Year: 2024


Preparedness Notes for Sunday — January 21, 2024

On January 21, 1506, Swiss Guards first arrived at the Vatican as watchmen for the pope. On January 21, 1525, the Swiss Anabaptist Movement began when Conrad Grebel, Felix Manz, George Blaurock, and a dozen others baptized each other in the home of Manz’s mother in Zürich, breaking a thousand-year tradition of church-state union. This movement led to great consternation in the Catholic church, persecution, and the eventual dislocation of many Anabaptist dissidents, including the followers of Jakob Ammann – The “Amish.” Confederate General Thomas Jonathan “Stonewall” Jackson was born on January 21, 1824 in Clarksburg, West Virginia. His statue …


An Appeal for Unity, by SaraSue

I had a really strange experience recently that I will relay in a bit.  The net-net of it was that it got me to thinking about how Christians and homesteaders need to put their squabbles aside and join forces, as do most Americans.  JWR talks a lot about finding “like-minded” people, and there’s a good reason for that.  People who think alike and do things similarly, tend to get along better, and are therefore more productive.  In our modern day, that is often referred to as “tribalism”, and some folks are for that idea and some are not.  “Diversity is …


JWR’s Meme Of The Week:

The latest meme created by JWR: Meme Text: The FBI Has Had All The Videos From The Hard Drives on Epstein’s Island Since August, 2019… Still No New Indictments After Maxwell. So… Why Is Washington, D.C. as Quiet as a Graveyard? News Links: 2019: FBI raids Jeffrey Epstein’s private Caribbean island. 2021: FBI agents used a saw to open a safe in Jeffrey Epstein’s Manhattan mansion that held hard drives and diamonds. 2022: Ghislaine Maxwell Sentenced To 20 Years In Prison For Conspiring With Jeffrey Epstein To Sexually Abuse Minors. 2022: Ghislaine Maxwell conviction: Will others be charged? Will she flip? …


The Editors’ Quote of the Day: 

“Am I am not an apostle? am I not free? have I not seen Jesus Christ our Lord? are not ye my work in the Lord? If I be not an apostle unto others, yet doubtless I am to you: for the seal of mine apostleship are ye in the Lord. Mine answer to them that do examine me is this, Have we not power to eat and to drink? Have we not power to lead about a sister, a wife, as well as other apostles, and as the brethren of the Lord, and Cephas? Or I only and Barnabas, …


Preparedness Notes for Saturday — January 20, 2024

On January 20, 1778 British explorer James Cook landed at Waimea, on Kauai island, becoming the first European to visit Hawaii. — On January 20, 1981 the Iran hostage crisis ended when Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini released  American hostages were released by the Iranian government, following 444 days of captivity, to be reunited with their families. Not coincidentally, Ronald Reagan was sworn in as President, the same day. — January 20th, 1993, Bill Clinton was first sworn in as President. That was the day that I resigned my commission as a U.S. Army Captain. I did so, because my service obligation …


Haying By Hand, by H.F.K.

One of the challenges of keeping domestic animals is providing them with forage during the winter months, or year-round if you live on a small lot. We started keeping sheep in a cold climate on a small lot as a way to feed our family when we were paying off student loans and a mortgage at a high interest rate. Haying by hand was a way to make use of previously unproductive spots on our land (and other people’s land), because a person with a scythe can work in places that would be lethal by tractor. Believe it or not, …


Editors’ Prepping Progress

To be prepared for a crisis, every Prepper must establish goals and make both 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 the Odds ‘n …


The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

“Bow down thine ear, O Lord, hear me: for I am poor and needy. Preserve my soul; for I am holy: O thou my God, save thy servant that trusteth in thee. Be merciful unto me, O Lord: for I cry unto thee daily. Rejoice the soul of thy servant: for unto thee, O Lord, do I lift up my soul. For thou, Lord, art good, and ready to forgive; and plenteous in mercy unto all them that call upon thee. Give ear, O Lord, unto my prayer; and attend to the voice of my supplications. In the day of …


Preparedness Notes for Friday — January 19, 2024

On January 19, 1978, the last Volkswagen Beetle made in Germany left VW’s plant in Emden. Beetle production in Latin America would continue until 2003. — And on January 19, 1746, “Bonnie Prince Charlie“, Prince Charles Edward Stuart’s Jacobite army occupied Stirling, Scotland. — This is also is the birthday of the late Carla Emery (born 1939, died October 11, 2005). She is well known in self-sufficiency circles as the author of The Encyclopedia of Country Living. (This book was re-released in a 40th Anniversary edition.) — January 19th is the birthday of General Robert E. Lee. — SurvivalBlog Writing …


Easy Home Cheese Making, by Tractorguy

Some of our biggest concerns at a Bug Out Location (BOL) will be food and food storage. Dairy products are an important part of a balanced diet, but they are the most difficult to store, both short and long-term. Our ancestors stored milk over the long-term by turning it into cheese, and you can too. It is not difficult. We’ll explore a couple of different simple homemade cheeses and how to make them. Cheese is simply the solid part of milk that is separated out and dried. Cheeses fall basically into two groups – soft and hard. Soft cheeses, such …


Updated: Opportunity to Live on a Secure Kansas Family Farm/BOL

Late last year a consulting client asked me to help him find potential members for a retreat group membership at his family farm/bug-out location (BOL) . That opportunity is still open and his family prays to be able to find a like-minded family soon. Please read the entire post as the retreat owners have opened up their search to include many more families and that may potentially include your family to have a safe place to retreat. After much prayer, the farm owner has decided again to open up his request concentrating on families who are able to move to …


How to Prepare to Counter Sovereign Cryptocurrencies

Today, in place of my regular Friday column on Economics and Investing,  I’d like to address an important monetary issue. This article expands on a piece that I posted in SurvivalBlog back in July, 2022. — During the recent COVID pandemic, multinational corporations stayed open for business via the Internet, and grew larger. People cocooned at home, watched movies on Netflix, and ordered many of their household supplies via Amazon.com. But meanwhile, millions of small “Mom & Pop” businesses that dealt face-to-face with customers were forcibly shuttered and ruined, during the protracted lockdowns. When viewing national and world affairs, always …



Preparedness Notes for Thursday — January 18, 2024

On January 18, 1943, at the height of the Second World War,  the United States banned the sale of presliced bread. The move was intended to cut down any ancillary charges, following the recent increase in the cost of flour — thus lessening or preventing increases in the retail price of bread. — The German Empire, forged as a result of diplomacy rather than an outpouring of popular nationalist feeling, was founded on January 18, 1871 in the aftermath of three successful wars by the North German state of Prussia. — January 18th 1813 was the birthday Joseph Glidden, who …