Surviving Seniorhood With Sharpies – Part 1, by St. Funogas

While much of the following is geared towards us older folks who can no longer remember the day of the week nor find it on the calendar without reading glasses, much of it also applies to young geezers and anyone else trying to get their life and/or their preps more organized. I wish I were making this all up or just trying to be helpful, but most of these are things that I do to make my day-to-day psychological survival possible by avoiding little frustrations caused from not seeing, or remembering, what this or that thing is, or what’s in …


Christmas Tree Farming for Fun & Profit, by W.W.

‘Tis the season to sell “choose and cut Christmas trees.” This time of year, between Thanksgiving and Christmas is when “choose and cut” Christmas tree growers sell to the public. The farm is alive with families combing the hillside to find that special tree to take home and decorate. About 35 years ago while living in suburbia, my next-door neighbor suggested we buy a piece of land and grow Christmas trees. His line of reason went something like this. “We plant the trees and come back in 10 years and sell them all.” We didn’t pursue his idea. Little did …


3D-Printed Freedom – Part 2, by A.M.

(Continued from Part 1. This concludes the article.) — What is the actual material you are printing with? Filament. It comes in a roll, usually 1 kg, and is 1.75mm thick. It is what is extruded out of the nozzle onto the print bed and makes your object. Filament comes in many different materials. The most common and inexpensive filament is poly lactic acid (PLA). Better yet is PLA+. Both of these are made from corn as a feedstock, and do not use petroleum as an input. So if supporting corn growers of America as opposed to oil companies is …


3D-Printed Freedom – Part 1, by A.M.

Editor’s Introductory Proviso: The following article is intended for educational purposes only. It is not legal advice. State and local laws vary widely, so be sure to consult them before you buy, print, or build! — “The class which has the means of material production at its disposal, has control at the same time over the means of mental production, so that thereby, generally speaking, the ideas of those who lack the means of mental production are subject to it.” – Karl Marx Now don’t get me wrong, I’m not a Marxist, I just love the confused look that I …


Top Concealed-Carry Handguns, by Deputy Dave

Choosing a handgun is a very personal decision, and I hope that this article will provide information that will help make that decision easier. I want to start by saying that I have been an NRA Certified Firearms Instructor for the last 20 years as well as a part-time law enforcement officer. I have been carrying concealed for close to 30 years, almost all of it with a Glock 19. I have taught more than 2,500 students the course needed in Michigan to obtain a Concealed Pistol License. Since June 2020, the demand for my concealed carry class has been …


Wood-Fired Coffee Roasting – Part 2, by J.P.

Preparation for Roasting Besides gathering all your equipment together, two skills need to be developed: 1.) Maintaining just the right amount of fire and 2.) “Nurturing” the beans with masterful strokes of the paddles. First, the fire. If you are blessed to be a master of the wood fire then this part will come easy. Most effective wood cooking fires are long on a good bed of coals and short on actual flame. Flame delivers short-lived heat and then it dies. You don’t want to be rebuilding your fire in the middle of a roast. Now let’s talk about what …


Wood-Fired Coffee Roasting – Part 1, by J.P.

The following is a tale of friendship, beating the lockdowns, going head to head with the challenges, and coffee! Introduction If your primary interest in reading this post is to learn the intricacies of roasting coffee, then I’m confident you would do well to go online and learn from the experts. As well, exquisite coffee roasting probably doesn’t happen over an outdoor wood fire where inconsistencies abound. However, you may be intrigued to discover a host of other worthy reasons to indulge in this somewhat adventurous outdoor pursuit. Coffee roasting emerged as an afterthought to the boredom and separation resulting …


Taurus G3 Versus G3C, by Pat Cascio

I recently covered the Taurus G2C in a product review article, and it was an outstanding little gun. Unfortunately, Taurus didn’t manufacture a G2 full-sized version. This has been corrected with the all-new Taurus G3 full-sized pistol, and their new G3C. While these two guns appear to be identical to the G2 with a quick glance at the guns side-by-side. But in fact they are really two different models. They just appear to be similar. Let’s start way back when – when I was the Investigations Manager for a big private detective agency, back in Chicago, Illinois – I was …


Your Smartbooks and Battlebooks, by G.P.

During in-processing to Army Basic Training many years ago, my fellow trainees and I were issued two little books. They were cheaply-made and thin, about 3” x 5” with the longer dimension being their width. One had an orange paper cover, which was for all basic trainees. The other had a white cover, that was for trainees in the specialty of combat engineer. These were always to be carried in our pockets over the next three months. The contents of these pocket-sized books were cram sheets for the material we were supposed to be learning. They were the condensed and …


Modifying the Pelican 2620 HeadsUP Lite, by The Novice

I was happily browsing through the wares in one of my favorite local thrift stores. This pleasant, inexpensive pastime has often led me to unexpected treasures. Most of my shirts, boots, books, small electronics, and a myriad of other useful items have originated as other people’s castoffs. On this particular day, on a shelf piled high with tired-looking cordless phones, slightly battered clock radios, and orphaned wall warts, something caught my eye. It was a well-worn headlamp, a Pelican 2620 HeadsUP Lite. I already had a Coast HX4 that I was quite pleased with (SurvivalBlog published my review of it …


The Art of Meal Stretching – Part 2, by Nurse Michele

(Continued from Part 1. This concludes the article.) I learned a long time ago that when the budget was particularly tight around our house if I stressed over it, I would see that stress reflected in my children. I tried, of course, to take the opportunity to display faith and trust in the Lord. There were times, I confess, that I stood firmer on my faith than at others. I remember one night in particular our car had broken down. There, in the freezing cold, on the side of a major highway in New Jersey, my kids and I stood …


The Art of Meal Stretching – Part 1, by Nurse Michele

Meal stretching is the learned art of taking simple, low-cost ingredients and turning them into not just one appealing meal for your family, but with some careful planning and a few adjustments, several meals to meet your family’s needs. This is a subject I expect that most of us, at least SurvivalBlog readers, have already acquired a fair bit of knowledge. Sometimes it’s easy to assume then, that the ability to make one meal become three is all but ubiquitous. But recently something happened, making me re-think my assumption that folks at large are familiar with ways to help keep …


I Survived Running for Office, by W.W.

In light of the current political turmoil and contested election, some readers may be thinking of throwing their hat in the ring for elected office. I would like to share my experience of my candidacy for U.S. Congress for the 4th District of Pennsylvania in 2012. As you may recall this was the general election where Barack Obama was elected president and the Tea Party was quite active. I’ve earned a Bachelor’s Degree in History and have always been interested in the political process. Back in the 1990s I served on the executive committee of the Political Action Committee (PAC) …


Packing Antique Iron – Part 2, by The Lone Canadian

(Continued from Part 1. This concludes the article.) PUTTING IT ALL TOGETHER You now should have your holster and all the necessary pieces cut out. At this point there are a bunch of steps that need to be completed before final assembly. I’ll try to keep these all in the right order, or at least the order that I use, which has worked for me so far. Most of these steps require that the leather be damp/wet. Again, watching a few videos on the internet will help with understanding this process. Suffice it to say that for the following steps …


Packing Antique Iron – Part 1, by The Lone Canadian

First, I better get an introductory disclaimer out of the way. I will be mentioning some different items and companies in this article. I am not associated with any of these companies, and do not receive any endorsements from these companies. These are simply products that I have found to work for me over the years. Now, we can get on to the main event. About 10 years ago, a friend of mine got me interested in antique firearms. I’ve owned a few different ones over the years. Even JWR has started Elk Creek Company, to deal exclusively in pre-1899 …