To be prepared for a crisis, every Prepper must establish goals and make long-term and short-term plans. Steadily, we work on meeting our prepping goals. In this column, the SurvivalBlog editors review their week’s prep activities. They also often share their planned prep activities for the coming week. These range from healthcare and gear purchases to gardening, property improvements, and food storage. This is something akin to our Retreat Owner Profiles, but written incrementally and in detail, throughout the year. We always welcome you to share your own successes and wisdom in the Comments. Let’s keep busy and be ready! This week’s emphasis is on the arrival of Spring
JWR
Dear SurvivalBlog Readers,
Spring has arrived! This past week saw milder temperatures here at the Rawles Ranch. It is good to see the snow receding! But there is a bit of snow in the forecast for this weekend. Thankfully, it is not expected to stick.
For the last few days we’ve been in manure hauling mode. This has been our first chance this year to be able to get the manure out of the barnyard and have a place to haul it. This is also the first chance we’ve had to get our bicycles out and have enough gravel on which to ride them.
To hedge against a possible near-term decline in the cryptocurrency market I have substantially pared down our Bitcoin holdings over the past couple of weeks. With direct Bitcoin transfers, I bought a few more 80% AR-15 and AR-10 billet receiver blanks from Defense Distributed. I also bought some full capacity magazines and some 1-ounce silver rounds from two of my favorite mailorder firms.
Avalanche Lily Reports:
Our garden preps are continuing well. Many of our sprouts will soon be ready to be moved to the greenhouse or transplanting.
Please continue to post comments about your own preps.
Thanks, – Jim Rawles and Avalanche Lily, Rawles
HJL
This week the Latimer Homestead will make the final push to complete the kitchen update, as we have company coming. The spring winds have also brought in a great deal that needs to be cleared in our yard. We probably won’t get any gardening done this week since we are making the push for company, but we hope that the following week will allow for more garden planting.
The spring winds also played havoc with our solar panels. A new set of panels were installed on Sunday and heavy winds with gusts of up to 70 mph ripped them right off of the mounts and scattered them around on Monday. It was with a great sigh of relief when we discovered than none of them were shattered and only some of the wiring was damaged. Most of Tuesday was spent re-securing them so there won’t be a repeat.
o o o
As always, please share your own successes and hard-earned wisdom in the Comments.
Mr Latimer, there is a relatively new solar company (no connection to me, I have been researching it for my own use) called Smartflower that makes a ground mount tracking solar array that monitors wind and folds itself down when winds are too high and then reopens when they subside. I have not seen these in person yet but the technology is certainly interesting. Link is http://www.smartflower.com.
Break is here! There are so many things I want to do that cannot be done until the snow melts and that is not going to happen this week!
Last week my son managed to get the farm truck started and running again, and we had the Jeep fixed (alternator). Now for my son to change the oil in the car and buy new tires to change out the studded ones. Still on our goal to return to zero. When I get discouraged, I remember how it would be were we not wise financially and prepared all along.
Planning our garden beds up out of sight of the road. I think fondly of your greenhouse and am scheming to make one. We have stacks of large windows with single pane glass left from my parents that once enclosed the family home’s long porch.
Looks like we are ready for stage 2 of our plan and are looking to move up the logging road to be out of sight of the nosey neighbors. We have some extraordinary neighbors and some who appear to use binoculars to spy on us. Moving up into the woods will solve one issue but brings up a couple others. Getting electric to the cabin, plowing that far if really needed, and having to hike in and out daily for work and school. At least we will be stronger and in shape. It looks a bit overwhelming on our budget; nothing like a good challenge!
I’ll be doing a bit of wood this week as we still have piles to cut up in the yard – as soon as I dig out under a couple feet of snow. If I can get the snowmobile working, I’m going to start hauling stone down for a stonewall along the driveway and new garden bed. I continue to insist that we make our spot look like it has been here for the generations that we have. I want to look like the landscape and not really be noticed.
