Category: Survival Mindset

Seven Survival Tips For the Modern Feminist- Take II, by J

Greetings, Following-up to a previous article submitted with the same base title, I decided to continue the discussion. The modern feminist is a hindrance to survival and preparedness in our society. This essay is much harsher and more straight-forward than the last, because frankly there is no time to waste. It does no service to a hard-core feminist to be soft spoken and patient now, especially knowing that she needs to hear the cold, hard truth! With the recent graduation of two female Rangers, this country has quickly propelled itself towards a full-speed push for women in combat. Who is …


Windstorm 2015 Washington, by ShepherdFarmerGeek

So, in Washington this week on 11/17/15 and almost a year to the day of last year’s massive windstorm, we had another massive windstorm. Last year, at our place, we had a single sustained 70 mph gust that broke 10 trees in half. This year we had multiple 70+ mph gusts that only broke down six trees. (God must want me to have a lot of firewood.) The wind blasted and mangled many of our roof shingles along with those of perhaps thousands of other homes, outbuildings, and businesses in a wide swath. The howling winds lasted about 12 hours …


Left Of Boom”– A Different Way of Thinking About Prepping, by The Retired Professor

“Left of Boom” is originally a military term referring to the timeline before an explosion. When the explosion happens (the boom), then the timeline shifts to “right of boom”. Left of boom is where you want to be. This gives you time to avert the explosion, or at least prepare for it. Right of boom is where you do not want to be. Being right of boom means you now have to shift from averting and preparing to focusing on recovery. The whole concept embraces a timeline of “before”, “during”, and “after” a calamity, be it personal or systemic. On …


Normalcy Bias, by KR in TN

Most people I know enjoy a little adventure. While it may not be sky diving, even the more reserved, quiet spirits appreciate a change of pace. Some get their kicks from visiting the mouse at his Magic Kingdom, while others get it from a morning in the tree stand or an afternoon under the hood. Regardless of what they do, folks like to break up the monotony of the daily grind. Doing the same ole’ same ole’ gets old, but the day to day life we live is what we’ve come to expect. Yesterday was the same as the day …


To Prepare or Not to Prepare, by M.S.

As a father and a husband of four children, I ask any one of you out there, man or woman, how we can flip back and forth between the local news channels or news apps and not consider the need to prepare? Whether you’re reading about the “Radical Islamists” that so many of our politicians refuse to label as such or the tornadoes touching down in the Midwest in November, or perhaps you remember Hurricane Katrina and all the helpless people that quite honestly would probably have done almost anything for a few gallons of water or food. How can …


Homesteading for a Single Female Senior Citizen, by V.P.

1

Yes, it is possible to make your dreams come true at any age! Twelve years ago, at age 52 and after 31 years of marriage, I found myself divorced and ready for a new chapter in my life. I had always been rather self-sufficient, so being alone was not a daunting situation. My former hobby– singlehanded sailing– gave me the courage and confidence to start a new life. After the divorce, I lived aboard my boat for a couple of years, but something in my spirit kept telling me to go back to the land. When I was a child, …


Letter Re: Things to Prep For

Just thought I’d send a note to let you know some thoughts. I use my hands for everything. One of the biggest things I would say to stock up on is rubber gloves for yourself and the kids. It hurts to do the dishes with cuts on your fingers. Rubber gloves take care of that problem, but they do rip easily. You need another pair for changing the composting toilet, another for doing laundry by hand when you have bleach in the water, and another pair for anything gross that comes up. Also we have used the disposable gloves quite …


Letter: Things That May Be Essential But One Never Sees Mentioned

Hugh, Little things mean a lot. Here’s a few: Imodium – Avoid dehydration, discomfort, and dis-association. Ant-acids – Nothing worse that having to puke while you’re trying to hide. Shoe Laces -Two things: Moving about with loose shoes. Taking them off if laces are knotted. Tire stuff – Makes for an intense fire. Especially useful in wet conditions. Usually found by road sides. Hand restorer – Nothing is easy with split finger tips. And there’s lots more everyday stuff, when one thinks about it! – A friend!


Attaining Food in Urban Locations (From Land and Sea)- Part 1, by Cracker Makk

If it has hair, feathers, or scales, it is edible. In the desperate times that lay ahead, people are going to have to make a choice. They’ll either become self-sufficient and revert back to the practices of our ancestors (the hunter/gatherers) or stand there with their hand out and wait for something that isn’t coming. You need to learn how to keep your body nourished and feed the ones you love. The truth is there are food sources everywhere around us that are easily obtainable with a little patience and technical know-how. However, many people in this country have become …


Letter: Hoarding Silver, Gold and Diamonds

Hugh, I remember when I was young and would sit for hours listening to the depression stories that the old people would tell. One thing that stuck in my mind was that the only time that precious metals or stones were worth much was during times of plenty when you could buy products with them. I watched my grandfather open his safe from time to time, and he would show me the gold and diamonds he had in it from years ago. Seems that when urban dwellers who were rich ran out of food, they would come to trade and …


Change Your Clocks and Change Your Batteries, Water, Et Cetera, by R.C.

This time of year we must change our clocks, fall back or spring forward. As a retired firefighter and EMT, I take this seriously. If your smoke detectors are over 10 years old, please change the unit. This twice a year rotation also offers us a chance to rotate other items we have stored in our preps. It is important to have someone verify that you have rotated your stocks, like a group check off or a family weekend project. Fuel First is the gasoline. Every six months you can dump the 5-gallon containers into your truck. Luckily, I had …


Letter Re: What’s a Dime Worth?

HJL, The contributor states $4 today will buy: “Now, we ask, when we walk down the aisles of our local grocery store, what’s currently priced for about $4? Let’s start with the staples: Two gallons of milk Two or three loaves of bread Two or three dozen eggs” I am not sure where he is shopping, but it is obvious it is not in the USA. Milk is closer to $4 for ONE gallon, bread (decent bread) is over $3 a loaf, and eggs are selling from $3-6 a dozen depending on organic/ NON Gmo etc he also writes: For …


It’s TEOTWAWKI and the Living’s Easy, by N.M.

I’m talking about the upside of long-term, remote, Rocky Mountain survival. The very fact that you are reading this essay means that you are concerned about the state of the world around you and that you have serious concerns about what you are seeing. Whether your concerns center on the threat of attack from outside forces, economic collapse, fears that elected officials in the American government are taking us irreparably away from the government envisioned by our founding fathers (my concern), or the Zombie Apocalypse (my wife’s favorite), you’ve decided that the time has come to prepare for the possibility …


Our Family’s Journey to Preparing For an Extended Grid Down Event- Part 2, by Old Man

Katrina was one of those life-changing moments, when we awoke and realized how unprepared we really were. Katrina caused us to completely overhaul and step up our prepping. We changed many things, but for purposes of this article I will focus on the power aspects. We began to ask ourselves what would we do if we had no power for weeks. We answered that question by taking an inventory of everything electrical in the house. Due to the work we previously did with reducing our electrical usage, we had a complete inventory. Additionally, as an unanticipated benefit, we had already …


Letter: Another Note on Infant Nutrition

Hugh, We raised six healthy kids on a diet best described as “locally grown, in harmony with the seasons”. Unless you’ve got the food stockpile of the century, you too will soon be eating primarily “locally grown, in harmony with the seasons” when those refrigerated rail cars quit rolling and are looted out. We live in the grain belt, and whole grains in one form or another play a major role in our diet as they have for much of mankind’s history. I’m not talking about white bread, Doritos, or noodles here but the “Staff of Life” freshly milled whole …