Category: Contest

Soft Cheeses Made Without Rennet, by M.J.E.

There are nearly endless kinds of cheeses. Among the variables that result in so much diversity are the mammal that the milk is from (most commonly cattle, sheep, goats, reindeer, yaks, and water buffaloes), what these animals were eating at the time they were milked, and how the milk is processed. Some people swear by raw milk rather than pasteurized, but raw milk may contain harmful organisms, and organisms that might adversely affect the cheese-making process. On the other hand, raw milk has a slightly different battery of enzymes that can affect the final cheese. Ultra-pasteurized milk, while shelf-stable, does …


My Grandfather’s Wisdom: Ernest E. Rawles

JWR’s Introductory Note: This is an expanded edition of a piece that I posted in SurvivalBlog in November, 2005. I have added more excerpts to bring it from 730 words to 2,300 words, to provide better context on his times, surroundings, and circumstances. — My paternal grandfather, Ernest Everett Rawles (1897-1985), was a largely self-educated man. Coming from a pioneer family (his father and grandfather came out west by covered wagon in 1857), he had a profoundly practical outlook on life. Ernest grew up on a 6,000-acre sheep ranch near Boonville, in the Anderson Valley of Mendocino County, California. Part …


Scrabble and Prepping – Part 3, by St. Funogas

(Continued from Part 2. This concludes the article.) Our prepping will be easier, and we’ll be more comfortable if the S ever hits the F, if we use all the resources available to us. When stocking up on necessities, we’ll refer to books, articles, YouTubes, and prepping and self-reliance groups. Visiting places like Jamestown, Old Plymouth Colony, and Sturbridge Village, or attending festivals where things are done as they were in pre-technology days, can be fun activities and educational, as well. They not only teach us things and open our minds to the possibilities, but can also inspire some to …


Scrabble and Prepping – Part 2, by St. Funogas

(Continued from Part 1.) SCRABBLE IS A MATH GAME Just as Scrabble involves math, have we applied enough math to our prepping? Do we know how long a bar of soap lasts or how many calories we need per year per person in our group? Are we just guessing or have we actually marked a tube of toothpaste with a Sharpie when we begin using it and note the date when it’s finished? Have we at least looked it up somewhere to get a rough idea on how long it will last? Do we know how long it takes for …


Scrabble and Prepping – Part 1, by St. Funogas

A few years back I was at an auction where a prepper had passed away. He had everything under the sun and appeared to be well stocked in the food department as well as many other areas. While looking over everything before the auction started, I noticed a Scrabble board game. I thought to myself, “Now here’s a guy who was really prepared for TEOTWAWKI.” It wasn’t the cheapie set with the board that folds in half and no bag to draw your tiles from. It was one of the deluxe editions with a swivel base which allows each player …


Writing Contest Prize Winners Announced — Round 119

We’ve announced the winners of Round 119 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. Note to the top three prize winners: Please contact me and let me know your UPS and USPS address(es), for your prizes. Thanks. – JWR The top three prize winners will each receive some great prize packages. The winners for Round 119 are… First Prize Winner: First Prize goes to A.F. for Preps Starter Kits for Reluctant Families. See: Part 1 and Part 2. It was posted July 8-9, 2025. He will receive as prizes: A Gunsite Academy Three Day Course Certificate. This can be used for …


Herbal Medicine Basics, by Watchman H.A.

To start off, I will give a little bit of information about myself. I am in my early twenties and currently studying at a ministerial college/ seminary near a larger U.S. city. I am located in a small rural community, that is a little too close to Washington, DC for my comfort, but I am not able to relocate at this time. I have been a long-term SurvivalBlog reader, but this is the first time that I have been able to write an article for the blog. I am by no means an expert, but I do know how to …


Memoirs of a Disaster Survivor – Part 2, by AppComms

(Continued from Part 1. This concludes the article.) Remember power sources. In 1993, I did not have a generator. Batteries and their accessibility were my power source. As mentioned earlier, batteries for radios, light sources, and even appliances are a necessity. Not to mention an emotional boost for your family and friends. Rotate batteries. You need fresh batteries in your supplies, and of all the necessary sizes. Friends, don’t forget to look out for your neighbors. They may be better prepared than you are, or not, but a friendly knock on the door and a simple question about their needs …