We continue training the dogs. So happy to have their company and security when alone. I am honored to be a part of my son’s officer training. I already had a great respect for the Military, but it is over the top now. Even though is not always evident with the vocal minority, our cadets are being taught honor, character, truth, commitment and tenenacity. We might all do well to remember not to leave a man behind. Reminds me to plan well, and to keep on executing that plan daily so that those who know the secret code will be well taken care of.
(“But there is a bit of snow in the forecast for this weekend. Thankfully, it is not expected to stick”) Sorry its sticking and supposed to get deeper. I’m in your neck of the woods and it’s 4 IN an getting worse every minute Is there a STOP button ?. You are shaking my trust in your pronouncements. Going to need snowshoes next, brother says church will be ok tomorrow! with chains is my guess. Warm the greenhouse, read the weather jokes from Spokane’s humor for the snowy mountain folks. going back to bed is not a prepper approved response. everything was dry yesterday,the county was sweeping the roads of sand and gravel
this is going to impact our new bridge for the Indian Creek fishies .But there is a bit of snow in the forecast for this weekend.praying for a Chinook. you are not in line for a weatherman at this point.
got 3 new blue berry bushes planted, got big brush pile burned. shorted out tractor battery, had to order new neg cable. got riding mower cranked and ready for mowing season. got some pear wood chopped into small blocks for smoker. kids coming next week and we’ll load up the smoker 1 day
With respect to the Bitcoin article, there is a news article on mashable dated March 21 2018 that talks about pornography being embedded in the blockchain of the coin. I am not sure if it is real or not and I do not own bitcoin, but thought I should make aware just in case.
Snow flurries last night left a light cover by dawn. Living in the north requires planning that isn’t required in southern climes. Our new horse paddock will need more dirt hauled in this summer to provide better drainage in the winter/spring. Planning on high tensil electric fence on our new ranch. White tail deer usually go over fencing, elk go over or thru and moose usually plow right thru on their way to the pond! Electric usually works best and keeps upright longer. Bought more AR-10 pmags and Glock tritium night sites this week. Sales at most of the on-line supply houses have been excellent, not sure if demand is down or…? Hit a local gun show today, left empty handed but enjoyed the visit. Spent my youth on both coasts, but graduated high school and college in Kalifornia. I can remember the days of buying any firearm at a gun show and walking out the door. My first 1911 in the mid 70’s at a gun show in Ventura…, still in factory grease! The Redoubt has a “feel” of Kalifornia in the 1960s. I encourage anyone contemplating a move to pray and rent that Uhaul!
Until next time, pray for our Nation and your neighbor.
Yes the weather is great time to work outside here in the [Area Code] 406. I’ve got three new raised beds to fill and other to clean out. As for purchases then usual but with respect I recommend Selway Armory up here for great prices and selection. Online or store front are awesome. The founder was in the next company in Iraq and is a very standup guy.
Area code 207 waiting for snow to melt down enough so I can start work on wood lot. Waiting for crew to return to finish garage.Many trees to thin out of wood lot!
It’s still very cold in the Midwest, but good enough for continuing the work of clearing brush. We have a dead pine that runs along our neighbor’s driveway that he wanted to remove by hiring his “three amigos.” I stopped him, fearing liability if something happened, since it was our tree. So finally, I have been clearing the brush that lies between the tree and open space so we can fell it properly. But I overdid it (55 is not as young as I’d like it to be), and did something to my back. I also developed extremely painful carpel tunnel suddenly, which I attributed to too much work with the saw and pruners — but it appears to be related to my autoimmune, which I thought was in remission. So I’m slowed down, and tomorrow getting back onto the autoimmune protocol diet, which is much easier in summer.
I am in Illinois, and we lost our (last, I fear) chance for a decent governor who can do math. This means for sure we will move forward with plans to become one of the thousands leaving the state, when my husband retires in three years. You can bet Illinois will just get worse with the Dem who will become governor in November.
On the positive, the beet and cabbage seedlings are up, and hopefully we’ll see more veggies sprouts this week. We have outstanding passive solar on our many south windows.