Observations and Lessons from the Oroville Dam Evacuation

I felt obliged to pass on some observations and potential lessons on the developing problems at the Oroville Dam here in northern California. For those who may not have heard, the Oroville Dam has had some major structural issues with the spillways, resulting in mandatory evacuations for as many as 180,000 people. It is an earth fill embankment dam on the Feather River east of the city of Oroville, California, in the United States. At 770 feet (230 m) high, it is the tallest dam in the U.S. and serves mainly for water supply, hydroelectricity generation, and flood control. It …


Letter Re: Sad and Silent

Dear Sad and Silent: I have learned to speak in terms of resilience and not prep. I regularly engage in DIY projects because of the mental stimulation. I seek to know about all things, saying that I am a very curious fellow. Every fifth person laughs. When I buy, I grab a little extra of nails, screws, oil, filters, et cetera. Commonly, I do household projects out of inventory, in terms of screws and nails, making sure to replace them. That does not mean it did not take three trips to the hardware store to finally get the stove installation …


Recipe of the Week: Dutch Oven Pork Hock Stew, by R.T.

This is a good meal to prepare on a camping trip in a 3-legged Dutch oven, or at home in a stovetop model, as it can be left to cook all day while needing only occasional attention. The pork hock, or leg, is inexpensive and is enveloped in a thick skin (not fat) that is rich in collagen. Ingredients: a fresh pork hock, carrots, onions, red potatoes Seasoning blend of salt, cayenne, black pepper, coriander, garlic, and Spanish smoked paprika, adjusted to taste Directions: Heat up a lidded 4-quart Dutch oven swabbed with a coating of oil, slowly to a …


Letter Re: Misguided Youth

Hugh, Periodically, I check on on a few different blogs, and one recent post has cemented my belief that this country is going to have a difficult future with or without a serious economic downturn. This particular blog advocates living on about 25% of one’s income, which I find admirable; however, I have two concerns that I find troubling: The authors have themselves in the past and do advocate that their readers get all the free goodies from the government and other social organizations that they can obtain, regardless of need. If one qualifies, grab it. Hmmm. I do find …


Letter Re: Sad, Silent Prepper

Dear Sad, Silent Prepper, I feel for you, bud. I was on the same road for years, trying to convince the wife that there were several scenarios that we needed to be concerned about and maybe even a few for which we needed to be prepared. My personal journey took years, but in the end it obtained moderate success. And by moderate I mean not perfect or complete, but it was good enough for me. Total covert? No. More open minded and sympathetic? Probably. I have tried to be consistent, not too over reactive, and as subtle as possible. “Gee, …


Bugging Out West of the Mississippi- Part 2, by C.L.

In-Country Risks Contaminated Water The advantages of this trip west are due to large open areas with interspersed farms, ponds, and streams, relatively high visibility, and low population density. However, there are always the occasional natural and man-made risks to be wary of. Being largely farmland, most of the surface water is contaminated by pesticides and varying degrees of farm wastes, so have a variety of methods and containers to sterilize water in route. Removing most organic compounds and hydrophobic pesticides from water requires filtering through activated carbon or bio-char created from the gassification burning of wood above 1,652 Deg …


Letter Re: Sad Silent Prepper

HJL, I too am dealing with a family that does not grasp the dire situation we are in, in this country. My wife is of the opinion that it has never happened here and thus never will. My children (all grown and out of the house) think I am looney and will actually get up and leave the room if the conversation even starts to go in that direction. I am prepping as best I can and don’t care what they think. I pay all the bills at my house, so if I decide to spend money and on what …


Bugging Out West of the Mississippi- Part 1, by C.L.

