Preparedness Notes for Monday — January 22, 2024

January 22, 1879: In the Battle of Rorke’s Drift, a British garrison of 139 soldiers held off an estimated 4,000 Zulu warriors. Eleven Victoria Crosses and a number of other decorations were awarded to the defenders. The image above is a still from the well-known 1964 movie Zulu, that fairly accurately showed the Battle of Rorke’s Drift. On January 22, 1944, Allied forces began landing at Anzio, Italy. — The 2005-2023 SurvivalBlog Archive USB sticks are selling very quickly. Many folks are ordering 2, 3, or more. One reader ordered ten sticks. Last week, I posted a list of the …




ALPS Mountaineering Felis 4 Tent, by Thomas Christianson

Last Spring, my wife “Kari”, my daughter “Rivka”, and I were doing some initial planning for our summer camping excursions. In the course of that planning, we begin to discuss my tent. Rivka said that she wanted to borrow the old tent for a solo excursion that she had planned. I was not 100% comfortable with that idea. The tent had frankly seen better days. I was well acquainted with its quirks, foibles, flaws, and tricks. With that knowledge, I felt like I could safely use the tent for another season. But I just did not feel that I could …




Recipe of the Week:  Raisin-Walnut Cheese Spread

The following simple recipe for Raisin-Walnut Cheese Spread is from Good HouseKeeping’s Book of Menus, Recipes, and Household Discoveries (253 pages, copyright 1926, now in public domain). That is one of the 11 new bonus books included in the new 2005-2023 edition of the SurvivalBlog Archive USB stick. Ingredients 5 small packages of cream cheese 1 cupful raisins 1 cupful walnut-meats, chopped 1 cupful coconut (shredded) 2 tablespoonfuls lemon- juice Directions Mix the listed ingredients all together with the hand, working it into a little, round, flat mold, saving out enough coconut to roll it in. SERVING This recipe makes …




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. In this column, JWR also covers hedges, derivatives, and various obscura. This column emphasizes JWR’s “tangibles heavy” investing strategy and contrarian perspective. Today, we look at electric car woes, in cold weather. (See the Commodities section.) Precious Metals: At Zero Hedge: First Costco, Now Walmart? Major Retailers Now Offer Gold Bars. o  o  o Keith Weiner: The Anti-Concepts of Money: Stagflation. Economy & Finance: Federal Reserve Payments to Banks Trigger Largest Ever Operating Loss. JWR’s Comments: It is a …