Year: 2021

Preparedness Notes for Monday — April 12, 2021

April 12th is the birthday of the late novelist Tom Clancy. (Born 1947, died October 1, 2013). It was Clancy who almost single-handedly created the modern techno-thriller genre, with his first novel, The Hunt For Red October. Coincidentally, Tom Clancy’s first literary agent is now my agent, Robert Gottlieb. — Inventory is getting low at my Elk Creek Company side business. Federal gun legislation is looming, so get your order in soon. The current sale will end on Friday, April 16th, 2021. – JWR — Today we are featuring a review article by our Field Gear Editor, Pat Cascio.


Polymer 80 9mm Pistols, by Pat Cascio

No, it’s not a Glock, and many people refer the P80 pistols to a Glock, and we often refer to this fine handgun as a “Not-a-Glock” However, for most purposes, these effectively are Glocks, with a few changes. Polymer 80  has been around a few years now, and they didn’t start out producing complete pistols. P80 was, and still is, producing 80% frames, that have to be completed by the buyer, and once the buyer does this, they can assemble the P80 into a complete firearm, and this was approved by the BATF, however…things have changed, the rules have changed …


Recipe of the Week: Roast Crown of Lamb or Mutton

The following recipe for Roast Crown of Lamb or Mutton is from The New Butterick Cook Book, by Flora Rose, co-head of the School of Home Economics at Cornell University. It was published in 1924. A professional scan of that 724-page out-of-copyright book is one of the many bonus items included in the latest edition of the waterproof SurvivalBlog Archive USB stick. The first batch of the 15th Anniversary Edition (2005-2020) USB stick sold out quickly, but a smaller second batch should be available in a few weeks. Ingredients 1 crown lamb or mutton Green Peas Salt Mashed Potatoes Salt-pork …


Economics & Investing For Preppers

Here are the latest news items and commentary on current economics news, market trends, stocks, investing opportunities, and the precious metals markets. We also cover hedges, derivatives, and obscura. Most of these items are from the “tangibles heavy” contrarian perspective of SurvivalBlog’s Founder and Senior Editor, JWR. Today, we look at Ballistic Wampum. (See the Tangibles Investing section.) Precious Metals: The battle of wills as inflation rises o  o  o Arkadiusz Sieroń: Will Upcoming Inflation Take Gold With It? Economy & Finance: At Zero Hedge: How Long Can This Printing-Press-Money-Induced, Lopsided Trade Insanity Last? o  o  o Undeletable Coercive Loan …



Preparedness Notes for Sunday — April 11, 2021

April 11th is the birthday of John Milius, who was born in 1944. He both wrote the screenplays and directed the films Dillinger, The Wind and the Lion, Big Wednesday, Conan the Barbarian, Red Dawn, Farewell to the King, and Flight of the Intruder. He also wrote the screenplays of the first two Dirty Harry movies as well as the first draft of the screenplay for Patton (before Francis Ford Coppola turned it into a vaguely anti-war commentary laced with references to reincarnation). Milius is my favorite Hollywood writer and director, in part because he stands for everything that Hollywood …


A Sweater and a Knife, by The Novice

This is my gear review of a German Army Wool Commando Sweater Reproduction and Opinel No. 8 Outdoor Sea-Mountain Knife I love wool sweaters. For roughly nine months out of the year, I wear one pretty much every day. An inventory of my closet reveals a total of 21 wool sweaters: nine “cold-weather-office” sweaters, five “manual-labor” sweaters, and seven “cool-weather-office” sweaters. Norwegian Sweaters My love affair with wool sweaters began in Norway, where I lived for ten years. In Norway, wool sweaters are more than just a practical item of clothing. They are an art form. My first “Norwegian” sweater …



The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

“Take heed that ye do not your alms before men, to be seen of them: otherwise ye have no reward of your Father which is in heaven. Therefore when thou doest thine alms, do not sound a trumpet before thee, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may have glory of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward. But when thou doest alms, let not thy left hand know what thy right hand doeth: That thine alms may be in secret: and thy Father which seeth in secret himself shall reward …


Preparedness Notes for Saturday — April 10, 2021

April 10, 1827 was the birthday of General Lew Wallace. “He wrote books (author of Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ), sculpted, practiced law, painted, played the violin and made them as well. He also saved our Capitol from capture during the “Battle of Monocacy” where he fought with 8,000 Union troops against 15,000 Confederates, and helped to preserve our Union. He was second in command of the Lincoln conspiracy trial as well as principal in the trial of the Commander of Andersonville prison where Union prisoners were starved to death. Ambassador to Turkey, [Territorial] Governor of New Mexico when …


Spring Update, by Animal House

Hello Survivalblog friends! This is just a brief spring update of what’s going on the farm. Every year I replace 1/3 of our chickens with new chicks ordered from the hatchery. This is usually 25 chicks. I change the breed each year so I can tell how old the chickens are and cull the useless eaters. Last year I added Rhode Island Reds and this year I ordered Barred Rocks. Both breeds are very hardy and lay large brown eggs. I have some older buffs which are ready for harvesting at the end of summer. I also incubator-hatch ornamental silkie …


Editors’ Prepping Progress

To be prepared for a crisis, every Prepper must establish goals and make long-term and short-term plans. In this column, the SurvivalBlog editors review their week’s prep activities and planned prep activities for the coming week. These range from healthcare and gear purchases to gardening, ranch improvements, bug out bag fine-tuning, 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 your e-mailed letters. We post many of those — or excerpts thereof — in this column, …


The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

“For, behold, the day cometh, that shall burn as an oven; and all the proud, yea, and all that do wickedly, shall be stubble: and the day that cometh shall burn them up, saith the Lord of hosts, that it shall leave them neither root nor branch. But unto you that fear my name shall the Sun of righteousness arise with healing in his wings; and ye shall go forth, and grow up as calves of the stall. And ye shall tread down the wicked; for they shall be ashes under the soles of your feet in the day that …


Preparedness Notes for Friday — April 9, 2021

On April 9, 1768, John Hancock refused to allow two British customs agents to go below deck of his ship. This was considered by some to be the first act of physical resistance to British authority in the American colonies. On April 9, 1869, the Hudson Bay Company ceded its territory to the Commonwealth of Canada. — Inventory is getting low at my Elk Creek Company side business. Federal gun legislation is looming, so get your order in soon. The current sale will end on Friday, April 16th, 2021. – JWR SurvivalBlog Writing Contest Today we present another entry for …


TEOTWAWKI Toilet Options – Part 2, by St. Funogas

(Continued from Part 1. This concludes the article.) Proper Two-Year Composting System There are various types of composting toilets but the remainder of this article refers to the inexpensive types, not the fancier commercial ones that compost in a chamber below the toilet. I’ll let you explore that option on your own. Proper humanure composting uses a two-pile system and only a small percentage of the material in the pile will be humanure, especially considering that your poop on average is only 25% solids. Once your compost pile has received humanure material for a year, plus kitchen, farm, yard, and …