and civility. I don’t think it will take much to tip it into the streets in a bigger way.
And, BTW, I am truly embarrassed when crowds behave the way they did about the shoes. Really shows the world what ‘our’ priorities are. :(
Mt. Woman asks, “is it still ‘prepping’ if the thing you’ve prepped for HAS ARRIVED?” Answer: Yes–you are prepping for when things get worse.
Gayle…I see it that way, but just wanted to pose the question here. Some people I’ve talked to recently who are long-time preppers are asking themselves that question too….and re-prioritizing their prepping, based on how obvious it is that the S is HTF…now.
MareBear
I live in Orlando also.
MsFedUp,
I am just about a hour north of ya’ll.
Thanks VI! appreciate the support. My father talks about Venezuela all the time as a comparison to what is happening here. Scary.
MtWoman,
How about sharing some of your fathers advise, especially in what we can expect in our future?
HD…my father reads a lot of stuff online and with that and his own experience during the depression, I feel he has a pretty good grip on what’s going on. He says we can EXPECT to see major inflation…that the boat has sailed, and there’s no way out…especially without a complete bottoming out, which he felt should have been allowed to happen in 2008. I trust this from him. He relates a story to me about his father/my grandfather in Germany (grandpa had to ACTUALLY take a wheelbarrow of paper money to get a sandwich) as to what to expect here.
Imagine if we HAD allowed a bottoming out in ’08, rather than printing more money*….we’d be back on our way up now, not floundering about and getting deeper and deeper into the doo-doo.
(* the bailout wasn’t paper money, and it wasn’t even paper…it was an electronic change in the accounts of the banks.)
My dad invested in silver quite a few years ago as a ‘hedge’ for inflation, and he firmly believes in it still. He’s having to sell some lately, as the inflation that IS happening NOW has hit his wallet hard. But he says he will keep some no matter what because it will always be of some good value. I hope he is right, for his sake.
As far as his advice, it’s the silver of course, both junk and bars if you can, but also to be extremely frugal NOW, learning how to do without. Because of his age and the slowing down of his mind, he carries this too far sometimes, to the point of eating a quarter-plate of food in the name of frugality, but over-all I think he’s onto something. Even as preppers, I think we might not be in ‘emergency’ mode yet, and as frugal as we will have to be when the SHTF harder.
That’s about it….anything in particular you’d like to know? I can ask him. I’m always looking for ways to ‘engage’ him anyway, and keep his mind active as much as possible. He has a tendency to space out a lot.
MtWoman,
I was born in 1939, after the depression. I agree with your fathers financial outlook.
I would like to know, what kind of personal possessions did destitute people in the depression sell first, then last?
How did people change their house to keep warm in the winter?
What kind of food did they store for winter provisions?
What did those folks who didnt have a garden use to barter for food?
What items made good barter items?
What kind of crime increased, compared to before the depression.
When my mom wanted to scare me into paying attention, she would bring up the depression in whatever lession she was tryng to teach.
Wow, H.D., those are great questions. I would like to know what prep items he found most valuable. What skills were in need? How did he make money? Or what were good barter items?
Hunker Down
I loved talking to my grandparents, and i made alot of video’s where I would get them to talk about the way things were done back then.. and I got a few general answers in regards to your questions
They were all homesteading on the land in either southern or northern alberta, I’m a proper canadian mutt, having English, German, Norwegian and Scottish in the mix, but you can see traits of them in ways they did things on the farm, also there is a chinese influance as two sets of them had families moved to the farm, during WW2 from B.C. to Alberta as farm workers, and on my great-grandmothers sheep farm (of about 3000) her master herd’s man was from Mexico.
what kind of personal possessions did destitute people in the depression sell first, then last?-
Everyone talked about selling whatever the town folks needed most, which including cream, milk, eggs, meat.. They said that everyone had gardens, ( I will get to grain in a sec) but they wanted and needed the cream, milk and eggs, with a bit of meat. I didn’t get a first and last list proper but I did get told that metal tools, farming tools were very tightly guarded, that you didn’t loan any of them out, you would go to use them where needed but you never left them. I was told that most them had very well trained larger dogs and that they were used to guard different things.
No issue on the heating of the house, as it was wood stove in the north and coal in the south, however in Great-Grandma in the south had more issues with water and used huge cysterns etc. However they did a few things in winter that I thought was interesting, Grandma would not properly clean her wool that she was knitting, she wanted to work the wool all winter to keep her hands in shape and would make extra and then depending, felt and shrink them on the kids for extra warmth. One of the things I thought was very interesting was that Grandma would make big heavy thick wool rugs and cover the small area behind the wood stove, and that was were the babies got to play in the winter, they were either carried (family of 11) or they had to be down on the wool rugs to keep the cold off them by the wood stove. Small children always used the inside pot, as getting a chill was bad, and she used bricks to warm on the stove and then always warmed the beds, and beds were shared and piled high as extra bodies means extra warmth.
Foodwise, they all did well enough as they were farmers but there was two things of note.. they all worked hard to save every single runt or weak or off baby, as they were for “family” use and the best was sold, as you would therefor feed the family and get top dollar, and the second one I find amazing is the story of the rice, for as long as I can remember my Grandmother really didn’t make rice, other then rice puddings, and I finally said to her.. why.. turns out that on the farm, way back when, the goverment took the grains for war use, sale etc, and they provided the farmers with sacks of rice, and that it was a hold on to those days of nothing but rice, an more rice.. I still find this amazing, living in a wheat belt and eating imported rice.. crazy..
According to my grandparents, everyone had gardens, either in their yards, or all the towns had allotments for peaple.
Items that made good barter were all food items, wool, or knitted items, Leather workings, Hides, Wood, and children, that is going to seem strange but my dad was bartered out for work and income for the family, my oldest uncle was traded out for work for many summers, my aunts would be bartered out for running farm house’s when newborns came, and help was needed for a month or two, bartered out to help out in a family that had a grandmother in end of life time, and the mothers didn’t have time, and children of the right age, my one aunt, lived with a family for a couple months, helped in the house but mainly did end of life care.
Hard Workers had value because so much was done by hand.
According to my grandparents, crime was not issue in their neck of the woods, if someone did something wrong, they were ganged up on and taken behind wood shed and often ended up beaten, that only needs to happen X amount of times and folks walk the line careful.. My grandmother talked about that as a farmer, there was always work to be done, and a little extra food to be shared, they did a day’s wage for food, and moved on.
Boy this got long.. I will end there..
HD & Gayle…I will have a chat with him and ask him these questions. Stay tuned.
Farmgal…GREAT stuff there. And it’s NOT “too long”…for me anyway. These are the things we really need to know!! Thanks. Post more if ya got it!
History repeats itself. We need to learn from those that have been through it. Thank you.
Waiting for more!!
H-D,
Absolutely. What were the warning signs of the Great Depression, not from a history book written from today’s perspective, but from the perspective of those who lived through it.
You, yourself, would have remembered the rationing of butter as a boy. What else do you remember? I learned only a couple of years ago that the U.S. government sent German POWs all throughout the south to work picking veggies. They manned the orange groves, and were paid minimum wage for their work. Folks pack then felt the U.S. was too good to the German P.O.W.s–they got butter, the citizens got oleo.
Gayle,
I remember my parents pointing out small bridges made of rock that the POW’s made. I remember ration books for sugar and my RN mom complaining about no nylon stockings for her uniform.
Mt. Woman,
I read some of the posts by Selco. (I hope it was Venezuela he lived through.) The one thing that has stuck in my mind was that he saw his country crumble with hyper inflation and he waited too long to spend all his savings. He could have bought supplies when the money would actually buy something. But he didn’t and his money became wasted paper.
This hit me pretty hard because I was taught from a young age to put back savings. At what point is it reasonable to throw out the injunction to put back savings and instead go shopping for goods that can be traded?
Gayle,
Good question. I’m wrestling with that right now.
Conmaze,
The answer most folks will give is to take some of that cash and buy silver. I am reluctant to buy silver because I think it’s at peak price now and will likely either go down or be worthless. (If things get better, silver will go down; if things get worse, folks will want food and not silver.)
Gayle, Selco survived a year of ‘hell’ in Bosnia – during their civil war, 20 odd years ago… saw the troops on outskirts of the towns – but did not put it together – and then they closed the trap, and there was no way out for the duration of the war. He has some para/medical experience – if it is ok with MD – google ‘SHTF school’ for his posts.
the other site, by Ferfal, from Argentina -and the hyperinflation that occurred (he has relocated his family to Ireland) the muggings and murders, lack of water to houses, electricity cut at odd times, or none available to houses, roads all pot-holed, and inflation, and now not allowed to trade local currency for USA dollars…the capital controls are in – and recent legislation allowing gov’t to imprison anybody, if they talk against the gov’t.
He wrote on one of his posts – in response to a question – was that he would have put away more food. Can see this for yourself by typing ‘surviving in argentina’.
I definately see things speeding up here as well…I only got back from the big smoke yesterday afternoon, and have already had a prepper friend and her partner phone wanting to come over and discuss what they can be doing more of now…they are getting frightened…they stayed for a few hours…showed them some of my stuff – and how they can also dehydrate and vac seal their stuff – they bought these items about 12 mths ago – so they are progressing, however, they see the changes requiring them to move faster.
These are people I have known for almost 30 years – and have lived in this area for ages…whereas I have only been in the area for almost 6 yrs – we hope to back each other up as things progress.
Re the savings issue…still saving – as always need to have a back-up, however, any spare money is thrown at preps – in all forms, clothes, food, fuel, containers, medicine – whatever I see that will come in useful when prices skyrocket.
I’m not interested in movies or other distractions – am focused.
cheers.
Chloe,
I think it was the article by Ferfal that I read. I have read Selco too. So sometimes I get them mixed up. “I would have bought more food.” I think that is my answer as well. I need food and shotgun shells.
Gayle,
We have the same concerns and our reaction is;
Look at the rate of interest paid on savings, add inflation and the end result is a negative number.
Not interested in savings?
An invalid analogy; A dollar spent today will purchase 100 pennies (not) of value, next month is will only buy 85 pennies of value. Why wait? Savers are being robbed just by not spending. Pathetic.
There are key prep tools we need and cant afford. Next month we will be farther away from those goals.
When summer hits the middle of the country satan will roar.
P.S. My spell checker wants me to capitalize satan and ‘federal reserve’, does anyone see a connection? Who owns our spell checkers? Blah.
HD,
A can of soup purchased today for $0.50 that costs $0.70 in six months or a year, is a much better return than your savings.
Gayle…my father says that we are in that situation right now…in fact past time. The dollar is devaluing, even though that’s “smoke-screened” a lot to keep the panic down. He only keeps in the bank what’s necessary to pay the bills.
He states that silver has had value for 1000s of years, and will hold value even as the dollar fails. I agree with him in that even if silver’s MONETARY value decreases, it has intrinsic value industrially, and will always be sought after…unless society goes into complete meltdown or ends…which will give us other issues to be concerned with.
I feel personally that if I had money to ‘save’, I would invest in silver and goods…NOW. This country’s economy is tre unstable, and the usual means do not apply.
PS: At the very least, I wouldn’t ‘save’ my money in a bank.
Mt. Woman,
Thank you for your comments. I think I have been going through a deeper level of realization about what is likely heading our way. I keep just enough money in the bank to pay bills. But the bulk of my “savings” is in my retirement plan. And I have a long way to go before I can even touch the money without penalty. So I’ve got some thinking to do and some decisions to make. I am contemplating cashing out and buying some property.
Gayle…depending on where the property is I can’t see a better investment than land. I am SO regretful that I did not buy any back when I might have been able to.
It’s a hard call though, I agree, to decide to cash-out. Maybe it will all “blow-over”, or not get as bad as it seems it might.
I don’t know your age, but I think age would have something to do with my decision. At this point (64) I wouldn’t hesitate. At 30-40, I might. And 50+ I’d give it serious thought.
The bottom line is, we don’t know what will happen, but I have lost ALL trust in 401Ks, the stock market, banks, and all other financial orgs & institutions. Several of my friends lost 10s of 1000s out of their 401K and stocks in 2008.
It’s a balancing act for sure…how much WILL the dollar devalue? COULD I lose it all?
For me, having some dirt to be on would take precedence. :)
Mt. Woman,
I am still in the “I might” category which makes the decision difficult. Thanks for the feedback.
Gayle, no ‘reply’ button at end of farmgal’s post…
farmgal…thanks for that informative post on your elders…today I saw an ad in the paper…
‘WANTED…rusty old garden tools & hand tools & shed stuff anything considered’…and then the phone number…
Appears some people are starting to wake.
My mother went on about the lack of food during and after the war in Europe…and I remember we never went anywhere – visiting friends etc, without a basket packed with food and water – the experience of extreme hunger never left my mother.
As she got older and was not able to bend over easily, and her eyesight started failing I would go over and clean out her cupboards every now and then, and find 1/2 empty packets of rice and other dried food tucked away in the corners etc – and not where the bulk of her cooking supplies were – and I would say ‘what is this doing way back here – it’s no good anymore’ – and I would be told to put it back. No reason given, no explanation – am assuming it was just to always have that little bit extra available, for whenever… who knows.
And my daughter will probably do the same when I am older – because now I am tucking things away too.
My mother recycled everything…nothing was wasted.
The clean butchers paper that the meat was wrapped in was folded and put away – and would use it or newspaper to cut out dressmaking patterns, and the plastic bag that they placed the meat in was washed well and hung on line to dry – (and I now find myself doing the same with ziploc Glad bags…).
And I place my bread ends in the dehydrator – then blender for breadcrumbs…and thank goodness I remember how mum did it…when/if we lose our grid.
Any pieces of bread that were stale were placed in an oven tray on the back steps till dried out by the sun – and then rolled with a rolling pin until they were reduced to fine breadcrumbs.
Had chickens – and vegetable gardens were around the perimeter of chicken coop, and beans were encouraged to grow up the wire of the coop.
Assorted fruit trees everywhere – right up to the fence boundary line – and to me they were a pain to push the mower around the trunks each week – but to my parents – essential that they had their own food growing in their own patch of ground…
Amazing the things that come full-circle.
Chloe-
What a lovely post. Thank you for the images.. and the casual memory of the logical layout that your parents’ homestead used. We could all learn a thing or two about the best way to use resources and limited space to make our own homesteads productive… and beautiful. Just because we will be making do with less, doesn’t mean our homes need to be ugly, though for OPSEC purposes, I suppose ugly has a purpose. I suspect that I may have to rely on my old 10-gauge to protect my place, because ugly just isn’t in my vocabulary!
Really nice post on homestead organization, efficient use of resources and space utilization as learned from history. Thank you!
Cat
Chloe,
Thank you for posting this. The folks that lived during WWII and the Great Depression learned stuff out of necessity. I have a fear that we are loosing so much of that knowledge.
Thanks Gayle. Appreciate the support. I’ll check out those things you mentioned. :)
Mt. Woman,
At some point we are going to run out of #10 cans and bullets, and skills will be all we have. The purpose of food preps is to tide you while you try to beat the learning curve on living off the land.
Hey girl. I know just what that is like. But just remember, you can still prep without spending a ton of money doing it. Keep to the sales, be frugal as you can, repurpose what you can, check garage sales and ,well, i have even been known to be a garbage picker. (shame)
Another thing I wanted to let you know. I dont know what the rules and programs are in TX, but when mom was living, I was able to get her on a program called meals on wheels. they would provide a lunch every day for the elderly person on the program. when that started to not work well for us, she was allowed to choose another food option called “Mom’s Meals” They would deliver a box (by fedex) of 2 weeks worth of meals with frozen ice bags in insulation to keep the food at a safe temp during shipping. They have a menu to choose from and also sent fresh fruit, cheese stick, and powdered milk.
She also qualified for a program to have an aide come in for a few hours a day to help her with bathing, grooming, and meal preparation. They gave us 16 hours a week and my brother came in to my home to sit with her on the other times so I could still go to work. It helped very much. MD can give you my e-mail address if you want to and I can tell you what the programs were called and you can check to see if they are available where your dad is.
Good luck to you. You are a tough lady and you have all of us friends to back you up! take care and stay in touch.
Thanks Repair Momma. I’ll keep those things in mind. Our situation here is not to the point yet where I can avail myself and dad of those services. It’s a long typical boring story, so I’m going to spare ya…but that’s how it is. It will be awhile before it becomes possible to do those things….because of where we are, and because Dad is not to the point just yet where he absolutely needs them. We’re kind of in-between right now. There’s also a family dynamic that inhibits some of it. So (*sigh*) I just trooper on….for now. But I am looking for some caregiver counseling and will be getting the DU (dad unit) re-assessed soon, physically & mentally. Thanks for your response! :)
For pottery, there are a few key techniques you should know to keep your projects from having exploding air pockets, but after that it becomes kiln time and perhaps advice.
For basket-weaving, I’d say to jump into locally-forage-able materials as quickly as you can. Perhaps you might need to learn a bit of spinning to make grasses into string.
Whittling and basic woodworking may help. Darning, quilting… yarnwork from knitting to knotting fishnets.
–
Dang, I gotta get cracking myself. Building body endurance should probably be most important.
Thanks Kelekona. Great suggestions and support! Much appreciated! :)
i think a lot of us started out in your boat, scared by what we are seeing we threw money at it, overtime we figured out cash was getting real tight and we had to slow down and think. with the realazation that we cant continue on our road we started focusing on what we could do, skills. now most of my preps are in the form of tools and equipment i do put back food but i also know i have the ability to get food outside what i have hunting fishing weeds, berries and nuts.
if i could make a sugestion keep on learning your skills they are yours forever that way but really look at your finances find out what you can cut and use that to pay bills off as quickly as you can then move on to the next. what you can spend buy good quality tools yard sales second hand shops what have you and those items you cant get at second hand shops buy good quality iy costs more but worth it. took me almost a year to get my wheat grinder how much time we have know one knows but they will put you out of your house bills first, food and tools next skills always.
you are not alone a lot of us have been in your shoes.
good luck and god bless
Robert….thanks. Means a bunch. And yup…skills are the way to go….and quickly.
robert in MM..re the wheat grinder…same with me…first I purchased my foodsaver and rolls (birthday), then dehydrater (Christmas), then grinder (birthday)…just took it steady.
Same with other stuff…separate purse for garage sales/thrift shops – pay cash…once purse empty, start adding to purse again…and the weeks just fly by…cheers.
Mt. Woman,
The skills you’ve set yourself to learn are great. Many middle and high schools have pottery classes. I wonder if you offered to volunteer mixing clay and cleaning up, if they would let you use the potters wheel for free. (I studied pottery in middle school and loved it.)
About learning languages, I read an article about a new business module and the internet. The article said that something like half of the content on the web is in English. Some guy wanted to start a business to translate webpages from one language to every other language. But his budget was nil. He came up with the idea that since folks want to learn various languages, if he hired someone to give basic tutorials in the native language and offered the tutorials free online, that folks would be willing to learn a language by translating web content for free. He wrote a computer program based on standard derivations that basically takes 1,000 translation attempts, sees how the majority translated the web site and offers that as the translated web page.
I don’t know if this model has gone online yet; but it’s a great way to learn a language. If that doesn’t pan out, try Rosetta Stone from your public library. It is possible to get a working understanding of a Romance or Germanic language in a matter of weeks.
Great stuff Gayle…I’ll check these things out. Thanks. :)
MtWoman, nothing wrong learning Spanish. I hear people saying why learn “their language” then they see the great service I get at restaurants, was able to get the day laborers down to $40 when they told my friend $100 to load everything he bought to be put in his truck and trailer. It has got me out of some binds and helped me. Sometimes a free tamale when I order a dozen or two lol.
It could be an insurance, just remember High School Spanish is Spain proper Spanish and not the slang Spanish spoken by Mexicans, Guatemalans etc. but it certainly helps. I learned growing up in Los Angeles and not from a class.
Texas has been bilingual even before its inception. I learned TexMex while living there for 50 odd years. It comes in handy everywhere these days. Even if you just use it to listen. It’s amazing what people say when they think you don’t understand them. And it can have benefits when you do need to use it. Just another skill in the basket as far as I’m concerned.
I agree with you in that point Jarhead.I do not want to make it too easy on them though. It is funny how much english they know when you tell them that you don`t speak spanish. They get lazy and just want to speak spanish sometimes.
Well said Jarhead. One difference for me though: maybe it’s where I am, but I have encountered animosity when speaking the Spanish I know, like there’s resentment that I would dare. There’s been a change between the ‘white’ and the Hispanic cultures in the last few years, especially here. I think maybe it’s the younger generations mostly…of all cultures…having attitude. Perhaps the entitlement mentality? I think it goes beyond that though….seems to me that everything and everyone is polarizing intensely. Sure can see that in politics.
Doesn’t matter…I’m less of the “us and them” mentality anyway, and more of an “we’re all in this together, like it or not” mentality. There’s good people and bad in all situations. Reality is what it is and it’s up to me to do whatever will better MY circumstances.
And you are right…school Spanish and cultural Spanish are different. But the school style will get me started at least. I actually know quite a bit from my years working in the restaurant business, albeit limited to relative subjects. “Mas vasos por favor”. :) Thanks for the support.
Tommy, your right. Been to Texas many times having some family and friends living there. Its nice knowing what people are saying when they don’t think you understand.
What you call TexMex we call Spanglish lol
mt woman…you are doing great…sometimes it appears we are in a holding pattern for a while, when we want to be doing things…
The fact that you are thinking and planning is a good sign that your prepping journey is moving into another stage…just doesn’t look like it to you right now, however – in a few weeks, your posts will probably be filled with action…so, good on you for taking the time to ponder and plan.
I too have gone through different stages during my preps – it is all good…things happen when they are meant to…and the good connections you made during your talk shows you are steadily building a little community of like-minded people around you.
Also, the skills you have – e.g., tenacity and ability to shoulder the sole burden of looking after another person (among other skills) this is a huge plus.
Mental strength is as important as physical strength.
Who knows what you are being prepared for…and whatever it is – you and the sum total of your previous life experiences will be just right for that scenario/position etc.
Don’t concern yourself regarding your ‘late start’ to prepping…so many people are still clueless about the rising costs of putting food on the table, filling car up with fuel, maintaining and paying property/taxes…etc.
Hand your worries, anxieties and concerns up to the Lord…and know that you have a bunch of friends who care about your well-being, and that we understand your position, and value you as you are, either with lots of preps or with few preps.
The size/amount of one’s preps does not make the man/woman.
Know that I am thinking or you, and all the other posters – and with us all supporting one another, we all make progress – in one way or another…not just physical/material preps.
Till next time…
Chloe…so appreciate the great words. I enjoy your posts…and support. :)
Hi Mtn Woman-
I feel for you. There are many of us who for one reason or another are unable to make the kind of organized, whole-scale prepping that the current scary world merits. We feel helpless to everything that we know needs to be done – NOW – not gradually, with painful slowness. But you are going about it in the best way you possibly can in your own circumstances. This is not a one-way-fits all plan, and though it would be nice to be able to just do it all now so that you can sleep easier at night… that is not the real world. And your calm, rational plan is the real world.
One thing specific that I thought of while reading your post; pottery does not need to be an expensive venture. I used to teach summer art programs at camps when I was in my teens and early 20′s… somehow, I also became the ‘naturalist’ counselor, and on a nature hike, we discovered the creek that ran through camp was riddled with yellow and gray clay. I knew that the region had been known for stoneware and other clay industries in the 1800′s, so we dug a bunch of it up and brought it back to the art building. After a bunch of failed attempts, I discovered that it is actually pretty easy to clean up clay to be used for actual pottery projects – and that the stuff we dug out of the creekbed produced very nice-quality mugs, vases, and anything else the kids wanted to make after firing. There’s nothing magical about what you can buy in the art supply stores – it just comes in a plastic bag and smells musty!
Look into the history of your town – I’ll bet there is a place you can find some natural deposits that you can play with and work on… and there is probably even someone around with a kiln who might let you try out some of your projects.
The internet is a great resource, and if you find your own materials, you may be able to gain this skill with little or no financial investment.
Good luck!
Cat
Alikaat…thanks! As a matter of fact, I collected some clay once in Oregon, cured it, and made some art pieces. Time for me to look at Texas the same way…for some natural resources! Thanks for the idea.
We are all in the same boat. It doesn’t matter how much you have it is never enough. So just keep buying up as much as you can and you will be okay.
I had to readjust my thinking and my lists.
But the best idea was to continue to buy like when I first started prepping, buy what you usually budget for with about 20% going to further rotaional foods and longer term. Then allow at sometime to buy something that will come in handy like garden seed, manuel kitchen tools, etc.
I think with this gas and inflation we have all hit a snag.
Ellen,
I think you are right here. The economy just went back to my number one concern. I find that as the reasons for prepping switch around from bottom of the list to top of the list, my priorities change. In an economic collapse, we are still likely to have running water and electricity. So getting a Big Berkey has been moved back to the “wish list”. Now I am looking at upping my stores of staples. I need grains and powdered milk. (I did make sure our BOBs had a bottle with a water filter. But in an economic crash, we will likely have the ability to boil water.
Do you guys struggle with shifting priorities?
Gayle, have definately shifted to more staples just lately – wheat (good also for wraps/flat breads etc), rice, salt, sugar/honey, oats, pasta.
topped up all 20 litre fuel containers a few weeks ago.
and tomorrow morning have to collect my 2 refilled propane gas tanks.
Gayle,
I’ve been doing this for a long, long time and although my priorities don’t shift all that much, they are constantly being tweaked, which I think is the nature of planning and knowledge. If you’re saving for that Big Berkey for $250, and you stumble across a $220 9-TrayExcalibur Dehydrator at a yard sale for $100, your priorities probably just shifted. As you look at the very dynamic economic landscape and your own situation, you realize the world is not static, and that shifting or tweaking priorities is the natural result of paying attention and adjusting your plans. Most skiers don’t take a straight trip down the hill, but navigate around the moguls and the other skiers as they are encountered. They are not shifting the goal (which is to get down the hill), but making the real time priority changes required to meet the goal, even if sometimes the path is a bit longer.
As for postponing the Big Berkey, an inexpensive alternative to tide you over until you can re-prioritize again (LOL) would be this kit for $30 http://www.cheaperthandirt.com/CAMP352-1.html or this filter element for $10 http://www.cheaperthandirt.com/CAMP357-1.html
Beautifully said Ohio Prepper, as long as you heading to the end goal, side trips are allowed!
OP – you are so right…I focus on the big picture…what am I trying to achieve, and how soon…
and then when I reach one goal…I just keep moving toward the others…and the ‘end goal’ is always the same -
off topic…
Went in to collect mail and propane gas bottles today… noticed lots of signs on shelves that items were ‘temporarily unavailable due to floods’.
Floods were in a lower state – weeks ago – and over 2.5 hours flying time from here…shouldn’t have affected us at all…very strange.
Chloe, how centralized is the supply chain in Australia? The flooded stores probably are just now getting back on their feet and restocking everything, not to mention relief efforts and individuals in that area restocking their pantries, so that could all have sucked everything out of the supply pipeline. Was transportation damaged or perhaps diverted too?
When Florida gets hit with a bad hurricane, it’s not uncommon that the building materials stores in Texas run out of a lot of things for an extended period.
lantana…you are right..food distribution is centralised…gets trucked all over – mostly canned/processed stuff…
the fresh fruit/veges/meat – a lot is sourced close to where I am…however…
(90% of the store) – all from 2-3 DAYS drive away…and those big semi’s wreck the roads constantly.
Hi Gayle-
The economy is always my number one concern. All forms of unrest and upheaval cause economic ripples, like waves in a giant, deep lake. No matter what comes or is currently happening, it will cause economic difficulties to those of us trying to eke out an honest living.
Politics plays a strong hand in the function of our economy (The Fed?). Natural disasters cause big ripples in the form of upped insurance rates, the cost of rebuilding and/or relocating, interrupted production of staples (refineries in the Gulf, anyone?) and crop failures, among endless others. I’m willing to bet this crew could continue adding ways that non-economic events have very real economic repercussions. So no matter what drives our realization that we need to prep… the economy will need to be at least a part of it.
(Sigh.)
I hate watching what is happening in our world. It is like a slow motion train wreck, and we are forced to stand by, powerless to stop it. And everything we love, everything we’ve worked for our entire lives is either on board the train, or in its path of destruction.
Terrifying.
Keep prepping, my friends.
Cat
Cat…I’m with you on feeling bad watching the carnage. I feel doubly bad for my father & mother & their generation, who worked so hard to establish a secure financial base for the US after the war. They are watching all their hard work dissipate. Makes me very sad.
Finally received the Baker Creek catalog and am putting together a seed order.
Ordered another 6 oz flannel sheet set with a 25% off and free shipping coupon from Landsend.com.
Bought more 5 oz cans of chunk ham and a large canister of taco seasoning.
Told the husband that I would like to try shooting a 20 g Mossburg 500 as I have never shot a shotgun and maybe if that works out I could buy one.
Schatzie Ohio
I have the Mossburg 500 20 gauge. My daughter shoots it all the time. I bought it with the pistol grip but have since converted it to a folding stock w/pistol grip. She has shot it in both configurations and has had no problems. In fact, after destroying a few pumpkins, she has declared it to be hers if the “zombie hordes” attack. #4 buckshot is like 24 .22 cal. bullets all at once, rather devastating!
It was a big past week in prepping for us. We’ve been saving to add a few of the larger purchase items and was able to get several of the things on our list on sale at a local sports warehouse. Picked up a Remmington 870, a Ruger 10-22, and a Glock 19. Also got extra magazines and a holster. Picked up a propane cookstove with several canisters, and two more stackable 7 gallon water containers, and a knife. Also added more provisions to the food storage as we do each week. I have been planning these acquisitions for several months and do it felt nice to actually put some of the plans into action.
A.R.:
Great job! I think that is a perfect combination. In Wyoming, you could also use a rifle but here in Kalifornia, that is my set up. Cos
yep, very fine combo indeed.
I was talking to the local gunstore owner yesterday and he was telling me how arplatform guns are flying out the store.
axel, i’ve even had problems getting a barrel for one of mine. finally found one today online.
A.R., you need a high-powered rifle of some kind, either a 30-06 or .308 just in case you need to shoot through a wall or something of that nature, and as an anti-sniper weapon.
I agree. It’s on my list. Just need the $’s!
awesome to get the stuff you were saving for and then the sports store was nice enough to put em on sale to boot! gotta love it.
This week I drilled a well at the Bug out location. We hit water at 335 feet. This is in addition to a year round spring on the property so we now have plenty of water to operate a modest/vigorous homestead.
I also got the anchors for the cabin walls installed on the foundation, so we’re now ready to start construction on the cabin.
At the residence we started many of our seeds for the garden. The tomato and eggplants are already coming up.
Ted D, congrats on the well! That’s a deep dig, you have the pump set up yet?
Got back from the Philippines, had a great time with my lady there. Saw some incredible stuff, will write a report later. Still recovering from jet lag, that’ll take a couple more days then I will be back on US time. Drank a San Miguel Light, good beer. Got a really sore back from sitting so long on the plane, went to chiropractor and he popped my back into place, feels much better now. Work was crazy since I felt like I was trying to work the graveyard shift in the middle of the day but I got through it. Bought some junk silver. Picked up a few more cans of vegetables for the larder. Perused the seed catalogs, I’m anxious for spring to get here, want to start the garden. SE AZ is still in a drought situation, got a feeling it’ll be a hot, dry summer. Yeah, it is the desert but we do get some rain in normal years. Discussed the current political, economic situation with a couple of co-workers, they’re quite disgusted with the shenanigans going on in Wash DC, all are worried about TDL winning the election, cost of fuel going up (and consequential rise in costs of everything else). Hope all have a good prepping week.
AZ Rookie Prepper,
Welcome back, we’re looking forward to the article on your trip.
AZ, glad you had a good time, I miss those San Miguels that are bottled there instead of the ones imported. Look forward to your post
AZ,
Glad you are back. I can’t wait to hear your report.
whew, glad you’re back safe, friend! i was afraid we’d lose another one:) can’t wait to here the story.
Welcome back AZ! I’m looking forward to hearing about your trip, and your ‘study’ of the different culture and their ways. :)
AZ RPrepper…welcome back. You’ve just hit the ground and are already going great guns…
Ever feel like this prep business is addictive – just like having a leisurely cup of coffee before getting into the day’s work.
chloe, yes, it is addictive, but I would say its a lifestyle that I chose to live. Thanks for the welcome back.
Right now, not enough time to sit down and write a full article, but some things that will be in it are water supply, housing, gardening, livestock, income. Thanks for the “welcome back” from all.
I finally printed the Wolf Pack Cookbook.
We bought our second 40 gallon LP tank, and started saving to put something in it.
We bought;
9 lbs Borax
7 lbs Washing soda
8 lbs baking soda.
Because of the price of gas, ordered six cans of powdered milk from EE, before they raise the shipping price. We will still be 25 pounds short for two people. This is money we should not have spent, but I’m very worried that people struggling to buy groceries will go under. As the price of gas causes everything to increase in price those folks will justifiably panic, and we are not yet ready for the gangs.
If the price of gas falls back to just over $3 before September, the voting public will forget it by election time and TDL will not lose votes because of the gas price issue. The general price increase caused by the price of gas is separate from the inflation caused by the federal reserve nonstop printing of money. They don’t even need to print it, just authorize journal entries at their member banks.
We don’t have enough sheeple poppers or those things that make the popping sound. So, this month milk; next month, poppers.
After we blew our money on powdered milk we had to spent $532 on prescriptions. Now the pharmaceutical greedy ^#$%&^&*’s can continue to bombard us with T/V ads.
Sheeple poppers? Lmao!
Hunker-Down,
I ordered two cases of milk from EE for exactly the same reason. About the price of gas, Obama will surely open the strategic reserve by August or September.
You know he opened the strategic reserve last year and the price still went up. The reserve is there for an EMERGENCY!!! not to just lower prices to get reelected. Besides we have plenty of oil, have used less every year for the last few years. The problem is the demand for the refined gas, we have no new refineries being built because of the environmetalist and if there ANY problems with just one or two the price will shoot up. Not only that but the refined gas that we actually ship overseas because someone else will pay aa higher price for it.
George,
Yes, I was being sarcastic. Obama will open the strategic reserve so that the price of gas appears to be a non-issue. I do not know how folks will be able to afford to get through next year.
george,
USA oil belongs to USA citizens, it’s taken from USA ground. Oil companies have paid for permits to drill, but does that give them the right to refine USA oil and sell it to foreigners without paying an export tax?
I have already emailed our congressman to author an export tax on refined fuels. I got a three page response of boilerplate legalese and I’m not sure if petroleum was mentioned.
HD,
Powdered milk from the LDS cannery is pretty inexpensive if you have a local cannery available.
OhioPrepper,
Oh, I so WISH we did!. There are two about 4 hours away.
This week has been slow for me. My husband rearranged my kitchen for me so I have more storage room. So I have been working on getting everything where I want it. Picked up some more food, but not much as money has been tight this week and will be for the next week or so (at least) as we pay bills and all that fun stuff.
I have been looking into making soap. I make a lot of my own cleaning stuff but I decided to go all the way and learn how to make castile soap instead of buying it. I do have a question for anyone who makes their own. I am 7 months pregnant, so should I wait until after baby is born before trying this or if I do the lye water mix outside, should that be ok?
My poor garden is struggling. We got a bunch of rain last week and the week before and it almost drowned out my garden. It has been dry this week, but there is still a lot of mud, and we are forecasted for more rain in a couple of days. But my raspberry bush and citrus trees are blooming. I had one strawberry plant starting to bloom and one of the dogs dug it up. She is lucky we didnt have doggy burgers for dinner.
My hibiscus has a bud on it, and my roses are putting out a lot of new growth. I am hoping they do really good this year as I have requests for floral jellies and cookies.
I think that is about it. I hope everyone had a very productive week.
If your worried about mixing the lye with the water/fluid just have your husband do that part. (all safety equipped of course).
That way you don’t breathe the “bad fumes” at full strength.
Maybe mix the batch by an open window too.
I’m not a doctor, this is just how I would do it if I were concerned about breathing the fumes.
I received a bow in the mail this week, and it seems like it’s of reasonable quality for a good price. I look forward to learning to use it properly.
I bought more canned food, including canned potatoes for “hobo dinners” (one of my favorite camping meals)
What are y’alls opinions on plastic fruit cups? I decided to go for them because they could make for a good, cheap food for a B.O.B., as they are ready to eat and relatively light.
the plastic cups puncture easy too! I learned that the hard way by sending one in sons backpack to school for snack time. I wont be doing that again! hahah what a mess!
We make Hobo Dinners in the oven as well can never wait for camping season…lol
Okay, what’s a hobo dinner?
http://www.quick-and-easy-dinner.com/hobo-dinners.html
http://www.food.com/recipe/campfire-hobo-dinner-247841
I have also seen them made in a tin can with alum. foil crimped on for a lid; then placed in a camp fire.
Back when I was in the oilfield I made these on the company car’s exhaust manifold while driving between land jobs. Used heavy duty foil and double wrapped them. Engine heat cooked them for me. Made a good meal when checking two or three wells a night that were maybe a hundred or so miles a part.
Judy a/one,
thanks for posting that link…
definately going to try a vegetarian style hobo dinner – with gravy over the top (as I don’t camp with an ice cooler (esky).
For plastic fruit cups, I would put them inside of something rigid because they are a little fragile. Metal fruit cups might mean more weight.
Other than the sugar, canned fruit is great. Drinking the juice might help stave off dehydration, or at least be better than a granola bar.
cp, the expiration dates are usually short on those, but to each their own. of course, the left over can of canned fruit could be used for many things that a leftover plastic cup can’t. jm2c.
College, go with the tin can fruit. They can be used to drink, cook and purify water with when emptied. Those little plastic cups are worthless.
Got to use my new reloader this week, and I loaded 100 rds. of 200 gr. hollow points in .45acp pushed by 7.4 grains of Unique. That’s going out there at about 1000fps with that 200 gr. hollow point bullet. You don’t want to be on the receiving end of that bullet bad guys. Tested it at the range with my Combat Commander, and it shot a 2 in. group off the bench at 25 ft. That’s good enough for head shots on zombies. Since I had the press going, I went ahead and loaded 100 .44 magnum as well. I stuck with the Unique powder, and put 13 grains of powder behind a 240gr. JHP. That was like shooting a canon out of my 4″ 629. Not for the faint of heart, but I use this load in my rifle as well, so it’s all good. The muzzle blast from my 629 would kill a zombie, hahaha! I gathered up a bunch of brass, mostly 9mm and .380, and ran it through my tumbler. Sized it up, and it’s ready to trade.
My wife says the garden spot needs tilling, so I’ll get on that next week. She got her seeds over the past couple of weeks, and she is getting ready to plant some green beans, onions, and some other stuff. I let her handle that. I did get her 3 cases of canning jars, and plenty of lids. I also bought some salt, sugar, flour and cornmeal. I’ve also been trying to trade a fellow for a Kimber pistol, and he’s down to $900 dollars + some trade items, but I want it cheaper than that, so I got to be patient. I always wanted a Kimber, just never wanted to pay the price for one. I’m working on it.
Village Idiot:
I thought your loads were on the hot side so I looked at a couple of my Reloading Manuals. The Speer Manual #12 lists the max for a 200 gr. 45 ACP at 7.3 grains. The max for 240 gr. 44 Mag is 10.3 grains. I know these manuals are lawyer oriented, but I’ve cracked a few barrels in my time and just hope you stay safe. Cos
cosmo, that’s the load I worked up in order to get 1000 fps out of the .45 acp round. It’s a tiny bit heavy, as the 7.3 gr. gets about 980 fps. I just make sure I don’t get any extra powder in the cases. I have a good, strong, all-steel pistol, and I’ve always pushed the limit a little bit. The .44 magnum is hot, but it’s one I’ve worked up over the years. I don’t advise anyone else to try those loads. It’s something you have to work up to and feel comfortable with. The .45 wasn’t too bad, but that .44 load kicks like a mule out of my 4″ pistol. I was shooting out into some woods, and I saw a small tree fall a couple of seconds after I shot. LMAO at that.
Village:
If they still do Magna-porting, try that on the .44. The recoil on my Smith 629 was reduced by about a third. Cos. (Also, I chop down trees with my chain saw…. LOL)
Villagea, that’s a hot load I love it! Where did you pick up the 200 gr bullets? I have boxes of 185 gr jhp and ball bullets and looking forward to reload them one day.
I figure those will scream out of the barrel lol.
Jarhead, I got the 200 gr. bullets at my local gunshop. They have a large reloading department, with lots of different powders and bullets. I looked at the 185 gr. bullets, and I might get some of them, but I’m leaning toward trading for some 225 or 240 gr. next time I have enough trade goods.
j, testing testing 1,2.
River, lima Charley lol
Yep, I get the message.
Jarhead, do you have the 185 gr. Speer Gold Dot hollow points? That’s the most common brand we see here, but I’ve been hearing a little bit about a company called Montana Gold, or something like that. Or maybe thats the bullet. Wonder if you’ve tried them.
Village, my factory 185 gr are Cor-Bon and my 230 gr are Speer Gold Dot.
The FMJ bullets in bulk for reloading are from Hornady. Those I got for a great price, the owner said no one wanted them so he sold them to me at his cost.
I bought the Cor-Bon because 1150 ft/s screams on a hiking trip running into 2 legged predatory animals or zombies in a barn lol.
VI,
I’ve had good results buying bullets from these folks: http://wideners.com/
j, was losing my replies earlier for some reason…..
River, sometimes I have to refresh the page to find them. Is that what you are dealing with?
j, negative, they just disappear into the netherworld. working now i guess….
Cosmo, LAPD SWAT is now issued the Kimber after all the years of rebuilding WW II production 1911s that the armorer had to turn into match pistols and old school lights attached to the trigger guard. I think that is a solid testimony.
I have a springfield, no problems with it. I also have a Ruger P90 that is a solid workhorse but may sell or trade towards another G21 or Kimber.
Jarhead 03:
My oldest son who now is almost 21, shot my Kimber when he was about 16. He IMMEDIATELY said it was his when I die! ROTFL….. It’s called a Custom Target, blued and simply perfect in my opinion. As to the Springfield, King’s Gun Works turned it into a sweet weapon with a 4# trigger for a small cost but a big wait. From what I’ve read on gun sites, Kimber seems to have had issues with production. I’d go with a G21 if I wanted another .45. I went for the smaller G30 and G36 when Kali passed the 10 round limit. The G36 is how a weapon should feel in a person’s hand. Just my 2 cents. Cos
kimbers have come down in price a lot, check gunbroker.com and others. i wouldn’t even pay 900 for it. springfield and para-ordnance make very good .45′s for less. of course if you own a colt already, you have the best:) jmho.
riverrider:
I think it boils down to individual weapons. I’ve had a 70 series Gold Cup rear sight fall off on the 7th round. I’ve had a Springfield 1911A1 that wouldn’t fire two rounds in a row without a stovepipe. My Kimber has never had a problem, nor have my Glocks. (I bought my sons Glocks and Smith 686′s.) Cos
TODAY is Samuel Colt’s birthday!!!
A great day, and man, indeed!
Yes, he was a great man. I wish we had more like him today.
Hey riverrider, this is an Ultra CDP-II, which is little bit more than some Kimbers. I checked on gunbroker and the price is somewhere around $1050-1100. If I can get the guy down to $800 + some deal sweeteners like reloaded ammo, some knives I got used at a great price, or something along those lines I hope to make the deal. If not, I have 2 Colt Government models to go along with my Combat Commander. I ain’t hurting. I just wanted the Kimber for concealed carry, as I’m using a 4″ Model 629 or my Combat Commander right now. Thanks for the advice.
the thing about Kimbers is with the sights and triggers that come with them they are cheaper then buying a lesser gun and customizing them.Except maybe with the hi end kimber customs.
vi, go for it! nice one.
Great week on the home front:
canned 24 pints of meatballs in sauce
smoked a large meatloaf, cut into serving portions . put up in food saver bags and froze, (next time I’m going to try canning the meatloaf)
purchased the following:
fishing tackle, discounted
more oil and filters for all vehicles and gennie, trying to beat the price increase.
ordered LED lights to install (going to see if the electric saving is worth what the lights cost, will let ya’ll know)
started some celery, thanks Gayle!!
Thrift stores were a bust for canning jars, but I did get 3 cooling racks, and some small cookie sheets to use in my summer kitchen
planted garlic, purchased some seeds for the garden.