Memoirs of a Disaster Survivor – Part 1, by AppComms

I am a prepper who has survived three natural disasters. That doesn’t mean I am special by any means. I feel my experience is nothing more than a testimony of God’s Amazing Grace. As a retired Pastor and soon-to-be retired employee of North Carolina’s Prison system, I write to you as a southern Appalachian hillbilly with some prepping experience that may benefit you. This article is a firsthand account of my personal survival experience with three natural disasters that have affected me during my lifetime. To begin with, you should be familiar with the region where I live. I was …


Avoiding Mass Vehicular Homicide, by R.D.J.

“…The act of intentionally or unintentionally causing multiple deaths through the use of a vehicle. This can occur in various ways, including deliberate attacks, reckless driving, or accidents caused by negligence or impaired driving…” In this article we are not talking about accidental vehicular casualties, and Lord knows there are far too many of them in everyday life. No, we are talking about the deaths and injuries that result from someone deliberately driving a vehicle, statistically usually a car but occasionally a much more deadly and difficult-to-stop truck, into pedestrians either on either side of the street or occasionally in …


Lefties, Illegals And Minorities Are Finally Experiencing “Consequence Culture”, by Brandon Smith

Travel back in time to the year 2021 and you might find yourself in the middle of a bizarre debate over the virtues of “cancel culture”. At the time the political left was aggressively trying to secure long term power within the US through a multi-pronged psychological offensive – A war on the minds of the masses designed to force Americans into submission. A big part of their strategy relied on the fundamentals of Cultural Marxism: The combination of Marxist mob tactics, artificial consensus and the exploitation of minority grievances as a vehicle for controlling speech. This was the rise …


Preventing Bicycle Tire Flats: A DIY Kevlar Method, by B.C.

I’ve been trying to get a puncture in my bicycle tires for over two years now. So far, I’ve failed miserably. Background History I’ve been a bicycle rider since I was a kid, but I didn’t get serious until I got a job in a midsized town at the ripe old age of 21. Work was not within walking distance. I didn’t want to buy a car to commute to work and I held off buying one until I was in my mid-twenties. That really helped my bank account, and I got lots of exercise. The local weather was generally …


Preparedness Primer for an Uncertain Future – Part 6, by Single Farmer

Editor’s Introductory Note: This young man is prayerfully seeking a wife. He is offering an after-marriage gift of up to $50,000 to whoever introduces him to his bride with $18,000 after their marriage and another $16,000 to the individual who provided the introduction after the first two births of healthy children born to him and his wife, for a total potential gift of $50,000. For further details, see this link to his article posted on July 13th, 2025: My Quest for a Wife: I’m Willing to Move. — (Continued from Part 5. This concludes the article.) Five Hundred Dollar Prepper …


Preparedness Primer for an Uncertain Future – Part 5, by Single Farmer

(Continued from Part 4.) Most survivalists tend to concentrate on their area of expertise and interest. The majority of survivalists I know are men and we tend to accumulate guns. It is just part of the nature of man that we like tools and guns are at their most basic level tools. I know of no survivalists or preppers without at least one gun unless they are just starting out. Over time, gun collections have a tendency to grow. Gun control for a survivalist is as the joke says means “buying just one gun instead of five.” One major problem …


Preparedness Primer for an Uncertain Future – Part 4, by Single Farmer

(Continued from Part 3.) Levels of Preparedness Someday, perhaps in the 22nd Century, someone may read this and think it is comical in descriptions of what 500 dollars or 5 million dollars could buy in the first quarter of the 21st Century. This would be much the same as we look at historical books with then-catchy titles. Catherine Owen wrote “Ten Dollars Enough: Keeping House Well on Ten Dollars a Week”. That was a late 19th-century practical instructional book featuring a young couple Harry and Molly and their experiences in budgeting. Their goal back then was to “escape” a boarding …