Upon relocation to Texas by truck from the East through the Midwest I realized there will be numerous logistics and potential threats that may come into play during TEOTWAWKI that few might consider beforehand and won’t be able to check on-the-fly without cell service and WiFi. I hope my Midwest and East coast friends can use this information as a tool if they want to make a move West of the Mississippi and appreciate why. As I will show you, there is a huge night and day difference between each side of the Mississippi River. My range of concerns and …


Letter Re: Baking Soda

Sarah, I too am laying by a lot of baking soda. I too have spent enormous amounts of time pondering the absence of it. I found the answer in Carla Emory’s Encyclopedia of Country Living. It’s on page 220 in my book, under Acid-Base Leavenings. “In the real old days, they used to leaven with wood ash. Ashes are alkaline. If you add a teaspoon of ash to a mixture that contains an acid, such as real sour cream, buttermilk from slightly soured milk, or yogurt, then the two make bubbles. You have to work fast because the bubbles don’t …


A Mother’s Perspective, by B.H.

Prior to 2000, my husband and I had already begun to prepare for the Y2K that, well, never happened. Although this event never took place, we learned valuable lessons on what we were missing, and we were not parents at that time. First aid was not at the top of my priority list. We were planning on bugging in, and we naively thought we would be good with staying put in our sleepy town of 1200 people. I remember that we spent $10,000 on preparing for that event. We had more disposable income (again, we had no kids yet), so …


Prepping with a Terminal Illness, by D.P.

About a month ago I was diagnosed with a very aggressive type of brain cancer– glioblastoma. There’s no cure, and the chances of long-term survival are pretty slim. It’s referred to as “terminal” cancer. However, there are some long-term survivors, and I’m hoping to add to that number. If not, without a shred of doubt I have been one of the luckiest and blessed people I know. I’ve been blessed with a beautiful and caring wife, two young boys I love beyond measure, wonderful family and friends, and not least importantly from long ago an appreciation for the wonder of …


Letter Re: Intellectual Survival

HJL, I enjoyed reading D.W.’s article on Intellectual Survival and liked the anthology list of resources listed. I know that there are free digital downloads of the Harvard Classics on at least three sites from Open Culture. The links to The Gutenberg Project and Internet Archive are provided. While the digital downloads are not the annotated version, a third link, below, provides a page scan version of the Harvard Classics that are annotated. While not a hard copy, these can be stored in one’s electronic library for use on several platforms. Regards – A.C. Ohio


How Do I Get Prepared for Emergencies?, by Justin Case

Start by considering all the elements of the question you just asked yourself. Think it through carefully! Jot down your most obvious thoughts, since we often forget what we were thinking if we don’t. Don’t panic! Even if you are in an emergency situation that you are just realizing you are not prepared for, thinking is the key to making it. Look around you, and catalog the things that may help you immediately. Select the most critical actions, and start putting them into play. Yes, this is when most people start to think about being prepared. Now that you are …


Letter: The Sad, Silent Preppers

I enjoy reading SurvivalBlog and a couple of other sites. It consoles what I call myself as “the sad, silent preppers.” “Who are they”, you ask? They are the ones like me. My wife thinks I am insane and not trusting God enough and gets angry when I show her the Scriptures. The good thing is that she doesn’t talk to me for a couple of days after that. My children understand why I do it, but they have absolutely no enthusiasm in it. My in-laws also think I am totally crazy but for different reasons. “Nothing like that will …


Recipe of the Week: Arroz Con Pollo, by G.L.

Ingredients: 1 frying chicken, cut up 1 tsp salt 1/4 tsp pepper 1 clove garlic, minced 1 pinch of saffron powder 3 cups broth or bouillon 2 Tbsp dry sherry 1 (16 oz) can peas, drained 1/2 cup sliced, stuffed green olives 2 cups cooked rice Directions: In a slow-cooking pot, combine chicken with salt, pepper, garlic, and saffron. Pour chicken broth and sherry over chicken. Cover and cook on low for 4 to 6 hours. Drain the chicken, saving 2 cups of broth. Turn the control to high and combine the chicken, 2 cups of broth, peas, olives, and …