Talked to MIL, still a hold out, but FIL is my gardening partner so he’s on board. FIL is rebuilding he old diesel pu.
Doing some maintenance around the house, normal type stuff, just trying to keep the old place in better shape, just in case.
Keep the faith, and keep on prepping!!
Texas Nana,
I bought four more packages of celery to dehydrate and I’ve got the celery butts soaking in water. The two I planted earlier in the week are taking off.
I would be interested to hear about how you can meatloaf. Do you mix up the loaf and raw pack it?
I canned another 9 pints of pork today. I got the jars in, canner sealed up and up to temperatures and then realized I forgot to put salt in the jars. So I had to depressurize the canner, take the jars out, open the jars, throw away the lids and then start over.
Meatloaf! Can we say dog food? Don’t can it raw! I still haven’t braved opening another fruit jar and placing it in the oven to see if I can make the meatloaf I canned raw eatable. Gracie Dog may be eating well!
Judy, another one,
I have raw packed chicken breast and pork loin in my pressure canner with great success. Why not meatloaf?
It did not come out of the canner like what you and I think of as meatloaf. I have been researching the subject and from what I’m reading everyone makes patties and lightly fries it. Then they pack the patties into the wide-mouth jars and cover with a thin gravy or tomato sauce. I think the meatballs I did that way (frying and packed in beef broth) are mushy. However the last batch of meatball I drained, placed on a rack in the oven and baked for about 30 minutes in a 300 degree oven turned out much better. They were firmer and didn’t have a funny mouth feel.
I raw packed chicken breast and pork loin and we really liked it. Then I tried meatloaf. No thanks! Do up one jar and see what you think. You might like it better than we did.
Oh and one other thing don’t dry pack meats because after a time I lost the seal on some jars that I didn’t get full. They were about 2 inches from the top.
I am in such awe of what each and everyone of you do. I have been reading here for about a year and so whether you know it or not, I feel a family pride in all of this. Even when I do write, it is really not my nature to do so unless there is a chord that is struck. Conmaze wrote of making an order with Zaycon and I have also done this.This is the 1st time for me. Next month I have signed up to receive a 40 lb.box of 93/7% ground beef, which I will be splitting with my daughter. I plan to freeze a bunch of 1 lb. packages, cook a bunch with chopped onions and seasonings, and am also going to try a portion of making “hamburger rocks.” The recipe calls for frying it, draining the fat, dumping the meat in a colander, rinsing it with hot water, wiping out the pan, frying it up again with desired seasonings, draining again and placing on sheets of the dehydrator for 6-8 hrs. I spent all of last year dehydrating almost everything else, so I need a new challenge. Prep, Prep, Prep!!!
Cat,
I have done the hamburger rocks. I only did a couple of pounds to try it and they worked out pretty darned good! I did it just as you described above and then foodsaved them. I’m hoping the hamburger is next on our Zaycon delivery schedule here so I can do more of the rocks. My DD makes a real mean meatloaf so a few months ago I had her mix up a big batch and I canned all of it. I think Zaycon Foods rocks!
And Gayle, she adds oatmeal to the meatloaf mix!
Conmaze,
Any chance you will post the recipe? How did you can the meatloaf?
I checked out the Zaycon Foods website. But I don’t like the fact that they don’t list their prices up front–makes me think they are not competitive.
Gayle,
You have to register to see the prices on Zaycon. The skinlesss/boneless chicken breasts (which are huge, by the way) are $1.79/pd. I don’t remember the price on the hamburger or bacon, but it was less than what I find at the grocer and the quality is very good.
DD would only share the ingredients for the meatloaf: ground beef, of course, onion, garlic, egg, oatmeal, bbq sauce or ketchup, worcesteshire sauce, salt and pepper, sometimes dijon mustard and sometime cheese (not if canned).
To can, just put the raw mix in the jar, pack it in tight and leave a dent or divet in the center with your thumb as a spot for the grease to collect. I know, sounds nasty. Then you process as normal – whatever pressure your elevation requires, 75 minutes for pints and 90 minutes for quarts.
Use wide mouth jars only or it won’t be able to slip out of the jar. Just slice the meatloaf and reheat in the frying pan or microwave. Makes the perfect sized piece for a meatloaf sandwich!
Oops, forgot to add the egg to the mix. This sounds like just a normal meatloaf mix so I think she’s holding out on me with some secret ingredient. I’ll try to wear her down and get it out of her.
Conmaze,
That’s similar to my recipe: ground beef, onion, green pepper, dry onion soup mix, egg, bread crumbs, garlic and season salt and season pepper.
I have some wide mouth jars and I think I will try this. The pork I did turned out great.
Conmaze and Gayle, Thanks for the vote of confidence! The price for us is $3.30/lb, which only a year or 2 ago I would have gagged at because the price then was at a $1 or so. But for 93/7% it is close to $4/lb now and it has been about 6 mos. since I have bought hamburger. This price was the deciding factor and I need me some tacos! I will be using the foodsaver bags also. I am taking it for granted that you keep these in the freezer–am I right in assuming this? Thanks, the other Cat! (it’s nice to have 2 cats in the house; good for rat protection)
Cat,
Try chicken tacos. They are excellent and you can used home canned chicken. I have hamburger in my freezer that I bought for $1.48 lb. back in August. I am thinking I will make some meatloaf and can it. We love meatloaf sammies.
Cat,
You can certainly put your hamburger rocks in the freezer to keep them for a long time. But if there is power failure, don’t worry. From what I’ve read, it will last for a year or two with no refrigeration. Haven’t had mine long enough to test out that theory! Hopefully, we will all still be around in two years still posting on what we did to prep this week and I will try some out and post the results for ya’ll heehee
I’m getting my first Zaycon order also. They’re finally coming to CA! I’m also getting the ground beef and splitting it with my daughter. I don’t know about adding oatmeal to this ground beef because there is so little fat (93/7). We always added oatmeal or breadcrumbs to our meatloaf when I was a kid, and I still do when using 85/15. Does your daughter add it to very lean ground beef? Am curious how it turned out. I love any thing that stretches meat.
Well I decided to learn how to overdye embroidery floss. Well there ain’t much out there on the subject so will go ahead and do what I can and see how it works. Think I will try coffee first. Don’t have to worry about contaminating or having special vessels for that. I have a lot of odd floss that over dying will help more than hurt.
I got into my teeny tiny closet that I have my needlework supplies and such in and have to get the energy to clean it out to where it doesn’t kill me to find stuff in it.
I managed to take my extra floss and bag it (not seperated by color) and put it in the bottom of an old boot box. Then put the things that are almost done or need work in the top of the box and neatened that up some.
Then sat and looked at my old crochet books. Need to do it again, but for now have the patterns out I may do in the near future.
Somehow have misplaced a lot of stuff which irritates me to no end.
I did order some more embroidery floss, I am with it like gun owners are with bullits, never have enough. And bought some crochet thread.
The ultra plus to all this is I found out I have almost 3 sets of steel crochet hooks. Must have been a needlework prepper before I became a SHTF prepper and thought there would be a shortage on them.
But all of this planning got me out of the discouragement cycle.
For actual preps bought 1 jar of Peanut Butter to replace the one I just ate.
Good news is I think the dope smakin’ bunch in that tiny garage next to me moved out or it seems they have. Maybe after that City official guy came around and took that poll about the city and I pointed to the place next door at more than several of the questions someone notified them to move.
The actual news is as depressing as ever. It is almost like that phrase in that song “I was so far down , had to reach up to touch the ground”.
The news will put the skids to a good day if ya let it for sure.
Well now that I have bored everyone will shut up.
Ellen, I wish all my “missing” hooks would show up. I KNOW I had 3 sets of steel and 3 sets of aluminum hooks and I am down to just a few sizes of each.
I like the term needlework prepper, it fits me too. The last time I went thru my stash, I was amazed at the amount of yarn, embroidery floss, and #10 cotton I had, along with the “novelty” yarn. I seriously thought about getting rid of my odds and ends, but decided I could find a use for it.
Glad to hear your neighbors are being quiet or are gone.
TG and Ellen,
Why not glue a magnet to the outside of your craft bin (assuming it’s plastic) and your metal hooks will be secured.
TG
Yeah it has been quite the last 5 or 6 days and it is as scary as when car doors were slamming all day and night.
I collected needlework supplies way before I knew I was or what prepping meant.
I am thankful that I did as it will not take much to get me up to over done with my stockpile for now and when the SHTF. I also have to buy new sewing thread, even though I have a lot it is probably rotton by now. So will try to freshen that up. I think I will start buying up yardage for clothes, can’t hurt.
Gayle
That is a good idea. If I had a craft/needlework/just plain prepping room and the place to screw it to one of those magnetic knife holders would do.
Gayle, TG and Ellen: a recommendation for holding the crochet hooks is use some elastic and sew the dimension where they slide in snug like a bullet holder you see on belts and slings. Or a pencil pouch with elastic pen/pencil holders.
My friends mom used her husbands old rifle sling for a 223 rifle, cut them in sections to hold them.
Jarhead 03
Well I found an old plastic zippered bag and threw them in that. I know way back in the past the women I worked with had cigar tubes they put their needles in.
But alas I am not close to a tobacco shop.
Ellen, I’m not a crocheter, but Costco recently had some vanilla beans in a jumbo test tube like container. If you were going to try making your own extracts, maybe the tube would work for your hooks.
Lantana
Will look for the vanilla beans.
Thank you
About gas prices: In my area, Walmart & HEB offer discounts on gas if you load a shopping/gift card to use to buy it. It’s not a lot…just a few pennies per gallon…but it’s worth it for me, especially since there’s no charge for the gift card. I think Walmart is 3 cents per, and HEB was 11 as a promo for awhile. Keep all you sharp wolfpack eyes open for these discounts.
Also, Kroger here let’s you have a substantial discount on gas (at their pumps or Shell’s) after purchasing a certain amount of groceries. I’ve done it twice, and found it to be a cumbersome issue at the Shell station (there isn’t a Kroger with gas pumps in this area). But, it was 10 cents off a gallon, so I gave it a try. The other thing was that Shell gas is higher…just about the 10 cents…than other gas in the area.
I imagine we will see other gas promos soon too.
Oh yeah: I also do online surveys (have for about 8 years) and have gotten gas cards as rewards. Definitely worth it now.
MtWoman,
My DW buys most of her gas on the Wal-Mart gift card. It is only about $0.03 per gallon, but back around Christmas they had a special deal for at least a few weeks that gave you $0.10 per gallon, which is what got the DW to start the practice. Sometimes it’s the little things that gets you going.
Did taxes this week and thanks to our wonderful leader sold enough stuff at a lose that I don’t owe any taxes.. Was in target and they had a bunch of flashlights marked 50% off so picked up a couple of energizer 3 led, hand crank and solar powered handhelds for the BOB and GHB for $11. They even had some small maglights in pink and thought of Lint, maybe we all need to go back and buy one to send to him! Got in some Augason Foods stuff ordered , took longer this time wonder if they are getting busier. Picked up a couple of those blue 7 gal water jugs at wal-mart to help get rid of some of my smaller bottles I have stored . And THANK YOU MAMA J!! for the tip on Zennioptical, ordered three pair of glasses for $35 shipped, they had a buy 2 get one free so ordered two regular pairs and one bifocal, so now I will have 3 pairs of bifocals and 5 pairs of regular glasses in the current prescription so I will be able to have a current pair of both in the BOB and GHB and still have a couple of both for at home. Will let everyone know how they are when I get them in, shipping is est for two weeks for my strong prescription. Need more junk silver but sure want the price to go down some but it sure does not seem to want to. Also picked up 5 lbs of butter at the local store for $1.49 a pound, and some peanut butter for 2/$3 don’t know why they had these prices unless they made up this add 6 months ago but hey good price to stock up on.
george
I buy a few dollars face value of junk silver every week with overtime money (unfortunately it will be a few months before I get any more of that). I wouldn’t count on it going down (not much anyway), if anything I’m betting on it taking off to the upside. A dollar or so either way will really mean nothing in the long run.
We had a great prep week this week. (got taxes back, so abnormally good).
For learning preps:
I received my immulsion/stick blender. So I made 4 batches of soap. 2 goat’s milk and one castille. With the stick blender they traced at 20 minutes!!!! (instead of an hour with the hand blender). The canolla oil batch took 40 minutes to trace but it was also a bigger batch. All smell awesome (drakkar, wild cherry, orange/vanilla and apple-cinnamon) and cut and curing. Stick blender gets 5 wolf paws And 5 happy howls!
Started one batch vanilla extract with absolute vodka and one with smirnoff. I wrote the type of beans I used on the bottles too. We’ll see if I can taste a difference in 2 months when they are ready. The vanilla beans from ebay were awesome. Also threw one in a quart of sugar for vanilla sugar.
Made my first batch of yogurt. The instruction were for completion at 8 hours. hmmmm. Guess my house is chilly, it took 2 days. I consulted the internet and my Country Living book which all said 2 to 3 days was even ok. It took mine (67 degrees) 2 days. I figured out how to do it better next time which will shorten it. Turned out awesome! We’ve have smoothies for 3 days in a row. Definitely will become something I do on a regular basis. Healthy probiotics and all.
Also started a sauerkraut. Put that downstairs where the fire is going to keep the temperature warmer. We’re going to try that tonight. I know 3 days is pretty short, its fermenting away, but from what I’ve read it’s fine. I don’t want it too strong. It’s only one head too, hopefully the family likes it because it’s a healthy food too.
Other preps:
books; The Makers Diet—-eh.
More with Less by Longacre—-good for basic recipes. I’ve picked some out I’m going to try. I love reading basic, normal, everyday foods cookbooks and this is a good one for that.
Got another wind up flashlight, 5 gal bag solar shower ( young DD actually grabbed that and said we needed it. I’m sure that’s “normal” for a 13 year old to find a solar shower bag important! mmmm-hmmm!)
Bought a few #10 Augason farms cans from walmart, 26lb bucket red wheat, 10lb bucket reg. rolled oats. 25lb AP flour and 25lb sugar.
Plus ordered the 6pack freeze dried meat from my shelf reliance consultant at 157.59 with tax! Best price I’ve ever seen on freeze dried meat.
Didn’t get the rocket stove yet cause I spent that $$ on the meat.
Good week. Now back to normal. Hope this isn’t the last year the guberment sends out tax returns. Just kinda waiting for them to claim those fore themselves as well.
I look forward to seeing everyone else’s preps this week. Skills are just as important and tangible products and skills can’t be taken away!
I have noticed a higher level of ‘concern’/'anxiety’ (code orange?) in the tone of peoples posts. Is it just me? or are others kind of sensing a heightened awareness of something? Or are we feeding off each other’s “concerns?” Hope I stated that the way I meant for it to come across.
v, i’ve noticed it here and across the web. and across the bar. it’s like a sleeping giant starting to stretch and squirm as it wakes up. myself, i’m wide open like theres no tomorrow. i may end up broke money wise but i’ll be able to eat, etc. for a very long time. i guess we just woke up a little early.
Vienna….WOW…what a week! You make me hungry!! :)
And as for me, I definitely think things are accelerating. You can start with the rise in gas price, and shelves being found empty or almost empty of some basic things, and rise in food prices. These things are real in my life. Have noticed these changes for about 2 months now.
One of the things I think about is how grateful I am for this connection (MD’s blog) and what it will be like without it. At some point, I imagine our cable internet will have to go. :(
Things are definitely accelerating, and I think we see it and feel it.
Vienna, I have also noticed people seem to be more concerned, I do hope it is just that we are feeding off of each other.
I dont know if you would be interested/willing to do a post on soap making but I would be very interested. That is one thing I really want to learn. I have ‘googled’ how to do it, and come up with many recipes, which is great and all, but I would really like to learn how to formulate my own soaps. Sticking to a recipe is fine for the first couple of batches I try, but I would want to start experimenting quickly.
Also, thank you for your input on my comment above. I think I will have a friend over to help, at least for the first go round, in case the fumes are too much as the DH is at work more than at home.
Vienna,
I have made the same observation. I think the sticker shock at the gas pump has a lot of people on edge. And as someone mentioned earlier, if folks will fight over a pair of (ugly) sneakers, what is going to happen when the can’t afford food for their kids?
Good going on the yogurt and the sauerkraut. Those things are on my “to-do” list but there’s just not enough hours in the day.
Vienna,
I don’t think it’s just you. I’m feeling a little Code Orange myself. I’ve been seeing it in others for a couple of months now. I think it’s finally slapping everyone in the face with the start of the gas prices. Everyone knows the ripple effect this is going to have so I think they’re waking up.
There are those of us who prep and I think that’s why most of the items I’m looking for are low or out of stock. In a way, that’s good because I know I’m not the only one prepping.
Most folks that have had their heads in the sand may feel like they should do something but won’t even know what to stock up on other than canned food. These are probably the same folks that are expecting this to be a short-term inconvenience and the government is going to step in with aid.
I lived through Hurricane Wilma. The eye went right over my neighborhood. No power for almost a month. As soon as the storm subsided the news crews were out and the people were screaming into the microphones “Where is FEMA? This is another Katrina! We need water! We all going to die. I have a baby and I have no milk!” These people heard the same “be prepared” announcements on tv and radio as I heard and chose not to be responsible. Besides, we had safe running tap water the entire time the power was out so what’s with screaming for water?!
Bottom line…no matter how many of us prep, we’re still a minority and it’s going to get ugly.
Vienna, those solar showers come in handy for camping trips and if the water/gas/power goes out.
Fill it, point it towards the sun and it will warm up, you can speed up the process by using mylar, aluminum foil or a mirror to reflect more light on it.
It can also be used for washing dishes with warm or hot water as well.
Vienna…yes, have noticed on other sites that people are angry, anxious etc – definately – there has been a ‘change’ recently.
Which shelf reliance consultant did folks use? I see some references to a lady named Cynthia, though I’m a bit uneasy using some random person. Has anyone contact shelf reliance to see if they will match the pricing?
The Pepper,
Vienna (Soggy Prepper) orders through Cynthia regularly. I put and email into her and got a business-like reply. If you contact Shelf Reliance to see if they will match the price, please let us know.
I haven’t posted in a while — but wanted to let you all know that my husband and I are Shelf Reliance consultants and that if you find a lower advertised price for Shelf Reliance foods (ie Costco) that the company will match the price. If you have any questions, please visit our website and we will be happy to help you with anything that you need.
Here is the link if anyone was having trouble with it:
http://www.shelfreliance.com/eatthrivesurvive
You can e-mail us at eatthrivesurvive@gmail.com
Prepper Girl,
The sale price on the case of meat does not come up on the link. Is there some kind of code that needs to be put in to get the sale price?
Gayle — you can only order through a consultant — you have to call or e-mail them to place the order. It is a ‘back office’ special. If you would like to order you can send us an e-mail @ eatthrivesurvive@gmail.com and we will call you to complete the order.
Thanks,
Diane
http://www.shelfreliancesanantonio.com/special_deal_packages.html
This is the link that Gayle posted last week that shows these super duper Un-advertised Thrive food sales. Like PrepperGirl says you Have to speak to a Shelf Reliance consultant for these super duper prices. You won’t see them on the website. They are “secret” ssshhhh.
Order through PrepperGirl or my gal Cynthia to get these price. The gal I use, her email is
homesweethomeq@hotmail.com or phone 541-409-3900.
I ordered my meat pack the 22nd in the evening and got it yesterday. Labeled, put away, smiled! I don’t know how long the sale lasts, great prices though if you can afford it right now.
Vienna,
Thank you for posting the contact information for Cynthia. I just got off the phone with her. I ordered a case of freeze dried meat and a case of freeze dried cheese and the total with shipping was $313 and change. And I suggested she check out the Wolf Pack. So we may have another new person. I can’t believe the price on the meat and cheese.
Thanks to Jarhead03′s recommendation, I picked up the $120 night vision monocular at Big5. WOW! I live in Lost Angeles, so can’t tell how far it focuses, but at 50 or so yards it is simply amazing. Thanks Jarhead! The only productive thing I did was refill my 5 gallon generator can with gas and PRI-G. Gas went to $4.36 overnight. Ouch! Cos
Cosmo, no problem. I take my night vision out to the mountains or you may try some of the hills around your area but you know the routine and what to bring with you if you do. The 2 legged animals can be on the prowl. I take the nephew and nieces to the mountains and let them look at the stars, planes (at 35,000 feet)wild life and shooting stars.
I was at Starbucks with a coworker and he started to complain about gas over $4 a gallon. My response was “you complain about $4 gas but don’t mind paying $26 a gallon for coffee at $5 a 24oz cup” he never looked at it that way.
Its why I bought a 4 cylinder econo car last year, my gas and car payment combined is cheaper than the gas to fill my SUV.
LOL! Jarhead, I used to do Executive Protection also. Combine that with my Wyoming heritage and I am always at condition Orange. (Thanks for the heads up though.) I have never been in a Star Bucks. Are you a Hollywood Star?! Cos
cosmo, my cousin grew up around Douglas, Wy. and I did quite a bit of antelope and mule deer hunting on his ranch over the years. It got too cold for his old blood, and he sold out and moved to Gulf Shores, Al. a few years ago. But I well remember my first trip there. We set up camp one evening, and during the night one of those storms came through and our camp ended up about a quarter of a mile away caught by a fence. Temp dropped about 40 degrees and the wind was blowing about 70 mph. We spent the rest of the night in our vehicles swaying this way and that. We made camp coffee the next morning and it was the best coffee I ever had, grounds and all. I killed a nice pronghorn on that hunt. I have real good memories of Wyoming.
Village Idiot:
Weather in Wyoming is interesting isn’t it? I always traveled with gear in my truck to handle changes. Stuff like tire chains, a snow shovel, a tow rope, jumper cables, a rifle in my rifle rack, sleeping bag, gloves, etc…. It has been interesting in Kalifornia. Folks here don’t even prep for quakes! My wife and sons often make fun of me for being prepared for “The Big One”. Antelope are a challenge to shoot but make great chili. Cos
My stepdad logged in Wyoming for a bit He told me that it gets colder there than in Montana. He said it was too colld and moved back to California.
Cosmo, I’m not a big Starbucks fan but my gf, many friends and coworkers are. At Union Station or Fig and 7th its been the RP for coworkers lol.
Cosmo, if we meet up we will make it a Denny’s, McDonald’s or Coffee shop, if paying $4.27 a gallon wasn’t bad enough that’s a cup of coffee at Starbucks lol don’t want you going into sticker shock.
Jarhead:
We will meet up. Life has bit me a wee bit lately. You are good people and I’d like to buy you a cup. Cos
Which monocular did you end up picking up? Can you post a link to the product?
Prepper:
Sorry, I’m computer illiterate. Big 5 had the Famous Trails Marauder on sale for $109 plus tax vs. $199 plus tax. The first
one I bought was defective, the one I received the second time
is pretty impressive. (The only time I’ve looked through a night
scope was in 1971. Things have moved ahead a bit since then.)
This is more like a rifle scope but in green. The illuminator
doesn’t impress me outdoors but in my house at night, it’s good. Cos
The Prepper go online to big5.com I believe it is. They have them on sale all the time. Its mostly GEN II some GEN III (cost more) Russian manufactured put in a civilian friendly packaging/shell. I have a couple originally when camping/hiking I can check on bumps in the night without a flashlight. I break them out during power outages.
Are you referring to the Night Owl 5? That is the only NV monocular I see on their site:
http://www.big5sportinggoods.com/outdoors.html
Prepper:
Look at my post on the 26′th. Cos
I also just picked one up from Bushnell via Amazon for approximatley the same price.
http://www.bushnell.com/products/other-products/night-vision/nightwatch/260224W/
3 weeks ago had too much going on with youngest daughter got into some trouble that going to be on going for a while. Last week I posted twice and they both apparently went poof. Gonna give this week ago and see if I show up.
Last weekend I started seeds in the greenhouse.
12 Cauliflower
12 broc
6 ea of 3 types tomatoes
4 types of lettuce
radishes
6 hot peppers
6 bell peppers
Pansies
Nastrutums
Turned compost
150 rounds of 9mm FREE from father in-law
Free 9mm for our rifle.
And didn’t feel the 4.0 quake we had 70 miles from us but 13 other states did.
Free clip for our 9mm is what I trying to say. And all the seeds but the flowers are from Baker seed.
Hope everyone is getting their acts together time is counting down- this week I got a small clothes washer that you crank to tumble the clothes did jeans and shirt socks in a load works well enuff , need to find a old ringer to squeeze water out to dry faster- picked up #4 12ga shells at Wal-Mart 100 pack for $30. Also a little more food for the storage. Was at Value Village got a few books- Backpacking the Kelty Way and also found some nice heavy sweaters and hiking type coats. If anyone in Ontario wishes to meet up let me know would like to find others in my area— thanks M.D. for the site
I’m close,
email me and we will do Tea and a chat.
the need for others of like mind and instincts to get together is growing.
WRO…so right re your last sentence…am opening up more to others in my ‘group’…we are openly discussing things, options – and ‘what if’. However, my ‘plan b’ is not mentionied to anyone but my DD/SIL…just in case…
It is definately time – how many people left it too late to prepare…
Legislation that has/is being passed on my side of the pond, the TSA airport scanners – no option to opt-out, and other things I mentioned a few weeks back…
these matters are out in the open and I am planning – probably to no avail…however -not just going to take it without some action on my part and giving it my best shot while I still can.
Is this coming across sounding a little/lot like I’m paranoid???
Another good week. Welcome new members of the pack and prayers sent out to those requesting!
I had a long work week with 17 hours of overtime, can’t complain with the cost of gas its been extra hours on the work day instead of extra days but LA traffic is not affected by $4.07 to $4.15 a gallon that’s for sure. I tell everyone take public transportation so I can drive to work easier lol.
What I did to prep:
Safety prep:
1 boxes of N95 respirator masks
1 case XL nitrile exam grade gloves
2 disposable hooded coveralls including booties
2 safety glasses
1 face shield
Water prep:
1 case of 20oz bottled water
2 five gallon water bottles (water delivery type)
6 britta water filters
Filled up two 2L bottles with tap water
Tool prep:
1 pry bar for the GHB
2 box cutters with extra razors
2 rolls OD duct tape
1 roll caution tape (so many fun uses in Evac lol)
1 twelve pack of hyflex gloves
Food prep:
Put 20 pounds of rice after freezing in 2L bottles with O2 absorb packs.
1 case condensed milk
Variety of spices and seasonings
No firearms preps this week, but worked with the gun show purchases from last week.
I put on a new recoil buffer, twist on compensator, new recoil springs, US made firing pin and did my own trigger job on a trigger group and its nice and crisp so its going to be range tested soon with all the improvements. I know its not a tack driver but with all the work I’m doing its a better rifle than it was.
Have a great week
Whenever I get peeved at the traffic situation up here in the Bay Area I can always be thankful that I am not in the L.A. gridlock LOL! We used up all of our Safeway rewards recently at their pumps and had 3 tanks filled with .90 cents off per gallon. Now we are back to paying full rate. Great preps Jarhead and thanks for always sharing with others on this site.
I dragged hubby to Ace for their bag sale. I bought one flat of canning jars, he bought another.
We also went second vehicle shopping and I learned that some 50cc road-legal scooters were too small for me, or perhaps just needed customization.
Lol, thanks to everyone who mentioned the Ace sale–I dragged my DH there too!
I went yesterday to our local Ace Hardware for the bag sale and when I got there, it was closed….as in gone out of business….closed the doors! Bummer! Now the closest one if they haven’t closed it too is about 10 miles away so with what gas costs, it wouldn’t have been worth the drive.
nuttbush…probably going to see more of that…and with fuel increasing – having to drive further just to get stuff from stores…all going to hit our wallets hard.
That is why I combined so much when I went to big smoke…not worth making a special trip just for some things…
Well, I didn’t get much purchasing done this week. Prepped some 38 Special cases for reloading. Gathered together the supplies to do, 38 Spec +P, 357 Mag, and some special 45 Colt.
I have a couple of guns that need to go to the range for function checks, and 5 or so that are going into the shop for upgrades.
Just got back from a “train-the-trainer” seminar for Sunday School Teachers. Good seminar, but I don’t particularly like flying and today’s weather was a good reason. Small commuter jet and high and gusting winds make for really bumpy landings. But I survived!
Keep you RADAR on and keep preppin!
I do have a recommendation request.
I am looking for a food ration that I can keep outside of my rotation, probably a 2-year cycle. Hopefully low on the sweetness and saltiness scale, and packaged for disasters of 24 hours or less. (In other words, nothing that will reveal 6 energy bars when opened.) Sweetness makes me sick, overmuch salt will just make my face contort.
Basically BOB food. Something that is edible if I’m using playground equipment to keep above a flood, and hopefully doesn’t increase my need for water.
Right now I’m not too bad off… A no-fuel or cooling emergency right now would probably have me drinking coconut milk and Ragu, or eating mushrooms and cold kidney beans out of the can. (Assuming I grab a can opener or metal saw.)
Kelekona,
If you have a tuna fish can and a bottle of rubbing alcohol, you can make a stove. Just drill holes in the side of the can to allow air to come in. Pour a bit of alcohol in the bottom and light. You could heat up those kidney beans!
kelekona,
breakfast – no cooking/heating required
use rolled oats as your base, then add any/all of the following for breakfast:
sultanas/currents
sesame seeds
almonds – or other raw unsalted nuts.
honey
rehydrated fruit – with the soak water
(I don’t drink milk, so I just add some water).
Lunch – some heating /cooking – serves 4 adults.
Rice as your base –
mix 2 tablespoons of dehydrated onion – rehydrate in one cup.
mix 1 tablespoon of dehydrated tomato – rehydrate in another cup.
one can salt-reduced spam
one can of salt-reduced baked beans
squirt of preferred sauce eg, ketchup/BBQ sauce (optional)
enough ghee to cook onion and not burn it.
discard or consume soak water from rehydrated onion/tomato.
method: heat cook pot – fry thinly sliced onion first till translucent, then add sliced tomato – cook till soft.
Add tin of spam – cubed
add tin of baked beans
add squirt of preferred tasty sauce.
add seasonings of choice if required.
stir and cook till flavours combined – 2 mins…pour over bed of rice…time from cooking to eating – 5 mins approx.
Or, omit rice, and eat with some dry crackers – eat out of cook-pot.
Dinner
either cooked rice/pasta as your base.
same as above – onion/tomato cooked, then add garlic powder.
Add 1 cup of rehydrated assorted vegetables – retain soak water.
Add 1 cup of rehydrated hamburger rocks – retain soak water.
Add 1 cup of rehydrated green peppers – retain soak water.
add 1 foil pack of taco seasoning.
add one can of red kidney bean or four bean mix.
sprinkle with tabasco sauce or preferred hot/spicy sauce.
cook till flavours combined…pour over rice/pasta.
rice /egg with soy sauce for breakfast.
in hot skillet pour beaten powdered eggs – let spread out all over pan – thinly…roll up , slice and mix with rice and sprinkle with salt-reduced soy sauce.
Or, one can of tuna/salmon tossed with rice, and sprinkled with fish sauce – then toss in one cup of rehydrated veges.
can also substitute any canned meats – corned beef, spam for hamburger rocks.
Can also reconstitute jerky. And you guys also have canned roast beef…
Keep some chia seeds in a small plastic screw top jar…add one teaspoon to 1/4 cup of water…let sit for 5-10 mins – drink…can eat/drink this 2-3 times during day.
I drink mine when I am working in garden from early morning to approx 2pm…as too hot to eat heavy food when doing heavy physical exertion.
I mix about 4 teaspoons in a glass of water – and place in fridge – and drink a few mouthfuls, followed by a large glass of water – as work progresses, as it is hot and sweaty work outdoors here.
hope that helped…
Want less cooking / prep work, but decent. I’m ordering Chia seeds soon since I heard so much about them.
Our museli recipe is “just add water” but has milk powder in it. Instant barley and oatmeal, and I think hubby’s teeth are good enough to chew it raw.
k, i use mre entrees from ee.
Look up how to make;
Bannock
Hard Tack
beef or turkey jerky
billtong – see South Africa
add in high protein jams
soldier fuel a Canadian company who has their product in Canadian Rations & maybe US rations?
foil pouches of fish, some are dated for over 10yrs, I picked some up at a dollar store for $1 each WallyWorld was selling them for $3 each (bought 25 of each flavour)
TVP
powdered soup – chicken-beef
angle hair pasta – easy to make better than those little ramen packs for taste and health
some Seasoning eg, taco, bbq rub etc for extra flavour
Hemp Hearts – Hemp Seeds
Honey Cakes with fortified with nuts and berries, packaged up in sealer = last up to 10yrs
Christmas Cake, it was designed to be able to be stored for up to 5yrs in paper alone for Troops in WWI
you can use Tuna Cans as stated above, stronger than pop cans,
get some solid fuel as well as some Methyl Hydrate 90% (denatured alcohol) or higher, repackage the mouth to make it even more airtight.
vac pack it all, put in Tyvec packages you can make yourself
Gun Tap/Tuck tape it all (Al Green eat your heart out on that one)
plus some regular BOB things
one of the most overlooked items is a small pair of pliers that can cut wire! That is a must.
P51 or a Canadian Can opener
The Canadian Version is over twice the height designed to be used in the Artic with mitts and gloves on, and just generally feels easier to use.
billtong – my own fault for not having NSFW filters activated. We do have some badly-spiced jerky hanging out in the freezer, I might try soaking a little of the next batch in vinegar.
Hardtack seems good if I cut it into small enough pieces. My teeth are softer than almonds, so basically I would need to suck on most crispy foods.
Christmas cake and Honey cake seem like foods that I would have sent in military care packages. (Home-made needs a name of someone who will trust your cooking.)
I did have some banquet chafing fuel, I think it is in the trunk. I should buy another package because it’s easier than a rubbing alcohol stove or I could probably refuel it with rubbing alcohol.
And I think I really want to replace the pliers I had on my keychain… I bent a part and passed them to a relative, now I’m having trouble finding a mini pair with a can opener.
The burners from the Fondue pots are great as well. some of the pots are very good, use a shroud around the base to keep the wind at bay and the flames high and concentrated.
kelekona…
how about a mix of
assorted dried fruit (apples, apricots, peaches etc,
assorted unsalted nuts,
assorted seeds – sort of a trail mix…
protein mixes/shakes.
or plain whey powder.
and chewable/dissolving vitamin C tablets.
happened on a link to this at a health site, health freedoms.org. the link on site stops at 1:21 so i looked it up(could be my crappy connection).
One of the most inspirational speeches in recorded history was given by a silent comedian by the name of Charlie Chaplin.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WibmcsEGLKo
pretty cool, thought some of the pack might like it. its at the end of some movie he did, video added but the speech is untouched. kinda updated video with now time stuff.
preps? case of diced chili style tomatoes marked down to 39 cents a can
replace some used soup
thats about it for the week, things are always tight at the end of the month with the bills about due.
hope everyone is doing good!
stay safe
cooolwoods,Thanks for the Youtube link.I sent it to alot of my friends.Makes alot of sense.Be Safe and God Bless You.
Hey everyone
For preps this week and probably the next two weeks I (wait for it)
Paid off the house and the wifes B.O.V. We are now DEBT FREE.
Ray
NorCal Ray!!!!! Woot Woot! I can’t even express how great that sounds!!!!! CONGRATULATIONS!!! (Did I use enough exclamation marks? Wait….do over…exclamation marks?!!!!! Now I have. heehee)
Congratulations!! That’s wonderful news!
wow and congrats and congrats again. that is one hell of an accomplishment. you going to throw a party. cant think of a better prep.
Super!!!!!! Congratulations to you and the wife.
CONGRATULATIONS!
Wow. That is fantastic, Ray. Congratulations!
so glad for you…debt free will be nice someday…I still seem to never be able to put aside enough or pay enough with Uncle Sugar to get ahead…although what we will owe extra this year is 1/3 of what we ended up with last year…maybe I get to retire NEXT year…I work, to pay extra taxes, so I have to work a little more…to pay more taxes…yikes…
As for prepping, lets see…first we went to a memorial for one of our local firefighter Paramedics that passed away…it was an all day event with several local agencies sending their units to support our department and the family…makes one think!
After this, we filled our 100 gallon tanks and treated it.
purchased case of butter, 2 cased of garbage bags (100 ct)
2 cases of tp, 50 lbs. of black beans, 50 lbs. of red beans, 40 lbs. of quinoa to rotate with our older stock…purchased 2 cords of madrone for next years wood needs… purchased 50 lbs of chuck, processed and frozen ( purchased 3 cases of quart jars in case we would have to process the frozen stuff)…and 20 lbs of rib eye, and one case of whole chickens which I processed into the freezer as well…and purchased 20 lbs of bay shrimp…
Ray!!!! That is great!! I am glad to hear that. Steve
norcal ray…congratulations…after the bad guys broke in and took some of your stuff…was worried for you.
but you just kept plodding on…wonderful news…just goes to show…stayed focused on your plan…and excellent result.
A big Congrats to you and the wife. That is awesome news.
Well done–and congratulations!
FANTASTIC that you were able to pay of the house and vehicle. Wish I could do the same.
NCR, congratulations on both!!
Congratulations Ray!! That’s fantastic. What a feeling that must be! :)
So very happy for you and the wife! congratulations!! That is a huge prep!
Great work buddy!Congratulations on being debt free!
NorCalRay,
Heads up: Someone using the screen name “Ray” just left bit of an unpleasant email on the bacteria in the gut post. I wanted to give you the heads up that someone else is using the name “Ray”.
Gayle,
Thank You for the heads up. It wasn’t me that left it though.
Have been looking trying to find it but can’t seem to locate where it is.
Ray
Ray,
I see you found it.
Yes and I will keep my screen name but am changing the way I sign off at the close. See below. I don’t want people thinking that I would write something as rude as that.
NCR
Ray,
You are known by the Pack. None of us would confuse you for a troll. I just wanted to give you the heads up in case someone new got confused.
Thanks everyone. It is an awesome feeling. Won’t be much in the way of preps for the next couple of weeks as I spent alot ofmoney this month already.
I will be working in the garden though.
Ray
Ray,
Welcome to the club. I don’t think there’s a much better feeling.
Thanks Ohio Prepper,
You’re correct. There is NO better feeling.
NCR
Nor Cal Ray!! Good for you.
My BiL came home today, new heart valve last Mon and home the next Sat. Sore as he** but mobile and so far a great attitude. Thanks to everyone for the prayers, he is a great person and well worth saving.
My job was terrible this week, I don’t even want to complain or even think about it.
I did put away another 25lbs of rice, some more canned meat and a deal on 500 rds of .45 ammo.
Anybody store lintels? Where do you find them in quantity?
Hope everybody has a great week.
rr,
Do you mean lentils? If so, I store mine for long term in mylar – some with O2 absorber and some without. If you store with O2 absorber you won’t be able to sprout them and I love sprouts (o: You can also dry can them. I have some in 1/2 gallon canning jars and the lid is sealed with my foodsaver. That’s what I use for everyday storage in my kitchen and I refill the jars from the mylar.
As far as buying in bulk, I haven’t found a source for them yet. I just pick up a few pounds each week. If anyone else in the pack knows a source, I’d love to hear about it too!
By the way, same story with wheat – if O2 absorber is used, it won’t sprout and you won’t be able to plant it to grow more. The wheat will store almost as long without the absorber as with it.
recoveringidiot,
Sorry, I put that post to rr – don’t know why. No recovery here, I continue to be a full-blown idiot.
By the way, I also wanted to say I’m happy and relieved your BIL’s surgery went well. I’m praying the recovery goes just as well.
Lentils for sale at Pleasant Hill Grains in Nebraska…a pail of 42lbs. runs about 108…check on the internet
I have had good luck with this company for years…and their product is clean.
You can order at my website. Lentils stored in 6 gallon bucket in mylar with oxygen absorber and a gamma lid on the bucket is 67.oo plus shipping.
fell in love with lentils a few months ago, cant help with bulk but walmart normally has them for 98 cents a pound i buy a couple each time i go.
My grocery store has a large bulk section and so I buy my lentils there. The Indian store where I buy my ghee also has a lot of different kinds of lentils. I prefer the brown and make a mean lentil soup.
So good to hear that your BIL is home and doing well.
Recovering Idiot,
Check out Indian stores–ask for dal.
restaurant supply houses usually supply lentils in 25 lb. bags…or you can purchase these thru a local food coop…healthfood store, also check some of the companies that sell beans
recovering idiot…good to hear your BIL is doing well…praise the Lord…
If you mean lentils – I have vac sealed some and also packed them in mylar bags/O2 absorbers.
The orange/red ones cook in same time as white rice, approx 15 mins, and no need for pre-soaking and these are a great protein and fibre source…
The other colours – varied, take much longer to cook, and require soaking, like dried beans. cheers.
welcome back BiL. Don’t know you but so glad your here.
Lentils – Bulk:
http://beprepared.com/
6 gal super-pails 44lbs, qty 1-3 $71, qty 4+ $64
From Wiki:
With about 30% of their calories from protein, lentils have the third-highest level of protein, by weight, of any legume or nut, after soybeans and hemp. Canada, India and Turkey are the top three lentil producing countries.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lentil
Then Jacob gave Esau bread and pottage of lentiles; and he did eat and drink, and rose up, and went his way: thus Esau despised his birthright. Genesis 25:34
I get my lentils in bulk from local grainery here in Idaho.They are locally grown so they are cheap!I don’t have info on any links for you but I will try to post some ASAP.
Took $50K out of our IRA’s early to purchase new 4×4 as mine is now 14 years old and on it’s last legs. Plan to buy 1/10 oz gold coins with what is left over after paying taxes ect.
It’s a dam shame, we worked hard all of our lives to put enough away for a good retirement, only to have The Fed/Obama print massive amounts of fiat and devalue all we have.
Know this, Gas is not going up in price, your dollar is loosing value to purchase!
Zeke MN,
Better to get your money out now while you can still buy something with it than wait until it evaporates into thin air and be left with nothing.
conmaze, I agree – and that is why I am not putting all my eggs in one (4 ) baskets…
I am prepping and converting money into tangibles items…all items necessary for daily and long-term living.
As for the houses – when everyone loses the right to private property – people will be devastated.
Whereas I am already living like the balloon has already gone up, and am not relying on having those houses provide for me into retirement…the way things are heading globally, I may only have my preps to rely on…
However, until that happens – will continue to live with one foot in the current financial world situation, and do what I have been doing – and the other foot is firmly planted in the arena of increasing inflation – hence the preps.
Zeke, you are right about the value of our dollar. Heard recently that Geithner and Bernanke flat said they want to make the dollar at least 30% worth less……….how do ya like all that hope and change now? Me? not so much!
Agreed the dollar is loosing its value. The fed is in a box and the only way is to keep printing until the end .
Heres a nice lil site showing the dollar destruction since 1913
http://www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0001519.html
For those pack members who have blogs, you might want to check out the Homestead Revival blog’s latest post.
The last Saturday of each month, she hosts a link up for preparedness posts–anything relating to food storage, emergency preparedness and/or sustainable living. Here’s the post with the link up for February (you’ve got a week to add yours, if you’re interested):
http://homesteadrevival.blogspot.com/2012/02/preparedness-challenge-32.html
Also, her preparedness challenge post this month includes a giveaway of some food storage buckets, mylar bags and oxygen absorbers. To enter, link up OR leave a comment on something you did to prepare in February.
MD, if you’d like to use this as a way to introduce your blog to her readers (2000+), may I suggest linking up with Garden Mom’s dehydration article?
I’m not affiliated with this in any way. Just thought MD and blogging pack members could, with a few clicks, offer a lot to encourage prepping outside the pack. (And perhaps even pick up some new pack members!)
Plus, someone’s gotta win the giveaway–if you’ve got a moment to copy something from your WDYDTPTW report and leave it as a comment on the Homestead Revival preparedness challenge post, maybe that could be you!
Gaahhh. It was YOU Lantana!
I went to that site. Got lost there a couple hours last night and a couple today! She has soo many other links it’s like a black hole!
I’m going to be making my own chocolate syrup from now on and try the under arm deodorant and the air fresh spray.
A vortex of self sufficiency it is!
Lol, sorry to have sidetracked you with that site, Vienna, but I’m glad you found so many useful posts. The homemade dishwasher detergent is next on my list to try.
What did I do this week?
