Category: Survival Mindset

Letter: Learning New Skills Well

Hugh, It’s already February and I suppose a good 90% of all new years resolutions have come and gone. Personally I’m not a big believer in defining the thing I will start or quit each new year. Instead, every November to December, for the past 4 or 5 years, I start thinking the following: what skills will I focus on learning? To help with the learning process, I group these skills into a few major groups: self-defense, food, medical, and technical/communications. I decide which of those major groups I want to increase my knowledge in, and I focus on it …


Letter Re: What Is It That Will Really Help You Survive TEOTWAWKI?

Hugh, I wanted to let folks know how deep this goes. The writer is very prescient in identifying the threat(s). In March, I lost my job. I had worked at this corporation for 19 years, but did not survive the political culture. In early November, I lost the love of my life to a devastating disease. While I have large stockpiles of beans, bullets, and band-aids – enough to provide for my own family plus many others for a long time – these were two things that I didn’t see coming, and was totally unprepared for. I’m struggling to deal …


Reindustrialization After The Fall- Part 2, By Redneck Granddaddy

Yesterday, we took inventory of the situation two years after the balloon went up after the fall, and we realized that things could be pretty challenging. However, with charcoal and a forge, the problems we mentioned wouldn’t be such a dilemma. Yesterday, I shared several options for how to make charcoal. Today, I will share how to make a forge and more tips for smithing. So, let’s get started. Masonry Forge Boy you are ambitious to look at a masonry forge! That’s okay. Depending on your particular situation, this might be easier and or better for you. A masonry forge …


Reindustrialization After The Fall- Part 1, By Redneck Granddaddy

Okay, the balloon went up, but you were prepared enough that two years later, you and your family are still alive at your retreat. Great! Right? Well, maybe. Let’s take inventory. Post-Balloon Evaluation Food Storage Your food in storage is about gone. You have been gardening for the last ten years and thought you were golden, but the first year wasn’t near big enough. The second year you went way big and plowed more land while the tractor still ran, but you didn’t have the seed or fertilizer. Still, you carried on with composting and seed saving, but most of …


Clarity of Mind and Survival- Part 1, by The Recovering Feminist

Survival and a Clear Mind Survival necessitates recognition of both outer and inner realities, both material and immaterial truth. We tend to think externally about survival. For instance, we think of addressing food storage, first-aid, efficiency, self defense, physical preparations, et cetera, but we fail to realize that all of these decisions are influenced first by a clear and sharp mind. We all have an inner life. Whether we acknowledge it or not, the inner life affects every decision we make. Harboring bitterness over past scorn or wallowing in the life experience of betrayal influences a person’s clarity of mind. …


Life Before SHTF Was a Problem But It’s Getting Worse, by Old Bobbert

Okay, the title about life getting worse says it all. We need newer methods, procedures, styles, and formulas– stuff about problem solving. We need new ways to look at finding workable solutions to new people problems, new situations, new limitations, new responsibilities, and new rules of survival. And we, all of us, especially need new ways to maintain our sanity in the insane world of post-SHTF, and we need it in advance and in full measure. New Needs Yes, it is possible that you already have all these new needs in your fully stocked and tagged kitchen pantry. But I …


The Long View- Part 3, by J.M.

I try to have a long view, one that is both near and far in perspective. We are in the final part of this article, taking a look at the preparations required for a long-term scenario, in the event of a major societal break down. This is part of my routine, as I evaluate my own preparations compared with risk assessments. We have looked at repairs, food, water, weapons, and medical topics in the previous two portions of this article. Now let’s move on to how we keep warm and prepare our food. Heating and Cooking If you don’t live …


The Long View- Part 1, by J.M.

I try to have a long view, one that is both near and far in perspective. Whenever significant events occur, I do a quick review of my potential events risk analysis to see if anything’s changed that might impact how I’m prepared. For example, when North Korea started acting up, I realized that I needed to do some additional preparations to handle potential nuclear and EMP events. At the start of every year I also do a deep-dive review to see if there’s anything I might need to re-consider or adjust. A Question During This Year’s Review During this year’s …


Apartment Dweller Prepping- Part 2, by AKM295

When I relocated to the big city and moved into a shared apartment, I began to simultaneously look at prepping and consider how to make this work– living with others and trying to be prepared for a disaster. What I’ve Learned From Experience (continued) I’m writing about what I’ve learned over year’s of experience of living through power outages and disaster, including Hurricane Sandy. In covering topics for apartment dwellers, we have taken a look at storage, food, and water. Security When I was moving out from my childhood home, I tried to figure out how I could get my …


Apartment Dweller Prepping- Part 1, by AKM295

Precious metals, dehydrated food, bug out cabins, and surplus everything are some of things that may spring to mind, thanks to pop culture and the media, when you mention prepping to someone who isn’t familiar with the topic. Those were the things that I thought of too, when I first began looking into how I could be more prepared for an emergency or disaster I might face back when I was fresh out of college. When I Moved To A Big City Back when I was a naive graduate who moved to a big city with student debt on my …


A Great Wall: On Border Controls, Immigration, and National Survival

I have generally side-stepped the issue of immigration in SurvivalBlog, from the outset. Back in 2006, I explained why. But recent events have pushed this issue to the forefront of the national debate.  At this juncture, I’d like to make my position clear, even at the risk of perturbing some of my readers.  I can now see that immigration is not just a political issue or a policy issue. Rather, it is a matter of national survival. Even before Donald J. Trump (DJT) was seated as U.S. president, there was huge disagreement on his planned immigration and border security policies. …


Student Safety in Active Shooter Situation- Part 2, by P.N.

As an educator, I’ve been a part of many types of drills for safety, including active shooter drills. Most schools practice active shooter drills by “calling” the drill while students are already in class. When the drills are called, the teacher shuts the door (that typically is already locked from the outside) and the students sit in the corner away from the door. Then the drill is “cleared”, and that’s pretty much it. There are a variety of problems with this, and as parents we can do some things to improve the safety of our students by helping them be …


Letter Re: New Year’s Resolutions

Hi Hugh, I am interested in hearing from the readers about their New Year’s resolutions. Some of mine are: I will include daily prayer for my family members who are not prepared. (Yes, I have been guilty of leaving them out in my daily prayers.) I will go off the grid for as long as I can using what resources I have at hand and keep up to military standards of hygiene, cleanliness, and good health. Plus, I will maintain communications. (My only exception is toilet flushing; I was thinking of digging a latrine and reminding myself and family when …


How To Prep For … Throwing In The Towel- Part 2, by DR in Tennessee

Yesterday, we began by asking many questions to determine just how prepared and ready you were for a situation when you or your spouse were unable to continue daily or regular responsibilities around the homestead. It is apparent that many preppers are aging and just can’t do the independent prepping and property maintenance and management they had envisioned and begun decades earlier. So, in part one of this article series, we discussed some of what it takes to prepare your property for sale. Today’s Reality That brings us to today’s reality. Plan now for a time when the Good Lord …


How To Prep For … Throwing In The Towel- Part 1, by DR in Tennessee

Certainly if you read this blog frequently, you know why and how we prepare. The archives of SurvivalBlog are an unmatched treasure trove of practical and technical survival wisdom. This article is designed to offer practical guidance of another kind. It’s intended to encourage mature individuals to imagine a different type of prepping. I want you to think long and hard about your realistic future as successful long-time preppers. I write this based on personal experience and with firsthand knowledge of the experiences of others who share my age and attitude about preparedness. Those of you who may be relatively …