In April 2010 I submitted “Suburban Survival” [1]. a set of ten steps I was going implement in order to get ready for TEOTWAWKI [2]. Boy… did I underestimate the power and importance of survialblog.com! First and foremost I thank all of you who responded and gave a cold slap of reality. I thought I was going to be in good shape, but now my view and attitude are vastly different. How did it change? It really started when I bought and read Jim’s survival book. It offers solid fundamentals and interesting insight that I am adapting to my particular situation. My situation? Bleak! I consider myself an up beat happy guy; I am a realist, not pessimistic. If the Schumer [3] hits the fan (love that phrase), I am stuck here, on an island with 3 million other people.
My revisited suburban 10 focuses on what my family and I need to survive on in the most simple and minimal terms. No more fantasies about ramming through traffic to get to my underground bunker or of building a stockade around the block with my clueless neighbors and leading them though the battles. One of about ten close friends I approached about ready preparedness is on board with me… others think I am over reaching and most think I’m nuts. They rely on flash lights and 16 oz. water bottles for an emergency, so I don’t respect them enough to let it bother me.
My view on firearms was wrong plain and simple. You need to be equal with or have an advantage over your foe. I decided to obtain a pistol permit. It is not that easy… Here in Suffolk County, New York it takes six months of background checks, a notarized application, three non-family members to verify that you are sane, a call to your work place, and or any of the those three non-family members and or a neighbor (work place for me) and interview at police headquarters, fingerprinting and photo identification. The cost ($105) is relatively low compared to neighboring Nassau County. New York City is s for me. There are 80,000 pistol permits in Suffolk County and I now have one of them.
Most of my training is at the police range. I thought bowling was enjoyable, but the shooting range is far more exciting. Most of my training by a friend with years of experience, I read the manuals slowly, and asking questions and share thoughts at the range. I feel confident and capable with my firearm, a 9mm Springfield Armory XD. Most everyone at the range I meet loves to talk about their guns. I listen and learn as to what appeals to them in a firearm. I also got a Henry Survival .22 that my wife uses. It weighs just two pounds the entire rifle breaks down into the stock. Both items and gear fit in my back pack (no gun cases). I Clean and care for my own weapons because they are expensive finely crafted machines. The economy of 9mm and .22 caliber rounds is what suites my budget and at least my wife has something in her hands that she now uses quite well.
I’ve found lots of great ideas on SurvivalBlog.com and the beauty is that it is a community of like minded individuals who continually improve. I came to the cruel reality that there is really nowhere to run to… If my home is reduced to nothing but a lean two with a fire pit so be it. It will be home and worth defending. Simple and Minimal for what ever the duration until things get normalized (what ever normalized will be). If we are chased out we will head east away from New York City with our go bags and camping gear and fight to survive as nomads.
Before I get to my new list, two thoughts:
I believe we, as frequent readers of SurvivalBlog.com need to form a simple means of communicating that we are willing to work with and help each other if the Schumer goes down. If we are in turmoil and I am approached by a fellow human: I would like to be able to use a name that demonstrates that we are like minded and on the level. Let’s say I came up to you and said: Do you know a man by the name of Jim Rawles. If yes, then we are like minded and more apt to do fair trading. If not, then I am cautious or at an advantage because this person is most likely ill-prepared. I just started asking if people know of him and one did and was very like-minded. The list is growing fast I am sure.
My second thought is, I love the America I knew, I hope and pray for the America I know. Shame on the ones who just don’t want to take a little extra time, energy and money to just do some kind of preparation! I know many of you reading this are preparing, but for the rest of the population they have the potential to be a burden to everyone. I hope to have enough supplies for charity, but don’t count on me if you bought a flat screen television instead of a $250 water purifier.
Present Status of the Suburban 10
1. Wood Stove- two cords of wood stacked and covered. Gather and hand splitting what I find on the curb.
2. Big Berkey Water Purifier and an above ground swimming pool with 5,100 gal. of treatable water.
3. Several Buckets of red wheat berries and a grinder. (Hope to buy a bucket a month)
4. Two firearms and 600 rounds of ammo (would like to have 1,000 rounds and a shot gun).
5. Entering 5 KM races, keeping my kids active and aware, eating right and working out with my 3’ staff.
6. First aid kit with N95 masks. (Plan to get medical training and more supplies).
7. Go Bag for each member of the family. (Not yet complete)
8. Stocking up on more camping and fishing supplies. Had some good garage sale finds lately. Such as Candles, Oil Lamps, 20 gallon propane tanks, and knives just to name a few.
9. Thanks, Praise and Prayer- These are the good old days so smell the roses now. I thank the Lord each day that I can live in comfort. I hope for the best, but routinely and steadily prepare for the worst. Purchase a little at a time, but buy!
10. Listen and Learn from those who know. Make a list of those who have a skill set that can be of use to you if it is TEOTWAWKI and have the silver coins to make it worth their while to help you.
Conclusion
I am about half way (50%) to the point of where I would feel confident and comfortable in my preparedness. What is your percentage of progress? Thanks again to all of you at SurvialBlog.com for all the great insight and information you provide. We can make it through the tough times ahead and the world will be a better place!