Inventoried and changed over for spring BOB’s. Rotated out water, clothing and checked med kits on these and set up for warmer weather. Tuned up and other maintenance on BOV (bug out vehicle?) I have 8 to evac if needed. Not likely needed…but who knows?
Tilled the garden, with 9 yards composted horse manure. 1/3 acre. Back still hurts from changing over and oiling the tiller on the tractor, it was frozen up from the winter. Need more oil this fall.. Not time to start seeds here just yet, but soon, bought what I needed for that. Some starter pots and soil and such. Repaired my small greenhouse, a few sheets of plastic. Quite a lot of that. Turned over all my compost piles as well.
Fixed a plumbing leak…..putting the drywall back on Monday.
Started assembling yet another AR, and on Wed. took my wife to the range to start rifle training. She’s good with handguns (after a year, she’s scared of firearms, which is ok, so am I…)
Found a sale on pork loins, so I bought all that they had. Froze half, will cook and can half this week.
Need to get more cattle feed this week, and order up more ammo (perpetually…)
That’s it.
JG
jg…have not seen you post before…therefore…welcome..
John G.,
Welcome to the Wolf Pack. If you have any questions, feel free to ask.
What am I up aside from camping out on this site?
Assembled the Berkey Light system with the four filters. Prepped the filters, but it looks like I need to hit reprep one to get it working like the other three. I have been filling seven gallon containers I bought out of the camping section at Walmart.
Purchased the following at various places over the last couple of days:
1 x 7 gallon water container
Variable-speed Dremel w/additional bits
4 x Duck tape rolls
6 rolls of electrical tape
Container of 640 zip ties
Roll of Velcro straps
Plastic tool box with rubber ring in lid
4″ wide roll of self-grip sports bandage.
1 bottle of Bactine
1 qt of 70% rubbing alcohol.
1 pt of 91% rubbing alcohol
Machete
4 boxes of 12 ga. hollow points
300 rounds of Federal .40 S&W
cain…made me laugh at comment re ‘camping out on this site’…me too – can see you are having fun too.
Not much got a 10 pack of Mountain House entrees and a 3 pack of 200 lumen led flashlights from Costco. I have some of their 150 lumen lights and these are brighter. They are machined aircraft grade aluminum with 0-rings and they have low/high/ strobe settings and they run on AAA batteries! $15 for 3 after the instant rebate! I have many Surefires but these are good quality lights. Sometimes the Godless commies make good stuff.
I did get a storage unit and move a bunch of my long term foods and gear over there. I could walk there if I had to and I can definitely get to them irregardless of the circumstances. Had all my nuts in one basket up until now. Suffered a fire a couple of years ago and lost all my preps….not again.
sd, good idea on splitting them up. i just can’t bring myself to do it yet, but i’m talking myself into it every chance i get:)
wow, that is a good price on the flashlights…$15 for 3.
I want to talk a little bit about preps and storage units. There is a 400 unit place down the road from me. There was a fire that was started by some meth chemicals left in one of the units (that’s what the police say, who knows what really happened). Over 200 of the units were affected by the flames and all the water the fire department put on the place. End results were that they decided to open the other 200 units and check the contents. Where they found guns they ran the serial numbers on them and took most until the owner could come and ID and pick them up. Every piece of merchandise they found they checked against stolen item alerts. They found a lot of stuff in 3 or 4 units that belonged to a group that was going around breaking in to houses. They took everything there and have been running pictures of the items trying to get them back to the original owners. How does this effect having your prep stuff stored in one or two storage units? Well, all OPSEC is now gone for anyone that had anything stored away. The TV crew was there and photo’d the opening of every one of the 200 or so units they opened and then they had to do an inventory and then resecured the units with new locks so the owner has to go up and prove who they are and show paperwork to get that lock off and to put a new one on.
Since the shows storage wars and storage hunters and stuff have been on TV there have been a lot of break ins especially when the units are away from the cameras and lights. So, razor wire on top of chain link is not a useful tool to keep people out.
Just my 2 bullets worth.
cliff, roger that. one of the reasons i haven’t went that way yet. that and once shtf, i suspect the goons will just run thru the gate and load up their trucks unabated. also the nearest units are about 10 miles from me. then there’s opsec with the owner and anybody using their units at the same time. then there’s the gestapo. i thought about buying a sliver of land somewhere in the boonies n stashing some preps there but looting issues there. no clue what to do now.
Will look seriously at an air rifle this week. Thanks for the reminder MD.
After reading all the posts, I have a severe case of “preppers envy”, but am happy for those of you who can do what I can not. As most of you know, my prepping has been cut way back due to my job lay off, but I’m still trying to do as much as finances allow.
This week, I bought 2 bags of pickling salt. I found it @ a local mom and pop grocery…Walmart had none. I also picked up about 20 bucks of seed and some seed potatoes….its that time finally, YAY! I love fresh new potatoes and can’t wait til they are ready to harvest.
As mentioned earlier, I got about 80 bucks worth of groceries for $44 using coupons at Bruno’s. They double coupons up to 50 cents. Most of it was canned goods and baking supplies.
Question for the Pack: I don’t see myself being able, in the near future, to purchase wheat and a mill to go with it….what are the disadvantages of just buying regular flour and sealing it with my vacuum sealer? Doing that would be much easier budget wise than buying wheat. All input appreciated!
We ended up returning the F150 back to the dealer…spent nearly $500 bucks (and had to eat that cost) trying to work out the kinks in it…and it was still shutting down on us in the middle of the road when we least expected it. A lesson learned the hard way. Just glad the dealer was willing to take it back and refund our down payment.
Along with everyone else, we are concerned about the high cost of gas and diesel. Topped off both vehicles Friday and planning to keep them that way as long as we can.
DH is worried because if fuel goes much higher, the guy he is currently working for will have to shut down his business. DH is back to hauling logs, as the job in Louisiana didn’t work out as planned. (Long complicated story). I’m glad, though, even though it was a loss of some good potential income because I wasn’t happy about being so far from home with everything happening so fast and the “S” could HTF any time now.
On a happy note, I’ve had my granddaughters (ages 2 and 3) since Friday…….and have enjoyed them immensely. It’s so much fun to put other things on the backburner……..and just enjoy having fun with them. The love of a grandchild is like no other!
Prayers for all who have requested them. I’m so thankful for each of you and for MD…..yall have really been a blessing to me. Thank you every one.
BamaBecca,
I’m right there with you about grandchildren. There really is no love that compares. And I can’t ever find the words to truly define it when trying to describe it to those who are not grandparents.
Becca,
I have a hand-crank wheat grinder that I will use if there is no electricity. But for regular use, I just put my wheat berries in the blender. That works just fine. Have you checked out the price of wheat at the LDS Store? They have free shipping and a case of hard red wheat is $28. (Flour doesn’t store well, especially all purpose flour.)
http://store.lds.org/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/Product3_715839595_10557_21003_-1__195792
I will keep you in my prayers.
I’m not sure, but I think ground flour will go rancid faster than whole wheat. It might be six of one, half dozen of another.
Then there is the sprout-ability of whole grain vs ground. Basically stockpiling vs sustainability.
If you’re talking about 25 pounds, I wouldn’t worry and just rotate. Eventually you might be able to buy a grinder and transition.
Kelekona,
According to the LDS order form hard wheat is good for 30 years and flour for 10.
You can web search out flour shelf life. AP flour mylar sealed I think is recommended 1 yr but I’ve used some I sealed at 2 years and it was fine.
Anyone else use sealed AP flour older then that?
Whole wheat as flour I think is less then a year. I just grind some up and use it monthly so it’s always fresh. It’s not so bad when you get a rhythm down.
Storing whole wheat berries you get 25 years. That’s why people store wheat as the whole. Plus it works great in soup, sprouted and as cereal.
DH doesn’t like it as cereal though cause it squeaks when it’s chewed.
Vienna,
I think O.P. mentioned last week that white flour from the LDS Store lasts 10 years in #10 cans.
BamaBecca
I hate prepper envy. I get it every Saturday. But it does go away as I always remind myself to be ever so thankful I have what I have.
Bamabecca…hope your finances improve – it is getting tough for many.
Re the wheat and mill…do you know anyone (good neighbour perhaps) who has a grinder that you can use?
Do your neighbours know of anyone who does not use their grinder…spread the word – never know.
Try Craigslist/Ebay – perhaps a note up on the local community bulletin board, or at the shopping centre.
Perhaps a note in the local school newsletter.
Someone, somewhere will have a grinder they no longer need/use, and willing to sell it for a nominal amount.
With vac sealing flour – have to be careful the fine powder does not ruin the motor…I am on my 3rd food saver because I kept vac sealing spices etc…too fine…and got drawn into the motor…
See what comes up when you google ‘homemade wheat grinder’…remember seeing something about 3 pieces of 1″ x 18″ waterpipe – with some duct tape wrapped around each pipe – and then the 3 pieces of pipe taped together…
then, place some wheat berries in a solid basin/pot and pound the berries until fine…repeat with more berries until have sufficient for intended use.
and then sift/sieve the finest flour out (for bread making) and the remaining larger pieces can be used for breakfast.
Wheat (vac sealed) will last years – whereas ground flour has a much shorter storage life.
However, have no experience with ground flour packed in #10 cans…definately would be prudent to have some of these – better than not having any back-up flour – and if it were cost-effective for me, would definately order some.
good news on getting rid of the car before it drained anymore money out of you.
Thanks everyone, for your input….you all always have great ideas. I think for now, I am going to stick to buying baking mixes, flour and cornmeal….and stick a little cash back each week so I can buy some wheat in bulk….will also keep an eye on the local shopper papers and craigslist for a grinder.
I saw an advertisement today for an estate sale that is happening next w/e. I have never been to one before and not sure if its like an auction or a great big yardsale, but I am going to try to go if possible….I might find some good things there.
Up until now, my main prepping strategy has been to have a good supply of beans, rice and canned goods that will work well for simple meals and also to make sure I have garden tools, seed and such so as to be able to grown what I need after the meltdown. I have a good supply of all that now, so I am going to concentrate on breads and milk…..but will still buy more of the other if I find a good sale. And buy more seed…..every time I go to town!
I bought a can of Nido (I think) whole powdered milk yesterday. Plan to buy a can or two a week as funds allow til I have at least a 6 month supply. I also spotted some buttermilk powder on the shelf at a local grocery store…and I have never seen that before around here.
My son called today to see if I wanted to go back to work. They are expecting some openings soon, so maybe I can go back to work soon with a different company. (Keeping my fingers crossed and praying) The Lord knows what I need and I’ll follow His directives. He may want me at home more than He wants me working, so we will see……I work construction, and the hours we work plus a HUGE commute time don’t allow me much time to do a lot of prepping around the house, but WILL allow me to be able to purchase what I won’t have time to grow myself. Wheat berries??? LOL)
DH’s boss approached him about possibly buying some property he is wanting to unload at a VERY reasonable price. He is willing to do the financing himself and we could have it paid off in a yr or less …unless things go south really fast this year. We have been wanting property of our own but I’m not sure this is a good idea because the property in question is located right near a major road and one of 2 bridges that cross the river in a 100 miles…..when TSHTF, I am afraid it would be a BAD place to be, especially if law enforcement or military are monitoring roadways and waterways. IDK, am I being too paranoid? Where we are now is fairly secluded and we are only a mile from the river..and the property owner has given us permission to do anything we want here as far as having chickens, a garden, etc. Not sure what to do……with things like they are, any of us could be without jobs tomorrow and then we would really be in a pickle. Please pray that the Lord shows us the right direction to go in.
I love reading all of your posts and although most of the time I can’t remember who wrote what unless I do a whole lot of backtracking, lol, you guys really make my week!
Thanks everyone!
hello one and all
welcome to new preppers/posters.
congrats to those out of debt and those in their new retreats
good news on the guys and their health issues..
finally departed for big smoke tuesday…arrived circa 5.30pm…sat up late reading this blog…midnight, heard knock on my door..that was strange…called out to who was there to come to the window, so I could see who it was – put the outside light on – saw a white male, mid 30′s.
Said 4 men were following him, and was new to the area and had gotten lost…
He was sweaty and looked a little frightened…so, as I already had my phone in my hand – called 000 (your 911).
told operator that I had a strange man on my porch stating he had 4 guys following him, and that stranger said 2 of them were behind bushes across road, and the other 2 were behind my 6′ fence, and, that I was not opening door to him, and if I saw anyone rushing him – would try to get a photo of the perp’s on my camera phone…operator said car was on its way…
told stranger the same thing…and said was not letting him in – even if he did get rushed – and to stay where he was in the light where I could see him – in case he was set upon…
I am in a cul-de-sac..only one way back out – the way he came in.
Then I grabbed my staff (4′ 6″ – wooden and heavy and I practice with it whenever am at my house) and brought it close to the window – and we waited…
I asked him some questions -through the window pane – while we were waiting…
1. what the heck was he doing walking alone at midnight – response: trouble at home. My response: foolish – now you have more trouble.
2. where is your cell phone – so you could call police yourself – response: no charge/battery flat. My response: you’re an idiot!
3. why did you knock on my door, of all the houses – response: my house was the only one with a light on. My response: you were lucky – as not normally up this late (not going to say just arrived a few hours earlier).
then he pulls his wallet out of his pants – I yelled through the window to put it back…that he had just telegraphed he had something of worth on his person…and that he was an idiot (again).
He kept looking at the bushes – anyway, I kept watch too – police arrived about 15 mins later…was very impressed by their bright flashlights. Lit up the entire house across the street – most impressed.
Anyway, I opened the door when they came up to the stranger – and the police immediately looked at my staff – I had forgotten that I had it in my hand.
Stranger told them the story…no one came running out from behind the bushes. I asked the police about their flashlights etc…then I said good night and they drove him home.
The next day, went to Bunnings (= your Home Depot) and bought a 230 lumens alum’n torch (takes 3 AA) batteries – does this now mean I have/like flashlight porn??
While there, also purchased pool salt for the pool (not for preps) and
2 x 25 m extension cords
1 x 10 m extension cord
assorted rat/mice traps -for when they harvest the corn fields – field mice then have to look for alternate food sources – and I normally can’t kill any animals, however – don’t seem to have any problems killing the mice/rats…I can’t stand the things running about – so am getting ready for the little pests.
more bypass pruners
weed killer – when fuel gets too expensive etc – got to keep the grass down somehow.
heaps of microfibre cleaning cloths for bleaching/disinfecting surfaces.
got more stuff – but can’t remember – not important anyway.
the next day went to the thrift shops -hit the mother lode at one store…bought more boots and joggers – for DD/SIL/myself – $50
then to restaurant supplier –
1 x 25 kgs bag of table salt $9
4 x 500mls bottle of hand sanitizer $3 ea (reduced) – saw the same items at the camping store later that day for $12 ea.
then onto camping store
10 metres of 100kgs cord @ 30 cents p/metre.
4 metres of clear plastic tubing – for solar still – so much easier than taking plastic sheeting off just to get a drink…can make 3 drinking straws out of this. $1.25 p/m
next day…another score – 3 man tent $5.
joggers $2.
goretex fleece lined gloves $2
goretex gloves $2
boxing gloves $2
motorbike riding gloves (for DD) $2.
long trousers with zippers – convert to shorts $2.
2 x 3 prs new socks $1 the pack
another thrift store
full length drizabone coat (like your oil-skins) and waterproof $40 (normally $350-$400) on the fancy dress shelf of all places – imagine that. (now we each have one, my DD’s is thigh length ($2 – ages ago), mine is 3/4 length ($5 – 3 years ago).
s/bag $5
boots $12.50 (military) as new
assorted candles for .10 cents each.
Bought a new 2-burner bench top electric cooker for the rental – while I was parked in the loading bay – noticed a 2 door fridge freezer – second hand – asked them how much they wanted for it…said I could have it…and then while I was moving stuff in my car, so I could fit it in, they had plugged it in and it bloody worked…(I was going to use it as a sort of root celler/storage for food storage, and did not care it if worked or not), so, they loaded it into my car. They did not want payment for it.
I have a similar sized new fridge/freezer in my caravan – paid $600 for it. So, will plug it in and keep it in the shed for cold water/watermelon etc.
then I had to get home as my DD’s friend was going to drop off the rat packs to me (big smoke has lots of army disposal stores)…asked her if she liked chinese – said ‘yes’ – so I bought 2 chinese large takeaway meals.
24 ration packs – going to keep them in the tins they come in – 5 p/tin – and pack each full tin into each of our spare BOB.
Carried out the 3 monthly house inspection and tenant re-signed new lease for another 6 months @ $350 p/wk – sorted out last of the stuff had to do in the big smoke, departed Sat 10am..car fully loaded…as I wanted to bring some more stuff that I had stored in the house back with me.
Got a speeding ticket $200 – bummer. Win some, lose some.
So, today Sunday, washed the stuff I got – have to pack it all away asap. Car still not fully unloaded…had 2 prepper friends (a couple) come over – concerned and freaking out at the latest global news.
One day started at 7am – and home at 2.30 for a break before I started again at 3.30pm…walking on the hard concrete and sidewalks is tough…
had forgotten that…as am used to walking on dirt roads, and walking tracks in the middle of nowhere…when I got up from computer before going to bed, had a slight limp – from all the walking on the hard concrete…my joints are getting old.
Guys, keep prepping…skills, access to info, knowledge, fitness, connecting with like-minded people…all important.
till next time….
Chloe,
Quite an eventful and productive week! Thrift store SCORE! I would have been totally freaked out by the guy coming to my house. You handled it just right. What a dumb a** he was. I wonder why the supposed strangers were chasing him and where they came from. I guess no word on them, right? Gotta wonder if they really existed in the first place and if they may still be hanging around that area, so keep a watchful eye, your head up, ears to the wind. I know you will be but, it will make me feel better to say this, be very, very careful! Scary stuff.
conmaze..the big smoke has such good thrift stores..I had 3 purses filled with coins – and I went for it..had not been there since mid Dec last year…
I did not talk to the stranger much…just in case he was not genuine…and wanted him to stay where I could see him the whole time…and he waited for the police – so, maybe he was genuine.
I was careful – one day it may not be a dumb a**e – but the real thing…and am ready for them…
got my zombie leakers (as opposed to Hunker-Down’s zombie poppers) hidden and stashed all over my place, in between books on my bookshelves, beside the small desk fan, between sofa cushions, under the coffee table – tucked in one of my shoes, another stuffed in the straw of my broom in laundry, behind the headrest of my sofa’s, between my mattresses, in amongst my pens/pencils on office desk, in toilet, shower, all over the kitchen (in plain sight), in laundry propped up by laundry softener bottle…in other words – everywhere… I just keep buying more sharp pointy zombie leakers – can’t have too many…
thanks for your concern…
Zombie leakers, Chloe? I would have sworn that over there you called them zombie knickers. . . .
Lantana..that is so much more appropriate than what I called them…so, henceforth -’ zombie knickers’ it is…
Am still laughing…good one Lantana.
chloe, i had a similar thing happen to me before i was married and i was living alone in missouri. a man came up to my door after midnight and said he was being chased and thus he was trying to force his way in through the front door. i ran out the back door to my neighbors and called the police. when they arrived they found a butcher knife stuck in his belt. i found out later from the police he was out on bail from a previous assault with a gun. take care of yourself.
Wow impressive!
you did everything RIGHT and I love my Staff too.
Wilderness R/O…thank you…while we are going about our prepping business – things just happen…and, yes, good to have other means to defend oneself.
I’m a tough old girl…20 + years of throwing and being thrown around on the mat gives me an advantage – and has toughened my mind and body.
Hope I am just as ready and able for at least 10 more years. cheers.
Chloe, I love the staff, first martial arts weapon I ever trained with. Quite weapons and tools are just as good as boom sticks on occasion. I know the laws on firearms is pretty strict, I visited a gun shop in Freemantle, WA and it was mostly single shot or double barrel shot guns, a few lever actions rifles and bolt action rifles.
I’m not sure what side of Oz you are on but if I ever make it out there since I visit WA for friends in Perth and Freemantle as well as down south by Margarette River every few years I would have to say good day and cheers. A friend teaches at WA university.
thanks jarhead…would be honoured to host you…
am on the far east side…way up north…think north of Cairns…
if you do get to Perth/Fremantle…let me know before hand…would be happy to pay your plane fare over to me…there is an overnight/no stopover flight on Saturdays – from Perth to Cairns…I can use the miles racked up on my card…
and don’t go thinking this offer now means we are engaged or anything…hahaha
Chloe,
If Jarhead comes you way do you have enough extra sky miles to bring me along? It’s only a hop, skip and a jump (and a pretty long swim) from Georgia (USA, not that other country) to your place. Would love to come and hang out with you guys.
Cliff
cliff…had posted a reply and it vanished into the ether…
2nd attempt…would love to meet all of the pack…however who knows what the future holds for us in this global economy/community…
so, who knows…will just wait and see…cheers.
Chloe, I’m honored. Don’t know if you drink but if you the first few rounds of VB or Shiraz is on me.
My dh got a call this afternoon from a friend. Someone knocked on his neighbor’s door last night around 10 p.m. He opened the door to two unknown men. They pistol whipped him and robbed him. He is lucky to be alive. It seems like we have a home invasion robbery once a week here. And just a few years ago this place was voted America’s best place to live.
Gayle…that is shocking…
thank goodness as preppers we are alert to many things, not just prices of food, fuel etc – but also to our security.
I am paying attention to all the gun talk between you guys…
however, when the boys (you all know who you are, jarhead, cos, rr, axelsteve, et al) start with their own terminology – I can’t understand anything they are talking about…but just give me time.
I always drive with my car doors locked whenever am out and about – even during the day.
My car key is set to only unlock my driver’s door. If I want all doors to open – then I have to press remote again.
We are aware that our lifestyles are changing – so, as good preppers, we adapt as well – and just keep adapting…and act, instead of just reacting.
I know the way around my house in the dark – if I heard someone trying to get in – would immediately call police, then, would put all lights out if not already out – then lay in wait in the most advantageous area of the house for me…I have the home ground advantage.
Things are rough in the big smoke now…stabbings in daylight – unheard of just a year ago…crazy – let’s all stay alert, practice clearing your homes…
I always look for signs of forced entry when I arrive back home – even if out for a few hours…check all doors and window locks functioning still – just in case.
And, I remember watching the Pink Panther movies…think: Sellers being attacked/stalked by his valet every time he arrives home – now I see it as a form of house clearing practice.
Hope your pistol-whipped friend recovers with no lasting disabilities. He is lucky he is alive…till next time.
Chloe,
I hear you. I am actually starting to understand a bit of what the boy’s are talking about. When someone above noted he had purchased a .22 rifle, a 9 mm and a shotgun, I almost replied and recommend that he get a 30 o6 as well to hunt big game. Then I got self-conscious, like I wasn’t secure in the knowledge about guns to open my mouth. Then I read someone else recommend a high powered rifle. I am learning.
Gayle:
This is a teaching forum. Everyone is welcome to express their ideas. If I think it’s not correct, I’ll give my 2 cents. It’s up to each of us to decide what is best for us and our families. Cos
Cos,
Yes, I think I just startled myself to think, this person needs a 30 06 as well. I think I am learning a lot more from you guys about guns that I realized.
Here was my full thought. If one could only have five guns to take into a SHTF scenario, I would take a (1) Glock 9 mm (or larger handgun), (2) an over-under, (3) a pump action shotgun, (4) 30 06 and (5) assault rifle.
A friend of my dh is selling a bunch of his guns–divorce. One that he is selling is an AR 14 mini. I planted the bug to see if my dh will get it for me. What do you all think about this gun?
What five guns would be on your list?
Gayle…that is too funny…and your understanding is way more than mine is…so, going to keep paying attention.
Don’t remember if I already posted this, but when some friends were watching the Avatar movie…and the marine said he was of the Jarhead Clan – I actually knew what he meant…and I immediately thought of Jarhead 03…
I realize now that there are many parts/scripts of movies that go right over my head, however, like you said…I am learning…too.
Chloe, anytime I will translate gun or military language into english or aussie lol.
Thanks on the avitar comment lol. I get stereotyped positive and negative. First time visiting Australia an Irishman in a pub (where else would he be) said Australians were more concerned about the Marines than the japanese during World War II. At the time didn’t know if it was good or bad. We have an average of 2 to 10 Marines and sailors fail to return to ship and end up staying in Australia. Its the lovely women’s fault lol.
Gayle, you mated two different rifles. There is a Ruger Mini-14, and a Colt AR-15. Both of them shoot the same cartridge, and both are good. I have both, but don’t shoot the ARs, as I bought them for my boys. I do shoot the Mini-14 and really like it. Some of the military fellows who post here can tell you much more about the ARs, which include many different variants at various pricepoints. And these rifles have boodles of accessories.
Since you asked, my 5 guns would be: 1. Colt Combat Commander, 2. Remington 870 shotgun, 3. Ruger 10-22, 4. Remington M-600 .308, 5. Ruger Mini-14.
Gayle:
The selection of weapons is highly personal. Some fit you, some don’t. To answer your question, I’d take my Kimber .45 first, a Ruger 10-22, my Remington 870 riot gun, my Ruger 77 .270, and a M1 Garand. My choices are due to three things. First, familiarity with the weapon and ABSOLUTE faith in them working everytime. Second, availability of ammo. Finally, I have spare parts for most of them.
I bought Mini-14′s for my sons when they were young here in Kalifornia. My 19 year old is simply an amazing shot with his! The rest of the country can buy Ruger normal capacity mags. We are limited to 5 round Ruger or 10 rounders from an unknown manufacturer, that I haven’t been able to get to work. Sigh. Wishing you the best. Cos
Gayle, everyone is different on what they like in firearms and it could be welcomed conversation or hot debate like politics and religion lol. An AR 15 or Mini 14 either will do the job. Like village said those of us who served become partial to what we know. My coworker owns an M1A because he carried an M14 in Vietnam where as I own an AR15 and M4 because its what I know and can take it apart and clean and put it together blindfolded or in darkness.
The G19 is a great choice as well a pump shotgun. The 30-06 is a great rifle, owned one for many years. I would suggest a .308 over the 06 if you plan on shooting a lot of rounds for cost and shoulder lol. I think everyone should own a 22 Rifle.
VI,
I originally wanted an AR-15 but one of my dh’s friends is going through a divorce and needs to sell some of his guns. One that he is selling is the mini-14. So if I could pick up a mini-14 at a very reasonable price, that might work.
Cosmo,
That is the kind of thinking I have been trying to articulate. What criteria should one employ to determine priorities when purchasing weapons. Familiarity and trust in the weapon are absolutes. Ability to find replacement parts and ammo are absolutes. But from there it gets into personal convictions, like Jarhead said.
My main concern is that I have all the bases covered. A handgun that will drop a perp with a single well placed shot (9 mm and up) and a riot shotgun (I like them Remmington 870 as well) seem to be the bare bones essentials. Beyond that is small game hunting, big game/sniper rifle and the topping on the cake would be an assault rifle.
Is there any other category that I’ve left out? This is the one category where I need additional work, both in research and in practice.
Chloe:
I Love your posts! If I ever write anything you don’t understand, just ask me to explain. Cos
Cos, you are so sweet…thank you…
I do tend to waffle on, however – am having a ball, and a daily log-in is a priority for me now – but only after 4pm onwards.
Okay, from now on will ask – but it is just so interesting to read the succinct and sharp dialogue between you guys when the gun talk starts…and I just sit back and go ‘wow…who are these guys, I want to go to the gun range with all of them’.
Wouldn’t that be a blast (pun intended)…the only thing is you guys would all have to hit the deck when Gayle/other female new-gun owners, and myself start shooting – my shots would definately be all over the place.
Can you imagine trying to hold Gayle back – she’s ready to blast the TV zombies right now…throw the rest of us into the mix… no-one will be safe.
And then throw mama j in there somewhere too -> and you guys would probably drive me straight back to the airport from the gun-range – as I would most likely be banned from ever picking up a rifle again.
cheers.
chloe:
I guarantee I could teach you gun safety and marksmanship in a couple of days. No one would have to doubt your skill or duck! LOL
Weapons are like kitchen knives, you don’t just hand one to a youngster and say cut something for supper.
What you do is instruct them on the safe usage and the
things to be careful not to do. Next you monitor them until you are confident in their safety and ability. Cos
Gayle…..
I’m curious why you want an over and under (Rifle and Shotgun, presumably?) when you also specified two rifles and a shotgun in addition to the O/U? Not to imply there can’t be a good reason, I just can’t see what it is.
Mini 14……I have two Mini-14s (.223 caliber) and one Mini-30 (7.62 X 39mm). I’ve had one of my Mini-14s for almost 30 years now and I like them a lot. Somewhere along the line I “got into” AR-15s (and variants) but there isn’t a thing in the world wrong with a Mini. You probably wouldn’t take them to a Shooting Competition but they are light, fire decent rounds and are utterly reliable (so long as you have a good (Ruger) magazine. Unfortunately, most aftermarket mags are wanting, in my experience.
Minis aren’t quite as expensive as ARs either but both take 20 or 30 round magazines, in addition to the 5 rounder that come with it.
Hawkeye:
If I may, I’ll take a stab at the answer. My riot 870 is good for close stuff, like sheeple and cars. An over/under is simply so much better handling for birds an wascally wabbits. There is also an ammo commonality that allows two folks to be armed if you only have .12 guage left. Just my 2 cents. Cos
Hawkeye,
I was thinking it would be good to have a .22 rifle for rabbits but an over-under has this and a shotgun as well. (I was thinking in terms of five guns for two people.) If someone broke in, my dh would use the riot shotgun and I would grab my Glock. The .410 works better on snakes than the 12-guage–unless you really want to blast that snake to hell and back.
I read everything you guys say about guns and my dh and I are putting together our plan. I would really like an AR 15. But the riot shotgun will have to do for now. It’s more important that we have sufficient ammo for the guns we already have than that we go out and purchase an assault rifle.
Chloe,
The first thing we were taught in gun class was safety.
1. Don’t load a gun until you are read to use it (unless it is your primary self-defense weapon).
2. Don’t point a gun (loaded or not) at someone unless you intend to shoot him.
3. Don’t put your finger on the trigger until you are ready to pull it.
Gun accidents happen when folks disregard these rules. I am thinking that no one one the Wolf Pack would hand a person a gun without teaching gun safety first. And no one would hand a novice shooter a loaded gun. You always remove the magazine and check the chamber before handing someone a gun.
There are some considerations aside from what is popular on the forums to your situation.
1st the person, size – weight and height – experience
2nd location, not all the types of ammunition is available everywhere, for example what is Popular in Texas might not be popular in Alaska or Alberta or in Quebec for that matter. Some of the standard ammo sizes in Quebec are not standard sizes in the Province right beside them in Ontario. That should be looked into for your area.
3rd what are you expecting to do with the firearm, zombies from the cities and shopping malls or a near starved and angry Moose or Grizzly
4th commonality of ammunition in your group and your extended group of friends. It might be cool to have that 45/70 but if nobody else in the area has one, or you have to special order in the ammo, then it is not that practical to have
5th Everyone should have a 22 and lots of rounds, now the controversy begins, I think a 22lr so get a 22lr pistol as well, how about air guns, a .22 air rifle or bb gun is quiet and will take down small animals, animals for meat for your table and not be heard more than 25 yrds away. BB guns come in .17 and .22 sized bb’s the extra cost and size is well worth it.
jarhead, got to use cos’ reply button…re the aussies more concerned about the marines than the Japanese…
don’t know about that…without the marines/USA soldiers here things would have turned out very differently…they recently had the V(ictory) train go up the coast of Queensland…lots of old soldiers/nurses etc all came back for the re-union…those still left alive after all the years that have passed…definately special friendships were formed – and to see all these old people – all excited to just meet up with each other again…
We still have american soldiers come and do joint exercises here…quite often in fact…
Chloe,
I think Jarhead’s implication is that folks in your neck of the woods were more concerned about their daughters hanging out with the good-looking, buff young men.
Here in the U.S. the young women would go to the P.O.W. work camp sites to get a view of the tanned, blond haired, blue eyed Germans.
WildernessReturn Ontario, well said and I agree! Where I live .223 and 7.62×39 is the cash cow for gun shops but for hunting and long range .308, 30-06, 243, 7mm and 300 win mag are the top sellers. What sells in my neighborhood gun shops may not sell as well at a shop 50 to 100 miles away.
I agree everyone should own a 22 rifle and pistol if possible.
BB guns and air rifle is a good staple for putting down small animals you can stalk without spooking them and they are quieter than rifles. Ammo is cheap and for those living in areas prohibiting firearms the air rifles pushing 1,000 to 1,200 fps could put an attacker down or put them on the run with a well aimed shot. Besides I reload BB loads for the shotgun because factory loads are too expensive.
WildernessReturn Ontario,
Thank you for posting these considerations. The only wild animals we really have to worry about here are alligators. (I have a creek behind my house.) The main concerns I have is home invasion and we’ve selected weapons to cover that. And we are looking into a tactical home defense class. I think our worse case scenario is hoards of hungry zombies, people who didn’t prep and are out on the streets looking for what they need to survive.
wow pam s…that would have been scary –
In my case, if the stranger had bad intentions – first, his physical appearance showed he was not as strong as I have already come up against – I could have taken him – even without my staff; however, I always avoid confrontation and engaging if at all possible…that is rule one…as he may have had a knife concealed on his person.
However, if he had been a bad guy, and had broken through the front door – and busted the dead locks and chain – I would have retreated to the hallway – I have a lock on one side, and 2 barrel bolts on the other – so, I can secure whatever part/side of the house I happen to be in, from the other part/half of the house…then, I could also retreat to my bedroom..and then, if still persists…then I would defend myself…as the evidence of 2 busted doors would suffice.
Also, I have all the local police numbers in a 500 kilometre geographical area already in my phone – under ‘police..and then the name of the town.
However why I dialed the emergency number was I knew conversation would be recorded, and the stranger could see me calling the number, and could hear me speaking to the operator – could also hear the operator’s voice, as I had the phone on speaker, and my geographical position known, should trouble start.
We are allowed firearms – strict laws though, and if I shot someone in self-defence, can’t always expect justice/fairness, just a system trying to maintain order…so, I err on the side of caution – and will stick to what I know I can do without finding myself on the wrong side of a courtroom.
cheers…
Gayle…..
I was just curious…about the over and under, that is. I think you’re doing everything right and your logic is impeccable. Weapon selection is so personal…right up there with religion and politics. I’ve been collecting guns for over fifty years and to me “one of each isn’t too many”, multiples of each is even better. But there are practical limits, obviously. To me, a handgun is pretty much just a noise maker; best to have if you plan to have a gun fight in a closet. I’ve got several, just can’t get enamored. To me, and this is just me, the “bare bones”, as you called it, is a rifle and a shotgun. You have the 870 (great choice, by the way) and I see you’re talking Mini-14. If you have those two, I think you would be “well armed”. In some states (Iowa, for example) they are not allowed to hunt deer with rifles…shotguns only (with slugs instead of shot) and they managed to take over 122 thousand last season. You can even change out the barrels on the 870 from the “riot gun” configuration, you mentioned, to a long barrel bird gun or to a “rifled” barrel for slugs. In a dual with a gator, the 870 will win. And with the Mini-14, you have some firepower and some range with a rifle that doesn’t weigh more than 5 or 6 pounds more than a handgun. Like MD (and others) said, the Mini is “finnicky” about the mag you use: Factory mags are almost a MUST! But you’ll work it out…I think you’re on the right track. If you have the opportunity to get some training…take it! Guns without the knowhow are little more than a club. Good luck and prep on!
Hawkeye,
Thanks. I have taken the basic gun safety/pistol course. Now my dh and I are looking a taking a tactical home defense course.
When you say it is illegal to hunt in certain states with certain rifles, does that include hunting on your own land?
Gayle…replying to your post about ‘worrying about the young buff men’ – that’s it…you are so right…
that still happens now…don’t want to give too much away…but – this particular city has a huge military base etc…and even before the ship docks – there is a huge write up in the paper – about the ship due to arrive, and how long it will be docked – and the $ they will spend during their stay in the city (partying)
and our young people are all ready to party hard with all those young buff (can I say it) Yanks.
And you guys know how to party – the nightclub strip is over-flowing.
And the girls are absolutely besotted with those ‘buff guys’ …
and of course the obligatory brawls break out in the streets between the local guys and the yanks.
But makes no difference, the next night the same crowd is back again…for more fun…and this continues until they leave for the next port/exercise.
And a great time was had by all.
And my DD was not immune to your Yanks either…like I said, they were all absolutely besotted by the boys in uniform…and another thing my DD mentioned was that the Yanks were so polite. cheers.
Gayle….
Yes, your own land too. It has to do with geography and population. Shotgun doesn’t carry near as far as a rifle. In Iowa, the “countryside” is randomly populated with farms all over the place and it is fairly flat. I don’t know, for a fact, but I assume that Illinois, Indiana, etc., all have similiar laws. It’s a safety thing. I should add that I haven’t lived in Iowa in thirty years but doubt seriously that the law has changed.
Gayle….
I would think that Florida limits the use of rifle hunting too. Florida is probably flatter and certainly more populated than Iowa. Have you checked with Florida Game And Fish Department, to see? Just an aside….I saw a TV program (think it was “Swamp People”) where these two gals were gator hunting with .22 cal rifles; and with some success! They were .22 Magnum caliber though.
Chloe, I spent June 92 and March 94 in Freemantle/Perth and 96 in Sydney When we pulled into port we were required to wear our uniform the first day.
They even had a dating service where ladies would give their numbers for us to call and some had signs wanting a date as we pulled in. One date took me to see the Rolling Stones.
pam s…I just realised logging in tonight that my post to you from other evening did not post – just vanished…I responded same evening as the other posts…I did not ignore you…
so, 2nd attempt – wow…your experience was much worse…and you were so young at the time…whereas I am a tough old fighter – and had I had a similar experience as you when I was younger…not sure what I would have done…
Thank goodness you were able to run – always a good move.
Amazing how many people just open the door to a knock..whether day or night…just habit maybe. And we definately live in more uncertain times…yet front doors are still being opened by occupants.
Hopefully my post about the experience in big smoke may prompt other pack members/lurkers to be a little suspicious…of even daytime door-knocking.
cheers…
bloody h*ll – I just saw my 1st post to you Pam s…thought it had not posted…oh well – yet another senior moment for me…
jarhead…am responding to your post re when you were in Sydney ’96…
Wow, sounds like you had a great time on your trips.
That is why it’s important to take time for fun…who knows which memories will remain…10 years from now, I will probably remember ’12 as a great year also…
till next time…
this weeks preps
practiced some at the range
more ammo
more water
more foods
increased home security
worked with the dog a bit, he’s my first line of defense, as far as alerting me and scaring off would be robbers. He also happens to be an excellent small game hunter. Lizards, squirrels, birds, dogs are all on his hit list. My wife has a cat shes about 10 yrs old and the dog runs from the kitty. funny stuff. ofc the kitty is meaner then heck. Not sure what language that darn cat speaks because she never listens to a dam word I say.
I follow a few other sites and one I really find good is this one http://shtfschool.com/
He posted a link to youtube vid about syria and the violence there. Its well worth the view and the info he gives is from real life situations he was in during the serbia / kosovo war . It will be a great addition to our knowledge set.
Im about finished purging useless items from my pile of useless crap and looky what I found, a food saver with bags and all. I went right to using it. Lil thingy works fantastic.
My boss has an ak47 a polytech from bejing china. a stamped receiver all in all looks to be in good shape. I wanst sure how to price it , he wants 500. I took it to 2 gun dealers, one said 500 is ok try to get it lower the other said 100-300$. I dont really need it but if i can get it for 300 I think ill snatch it up. it looks like the one in the center. http://i46.tinypic.com/i77haf.jpg what do you guys/gals think
have a great week all
George is Learning:
I’d say $300 is fair depending on what else he is including. Mags are going for $15 to $17, ammo is 30 cents a round for CORROSIVE. I found the stock too short for me, but my cousin in Arkansas loves it. Be sure to test the mags if you buy it. My cousin has had about a 50% success rate. Cos
George is Learning….
I saw a Polytech Legend Series Chinese AK47 (with machined-NOT stamped receiver) at a gun show recently for $1,350! You might want to check to see if it is a “Legend”. If so, it could be a real “diamond in the rough” unless it’s totally trashed.
Good Morning Wolf-Pack
Food wise, I added nothing to the storage this week, other then homemade yogurt, cream cheese and some lovely sheep feta.
However I did get some bulk buys to add to storage, that can be used for general farm use, critter use and in a pinch, human use depending.
50pds of Bentonite Clay- Detoxifier, Antitoxin as well as Antibacterial
44pds of activated charcoal-Toxin binder
50pds of Diatomaceous Earth-Feed Supplement/Parasiticide
5 gallons of 35% Hydrogen peroxide-Disinfectant/feed supplement
55pds of Kelp Meal-Reduces Mastitis and abortion rates, improves milking production and overall improves immune response.
15 gallon barrel of white vinegar at 20%- Disinfectant
farmgal…I have been meaning to get activated charcoal for ages…and still have not got it..timely reminder…has to go on my list for next time.
Hi Chloe
I was very pleased to be able to find a bulk supplier, some things can be used in a number of different ways, while it was certainly not cheap, it was alot less in costs in bulk then getting it in small amounts in the regular stores.
Farm girl, does activated charcoal have a shelf life?
opps, didn’t mean to send that so fast.
Round two..
New books this week are the Fresh Egg Cookbook, Love it, its awesome to have a ton of egg recipes available when you have the spring glut of eggs, I also got the Vertical Vegetables and fruit, creative gardening techniques for growing up (thanks to M.D. posting about this a few weeks back) and while I really like four season books from Maine, I found out that we have someone who does it in canada in our colder climate and so picked up The year round vegetable gardener, most of it is cross-over but there are a enough extra’s to still make it interesting.
Got out to my seminars yesterday for our local eco-farm events, had to laugh as they were selling garden plant pots made out of re-done cow fibers, and they seemed truly amazed when I talked about making paper and pots myself, in fact they asked how it was done.. This made me chuckle a bit.. they are selling a product but don’t understand how its made..
Otherwise, the seminar flew by, the e-farm store was a bit to basic for me, and as I was the only one at the seminar that had in fact done a website an blog, I ended up being asked a number of questions from the folks at the meeting.
The seminar for drying was done by one of the authers of the dehydrator bible-Don Mercer and he was a very good speaker, we covered the basics, got to see a number of homemade solar items, how things were being done in 3rd world countries,
I think the biggest point that he made was
a) Solar is very risky
b) lower and slower is better then hotter and faster
c)If you are buying a machine or making it, the air needs to flow across the food, raither then up or down onto the food drying
d) There are certain foods or things that they can do in the large dryers that we will not be able to do at home, even with the best personal dryers, examples for him on this would be whole berries, you can buy whole cranberries but at home, you should split them or make a paste.
Example he gave was cranberries, whole were still not dried enough inside in his machine at five days when tested but were perfect in 10 hours when split open..
The health/herbs seminar was interesting, very based in German views and newest health there, as the speaker is fourth generation naturopathic doctor. As its that time of the year again to start the making of my salve, it was interesting to get to talk to the doctor about it, turns out they sell a brand that is imported from Europe that is based on what I make.. and they have rave reviews on it..
I think I will continue to just make my own but its nice to know that it has been studied and tested, I imagine that mine would have some flex from year to year as she said that different tree’s have minor changes in amount of the painkiller it produces.
Already 200 plus messages this morning when I checked in, so I had better get reading and see what you have all been up to..
farmgal…I don’t think you realize what a wealth of info and skills you have.
A lot of what you do just makes me shake my head in awe – you really could teach others how to do a lot of what you do…or, you are going to be in high demand when the SHTF…just saying…as your skills/knowledge mean you can be truly independent
However, for me, my skills lay in another direction…and yet am so interested in hearing the things that you do…amazing really.
cheers.
Its kind of funny that you say that, because in my first seminar I took, I was the only one that had first hand knowledge and ended up answer a number of questions and a number of folks at that seminar came to the table I had taken and spent the next hour and half asking me questions.. so in a way it felt like I did give a seminar LOL
farmgal…yes…as people stay closer to their own land etc…as cost of fuel gets too expensive to drive around to see if stuff is still on shelves/available…can see where it would make sense that your neighbours, and also in turn – their neighbours, gravitating to you and wanting/needing to learn how to do the things you are doing right now.
