Category: Contest

A Scanner for TEOTWAWKI – Part 3, by Tunnel Rabbit

(Continued from Part 2. This concludes the article.) External Antennas, Detecting Potential threats at greater distances When using a scanner to sweep the band, or scan a list of frequencies, the scanner is much more sensitive and hears weak signals as well as strong signals. When using the Close Call feature that also sweeps the band, only strong signals that are very nearby (within 100 to 200 yards), might be detected. Some brands of scanners other than Uniden, may also have a similar Close Call feature, and might have more a sensitive receiver Sofware Defined Radio (SDR) frequency counter or …


A Scanner for TEOTWAWKI – Part 2, by Tunnel Rabbit

(Continued from Part 1.) ‘Sweeping’ a Band If one can afford to buy several scanners, then that would be optimal. We should have at least three, given the old adage: “3 is 2, and 2 is 1, and 1 is none.” We can keep one spare scanner in a Faraday cage, and store it elsewhere. Then use the other two scanners: One to scan from a list, and the other to sweep the band, or particular parts of a band. Each scanner will have an operator’s manual to help. If I could only sweep one band, then it would be …


A Scanner for TEOTWAWKI – Part 1, by Tunnel Rabbit

Introduction: Why Should We Use A Scanner? To most people, scanners could not be any more sublimely unimportant, and boring, and completely irrelevant pursuit of yesteryear. Especially as we have aged, and because the age of digital radio is here. Apparently, our old dusty scanner is obsolete. So why bother? Because security will be job #1. Scanning provides a golden opportunity to improve our situational awareness. We must do all that can be done to remove the element of surprise at a survival retreat. A simple scanner is one of those low-cost options that is a significant force multiplier. It …


Progress on My Farm – Part 2, by Animal House

My son put the greenhouse kit together after the spring rains ended. It was quite an effort but he did a good job and added extra reinforcement to withstand strong winds. That year we learned a lot more about starting seeds and transplanting them into the ground. As fall began, we got some portable propane heaters, which were connected to small propane tanks. Those worked well until we had a three-day ice storm when we couldn’t leave the farm to refill the propane tanks. After speaking with my son, I decided to order a sawmill at the end of the …


Progress on My Farm – Part 1, by Animal House

The following is an overview of our farm progress at the end of 2021. For those of you who don’t know me, I am a widow and grandmother of retirement age. Eight years ago I bought a country property in the mid-south 300 miles from a large metropolitan area and two-hours away from a large city and one hour away from a small city with a hospital and medical specialists. The closest town has two gas stations, a pharmacy, a medical family practice, and two grocery stores, some fast food places, and a few other family-owned businesses. The property had …


The Here and Now, by Mark M.

Like many of you, I’ve read many articles on what to do when the SHTF or TEOTWAWKI. With the fear being put out by the media and politicians regarding Covid, many people who had never heard of prepping, survivalists, or even the acronym SHTF, are now getting quickly up to date. For all the articles out there, once you sort the wheat from the chaff, there are usually some great pieces of advice regarding what to do when the SHTF, what to include in prepping, building a bugout plan, etc. But, what about the here and now? The time before …


Hands-On Self-Sufficient Living in Florida, by Bonnie R.

Introduction I have lived in Southwest Florida for my entire life. My dad is a Florida-raised, University of Florida graduate. My mother spent half her childhood in Indiana and the other half in Naples, Florida. Before my siblings and I were born, my parents started a semi-successful beekeeping business that has been going strong for thirty years. Now, I say “semi-successful” because when you’re running a beekeeping business you rely mostly on nature; and nature is something that is depleting with every passing year. However, they built this business well enough that they were able to homeschool and raise seven …


Can You Survive Without Meat When The SHTF?, by Ken Gallender

I’d like to start this article with saying that I am not a tree hugger. I love meat, eggs, cheese and fish. I’m not trying to convince anyone to quit hunting and fishing. I have been an outdoorsman my entire life. I drive and use 4×4 trucks and ATVs every week. I just want to impart what has profoundly changed my life. I have given a lot of thought to how we would survive and provide the protein requirements for my family if suddenly we were faced with the prospect of having no supermarket or source of meat and dairy …


My Rules To Live By, by Brad F.

