Category: Retreat Logistics

Letter Re: Non-Hybrid Seeds at COSTCO Stores

Jim, While perusing the Costco web site, I noted that Costco is now stocking “Preparedness Storage Non-GMO Garden Seeds” — and they’re non-hybridized, which makes them good for saving seed in a true survival situation. The bucket contains 24 varieties of seeds, including the “usual suspects” like corn, peas, tomatoes, and carrots as well as some more unusual plants like eggplant, swiss chard, cabbage and kohlrabi. Just finding it interesting that it seems like prepping has gone totally mainstream, and that Costco is leading the charge! Best, – S.J. JWR Replies: In my Rawles Gets You Ready Preparedness Course, I describe …


Letter Re: Storage Food At COSTCO Stores

Jim, I just noticed while in COSTCO today that they have 6 gallon buckets of freeze dried food on offer. For $99, you get a one-month supply of 2100 calories a day, enough for one adult. I wonder how many people caught in the megastorm that hammered the East Coast recently had any food stored in, and how difficult it was for most folks to get provisions before the stores were stripped bare?  Just another reason to keep something one hand. For more variety, though, folks should really consider storing other stuff, as taught in your Rawles Gets You Ready …


Functions, Not Lists!, by Travis K.

This blog has endless resources for researching the needs and goals of a person preparing for an anticipated event.  Whether that event is unemployment, extended backpacking, or a SHTF scenario, you are likely to develop a “to-do list” for that event.   These lists might be compiled on loose paper, on a computer, or lodged in your brain.  Most of us make lists in one form or another since they are invaluable for organization.   While a “to-do list” is convenient for simple events such as going to the grocery store, they tend to be detrimental to a project such as “prepping”.  …


MYDS: My Resolution For 2013, by J.L.

What is MYDS? It’s not prepping, it’s not hoarding, it’s not a disease or even a mental condition and it certainly isn’t unpatriotic or terrorism.  What is it about, then? It is about being provident. Actually, MYDS stands for Make it Your Darn Self!  That is my Philosophy and Motto for 2013! Provident means to prepare for the future.  Why?  Why take the time, the effort, or the expense to be provident?  Look around us.  Look at the world we live in.  Look at the economic and political climate.  There seems to be no rhyme or reason to anything.  Everything …


Planning for Double Duty, By Lane C.

Doing “Double Duty” is a concept that I was first introduced to during my first enlistment in the US Army.   It is a term that simply implies that an item or material (or person) could be utilized to fulfill an additional purpose besides the one that it was specifically designed or trained for.  As a young soldier in an infantry company, I quickly learned the value of being able to “get creative” with my equipment and supplies in order to increase their versatility and make them go farther.  Chances are that this idea is not new to you.  With our …


How Necessity Became the Mother of Invention, by Sandra W.

I’ve always been a “glass is half full…when life hands you lemons you make lemonade…” kind of person.  So despite a divided nation after this recent election, geopolitical unrest, and our nation on the brink of financial collapse, I still see the silver lining.  My husband and I purchased a small 900 square foot home, because it was all we could afford.  It was near the height of the housing bubble so we bought high.  We then spent the next four years, remodeling the one bathroom the tiny kitchen and living room to suit our needs.  After investing tens of …


More Tips on Prepping on a Budget, by S.T.

How do you manage the extra expense of prepping when you are already cash strapped? After all, it is like buying for two households. When you are cost conscious you are able to purchase more. I am going to share my experience with you. I am a single Mom of three and started prepping about a year ago. I would clip coupons and pick up extra cans of veggies a couple of times a month. When I started looking a sites on the internet that listed all the items to have on hand, I became concerned that my cans of …


Medical Prepping in Three Months — Part 2 of 2, by Cynthia J. Koelker, MD

As of today, many families are still suffering from the effects of Superstorm Sandy.  Are you prepared, should such a disaster strike your area? The following is offered as an outline for medical prepping, should you someday find yourself without access to professional medical care.  (Part 1 of this series covered weeks 1 through 6.) Please note the following abbreviations: ORG = organizational concerns OTC = over-the-counter products Rx = prescription products ED = education and skills The supplies listed under OTC can all be purchased without a prescription, though some are only available online.  For prescription items, assess what …


Prepping Across Three States, by Kris S.