The skill/knowledge of productive food growing/gardening, storage, milking, cheese making and then waxing…animal husbandry…soil composition for your area…all the manure and compost bins…as no more fertilizers from hardware store.
You are on target with your preps and lifestyle…cheers.
Updated our site with latest. Quickly it was some security lighting that I’m very happy with as well as unusual medical supplies.
Bought a newer 4×4, new shocks, tune up etc. Bought a Thompson Center Pro Hunter .308, Big Berkey came in, and bought my son and I matching 870 Tacticals and Sig Mosquito’s…
This week, new trouble with the new homeowners insurance. Turns out they claim they sent me a notice saying I had to build a porch rail. So all my prep time and budget went to doing this. Not only that, but I discovered that in addition to the increased cost of insurance I had an escrow shortage, so my mortgage payment went up by $125 instead of $50. Add to this the electric water heater that is now costing me $60-70 more a month (over the gas one, which I can no longer have because the chimney collapsed inside) and I’m going to have to either take on another roommate (with the attendant risks) or figure out if the insurance agent jacked me, or something. Meanwhile, I guess the porch rail will let me have a more vertical garden in the front yard.
Well, winter’s almost over. That will help with cash flow. But this winter has really wiped me out with repairs and BS.
Look into a gas water heater with a forced draft blower that can be vented through the side of the house with PVC pipe. A little pricy, but should have good ROI based on your reported electrical usage.
Bought from Dicks Sporting goods
1) full size Gerber Gator grip machete $25
2) short Gerber Gator grip machete $20
3) back strap for #1 and #2
These are great for camping, hiking (as long as not many people are around) and for a post SHTF scenario. Their weight is very well balanced and the grip is great even when wet.
Penny Pincher…….
I’ve been a home owner for the best part of 50 years and never heard of an insurance company being that “demanding”. I’d be surprised if an insurance company, that I dealt with, ever even saw any of my homes unless it was an adjuster tending to a claim.
Purchased 300 lbs. of rice and 75 lbs. of beans from the local LDS storehouse. Also picked up enough Mylar bags and O2 absorbers to hopefully bag it all.
Prepping went down this week. My brother was in his patrol car about 5 am and stopped at a stop sign. He saw another car approaching him at about 70 mph and knew he was going to get hit head on. He turned himself toward his drivers window and tried to be a small, narrow target. The other car became airborne and the front tires hit the hood of his cruiser. The grill from the car scrapped his back and did an air-borne 360 before landing. The driver of the other car was a drunk illegal who has been returned to Mexico 5 different times. My brother called 911 using his cell and it took 30 minutes for them to cut him out of the police car. He has a broken shoulder and broken femur up into his pelvis. He was taken to the emergency room for MIR and other tests. The other driver was charged, taken to jail, refused because he had scratches, taken to the hospital and odds are that he will get up and just leave.
Needless to say, prepping was not the important issue at this time. My brother says nothing will probably happen to this guy and he will be back on the streets. He said ICE won’t touch him. Said commentary on our country.
* should be sad commentary.
Terrible! What a mess we have going on the border! My prayers to your brother. Take good care of him!
Maji-Tx, I’ll add your brother to my prayers, sounds like he is lucky to be alive.
An illegal hit my friends daughter a few years back, broke her leg and pelvis bad. The mexican run off never to be seen again, his vehicle was registered to another mexican, he says it was stolen. You have to have uninsured motorist added to your auto insurance in this part of the country and we are no where near the border.
Sorry to hear about your brother. My prayers are with him for a full recovery.
This sort of stuff really makes me see red…need to do something about the borders.
Thanks all for the prayers and concern. He is really sore but swears instead of the six weeks off he will be back at the department this next week. We know that God is in control but my goodness these things are scary!!!
glad to here your brother came out as well as he did could have been much worse.
unfortunatly he is probably rite nothing will happen to the poor undocumented worker he is just mis understood that is all. try him and send them home, at some point we should probably ensure that the only way across the border is legal and if you are found here illegally flog them and send them home. we would also have to deal with those who hire said illegals, flog them and send them to prison should work. we need to secure the border and we need to attack the problem from both ends.
good luck, god bless
Maji-Tx
Prayers on behalf of your brother.
And yes, it’s a sad commentary on our country.
my prayers are with your brother and family. tell him we are all proud of the job he is doing. (sometimes we forget to say thank you).
Amen to that, pam s. More prayers for your brother from our home, Maji-Tx.
Maji-Tx: My prayers are added. God Bless you both. Cos
Hang the illegal and be done with it…….
Now charliebuck…. you must not understand the plight of these “undocumented workers”. I’m in my 5th week of chiropractic help due to one of these refugees ramming my vehicle two seconds after the light turned red for him as I was trying to turn left at the intersection.
How’s the M1? They became an addiction for me. I hope you don’t get as sick as I am. LOL Cos
Cosmo,sorry to hear about your back!Hope you are healing up.I am working on picking up some M2 FMJ today.Local pawn shop is only place with any right now.I want to refinish stock as top wood and bottom wood are different.Guess thats how Century did it I am told.Been doing a ton of research on the gun.I also picked up a Colt AR15 from the same guy as the M1.Price was right.I can understand how you feel about the Garand.Now I want a CMP Garand!!
Even CMP stocks sometimes come in different woods and colors. Rumor has it, M1′s are addicting. (Just ask my wife!) Safe shooting! Cos
Maji-Tx,
I hope your brother makes a full recovery, prayers for him and his family.
It’s shameful how our elected officials ignore the laws that would do the morally correct thing to that drunk.
ICE should be prosecuted for supporting and protecting the
actions of that man.
We pay to get laws passed and pay the politicians to manage them and all we get in response are things like what happened to your brother.
Hunker Down,
I agree about the laws and our politicians. Our government has become the Great Farce. They are dictating to us about what is right for us and they neglect to apply these same laws to themselves. They have put themselves above the law of the land and are tightening the noose on us. We will eventually be no better than a serf. Our only recourse if our vote which is invalidated by the illegal and deceased vote. The only concilation I have find is they have to answer before God on that judgement day. It will be so nice to have heaven politician free!!!! Glory!
maji – thank goodness your brother is still alive…I pray he recovers fully.
Stay strong, keep an eye on your brother.
I’m so sorry to read this and I will add your brother and his recovery to my prayers..
We’ve had some conversations on here about this kind of stuff happening, so I’m sharing this. What do you think?
http://www.newsnet5.com/dpp/news/local_news/oh_cuyahoga/78-year-old-shoots-teen-trying-to-break-into-his-Cleveland-home
Mt. Woman,
From the facts given, the 78-year-old acted prematurely. He should have waited until the thug broke down his door. Then it would have been a home invasion. And he would have been justified in shooting the perp. Protection of property is not sufficient justification to shoot someone. The man opened his door. So the shooting occurred outside. If the perp had fired a shot, the man would have been justified. Had the perp used the pry bar to force the door open, the man would have been justified in shooting him. But as things stand, the 78-year-old shot a 17 year old on suspicion that the kid was going to break in. Key fact here is that the kid hadn’t broken in yet.
I am interested to hear what everyone else has to say.
Galye:
I agree. That was a well thought out response. Cos
I disagree. The kid was in the process of breaking in, and had a gun on him. Better the old man be alive.
Gayle…good points…am going to have to think about this one…
Gayle…protection of property is sufficient justification – in some US states – see below…
however, and there is always a ‘however’.
And before I continue…for all the gun-owners…please contact your respective lawyers – first thing, and ask them what the relevant laws are as they apply to each of you, in each of the states that you happen to reside in…and what is the likely outcome/procedure if a zombie popper goes off.
that way, if/when something happens you know what to expect – before you shoot stuff up – important.
Now, don’t shoot the messenger (me).
And this is not legal advice…anyone relying on what I post here may get a shock after discharging their z/popper – just saying…so, sit opposite your lawyer (or phone him/her) and listen well and ask questions…and put his phone number etc in your phone right away – before you leave his/her office…put his business card in your wallet and also one on the fridge.
Approximately 2006-07 in Florida USA…new laws expanded the right of self-defence i.e., ‘stand your ground’ law or ‘shoot first’ law.
This law first took effect in Florida, i.e., shooter has no duty to retreat and has the right to stand his/her ground and meet force with force, including deadly force.
The central innovation in the Florida law expands on the right to shoot intruders who pose no threat to occupant’s safety.
Under the new law, no need to retreat before using deadly force.
This law has been rolled out to some (not all) other states in the US.
However…it may not be that simple…because we do not live in a perfect world…where black is black and white is white…there is always a gray area – first there may be one exception to the rule, than another, and as time passes people want to kill all the lawyers.
For another place…will use downunder as an example…will keep it brief…the accused may be unfit to be tried for mental impairment – but that’s only a limited defence.
or defensive homicide i.e., murder in circumstances of excessive self-defense, e.g., sudden or extraordinary emergency.
For the defense of self-defense – the question is whether the accused believed upon reasonable grounds that it was necessary in self-defense to do what he did – if he had that belief and there were reasonable grounds for it, or if jury is left in reasonable doubt about the matter, then he is entitled to an acquittal.
(not going to give case citation…this is not legal advice).
And can see how the 2 systems dffer.
So, check out a USA case where a young 23 y/o prostitute shot her client with his own gun, as he wanted to commit suicide…and had left a suicide note etc..she was acquitted.
Taxi driver also shot one of his passengers after dropping him off…one case occurred before the new law was introduced…no retroactive application of the law for him…guilty – however, case on appeal.
Another similar case after new laws introduced – accused was acquitted.
All this info is freely and widely available on the internet…
And do we all know to wait for our lawyers to be present before/during any discussions with LEO’s about incident.
I haven’t looked at the article after the initial reading – so, can’t remember what state they live in…important to know the relevant laws pertaining to the state one resides in…
I still feel sorry for the old guy…probably got the shock of his life…and the family of the deceased will be inconsolable…no winners in this.
Mt woman…thanks for posting the link.
Well Gayle, we have let the cat out amongst the pidgins – feathers will fly now, no doubt.
cheers…
Mt woman…that poor old man. To survive what he has already lived through – and now this…he would not have stood much of a chance without the zombie popper.
After canning venison last week, I mentioned to DH that I would sure love an All American pressure canner. This Presto one just doesn’t seem like it wil hold up well. He surprised me by ordering one with our tax return. SOOOO excited. can’t wait to use it.
DH participated in a tactical shooting competition. He had a blast and can’t wait to get me to one. I couldn’t go as I was shuffling kids to activities. Two baseball practices were cancelled for DS due to the cold. 60 degrees, good grief we have become a nation of pansies. Had a great day with 11 DD. She LOVES prepping and decided that she needs an EDC. We picked out a purse and she has been ransacking the house for items that she can carry. *sniff* my baby is growing up. I have always made sure that I had enough in my bag for her and DS ( I still will because hey she is 11). But I love that she is thinking about it.
We set up a time to take the DOGO pup to learn how to hunt pigs. *sniff* another baby growing up…I can’t say enough good things about this dog. Besides being beautiful, he has natural instinct for protecting the family. He really has no pain receptors (I found this out for real when I slammed his tail in the door, doh). I read that you would have to empty a 9mm to stop them when they are in full protection mode. He is extremely gentle with the kids, although being a kid himself and weighing more than DS, he can be a bit overwhelming when he wants to play. Got in touch w/my shelf reliance rep and will be ordering meat and cheese on sale. I can’t tell if I am more nervous so am researching more or if I am researching more and therefore more nervous. Times are getting scary.
texasmomma,
You may have posted this earlier, but what kind of dog do you have?
He is a DOGO Argentino. Check out the National geographic video on youtube.
This week I sent in my application for a C&R Federal Fire Arms License to the ATF. With this license you can buy older guns without a full ATF FFL. You can only buy with this license, not buy and sell. There are some great gun buys out there, if you have the license.
I also purchased two knives from US Calvery.
A lot of the older guns are better and cheaper than some of the newer ones. A lot of times, with new guns, you are paying a premium for the name on the gun.
Just had a thought…I desperately need to go to the hairdresser for a trim. I have just put hair-cutting scissors, bobbie pins, barrettes, elastic bands, rattail comb and Lice treatments on my list. After tshtf I will probably grow my hair out so will need the above to keep it back away from my face and eyes. Nothing worse that trying to work in the garden or cook having hair hanging. Read somewhere to use tea tree oil treatments for prevention/treatment for head lice. I know back in the day this was a real problem and my grandmother used kerosene on the head/hair. I’d rather not risk being a flaming torch. The kits are expensive and I’d like practice prevention if possible instead of infestation. I’ve had head lice before and it’s a disgusting, creepy feeling knowing you have bugs living and raising their little bug families on you. Anyone else know anything about the prevention of head/body lice?
Add water-free shampoo to your list, it doesn’t look more expensive than the mid-grade water shampoos. I haven’t tried water-free shampoos yet, but want to since I hate wet hair. Also look up baking soda treatments.
Myself, I will probably take a pocket-knife to my hair and cut it really short. Unfortunately, there is not much that I’m willing to do about my beard once my trimmer runs out of juice.
Add baby powder, body powder and medicated body powder. Mostly talc, corn starch, baking soda. You can make your own but 99 cent stores sell it allmost that cheap. The menthol and zinc in medicated is great for the rashes that will come if bathing gets hard to do.
I was curios myself conmaze, so did a little sleuthing. I found this article which pretty much reflects what all the others I found said.
http://herbgardens.about.com/od/herbrecipes/a/herbalheadliceremedy.htm
BTW…this is really important…I’ve been thinking about infestations of all kinds, post-SHTF, and this is one I hadn’t thought of. As the ability to stay clean declines(water shortage, natural disasters, etc.), infestations of all kinds could become a problem, and it would be good to know some remedies.
BTW #2: I put Tea Tree Oil in my shampoo…have for years. When it is hot, I get itchy scalp from sweating, and the tea tree oil stops that. But I don’t know if it would kill lice.
When my small DD was in public school, about 5 yrs ago she got head lice. I freaked. Her hair was super long and thick. It took a couple kits of RID and she still had it! (yes I washed EVERYTHING, I was a serious Freak).
Anyway, we had a dog shampoo BAR, like a soap bar with permitherin. I was desperate so I used that. Killed everything dead, dead, dead. (Daughter was fine!)
I have tried to find that type of dog flea soap BAR for the last couple years and have never found it again. If I do that is what I will store because it worked, AND lasted a long time. Kids used it on the dogs as I didn’t prep then and didn’t know to keep it for shtf. :( Plus I thought I could get another one.
I haven’t ever had the opportunity (thankfully) to use liquid cat/dog flea shampoo. I wonder if it would be as effective?
my head itches now! Yuck!
Vienna,
Check this out. May not be the same brand but may work just as well. It has pyrethrin in it. Worth getting a bar or two to keep on hand. Heck, if I’m worried about my own self getting bugs, I better look into prevention/treatment for my dogs too so they don’t get infested and bring pests in and around me. Doh. Never thought about that! See, it never ends, does it?http://www.onlinepetdepot.com/four-paws-flea-tick-soap-p-595.html
Conmaze!! Your Amazing! That’s it! That’s the bar!
Yeah! I’m getting a few of those, they really work and last a long time if you don’t let the kids use them on your pets! lol
Thanks for finding that.
Yippee Yahoo-ee! Another problem solved with an inexpensive solution for such a worrisome issue. Thank you for sharing the info about the bar. I’m ordering it! That’s what you call great teamwork. Man, I love this group!
Lol, Conmaze and Vienna, how much of that stuff did you order? Looks like they’re out of stock now. . . .
LoL! I only ordered 2 bars. They really do last a long time! What I did was type in the four paws flea and tick soap. Seems they quit making it actually. But I was on a mission!
I found some at a Bird Cages 4 Less website. I’m sure the bars are old, looks to have a different package, but same manufacturer. So I bought a couple.
Mission Accomplished after a bit of a hiccup.
(Really just made me want them MORE after seeing that it’s out of production. Probably because it Worked!)
conmaze…thank you…was wondering how DD was going to keep dogs free after SHTF…as part of our plan is that we will then add 2 more dogs – from the animal refuge…that is why I am storing lots of rice and dry and tinned dog food.
I have dried dog food stored in recycled 20 litres cooking oil drums – all cleaned out and dried well…and then added 10 O2 absorbers to each drum and screwed lid on tight…
DD uses frontline on them now…but after that…so a few bars of flea/lice soap is important…
and you are right again…it never ends…however, this is very important – as the flea/lice will infest us as well as the dogs if left untreated when SHTF.
sorry guys…see second line…left out ‘keep dogs free of fleas’ after…
Hair is over rated. Shave it off and save all the hair expense cash…
ofc thats easy for me to say as I have very little :-)
As Max Yasger said, “Long hair, short hair, what the hells the difference when the heads blown off”?
ron…that is so funny…yet shocking…and yet am still laughing…
Glad you saw the black humor in that. BTW: Max Yasger was the farmer who owned tha land where Woodstock was held.
This week was good. Bought a dehydrator, squirrel traps (conibear 110), 2 solar panels (10,W 85W), driveway guard, Endless Breeze 12 volt 14″ fan.
The fan works very well.
Gotta try the dehydrator out…
I bought a new 870 remington tactical shot gun85 rounds of 00 buck shot,200 rounds of 223, 100 .357 mag,100 40 s&w & 60 rds of 380 ammo. A bought a bucket of 56 freeze dried meals. And a book called the ultimate guide to homesteading. Bought a new gerber epic knife. 2 oil lamps. And got 2 good friends to join my wolf pack and start puting food and such back. Talked to my dentist. He thinks the same as me and has been stock piling.
mountain man:
Great prepping in a whole bunch of areas! Cos
Several folks mentioned feeling more pressure and noticing others looking streesed out too. As the warm weather returns, I’ve felt more stress. But in others, I’ve noticed an outbreak of politeness.
A 3-generation family saying grace over dinner at a BBQ restaurant. . . a pre-teen girl saying excuse me as she walked around us at the soda dispenser. . . people in Target telling each other ‘oh you go first’ (saw this one three times in 15 minutes). . . DH holding a door for a family and the father saying thank you and reminding his kids to say thank you too, which they cheerfully did immediately. . . a 20-something father, holding a toddler with one hand and a high chair with the other, telling a 50-something couple please go first. . . a 3rd or 4th grade boy asking the receptionist at the eye doctor’s ‘can you please tell me where the bathroom is?’. . . attentive, gracious sales people. . . cars letting other cars in on the road. . . .
Our part of the country probably tends to be a little less brusque than others, but this week, it’s almost like there was some kind of rapture of all the rude people. . . .
Lucky you Lantana; as things change and the pressure builds around here, there is just more uncivil behavior and downright violence.
Lantana,
I think that’s because of Lent.
Hang in there, MtWoman. Good point about Lent, Gayle.
Though to be honest, I was hoping that maybe they’d all read and taken to heart MD’s book and were thinking it’s TEOTWAWKI and they felt fine ’cause they were prepped.
Well the rain let up for several days so the garden is now ready for planting! I have strawberries and napa cabbage ready to plant tomorrow. I got my books togeather in one place now and blogged some of them on my gardenforyourlife.blogspot.com. My new plans for my quail cages are half done and I’m gathering supplies for the rebuild. Lighter and more mobile. I’ll post them too when I’m done. We’ve been eating only food from our stores and it’s going good.
I bought 333 rounds of .22LR and a box of 50 .38 Special. Other than that, not much because I was down with a nasty flu bug for most of the week. It eventually progressed into an ear/sinus infection so I went to the doctor and am now on antibiotics and a steroid treatment to reduce my sinus inflammation. That really got me thinking just how vulnerable I would be without access proper medications. I have a well stocked first aid kit and over-the-counter meds, but I need to add various antibiotics. Does anyone have any recommendations for a good, reasonably priced online seller of antibiotics? I found https://www.mywebrx.com/ but I am looking for other options also.
oz, calvetsupply.com
Re: calvetsupply. com
I ordered some stuff from them earlier in the week and it arrived in tip top shape and in a timely manner. I am pleased with their service. So I am another pack member giving them two thumbs up (or four and a half paws). If they were a tad bit cheaper, they would have gotten five paws.
http://www.calvetsupply.com/
and
http://www.kvsupply.com/KVVet/assets/html/homepage.asp?URLCheck=1
For when your “fish” are sick. Someone had Really sick “fish” last week. Lots of fin rot… mmm-hhmmmm Had to stock up. So when tshtf all those “fish” stay healthy.
Hmmmm!! This country should be renamed Atlantis. There are an awful lot of “fish” needing meds.
Thanks for the calvetsupply reference. That’s a huge savings from mywebrx on amoxycillin!
BK in KC…try SurvivingHealthy.com – medical doctor who dispenses antibiotics etc for SHTF…in the USA.
Excellent site Chloe, thanks! My wife is on synthroid to regulate her thyroid condition and there was some excellent advice there. Thank you!
Hi Wolf pack,
This week, I have been concentrating on alternate lighting. I ordered 7 oil lamp burners that fit on canning jars and a good supply of wicks from Southern Lamp Supply. I have also been searching thrift stores for lamp chimneys and big box stores for K-1 kerosene ( end of season clearance prices) and lamp oil. I am avoiding the scented oils. I think the smell would get tiresome after a while.
I have been keeping the Wolf Pack in my prayers as things get more and more “odd” each day. Take care, all.
BK in KC,
Thanks for the medical reference.
Wolf Pack; Does anyone have experience with this company?
The English syntax suggests a foreign company.
I too went through my bug out bag this week and found some things I still need so am working on that. Finally got all the things we need for our solar/wind off grid system except for the batteries. Slowly but surely we’ll get there. Ordered some seed potatoes and a couple other things, started some seedlings indoors. It’s never ending. LOL
Greetings everyone,
Kinda nervous as this is my first time posting a comment, but hoping that what I perceive as a great group of people, will welcome me, even though I am a new prepper which very much to learn in a very short amount of time. I have been reading everything on this site for maybe 5-6 weeks now and I am overwhelmed by how far behind I am on being prepared. Mr. Creekmore I cannot thank you enough for all that you have done to make this possible. As soon as finances permit, I will be sending a contribution and I would like to purchase from EE hopefully doing so from your site will give you credit in some manner–I don’t fully understand how that works but will do my best. I’ve read so many comments and already terribly miss Lint Picker–wish he would come back and I pray he is doing well. I’ve never felt such a sense of community as I’ve seen on this site. I have to admit that the site is darn near addictive–I find myself on this site at least 2 times a day trying to read current as well as past comments etc. I am amazed at the non-selfish giving of knowledge, advice and experience that is abundant in the Wolf Pack. I am so grateful to have been blessed with finding this site. At the same time I feel so foolish and a complete idiot to have wasted precious resources that I could have used to properly prepare my family. I can only try to do better moving forward. Trying to be hopeful to get my DH and our 3 children onboard, but DH is coming along very quickly in such short time already. Praying everday that we’re not too late as it seems so painfully obvious now that it’s just a matter of when TSHTF not if TSHTF. On to the positive, I did manage to put up some very basic survival items such as lots and lots of N-H seeds, beans, rice, pbutter,pasta, matches, foil, bags, soups, dry milk, dry breakfast items, canned meats, paper products, playing cards and simple games, first aid and hygiene products. Placed order for sample hard red/white wheat to try using these items for first time. I started a worm bin last week. There is just so much to do that it almost feels impossible. Placed barter ad on CL for new building products we have in storage(windows, doors etc) to trade for wood cooking stove , grain mill etc and other gear–so will see how that goes. Thrift shops here are a joke–nothing of use at the 3 I visited in last 2 weeks but will keep trying and I’m now scouring the papers in hopes of locating much needed items at an affordable price. I’ve printed so many articles and instructions and began a survival binder which I’ve reorganized too many times to count. Sorry this is so long but y’all feel like family at this point that it just poured out.
Deb:
Welcome. I agree that this site is addictive. I check every day and try to send some reply and make the notice box at the bottom. That way my inbox fills up with these great comments.
FYI – I have used hard red and white wheat. I like the soft white the best. However, it does not last as long (like 22 years vs 25-30) and is harder to get. Although I don’t have access to a lot of stores locally, but I do have Wheat Montana about 45 miles down the interstate. They sell in buckets and bags. We get together and get a minimum of 22 buckets for the group and save something like 30% (since we go get it, our total shipping is about $20-25).
Have never baked anything from “scratch” but gonna give it my best effort. Don’t have funds for a proper mill yet, so gonna try my coffee grinder or blender and see if I can make something edible.
Thanks for the warm welcome JP
Deb :-)
Deb,
I have a hand-crank wheat grinder to use when the electric goes out but I use the blender for convenience. My bread turned out fine.
Gayle,
Thanks for confirming the use of the blender.
Can’t wait til my wheat arrives to begin.
Deb,
You might try mixing half white flour with half home blended wheat flour, at least when you are starting. EE sells dough enhancer. I have some up in the pantry but I haven’t tried it yet.
Welcome Deb. What took you so long?
I’m not sure–nervous about being a start up prepper, I suppose. Everyone on this site is sooo much more prepared and knowledgable than I.
Deb
Welcome, Deb to a great group of people. If someone here doesn’t know the answer to a question, they will help you find it. We were ALL were you are at some point, so believe me, we understand how you feel. You will get there, just write out a list and keep it with you all the time. Before you know it you will have made a big dent in the list. Just making the decision to prep makes you way ahead of most people.
Nuttbush,
thanks for the tip about carrying my list–hadn’t thought of that until just now. Will be making a copy tonight.
Deb,
It was less than a year ago that I asked folks here where I could purchase food in #10 cans.
Deb….
Well, you’re here now and you’re in a good place.
I think that if you just consider what you’re doing and why your’re doing it, the rest comes easy except for the details and the details are in this blog.
Welcome Deb! I’m pretty new here too, these are some great people here. ask anything someone here will know something about it! its a great thing to have such a great pool of info thats willing to be shared.
stay safe
thanks–I immediately feel so welcome. I’m still amazed at the exchange of knowledge and wisdom; it gives me hope that there are many LM people willing to pass along their experience to others.
Welcome DEB!! I also miss lint picker he and I live in the same area code or used to I do not know what happend to him.I kinda feel that I lost a brother before I met him.Just keep learning and do what you can,you will be ahead of the sheeple at least.
axelsteve,
thanks for the warm welcome. Already feeling like family too. Thanks for the encouragement–it’s nice to know there are so many LM people in our world.
Take it slow. Well, except for printing out information; if you have the paper and ink, it’s more Ragnarok-proof than storing it digitally.
Some of the others have been prepping for years. I’m newish and still only planning for minor local disasters, but it’s building on family traditions leftover from the depression and cold war.
Once you can be comfortable for one month with all modern conveniences like food delivery, electricity, water, and gas shut down, it’s a lot less effort to expand for 6 months.
Great advice Kelekona. In an instant, you helped me think on a smaller scale of month to month obtainable goals instead of focusing on that 1 year mammoth. It’s a welcomed change to receive encouragement than ridicule (such as my extended family).
take care,
Deb :-)
Welcome, Deb. I think you are doing great for just starting!
This is a great group and site, so ask away on your questions. There are no foolish questions, most of us had to start sometime too. We do learn lots from each other and from the ones that have been doing this for a long time. My biggest problem is that I spend many hours trying to keep up with everyone. The wolfpack is responsible for my lack of sleep!! :) Glad to have you aboard!
Thanks for the encouragement. It’s nice to be welcomed so quickly, even though I’m “green”.
Deb :-)
Actually, there is one foolish question. It’s the one you don’t ask.
Thanks for reminding me of that–makes it easier to ask, even if I’m worried it might be really dumb.
copperhead…I have been staying up after midnight for weeks now…and I am a lark…still wake early…so, understand about the lack of sleep…but am laughing and having a great time nevertheless…cheers.
Sounds like your doing a great job now with preps! That was a lot to get done. And we all started somewhere, so you definitely in the right place. I learn sooo much from this site too. and get sucked into the time warp of reading everyones posts weekly too!
I suppose there are worse habits then learning self-sufficiency!
Thanks for the encouragement–it feels like only a couple grains (no puhn intended) in the bucket, but at least I finally started. I’m shocked at the number of “welcomes” received already. I feel so welcomed already.
Take care,
Deb :-)
Deb,Welcome home.This blog is a part of my life,as it is for most of the folks on here,I suspect.
Charlie, you are so right….it feels like home already.
Thanks and wishing you well,
Deb :-)
Deb: Welcome, take a deep breath and relax!
Things aren’t falling apart tomorrow. Pace yourself.
I’ve been doing this for decades and still see holes in
my preps. Knowing things might get ugly puts you miles
ahead of the sheeple. You are doing good! Cos
Cos,
Thanks for the encouragement. After reading so many “welcomes”…I know that I am very blessed to have found so many great people.
Thanks and be safe,
Deb :-)
Deb,
Welcome to the Wolf Pack. You have already accomplished a lot, just take it one day at a time. Try to develop a couple of new skills, there are folks here that are just waiting to help you. Just ask.
Hunker-Down,
Waiting for the next EMT class at the local hospital in May and connected with a local beekeeper that I will be meeting with in April. Gonna try a go at a small garden this year (our soil is mostly clay and rock) but gonna try my best and see what I get to grow. Hopefully, I won’t wear out my welcome with the stampede of questions sure to come in the future.
Be safe,
Deb:-)
Deb,
We like questions. One person may post an answer and then realize that another pack member has a better answer. So when you ask questions you provide the opportunity for the rest of us to learn as well.
Your soil is mostly clay and rock. What part of the country do you live in? What growing zone? You will be able to learn the most from folks who live in a similar climate–at least when it comes to gardening.
South Central PA. I’m not sure what the zone would be–maybe 5 I think? I live in a development of about 80 homes–certainly not one garden so I’m wondering what the neighbors will think but honestly I just don’t care at this point. The builder backfilled the lots with all kinds of terrible dirt–giant rocks and even found some burried building debris (lumber, plywood scraps) when we tried to plant some trees and shrubs the first year. And my yard is significantly sloped so I’m thinking I may have to do container gardening to avoid losing all my garden soil when it rains. I want to move in 2 yrs on a more suited property but until then I want to get some garden experience, even if it’s containers etc. In a SHTF scenario, this would not be an ideal location due to all the unprepared “sleepers” here, but I’m financially stuck (lost half my home value–along with half my income too) and trying to make best of it til I can make the move and hoping I get out before anything happens.
Deb,
Welcome welcome welcome. Try some raised beds where you add the soil. In raised beds you can alter the soil to what the plants need. I have caliche so raised beds are great!
Maji-Tx,
Thanks for the warm greeting. Would love to do the raised beds, but my yard slopes drastically and I fear all my soil would get washed away, until I built 3 sides to hold in my soil–not sure if that’s in the budget and have been considering container gardening. I also live in a strictly enforced HOA home so not sure if driving lumber into the ground to shore up the 3 sides would be allowed or container gardens for that matter, but I’m gonna do my darnest to make something work. My aunt had raised beds years ago and the things that women grew were amazing. Miss her dearly.
Thanks for the support
Deb
Deb,
You can grow your food in rain gutters. Someone did a really good post on that a couple of weeks back.
Deb,
I’m trying “bag gardening” this year. It looks like it should work well. You don’t have to hassle with the bad soil then. Just google it and you will get several sights that detail it.
Good luck on your gardening! Blessings!
Welcome Deb! I agree with the others–you are off to a *great* start, and each day you do a little something, you’re better off than you were the day before.
Be sure to stop and give yourself credit for each little victory or learning experience. Just think if everyone did as much as you’ve already done. Keep up the good work!
Lantana,
Thanks for the kind compliments and warm welcome. I feel at home already and the anxiety has reduced considerably already. The kindness of strangers is almost unbelievable and has given me a new sense of hope that there are so many wonderful LM people.
Take care and be safe,
Deb :-)
Deb,
Welcome to the Wolf Pack. It sounds like you’ve already done quite a bit. You’ve got some basic staples (rice and beans and stuff), you know how to can your own food. The best advise I can give you is to read through M.D.’s “10 Things to Do Now” and “10 More Things to do Now”. I didn’t see you mention water or protection.
Don’t be down on yourself because you have a ways to go. The important thing is that you have started. Feel free to ask questions.
Gayle,
Thanks so much for the words of encouragement, however, sadly, I do not know how to can, but want to learn soon. The canned items I listed in my storage are store bought items. I plan on adding canning equipment slowly as I cannot locate any used items at this time, but will continue to search. I have to be honest, I’m very intimidated by the process after reading the horrifying info on the internet about botulism and not being able to detect it etc. I know my GM and GGM both canned (wish I would have taken more notice at the time) and no one in the family died so I’m thinking it’s exaggerated legal stuff…along with so many other new skills I’m trying to begin and hopefully my successes are greater than my failures.
Take care and be safe,
Deb
Deb,
If you get a reputable book on canning and follow the directions, you won’t have any trouble. I started with things like salsa, chutney, relish and pickles–all things that you can can now if you have a big pot and some kind of veggie steamer to put in the bottom of the pan (so the canning jars don’t sit directly on top of the bottom of the pan). Once you get comfortable with that, you can move to pressure canning.
There’s a couple of excellent books. The Ball Blue Book is the standard reference. I like Small Batch Preserving by Ellie Topp and Margaret Howard.
You will amaze yourself at how quickly you acquire new skills. Just this afternoon I made my first batch of mozzarella cheese. We are having homemade pizza for dinner tonight–all made from shelf stable ingredients.
Gayle,
Thanks for that great tip on canning–I had no idea. I thought all the equipment was required. I will see if my library has those books to get started til finances permit purchasing those books. Homemade pizza sounds delish! Just added another item to my STL list….I LOVE mozz cheese! I think I’m gonna have to split up my resource and reference binder into several separate binders due to it’s constant expanding. LoL
Deb,
When I get the mozzarella making thing down I’ll write up a two part post: Part I: How to Make Mozzarella and Part II: How to make Pizza from Shelf Stable Ingredients.
That would seem to be pretty useful. I think we need to plan out some special things that we would want to cook for children’s birthdays, anniversaries and the like. Pizza on kid’s birthdays is an absolute must. Maybe I’ll even write one on how to make lasagna from all shelf stable ingredients.
Deb…I started with jellies and jams…hard to go wrong starting with them. I had a couple not jell, but that was ok…just called them ‘sauces’ or ‘syrups’. :) Really…jelly is a great simple way to get used to the equipment.
Deb:
All of my food is canned. I have two non-electric can openers too. I recently ate spam from 1999. The texture was softer, but I didn’t get ill. Remember Tabasco is your friend! LOL, Cos
Cos,
was it out of date or does it really have that long of storage date? Wow! I love hot sauce–yet another item on my “list”…LoL. And you reminded me of the “1 is none” rule….gotta get another opener.
Be safe,
Deb
Deb, maybe just 9 years past the “best by” date. LOL
cosmo,like you,alot of my supplies are canned.As long as I bug in,they will be my main source.I have a fair amount of Mre’s and dried foods but the dried stuff will really hit my water storage hard.Canned goods are somewhat cheap and they already have water,just need to rotate them out.Yes I agree with you on Tabasco.GOTTA HAVE PLENTY PUT ASIDE!!!Be Safe buddy.
Have ya’ll tried Texas Pete? I think it has a better flavor than Tabasco.
charliebuck69,
You can always tell an old grunt. Tabasco even makes C’s taste almost like food. Cos
Deb:
It’s not all exaggerated legal stuff. Canning done incorrectly can make one sick or even potentially kill one (rarely). But having said that canning is a skill that one can learn just be sure to get current directions with updated processing times. Learn when to use a boiling water canner and when you have to use a pressure canner and follow the tested recipes and canning can be fun and rewarding. Check with the local extension service to see if they have classes on preserving foods (often they will have classes that cover all the types of canning and dehydrating). A current Ball Blue Book and So Easy to Preserve are great places to start getting your basic canning background.
Sharahy,
A few months back someone brought up data on home canning and food illnesses. The overwhelming majority of people who get food poisoning get it from eating out. Folks who get sick from eating home canned foods, either didn’t follow the directions (for instance they tried canning tomatoes in a water bath instead of a pressure cooker–without adding lemon juice or they ate the product when it was questionable (bubbles and frothy stuff upon opening jar) or they ate foods that did not seal properly.
Given the number of people who do home canning and the very small number of people who get sick, home canning is both safe and easy.
Gayle: I agree. I have canned since I was 5 and we have been careful and followed appropriate recipes/instructions. As long as one is careful, as I said, it can be both fun and rewarding.
Sarahy,
I think some of these websites really scare would-be canners unnecessarily. When I got my pressure canner and first started canning meat, I was afraid it would blow up. Then I did my first batch and had to laugh at myself.
Deb,
Welcome! Don’t feel nervous or anxious. You’ll get great guidance here. If you can just remember to do one thing in the name of prepping a day, you’ll get there. Just reading this blog is prepping because of the knowledge you gain so you’ve already been prepping for five or six weeks!
If your soil is not good/healthy for a garden, may I suggest you look into raised beds that you can fill up with good soil. This will save you a lot of back-breaking work and time trying to get that clay in good condition. There are many books available at the library and much information on the web about it. And if you do the square foot method or the Mittleider method you can harvest an enormous amount of food from a very small space.
I, too, don’t have a good thrift store in my area, but I have found that going to yard sales has been a good resource for me. Also you might want to try a yahoo group called Freecycle. You can check it out on yahoo under their groups heading and see if there is one in your area. Dont’ know if you’re familiar with how it works, but you can post things you want to give away or post for things you are looking for. Everything is at no charge – free! Doesn’t get better than that, now does it? I have seen some amazingly gracious people respond to wanted posts, including giving someone a car!
Good luck with your preps and I look forward to your posts. I will try to help in any way I can.
Conmaze,
Thank you for all those wonderful ideas. I put them at the top of my TD list for today. I had no idea these things existed. You are certainly right, you cannot beat FREE. I will need to be creative b/c my yard is sloped on 3 sides and garden soil washes away. Limited by HOA, but I’m determined to make something work. I’m on well so the extra watering for containers could be lil tricky, but have rain barrel on TD list. In a SHTF scenario, I know my greatest asset will be the foundation that I received from this amazing community on this site and I cannot thank everyone enough for the support and encouragement that pours everyday. I hope that I will be able to share a new skill/knowledge along my journey that I can give back to my new “family” here…although that would be pretty tough to achieve.
Be safe,
Deb
Deb,
On a slope? All the more reason to build raised beds. You can terrace your boxes! I’ve seen some beautiful raised bed gardens built on the sides of hills…very cool. Also check out this link that someone posted a few weeks ago on how to build great soil and at the same time conserve the moisture in your soil http://backtoedenfilm.com/
conmaze,
Thanks for posting that link. I watched it last week and decided to begin saving for a small chipper. Thanks to you, the link is now saved in my “favorites”.
This looks like an amazing video…watch about 20 mins but hoping to finish the rest later today. Only 2 yr plan to stay at present location, so this would be a good project for the location I want to be in 2 years…hopefully.
Welcome Deb. I have to think/act on a week by week schedule. Sometimes the funds and time are available, sometimes not.
Papabear,
I agree and even most of the time, both funds and time are not available at once.
Thanks and be safe,
Deb
Deb, welcome…I too am thankful for the community here…to be able to be with like-minded people whenever I log on…very important to me.
Don’t worry yourself about the ‘what if’ etc and money spent in the past – can’t change the past…let it go and give yourself some peace of mind.
and now that you are posting – and sharing your prep journey with the rest of us…hope you have fun – with a great extended family.
I find the weeks just fly by…and yes, the site is addictive…welcome aboard…cheers.
Chloe,
Jumping in and interacting has been so great–the welcome has been almost unbelievable. It’s such a stark contrast to my experience in my journey with wanting to “wake up” other members of my extended family–epic failure. So now I just focus on my immediate family and will plan a month by month goal and build on that. This site community is awesome and I’ve learned so much already. I hope to give back to my new prepper family here, as my skills and knowledge expand.
Thanks again and be safe,
Deb
Welcome to the pack, look forward to getting to know you, just take one small step, adding a little here and little there will all add up much quicker then you think it will.
Farmgirl,
Thanks for the support–can’t get that in my “real world” so sure is nice that I don’t have to hide here. Feel like family as this group is so welcoming and kind and generous with their experience and knowledge. I stopped thinking in terms of 12 month preps as Kelekona and many others have reminded me to do smaller obtainable goals set on per month and it’s immediately relieved some of the anxiety about not being more prepared. Doing something prepper related everyday (thanks Conmaze) will add up quickly–even if it’s just adding info in my binder each day. Of course this site is sooo addictive (in a good way) so I have to learn to prioritize my time in a whole new way. Honestly it’s like stepping into a new life sorta.
Take care and be safe,
Deb
Howdy Deb, you have found the goldmine of prepping here!
R-idiot,
You are so right…I feel like I found the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow here. The amount of things I’ve learned so far are absolutely priceless, but most of all, the sense of community and fellowship of LM people is amazing. I can barely keep up with all the tips and guidance…I find myself scribbling notes everywhere as I check this site throughout the day and find yet another gem of prepping wisdom continuously.
Stay safe,
Deb
Deb, I keep a “notepad” open on my laptop when I am reading here so that I can “copy and paste” links and info to sort through later.
Deb, welcome to the Pack, everyone is friendly (most are lol) and if you ever have an questions if one of us don’t have the answer we can generally point you in the right direction to who would or a website that would.
Jarhead, thanks for the warm greeting. It’s been amazing. I’ve noticed you’re definitely a gun guru and as I am trying to get DH fully unboard, I believe the guns may be a way to lure him further into prepping. He has a Rueger 9mm (sp), Rossi revolver–I think it’s called a 38? And a baby version of the 9mm listed above…think it’s a 380? Sorry, I’m really really green on the gun topic so the spellings and descriptions might be crude. And although he hasn’t shot them for years (prob 7-10 yrs), I am now thankful that he acquired them–I was not so happy at the time. Stupid now, I know, but hey, God ain’t finished with me yet and I’ve realized how silly and foolish that was. He bout walked into the wall when I told him yesterday that I wanna learn to shoot and for first time ever, I held each of them. Have to admit my heart was pumping b/c old fears die hard…but I think I quickly adjusted and kept reminding myself that doing this for the first after SHTF is NOT a good idea. Looks like that Rossi revolver is gotta be it cuz that little 9mm thing is way too hard for me to operate and that 9mm just seems to cumbersome to operate. The resolver just seemed quick no-business and simple even for me. I really got his eyebrows popped when I mentioned that maybe we should think about a long gun…and lots more ammo. He agreed…but the hysterical shaking of his head was so funny. Finances permitting, we will be visiting a shooting range so I can (big breath) shoot my first gun.
Deb,
I took a woman’s only gun class. I really had a positive experience.
Deb,I think you will enjoy the Rossi.Picked a Rossi 38 up for one of my sisters,several years back.Model 58 or 68,I believe.Word of caution,only shoot 38 Special,not 38+P ammo,as it will damage the gun if the gun is not rated for 38+P.Pick up some speed loaders and enjoy the firearm!Stay Safe and God Bless You.
WELCOME Deb! Glad you joined us! Take deep breaths and as some others said one month at a time.
thanks CR
Deb:
Sounds like you are off to a good start! Welcome to the Wolfpack….there is so much to learn from so many and they are ALL so helpful!
If I haven’t said it lately, I think all on this blog rock! It is gratifying to hear people thinking and doing whatever they need to take care of themselves instead of sitting back “hoping” the government will step in and do something!
I continue to clean out rooms of stuff in preparation for selling one or both of my homes. I am almost done with the one nearest where I work and it is gratifying to see how well it is coming along. It is overwhelming in the sense that in this home are all the memories of all the loved ones that have died this past 3 or 4 years. I keep coming up on things that are memorable and sometimes painful. I went and bought a big trunk. Into that trunk is going all those things in acid free envelopes along with notes from me on why I am retaining whatever it is. It is making the sorting more directed and more reasonable.
Prepping this week was another trip to the range for some target practice. I am finding it a good way to work off some stress and it is helping me focus my priorities.
I spoke with a real estate agent in the Reno area and one on the west side of Sierras about properties more suitable than what I presently have. We will see as the year rolls on if any of them trip my fancy.
I made a good size order to EE this week. I needed more milk, fruits and some extra meats. I canned up a dozen pints of beanless chili and chicken and dumplings each.
I keep watching the Doomsday prepper show and I still can’t get over how they leave their canning jars so unprotected on their shelves. They are missing everything that has to do with anything that can dump the shelves over and put all their glass jars in a might shattered heap on the floor.
