Writing Contest Winners Announced — Round 99

We’ve completed the judging for Round 99 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. This contest round ran a bit long, because a six-part article began running near the end of March. Round 100 begins today. The Round 99 prize winners are… First Prize Winner: First prize goes to SaraSue, for Shortages, a 7-Year Food Supply, and Beating Inflation – Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, and Part 4 which was posted on February 22-25, 2022. She will receive: The photovoltaic power specialists at Quantum Harvest LLC  are providing a store-wide 10% off coupon. Depending on the model chosen, this could …




Bersa Model 383, by Pat Cascio

This particular pistol, the Bersa Model 383, has been in the family for about 25-years, maybe even longer. It was my wife’s everyday carry gun, for a lot of years. She just likes the way it feels in her hand for some reason. It was a step-up from her little .22 LR pistol that was never reliable, and of course, the .22 LR is a pitiful stopper when used for self-defense. It took a lot of years before my wife gave up the Versa 383 and started carrying a Glock 19, with a laser on it. It was just recently, …




Recipe of the Week: Layered Baked Mexican Dip

The following recipe for a layered baked Mexican Dip is from blog reader Phil M.. He says: “I have made this is in at least ten different countries over the years and it’s always been a hit.” Ingredients 1 Can refried beans (or dried equivalent) Jalapeno peppers  to taste 1 to 1½ cups cottage cheese 2 Cups shredded Monterey Jack cheese or mild cheddar cheese 2 green peppers diced 3 red peppers diced One bag of Nacho chips (round ones are good) Directions In a medium casserole, spread the refried beans evenly. Add a layer of Jalapeño peppers (I used …




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 farm commodities. (See the Commodities section.) Precious Metals: Andre sent us this: Russia Is Now Initiating A Short Squeeze On Gold Derivatives In The West. o  o  o What You Need To Know About Physical Gold Supply And Demand. Economy, Finance, & Taxation: Recession ahead! US Treasury yield curve inverts …







Preparedness Notes for Sunday — April 3, 2022

This is the birthday of Washington Irving, an American author, essayist, biographer, historian, and diplomat of the early 19th Century. He is best known for short stories like Rip Van Winkle and The Legend of Sleepy Hollow, but he also wrote several biographies and served as the US Ambassador to Spain from 1842 to 1846. — Please continue to pray for the people of Ukraine. The situation is becoming quite dire, with atrocities coming to light. —   SurvivalBlog Writing Contest Today we present another entry for Round 99 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round …




Youth’s Lessons: The Slingshot – Part 6, by J.M.

(Continued from Part 5.  This concludes the article.) For an inexpensive commercial slingshot the PC Supersonic is an excellent initial option. It costs around $20, is made of super strong polymer and has thumb screws for band attachment, which allows quick band changes in the field. It only supports OTT for band attachment, which works well for most beginners, supports multiple grip styles and comes with a single lighter weight band. It doesn’t have an arrow rest option, but if you search the web for ‘diy slingshot arrow rest’ you can find a number of ways to easily add one. …




JWR’s Meme Of The Week:

The latest meme created by JWR: To share this, you can find it here: https://www.kapwing.com/videos/624710f46c98a600fac8989b Meme Text: The You’re-A-Peons are About To Learn That Master-Blaster Runs EuroTown… “Embargo On!” News Links: Rubles for natural gas: Europe faces Russia gas deadline. German Chemical Giant Warns Of “Total Collapse” If Russian Gas Supply Cut. Video Link: Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome: “Master-Blaster Runs Bartertown”




The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

“Judge not, that ye be not judged. For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again. And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brother’s eye, but considerest not the beam that is in thine own eye? Or how wilt thou say to thy brother, Let me pull out the mote out of thine eye; and, behold, a beam is in thine own eye? Thou hypocrite, first cast out the beam out of thine own eye; and then shalt thou see clearly to cast …




Preparedness Notes for Saturday — April 2, 2022

Today is the birthday of Sergei Ivanovich Mosin (Apr 2, 1849 – February 8, 1902) was a Russian military officer, engineer, and a co-designer of the Mosin-Nagant rifle.  These rifles have been spotted in use in the current Ukraine war. This is the birthday of Émile François Zola, a novelist and essayist. He is most often remembered as the author of “J’accuse” (I Accuse!), his lengthy open letter to President Félix Faure, which accused the French government of anti-semitism. — You might have noticed that our primary server was down for several hours yesterday. (Friday, April 1st, 2022.)  There is …




Youth’s Lessons: The Slingshot – Part 5, by J.M.

(Continued from Part 4.) If you want to easily include some arrows as part of your slingshot carry kit without worrying about how to store and carry them, PocketShot makes some great standard and bowfishing 3-section take-down arrows. If you plan on going after larger game you should replace the field tips on the standard arrows with broadheads. As an aside, since slingshot people stole arrows from archery folks, I guess some turnabout is only fair –a company called Shoottech Systems makes a dual-string bow with a magnetic catch on the string that allows you to shoot steel balls with …




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, in …




The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

“And it came to pass, when Joshua was by Jericho, that he lifted up his eyes and looked, and, behold, there stood a man over against him with his sword drawn in his hand: and Joshua went unto him, and said unto him, Art thou for us, or for our adversaries? And he said, Nay; but as captain of the host of the Lord am I now come. And Joshua fell on his face to the earth, and did worship, and said unto him, What saith my Lord unto his servant? And the captain of the Lord‘s host said unto …