Many years ago, my two childhood friends and I began to prep for TEOTWAWKI.  At first, we just began buying whatever was recommended by certain web sites, throwing our equipment into a box and then telling the others about what we have.  Doing this allowed us to collect many things, however we were not sure what was really practical since we never used the items.  We decided to change this about five years ago when we got serious about what we are doing and decided to take a camping trip.  The camping trip would include about a one mile hike …


Attitude Adjustment, by Dena M.

As a single mother of two I know and live the word budget all to well. My income is limited and I have wasted a lot of time and money because I was too focused on getting ‘only the best.’ I quickly realized that the path I was on was getting me nowhere. I began to look at past purchases and realized that a lot of my purchases were unnecessary and quite frankly irresponsible. If I wanted to better guarantee the safety and sanity of myself and my young children, I needed to take a different path to self-sufficiency and …


Survivor Mindset: One Man’s Trash Is Another Man’s Treasure, by J.A.P. in New Mexico

We have all heard the old idiom: “One man’s trash is another man’s treasure.” This basically means that something that one person considers worthless may be considered valuable by someone else. This could not be further from the truth in the mind of any survivor. You could branch out into every aspect and area of survival with this mindset at your core. Water, food, fire, shelter, and security can all be obtained with this in mind.   I believe that in a survival situation and in everyday life that everything around you is valuable and has multiple uses. I also …


Starting From Nothing: Preparing Quickly, Efficiently and Cost-Consciously, by C.M.F.

My husband and I are new to the concept of prepping and self-sufficient living, having just begun the process in the last 30 to 60 days. Our journey when world events began to heat up in the Middle East and we started asking “what if” questions. Our ignorance means that we have a lot of learning, practicing and catching up to do. I am fairly confident that we are not the only ones to slowly become aware of the necessity of preparing. I thought that I would share what we have done to get started in the hopes that this …


Prepping for Newbies, by M.G.D.

If you’re just now catching on to the need to prep, it’s not too late, but to be done effectively, it will cost you some money up front. There are plenty of suggestions and web sites galore for the budget-challenged to prep ranging from buying a little extra each week—see the LDS shopping list for newlyweds—to hunting, fishing and foraging on state land. At the other extreme are those who can afford survivalist-consultants to build and stock extensive underground bunkers, which require the employ of a staff including farmers and Blackwater-type security. But, since no one else is, I’m going …


Letter Re: Amish Bent, Dent & Expired Stores

Dear JWR; When visiting relatives in Ohio Amish country, we always stop by two or three Amish “bent & dent” stores.  These stores purchase truckloads of goods that have just expired, are about to expire or are in some other way slightly flawed at very, very, very low prices, and sell them at very, very low prices.  Some examples:  Starbucks coffee in sealed, non-expired bags for $2.50 (used to be 75 cents, the owners have been raising the prices over time), normally $12.50 at the grocer.  Swiss Toblerone chocolate bars, normally $4 for 50 cents.  Feminine hygiene products at 20% of the …


Letter Re: Quick Tip to Stocking Up Via Amazon

Jim: I just discovered something today that I wanted to share.  I have zero time in life to spend stocking up.  Amazon.com has a “subscribe and save” feature that provides additional savings on over 24,000 items under the grocery category.  You can choose to subscribe (meaning set up regular deliveries) when adding to the Amazon shopping cart, or just make a one time purchase.  I did some comparison shopping and found the subscribe price for coffee (whole bean or ground) to be even better than Wal-Mart or any of the big box stores in my area.  Go to www.amazon.com and …