Read the newest book Half Past Midnight by Jeff Brackett. And I am trying to get through How to kill a 11 million people but it seems I would rather put it down and go paint a wall.
Guess that is all for this week preppers. Have a good week, keep an eye on the news and make sure if there is anything important you still need, get it on the schedule. It might not be long before it will be impossible to get!
Hey could you tell me how you did your chicken and dumplings. I have been looking for something different to jar besides the normal veggies?
Thanks
I just used my regular chicken and dumpling recipe all cooked up. Put it in the jars and then processed it in the pressure canner. It works out surprisingly well. I was worried about the dumplings being absorbed and they were to some degree, but it is still tasty.
Thank you so much!!!!
Worrisome I’m there with ya! Been cleaning and purging – hard to let go of memories we hold dear, keep some and let the rest go, that’s why I believe in a family history – so we can tell the stories of the ones we loved.
You’re spot on about the canning jars and items on shelves in general without protection from falling. Most shelving areas I see don’t have anything to keep the items from coming off the shelves in a big “shake up” – and I for one don’t keep my glass canned foods that way – I keep them in their boxes, clearly labeled and I try to keep them lower so if they do tumble, they are more protected. Since we also have those concerns about temp control, the lower the better since heat rises! A little harder to get to, but oh well – my place is small so it helps
Welcome to all the new people this week! Quite a lot of you! Boy have you come to the right place; you can’t beat the wealth of experience, knowledge, friendship and caring that you find here. Someone always has a suggestion or an answer.
Deb, since it sounds like money is a concern as is the HOA on building, if your yard is enclosed – think vertical – there was an article in The Mother Earth News about growing in the bags of soil and compost you can buy – no need to build – grow directly in the bags they can last several seasons, small outlay of cash, place where you want them and they will help your clay later as well. I always look at a wooden fence as an opportunity to grow up – heehee – my dad did that when I was a kid – he made beds along the length of the fence, and put nails in the top railing – he would string netting or growing string – anything that would let a plant wrap around it and grow up! He grew squashes, melons, tomatoes, you name it he grew it that way – he and mom lived in the suburbs as well (no HOA) and it suited our small yard. He grew the best tomatoes – few ever made it to table, you’d find all 7 of us out there picking a ripe one, wiping it off on the jeans and chowing down..mmm mmm rubbing my tummy. Better than any sugary dessert I’ve ever had.
I’d suggest going – back as time allows and reading all the previous WDYDTPTW posts – lots of great info.
Welcome again to all the new folks – you’ve taken on a great journey of learning, skill building, preparing for life’s funny little twists and turns – you’re not crazy in wanting to do this – at least if you are you’re in the best company around! Can I get an Amen to that??!!
Amen, grannyj !! This is the most amazing pack I have ever seen—Wolf, or otherwise. It is wonderful to see so many new ones getting on board. Everyone has something to add to the pot. They may not think of it as prepping; just something that “we have always done it that way”; but, it may be a whole new idea that some of us have never thought of. Share and share alike. We are all in this together.
Ozarkanna, couldnt agree more – the WP is growing by leaps and bounds and you’re right, EVERYONE has something to give and that something may be just the thing someone else needed…that’s why I love WDYDTPTW – I always have a “now that is a GREAT idea! I wish I woulda thot of that!” moment or two or three. Thanks to everyone here and to MD for giving us a home – I think we are all better prepared because of our sharing and encouragement with each other. Now if I could just implement all that I learn…..:)
ozarkanna…same is happening on my side of the pond…
since Sunday – have had 4 visitors…2 preppers, and another old friend who is going to move to her DD’s farm when SHTF,
and today, another nursing friend – hadn’t seen her in over 30 years – remember her when she just started her training…and then saw her up at the hospital recently…long story short…wanted to come and visit me…said ‘okay, come to my place’…I have turned this place into Grand Central Station this week it seems.
what has happened is that people are starting to see what is happening…anyway my old nursing friend and her husband have been – wait for it…putting food aside. Yes..I knew I was right to trust my instinct and have her come here…
So, spoke to her husband on phone etc…will be seeing them again…now I am not the only one in my group with nursing skills…and they only live circa 30 mins from me…excellent…
just like the rest of the pack’s partners/DH’s coming on board on your side of the pond…
For bags for growing things, try http://www.geoplanter.com It is great thing to use. Just make sure you get good soil.
GrannyJ,
thanks for the tip about the vertical growing; we have a small fence for our dog potty area but that it. The ordeal to get that approved as ridiculous. However, it’s all great info that I’m putting in my binder for future ideas.
Thanks again for the nice welcome into group
Zip, Zilch, Nada done this week, I’m afraid. Still felt really bad with the sinus infection until yesterday. Didn’t go to town but once and that was for meds. Hopefully, this next week will be much more productive. I, also, want to work on fine-tuning some skills.
I did receive my Flojak pump, but only 1/2 of it. UPS damaged the boxes so badly that they had to go back. Really perturbing!
Prayers for all needing them and welcome to several new ones I see here this week.
Blessings!
copperhead…take the time that your body needs to get back up to par…
as I get older seems to take just that little bit longer…and it’s so frustrating because while am laying down – want to get up and do things, then as soon as I do stand up…have to lay right back down again…and that was just the flu…
just can’t imagine how bad that sinus infection must have been…
till next time…
Thanks, Chloe. I am much better, but today we’ve had 60mph winds and blowing dust! That is especially hard on the sinuses.
We are so dry here that the low humidity dries the body out, too, and makes it hard to breathe at times. We’re all praying for rain to break the drought.
To all on this blog:
I have been reading for awhile but never left a post. I do feel that those of you who post are of high character and would be happy to band together with any of you in a long term SHTF situation.
Preps this week:
Bought gas mask, .30 cal ammo cans for storage , 12 cans of veggies on sale at local supermarket. Prepped 100 9mm cases to reload. taught friend and fellow prepped the finer points of reloading as his wife bought him a press he has never used for fear of blowing his guns up!
I am very much accelerating preps as I to see things starting to degrade rapidly. Massive debt cannot be sustained and we will be left with worthless paper. Considering taking one of my 401K accounts out to avoid being left with nothing? Maybe buy more food, silver coins, etc? What say you all out there? Thanks for any advice. God Bless us all when things slide down.
Welcome! Where did you get the gas mask? Gold and Silver are good ways to preserve your investments, unlike a sudden drop in a stock market that can quickly take away your savings. Whatever you do, be cautious, careful and think it over every way possible before you do it. It is good that you can see the changes. They are happening. Every day and every way. Hard to figure out how to stay out of it, above it, or away from it.
Worrisome
Mask from CTD ( Cheaper Than Dirt ). Any ideas on where to get the silver coins? Thanks for the help.
Bwhntr57. I bought mine a long time ago from a coin dealer. Occasionally wolf pack members mention a specific dealer they use…….Wolfpack? Can you help us out here and post the link again? Thanks
Yes! It was Provident Metals that I heard did a good job. Thanks JP!
Worrisome -> B57..
I bought mine from the Perth Mint – they have an office in the USA…google search and should come up…
last time I looked (Christmas) they were out of stock…but can still order – and will be posted out to you when available.
The price of the silver/coin fluctuates daily.
so, will receive an offer – via email, and then you need to respond with your written acceptance…pay via net transfer…and they post the coins to you…insured.
You have to sign/show ID for receipt of coins.
Also…buy from a reputable dealer – someone who has been in the business for a while…read sometime back – circa 4-6 mths – there were fake silver coins being sold…
how to test is with a magnet…- .99% silver coin will have no attraction.
However…check this info out for yourself as well…don’t rely on just my post.
Be sure to do your own due diligence…just to be sure you’re getting the real deal before you spend your hard-earned money. hope that helped. cheers.
Every time I read a post about buying gold and silver, it brings to mind a song from the 70′ about the end time…. “a piece of bread would buy a bag of gold…..I wish we’d all been ready” Gives me goosebumps!
Keep prepping people…
Bwhntr57:
Are you going to get hit with early withdrawal fees?
If you have the resources, I’d take out some and buy
hard items. I think precious metals rank last except
for the inflationary increase in their value. The things
I got in order were, water/purification, food/seeds,
camping gear, camping cooking stuff w/ fuel, boots
and spare socks for my family. I already had bad words
to say at anyone who wanted to take stuff away. Cos
Cos
Already have all of the items you mentioned. I would rather be hit with the fees than have nothing if Big Brother freezes all 401k or money becomes just paper.
O.K.
I’ve used APMEX and California Numistmatics,(SP?) with good results.
cosmolined:
I’ve used Lear Capital and Provident Metals. Provident has cheaper shipping but somewhat higher premiums, so it depends upon how much I have to spend which I go with.
JP:
Just to show you I’m an old F#rt, I bought silver at $5.27. LOL Cos
cosmolined:
I started saving silver when Cheaper than Dirt would give you a Silver Eagle if you would order online.
WOW!!!! Our garages must look similar! (I park on the street.) LOL, Cos
B57…just as an aside…after 2008 – I wanted all my super’n funds out (=your 401K).
Was old enough – however was not an issue for me at the time. Then when I saw the almost 25% drop…
Was told that it was just a paper loss only…and not a real loss. (they are all idiots when it comes to dealing fairly with other people’s money).
I told them that I did not need to pay them a commission to keeping losing my money…and that I was quite capable of losing my own money, if it came to that.
For some reason they did not think that was funny – however, I got all my super out.
And have had no regrets.
The powers that be just keep changing the rules…and the legislation/rules mandated the 401′s – and then once there was a great pile of funds in them…they change the rules again…
or increase the retirement age…or whatever they can scheme up.
Meanwhile – the rules that apply to us, do not apply to the politicians.
The baby boomers have started to retire…and will need their 401 funds…maybe the first few years – everyone will receive the money…
Does anyone think that in 20 years time…when the last of the BB’s retire…there will be any funds left.
B57…have you been reading re the UK’s pension plans…and what has happened to them…and how the Brit citizens are getting scr*wed as well…
Our respective countries are all in massive debt…who is ultimately going to fund that debt…just ask the Greek citizens – they know.
cheers.
Chloe
Excellent point on this topic. it just reinforces my determination to get some of my stuff out now while I still can. Appreciate that input. Prep on and prosper!
Bwhntr57,
Welcome to the Wolf Pack!
my2c: The purchasing power of money is shrinking at an expanding pace. Use it before it becomes TP.
Weigh the 401K withdrawal penalty against inflation’s effect on your purchasing power. I would spend my money (I wish!) on water storage and purification, long term storage food, junk silver, protection and barter items.
A couple of far out radio talk shows are openly discussing a nuclear world war, so our prep list is changing again.
H-D,
what’s “junk silver”? hope that’s not really stupid question.
Deb
Deb:
Junk silver is the term used for the older circulated silver coins.
The cost is about 12 times face value, so an old silver quarter may cost you $3 before shipping. Cos
Cos,
Thanks for info. what’s considered “old” in terms of quarters and I’m guessing dimes too? I’m thinking prior to mid-1960′s before the silver content was altered or are you speaking earlier than that?
http://www.coinflation.com/
Before 1965 coins (dimes and quarter) had 90% silver content, from 65 to 70 they had 40%. Both are worth more than face value………..check all your silver. Now they are talking about changing the content of nickels, if they do all the nickels prior to that change date will have more value than face value. In fact they already do. Presently a nickel’s metal content = 8 or 9 cents.
Deb:
I think pre ’65 were all 90% silver. There are maybe 3 different types of dimes, quarters, halfs and two types of silver dollars as far as I remember. Their recognition value is what is important to ordinary folks. If you offer an ounce bar from say Canada to trade, some people wouldn’t have a clue what you were offering. The silver content was destroyed in 65 I think, with the exception of half dollars which were 40% for about 3 years. (I’m not even close to sure of these dates, but if you look at a site like APMEX, they will give you exact details, prices and current availability. (A personal note, precious metals are about the last thing that should be on your list as a new prepper. Water, food, good footwear, lighting, cooking gear to include a stove, sleeping bags…. my list is kind of long. I’ll leave it there. LAM) Cos
Deb,
Stupid questions and dumb questions are my favorite.
Most of the time someone ask that type of question when I’m too timid to ask. Every time, I either learn from the answers posted here, or the question sends me down another prepping path I didn’t know I needed to go down.
The more basic the question, the better the answers we get from the Wolf Pack.
I learn the most when there is disagreement among the posters. Then we get to see the issue from many sides and can pick an answer from among many, one that best fits our circumstances.
It’s amazing how the posters here can disagree with politeness and mutual respect. I suspect M.D. Creekmore’s constant purging of personal attack posts has a lot to do with it.
Hunker,
Thats so funny! My SO and I were just talking about TP having more value than paper mony this morning! Great minds :)
Thanks HD.
I feel welcome. This gas increase thing definitely worries me as I see this is the fastest way consumers are hit in the pocketbook and fuel prices affect all things sold in our economy. Prices will go up on everything and this may squash the tepid recovery that Nobama is touting to all and sundry. God help us all ! Prep on.
B-57,
Welcome to the Wolf Pack. If you have any questions ask away.
Welcome Bwhntr57.
If you are still working and contributing to your 401k consider this option: borrow from it instead of taking the money out. You are borrowing your own money so the interest rate is low, and the interest is deposited into your account rather than going to a lending institution. It will let you have access to your money without a tax penalty. Your 401k is still subject to the whims of the stock market though.
P-Bear
But I have to have a payment then, right? I did that once before and it worked out but I am trying to eliminate all payments. We have only our house ( 10 years to pay off ) and 1 car ( 0% interest for 3 more years ) and car. No credit card debt. I have 2 accounts, one with my active job, and 1 with my former job that I never rolled over into current account. That is the one I may want to pull out and invest in preps and silver. Any comments or advice from the Pack? Thanks.
b57…welcome…
yes, am with you on accelerating preps – I see inflation biting us now – as it has in the past, and it will continue.
And yes, I also bought silver coins, however, made sure I had plenty of food first, and am still getting more food stored…as I/my family/friends need to eat everyday – so, got to replace it and keep adding.
…the problem is space – going to run out of places to store it all.
Can’t eat silver…and if need food – going to look foolish having lots of silver and yet no one will part with their wheat/food etc…because the cost of it has risen…and impossible to source any more…so, why not get it now, when it is cheap…yes, it is cheap compared to what we pay on my side of the pond…but if intolerant to wheat…get what you can all enjoy.
however, once cash/fiat paper worthless – what are you going to pay property taxes with – fuel, medicine etc…so, balance required.
Don’t go crazy and panic…steady – a little each day, and see it as providing for your family – a necessary and prudent thing to do.
what would you do, now, if you were in the situation citizens of Greece are in…what would you prep/store.
What would you need to learn to do now…and your family too…
where will you go, or stay. Who are your trusted friends…have they shown themselves ready to protect your back.
Our debt situation (even on my side of the pond) is frightening…the USA debt in relation to Greece’s – frightening…
pay attention and focus your energies…can’t do everything – so prioritize – think…plan…and then execute your plan…
go with your strengths first – what you are already good at and can do easily…
and do any of your family members have other strengths that balance your skills/info/knowledge…
And only you know your personal circumstances, risk tolerance, and what you are comfortable with.
one silver coin for me currently buys 30kgs wheat, or about 60 pkts of 500gms pasta, or 33Kgs white rice…can use that as a base for many meals…to make your protein supplies last…protein repairs the body’s cells…the added stress is going to wipe a lot of people out mentally…
even in normal times…things happen, and people don’t cope as well as they might…so, think about this as well and be gentle with yourself and family.
so, good fresh nutritious food now – get your body’s various systems up and strengthened – so that any gaps in your food supplies don’t lay you low…it may be a long haul.
however, what if wheat /rice/pasta price goes ballistic…and it now costs 10 silver coins to buy just one type of the above mentioned amount of food…
for me…I bought food first, beans, band-aids, etc…then silver (PM – precious metals) and now back to food and the rest of the stuff…silver is on the move (however known to fall victim to market manipulation)…and so is price of food – however food is a need, not a want…your choice…
You know, don’t discount gold jewellery…what you already have…may come in handy one day.
hope this helps – cheers.
Thanks Clhoe
Very good points made. Food of course, and I already have a bunch of weapons and ammo stocked up. So I am just looking to have well rounded prep plan. I have an 80 acre retreat with a small house in northern Wiscosnin that could grow food and has plenty of things to hunt, particularly deer which I have taken regularly.
Welcome Bwhntr57!
Thanks C-Buck69!
prep on my friend!
Welcome to the Wolf Pack! A great group here.
Copperhead
Ain’t that a really nasty snake, or I seem to recall an equally nasty artillery round that is guided.
Just remember dude I am on your side!
Uh yeah, a really nasty snake! :))) I have heard of the sidewinder artillery, not the copperhead. See I’m still learning! And, make that, dudette!
My bite is only for the unwelcome zombies, tho.
And, then again, it might just be the color of my hair, OR maybe ALL of the above.
Glad to have you in the pack, Bwhntr57.
Welcome, Bwhntr57! Post away! If you can afford the penalties that come with cashing out your 401K, go for it. It is your money and if you feel you need it for other purposes, it is your decision. Just set aside some of that money to pay the taxes that will be due on it. Just sayin’.
Well, I found an interesting tinfoil article about how FEMA could seize non-constitutional control in an emergency, but that there are no laws to make them relinquish that power when the emergency is over. Something to look into and complain about if it’s true.
Then I was reading a website either by FEMA or USDA or Disaster.gov about how refridgerators are only good for four hours, freezers only for a day, canned goods submerged in flood waters are toxic, and plastic utensils cannot become decontaminated after a flood.
Sounds like a bunch of bularchy, or paranoia that people couldn’t tell the difference between a transplant patient on immune-suppressors and a college student that gets exposed to unsafe food every other week. I know that my family has had a freezer stay good for a whole 5 days, though that was in cool conditions.
—-
On a more positive note, I realized that preppers, thrifties, recyclers, homesteaders, historical reenactors, various other groups…. there are several overlaps, more resources than one community could provide.
K…all those Gov stats are for the worst conditions, and because people have become sheeple and CAN’T tell what’s good and what isn’t, and need to be ‘guided’. And you can bet that some lawyers are in there somewhere (no offense to any WPack lawyers), as they have been for several decades now in law and policy making. We can’t take care of ourselves you know.
And I see overlaps in different groups too. The times they are interesting, eh?
Kelekona….it’s true. My brother worked for FEMA for 2 years in a fairly high ranking local position and he is the one who told me about it.
Why would canned food submerged in flood waters be unusable? Why couldn’t you just bleach the can to get the contaminants off the outside of the can, and the just eat it? If the can is not punctured, how can contaminants get into the can?
Good question Gayle. I’ve wondered about this too.
Gayle,
Sheeple don’t know how to disinfect.
Hmmm….. The contents of the can are still good. There are two types of chemicals, organic and inorganic. If it were me, I’d rinse the can in running water, using a rubber glove and goggles, then wash it in hot, soapy water and rinse it again. (Take off the label before you do that.) Let it dry so no liquids contaminate the contents when you open the can… I am NOT positive, but I think that would work enough to eat the contents.
(Too many years of college.), Cos
Started the week by getting a few trays of seeds started in my greenhouse. Will re-till the garden in 2 weeks. Then had a couch bound case of Gout for most of the week, so got little else done until this weekend. Started building my “chicken tractor”. Got it about 65%complete over the last 2 days. Another good weekend on it, and it will be ready for Chickens.
LonghairCountryboy
Let me suggest that you speak to your doctor about your gout. My DH has had gout for 40 plus years, use to have to use crutches to be able to walk.
Old doc retired, we get new doc, DH has gout attack, go to new doc, he thinks DH’s foot is broken, his gout was so bad. Not broken, just normal gout, the short our new doctor suggested a blood test, to check uric acid levels, also tells us about how gout effects your heart muscle if left untreated. The last 12 years DH as been on Allopurinol to reduce the uric acid in his blood, with no gout attaches. No problems with his heart which is most important. Just a suggestion!
Texas Nana, my DH has the same problem and the Allopurinol has all but eliminated his gout. He hasn’t had a flareup in 3 years and he used to get a bad one about every 3-6 months.
GL w/yours LonghairCountryboy….my heart goes out to you.
I am new to prepping and this website. My fiance and I have been thinking about this for years and have finally decided to begin. Today. I feel like this is way too late but we will do the best we can. We are flat broke but we started our bug-out-bags today and made lists. Lots of lists.
Krystle
It is never to late to start prepping.
The shame would be in doing nothing.
That is where we all started. Everything you do is going to make you better.
Krystle…welcome. Here is MD’s top 10 list TO DO NOW.
http://www.thesurvivalistblog.net/survival-food-storage-walmart/. If you can’t get the numbers of things he recommends, get ONE or TWO. I too am on a (non) budget, but I buy one thing at a time extra for food and one other prep thing each time I can. It adds up.
The other thing I have found to be really helpful is to look at what ‘stuff’ you have and see what can be thinned out and moved on. I’ve been doing that for over a year, and am about down to immediate needs. And along the way, I’ve found some really helpful items for prepping, AND have made room for important things.
Prepping is a frame of mind, and for me a way of looking at my lifestyle. Starting now is better than not starting at all. :)
Mt. Woman,
That’s great info. My mind is racing with all the useless items lurking in my home that would fetch something in a yard sale. A nice yard sale could give me the extra funds for some of those large items on my list. I feel like I have an “old life” and a “new life” suddenly due to my recent “waking up” to prepping. I have tons of useless crap (prepper wise) that would be considered great buys at a yard sale to the rest of my “still-sleeping” neighbors. Another item on my TD list. Another reason to wish spring would arrive early. That grain mill is not seeming so unobtainable now. Thanks for the ideas.
Be safe,
Deb
Deb,
I purchased my grain mill granted it is manul for 30.00.
I bought 2 meat grinders manual as well for $5.00 each at a thrift store. I have been buying a lot at thrift stores. Quite a few people who live in cities inherit all sorts of stuff and have no clue what they are pitching out. I just sit back and watch. Got a rusty 10 inch cast iron from a neighbor years ago because she just could not believe her Grandmother holding onto something like that. Hell I grabbed it cleaned it up.
Go check out places, watch your neighbors never know what you may find as a treasure….lol
Candy,
I read some reviews on those smaller mills and they kinda scared me off so I thought maybe I should just save up for one of the bigger ones, but then I’m reminded of the 1 is none rule…and actually, I really do have NONE right now…LOL so maybe I should try one of the smaller ones. Do you know which brand/style you’re having luck with? everything I’ve read says they don’t make flour quality and one even said it was equivalent to chicken feed. My thrift stores here are pathetic but maybe I need to venture out closer to the larger city areas and maybe I’ll have better luck.
Take care and be safe,
Deb
Deb and M.D.,
I think M.D. wrote an article on wheat mills. M.D., any chance you could post this link? (I can never remember which one is the most recently recommended.)
My manual wheat grinder has no name thats how old it is..lol Yes first grinding looked like chicken feed, we run our grindings through 10 times to get it how I like. Doesn’t take as long as some would think, but we have 2 of us that work on it when 1 gets tired the other takes over and we only make enough for about 8 loaves of bread at a time. Last time DH took a 1 gal juice bottle and rigged it onto the grinder like a dummy and ground up 8 lbs of the flour, now that one took all day…I think he learned his lesson on that one..lol.
DH has his eyes one a grinder like my neighbors it is electric but they have it to where you can hook a crank to the back of it if you lose power.
I try to buy all my equipment as manual because of having an all electric house I can keep my bills lower, We try not to even use a microwave unless it is absolutely needed.
We put a giant old wooden desk in our pantry and we try to get things we can mount on it. Man. Grain grinder , Meat Grinder, and we also have a Vegetable slicer/dicer thing they get screwed down and are in one area not far from a sink so easy clean up.
My grinders meat, and grain all hook to my old desk. DH screwed them down for me. I thought I would have problems with doing the manual as well because I have really bad wrists, but no problems actually great exercise.
Krystle:
Welcome to the pack!
It is never to late my friend. Starting is the first step. Relax,
pace yourself and enjoy life too. Things may change or not.
Take small steps. Think about what is essential in YOUR life.
Don’t just focus on one thing. You will need an assortment
of stuff if things go bad. Knowledge can never be taken away,
so don’t forget to learn things along the way. God Bless, Cos
krystle, you’re doing fine. you and your fiance are ahead of a lot of people.
PS: Be sure to read the comments on MD’s article…lots more good info there.
K
better late than never. Most people do not even recognize that we may be facing a radically different economic climate, in a negative way, than ever before. And escalating gas prices may be the tipping point if they get to 5.00/gal. Do what you can but give up the Starbucks occasionally to do it! God Bless.
Hi Krystle,
The important thing is to be aware that you need to start, so you are already ahead of most folks. Start learning about water needs, then food storage. Ask questions and check M.D.’s archives. It doesn’t cost anything to do research here, and as you learn, you will be re-prioritizing all those lists. Welcome.
Welcome Krystle! If you and your fiance are on the same page, then that is a tremendous asset. There’s a lot you can do with just good ol’ brain power–put on your thinking cap, clean out your closets and see what may be more useful than you imagined (or a good candidate for a garage sale).
There was also a recent post about what one pack member would want her extended family to bring if they came to her place; lots of good thoughts there and in the comments.
Krystle,
Welcome to the Wolf Pack. If you have questions, ask away.
Welcome Krystle. You will surprise yourself on what you can do when you are broke.
Krystle,
Welcome to the Wolf Pack. You stated you decided to begin. That’s step one. You are now officially a prepper. Congratulations! Now that you are a prepper, you will find what I like to call magical money start to appear. When you become a prepper, your priorities change. You will look at every dollar you spend and ask yourself if it is a necessary item and if not, would you rather put that money into something to add to your preps. You’ll be surprised at how much money you can redirect into the prepping fund. It’s almost become a game with me and I rather enjoy it!
Looking forward to your posts. By the way, this is a great group and you will get all the help you need here.
Krystle…never too late…
got lots of sturdy clothes in your wardrobes…set some aside and stuff into BOB
same with a small zippered bag for a first aid kit.
any matches/lighters/cotton balls – stick these in a plastic screw top jar.
any presecription meds..keep these in a safe place
need reading glasses…put a set in a sturdy carry case in the bag too.
a small bag of essential toiletries – a bag for each of you – check out the bathroom for these things and – into the bag..
any flashlights and batteries…in the bag..
towels, sturdy walking shoes/socks/boots – USB sticks with important family/financial/tax info…in the bag also.
you get the picture…
then – look in pantry – have fun…you have started now…cheers.
Welcome to the Pack, Krystle!
Krystle!
Welcome to the Wolf pack!!
Don’t forget to always check you local thrift stores, goodwill, and resale shops, I’ve made some good buys. It’s a great way to stretch your $$. Boots, jeans, sheets, blankets, kitchen items, cast iron, ect., also check out your local craigslist, and garage sales.
hey hey, dont forget military surplus stores.
Welcome to the pack, Krystle! We all had to begin somewhere. You will be surprised at what you already own that can be used in your BOB. And you’ll find yourself looking at stuff and seeing that it can be used differently than what you bought it for. Make lists, lots of lists. There are some good ones here and also elsewhere in the internet. You don’t have to go out and buy a bunch of expensive food items; with an oven or a food dryer you can dehydrate your own food such as carrots, celery, mushrooms. My oldest son hikes in the boonies and has dehydrated meals he has cooked at home, such as beef strogonoff, and then added boiling water on the trail for a great, home cooked meal. He said it tastes better than any expensive dehydrated meal in a bag…and he has tried them all.
Don’t get discouraged! The fact you know you need to do this is the first step. Every day do something.
Welcome Krystle!
WOW! Suppose you could say I err.. rather we are new to the prepping lifestyle. I have always been one to want to be ready for whatever may happens but the last year or so the world has made it crystal clear what we need to do. We are so thankful to have found this site and all the great folks who contribute. Have learned so much the past month or so since we have become regular “observers”. Nice to be sharing for the first time.
This week we managed to scrape together enough greenbacks to get a new cast iron 12″ pan. I have already seasoned it up nicely and can’t wait to try it out on our camping trip in two weeks. Also added to our food stores(some extra can goods, oats, salt canned meat). Received our first of what I hope to be many packages of mylar bags. Oh yeah lasty was able to get another 100 shells for the shotgun.
Thanks again for the incredible knowledge that you folks share!
Welcome Bulldog! Sounds like you had a good week–keep it up!
Bulldog,
I hope you are not a Georgia fan. Do you know what Uga’s middle name is? It’s “Lee” and in Ug-a-lee. :)
Hang on there now, Gayle. You are kinda stepping on some toes, me being a HUGE Georgia fan and all. LOL! And Uga is what we Bulldawg fans call “so ug-a-lee he is cute”!
Bulldog94, welcome to the pack.
Go Gators!
Welcome Bulldog94
Welcome to the Pack, Bulldog! Glad you decided to go “active” here on the site. By the way, why not use that cast iron bad boy at home now? Why wait for camping? Remember, the more you use it the better it is. I love love love my cast iron and use it every day. Look forward to your posts!
Welcome bulldog94!
I agree with using your cast iron at home. My wife has some fancy stuff that you can’t use silverware to stir! My cast iron is better.
Just never use soap in it or you’ll have to re-season it. Cos
I just made Sloppy Joes in my favorite cast iron chicken fryer (fancy name for a high sided pan). Turned out great…must be the iron that the pan adds, lol. This pan came from my grandma, and who knows where she got it! It is very old, but cooks wonderfully.
E,
My wife and now I have been cooking for years in cast iron. Best heat distribution of any pan. Holds up well over burners and open fires equally. Heavier than a battle ship though. LOL
dog94, welcome…
what was it that made you wake up to what was happening…was it a feeling, or one particular event, or lots of little things that just could not be ignored…and you found you had to make some changes…
I would appreciate having your insight and fresh pair of prepper’s eyes/ears on what you see/hear happening around you that compelled you to start prepping now, as opposed to say, 6 months ago…cheers.
I guess we have been prepping slowly but steadily for about a year or so. With the ever increasing tensions in the middle east, all the “Occupy”folks and seemingly endless spending by DC we have to take our prepping up about 6 notches.
I just see so many signs out there that things are not heading in the right direction for the USA. The ever rising gas prices are not only contributing to rising prices on other goods but I am fearful many may be in short supply by summer. I have already noticed many items such as ammo and food prices going through the roof even at discount stores like Walmart.
Just a few thoughts for tonight. Now that I have broke the ice and have become part of the pack more thoughts will follow.
thanks dog94…appreciate your reply…cheers.
Welcome to you, too, Bulldog! The WolfPack is growing…I think people are getting wise. Glad to have you.
Hi Bulldog,
I’m new to prepping too and been observing for few weeks and this community is awesome. You just reminded me that I have many resources that add to my prepareness….completely forgot about all of our camping equipment. Never had a prepper mindset til this year so it’s like I’m re-learning everything everyday. Always considered our camping equipment as just fun family time together couple times a year. Now with my newly acquired prepper vision, I’m seeing things completely different. Thanks for the reminder that I’m a teeny bit more prepared than I realized.
Take care and be safe,
Deb
Let me give a big Wolf Pack welcome to Deb and Bulldog94!!!!
Hope ya’ll both enjoy and learn from this site!!
Texas Nana,
Thanks so much for that welcoming call into the Pack. I am constantly amazed by the outpouring of kindness and care from this community. I’m so happy I took the leap and jumped in last evening…wished I hadn’t been so nervous and waited as long as I did. Adding more items to my binder hourly it seems I can’t write fast enough to capture all the gems of advice. I’ll be adding another binder here shortly as I really need to divide it into proper categories; I kept expanding the topics/categories so much I finally decided to write the tabs in pencil until I figure out the main sections of categories. It’s been alot of work, but I have to admit, it’s kinda fun so long as I don’t allow myself to worry about not being further along on prepping supplies.
Looking forward to getting to know my new pack family more each day.
Great evening to you,
Deb
Deb,
We are up to 4 binders. The categories I have identified so far are;
water
food storage
recipes
Wolf Pack cook book
gardening
medical
guns
equipment
emp
So, I ask the Wolf Pack, what other categories should we focus on?
Hunker Down…..
AIR…….
Three minutes without air.
Three days without water.
Three weeks without food.
POWER……
Batteries NiMH and some way to recharge them: Either gererator or (preferably) solar or both. Batteries are a force multiplier (Weapon sights, night vision, glashlights, etc.
I assume your “Equipment” and “Water Storage” categories include tools, water filters (and other water purifiers), etc?
Hunker Down…
Make that GENERATOR not gererator: And FLASHLIGHT not glashlights…whatever that is?
Hunker Down….
COMMO…..
Radios, both receivers and transmitters and, perhaps field phones.
OPTICS….
Binocs and, perhaps, a spotting scope and a place to use them from.
I’d break the equipment section up into categories. For me, plumbing, electrical, roofing, fasteners,(nails vs. screws), tarps, generator, generator fuel, extension cords, chain-saw, chains, two cycle oil, axes….. Cos
H-D,
I am tempted to start a notebook called “skills”–things I want to learn to do before SHTF–like cheese and yogurt making, skinning game, how to sharpen a knife, how to build a trap, and things like this.
Hunkerdown -
Education
Games/recreation
Spiritual
Why? Many of us here have little people in our lives – children and grandchildren – they will still need to be educated – and once the world calms down after the SHTF – they will need some structure to their lives and it will fall to US, the family unit, to be the educators – reading, riting, rithmetic –
Games/recreation – yeah we will all get a lot of “recreation” gardening etc – but sometimes a good game of kickball or tetherball, jacks, jumprope – think of those non-electrical things we all used to for entertainment – books, coloring, hopscotch -again a lot of this is geared to the children in our lives – and they come in all ages and sizes -
Spiritual – and this should probably be at the top of our lists – to seek God – to draw closer to Him that He will continue to guide us – Bibles or the Holy Book of your preferred religion – for most people throughout the centuries the Bible and a good children’s three R’s book were often the only reading material around. Most folks learned to read because the Bible was the only book they owned – it taught them to read, and it fed them mind, body and soul.
I like your list and some of the others I’ve seen mentioned great ideas!
Field craft: show to make sling shots, bows and arrows, basket weaving, natural defenses/fortifications, improvised sewing needles from wood/bone etc., improvised fishing poles/hooks, how to make netting, clothe washing/drying etc. This is one area I focused on when store bought resources may dry up.
Welcome Bulldog! Happy prepping!
Bulldog, welcome to the Pack…and don’t wait til your camping trip…use that iron skillet for biscuits or frying up some chicken…or some fried green tomatoes, lol. I use mine for just about EVERYthing I fry.
This was another short week for preps.
Ordered two bee packages to be delivered in late April, now I just have to finish out the hives.
Spent a day teaching the NRA Personal Protection in the Home class.
Still sorting through some clutter to get the seed starting area up and running. We can start planting seeds in about three weeks. I can’t wait because then spring will be directly viewable a as the plants grow a little each day.
Do you use Langstroth or top bar hives? Our city regulates bee-keeping too heavily for us to be able to do it. :(
Lantana,
I have some old 10-frame Langstroth hives (as I understand it, a lot of the new ones are 8-frame). I live in the country with some acreage and since we keep electing local farmers and neighbors to the zoning and zoning appeals boards, we’ve kept “country” in the country and kept out most city influences. We welcome newcomers but don’t tolerate them dragging their city restrictions out here. If they want city nanny state restrictions then they should move back to the city. So far, this has been working, and most of the newer neighbors have been a good addition.
It is always to exciting to get the seeds started. With the weather being so mild this year I am going to have to fight myself not to push my luck putting the garden in too early.
This will be the first time in 30 years that I have done bees. I just ordered Italians a few weeks ago. Wonder what the new neighbors will say about that. Hubby and I will start on the hives next weekend. Do you already keep bees?
Mamma Prepper,
I haven’t kept bees by myself before, but I’ve worked with them since I was a kid. Had an older cousin (who we thought of as an uncle) who kept them and I spent a lot of time working with him, as well as some of the local bee keepers over the years. I purchased the equipment about a decade ago, but my DW wasn’t keen on keeping them and gave permission only if I kept them at the far north end of the property which is 500-600 yards away, and I guess I was a bit too lazy. We stored the hives in one of the barn lofts, and the summer before last we had three different, independent swarms take up residence. My DW had to do chores in the barn with the animals on some days walking through a virtual cloud of bees until I could get them rounded up and given to a local beekeeper. With all of those bees out there for most of the summer, neither she, nor any of the animals got so much as a single sting, so she finally relented to allow hives near the house. I was getting setup to raise them last year and waited a little too long to order, and the entire supply of bee packages were gone. Turns out that there was an estimate of over 100,000 new beekeepers starting up last year. This prepping stuff seems to be catching on, LOL.
OhioPrepper,
I had no idea the bees would have come around the hives stored away in a barn. Very interesting. We have two hives at our community garden and I’ve had hundreds of bees on my blossoming produce while I’ve had my hands all over the place pulling weeds, etc. I just gently brush them away. No one has been stung yet. I love our little bees! Honey, yum. What a great barter item you’ll have.
conmaze,
Barter? Only if there’s excess.
As for the bees in the barn, the hives had been there for years without bees taking up residence, but that summer was unusually hot & dry. I think what happened, is that some of the frames still had some beeswax, which evaporated and essentially left a scent trail out of the barn. Hadn’t happened for years before that, nor happened since. I think the heat and the wax drew them in, but most of those hives will now be filled with bees at the end of April.
This was a good week for my personal preps. I canned 10 lbs of bacon. A local store had a sale for 88 cents a pound so I put 10 in the freezer and 10 in quarts!! I was really excited about that.
I did my annual inventory on my food preps and was happy to see where I was at for my immediate family. Unfortunately there were more layoffs in some of my extended family so I am recalculating for additional mouths to feed. I have already stored alot of extra bean/rice/wheat/oats knowing I will have a hard time turning anyone away.
I own a small store called Preppers and was called by Fox News Business from Chicago to see if they could come and interview me. I told them absolutely not. I know I should have done it for the advertising and will probably kick myself for it. Lately there are alot of stories on TV about preppers and I feel they do not show us in a good light. They make the people who are struggling to put a little away to take care of their families in case of an emergency as crazy. I personally feel those who are not prepping are the crazy ones!
Every month I invite some of the new customers over for a bread class. I usually have 20-30 people. Teaching them how to use their wheat mills danish dough hooks and do it all by hand. You would be surprised over the years how many of my customers have bought wheat and have no idea what to do with it. It is always kind of funny to see their faces the first time flour flows out of the mill. I teach them how to substitute the juice from their beans for oil, etc. Show them how to use a solar oven to save on fuel. The main reason I have this class is the first thing everyone says when they first walk in the store is “everyone thinks I am crazy” After the class everyone stays for an hour or two to talk. This allows my customers to see that there are many likeminded folks in their own community that are prepping and they get to share their plans and learn from each other.
I found a great little solar/crank radio with a great sound and long lasting play time. Bought some more rechargable batteries ordered the meat and cheese specials from SR.
Really concerned about new neighbors that are moving in next door. I am so use to folks lived there before. We have 5 acres and so do they, but our homes are placed on the lots rediculously close to each other. They are young preppy types, he is an attorney and she is a paralegal. I imagine that we will not be able to target practice in the back yard anymore. We were annexed into city limits a few years ago, but no one minded what anyone out here did. I hope the new folk don’t decide they own the neighborhood.
Wow, sorry about the long post.
Be Safe
MP,
Sorry to hear about the new neighbors. Praying that you are happily surprised to find eager new students right next door.
I was so envious to hear that your community is fortunate to have you teaching such important info. I myself have never baked anything that didn’t come out of a box and I would be at the front of your class trying to learn everything I could–yes, my face at seeing the flour coming out of the mill would surely give you a chuckle :-). I was wondering if you had any suggestions for me to possibly find such a wonderful learning environment that you have described. Not sure what category to search via phone book or the internet for my local area. I live in South Central PA and the surrounding communities are very hunter oriented and believe that the “prepper lifestyle” is just a natural way of life for most of the established residents. So much so that the demand for such education would not warrant such a supply. New residents like myself would prove to be clueless just like me. Being a newcomber to the area, I’m not really sure where to start. Adding to the scenario, this is an extremely long established community that considers those of us living here under 20 yrs as newcombers, outsiders, transplants etc.
Thanks for any advice you may have,
Deb
Hi Deb,
Is it possible that Penn State has a local extension office in your area?? That might be a place to start. They will be able to point you in the right direction.
Some colleges offer canning, basic cooking/baking classes usually for a small $10 fee.
I hope that helps Deb.
MP
Deb, I had to chuckle at your ‘those of us living here under 20 years as newcomers, outsiders…”
We have lived here for over 30 years. When we meet someone new that has family in the area, the first question is “how long have you lived out here” the second is “who is your family”. At 30+ years I am still considered a newcomer. It used to hurt me to be rejected because of that; I had women turn their backs on me and walk away (in church) when they found out I had no family raised here. Now I just laugh to myself.
Mama Prepper:
I think you were very smart to tell them no! They seem to portray preppers as goof balls to entertain the sheeple masses.(Nothing to worry about folks, who’s Dancing With the Stars?…..) Long posts work well for me. Don’t apologize for talking about things we all think, it makes us realize we aren’t alone! God Bless, Cos
Mama Prepper,
Yes, don’t apologize for long posts–least you give Chloe, Farm Gal and I a complex, especially me–I can rant on forever.
What… me?
long posts?
what gave y’all that idea?
hahahaha…
Mamma Prepper,
I think your choice to not be on tv was the right choice for you. One good thing I can say about Doomsday Preppers is I have two extended family members that watched an episode or two and are now prepping. They may portray preppers as extremists, but it is definitely getting people talking about it.
mamma prepper…welcome…
the non-preppers are going to need help – no doubt about it…and your skills will help many – and that is a huge blessing on you.
Maybe your new neighbours wanted to escape the rat race and want a more relaxed way of living…wait and see what eventuates.
Looks like you already have a like-minded group of people around you…and the fact that they stay to talk between themselves show they are on the same page with a lot of things…very good sign.
till next time, and looking forward to your posts…bet you got lots of good ideas and experience…cheers.
Well after posting this past week about trying to find like minded people, I took your advice and started scouting out some places that might attract prepper people. I havent actually attended any event yet but have some ideas.
The weather was pretty good here in the Rocky Mountain Region but I didnt have a lot of time to do preps, I had a crazy busy work week and my mom came to stay with me a few days.
I did pick up a couple of water containers at Wal-Mart and some more food preps. I also started to build my first aid up even more since you guys had said that my training in medicine would be desirable.
Overall a good week and Im happy to have found this blog! I love reading about everyones plans and its good to know that, although I may not have support in the real world, I do have support in the virtual one!
I have a son in the Rocky Mountain region of Colorado. Are you anywhere close to there? He’s not much of a prepper, though, other than what I do for him. I did make him an emergency kit for his truck.
Yeah I am in Colorado along the front range. I just moved here a few months ago from the east coast. Very different pace of life here. After a recent snow storm and getting stuck at work because the road to my house got closed down due to blizzard conditions, I think an emergency kit for a vehicle is a must. I was shocked to see what the prospect of blizzard conditions did to the super market shelves in my area. Makes me really worry about if something more substantial happens.
SGPrepper,
The same thing happens here when we get a hurricane or a strong tropical storm. The grocery store shelves are bare and the fix it yourself stores are out of plywood. We have hurricanes and tropical storms every year. You’d figure folks would have enough supplies by now or they’d be smart enough not to wait until the last minute.
He’s in Colorado Springs, so yall are pretty close. I’ve tried to beat it into his brain that he needs to be better prepared, but he’s 22 and his mind is focused on other things. I wish I could get him in your mind set. Best wishes, young lady.
SGP, welcome! it’s amazing how stuff just seems to be inhaled off the shelves in an emergency. In winter I carry all the extras in my truck – water, easy to eat food, extra clothing for layers and socks! no wet feet! warm polar fleece blankets, flashlights and batteries, etc. I’ve frequently been stuck in town and cant get home due to ice – at least the hospital I work at will put us up in one of the hotels – if we dont live in town – keeps us and others safe and we show up! lol
singlegirl prepper…
just think about all the fun you are going to have sorting out how to prepare for when ‘something more substantial happens’.
looking forward to hearing all about your prepping journey..cheers.
Hello Wolf Pack. Prayers have been offered for everyone here.
