Category: Survival Mindset

The Thin Veneer

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Editor’s Introductory Note: This is a re-post from the early days of SurvivalBlog, back in August, 2005. Blog Years are like Dog Years. To explain: SurvivalBlog has been published since before most people had even heard the word “blog” for the first time. A piece this old has probably never been read by 90% of the current SurvivalBlog readership. So we feel fairly safe in re-posting it. BTW, we recommend that any new readers take a look through the archives of SurvivalBlog’s first year, to come up to speed on our jargon, core beliefs, and unique acronyms. – JWR o …


Some Lessons Are Learned Too Late For Some Of Us, by Old Bobbert

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There are some lessons that I’ve learned in my life. I will start out by sharing some of the problems I see and their solutions. Then, we’ll move on from there. Proper Preparation Prevents Poor Performance Preparation is key. Proper preparation prevents poor performance. Without it, there is trouble. Here are some problems that occur and solutions that can resolve them. #1 Problem/Solution #1 Problem: There are powerful and extremely dangerous storms moving inland from the Atlantic. The Solution: None. #2 Problem/Solution #2 Problem: Five million people were ordered by the state government to evacuate the southern half of Florida. …


My Longer Lesson, by D.D.

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This is the sequel to my submission published 9/11/15. I am temped to follow in the steps of Larry Niven’s unfinished short story in which he said, “There are some things man was not meant to know.”, and simply write “I should’ve learned.” However, that won’t help you. So, let me expound. Those You Think Most Likely To Become Prep Allies Probably Won’t My piece of three years ago basically concluded, with some level of frustration, that the people you think are most likely to become your prep allies probably won’t. So save yourself the disappointment and stop trying to …


‘Twas the Night After SHTF- Part 2, by H.C.

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The intent of my article is to first, bring to view the reluctance issues we have that keep us from securing our stuff, and also to think ahead when actually doing it. The only thing worse than not hiding your preps, is hiding them poorly! Common Arguments About Caching (continued) In part 1, we began listing and addressing some of the common arguments against caching. Let’s continue with this. I Will Defend My Stuff If Necessary Will you defend your stuff? Have you thought all of that through? If you are caught off guard with a couple of nasty people …


‘Twas the Night After SHTF- Part 1, by H.C.

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Twas a night after SHTF, when all through the house, Not a creature was stirring, except for the louse; The rifle was hung over the chimney with care, In hopes not to use it, but to know it was there;   The children were nestled all snug in their beds, While visions of normalcy, danced in their heads; And mamma still canning, and I getting undressed, Had just been discussing how we felt so blessed;   When out on the lawn there arose such a clatter, I sprang with my rifle to see what was the matter; Away to the …


Guest Article: Seven People You Don’t Want in Your Group, by Kit Perez

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Editor’s Introductory Note: This article first appeared in the American Partisan blog. It is re-posted with permission. I get a lot of questions about recruiting. How to do it, when to do it, when not to. While the best way to answer those questions is in an actual class (and there are still a few spots open in the webinar class I’m teaching on it), there are some hard and fast rules about the type of people you want and don’t want in your group. In fact, there’s a list of automatic disqualifications that I tend to use and teach …


Knowledge For Outside The Norm, by Phoenix WEA

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If you’re like me and you spend a great deal of time reading articles and books or viewing videos about survival and prepping, this article will resonate with you. Getting out there with boots on the ground, learning the basics, is very important. However, what I would like to offer you today are some out-of-the-box suggestions to keep in mind while you train. It’s knowledge for outside the norm. Water To start, if your scenario requires you to walk several miles to get home, you will need water. Well, most people don’t think about the water that’s in the pipes …


Prepping and Practical Minimalism- Making Them Coexist- Part 2, by FLSnappyTurtle

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In part 1, I stated the I believed prepping and practical minimalism can coexist. It seems a bit of an oxymoron to have both the words “prepping” and “minimalism” in the same phrase, but I believe it makes sense. We are renters, and recently I stepped back for a moment to take a good look at our way of living and our stuff. We had too much of it. Facing another cross-country move, I started taking inventory of everything we own and made some tough decisions about what to do away with. I’ve developed a new attitude of what I …


Prepping and Practical Minimalism- Making Them Coexist- Part 1, by FLSnappyTurtle

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My family has been prepping at a slower-than-desired rate for the past eight years. Like many survivalists, we add to our gear, food, and water supply as money and time permit. We are renters and tote our items from place to place when a move is required. Practical Minimalism Recently, I stepped back for a moment to take a good look at our way of living and our stuff. We had too much of it. Facing another cross-country move, I started taking inventory of everything we own and made some tough decisions about what to do away with. I’ve developed …


Letter Re: The New Urban Fortress, by M.H.

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The author of the “Urban Fortress – Part 1 & 2” wanted feedback: Septic Residential septic tanks are available in 1,000, 1,500, and 2,000 gallon sizes. Builders routinely install a 1,000-gallon tank. Two 2,000 gallon tanks are better: one connected only to toilets for sanitary material, and the other connected to everything else for “gray water,” each with independent leach fields, each leach field having 50-100% greater capacity than required for the projected load. (Research “septic system distribution boxes”.) Building plumbing should be designed to allow sanitary-only piping to be easily reconnected to the gray water piping in the event …


Survival Notes from Canada – September 22, 2018:

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Hi, folks. Clint Ekert here, your trusty reporter from Canada, reporting on the nations hot topics. Hot Topics First off on our hot topics list is Quebec CAQ is poised to win the Quebec election. One of the laws they plan on putting in place is that newly arrived immigrants must pass a test to pass basic knowledge within a period of three years or be deported to their home country. Our prime minister, a former drama school teacher, has recently commissioned a “study” to ban handguns and assault weapons ahead of the election. As Clint sits here, I need …


Common Sense Preparation, by D.A.

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Over the years, I have become frustrated with my tribe’s lack of preparation progress. We need common sense preparation. After much reading on the subject, I realized there was no way our budget would support hard-core disaster prepping. This caused me to review our current state of readiness for the most likely threats we would face. The result of this review was that we were not making the best use of the resources we already had in place. In fact, until this review, we were unaware of resources already in place for which no money was spent to acquire. The …


Survival Notes from Canada- September 14, 2018, by Clint Ekert

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As my children lie asleep above me, I am writing this for you, my fellow, respectable believer of the Christian faith. I need to draw the line somewhere. I have little to no inclination to assist non-believers in either disaster preparation or in what is righteous. I speak to the respectable, Christian believers of good faith. What is respectable, you might ask? I would define it as a person who defines themselves as a Christian and who actually is concerned with the health and safety of other Christians. The Threat To Western, Christian Values In church last week a fellow …


Practice Makes Perfect- Part 2, by BON

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As I stated in part 1, real world practice beats newly acquired knowledge every time. To be truly prepared for a survival situation, one needs to have practiced practical knowledge of the various skills that are required. In part 1, we covered setting up a test, various sources for power, and sanitation. Let’s move forward to one of the most critical resources we have– water. Water, One of the Most Critical Needs One of the most critical needs is going to be water. Are you storing water? Do you have enough? Use the grid down weekend to determine how much …


Practice Makes Perfect- Part 1, by BON

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We live in a time when information on virtually any subject can be found with little effort. Prior to the Internet, in order to pick up a new skill or gain new knowledge on a subject, one had to learn by trial and error or find an expert to pass along information. With the plethora of blogs, websites, forums, and videos found online, “expert” level knowledge can be found without ever leaving the comforts of home. Knowledge Put Into Practice While knowledge is always a good thing, the only way to truly understand any subject is to get hands on …