Author’s Introductory Note: This was written for high school students that are attending the Alternate High School in the American Redoubt which the local Rotary Club has taken an interest to mentor and expose the students to various job possibilities and for a few, higher education opportunities. This was to be a handout and discussion on each topic as this was to be an opening to talk and expand each item as the students wanted. Then a presentation on being an entrepreneur either by buying or starting a business and how to finance such business. Of course, a person will …


Fulltime Living in a Wall Tent, by Tim S.

As we watch the waning of 2021, and witness another emergency (re: Omicron) that the media, tech and the left has deployed to further erode our personal rights and freedoms, my young family have also seen the anniversary of Year Two of living off grid, in tents. It is getting colder. The firewood is stacked. Our root cellar is filled, the chickens properly housed, a bit of insulation thrown on top of the tent and … there is still a whole bunch to do. BACKGROUND When Covid hit we were (like many) Canadians, suddenly reno-victed from our apartment. In part, …


Raising Meat Birds in a Garage, by SaraSue

I recently read that there are chicken shortages in the supply chain (specifically “chicken tenders”) and I’m not going to discuss why. I’m writing this because many people who read the blog do not have a homestead or even a large back yard and worry about supply chain shortages. I hope to give you some ideas on how you can raise your own meat birds in limited space or under restricted conditions. As I wrote this it occurred to me that I was recreating “factory farmed” chicken production. That made me sad, but desperate times call for desperate measures. The …


Stuff Ain’t Enough, by Tunnel Rabbit

Suck It Up, Buttercup Because of several severe and concurrent illnesses, and advancing age, my income is no exaggeration, nearly noth’n. It is waaay below the poverty line, perhaps $3,000 per year with half of that going towards prepping. And so, I must live like a neo-pioneer. I do not receive a check from any source. In my book, no goobermint, is good goobermint, and dependence on any government is a trap, a trap that I would easily qualify for. I live as folks imagine they might have to live during a collapse, and in perhaps tougher circumstances than they …


Your Red Bags: Stop The Bleed – Part 2, by Philip J. Goscienski, M.D.

(Continued from Part 1. This concludes the article.) Things to consider beyond bleeding No matter how good you are at stopping a hemorrhaging blood vessel, you or someone that you designate must call 9-1-1 right now! Don’t say “Somebody call 9-1-1!” Bob may think that John will call; John thinks that Bob is calling – and no one calls. Instead designate: “John, call 9-1-1!” If you are faced with more than one victim, which might occur in a motor vehicle accident, decide as quickly as you can where the worst bleeding is occurring – which person and which part of …


Your Red Bags: Stop The Bleed – Part 1, by Philip J. Goscienski, M.D.

When the shooting stops but the bleeding doesn’t, are you really prepared? Approximately 40,000 Americans die every year from injuries that result in severe bleeding, a condition that can drain life away in as little as four minutes. The massacre at Sandy Hook, Connecticut on December 14th, 2012, was a tipping point. In that dreadful event twenty students, all only six or seven years old, and six staff members were gunned down by Adam Lanza, who had earlier murdered his mother and subsequently took his own life. Shortly thereafter members of the American College of Surgeons, the Department of Defense, …


Smallpox? – Managing a Serious Possibility, by SwampFox

Author’s Intoductory Disclaimer: I am not a medical professional and am not prescribing anything to anyone. Seek out appropriate advice and medical treatment from your own medical professional. — Covid-19 has been unpleasant for many reasons. However, it is not particularly lethal. It is interesting to notice that in the midst of so many restrictions and social changes, the Biden administration has promised us a couple of things: A “Dark Winter” and the “Next Pandemic.” Bill Gates has also called Covid19 the “first pandemic” and has proposed that society should prepare for “Pandemic 2.” How prepared are you for something …