This week purchased: bandage scissors, hemostats and nitrile exam gloves for the first aid box. Also TP, 1 gal coleman fuel, clothes line, wooden clothes pins and 5 gal of gas. The nitrile gloves are Sam’s Club brand that came from a Big Lots! (at half the price).
DS2 and DIL watched Doomsday Preppers. DIL thinks that preppers are crazy. DS2 is now looking at a WaterPod, portable water filter and more MREs to go with what he has. His excuse to the DIL is that they are in an area that gets hurricanes, so they need to be able to handle it. Been quite a few years since a hurricane came this way but that can change. Gave him a printed copy of “100 things that disappear in a disaster” to give him a little help in direction.
Papabear,
do you have a link to the 100 things that disappear in a disaster?
I hate that we have to explain why we do these things in a disguised manner. Why is it they think we’re the crazy ones? It’s so frustrating.
thanks,
Deb
Deb,
I can’t seem to find the origional link but did find some alternates. The list is the same though.
http://www.backwoodshome.com/forum/vb/showthread.php?t=14793
PB,
thanks so much.
Deb I just typed in the search 1oo things that will disappear it came right up.
thanks bunches,
Deb
HAD A HELL OF A WEEKwent to estate sale got 500 bars of hotel soap 10.00 300 candles 20.00 10 cases pints of canning jars15.00 single shot 12ga 50.00 now for a stove go to hhome depo get a emptem paint can put a roll of toilat paper in it fill it with alcohol light it it will last 45 min.sand not burn the paper up i have talked to a lot of people this week andthe are afreid the shit is about to hit us i think and it is just me but i say it is going to come to a head march20thgood luck keep peper
Hi Bernie,
could you elaborate on the paint can project? Is this to cook on or for warmth? Sorry if this is a dumb question. I’m new, please forgive me.
Thanks,
Deb
Deb, google search ‘plumber’s stove’. It is a small clean paint tin, with lid…place cotton balls inside (if too small for a roll of toilet paper).
then add metholated spirits – and don’t remember what you guys call it…??denatured alcohol or white spirits… till cotton balls well soaked..(by using cotton balls, can use any sized can with tight fitting lid – just in case weight is an issue.
then you need a metal hose clamp – the biggest I use is about 4 inches (“) across.
then use a metal sheet – with a crimped top – like those Christmas party paper hats – use tin snips to cut the metal sheet – to sit the cook pot on, and use the hose clamp to hold the crimped top to the paint can – when want to cook something – flick a lit match into the paint can – and instant clean burning flame…place cook pot on top…
when want to put out flame…slide lid on top (use leather garden gloves) and tap firmly in place – flame out…
can re-use indefinately – and no spillage when travelling with pot in side of backpack…top up with metho when needed.
when crimped metal sheet has cooled down, release hose clamp with screwdriver/pocket knife etc, and pack it all away till next time.
And Deb, can see you are trying to grasp all the different things as fast as you can…so, when you hit the wall…remember, it’s okay – we have all had to come up for breath at some stage…
so, once again…have fun…and hope that helped.
and, what helps me – I have an A5 sized notebook – thick – solely for jotting down ideas/short recipes, website addresses etc – because may not be able to find that webpage again.
I use flags/post-it notes to keep the various headings separate…and then just flip notebook open to the relevant flag/post-it page…and just keep adding all the things you need/want to follow up/do etc…
My headings include, but are not limited to
shelter/bedding/mosquito netting,
food/recipe book/mess kit/various stoves and assorted fuel, drinking water/filtration,
fishing line/sinkers/hooks/multigrips,
first-aid kits – more than one, with good manual,
lighting – candles, oil lamps, LED lights/ glow sticks,
radios/communication,
transportation and fuel and spare parts/
hygiene – personal and home/work
seeds – heirloom and hydrid – concise notes on gardening
meat on the hoof… long-term
canned food – short term – circa 3-7 years.
long-term water storage etc…
you get the picture… and, I am still adding to the headings…that have not even addressed yet…e.g.,
guns
canning
booby traps
Chloe,
Oh my gosh! Your detail and description of that plumber stove was awesome! I got quite a few items for the like–rocket stove etc. I feel like I’ve been living under a rock all my life the more I read the comments on this site–the amount of knowledge everyone has is unbelievable. I’m still trying to figure out what my “super power” can be. Your binder category for “booby traps”? oh my gosh I’m so behind the curve it’s not funny…
take care
Real good buy on the pint jars. Way to go.
Why March 20th? Have I missed something?
March 20th is the day a bunch of Greece’s bills come due. Some think this latest round of bailouts will not be enough to get them through. If Greece defaults, lots of folks think it will start a string of domino failures, with portugal, italy and france at the head of the pack. We will see.
Yes Bernie…what’s happening about March 20th??
MtWoman, I did a search and it is the Spring Equinox.
OK…but I wonder why that’s when things will “come to a head”?? Frankly, for myself, it seems to be ‘coming to a head’ every day now….in some degree and on some level. *sigh* So much to do, and an intense feeling of ROOT “running out of time”…a new acronym perhaps?
Mt.Woman,
I think we’ll have to see how the late spring and summer develops. If young people can find jobs (a big “if”) the Occupy Movement will peter out. But more than likely once it warms up these folks will be camping out again. How big of a factor will they be in the upcoming election? Only time will tell. But I can tell you that in parts of the country (Flint, Mich., for instance) college age kids, even polite, clean cut kids) can’t even find minimum wage jobs at grocery stores, convenience stores, big box stores, fast food joints. I can understand why they are upset. They will never see the prosperity that the boomers saw.
I see. That makes sense. Yikes.
And the prosperity we boomers saw was created by our parents…bless them. hurt for them that it’s all circling down the drain.
mt woman…I recall reading on a web site that Greece’s national day is Monday 25 March…and there was a leaked memo re banks were going to shut down – as Greece would likely default again – possibly Friday 23rd March – and ATM’s were not going to function etc…
anyway there was some discussion on the dates – key date being Fri 23 March – and problems would carry over from that long weekend…can try a google search – with some key words…
Also, there was some chatter regarding 7-8 March —but can’t recall the details – as there is so much misinformation and distractions in the media – it is hard to filter through all the BS to get to what is relevant…and real.
we will just wait and see…in the meantime…we are prepped…just in case.
Same old, same old…just working on stocking up. I was able to get the following: Maps, pull-ups, children’s underwear & socks, uv sunglasses, eye wash, 10lbs rice, bug wipes, sunscreen stick for BOB, 4 tubes toothpaste, witch hazel, ivory soap, dog & cat food, litter, herbal supplements, 1st aid & poncho, multi-tool for GHB.
Last episode of Doomsday Preppers made we want to up my “pandemic” supplies, because that is my greatest fear. So I’m gonna ramp things up in that area soon.
Also getting some home improvement projects done around the house, like replacing the fence. It’s so old & decrepit that anyone could break through it at this point!
My brother and I tested our BOBs this weekend with only the food and equipment in our packs. We found that our shelters worked well in the 24 degree night, but our sleeping bags and pads needed some improvement for those temps. We were able to live off the land with snares, long guns and collected water from a spring. Over all it was a great weekend even though adding wood to the fire in front of our tarp shelters every hour did limit sleep. We each determine that we could eliminate some items and needed improve the quantity and quality of others. I had intended to utilize a large collection of leaves to improve my bedding but I was not able to collect any after ensuring a good stockpile of wood. Guess that is what I get for getting there so late. We know now it can be done and I can see a long term situation would be very taxing on the body, especially for this semi in shape middle aged specimen. The ground is a lot harder than I expected. I encourage each of you to test yourself and your equipment in conditions which you would rather not be in. Find the limits to your equipment and yourself, then work toward improvements
Muddy Fork:
I am thrilled you tested your gear! Having stuff in the closet to use, if things gets bad always bites you in the rear. My curse is I always prepare for my last trip…. The new gear, like lamalite, is simply amazing. (Wiggy’s sells it. It is bulky synthetic but warm beyond belief to an old soldier.) Collecting leaves to sleep on is not recommended. If it rains, no go. If it’s warm, bugs, maybe snakes.
Get a thermarest pad. Just my 2 cents. Cos
Cosmolined,
With the weather we had I was not worried about any creepy crawlers or johnnie no shoulders and rain was out of the picture. While I have a thermo rest type pad and a -25 degree bag I chose not to use them and to go as rough as possible. What I did not mention earlier is that we had a warm camper several hundred yards away just in case we could not cut it. About 3 am when the fire almost went out I thought about calling it quits. I chose to cut my emergency blanket off the ceiling of my tarp which I was using to reflect the fire heat onto me and laid it on top of my bag. The fire did re-kindle and the shelter maintained a temp of 10 degrees above the outside temp. I used a canvas tarp made in to an “a” frame type shelter with one opening. My brother used a nylon tarp in a lean to design which did not do near as well. He will not admit it but I think he froze his butt off due to his shelter design and his fire being too far away. If I had told him how cold it was about 3 am I think he would have hit the camper.
muddy – sounds like a great learning experience! Each outing is abetter prepared person yes? good on ya!
wow, muddy fork…
you did good…and I had a chuckle where you wrote ‘… ground lot harder than expected…’ I know exactly what you mean…and, I am no spring chicken either.
I too tested my equipment…and made a lot of changes – took ages for me to get it to where I am now.
Agree that it is hard work living out in the elements – and I take all my food requirements with me…
can’t even begin to imagine having to catch/snare my own food…then skin it…can see I still have a long way to go…
hope you post other stuff you have tried. till next time.
Hi All,
I got my garden tilled and the peas in. I also started some seeds indoors. My biggest garden problem now is the kids remembering to close the gate to the chicken yard! I planted the onions 3 times last fall cuz the chickens kept getting in and digging them up!
I have a question about canning beans. I am an experienced water bath and pressure canner -veggies, meats, etc. But bean boggle me! I tried it and ended up feeding 7 jars to the worm bin because I didn’t trust them. I think I put too many beans and not enought liquid in the jars. Any help is Soooo appreciated.
thx.
Prep Kat
I’m a prep Kat
I’ve been canning for about 15 years, I’ve been canning beans for the last 3 or so years, here’s what I do:
Cover beans well with cold water & let stand overnight.
The next morning drain,
In a large pot cover beans with water, by at least 2 inches, I add seasoning to suit me, bring to a boil
Boil 30 minutes, stirring as needed.
Pack hot beans, into hot jars, ( most canning recipes state leave 1″ headspace), I leave about 1 1/2 inches of headspace.
Ladle boiling cooking liquid over beans, leaving 1 inch of headspace with the liquid
Remove air bubbles,
Wipe rim of jar clean: place hot previously simmered lid on jar, and screw down ring firmly tight.
Process: pints 75 minutes, quarts 90 minutes, at 10 pounds pressure in a pressure canner.
I suggest the following canning books:
Ball’s blue book of canning
Growing and Canning your own food by Jackie Clay, you can find this book through Backwood Home Magazine.
Jackie Clay also has a blog, once again through the magazine, you can find all kinds of good info there.
I like Jackie Clay canning book so well that I gave it to our DIL as a birthday gift. DIL has NO experience canning, her first pressure canning project, dry beans. I walked her through the process, but had her do everything. Her comment was “that’s it, that’s all I have to do.” She is now “hooked on canning”!!
Hope this helped you, if not please ask questions, someone in the Wolf pack will be glad to help.
Texas Nana,
My Ball’s Blue book is my canning bible!! I think by your instructions, my problem seems to be cooking the beans too long before I canned them. thanks!! sometimes the easy answer is soo hard to see.
I am also fairly new to the prepping, & I have reading this website for a few months now & my i say that i am also addicted. This week i purchased a storage self to help organize my food storage. this is much needed, b/c everything as just been sitting on the floor. I am currently also cleaning out. I hope to have a yard sell soon & with that $ purchase some for preps.
Happy Monday Everyone!
LDR,
Welcome to the Wolf Pack. It’s sure nice to have some new cubs. If you have any questions, feel free to ask.
LDR, welcome…
Welcome to our den, ldr122! The Pack is growing, come join us! The more of us that are prepping, the more we will survive.
Welcome to the Pack, ldr122. I had the same problem with my stores all over the floor in my spare bedroom. Finally bought two shelves and was surprised to see how quickly they filled up. Now I have to keep arranging, re-arranging trying to make more room. Soon I’ll have to move to under the bed storage! I have already planned ahead and bought the black plastic bed risers for all of my beds. I read somewhere that you should be able to store a year’s worth of food for one person under one twin bed with risers. I’ll probably be finding out if that’s true very soon! LOL
haha…I saw some of those “risers” in Wally World yesterday….first time I’d ever seen them anywhere!!!
ldr122, welcome to the pack! I have to say I am not addicted to prepping, it is a way of life. I could walk away from it….sure, I could….I mean, well, ummm… maybe not…
Hi Wolfpack-
I am stranded 3000 miles away from my family this week at a conference f0r work. Hate being so cut off.
Spent the evenings reading Michael Bunker’s new fic “The Last Pilgrims”. Part fiction, part logical conjecture about what the not so distant future might look like. The best part of the book, I feel are not the main story but rather the appendices at the back. Don’t miss these – they read like a lot of the posts on this site.
Other than that, my grinder arrived at my prepper friends’ home on Saturday, and we’ve picked up 10 lbs each red and white wheat and barley to make flour. Already have an excess of rice from preps that needs to get used (probably some is at least a decade old). I am not there to try it, but my friends will have their first bread made from home-ground flour with dinner tonight. I’ll let you know how it goes!
Also picked up 30 packs of seeds from The Dollar Tree – they were 4/$1, and most were varieties that I’ve used successfully in the past. I will start peppers and tomatoes when I get home later this week in my seed flats, as well as some heirloom tomatoes saved from last year. With things as warm and dry as they’ve been this winter here in the northeast, I’m planning on putting in my garden very early to take advantage of any spring rains that might come through and am going to add another rain barrel to the garden side of the yard. If we get frost, newspaper blankets will protect young plants.
I have a very bad feeling about food prices this year.
Thank you all for helping me stay focused.
God Bless,
Cat
Hi Cat,
Sorry to hear you have to be so far away from family. Hang in there and praying that your time away goes by exceptionally fast. Thanks for the tip on Dollar Store seeds–I didn’t realize they sold seeds. Gonna check out mine here to see if they have any. I think I’m getting obssessed with buying seeds. I’ve read that if they are kept in the right circumstance, they can last a very long time. Hope so.
Safe traveling,
Deb
Hi Deb-
I think seeds will keep a long time in the freezer, but that is not a long-term solution in a SHTF situation – if seeds go through multiple freeze-thaw conditions, they are less likely to germinate when you finally need them. If you lose your freezer, you will probably lose your seeds if it doesn’t happen to be time to plant when it happens.
Welcome to the Wolf Pack, Deb… it’s a really good place for learning from very nice people.
And there’s nothing wrong with being obsessed with buying seeds!
Have a good evening,
Cat
I got non hybrid seeds this year from a plant farm within 50 miles of where I live. So I am going to try my hand a seed saving. Did you all know that carrots have to be in the ground for two years before you can get seeds from them?
alikaat..the best price I can buy hybrid seeds for is $1.50 a packet…and heirlooms $4 p/pkt.
Good on you for getting those seeds. cheers.
I’d like to know if any of the Wolfpack lives in the same general area as I do…N Central Texas. I’d like to know so that when I read your posts, I know I’m in the same zone for the shopping & gardening info. Thanks.
Mt.Woman,
Are you in Zone 8? I am right between 8b and 9. I’ve got a micro climate working, so my winters are fairly mild, except for the occasional hard freeze.
MtWoman
Far East Texas, aka, the piney woods, also known as the
Ark/La/Tex by NOAA.
Being a Texas girl, born and bred, N Central Texas covers a lot of area. You can go to this site to find your zone.
http://aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/cemap/hardiness.html
My zone is on the border of 7B or 8A, so I use 7B to cover myself, to be sure. Hope this helps!
I’m in Zone “7B”, according to that map.
I’m in NW Texas…near NM state line. Base of Panhandle. My zone is right on the 6/7 line, so I plant for the 6 to be safe.
Well, my first attempt at mozzarella did not result in an eatable product. I got all the ingredients out and mixed up the powdered milk. I set the milk on the stove to warm up to 88 degrees. Then I pulled out my (meat) thermometer and low and behold the lowest temperature setting is 120 degrees. I already had the milk on the stove warming so I guess-ta-mated the temperature. I added the rennet and the citric acid, and used cheese cloth. Then I put the finished product in the frig to cool. It came out like a crystalized mass of blob. My dh tasted it and said it didn’t have any taste. I had everything ready to make a homemade pizza and didn’t want to chance dinner not turning out, so I used store-bought mozzarella. We threw the batch we made in the trash.
I learned a couple of things. First, you really need a proper thermometer. Second, you really need to stock more powdered milk that the Mormon food calculator recommends, if you plan on making milk and yogurt. It took a whole gallon of milk to make a small block of cheese.
I will try again. But in the meantime, I think I am going to order some freezedried cheese.
Gayle,
We make home yogurt, haven’t tried cheese. I will say this, I try very hard to use store bought milk that has been marked down, as it’s cheaper than powdered milk, right now.
I’ve used powdered milk, it works well, but what I did when we were learning was to start with store milk. I got my recipe so it suited me, then I switched to powered milk, worked with it until I was happy. I can now make yogurt out of either store or powdered milk with no hiccups.
Please keep posting your results as I really enjoy all your hard work that you are so willing to share with the Wolf pack.
You ROCK!!
Texas Nana,
Thanks. I will try another batch maybe Thursday. I have never seen milk marked down. Right now I am just using the powdered milk from the grocery store. I don’t want to open any of my #10 cans just to experiment with. The main reason I want to learn to make milk and yogurt from the powdered milk is so I can rotate the powdered milk.
I could not imagine the end of the world without yogurt. There is a pecking order in my household of who gets first lick of mommy’s empty yogurt bid. Baby cat is first; 100 lb. dog is last. LOL
Gayle
DH who is the real yogurt maker, wanted me to tell you that,
1 he uses 2% store bought milk,
2 if I can only get 1% he adds a little powered milk to it
3 when he uses powered milk, it’s ok but he prefers store bought, (funny thing is he never told me this before!)
4 when using powered milk it takes a little more pectin, or if you prefer knox unflavored gelatin, as your thickening agent.
Funny he cooks, and drinks powered milk all the time, just never told me he prefers his yogurt made from store milk.
Has far as finding reduced milk, ask your local grocery if/ when they mark down their milk, that is about to expire. Our Krogers, Albertson, and Super 1, all mark down dairy mostly milk, bakery, and meat. Our Sam’s marks down meat, and chicken. It’s the only way I buy my meat, dairy, and bakery.
Texas Nana,
Thanks for the tips, especially the one about the unflavored jello. You have actually helped explain a puzzling observation. The Mormon food storage calculator calls for a lot of unflavored jello. I thought, gee, those Mormons sure eat a lot of jello. I did learn that you can use a bit of unflavored jello in place of egg whites in a recipe. Now I know about the thickener for yogurt.
Gayle
DH used knox unflavored gelatin, but when he located bulk pectin for my canning. He read the info that came with the pectin, stating you could use it for a thickener. He last 4-6 batches have been made with pectin. DH has been very pleased with the results. We purchased 5 pounds of pectin, so why not use it!! Good luck!
LoL, Gayle!!
It was only your first try! Maybe try with whole milk before the powdered, or a different recipe?
One batch of soap I made, the first one all by my lonesome, I read the recipe wrong. I put in the right amount of lye but I only read the ounces of the other ingredients. Pretty much I left out about 2 pounds of oil!!! It was an oatmeal soap. It stunk to high heaven and the lye burnt the oatmeal and ungodly fire orange brown! The oils that were in it all separated, it was a mess!
Made sure I triple check recipes after that!
Let us know when your next batch turns out so we can cheer!
Gayle,
so sorry to hear about the cheese failure. please don’t give up; looking forward to hearing about how yummy your next batch will be. I LOVE mozza cheese and I want to learn how to make it also.
Take care,
Deb
Vienna,
It is kind of funny to read about other people’s mess ups. We all have them. And more importantly, we learn what not to do.
Gayle,
I make mozzarella all the time. Its really easy although I have never tried to make it from powdered milk. I use the method/reicpe from the New England Cheesemaking Supply Co. http://www.cheesemaking.com/
If you search for 30 minute mozzarella, you will find the instruction. She’s got a really great FAQ for it.
http://www.cheesemaking.com/store/pg/242-FAQ-Mozzarella.html
hope this helps.
I-P-Kat,
Thanks for the links. I have bookmarked them and will read them before my next cheese making attempt.
vienna… I have been putting off soap making until I have my DD here, just in case…and now, reading your post…I think I will just leave it on the back burner for a little longer…
because…a few months back…was playing around with the pool chemicals, chlorine etc, and then had to go out –
so I just threw the last of the stuff in a bucket… and then hosed down the patio – because I was working outside…and placed the bucket inside – just in case any neighbourhood kids came over while I was out, instead of taking it around to the back where the pool is – as I was running late for an appointment – so I went – and was gone for about 3 hours.
While I was out – tenant phoned me re explosion from inside my house – said sounded like a fridge had been thrown against the wall – so I drove home right away.
When I got back, as I opened the front door – got a blast of unbreathable air…so, sat in my car and called local fire brigade to come and vent my house…no answer..so I called police..who then relayed message…
Long story short… 2 fire trucks – sirens wailing, and the guys putting on their gear, masks, and tanks on my front lawn.
1 ambulance – to check the fire guys over after venting the house – and to check me out as well as I got a lung full of the air.
1 police car – to see if it was a meth lab explosion,
2 TV crews,
and 1 journalist from the local newspaper…and the street was blocked off.
Was in the paper, on the TV that evening – my friends phoned and told me…the chemical reaction fried my TV and the chain on the door was all corroded.
So, just as I was getting over that fiasco…reading your post…brought that all back to me…so, am going to err on the side of caution and leave well enough alone for a little while longer.
Looking back, can’t believe how stupid I was – lapse of concentration was all it took.
till next time.
OMGosh chloe! I’m so sorry! I’m glad your okay! That was a horrible experience! Kinda feel bad I was laughing! Such drama over one little thing, putting away pool chemicals.
Glad I don’t have a pool now!
I’m going to read recipes at Least 3 times AND put away chemicals correctly no matter how time strapped I am!
TV crews! Oh My!!
Oh dear, Chloe, what an experience!! I, too, had to chuckle at the image of all the drama, but I know at the time it was super serious. I’m glad you weren’t home when that happened. You could have been just getting home when the explosion occured and breathed that stuff in. Yes, we do learn from our mistakes, don’t we?! Thanks for sharing that, we will all be careful around chemicals. Not quite the way you would like to be on t.v. or in the papers, huh?
Blessings!
Chloe,
I am so glad you didn’t share that with us right as I was considering getting into pressure canning. I was scared enough. When I was 12 my dad’s kegger blew up while we were in the garage rebuilding an engine. The tapper flew within inches of my head and landed across the street in the neighbor’s yard. The keggar was an old refrigerator hooked up to a C02 tank (I think). the pressure was up too high and it blew the door off the frig and beer soaked insulation went everywhere.
Gayle…that is so funny – yet agree too – and that is why canning is not a priority for me…cause I’m still scared.
So I just buy canned food from supermarket…until I get over that episode.
and when I use my pressure cooker – I lean right over and as far away as I can when walking past it if I’m cooking something in it in my kitchen.
cheers.
Chloe,
I was worried about my All American Pressure Canner blowing up and one of the Wolf Pack members explained the physics of wing nuts. And the canner has a blow out plug. So now I am not worried in the least. I am careful but not paranoid.
Gayle,
Don’t throw it out! Just add some boiled peanuts and ketchup and serve on toast. Heehee.
No. No. No. It’s boiled peanuts and Tabasco sauce. Yum.
Gayle, I’m not a cheesemaker, but Lehmans has a dairy thermometer you might want to use as a starting point in figuring out what you’re looking for.
Lantana,
I would have never realized that you need a special thermometer to make cheese/yogurt until I actually attempted to make cheese. LOL I am glad I am not waiting until SHTF to learn how to do this stuff. Now if I have to throw out a gallon of powered milk it’s not that big of a deal. Post-SHTF, food waste will be a issue.
Hi Gayle-
If you’ve never made cheese before, the thermometer is really important. After you have a feel for it, you will be able to judge by touch. Also, I only make mozz from fresh milk. The one time I made it from powdered, the kids complained and I haven’t tried it again. Guess I should probably try that again some time.
Don’t give up! It’s yummy…
:P’
Cat
Cat,
LOL Having the right thermometer is very important. Yep. :)
Gayle…good on you girl…and when you do get it right – just imagine what you will take on next time…
love your posts…always have a laugh…’proper thermometer’…too funny – because that is something I would do – notice my recipes don’t have many/any amounts of ingredients…I just throw stuff in.
good to see that using the zombie popper is easier than making cheese…
cheers.
Gayle, that is the downfall of making cheese. A whole gallon of milk for a little bit of cheese, enough for two 14 inch pizzas. I guess if you had your own cow, you would be in cheese heaven. You could devote each day to a different type of cheese! And you can always use the whey for cooking or feeding chickens/pigs.
But the important thing is you are learning a new skill, right?
Gayle, when you make mozzarella from milk, you can make ricotta from the leftover whey. I would think it would work for mozzarella from powdered milk as well.
Hello all,
This was not a big week as far as purchases go, although there were a few, but it was a good week for getting some projects done and even starting a few new ones.
Let me start by updating everyone on the Monolithic filters. Bottom line is that they work great. I took two samples from my local river, ran one through the filter while leaving the other “as is”, and then sent both to the water testing lab. When they came back the “as is” sample was reported as “non-potable” and the sample that I ran through the filter was potable. The one caveat I have to this is that we do not have Giardia in the local water. The literature on the filter says that it will filter Giardia but I had no wat to test for it. I will definately be adding a few more filters to my supply.
I also finished up putting in my spring garden. It isn’t very big with three 7ft gutters, one each of radishes, spinach and lettuce, four tomato plants in containers and some cucumbers and eggplant in a raised bed. This is more along the lines of an experiment to see how to garden here in Central Texas than an attempt to grow all my own food. If it works I will be putting in a larger garden in the fall and then a much larger garden in the spring.
This week was also my first attempt at making my own yogurt. The first batch turned out a little runny but had a good flavor. The runniness was because I used a heating pad to try and proof the yogurt my somehow I had never learned that heating pads turn off automatically. I am not sure it sat there with no heat but it was several hours before I noticed it. For my second batch I decided to try using a crockpot on warm but it heated the milk to 145 and the bacteria never had a chance to do their thing. I have now ordered a yogurt pot to ensure that I get it right from now on.
Along with ordering the yogurt pot I did make a few purchases toward my preps this week.
50 lbs instant non-fat milk
25lbs black beans
2 flats assorted canned fruit
and the usual other canned goods using the “use 1 buy 2″ rule.
I hope everyone has a good week.
Mennis
Mennis,
What is a yogurt pot? I did an internet search but that didn’t bring anything up. Learning to make yogurt is next on my list. I tried my hand at making some mozzarella this afternoon and that did not turn out very well.
Gayle, sounds like an EASIYO brand yogurt maker.
Gayle, Regarding yogurt/cheese making – one thing I learned the hard way is if you buy ultra-pasteurized milk (unfortunately, almost all organic milk is ultra-p. AND some powdered milk), it will NOT make cheese. The best mozz cheese I ever made was made with raw cow’s milk. We ate up the first batch, had to go back to the farm to get more raw milk to make more so we could have some pizza the next night. I used to make yogurt in my gas oven; the stove was old enough to have a pilot that stayed lit all the time. The temp was perfect for yogurt.
Encourager,
I have already asked my dh for a cow. He said, “No.” Actually, he said, “No cow, no pig, no sheep, no more kitties, no more puppies.” LOL
Gayle, does that mean he said a horse, goats and a pet snake are O.K.?! That’s how my sons would interpret it… Cos
Cosmo,
No goats was included in his list. We couldn’t have a pet snake. I would want to shoot it. I have to tell ya’ll, I am very proud of myself. I went out this afternoon to look at my garden and lo and behold there was a huge black snake. My first thought was to run in and get my shotgun. But I paused long enough to identify it as a King snake, which is beneficial to one’s garden. HeeHeeHee. I will actually tell my dh that we now have a pet snake.
Gayle, add llamas, alpacas and rabbits to the ‘not banned so must be okay’ list.
You might want to market your new addition to DH as a guard snake rather than a pet snake–they’ll eat rodents and even rattlesnakes and copperheads!
My hubby is actually allergic to things. He couldn’t give me a straight answer on which animal families he’s allergic to, it seems related to how clean the animal can keep itself.
Short-haired cats are fine if I stock the right OTC medicine. A dirty horse could kill him, but he can ride a clean one as long as he doesn’t get near the stables.
I’d probably have fallow land far enough from the house to keep a free-range pig, but to let a neighbor use it to hold their horse, I’d demand it get daily bubble baths.
Kelekona,
I think mine is allergic to pooper-scooping the backyard and cleaning out the cat box–jobs he does begrudgingly.
LOL! Hey, he did not mention goats! You can milk goats! And if you use the milk right away, you won’t get that off taste in the cheese. There ya go! lol lol
Encourager,
But raw cows milk has not been heated, the butterfat has not been removed. You gotta do that before the FDA will let you sell it. When you get it down to calcium and water you can sell it. There have been several arrested recently in Wisconsin of those who used to make a living selling ‘raw milk’.
We used to milk the cow, let the milk set for a few hours while the butterfat rose to the top. Then skim it off, fill a mason quart jar 1/3 full and shake. And shake and shake, then mom would make me shake (THE JAR!) until I thought it was tomorrow. But then we had butter!
Are there any dairy herd preppers that can add anything about making cheese?
I second H-D’s call for any dairy herd preppers to churp up here.
I make and have made cheese from goat and now sheep milk, and will soon have my milk cow online.
I think most folks have covered the basic’s, I would highly recommend getting a good basic book on making cheese and just follow the directions, once you get a feel for the favorite recipes and the milk supply, you can mess with it a bit but until you do, and when ever making something new, follow the recipes very closely.
I make alot of sheep yogurt and feta as well as a heavy cream cheese style mainly, don’t do much in the way of hard cheeses to be honest.
Hunker Down, in MI you can buy a ‘share’ in a cow. Basically, you rent the cow on paper so you are entitled to what it produces. A nifty little way of getting around the no raw milk for sale rules. Then you pay the farmer for putting into the jar for you (labor cost).
I cheated and used the food processor to make butter…it was done in a couple of minutes.
That is a brilliant idea. Now I am going to ask my dh if I can get a time share in a cow. Surely he is going to think I’ve lost my mind.
Gayle, I believe that Florida allows raw milk to be sold for pet consumption only. Won’t your koi be excited to know you’re getting him such a treat?
H-D, FDA regulations prohibit interstate sale of raw milk, but intrastate sales are governed by state law. In Texas, raw milk can be sold, but only at the farm.
i just sat my yogurt on the counter with a towel over it. It did take a couple days for it to thicken, but it was wonderfully thick like store bought. I used Mountain High plain brand from the store for a starter, seemed to have more live cultures (5) then the other brands I read (3).
I’m trying another batch today but putting it downstairs covered with a towel on the fireplace mantle. It’s warmer. I’ll see if it takes 8 hours or two days this time!
Did you eat it plain or smoothie it? We’ve fallen for the smoothies! Mmmmmmm.
Mennis
We’ve been making yogurt for several years now, never tried the heating pad. What we use is 1) in cold weather we use our oven set @ 100 degrees, for about 12 hours, we make 10 pints at a time, 2) in the warm weather months I use an electric roaster, that I also set at 100 degrees. Our first few batches were thin, or runny, we just tweeked the recipe until we were happy. Good Luck!!!
We live in far East Texas, hot and humid. Which means I don’t like heating up my house just to have to pay to cool it down, this is why I have a summer kitchen, that’s were I use the electric roaster. I cook all kinds of “stuff” in the roaster cakes, roast, pizza, I’ve even warmed my canning jars in it.
I make culture my yogurt in the oven. I set a heavy cast iron pot over the exhaust burner on the stove, boil water in another cast iron and put it in the oven with the jars of yogurt. I let it sit overnight and by morning we have yogurt! If you like it tangy, just let it stay in longer. It thickens when it cools.
Mennis, what is a yogurt pot? I’ve read about using crock pot but haven’t tried it yet.
thanks,
Deb
You know The other day I just realized that I never did say hello or Introduce myself. nThe fault is I blame it on old age lol.
For awhile I thought I was on Rawlins site and never must read the intro header on my mail and just went to the comments. oops Sorry
I’m a prepper been that way for years But i’m a survivalist first. I want to thank you folks for some great ideas and help.
I’m not familiar with the mormons canning shops but I will find one do i just call one of their church’s. OHIO PREPPER where in ohio did you find them and thanks for the info (name forgotten) on the fish antibiotics.
I both another 100 rounds of 40 cal and 100 for the .380
If your looking for a good Pistol Glock is a good one BUT you’ll pay through the nose for the name. Try Ruger one of the best and good prices. sig makes a great 380. Me I carry a .32 a cz70 been my carry for 30 years. I’m a shoot and scoot kind of guy
Buds gun online great site or try some of the auction house’s for deals once you know what you want.
thanks to all and HI :)
Kelley,
Welcome to the Wolf Pack. How would you characterize the difference between “preppers” and “survivalists”? I have never really made much of a distinction other than “prepper” is the more current term.
Here’s the link for the LDS Cannery. You can order basic staples at a very low price and with free shipping.
http://store.lds.org/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/Category3_715839595_10557_21158_-1_N_image_0
Thanks for the link Gayle:)
Summer B,
You are welcome. Check out the LDS Online Store for essentials like rice, pinto beans, wheat and oatmeal. Check out Emergency Essentials or Honeyville Grain for the other things.
Kelley:
Welcome to the pack! I’m also a fan of Ruger revolvers and .22′s, but the first time I shot a Glock (I’m not going to shoot that UGLY brick!), I became an addict. My Glock’s have Never failed to feed…
any ammo, HP, ball….. bang, bang, bang. I trust them so much, I got one for each of my sons and step-sons. The Mormon Church also has a web site, (unfortunately I don’t have that info due to a computer suicide), that offers the basic beginner’s case of rice, beans, ground oats and wheat. They have free shipping, so that is a nice start. Cos
Cosmo,
I posted the link just above your post.
hi Kelley…welcome…good to see you taking active steps to keep providing for their family.
Sunday was my birthday and my wife suprised me with a trip to Wally World to pick up a rifle! I selected a Remmington 700 in 30-06. Bought all the ammo they had i 150-180 grain. From readin the “frugal Deer Hunter” article I feel pretty good about that selection. We also ordered our “heirloom seeds” for the garden and for “stock”. Will continue to buy something each month till we are ready. Everything I read points to TSHTF in 2 – 5 yrs. If not, we’ll be prepared for bad weather and the occasional power outages (common in the country life). Thanks for some great info folks. BTW, tell me I aint got a great wife or what!
PSSUPT,
WOW! I would like to send my wife to your wife for training.
Pssupt – welcome and a belated happy birthday greeting to you..
Thanks cloe. God Bless
sorry for the misspell.
Can anyone tell me about an easy to understand (if that’s possible) book on basic reloading (for idiots). Years ago I purchased a Ruger Blackhawk 44 mag. and the guy threw in a Rock-chucker reloading setup, dies, etc. I fooled around with it for about a year and then it went into a trunk. I’ve got a ton of brass, bullet, etc and would like to start again with killing myself or family. All comments appreciated.
“Chance favors the prepared mind”
PSSUPT:
I started reloading using a Speer reloading manual. It has a good section on the basics of reloading. Most of the manuals now have this section. I’d look around and figure out what bullet brand that you want to use then get that book. Speer makes good quality bullets that are reasonably priced and the manual is easy to read and use.
I have the Speer Reloading Manual #10. It’s a little dated, but it’s a good one. You can get one of the later versions of the Speer Manual, and I’m sure there are others. I like the Speer, and Cabela’s has the best price I could find, $31.99.
Thanks folks, I haven’t looked but I think I have an old Speer manual in the trunk. I’m showing my stupidity, but I remember it being a whole bunch of technical tables. I am guessing that it does ( or doesn’t have) a step by step from case to finished cartridge guide? I know one thing, I wish I’d payed closer attention when the guy showed me how to use it in the first place. And yes, HUNKER down I do have a great wife who is just as concerned as I am about the long term care of our extended family. I’ve gotten so many good ideas from this blog that they have far outrun my pocketbook!
Anyway, I’ll dig out that manual and get to reading this weekend. Going to put in potatoes and onions this weekend as well. I’m sure not looking forward to the day that there’s no gasoline that can be spared for the tiller! Man folks were tough back in the day!
PSSUPT, the old folks were a different breed. My wife had me using the tiller today, and I can’t even imagine having to use the old push plow again. The last time I used one I was a young man, I doubt I could do much ‘laying by’ anymore with the push plow. My grandfather used a mule to plow with. Those were the days, and not necessarily the good old days in many respects. One bit of advice on the reloading, don’t ever get in a hurry. Take it slow, and double check everything you do. It is easier than you think to double charge a cartridge with certain powders.
VI,
Thanks. I remember I asked my grandfather one time (I was about 12 or so) if he missed livin in the “good old days”. He chuckled and said, “Son you’re living in the good old days!” He was born in the late 1800′s and went from horse and carrige to the space shuttle. He told me that the good old days included no air-conditioning, indoor plumbing, vaccinations ( I lost my Uncle to POLIO) or frozen food. No power tools, lawn mowers ( push only), TILLERS, or anything else that made our lives so much easier today. He worked in a smelter and acid plant the majority of his life (later a Superfund site) and lived to be 94 before an ulcer on his foot had his doctor saying he was gonna have to take his leg. He ate eggs and bacon every morning and had a sherry every evening until the day he passed. Smoked till he was thirty and chewed cigars from then on. A different breed? Ya I think so too. How soft are we? Thanks again for the reload tip, I’m writing them down!
Hi PSSUPT!
Any reloading manual will have a chapter on how to do it . If possible, you might read that a couple of times and see if anyone you know reloads. Then have them show you how they do it. (Some folks are scary and NOT safe.) If you choose to do it by yourself, always start with the minimum load of powder. I do it by loading 10 rounds minimum charge, add a tenth of a grain for 10 more, add a tenth of a grain…. until I’m near the maximum. I put them into individual labelled Zip-Lock bags.Then when I go to a range, using a target and rest, I fire each load beginning with the least until I find which load works best in that particular weapon. HTH, Cos
Thanks cosmolined,
That’s the info I’m looking for! Practical stuff you probably won’t find in a book. All of ou guy’s (and gals) suggestions are helpful as well. I am amazed at how few folks I know don’t reload or know how to do it. My BIL is a huge gun collector and he doesn’t even reload. But then again he has the funds to do whatever he needs to. I’m going to drag out the trunk this weekend and go through the stuff. I’ll keep you updated on my “trials”. BTW mybackground is in construction so I’m not totally ignorant of mechanical and hands on issues. I know, I know proceed with caution.
Today I opened up a mylar bag of 25lbs flour to put in my gamma sealed bucket I dip out of. Also a wheat berry one. I wanted to re-use a mylar for the new bag of flour.
As I was holding the bag up to fish out the o2 absorbers the light behind it showed some very, very small little holes in the mylar bag.
sooo, I got to looking at a couple I had used, but are clean and I was going to use again. They ALL had these very tiny, but perceptible holes when held up to the light.
I have a couple more big bags of rice, wheat and flour sealed in mylar, but NOT stuck in buckets. Mainly because I plan on using them in a couple years and was going cheap on the buckets. I’m now thinking that is a bad-BAD idea on my part.
The bags were still o2 sealed, but these little “holes” were definitely letting light in. Can the silver color of mylars where off? Did these holes appear through the little handling I did of them? Do they just kinda “wear out”? Any one else have this experience?
I’m going to buy more buckets. I don’t think I’ll just assume my stored products are secure inside a mylar unless it is INSIDE a bucket as well.
Vienna,
I opted to get my food storage in #10 cans. If I ever need my food storage, I want to know the food is there. I just don’t have the same level of trust in mylar bags and buckets.
Yeah, I have lots of stuff in #10 cans also. But when I run to my local store and can pick up a 25lb bag o’ somethin’ I do and then put it in a mylar and bucket. Some tho, I left just in the mylar—not good. Plus I have 4 to feed, 6 when oldest and boyfriend/fiance come over. One of those #10 cans goes pretty quick around here. I also store jasmine rice, plain rice is bleh…
I noted Augason farms buckets just dump the wheat in a bucket, oats too (haven’t bought their other bucket food) without a mylar and still list it out 20 plus years.
I do need to make an LDS run in a couple months though. Need more milk for sure. Probably end up with more #10 cans too, make my trip worth it.
Vienna, I have found that the Mylar bags I used for the wheat berries had the same problems – little holes. I think the berries themselves made them when the oxygen absorbers sucked the bag so tight. Those berries are sharp! I keep the Mylar bags in a large bin, so I think they are all okay; however, I would be leery using them over again. I have used Mylar bags when I have milled the berries into flour and then refilled the bags with the extra flour and stuck it in the freezer. I did not use O2 absorbers the second time as they went into the freezer. As long as the original bags are tight (no air) they should be fine. I also had problems with tiny holes, with air penetration, with Food Saver bags. I re-bagged the berries and put in the freezer to use first.
I tried to mylar bag bow tie pasta once. Dumb. Poked holes everywhere. That’s when I realized why Mormons store spaghetti and macaroni pasta…not pokey.
The thing with they big mylars with the wheat and flour, they were in their original bag. The original bag placed inside the mylar, nothing pokey.
Dh thinks some of the color just wore off as I did reuse one for the new bag of flour, I threw in 4 o2 absorbers and it looks to have sucked down tight. Dunno. One of those things.
Getting more buckets just to be on the safe side.
But I won’t pour wheat berries into mylar without bucketing as well now. I’ma gona bucket everything!
I’m wondering if a layer of batting would protect the bag, or if it would just squish… Material enough for a potholder or two either way.
Not my concern since I have wide definitions of edible… stale pasta to home-made with rancid wheat in one step.
Vienna,
That’s funny. Thanks for letting is know bow ties and mylar don’t work. I when to Home Depot today and got a bucket and a gamma ray lid. I am running out of places to store bagged sugar in my kitchen. So I am going to put sugar in the bucket. If I have the bucket and the gamma lid, do I still need the mylar bag for sugar?
I’ve stored sugar 4 different ways depending on my laziness at the moment of storing.
1. I put sugar in mylar (NO O2 absorber and I don’t store a jackhammer) and into a bucket and hammered down.
2. I poured sugar into the bucket and hammered lid on.
3. I put sugar into a bucket in the bag it came in and hammered the lid on.
4. I pour the sugar in a 6gal bucket with a gamma lid because it’s the one I use to dip out of.
I also have a gamma flour, wheat, rice and powdered milk just in the bucket with a gamma. Takes me a couple months to use up the rice, wheat. about a month and a half to go through the flour and powdered milk.
If your storing sugar for long term with a gamma lid I would personally put it into a mylar bag. But I’m a bit of weird one with packaging.
I’m curious though how others store their wheat berries and sugar too. Mylar/bucket? Just bucket? Store bag/bucket? Thrown on the floor in the corner till you can get to it? lol
haha texasmomma! How do the “LDS” aliens do it??
That actually sounds like a sports team! Preppers before it was cool.
I don’t think anyone would claim we are “cool” by todays standards. No alcohol, dress modestly…etc. Oh well. The LDS Aliens…LOL kinda catchy.
I don’t bother with mylar most of the time. I put wheat berries and a little food grade DE O2 obsorbers and close the lid. I have one gamma lid for each type of food stored in buckets. That way I can rotate what I have. When I use something up, I just move the lid to the next bucket and refill the bucket used with a regular lid. Then it goes back into the rotation.
vienna…what I did first was vacuum seal the wheat berries…and then placed them in buckets…
then, when I received my mylar bags and O2 absorbers – I sealed wheat berries straight into the m/bags with absorbers….waited for a couple of days to make sure each bag was drawn down…and then into buckets.
Have done same with rice, sugar, oats, powdered milk, freeze dried coffee that came in clear glass jars, and coffee beans, salt etc.
