What’s For Dinner?- Part 1, by J.R.

I tell my family that those are the three most dreaded words in the English language. At the same time, I often think about how very difficult life is going to become when most women will not be able to answer that question for their families. While those who are preparing for complete collapse of the economy and our society may feel they have the situation covered, the reality is that the vast majority of preppers, at least those I have conversed with and observed, do not. The reasons vary. For most, it is lack of knowledge of what foods …


Blueprint for Rebuilding- Part 2, by GRC

Security With the basic necessities provided for by a thriving local economy, specialists can be employed to organize our third bullet point, security. In our pre-Reset cooperative outline we can lay the groundwork for our security strategy. Few families can hire a professional trainer full time. Gym membership for physical fitness or even a group membership at a local gun range are important first steps. The self-defense cooperative’s purpose would be to take this further and secure the services of a qualified professional skilled in physical fitness for all ages and abilities, self-defense techniques, and team building[23]. With the understanding …


Blueprint for Rebuilding- Part 1, by GRC

Timelines differ, and predictions of what causes mayhem differ. One thing we all agree on is that the time to prepare grows short, not time as we modern Westerners understand it, after all our civilization was built and rebuilt over the course of 2000 plus years, but the expiration date is surely fast approaching. Each day brings thanksgiving mixed with surprise that the thin veneer of our existence has lasted another sunrise. And while those who prepare for an uncertain tomorrow welcome the opportunity to tick another item off the to-do list, the rest of the world laughs at such …


A Six-Month Trial of TEOTWAWKI, by J.P. in Occupied Territory

I have been living a real life trial of TEOTWAWKI for the past 6 months and wish to share what I have learned. My wife and I have made a decision this past spring to pack up and move closer to her parents. He is 90, and she is in her 80’s and has developed Alzheimer’s. During one of our visits last winter, her father, who I don’t believe ever asked for anything from anyone, asked if we could come back to help. Both my wife and I are in health care, and she has spoken of caring for her …


Building a Redoubt Kit, by M.C.

Anyone who has seriously considered preparation for TEOTWAWKI knows that the ultimate preparation is to have a well-outfitted redoubt, located in a remote location. Unless you’re rich and you can purchase one with all the trimmings or you’ve been working on it for several years already, you’re feeling significant apprehension as current events imply time is short and you are unprepared. Why Have a Redoubt Kit? Now, if you are the diligent one that built a well-stocked redoubt but find that over time civilization has overtaken the area, this is for you also. Finally, if you have your redoubt, it …


Some Harsh Lessons of Beekeeping, by Keith K.

I would like to share my experience with beekeeping to help others decide if it might be for them. My initial interest in beekeeping began before I moved to the Redoubt. My wife and I attended a beekeeping night at a local library and later took a four-day (four Saturdays) beekeeping course. We learned a lot. We found that beekeeping hobbyists were very enthusiastic and touted the many benefits of beekeeping along with the fun of it. It was very easy to be influenced by all of the positive and energetic people. Ultimately, we decided that beekeeping would be part …


Windstorm 2015 Washington, by ShepherdFarmerGeek

So, in Washington this week on 11/17/15 and almost a year to the day of last year’s massive windstorm, we had another massive windstorm. Last year, at our place, we had a single sustained 70 mph gust that broke 10 trees in half. This year we had multiple 70+ mph gusts that only broke down six trees. (God must want me to have a lot of firewood.) The wind blasted and mangled many of our roof shingles along with those of perhaps thousands of other homes, outbuildings, and businesses in a wide swath. The howling winds lasted about 12 hours …


The Second Amendment and Its Relevance in Today’s Society, by B.E.

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Amendment II (the Second Amendment) of the United States Constitution’s Bill of Rights declares a well-regulated militia as “being necessary to the security of a free State” and prohibits infringement of “the right of the people to keep and bear arms.” It is a controversial subject whose ramifications are still being debated to this day, over two-hundred and thirty years after it was written. Its place in the Bill of Rights as the Second Amendment is indicative of how important our nation’s founding fathers thought that right should be. It is still relevant in today’s society, despite haphazard attempts at …


Left Of Boom”– A Different Way of Thinking About Prepping, by The Retired Professor

“Left of Boom” is originally a military term referring to the timeline before an explosion. When the explosion happens (the boom), then the timeline shifts to “right of boom”. Left of boom is where you want to be. This gives you time to avert the explosion, or at least prepare for it. Right of boom is where you do not want to be. Being right of boom means you now have to shift from averting and preparing to focusing on recovery. The whole concept embraces a timeline of “before”, “during”, and “after” a calamity, be it personal or systemic. On …


The Grid Will Never Be Down in the Way You May Think! – Part 2, by X-liberal

Discrimination Imagine eating lunch inside your employer’s break room and reading lovely gestures on the bulletin board, such as “We are an equal opportunity employer. We don’t discriminate over race, gender, sexual orientation, religious affiliation, etc.” The liberal leadership stands next to the bulletin board, illustrating to the world that they would never discriminate in hiring practices, no way, no how! Then these same enlightened liberals enact a diversity program whereby they hire solely based on one’s skin color, gender, or sexual orientation, thereby ignoring the law they just stood behind! That means these “chosen few” (in the diversity) have …


The Grid Will Never Be Down in the Way You May Think! – Part 1, by X-liberal

I want to illustrate is that the grid is never going to be down. That is, I mean it won’t be down for the “chosen few”. Why? Well, let’s go to God’s word in the Book of Revelation Chapter 13:16 and have a look. “And he causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads: and that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name.” What this is saying …


Being Anonymous, by Spotlight

I walked out onto the driveway to greet my wife as she backed the car in, arriving home from a long day at work. Right away, I noticed a magnet on the back of the car, proclaiming us to be members of our church, complete with our town name. “What’s up with that?” I said, looking at the magnet, as she got out of the car. She laughed and said the pastor of our church had put it on there when he saw her in the parking lot. I think she had laughed because she knew what I was going …


Water Works- Part 4, by JSP

Other Projects, A Future Project, and “War Game” Potential Problems In this final section addressing survival related water systems, I will outline a few projects we have completed, talk about a future project, and “war game” potential problems that could arise. Our personal outlook is that, when things crash, people who are previously identified will be coming to our place of retreat, and we also have to be open to the fact that the Holy Spirit may direct people to us who we don’t currently know. Our main residence has a standard septic tank and drain field, two bathrooms, and …


Water Works- Part 3, by JSP

Hot Water Grid Down or When the Schumer Hits The Fan Let’s all agree that we can survive without hot water. Yet, as some have successfully argued on this blog that when it comes to food “variety is the spice of life”, I would ask why it is important, especially in a survival situation. “Morale” would be my answer. We could all survive on rice and beans, but it would be hard to keep group morale up if after a supper of rice and beans the group only could look forward to a breakfast of rice and beans. My personal …


Water Works- Part 2, by JSP

In part 1, I explained several things we did to take our water preps to the next level, which felt good but was still lacking in some areas. So, let’s start by looking at the potential problems of that system. Problems of Our Water System At This Point First, at this point, the poly tanks are not “plumbed” to anything; they are simply static, stand-alone storage vessels. Make no mistake that is way better than having no water on hand but not ideal either. Secondly, the primary grid down backup plan is a gas generator. Many people would argue that …