Lessons Learned From an Ice Storm, by G. in the Zarks

While watching the local weather over the last few days, it has become apparent that a winter storm is heading for our part of the world, bringing with it the distinct possibility of not just snow, but significant amounts of ice. As I pondered this, it brought to mind our recent experiences with ice storms over the last few years, most notably in January 2007. I thought some of our “lessons learned” were worth sharing with others. We had been blessed with several years of reasonably mild winters leading up to the 2007 storm. Unfortunately, the good times often seem …


Letter Re: I Thought that I Was Ready!

I have just returned to my house after 6 days without power. I Thought I was ready. I had plenty of beans, Band-Aids, bullion and bullets. What I didn’t have was the stuff I needed to get through the first week of a massive power outage. We still had water, even though I had an additional 50 gallons of fresh, treated water for myself, The Beautiful Wife (TBW) and the pets. We had enough short term food that we were able to provide a chili meal for some of our friends and coworkers that were doing without. We had more …


Letter Re: Tool Maintenance and Spares

Sir: Hand tools are nearly useless if not properly maintained. This concept seems under emphasized in preparedness literature. One should have a stash of assorted files and sharpening stones, as they can be broken or worn out. Items like hacksaw blades that are nearly impossible to make at home should be acquired in quantity. People should also buy a quantity of tool steel and drill rod suitable for fashioning cutting tools. Thanks for your advice on your blog site and for your novel “Patriots” . Regards, – Jim J.


Economics and Investing:

From GG: Revelations of hidden Greek debt “last straw”. And here is a related news story: EU toughens demands on Greece Flavio sent this linkio: It’s Official: California Housing Production Reached New Low in 2009. Down 83% from the 2004 peak! Pioneering blogger Hugh Hewitt says: We Are Headed For A Fiscal Stroke. (A tip of the hat to Damon for the link.) Chad S. flagged this: U.S. May Lose 824,000 Jobs as Employment Data Revised Items from The Economatrix: Note from JWR: Cheryl (aka The Economatrix) wrote me to mention that there is up to two feet of fresh …


Odds ‘n Sods:

Ham radio: A fading hobby … until emergencies hit. (A hat tip to John M. for the link.)    o o o Mark A. was the first of several readers to mention this: Digital doomsday: the end of knowledge    o o o Joel S. sent us this: Bogota’s Bulletproof Tailor


Jim’s Quote of the Day:

"I have also learned from experience that the greater part of our happiness or misery depends on our dispositions, and not on our circumstances. We carry the seeds of the one or the other about with us in our minds wherever we go." – Martha Washington, from The Life of Washington by Anna C. Reed, niece of a signer of the Declaration of Independence; first published in 1842 by the American Sunday-School Union, now called the American Missionary Fellowship (AMF).


Note from JWR:

Today we present another entry for Round 27 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round will include: First Prize: A.) A course certificate from onPoint Tactical. This certificate will be for the prize winner’s choice of three-day civilian courses. (Excluding those restricted for military or government teams.) Three day onPoint courses normally cost between $500 and $600, and B.) Two cases of Mountain House freeze dried assorted entrees, in #10 cans, courtesy of Ready Made Resources. (A $392 value.) C.) A HAZARiD Decontamination Kit from Safecastle.com. (A $350 value.), and D.) A 500 round case of …


Shelter During Turbulent Times, by Alex C., Engineer

In every TEOTWAWKI circumstance shelter is of paramount concern.  It’s actually a concern every day of our lives, but we seldom think about it – we take the roof over our head almost as a given right in country.  Our houses or “castles” as some states call them are so sacred many states allow us to use deadly force – no questions asked – if someone illegally violates our home’s hallowed ground.  For a survivalist, “prepper” or even casually concerned citizen preparing for some sort of unknown future disaster, water, food, guns/ammo, fuel, backpacks, etc. are all high on the …


Letter Re: Finding “Just a Little Piece of Land”

Sir: Do you know of any good web sites that list where you can buy just an acre or so of land in the woods, where people wouldn’t expect you to actually live? I live right on the Florida/Georgia state line so there’s plenty of land around. However, parcels are typically sold in 50 acres or 100 acre chunks. Or [with a lot] they expect you to turn it into a house with a mailbox and all that. I just want some woods. My goal is to excavate for an underground storage shed, with small sleeping quarters. I’ll then gradually …


Economics and Investing:

George Gordon (“GG”) sent this news item: Largest-ever federal payroll to hit 2.15 million Also from GG comes this link to a Seeking Alpha piece: U.S. Economy: Don’t Worry, Prosperity Is Just Around the Corner Yet another from GG: Rising FHA default rate foreshadows a crush of foreclosures Reader JDD spotted this over at The Daily Beast: The Dollar’s Scary Decline Also from JDD: Obama’s Budget Has One Small, Missing Piece…. For $6.3 Trillion Dollars Items from The Economatrix: US January Auto Sales Rise Unemployment Rises in Most Metro Areas Roubini Sees “Very Dismal and Poor” US Growth Ahead Bernanke …


Odds ‘n Sods:

I thought that the map at this web page: Electoral College Reform was fascinating. (But of course any such plan would be grossly unconstitutional–so I consider it nothing more than an intellectual exercise.) And ponder this set of graphics at the same web site: 50 States and 50 Metros. If nothing else, these maps illustrate just how lightly populated some of my recommended retreat locales are. (Thanks to Hal H. for the links.)    o o o The folks at Survival Bound just did a major expansion to their free manual collection. It was 5 gigabytes, but now it is …



Note from JWR:

Today we present another entry for Round 27 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. First Prize: A.) A course certificate from onPoint Tactical. This certificate will be for the prize winner’s choice of three-day civilian courses. (Excluding those restricted for military or government teams.) Three day onPoint courses normally cost between $500 and $600, and B.) Two cases of Mountain House freeze dried assorted entrees, in #10 cans, courtesy of Ready Made Resources. (A $392 value.) C.) A HAZARiD Decontamination Kit from Safecastle.com. (A $350 value.), and D.) A 500 round case of Fiocchi 9mm Luger, 124gr. Hornady XTP/HP ammo, …


Finding Community, by Jim Fry

Here at the farm we had the first of a series of free and open classes on disaster preparedness on February 1st. One of the things I intend to talk about at the upcoming meetings are various options for joining a community. When discussing disaster preparations, the first thing to decide is what you think is most likely to happen. If you think the world is a friendly place where snow means skiing and flowers always bloom, then a disaster is the electricity going out for a couple days if a tree happens to fall. You’ll need a case of …


Preparing Your Church Congregation, by JSX in Virginia

My preparedness background started as a youth.  My father took us camping often and had an amazing gun collection; I’ve been able to teach my kids what he taught me – great memories both then and now!  In the 1970s, my mom and step-dad bought a little 2-acre farm in the middle of nowhere.  We kept a dozen or so chickens, had a few garden spots (that seemed to grow and multiply with each new season), homemade soap, homemade root beer (an acquired taste!) a “sewing room”, a small orchard, solar heating, our own 250-gallon fuel tank, and a year …