Have sealed all of the above in either foodsaver bags or mylar bags with absorbers – and all bags are then placed in buckets.
when I ran out of buckets – I started using all sized waterproof metal cans – recycled milo/coffee cans – and have placed food items above directly into can with absorbers…
And, now I am storing food items as per above with food saver bags placed in the cans – and then vacuum sealed…no need for absorbers this method…
The recycled cans are then placed into suitcases (from thrift shops) so it is easier for me to stack and store all the cans.
Because I am in a hot / humid temperate zone… sugar has to be vac sealed here…humidity eventually gets into sugar left in its original packaging.
Also, with dried pasta – the sharp ends do pierce the food saver bags – so I keep the pasta/macaroni/shells/bows/penne etc in their original packet – and just snip the bag a little to let any air out – and then vac seal/or mylar bag + absorber…and all go into buckets…
I fill up the spaces in buckets with vac sealed salt/pepper/spices etc…canned cheese, canned butter, tuna…anything that will fit in the small gaps to get the full use of the bucket.
If one is in a cooler/cold climate – probably no need to vac seal sugar – just keep dry and away from the light.
However – food is expensive – and probably going to increase – so I don’t want to take any chances on losing my food preps due to flooding/rain inundation etc.
Gayle:
“gamma ray lid”? Isn’t that thing dangerous? Does it shoot the rays into the bucket or out of it? Want to be careful with those, look at what gamma rays did to Bruce Banner.
HaHa. I don’t know where the “ray” part came from. I read a lot of science fiction as a kid.
You guys crack me up when you talk about mormons or “the LDS”. You make us sound like aliens. LOL
texasmomma, I don’t think they mean it that way. I lived in Ogden, Utah for a year and the Mormons are some of the best people I’ve ever met! Please be sure to speak up…you guys are WAY more knowledgeable about food storage than some of us are. ;)
Oh I don’t take offense at all. No worries.
Texasmomma,
Well some of the recommendations don’t exactly make sense at first–like having a lot of jello. I thought dang those Mormons are really into eating jello. But then you read the other uses of jello or why the Mormons do things a certain way and it makes a lot of sense.
There is a joke in the church about mormons and their jello. It seems like we can’t have a get together without someone bringing green jello. LOL
Greetings everyone,
Just wondering if anyone has had any experience using DE in their storage and/or diet/and or pest control arsenals? I’ve read some info about the healthy benefits of using this item for both human and pet use and also it’s benefits when storing dry food items and a vast list of practical uses for pest control. I’m wondering if something this simple could be so multipurposeful (sp)?
Deb, I personally believe DE does have that many uses. When I first moved to Texas I had some unfortunate experiences with roaches (I did a post on it). In my battle to get rid of them I used DE. Mostly I used it for the animals food, and still do. I mix about 1/2 to 1 cup with the bag of dog food. Also when the flees were really bad last year I would sprinkle some on the dogs.
It has been a few years since I have done all the research, but if I am not mistaken, DE is used in grain storage to help keep out bugs, and to keep the mold down. I dont think it would hurt to add DE to stored foods in small amounts. It might help prevent some annoying pests but I wouldnt count on it being fool proof.
Just make sure that if you choose to use the DE that you buy food grade. The pool filter stuff is toxic, and the stuff in the garden supply could have other stuff added to it.
I would also have other stuff on hand. Personally I keep a good store of DE and boric acid on hand.
I had a bad episode while lecturing to class today. I had just started lecturing and I looked down at my shoe and there was a dead palmetto bug. (For you folks from up north, “palmetto bug” is a three inch flying roach.
Good night. I squealed. My students fell out of their chairs laughing. It was terrible.
I hate roaches–ever since I read Kafka’s Metamorphosis.
I remember those dam things. Hated Las Vegas just because of those. We rented an apartment and it ended up condemed because of those. I was cooking and they fell into my food. That did it we moved withen a couple days. Never ate at the apartment after that. Put all of our stuff into a uhaul truck and bombed it 3 times.
Glad it was a dead one! Hate those things, I would have screamed, not squealed.
Gayle, I hate those things. They are big, nasty, and not scared of you. It is pretty bad when one will chase you… and you can bet I will be running from it.
Maybe if my first experience hadnt been one flying into my hair, it wouldnt be so bad, but I see them and I cringe.
Gayle,
LOL. Did you flunk biology?
Hunker-Down,
No, I got an “A”. I got an “A” in Neurobiology as well. We worked in groups. I gave them all the answers and in exchange I never had to look or touch the things. I learned a lot of strange things in Neurobiology–e.g., how to experimentally create a homosexual hamster. (You take a male hamster, prenatally castrate it, when it reaches physical maturity you inject estrogen in its contra-lateral pre-optic portion of its temporal lobe–and it will displace lardosis behavior, the characteristic sexual behavior of female hamsters.
Gayle,
Was that same procedure performed on Jeb Bush?
Good heavens Gayle! I’m racking my brain to see how this skill would be useful WTSHTF! LOL.
It will help curb overpopulation.
Gayle, I can sympathize. I had the back door open to let the dog out and 1 flew right in the door. When I braved up enough to get close enough to hit it with a shoe, it flew right at me. I’m running screaming through the house ripping off my shirt yelling ‘get it off!!!! get it off!!!!” My dog is chasing me around thinking “Yay, Mommy want to play chase.” until it flew by her at which point she went to hide under the coffee table. I got out the broom thinking if it flew at me again I could hit it like a baseball. All that did was knock over a glass of sweet tea which anyone who drinks it knows…. HUGE sticky mess!!!! All this went on for maybe half an hour until I finally GOT IT!!! I was so proud, and freaked out enough I had to go take a really hot shower.
Give me sharks, give me morays, hell, give me huge swarms of stinging jellyfish; just keep the bugs away. FAR FAR AWAY!
DG
I had that experience with a small spider. (Larger than a tiny spider.) The thing actually laughed when I pointed a candle lighter at it.
I have largebeetles here, probably your palmetto bugs. The exterminators assured me that if I’m only seeing large ones, they were coming in with the food. I got hit in the face with a huge one and only called the cats since they seem to leave dead ones all over the place.
The bugs! This is the reason I turned down a job and an offer to move to Florida a few years back. I went down there to see if I liked the area and to look at houses. Three of the houses that the real estate agent showed me were totally empty, except for the roaches in the kitchen and bathrooms. These were nice upscale homes. All she said was “if you like this, you might want to make a fumigator part of the deal”………..I said there isn’t gonna be a deal!
ewwww. Nasty! I would have screamed AND ran.
My experience with it is VERY limited. I have some. I used it last year on the dogs and on their bedding areas in the house to control fleas. I perhaps did something wrong, but it didn’t work. I was afraid vacuuming it up might also clog my vacuum -it didn’t.
I didn’t ingest any because… eh… my container has a picture of a bedbug, and it grossed me out! Also I bought it from a feed store so I’m fairly certain it’s only for topical uses and not FOOD GRADE. Which if I wanted to eat it, food grade is the one to have.
Very bad to breath as the dead little sea bodies will cut lungs.
But my 3 wk experience trying to eradicate dog fleas with DE didn’t work.
(frontline plus did!)
Maybe someone else has used it successfully and can tell me where I went wrong.
I bought food grade DE from Country Life Natural Foods (www.clnf.org). I am not associated with this company other than buying their stuff!
As to the “Palmetto bugs”, when my inlaws lived in Florida, we would have to go down to help them out with stuff they could not do. One of the nasty jobs was cutting dead branches off of their palm/pineapple palm/etc trees in their yard. I would hide, seriously. As soon as one or two dead branches were cut, the palmetto bugs would flow like water down the trunk. My boys liked to stomp on them, until one ran up the bare leg and into the shorts of my youngest. You could hear him scream a mile away! Mom was no help, I was screaming behind the screened door!
Encourager,
The key to living a palmetto bug free life here in Florida is to clean the kitchen and bath with bleach once a weak, and to put down a perimeter of Triazicide around your home every three months.
Okay Gayle, how much Triazicide do you recommend stocking for TEOTWAWKI?
Gayle, Mom now lives up north near us. She moved after Dad died. I think she kept at least a dozen folks employed at the factory that made bug killer. Her house always smelled of chemicals. She sprayed every week, whether she saw a bug or not. I used to break out in hives after being there a few days. No tolerance for pesticides/herbicides! At least the cold kills off a lot of bugs up north!!
A word of caution for all the new preppers joining here: getting into prepping can be very exciting…you’re DOING something, and it can really energize you. And that’s a GOOD thing. However, on here we mention and discuss “OPSEC”, which stands for “Operational Security”, and it is a serious consideration.
When I first started “prepping”, I wanted to share my excitement with people around me: family, friends, other shoppers, etc.
That’s not a good idea. I don’t believe we have to be paranoid, but I do believe we need to be “contained”…to moderate our enthusiasm. When shopping, don’t flash your lists around people, or tell them what you are doing. Don’t suddenly show up at work and show off your bullet-proof vest and pepper spray. (read about that the other day!!! Duh!)
Some suggestions made here for dealing with people curious about your purchases (especially bulk items) are: “I’m buying 20 boxes of ______(cereal, rice, beans, whatever) because I’m going camping with a group of scouts”….or: “Oh…all this? Well, I’m getting it to donate to a ______ (food bank, women’s shelter, half-way house, men’s shelter, whatever)
What I’m trying to say is prepping can feel very good and get you excited. Contain it and share here or with friends/family who are PROVEN trust-worthy.
At the least, a lot of people feel that something is going wrong in our country, are afraid, and don’t know what to do about it. They can take your time & energy when you need it for yourself. It’s really important to be able to discern who is genuine and who isn’t. This takes some prepping time under your belt first.
Second, people can feel jealousy at what you’re doing (I’ve had this happen), and give you a hard time.
Third, you can endanger yourself and family and your preps by showing what you’re up to…there are people who are now looking for preppers to know where they live…I’ve seen this in some posts online.
Get some prepping under your belt, and then see if you want to share it. This is really, really important. Several conversations have happened here about someone casually mentioning their prepping/preps to someone, and having THAT PERSON casually mention it to someone else, and so forth. As things get tighter, this could be very compromising.
Sorry about carrying on about this, but all of a sudden, we have some very new preppers here on MD’s blog, and I felt the need to say this. It is NOT to scare you, make you paranoid, or dampen your enthusiasm. It’s just for consideration.
This is my opinion. Someone else may think differently. Use your intuition, common sense, and ‘smarts’. Also read as many of MD’s personal posts as you can…it’s all covered here. (Thanks MD!!!!!!) And welcome aboard!!
PS…do not use or give your real name to anyone in the online prepper community until you’ve been around a bit. Also do not reveal your exact location. Etc, etc, etc.
mt, very good advice. i saw someone on here this week using their name and saying “out here in….city” . now with a google search even the zombies could find them. i’m guilty too, but as yet hope i haven’t given away my true whereabouts.
Oh my gosh, you are sooo right. Now I gotta think of a new username as I didn’t really think about it when I did my first comment the other day. Another mistake; another lesson learned but easy enough to correct.. After seeing the reaction from my extended family, I haven’t mentioned it again. I knew not to discuss anything prep to anyone other than family for obvious reasons, but I never expected the negative reaction from my own siblings and in-laws….thankfully I used the DDP show on NG as the topic of discussion to sorta feel out what they thought about it so I never mentioned again and when it’s brought up, I’m just pretending I was merely speaking about 72hr stuff..gallon of water, couple cans of soup and some candles and flashlights. Thanks again MTW for reminding us newbies to keep the lips zipped. Now I’m off to think of a new username :-)
Deb, I’m “near” the groundhog. there are preppers around here most are pretty closed mouthed the longer you prep the easier it is to pick one out. its the smallest comments that only a prepper would know. I work with one and we dont ever really talk about it. its the unhun look you see. opsec is everything. gotta look out for “cousin moochie”
stay safe
o and welcome to the pack
CW,
So Phil is almost your neighbor? Nice. I’ve only been here since 2005 and the locals are very close-knit group and although nice, we “transplants” know just how they feel about new folks moving in (by new I mean 20+ yrs residents would still be “new). I know there is a plus side to have other LM people included in prepping (utilization of skills, resources etc), it’s just finding the right LM people that we can trust with our life, b/c that’s basically what it is….that’s gonna be monumental for all of us one way or another as no matter each of us is prepared, there’s just so much a single family unit can do. I like strength in numbers, just gotta find the right ones (phunny) lol….
I was questioned at the store when i was able to go grocery shopping for the first time in several months. I just told them I have family coming in and that means I have 11 people I have to cook and clean up after. Which I do but not for at least another month.
Heh, I spent almost my entire allowance for the next two weeks just on one grocery trip. I didn’t notice anyone batting an eye.
Some great excuses:
“The sales were good this week and I hate leaving the house.”
“This is why you shouldn’t grocery shop when you’re hungry.”
Not very good ops, but “I’m a freezer feeder.” or “I cook once a month.” since those people are socially acceptable.
Then there is blinking at them in confusion and questioning them about the nature of “a lot.”
I’d love to hear something more surreal than “We only have one car.” Maybe “food is needed for eating.”
candy…do you think perhaps the store employee’s have been primed to pay attention to shoppers who buy large amounts of certain items…
you know, the ‘see something, say something’…
may not just be for fellow shoppers to ‘say something’ – may be something the store managers/employees have been told to be watchful about…
I may be wrong, but with the advent of the Sam’s Clubs and Costco I don’t think folks buying in bulk even raise an eye any more. As far as them tracking large purchases, I think we’d all be afraid of what retail is tracking ( example- Apple iphones GPS built in locators) so much information is going to servers about our buying habits and thats not mentioning your google and firefox searches. Look at the “ccokies folder” on your computer and see what theyv;e downloaded some time. I may be paranoid, but I wouldn’t be suprised if “big brother” is n’t monitoring this site. Our only hope is that they’ll have bigger problems to worry about when the SHTF (ie. larger meto areas blowing up with riots) than checking out our individual efforts at surviving. One last thought to keep you awake at night. The govt. has tracking software that triggers on key words like gun, ammunition, etc. If you don’t think so, you’re fooling yourself.
PSSUPT,
When you go into K-Mart and buy ten 12-packs of toilet paper, people comment. When you go into Publix and buy 60 boxes of cereal, people comment. I usually tell people that I am donating it to this or that charity.
Gayle,
You mean it’s an unusal thing to buy ten 12-packs of toilet paper? I have a wife and two daughters…….LOL I get ya, sorry not being sexist, just had to comment.
PSSUPT,
I hear you. It seems that guys can go a whole day using T.P. only once. Women folk just can’t do that. LOL
PSSUPT, try having 6, yup 6, females in one house. I have such a hard time keeping toilet paper in the house.
TG & Gayle,
I’ve never tried corncobs or bark or leaves and I’m not thrilled with the prospect either. LOL On a more serious note, the only drawback to TP is the bulk size of the item. When storage space is at a premium, it is a huge space abuser. Anyone got any ideas how to reduce the size? Vacum pack?
I haven’t tried it but, I have read somewhere that you can remove the cardboard ring and vacuum pack the tissue.
You can vacuum pak it with the food saver if you take out the cardboard roll BUT it didn’t really make it that much smaller. I buy the mega rolls of Charmin so maybe if it is a different roll size it would have a different result. Personally I just thought it was a waste of foodsaver bags. I have it under the bed in the guest room now…. and in the guest room closet….. and in the garage… well you get the picture.
Vacum packing it still might be a good idea considering it vulnerability to water or humidity. Nothing worse than finding it a soogy mess when you really need it. We have agreed on it’s importance.
If you shop at a grocery like Krogers, Meijers, Anderson’s, etc, and you have one of those little cards they scan each time you shop so it will generate coupons, etc……they are already keeping track of what you buy! And also if you use a credit card…the credit card company can keep track. I am not trying to make anyone (more) paranoid, but…
Encourager,
The trick is to give them a false name and to get several of these cards, especially when they limit the specials to two items per card.
I’m actually not so worried about big brother, just random zombies. I only have loyalty cards for two out of 3 grocery stores, and then I use Walmart. The credit-card tracker shouldn’t know that I’m buying lots of cheap food instead of lobster or much organic food.
My preps are pretty pitiful, and probably dismissed after the average food-wasting adjustment. (Yes, I do waste a little, but I’ll live next winter without fresh produce if it’s higher than $200 yearly.)
The short of it is, even if someone puts me together, I’m a smaller target than many non-subversives. If I’m wrong, it’s going to mean a lot more paperwork for them than it’s worth.
And really…. amazon sells a lot of things in 6-month supplies. Am I really going to get busted over wanting a whole-wheat pasta shape that I can’t buy locally? Maybe they’d ask me what I was up to if I bought 25 pounds of rice on my Sam’s card every damn week… but I think Sam’s club would investigate me first… actually, I think it’s a business-class membership so they might not question what I’m doing with the rice…. *ponder*
Sorry, I’m rambling. Just don’t concern yourselves. If I disappear, it’s more likely that I found something more shiny than this, rather than having been taken away and died while in custody.
Kelekona,
What part of the country (or what country) do you live in? I ask because I’ve read books that even in Maine it is possible to garden during the winter.
Gayle, I’m East Coast Southerner.
We’re thinking about moving to Rhode Island.
Kelekona,
Check your local library and see if they have a book called The Victory Garden Companion. You can build a hot house from bails of hay and a couple of old doors. That will permit you to grow veggies even in winter.
Rhode Island. Yuck. It snows there, you know?
Gayle, my mother is bragging about having sunshine and above-freezing temps. I intend to check out Road Island because having to run the air conditioner in January sucks. Those things are supposed to be for emergencies.
I’m actually afraid to try gardening this year for fear that it’ll get mowed. They’ll literally come in 2 days after I’ve trimmed the lawn to my liking and shave the grass down to stalks and dirt.
Candy in Nebraska,
You got good OPSEC! (I got bad grammar).
Do you have a relative named Donna?
Very good point. I try to be very careful about what I say here that could identify me in any way. It isn’t that I don’t trust the Wolfpack people, it is the prying eyes of “others” I am not sure about. Thanks for mentioning this again as a warning to our new people.
mt woman, very good advice…and good insight on part about ‘people looking to find out where preppers live…’.
Great advice, MT.
Another one, don’t post your email address as your “name” !
If you can, shop away from your usually stores – the next biggest city, for instance. Use cash. Make it a day-long trip, taking coolers for perishables, if necessary. Keep the stuff in your car covered up.
Learn new skills – take classes at your local extension service, a working museum, a community college. Get hands-on practice/experience. Take a CERT class (www.citizencorps.gov), look up CEN (
http://www.christianemergencynetwork.org/) and see if they are offering classes; take first aid/CPR classes. Learn a new skill/business that you can survive doing WSHTF and that contributes to your community. Get involved by attending township/village/county/neighborhood/city meetings. Find out what is going on while having OPSEC at all times.
Buy, and use!, new work/hiking boots so they are broken in. Better, buy at least two pairs and do the same (remember, three is two, two is one, one is none rule).
My brain is now tired…
LOL…just made myself laugh! Was reading the ideas here of what to say if asked about bulk buying, and I thought of a good one: ” I want to be on “Doomday Preppers”, so I’m stocking up to make the cut.” Hahahaha…I think I might even use that one!
Hi Wolfpack,
Well, I thought I would be typing that I did absolutely nothing to prep this past week since I was in France making peace with my in-laws. Or maybe they were making peace with me. However, after reading what everyone else had done, I realized that I gained a bit of learning which is its own prep.
My in-laws own a vineyard and family farm and are amazingly self sufficient. They have goats and a few cattle, chickens, a fairly large vegetable garden area and of course a few thousand acres of vines. Even though it was winter, there was still tons to do. They have a cellar thats full not just of wine, but all sorts of things they have canned, cheeses, root vegetables… My MIL said they pretty much go to the markets once a month if that. I really wish we had made peace sooner because I spent a lot of the week learning from her…. I even had a mini class in wine-making.
Now that I’m home I’m gonna play around with the wine making – I have a couple of grape vines that I use for jellies but just for fun… She is also going to email me recipes and such for things she makes from the foods they have on hand.
I came home pleasantly surprised that my mom had done some of my weekly prepping for me. She bought 26 boxes of cereal, 10 lbs of rice, and filled up 6 – 5 gallon gas cans.
Speaking of gas, it was interesting to read about the gas prices here. They really went up while I was gone, but to put it into a bit of perspective, with the conversions and whatnot I paid a little over $7.00 a gallon in Paris and a bit less in the countryside areas. Not that it’s any consolation to us here when we are used to far lower prices but still, sometimes we take things for granted.
Hope this finds everyone well, Happy prepping to all.
DG
After you try some of those recipes, please make sure that you post them for the rest of us? It is always good to have something else added to our ideas. Glad you made peace. ‘Tis a good thing if at all possible!
Diver Gal, So glad that you were able to make peace with your in-laws and that you were able to spend time with the MIL learning from her. Also nice to hear that your mom picked that stuff up for you.
I would also be interested in some of those recipes.
As soon as I get them I’ll start posting…
welcome back DG…just goes to show…learning is on-going – and we learn from everyone…just soak up all the knowledge.
How did you find the mood of the people – were they worried about the Euro debt…or are they still going on with their usual routine and schedules…cheers.
Chloe,
I was mostly out in the country staying at the vineyard and while the family keeps up with the news they arent really worried Euro-wise because of their self sufficiency. That said, they do have concerns about Iran and the Middle East but again they don’t seem to really change their lives or let it rule them.
When I was in the city (Paris) it didn’t seem like people were overly concerned. We went out one night and there was talk in the club about politics and European finances but it wasn’t stopping anyone from buying 8 Euro drinks. Everything is more expensive than when I lived there part time 4 years ago. And in comparison everything is more expensive there anyways.
DG
DG…yes, things are expensive over there… was shocked at how much groceries cost compared to my previous trips.
And they earn so little – lucky if they earn 1000 euros p/month…and a trolley full of groceries was over 300 euros.
I am sad at what I see my cousins experiencing in their country – and give thanks often that my father had the courage to leave after the war and start a new life here.
So, when I see the prices I pay – yes, it’s expensive too, compared to you guys…it is still nowhere near what they pay over there – compared to their earnings…so I just buy the specials when I can and am grateful.
Wow. I just noticed there are already 707 posts on this week’s wdydtptw and it’s only Monday night. That’s unbelievable. Also seeing lot’s of lurkers converting to pack members too! This is good, folks. Very good. You should be very proud, MD. Looks like it’s becoming more and more obvious this is the best site on the web and the place to be!
that, or there are more moles:)
rr: NOT. Nobody yanked any chains that I saw this week, just a lot of new folks who are like minded. Cos
We have been on our best behavior this week.
I noticed the good behavior, Gayle. So boring!! Brohahahaha!
Encourager,
I know . . . boring. I tried to stir the pot a bit by calling a couple of folks here “closet Obama fans”. But no one jumped on that one. I will have to try harder to stir the pot next week.
cos, i said moles not troles, and i have a smiley face behind it. i love that there are so many new folks getting the courage to post also. one thing though, how did membership jump from 7000 to 14000 in one week? i know another blog that i frequent did a trackback and found HLS was a big number of hits on his site. i was semi-jokingly inferring that some of those 14000 might be located in “the district”.
Always good to see new Pack members. Some come and go but that’s life. I am a bit amazed how many new pack members there are, wondering if the DP show brought a few to lurk, people waking up or a bit of both.
my gf is just getting onboard now its very hard for me to get her and the kids to understand justn how serious this is. we li9ve in the city i have lived in the woods my whole life i spent 7yrs in the special forces i have several secure bugout locations in the woods 200mis from our house i tell her every day we are woefully under prepared she saya oh i didnt have the EXTRA money i keep tellin her its not extra its nessesity. how caqn i make her and the kids realize how serious this is ? she wants to stay nat our house i told her no it isnot fesable to try to defend an urban home. big delema any suggestions?
r, go on youtube and download vids of the l.a. riots .let them watch that a while, same for eqypt. and explain that once power and water goes, the upstairs neighbors crap will be running down your walls. good luck.
Ditto’s with Riverrider. I lived through the L.A. Riots. My youngest son was being born in Korea-town. I was watching out the window at the Hospital. First three hills over was on fire, then two hills over……… It is possible you won’t be able to convince your family. I haven’t. Ridicule is ok when you know in your heart that you have done your best. Airborne!, Cos
Cosmolined……
Which one….Airborne, that is?
All The Way
Hawkeye, 19th Group. I’m second generation. Dad was 82 in WW2. I was straight leg active, 4th Inf. No combat. Cos
cosmolined…..
2nd of the 501PIR, 82nd; 1st of the 504PIR, attached to the 8th Inf Div, Germany; then Hq Co, 17th SF. I’ve not been able to verify but I believe the 17th was merged into the 12th which was then merged into the 19th (or maybe the 12th and 19th was vice versa…like I say, never could verify that). I was a little early for Nam but was in Germany during both the “Berlin Crisis” and the “Cuban Missle Crisis”. Lot of hype in both those events but no bullets flying for me either.
I found my butt in Stuttgart a couple months after the Berlin wall went up.
Hunker Down…..
I was in Mainz, a little North of you. Our Division HQ was in Bad Krueznach. Got there in Jan 61…left in Jan 63. Loved Germany. Went back, on vacation, in August 73 and the Airborne Regiment was moving out and heading for Italy. It’s my understanding that our base, Lee Kaserne in Mainz Gonsenheim, is now German condos! Time marches on.
Cosmolined, my uncle was 82nd in WWII, and was killed at Normandy. 456 PRCHT FA BN, 82 ABN Div. is what is on his gravestone. I wasn’t born until 1953, so I never knew him, but since he wasn’t married, for some reason(mainly because I was the one most interested) I ended up with most of his personal items, including his Purple Heart and a Letter of Commendation from the President. I have them framed and on my wall in den.
I forgot to ask. Is your father still living, cosmolined?
village idiot:
You are totally an outstanding man for honoring your late Uncle, Sir!
My Dad passed in ’82. I was also born in ’53 too. Cos
cosmolined, I’m not trying to be nosy, but why do you think your family doesn’t see what is happening? My wife is a country girl, and she has canned and put up food all her life, she is frugal, but she can’t understand what could happen if things keep going the way they are. She thinks I’m a little off. My oldest son is kinda on board, but my youngest son can only think about one thing, and it ain’t prepping. I’m trying to prep for all of us, and it’s discouraging at times.
village idiot:
My oldest son is 20, he runs on hormones. His brother is 19 and lives in an on-line video world. The wife just refuses to even consider basic earthquake preps here in Lost Angeles!
I know how discouraged you can get. Trust your gut, friend. God gaves us brains to use. Perhaps our military time has provided a broader view of the world…. God Bless!, Cos
richard…welcome on board…
just do what you can – in the direction you know you need to prep in…
many pack members are also in your shoes…so you are not alone –
can share your journey with us…I did not have anyone I could share my prep journey with either – until I started posting on this site…has really helped me a lot…
when stuff happens that you are worried about…a month, a year from now…who knows…at least you will have had that time to plan.
When it is time to activate those plans…your gf may then finally see the wisdom of your prepping activities…
you know what to do…use all the available time now to its maximum benefit…seize the day…
as you state you are ‘woefully unprepared’…no time like the present to just start…
any questions – lots of like-minded people right here that understand where you are coming from…cheers.
Richard, you said ‘her and the kids’ – are they your kids, her kids or both? How old are they? It does make a difference in how they react to what you say. Watching the videos online is a great idea; explaining to them that when TSHTF, during Katrina, any riots, etc. that people don’t behave like they normally due. They de-evolve (if that is a word) down to the lowest common denominator – usually immoral (rapes, etc), destructive brutes. If you can get them to understand that, you can slowly bring them along.
I hate to ask, but how devoted/committed are you and your girlfriend to each other? There has to be that underlying trust between you, in order for her to accept what you tell her. If it is not there, if she implies you are nuts, you may be better off prepping for yourself, with extra added in case they get on board. But, please, watch your OPSEC.
Not very exciting but we built an automatic waterer for the chicks and got them into their coop/run for the first time. They’re out all day but we still bring them in at night as they still haven’t lost their downy feathers yet. By Friday they should be ready to be in the coop fulltime. South Fl weather is easy this time of year!
Read the Ace sale paper and they have seed packets at 4 for $1 until March 8th.
SIG P225/P6 owners got this updated from Cheaper Than Dirt:
Sig P225/P6 9mm 8rnd. Factory Magazines. Old Style Mags. Limited Qty.(USED)
Price $24.99ea….
Order at http://www.copesdistributing.net/p225p6-blue-factoryused-p-4541.html
Phone orders at 1-866-523-2673..
I know a few people own this model so thought I’d post it.
This week for preps:
Food:
12 cans of chicken
6 cans of salmon
6 bottles of ketchup
30 cans of chef boyardee
20 cans of assorted soups
40pudding cups
20 boxes of different crackers
20 packs of gum (completly free) If you have a cvs mentos gum is on sale for .99 or 3 for $3.00 and there was a dollar coupon.
4 boxes of easter candy (free with coupons)
14 – 12 packs of toilet paper
6 boxes of kleenex
10 toothpaste
20 assortment of spices (bogo)
Big container of coffee
2 cases of water
8 boxes of baking soda
6 containers of salt
Valentine socks less then .50 cents a pair!
A new set of see through drawers for preps at our bug out location. I love these I can see everything that is in them!
Wondering if anybody could point me towards a good solar charger for the kids dvd player? They love to watch movies.
My family for the first time ate the Bear creek brocolli and cheese soup and they all loved it! I am so happy and am going to get a ton of it, they are all very picky! I did what the directions said about adding, so I added the sour cream, 2 handfulls of cheese, broccoli, chicken, and I added potatos. It was so good!
I want to take a minute and Thank M.D. for hosting this blog, and dealing with the PROFOUND amount of posts, comments, sub-comments, sub-sub-comments, etc. It is really a JOB! From what I can see, You have to look at each post & comment and approve them, right M.D.? A gargantuan project with this prolific group!
Truly I THANK YOU from the bottom of my heart. I am very grateful for the information and camaraderie here, and you’re the maestro.
I can’t send a donation, but I can say: THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU.
And ask: is there anything we can do to make it easy on you? Would it be easier if we didn’t post so many ‘one-liner’ comments? Just tell us…..
MtWoman:
I’ve been lacking in saying thanks too. (Thanks for reminding me.)
M.D. THANKS! You have a wonderful site that has allowed me to refocus on keeping my family safe. I’ve also met a bunch of like minded folks who help me realize I’m not crazy for preparing for bad stuff that can happen in order to protect my sons, whether they want it or not. LOL, God Bless You M.D. ! Cos
Without M.D. we’d all be lone wolves trying to do it on our own, not realizing there are other like minded people who want to prep practically and on a budget.
Thank you M.D. for the work you do keeping this site up and running.
I agree…thanks MD for moderating the site so diligently…the posters here are like a family to me…
and Cos, yes – so good to be able to discuss the whole range of ‘prep’ topics – week after week…I don’t tire of it…and I have been so energetic just trying to keep up with everything.
oh yawl jest quit it! you’ll blow m.d.’s head up so big he won’t even recognize little ol’ us anymore, and start putting commas in his name and such, and promoting big budget gizmos and moving to timbuktu that he owns already… LOL. i try to say thanks only every other week so he don’t go getting full of himself:)
riverrider: People don’t really talk like that in real life, do they?! LOL, Cos
Cosmo,
Well, the further south you get, the worse we talk. If I ever had to go up north, folks would hear by accent and think I was an ignorant hick. I’d have to say, “Hey! That’s Dr. Ignorant Hick” to ya’ll folks.”
cos, come south and you can see for yourself but take my word for it, those of us who grew up here do talk like that. Sad to say, too many of the young kids talk 90 miles an hour and are losing their Southern accent. I hate it because to me, the different regional accents in the US are something to celebrate. I love hearing accents, think of Jeff Foxworthy, his is great.
I list my language as Southern English.
cos, hehehe, the further up in the hills you go, the more like that it sounds. but don’t confuse local dialect with ignorance. though many up there are not so highly educated, they are sharp as a tack and have more common sense than a building full of politicians.
Everybody:
I was just joking! Nothing is sexier than a woman with a Southern accent…… Cos
cos & rr: back in my “young and purty” days I dated a guy who lived in NJ. I went up to visit him once and his friend told my date he just “loooved” my southern accent and shivered when he said it. I thought the guys wife was going to belt him right then but most of the night she wouldn’t even talk to me. Some women would be offended, I thought is was kind of funny.
Okey I can’t wait for Saturday to roll around again. DH and I got some very good news today. I was able to get a job with the road construction going on 8 miles away. I wont be working over 14 hours but the pay is full time pay. $350.00 a week for around here that is dam good money. especially for so little of hours.
Withthis I am still able to watch my Grandson, and watch Mother and eep Dh from killing Mother.
Now we are planning on what bills to get paid off and what to buy 1st for a major prep. Bills first because most of the companies have been working with us for 3 yrs since DHs accident. I am so grateful they have so they are first. DH says maybe go with the solor power I have been hounding him about or maybe a generator. I guess we shall see.
I am just glad for all the comments on here it helped keep me from one heck of a depression knowing I was not the only one having problems.
Thank You all .
You seem like a very nice person, and I’m happy for you. Troubles come to all of us, and it’s not the troubles that make the person, but how the person handles the troubles. It’s a nice problem to have when you have to decide which good thing you would like first. I’d go with the generator first, then the solar, but you know your situation best. From what I see, I believe you already have sound judgment.
That is great news, Candy. Congratulations on the new job.
Candy, that is just great news on the job..congratulations. I can almost feel your excitement!
Blessings!
great news candy…just goes to show..things can get better on a personal level..
even if we can’t control the bigger picture..we can still do some things on a smaller level.
Wonderful news, Candy! “In this world you will have many troubles; but fear not, I have overcome the world.” paraphrased! I agree that this great group helps us all cope.
Ty all.With Dh getting into the accident really put us in a bind and when it first happened I was smart and stocked up. have for years but really hard at that point. Well since october of 2011 we had only been recieving $235.00 from the insurance company which we are still fighting with, But with all the great recipes and stuff from everyone here I managed to make our stores last for a very long time.
Now that a job is coming up I feel a huge stress being lifted, and we are making plans and more plans.
I believe it was Lint who told my daughter what to look for when she catches rabbits we were not sure so we had a neighbor look at her first catch and Neighbor said it was safe to butcher. The Neighbor even gave us a butchering lesson even though we already knew, but he is the Grandpa type so we sat back and listened and watched.
M.D. Thank you for all your hard work with this blog to help us less educated.
Candy
Congrats on the job!!
WYOMING NARROWLY DEFEATS MEASURE TO PREPARE FOR APOCALYPSE
CODY, Wyoming (Reuters) -
…
“I guess a lot of people think if you’re trying to prepare for a disaster, it makes you seem crazy,” co-sponsor Kendell Kroeker said. “I was interested in it mainly because I don’t think there’s any harm in being well-prepared.”
The bill would have funded contingency planning to guide Wyoming through “a situation in which the federal government has no effective power or authority over the people of the United States,” as well as disruptions in food and energy supplies.
One option the bill contemplated in the event of a rapid collapse of the U.S. dollar was “the ability to quickly provide an alternative currency.”
http://news.yahoo.com/wyoming-narrowly-defeats-measure-prepare-apocalypse-013100302.html
d, virginia talked about the same thing but got a smackdown letter from the feds implying that alternate currency would be seen as counterfieting and aggressively enforced. unfortunately , my gov gave in. sic semper tyrannus.
MD, is there a way to send you a contribution? I don’t have paypal, or a credit card. I got rid of credit cards a couple of years ago. Do you have a mailing address like a post office box?
Village,
Email me…
A little OPSEC.
How to remove your search history from Google.
http://www.valuewalk.com/2012/02/how-to-stop-google-from-collecting-your-web-history/
Thanks, HD. Just did it.
I know this is last minute but just received info on this:
The state of Georgia has a House Bill pertaining to the right to grow and raise your own food. It is called House Bill 853. This bill is being held up in committee by groups working for cities and counties who want to CONTROL our right to grow or raise food on our own property. Please go to this website to send an email to voice your opinion on this.
http://www.gafoodrights.org/42001.html
You don’t have to be a Georgia resident to do this. Please help.
Okay, I, too, have gotten the clean-it-out bug! It must be the weird winter weather we have been having — early spring cleaning?? I cleaned the office out, including the files in my old roll top desk. My hubby was also cleaning out…we filled about 15 plastic grocery bags with shredded paper.
What did I do to prep this week? Ordered 9# organic brown sugar (will split some with son); 3 large cans KLIM Full Cream Dry Milk; Organic Coconut Oil; Tanglefoot Moth Traps; all from our food buying club. Been having trouble with our main supplier to the club, no orders have been processed for the past 3 months so when/if this order comes it will be huge.
I also cleaned/sealed hardwood floors in three rooms and two hallways. That is not really prepping, but I wanted to try this new product that is applied by hand, so actually can use that WSHTF so I guess it is prepping, lol.
Told my son I want a worm farm for my birthday in May. He got a real kick out of that. I am going to try something new (for me) to build up the soil in my sandy garden. I am going to roto-till a goodly amount of leaf mulch from last fall into the soil, then cover it with about 1/2 inch of newspaper, then a cardboard layer topped with straw. Let it decompose before planting my potatoes. Have had lousy potato crops for about three years. I am also planning on doing this where I plant my hills for winter squash. Does anyone have any more suggestions, re adding anything to the layers or adding other supplements to the soil before I begin??
Oh, good news, I guess…son and hubby are now talking about renting a Bob Cat, not buying one. I think the $$$ finally got them to thinking straight. I told them the gate comes first, then the fencing by the gate, then the gardens including the raised bed they will make. Hated to burst their bubble….lol. If son wants to pay for an extra day to build up the shooting range, go for it!
Just wanted to say how much I appreciate M.D. and the Wolf Pack. It is always such a stress reliever to come here and get advice from the Pack. I can ask anything and not have to worry about keeping OPSEC regarding businesses, people close to home. Thanks everyone!!!!!
Encourager,
I have a compost bin. Here are a few things you might consider, coffee grounds, banana peels and eggs shells. Any fruit or veggie peelings or waste (that hasn’t been cooked and doesn’t have oils on it) can be put in your soil as well. Do a Google search for “honey hole”.
Encourager,
I posted this link somewhere in this week’s wdydtptw for someone else, but here it is again: http://www.backtoedenfilm.com. May I suggest that you don’t till your garden if you’ve already done it once. It’s back breaking work, but pull or hoe the weeds with distubing the soil layers as little as possible. Once clear, layer an inch or two of compost on the top and the leaves to hold moisture in. Go to a local bait shop and pick up red wiggler and earth worms and put them right in the garden. Earth worms go deep and wigglers stay closer to the surface. But worms will need the compost and leaves or mulch to live and eat.
Have you had your soil tested at all? If not, check out your local extension office or google for soil testing in your area. It only costs a few dollars, but so worth it. You should get a list of suggested amendments back with your results depending on your readings. From that I know I need to add lime after each planting season. I also sprinkle a little wood ash. Check your local area for compost – local farms, friends with chickens or goats, mushroom farms. The best compost I got was from our local sheriff’s office from their horse stables and I have been using that exclusively and my garden is loving it. I am brewing my own compost from chicken coop litter and kitchen scraps but won’t have enough for this season. Check out the movie link and let me know what you think. I’ve just experimented with this method on one of my 4′ x 16′ raised beds this season to see how it works.
Taking MT Woman’s advice, I decided to change my username and I’m sorry if I missed responding to anyone who was so kind to welcome me to the pack and to give advice and tips in my last few comments. I responded to some and not others (my need to be nice and good manners is killing me not to respond to everyone–please forgive me). Wow, yesterday was a busy busy day for me–came home late and my email was blown up. That was alot of comments on WDYDTPTW. So I searched a little further outside my area for a thrift shope and found 6 small canning jars (25 cent each?) but no collars or lids, but it’s a start. Bought 3 wooden spoons 25 cents total–will use when I attempt my first batch of soap. And also bought 4 plastic milk crates for a $1–I hear they make good boxes for chickens and they clean up easy. Can’t use them now but when I get my next place, it will be a close race as to who moves in first…me or my chickens.
Did my usual “cherry picking” at my 5 favorite stores–I got some great deals (20 lbs rice $8.99) and campbell soup for 35 cents a can. And Classico Spag Sauce $1 jar (I hear I can use those jars for canning) so I bought 24 jars. Chicken breast 99cent lbs. I’ve really vamped up my coupon clipping and created a nice grocery binder with a running list of “rock bottom” prices of the various products I normally purchase (with a few new prep related items added) and combined with my coupons, I saved quite a bit. Takes most of the day to split up the shopping to get all those loss leader items, but separating the meats into freezer bags has packed my freezers to max capacity. Can’t wait to get my canning equipment so that I can begin utilizing my huge storage room in the basement instead of my freezer space–I’m almost tempted to buy it new but I don’t want to rob my grain mill fund..decisions/decisions. Found a buyer for some of my useless crap that has no prep purpose; she thought it was a bargain and now I put some of the money towards my grain mill purchase and some allocated to garden container funds. All things considered, I think CG will work for me and hopefully keep the NHOA association off my back b/c other options for my yard and soil are either impractical, too costly and/or completely disallowed by my NHOA. I can’t believe the silly gadget oriented, “latest this-n-that” stuff that I purchased over the years (back when my income was doubled and still clueless about SHTF)–the prepper stuff I could have bought–smacking my forehead! Cannot wait for spring to have a yard sale to unload all this useless junk–did I really have to buy a big bulky ice making machine for the counter? Seriously? Hope everyone has a wonderful week and most importantly, be safe and healthy
Mrs. Prepper,
I did forget to mention that there is one specialized thing you will need to start canning–the canning utensils. You can pick them up at Walmart for about $8.
Here’s the amazon link.
http://www.amazon.com/Ball-1440010720-Utensil-Set/dp/B001NNJ42I/ref=sr_1_sc_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1330550074&sr=8-1-spell
Mrs. Prepper
Great buy on the canning jars at the thrift store, don’t worry about them not having bands or flats, has you can buy them. The jars are the most expensive, I love finding jars at thrift stores. You heard correctly about the Classico jars, my DH calls them chili jars as I love to can my chili in them. Just check the threads on the jars, you learn which ones can be reused as canning jars. Good luck!!
Tx Nana,
I hoped it was a good price and thought what the heck. Glad to hear the info on the Classico jars was correct–now that I found this site, I kinda don’t really believe any info til one of my new family experts confirms it hee hee. At a $1 a jar the sauce was a great deal but being able to reuse the jar for canning, now that’s a super deal!
Gayle,
I got copy of the Ball book on preserving from library and skimmed thru it (it’s been busy couple days so I’m really behind on things) and realized that the lids cant’ be re-used. Wow, that seems very expensive and counter productive but what do I know at this point. I’m guessing they cant’ be that expensive, otherwise no one would bother. I’m picking up that start kit from Walmart tomorrow cuz at that price I think it’s permittable to purchase new. I wasn’t sure if the price on that little jars was good but I thought, what the heck. I asked the cashier if they usually get any kind of canning equipment and she said it just varies and you just have to come and check things out (30 mins drive one way so not sure about just drive and see).
I haven’t been canning that long so I’m still using the lids that come with the jars, but a quick web-search reveals that fifty cents per lid might be the expensive side, packs of a dozen. Try grocery stores or hardware stores.
The rings are reusable. I’m assuming that when I put cleaned lids back on the jar just for a dust-free seal, I’m not poisoning myself.
Check out tattler lids. They can be re-used, claiming indefinately. I think some of the other people here have actually used them.
Kelekona,
When you empty a jar, throw away the lid. Keep the jar and the ring. Buy the 12-packs of new lids. When you put the jars away, put a NEW lid on the jar. You keep the inside of your jars from getting dusty and you know how many jars you have lids for when you do your next canning thing. You shouldn’t pay more than a couple of dollars for a 12-pack of lids. Go to Walmart or even look at your grocery store. If you wait until canning season is over you can pick up lids half price.
Okay, what’s on a used lid that can kill me? If it’s a risk that I’ll use if for canning again, I write on it with permanent marker. I have more issue with wasting a new lid on candy than having an old lid on it.
Kelekona,
If you reuse a lid, the jar may not seal properly. Or even worse, it may seal well enough so it passes the pick up by the lid test, but it may not hold a seal. For the money, using a new lid each time is worth it.
Ms. Prepper, try a propane-powered burner? Wait, I think there is a specific warning about using outdoor burners with canning equipment.
As far as used lids, I don’t use them for sealing uses. It’s more of an alternative to tupperware.
Ditto to Keklona: Lids here at Smart and Final are $2 for a dozen. There is also a reusable lid called a Tattler Lid that you can find on the internet. (Because you are just starting out, I’d suggest going with the one time use to reduce the variables.) Cos
I found some lids at the dollar general or family dollar (cant remember which) 12 lids for $1. I am still looking for my jars *sigh* everywhere (even ace) is out of them right now. But I figured I had the money and will eventually need them so went ahead and grabbed about 6 of the boxes of lids.
TG,
I will def check out my DStore. I figured those lids couldn’t be that much considering most wouldn’t bother with all the hassle if the cost was high. Having never bothered with canning before, I was completely clueless about pricing. First time this week I priced at Gstore and it’s was ridiculous price for those jars but I did add the info to my RBP (Rock Bottom Pricing) Index sheet in my coupon binder so that I can track costs of these items on my weekly shopping hunt. Although I’m still researching about using press cooker on my flat top elec stove. I am determined to find a way (safely of course) to start this canning for my goal of canning meats b/c freezer space is maxed out. My DH is a meat/potato guy so 6 days we have chick/pork/beef and 1 day fish…would love to make fish 2 days week, but salmon and haddock is $$$. As last resort I may ask my mom if I can use her gas stove but then I wouldn’t be able to do the quantity as much as I’d like to but at least it would get me some experience at it and who knows, maybe I could convince her of the merits on canning?
Mrs Prepper
Here’s the deal on jars from thrift stores, reusable Classico jars, jars your mom/grandmom/aunt or whoever gives you jars, if a canning band/ring with a NEW canning flat/or tattler reusable flat will screw on and tighten up you can reuse the jar.
I have inherited jars, mom/grandmom/MIL/aunt, you name them I get the family jars
I have thrift store/craigslist ball/mason/golden harvest/longlife/ altas/ if the jar is “embossed” most likely it can be used to can in,
I have classico pasta sauce jars, when DIL has a BOGO coupon for Publix, she buys classico, I don’t buy that brand because, I’m not paying $3.00 for a jar of pasta sauce. No Publix where I live, and no one here ever runs it on sale. It’s cheaper for me to buy new canning jars than it is to buy Classico sauce. I bought 2 new cases of regular mouth quarts today. I’m running low on jars, and gardening season is here, so I’m buying a couple of cases every week or so. My local Wally world was extremely low on canning jars, had to take DH to the doctor on the far side of town, stopped at a different WW, and bought the jars. I do know that the DIL had 2 different sizes of Classico, one jar was reusable, one not, I’m sure my jars are 24oz size. My other thought, is that you made whale of a buy on the sauce, even if the jars are not reusable. If you grow your own tomatoes, count the following cost, your water, a regular size canning flat cost me 14 cents each, your spices, onions, mushrooms, garlic, you are just about at a $1.00, don’t forget your fuel to cook the sauce, and the fuel to can the sauce. This is how I look at my canning verses what is on sale locally. I hope this hasn’t confused you, remember the first year of canning is your most expensive, as you have to buy jars, pressure canner, or water bath canner, your hardware so to speak. I’ve been lucky I have 4 pressure canners, 1 water bath canner, I only purchased one of these and it came from a thrift store. I’ve had to replace a couple of gaskets, and the one that I got at the thrift store I had to replace the pressure gauge. This year I’m replacing the gauge on my DH’s grandmother’s pressure canner, why you ask, it’s old, and it hung up on me, I think, one time last year, better safe than sorry. I look at this as normal maintenance. I would love an All American Canner, but that’s not in the budget. My DH is in charge of watching the gauges when we are canning, and yes I’ve had 4 pressure canners going at once. Not bragging just stating fact, whether it’s gardening season, or deer season, you only have so much time to get things done.
Oh!! I forgot I want to give the Wolf pack info on buying canning flats in bulk. I purchase flats by the pound, from:
Dutchman’s Store
Cantril, Iowa
319-397-2322
I found out about the Dutchman store, on a gardening chat site, I was told they don’t have internet, just phone service as they serve the Amish, and/or Mennonites.
I called them found out their current price, gave them my credit card number, they shipped the next day. I’ve ordered a few times now and never had any trouble. The price including shipping, for the last time I ordered works out to about 14 cents each for regular, an d 23 cents each for wide mouth. A sleeve of regular flats are 4.5 pounds about 348 flats, and wide flats are 6.1 pounds about 288 flats. I order my last flats in Jan 2012, they were $41.00 for regular, I didn’t need wide mouth so didn’t check price. I ordered 2 sleeves of regular, the shipping was $13.15.
I don’t work nor am I affiliated with the Dutchman’s store, but I did get great service, and a good value for my dollar. Hope this helps the Wolf pack canners!
Tx Nana,
Oh my gosh, thanks for the info on Dutchman’s–that sounds like RBP to me..if I understand the pricing. Little confusing about price by the pound though. When you state 4.5 pounds about 348 flats–that does mean 348 jars? 14 and 23 cents a piece, including shipping? That’s incredible. I would think shippng would be expensive, given the weight of the jars. I think my hunt is over–I can’t imagine finding a better price than that. Is that reg pricing or special promo? Now I gotta figure way to convince my mom to use her stove without having my extended family thinking I’m still prepper-crazed. I’ll have to come from the savings angle–she thinks I’m obsessed with the cherry-picking I do at my store with my extra Club card shopping hunts. Not sure if that term is local or not–but that’s what they call it here–when you only purchase the lead loss items in a store sale. My dad is gonna be the hard one to convince–he’s an energy miser (which is a good thing–I learned alot from his energy-frugality over the years) so he won’t be too happy about my using the stove and heating the house during the summer–oh that def won’t be allowed–winter will be easier to convince him…I just gotta figure out a fair trade-off for the use of his gas…hmmmm….he sure does love my crockpot BBQ chicken. I am kicking myself for making DH switch my gas stove to that elec flat top–darn! I never realized that I would be limited by the type of stove top I had when canning.
Mrs. Prepper,
Ask your parents what kinds of things they would like to try home canned? Do they like salsa or bread & butter pickles. You could say that you are getting into canning because you read about all these genetically modified foods–like strawberries with frog DNA and things like that. You could give them some of what you can in exchange for using their stove. Your mom might like the stuff so much she springs for some of the produce.
Mrs. P.,
Another idea would be that since you already have the gas line, buy a used gas stove and put it on the porch. Call it a summer kitchen.
Mrs. Prepper, in my neck of the woods, a ‘flat’ in canning is just the flat part of the lid (as opposed to the ring), not the jar.
Texas Nana,
Ugg. Last week Classico was BOGO and you could use two $1 off coupons. So I paid $1 and a few cents for two jars of sauce. I picked up eight jars. (I already have some in storage.) I will use the cheap sauce to make lasagna but when it comes to Spaghetti, I love red pepper Classico. Yum.
Gayle, great deal too–sounds like your store’s reg price for Classico is a pretty darn good EDP (everyday price). My reg sale (not RBP but better than EDP) that pops up every couple weeks is 2/$4 so your BOGO sounds like reg price is hovern around $2 a jar? Wow, that’s a great EDP. Most stores only do BOGO based on EDP. I LOVE the Spicy Red Pepper and the 4 Cheese…yum. Our store brand is good too but if I can get Classico at RBP I load up. I also like the cheese blend Ragu–it goes on sale alot but not many coupons and not really a RBP without a coupon so I don’t get it as often.
Mrs Prepper!!
I not sure what RBP is.
I’m not sure you understand or if I misunderstand you….. I order FLATS ONLY, from the Dutchman store. Flats only cost 14 cents for regular mouth, and 23 cents for wide mouth. I hope I have cleared this up for you.
It ain’t braggin’ if it’s true, Texas Nana!
Tx Nanna,
Thanks for all the info on the jars/lids. I read the Ball book and it described the shapes of the jars (rounded shoulder etc?). That immediately got confusing but then I only skimmed thru it. I hope to sit down and give it thorough read this weekend as it’s just been tremendously hectic week and my shopping hunt was extremely time consumed this week b/c of all my newly added items to my Coupon Binder and it was exceptional good bargain week for me with almost all 5 of my reg stores had fantastic leader loss items that I also had mfg coupons and/or store matching coupons–this only happens couple times a year so making multiple trips to use up all 3 sets of my Club cards at each location takes sooo much time and then putting it all away–sigh–that’s the tough part, but knowing that I got almost all the items near free or at RBP is worth the time and effort. Wow, that’s a shame your Classico is so high–my stores reg run sale of $2/4 which I will get sometimes, but mostly I buy the store brands as I need them (I have no brand loyalty) since their reg price is a good price, but when I see a brand that is at my RBP in my binder, then I load up. I got lucky with the Classico this week b/c of a loss leader prcing and combined with store doubler s for any item but 8 limit–that’s when my 3 club cards pay off great–I have one in my name, DH and my mom–takes 3 different trips but I only do this when the items is super great deal (free or below my RBP). Combining that I can also use the jars for canning, that was my Whoo-Hoot! moment. I will be on the hunt for another Classico deal like that again–arrrgh! We don’t think we have a Wally World close by but gonna do a search just to see. I thought the prices in Walmart were kinda high here so I didn’t buy. 4 pressure cookers? Oh my, I sooo have PC envy right now. We don’t really do alot of jellies but I know it’s baby steps and I gotta start there to begin my canning journey, but it just seems like a waste of time/product since we don’t use jelly all that much and my RBP for jelly at store is extremely low, but if I gotta, I gotta. So the All American Canner is what you recommend? Is there a preferred size if one’s budget allows? And other than volume, is there advantage to getting various sizes or just largest you can afford?
Thanks for all your wonderful advice and help
Mrs. P,
I don’t have time right now to read if you got an answer about the AA canner. My stove hood is too low to use the big canner…so be sure about that if you have a hood to your stove. I would sure like to bigger one to get more canned at a time, but no go for it in my kitchen.
Mrs. P.,
Go to walmart.com and select a particular Walmart location. Then see if the store has it in stock. My local Publix has jars and lids in stock regularly. Walmart does tend to be hit and miss. For the cost of gas, I would consider ordering the utensil set from amazon, unless you have other business in town.
A 12-pack of lids is like $2. Everyone gets them for me for Christmas. So I have boxes of the stuff.
Gayle,
We are like Walmart central…we have several so I’m always passing one it seems wherever I’m traveling and usually they are very cheap but I thought the jar prices were high–I mean glass jars at almost a dollar a piece…that just seemed high to me and now it’s fired my spark for a challeng…lol. I did go yesterday and get the utensil set just because I was passing anyway and was under $9. And I found a happy surprise in my cooking drawer–I have been using a red canning funnel and didn’t even realize it. It was on closeout for like 20cents and I needed a funnel at the time and I thought, wow this thing has a huge neck on it–would be perfect for pouring the Splenda (I use the store brand but I still all it that) in my brewed tea as it’s so fine it hangs up in the neck of my “normal” funnel. Funny how I was so completely clueless about canning and equipment…I love that funnel and have used for lots of things so when I bought my starter kit at Walmart, I got a good chuckle at my own expense…duh me! So now I have 2 canning funnels. Oh, and the Christmas gift idea–that’s is awesome….I never know what to say when relatives ask b/c you never know what’s in someone else’s budget range and the lower cost items are usually taken care of–this would be ideal as I would surely acquire quite a few as everyone can afford $2. Yay
Here at thrift stores the canning jars are $.50 each and to be honest you want to start out with new rings and lids then just watch your rings for rust dings and stuff the ring are reuasable .
That was a very good buy on the jars wish i could find them like that..lol
Candy,
Thanks for confirming prices were good deal–learning by seat of my pants here. I’m a serious coupon clipper (not like the extreme show–Hate that show–not the people, but the show–that show has killed couponing for us reg folk). Now you have to buy 3,4, and sometimes 5 items to get that same 50 cent or $1 off anymore and the exp dates on coupons are shorter now too–I know it’s cuz of that darn show. I do “cherry pick” every week. Its an all day ordeal but since I really vamped it up, I’ve noticed a huge savings on my grocery bill–zaps my time for 1 day to 1 1/2 days but I think it’s worth it and I like the challeng. A while back I began noticing food prices soaring (think that’s what opened my eyes and woke me up to SHTF) so I started a pricing category for my coupon binder and began noting prices of regular items I purchased. That began my RBP (Rock Bottom Price) Front Sheet for my binder. I check these prices at every store I frequent now–that allows me to know when one of my regular items is at it’s absolutely lowest price and that’s when I try to stock up–if it’s not at my RBP, I don’t buy it, unless I really have to..if it’s a crucial item and I’m out but I try not to let that happen. I have 5 stores (1 Rite Aid/CVS type pharm/drug) and 4 grocery stores that all have “bonus cards”–1 has a great deal on gas savings for every dollar you spend so sometimes it takes alot of math for me to calculate which is the better deal and at each of my grocery stores I applied for (3) separate bonus cards in my name, DH name and DM name so that I can maximize bonus buy savings (they limit those cuz they’re super good deals) and then I cross check all 4 stores to see who has what on sale and I always go for the loss leader items (so low the store looses money and the store does this to draw you into the store and then they count on you usually buying all the other no-sale items). I then combine my best coupons and store coupons on those loss leader items–I ususally get those free or almost free. I use a notebook binder with numerous sections with baseball card sleeves to hold the category related coupons so I have coupons at a glance just in case I find something unexpectedly on sale at RBP (rock bottom price) and those are usually free or every once in awhile if I get really lucky, those items are a negative on my bill–can’t get money back but it comes off my total bill. That’s really cool when that happens. I do all my lists at home with my coupons in an evelope attached to each store flyer so that I’m not fumbling with coupons and comparing prices at the store, but occassionally the store will have no-advertised close out or discontinued items and that’s why I ALWAYS bring my coupon binder in each store that way I never miss a RBP opportunity to maximize use of my coupns. Unfortunately those darn exp dates on the coupons are at least 30-45 days shorter now compared to last year so I also have to factor that into NRBP (near RBP) as well as I have a smaller section devoted to coupons ready to expire. Wow, that was a super long post–geesh I’m so sorry….can you tell I’m passionate about coupons? Don’t even get me started on TP comparison shopping with the SFPW (sq ft per wipe) calculations, My SIL still teases me about it and it’s been 25+ yrs since I first shopped with her to set up her first apartment “staples”. I just realized that maybe I had a teeny bit of prepping DNA and hadn’t noticed it…does coupon attack training count? LoL
Mrs. P.,
It sounds like you and I have a similar coupon strategy. Here’s the link to a little article I write a few months back.
http://www.thesurvivalistblog.net/tactical-strategic-shopping/
Like you, it was the increase in food prices that really opened my eyes.
Gayle! I knew I had a connection with you! I read your blog—Oh my gosh, our shopping logic is nearly identical. I do however, go to 5 different stores instead of just the one main store that has the best prices on the 30 various items (my mom shops on the 30 item theory–kinda…she’s extremely store loyal I think mostly b/c even after I’ve told her about a competing store having something basically free, she won’t bother, she says it’s not worth it (gas) and she likes dealing with the same store). To each their own. I guess it was my love of numbers, but when I discovered this way of shopping after I attended a seminar years ago called PrimeAmerica something another–can’t recall the name, but my Gmom asked me to take her as she was always interested in saving in every aspect of her life–being young I thought it was ridiculous at the time–so young and stupid was I–but, a couple gems I left with was how to save big at the grocery store–and saving interest on mortgage etc…I did use that info on a big scale to save huge on some properties we later bought, but sadly I didn’t take any of the other great ideas into action through my own stupidity–one of many “duh” moments I’ve been having in my last couple years–but the grocery savings stuck with me and I was hooked, at least for the first 5 years and then the next few years, our various businesses took off and it seemed like money flowed from the sky–careless and wreckless stewards of our bountiful blessings and foolishly thinking the ride would last forever, we spent like crazy and basically got wiped out in 2008-2009 when our own SHTF began. I quickly went back to grocery shopping as we were eating out 7DW every meal at the time and that was by far, our highest monthly expense, topping even our mortgage payment. Reality hit and it hit HARD. Combined with a 1-2 punch of DH spinal cord surgery and my world had been set upside down. Saving on my groceries and cutting nearly every single non-crucial expense was vital and so I guess I obsess more than the average bear on the cherry pick items and couponing. Is cherry picking a local term? That’s what they call it here…any who, I know it was b/c of my obsessive RBP that I noticed the prices of food going up alot (combined with watching food documentaries on Netflix) and that started my awakening to a bigger SHTF scenario that wasn’t just within my own little world, but on a greater scale that would make my situation pale in comparison. That first year after everything went to crap was tough and it’s gotten better but it’s been a long hard struggle and I’ve held my coupon binder tightly ever since and NEVER leave home without it and try not to beat myself up too much for the sinful squander we plowed and definitely paying the price now but the hardest lessons are learned and learned well. Gmom always said, “If you don’t listen, ya gotta feel”. At the time, I just related that to getting my butt whooped when/if I misbehaved….now I know the real meaning of those words. At least I didn’t wake up when I was 99 I suppose I am grateful for that. Wow, that just poured out–sorry about that negative draw for the day. Geesh! Back to positive side of the bridge…yay for Friday! Hope everyone has a great weekend and most importantly, stay safe.
Mrs. P.,
I cherry pick the sales too, especially at Publix. When they have BOGO sales, I have no problem buying a cart full of stuff, if it is a good price and it’s something I need.
Don’t worry about lapsing into negativity once in a while. Sometimes we need to rant. Let it out and let it go. The main thing is that you are awake now and you are prepping now.
Stock up now because this summer and up through the election, things could get messy.
Candy,
thanks for the info. I haven’t really found a great thrift store…yet. I did manage to get a few teeny jars at a good price but it’s kinda far away but I will still search for used. I began freecyle this week too–tons of stuff people give away. I got a whole bag of spearmint roots–the lady said super easy to grow but grow in a pot cuz they take over everything–hence why she was giving away so many sets of roots but wow the things people are giving away and I’m hoping I get lucky on the jars and I even put a request for food grade buckets too–what the heck, I just might get lucky. I saw a free ad for 6 hockey stix and I paused and laughed a moment and thought, wow that’s alot of stix…thing bam! I thought, hmmmm..wonder if those would be good for security–I could have one at various points throughout the house not have to worry about my youngest DS like with a more lethal/dangerous protection item…but within 5 mins of posting, someone else already snatched them up–hmmm…another prepper in my immediate area thought same thing or just another mom with alot of kids that play hockey? Hmmmm.
I have found the white hard plastic rings on sale at the end of the canning season (yeah, I know, with prepping there is no end to the canning season!) They last forever, or so it seems. And they don’t rust!
The tomato plant I planted a few weeks ago is blooming. It looks like I am going to have tomatoes before too long. Yeah!
For people who shop at Publix, you can get some free or close to free stuff w coupons this week….
Kraft Fresh Takes regular price 2.99
Sale Price 2.00
Use 2 Manufact Coupon 1.00 off
Use 1 Publix coupon (yellow flyer 2.00 off 2
Buy 4 and they are free
Philadelphia Cooking Creams regular price 2.99
Sale price 2.00
Use Manufact. Coupon 1.50/2
Use Publix Coupon (yellow flyer) 2.00/2
Makes them .25 each
I got 4 boxes of cereal, 6 fresh takes, 4 cooking creams, 2 philadelphia chocolate cream cheese fondue things (same deal as the cooking creams) all for $5.18. Not exactly prepping foods but I figure I may as well enjoy the stuff while we can still get it and enjoy.
Plus, I have to save all the money I can on food since Im going to be spending serious money on fuel for the boats. Am already considering only running 2 instead of all of them. Since Im short divers for this season anyways I wont have to let anyone go at least. Anyways…
Happy Prepping,
DG
DG,
Thanks for the heads up. I love cream cheese on home baked bread. Yum.
DG,
I don’t have publix here…wish I did…you are sooo lucky. Great job on your savings…you had me at $1.50/2 AND a store coupon. LOL While on vaca couple years ago, stopped in at a Publix to grab supplies and because I ALWAYS carry my coupn binder, couldn’t help myself with all the great deals, poor DH got worried and came looking for me in the store cuz I was taking so long and only went in for couple items. LoL. As space is at a premium in a RV, it took every ounce of discipline not to sneak out for a midnight raid on the Publix…actually, if I’m honest, the discipline came from not being able to stealthfully drive the RV back to Publix during the night whilst everyone slept–oooh how I wished we had brought the tow-behind…that I could have managed LOL
Just a note:
As I read this blog it has become clear to me that the most valuable commodity I can obtain for my prepping is not a list of things that I might not be able to afford at this time. It is KNOWLEDGE! I have read things that I never thought of before and surely would not have. The knowledge about so broad a spectrum of topics is awsome! The tid-bits of info I store away in my “brain-vault” are going to come in very handy some day. As I cruise garage sales, flea markets, and estate sales, I am looking at everything with a new eye toward future uses. My wife and I have a new topic to discuss that is bringing us closer, and there is a tremenous amount of satisfaction that comes from a new purpose. Can’t wait for the new “spring season” to get out and hunt usable items. Thanks again for everyones contribution!
PSSUPT,
Yes, the most important thing about prepping is the know-how. At some point we will run out of #10 cans, water filters and bullets. But the know how in terms of basic survival skills will last as long as we do. And skills are something that no one can take from you. And they skills can be bartered for things you need.
PSSUPT, I agree totally with you. Sometimes my brain hurts, I have read and learned so much. Sometimes I need to go research something on the internet more thoroughly to learn even more. I sure wish there was a place to go to learn hands-on. I learn best by doing.
Gayle, couldnt reply but just wanted to let you know.Del-ton complete rifles have a lifetime warranty. I know some people dont like them and i havent had any personal experience with them but for a more affordable rifle you may want to look into them.
Wow, I finally caught up on this weeks posts…..I have been reading since around 5 PM….lol…..and it’s now 9:30!
Until next time ;)
Running late for this week, but: I’ve spent the past three weeks trying to get a rifle from one state to another. It’s here, but now waiting on the gun registration to transfer to my name. I should have my hands on it tomorrow (Friday).
Things are getting tighter here in Oz, and now they’re writing down licence numbers and addresses for every purchase, including ammo and powder.
I got a .223 bolt action with a 3-9×50 IR scope.
I’ll pick up 200 rounds with it tomorrow.
I’ve started assembling my reloading gear as well, powder, 250 projectiles, primers and a LEE Classic loader.
BTW, the powder is made here in Oz, up near Sydney, but it’s cheaper over there. Go figure.
Next is a cleaning kit, and I’m looking at an OTIS Tactical kit.
Too dear here, so if any of the Wolf Pack are inclined to post an Amazon purchase to Oz, contact me and we’ll talk PayPal figures.
(crock1951@yahoo.com.au)
I’m looking foward to getting back into some serious shooting and reloading.
Mike
in Oz
I enjoy shooting and reloading myself, in that order. What make is your .223? I have a Mini-14 in .223 cal. myself, and really enjoy it. I hope you like yours as well. Why are things getting tighter there in Oz as far as getting firearms? Do you have some new laws or regulations?
crrrock…good to hear from you again…hear you and wellrounded have lots of flooding there now..about the size of France covered in floodwater…
yes, I have noticed the changes too…till next time.
CHLOE i put the paint can on here as a stove i have 5 of them you go to lows get a emty paint can put a roll of toilet paper in it and put alcol in it light it works greati have used this one scince dec 10 still used the same one with the same paper
bernie in texas, chloe…..
I don’t remember where, but I read a lengthy article on how to make the Alcohol/Paint Can Stove. Sounded interesting but did mention that in an encolsed space, the burning alcohol gives one a terrible headache. Did you notice any problems, like that, with your stoves?
hawkeye..just google ‘plumber’s stove’ will come up immediately. all instructions/pictures etc..not difficult at all.
I always use it outdoors.
And easy to use when don’t want to gather twigs – or if it has been raining or too much dew on ground and everything is wet, so one always got a back-up stove to cook on…light, compact and fast boiling. hope this helped…
Official List Of Words Feds Monitor On Social Networking Sites
http://www.activistpost.com/2012/02/official-list-of-words-feds-monitor-on.html
Watch the video. What government group monitored a Michigan event? What are they referring to?
Don’t forget to change your google history preferences.
http://www.valuewalk.com/2012/02/how-to-stop-google-from-collecting-your-web-history/
Hello Everyone!
It has taken me almost two days to read all of the posts.
Wow! a lot of new people are posting, that’s great.
This past week I traveled to Chattanooga, TN. for a week to see my parents and other relatives. Something that caught my eye was an article in the paper about how the west side of the city in Chatt Town was running out of money in their budget for lower income housing. What happens when these people haven’t any money for housing? What happens when cities don’t have any budgets anymore for these things?
Gayle, I thought of you when I was going north and coming back to Orlando, I honked the horn and waved at ya! Did you hear?
What I did to prep-
Cuz I am a gun nut, I bought more 22 lr ammo, 40 cal, 12ga. I won’t mention how much lest they take me away!
-Read and reread labels on canned beans, because my Crohn’s cannot handle certain spices and esp. MSG. Have done a lot of reading around the internet and printing for my binders.
-Read an article about starting with 100 cans of food and other items and then progressing to 1000, then 10,000.
-Am trying to learn to can, I have one of those darn glass ceramic stoves which i hate!
it is a slow process and I really appreciate when people talk about canning and their recipes on here.
And I really really hate palmetto bugs, i think they can tell when you are thinking about trying to kill them, esp when you have a broom in your hands.
Ooooh, I hadn’t thought of that…does the type of stove top make a difference in canning? I have one of those smooth top electric stoves too–mack my forehead, again! I liked the ease of clean up and the house had gas when we moved in and I had DH remove it and put in a smooth top–now I can’t use my camping cookware and now it’s gonna effect my canning too? Say it ain’t so…..:-(
Mrs. Prepper,
You might double check on this but I don’t think you can use a pressure canner on a glass top stove because it’s too heavy.
That would be just my luck. Shoulda been happy with what came with the house and I could be using both my cast iron AND a pressure cooker. Long sigh….
You CAN’T use a pressure canner on a glass top stove, sorry.
You can call an ask about your stove from the maker, but when my pressure cooker is full it is too heavy for the stove and also too heavy for me.
Using either a waterbath canner or a pressure canner on a glass top stove will eventually cause some damage to the stove top. Take this from me who has a damaged glass top stove! My answer was to go to Costco and buy myself a Camp Chef 2 burner outdoor propane range. ( This is not the little camp stove that resembles a childs toy stove) Works good! The range wasn’t too expensive and candidly, running the heat outdoors is an advantage, as it seems that when you are canning, it is usually in a warm time of the year and that means your a/c is cranking hard and adding to your bill as well.
The temp is the exact reason we have a out door kitchen. Works wonderful in the summer, when you are canning away.
Worrisome
This is also what I use.
I am so mad right now. The big black snake is back in my garden. My dh took a look and said it was a cotton mouth. I wanted him to shoot it but he took a shovel and went to chop its head off. Needless to say the snake got away. I hope its not thinking my garden is a good place to have babies. So now there’s a double barrel shotgun sitting by the back door. He said the 410 would work. But I insisted he pull out the double barrel shotgun just in case he misses, he can take a second shot. I told him if that thing comes back and he doesn’t shoot it, I am going to shoot it myself. The only good snake is a dead snake. When he went to chop its head off and missed the snake came right at me. I screamed like a little girl.
Cottonmouths can be very aggressive. Whereas most snakes will beat a retreat when a human comes, the Water Moccasin (another name for Cottonmouth) will just as easily chase you. And you are right to think about babies…this snake gives birth to live young…and will protect them….and it may be the right weather/time of year where you are for that to happen.
Here’s a good article to read about it.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agkistrodon_piscivorus#Reproduction
MTW,
You are indeed right about the agressivness of the cottonmouth. I lived for awhile below a hill that was full of em. One time my wife called scared to death because a CM was guarding the door into our house. It had a glass screen door and was trying to bite her through it. I came and approched the door with a broom (Iknow..) I whacked it a couple of times and the darn thing not only struck back but chased me down the walk. I’ve never had any other kind of snake exhibit that kind of behavior.
PSSUPT…exactly.
If my dh misses with the shotgun (LOL, I don’t know that that’s possible), I am going to demand an assault rifle so I can kill snakes myself. This was the second day in a row I’ve seen that same snake right in that spot.
Gayle,
Last cottonmouth I saw was up at Lake Lanier. I shot it once in the head with a .22 pistol from about 8 feet away and killed it dead. Saw a big bulge in the body and thought it had swallowed a fish or something so I shot to that area and it opened right up and I’ve never seen so many baby snakes, each in it’s only little bag (that’s what it looked like) that litter would have produced at least 20 or more nasty snakes. If DH shots her and kills her, toss her some where else if she has the bulge so the babies can die too.
Cliff,
Thanks for the heads up on that one. We’ve had a lot of rain the past week and the creek behind my house is full. The strangest thing I have ever seen–we were cycling out in the country years back when we had a very wet spring–flood conditions. We turned down one road where the gullies were completely full of water. There were hundreds of snakes sunning themselves. That was the only dry land around. We turned our bicycles around and went home. That was the summer we almost hit a 10 food alligator with the truck.
Was he wearing a nametag Gayle?
Oh no Gayle, that’s awful. I agree, the only good snake is a dead one. Ewww! I know God gave every living thing a purpose, but those snakes….eeek! I can’t bare to look at one on TV, let alone face-to-face in person? No way. I would be sitting watch til that thing came back and he’d be a dead snake….and I just thought of another reason for me to learn to shoot. No snakes for me please…two legged or otherwise. Good luck Gayle…
Gayle:
If there is a snake problem then I’d recommend you look for a good, lightweight 38 Special short barreled revolver and load it with shot shells. This is what I carried in AZ when out wandering. Deadly at 15 feet!
Mrs. Prepper,
Perhaps God created the snake to teach us shot selection and target practice with moving targets.
I can’t blame you for screaming! I hate snakes! Why men resist using a gun in order to “play” with the snake using a shovel is beyond me. I think it is in their dna. I could relate many instances of such……..but this blog is entirely too long as it is!
In defense of snakes… They are wonderful things to have around the house IF you don’t have little kids in the same area. They eat the rodents that eat your preps! I’ve caught, collected and owned snakes for 40 years. Knowledge and experience with them will help. Cos
COS…agreed…snakes have their place. But a Cottonmouth/Water Moccasin is an aggressive, dangerous snake that I wouldn’t want around my home, kids & pets, or not, along with Rattlesnakes & Copperheads. But especially the Cottonmouth because it is so aggressive.
Didn’t say all were bad. I regularly catch Bull snakes and throw em under the house to thin out the mice on the farm. Every summer one gets cornered by the dogs and I’ll “rescue” it and put out in the pasture to continue its work.
Worrisome,
Thank you. It is beyond my understanding as well. If that snake had gotten any closer to my feet, I would have started crying. And if you are going to use a shovel, use a long handled shovel–not the short little D-handled girl shovel. Duh!
Thinking good thoughts for y’all, Gayle. Stay safe.
Gayle, you are braver then me. I would have been inside the house yelling at my DH thru the window. Then again, with the way he reacted to a lizard in the house one time, he may very well be sitting in the house next to me as we both wish the snake gone.
Gayle, if you don’t have one get an air rifle in .177 or .22 caliber with a nice scope. It will help his aim and its good training. I’ve killed a few snakes this way and if he can hit that, the rabbits, squirrels etc will be easy work.
Sorry to already add to this really long string going here (btw what is the ettiquette for posting comments? is it ok to post on the same string or is there another area to start a new question?)…I need some help with this one. OK I’ve known DH hates beans and rice (you know what he says the rice looks like right?)….for 32 years I’ve know this but whatever, I eat them…God hasn’t managed to make a food item that I don’t so maybe that will be to my advantage when SHTF? Any who, I have still be putting up beans and rice in hopes that well if it’s all there is, he WILL eat it right? I mean it’s not toxic waste for goodness sakes. Well, confirmed DH gags at both….this is NOT good. OK, so maybe in a real SHTF scenario maybe it would be different…but…do I really want to live thru SHTF with DH gagging at every meal? I don’t think so. He does PBJ nearly every other day for lunch–how he hasn’t gotten sick of or gagged after that nearly everyday (his choice, please don’t think I’m an awful wifey). So I know PB is great for protein but that’s just not gonna cut it. Anybody have any recipe ideas for other items that would make for complete protein combo? Not including meat items of course–I don’t count on meat being a regular item on the table after SHTF–will be very occassional event, not like our 6DW currently so I don’t have alot of experience with non-meat related recipes (DH is a meat/potato guy and after 32 yrs he finally does most veggies, but not R&B). I know there are dehydrated this and that but eventually that runs out. Apologizing in advance as I’m trying to spread out my numerous questions so as not to immediately wear out my wonderful welcome so far. My next question involves food storage for dogs what can dogs eat after the stored items are gone–wow that stuff takes up a ton of room but I can’t bare the thought of SHTF without dogs in our unit. Appreciate any ideas
Mrs. P, if you have a mortar & pestle, you can grind the rice and cook it with the beans as a thickener.
Of course, that’s assuming his aversion is psycological, not physiological. . . .
Darnit, I guess I neglected to bookmark that TVP hot-dog recipe. (It’s slightly more on-diet for me than kosher wieners, though I’d rather them than commercial veggie-dogs.)
I imagine that most of the techniques in “How to eat fried worms” bear some research, though I doubt that he’d go insectivore if he can’t handle rice. (I’m thinking that the only way I could handle bugs or mammal eyeballs is if they were pureed and mixed into something.)
About the most “normal” thing I can think of is to grind the rice and beans into flour. Red Mill is one of the companies that could sell you about a pound of each. Cream of Rice is an infant cereal that’s usually with the oatmeal and grits.
http://ellacinderseats.blogspot.com/2010/01/fawaffle.html
http://www.cupcakeproject.com/2008/08/baked-bean-and-tomato-cupcakes.html
Try vegan and gluten-free boards for ideas. I’m not sure of the nutrition profiles of any other vegetables, some of them might be miracle foods.
Kelekona,
You can make veggie dogs at home. It’s Lent, so I am searching for meat alternatives.
http://en.petitchef.com/recipes/vegan-hot-dog-v-1-0-fid-762697
Mrs. Prepper,
Have you tried making Cajun red beans and rice? I’ve never met anyone who didn’t like red beans and rice. I have a dog and I store 100 lbs. of dog food. What that runs out I plan on feeding him rice supplemented with veggies from the garden. He loves rice. He thinks rice water (the left over bits of rice in the pan with water added) poured over his dog food is a treat. (He also thinks ice cubes are another kind of dog cookie. My dog begs for watermelon and marmite–Chloe, are you reading this?)
Gayle…yes…was hunched over, and when I read your last words…sat up straight right away – and got busy typing, while laughing still…
Your dog has great taste…I love watermelon and marmite…but don’t partake of both at the same time…
my DD’s 2 dogs love all the little bits of leftover food I freeze for them until they come over again…
and they love toast and marmite/vegemite too..when I make toast in the morning – the 3 of us have 2 pieces each. yum.
Mrs. P.,
I think you are fine in terms of etiquette. You don’t strike me as the type of person prone to the use of excessive profanity or taking pot shots at people instead of what they have to say. So I think you are okay.
But I should probably mention that etiquette is not my strong suit. LOL
Mrs. Prepper, Your dog would love the rice that your DH won’t eat. My little doggie loves rice, sometimes I swear she gets an upset tummy every so often just to be able to eat rice.
Mrs Prepper, from personal experience, dont count on your DH to willingly choke down rice and beans if he cant stand them now. I was forced to eat a whole tomato as a child and still can not manage to swallow even the smallest piece burried in a ton of food. Now I can eat them cooked in stuff, but not raw. So that brings me to this question, is it just strait rice and beans that he will not eat, or have you tried different things like dirty rice, fried rice, brown rice, ect. You said it is the way the rice looks that turns him off, so maybe if the look and texture were to change he might manage it. Is it one type of beans he doesnt like or all of them? Maybe if they were mixed with other foods, such as in chili or on tacos (I mix beans right in with my taco meat and my kids dont even notice they are eating them)?
Mrs. P.,
There is a book I think it is called How to Live on Wheat and it gives hundreds of recipes for dinners using wheat–like meatballs made from wheat. So if rice and beans are out for your dh, add other things that he does like to eat. I wrote an article a while back on meal planning and food storage and will include the link below. You can do food storage and work around an aversion to rice and beans. If your dh is a meat and potatoes man, you can design your food storage around that. And it doesn’t have to be horribly expensive. You can get a can of textured veggie protein TVP for something like $11 at EE.
Here’s the link.
http://www.thesurvivalistblog.net/meal-planning-and-food-storage/
Some meat alternative recipes using beans and rice:
* http://allrecipes.com/recipe/black-bean-rice-burgers/
* http://allrecipes.com/recipe/bean-n-rice-burritos/
* http://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/1887636/vegetarian-hot-dog
We had another home invasion robbery last night. This time 15 college students were having a Bible study group when four armed men broke in and store their wallets, lap tops and other stuff. The police actually caught the people (three men and a woman) when someone from the apartment complex they live in called police and reported a group of people still wearing bandanas covering their faces were carrying guns and lap tops.
I think we are only going to see more and more home invasions. My dh and I really need to take the tactical home defense class. The thing that stood out to me when I read the paper is that the entire home invasion lasted 90 seconds. No one was hurt. No shots were fired. The paper also said the thugs were going around the apartment complex looking for easy targets.
Our area is undergoing this as well. Here it is looking for money, drugs and guns. Scary! I am going to have the front door’s security improved.
Worrisome,
Do you have a dog? Few criminals will break into a house where there is a dog, even a little yap-yap dog. Criminals are cowards. They look for easy targets.
Yes maam I have a dog. And she is pretty aware most of the time. And has bitten people 3 times so far for pushing their limits with her. She is very pretty and so they reach out to comfort her when she is barking at them and she nails them. She gives mucho warning, but some people think they can “talk” to her. But she is only 50# so beyond a watch dog, noisemaker and touchy, she isn’t going to do serious damage. So the security upgrade to the door is important. We have some crazy people living behind us in the national forest I worry about. It is winter, they have been there for a long while and were growing pot all last summer. After a meeting with the Sheriff recently however, they are soon to be rousted. You can hear them shooting guns at all times of the year and times of the day and night, neighbors dog came home shot up a month or so ago. We are putting in some electric fencing and security cameras and such along the back side of our homes. And beginning to pull together as neighbors, which is nice.
Good heavens! These criminals sound like candidates for the TV show about stupid criminals. Still wearing their bandanas? Duh.
Mt.Woman,
One of my students this morning said the one of the robbers is his neighbor. They walked into the apartment complex with bandanas and guns showing carrying a bunch of loot. The student said, why work a job for $7 or $8 an hour when you can sling rock and tree and make $5,000 a month. (To sling rock is to sell crack; “tree” is the current term for pot.)
That boldness says something about what they think about LE. This does not bode well at all.
Gayle,
Our state is one in which we have a “make my day law” in effect. If they come inside the house it is a free and clear invasion and you can (and should) shoot to kill. This has even been expanded to your automobile. If someone tries to carjack your auto you can give them a magnum for their trouble. Good to live in the land of the free!
P.S if they’re in the yard, just make sure you drag inside before calling the authorities. ;)
PSSUPT,
“Make My Day Law”–that’s a better name than the Castle Law. When Florida adopted the Castle Law (which applies to your car as well), folks started calling it the Gun-shine State instead of the Sunshine State. I think if every household had a big dog and a shotgun, there would be fewer home invasions.
Gayle….
“fewer home invasions”….maybe; fewer survivors for sure!
PS…what state? Hope it’s mine: Texas.
PSSUPT:
I’ve fired a .357 in a pick-up cab ONCE….. Thought my ears were bleeding. Cos
Gayle…sounds like your instinct to get your Glock etc when you did was right on target…stay safe…cheers.
Greetings to the Wolf Pack folks! As usual I’m a day late and a dollar short. At least I have finally found some time to catch up on my reading this week. Speaking of reading, the entries to the writing contest are great and thank you to the people that have taken the time to send them in. It’s also nice to see the subscriber numbers increasing as they do. To me it means that more and more people are waking up and becoming aware of the fragile world we live in today.
My prepping this week has been a no-show. Being retired and getting my annuity check at the beginning of every month requires discipline and a little planning. I’m sure I’m not the only one in this situation so I’m preaching to the choir.
One thing my wife and I have noticed recently and I believe it’s been mentioned in posts here is merchandise not being stocked on the store shelves. There were a couple of things we tried to buy this week that we could not find. When we asked about it, the reply was/is that it’s out of stock at the warehouse! I’m talking about common food stuff that is regularly consumed by everyone. Large food store chains work 24/7 and so does the reordering process. It’s perpetual and there are employees that it is their job to make sure this sort of thing doesn’t happen. So what is the problem here? Is it someone goofing off on the job? Is it a manufacturing glitch or just a snag in transportation? Might it be something more serious than that, like demand being greater than manufacturing can keep up or even having the resources to make the product? It could be all of the above. To me it shows how fragile things can be today. One might even argue that it reinforces our prepping philosophy.
With the nice weather we’ve had in southwest Missouri this past week I’ve tried to get my garden in order for the upcoming season. Yesterday I planted an assortment of onion and garlic bulbs and sets. Earlier in the week I removed a tree stump from the spot where I want to build a chicken coop. I have come to realize that tree stumps are like icebergs. There is much more below the ground than there is above. I know there are machines that can do this stuff but lack of access to this spot would not allow the use of one.
I thank you Wolf Pack for my weekly therapy session. I sincerely appreciate our friendship and your patience with me. I continuously pray for our mutual wisdom and faith in our Lord, Jesus Christ.
M.D.,
Did you make it though all those storms okay? I read that some parts of Tennessee got hit hard.
Gayle,
I’m still in good shape – where I am we have had lots of rain, some wind and storms but nothing like some other areas…
M.D.,
Good to hear you and yours are okay. Isn’t it a bit early in the year to be seeing tornadoes?
Gayle,
Yes it is – according to the news there is a major system that is going to hit where I am in about ten min.
Good luck MD!!!! Hang on!! We need you!!!
M.D.,
Log on when the coast is clear and let us know you are okay.
Gayle,
It passed by about a mile from where I am thank God for that as far as I know no one in my county has been hurt.
glad to hear it m.d….you might want to work on a continuity of blogging plan like uncle sugar does:) maybe give a trusted friend access in case something happens. a number of blogs i used to frequent quit posting never to return, with no explanation. the homestead report, a view from the porch ,to name a couple. take care.
M.D.,
That’s really close. You may want to sleep with one eye open tonight. The storms are not over.
My little brother lives north of Atlanta. We called him a bit ago and he had a report of a tornado seven miles from his house. They are under a tornado watch until 2 a.m. These storms stretch from east Texas to N.J. I fear the morning light will reveal massive damage, both in human life and in destruction of property.
all, i went by my local gun shop. the owner said that bushmaster(maker of fine ar15′s) sent him a notice not to order any more until further notice, as they are too far behind in filling orders. dsarms, my primary supplier told me that they are out of ar parts and have no idea when they will have any, as did psa my alternate. my dealer said anything ruger is out, as are anything 870, glock, pretty much anything prepper. he said it will be worse after this wednesday when doomsday bunkers airs. glad i got most of what i need…prayers to all in tornado alley.
I have been having a hard time finding Winchester 12-guage 2 3/4 shells in either 00 or 06. And I have been making the rounds at four different Walmart stores for the past six weeks. At one of the stores the guy said he can’t keep the ammo stocked. And what they did have on the shelf they had because he special ordered it. I might find a box if I am lucky.
This is a test. This is only a test.
Hey…are all our East Coast Wolfpack members ok? I’m watching the news this morning, and wow….really bad over there. Tornado warnings still in effect.
Watching the videos of the damage, and listening to the stories of survival…lots of things to think about for prepping. The most outstanding one for me was the elder couple who had an underground bunker, made it to it, and survived. ..while everything around them was completely destroyed. Safe rooms in a school were torn apart, but everyone survived…lying on the floor. One tornado path was 10 miles long. That’s powerful.
The storms seem to be much stronger lately. And this is WAY early for all this.Time to tighten up and hunker-down.
Look in the left sidebar under book and product reviews…
Gayle,
If you get a Mini-14 I suggest you buy only Ruger factory magazines.
Thanks M.D.