Letter Re: How to Butcher a Squirrel

Dear Sir,
I write to correct a glaring omission in the now-archived SurvivalBlog article "How to Butcher a Squirrel", by B.T.: There was no mention of scraping the "Vel" from inside the skin as this is the only fat available on a squirrel or rabbit.
 
Eating only lean meat protein can take a lot of energy to digest and if under cooked it may result in it taking more energy to digest it than you get from it so you deplete your reserves instead of adding to them.
 
Without this fat you have wasted the energy held within. Many of your trappers in the 18th century died of starvation while eating scores of rabbits, I would not want the mistakes of history to be repeated by those who do not know them.
 
Also I did not see any reference to Hantavirus or removal of the gall bladder or the inclusion of the  heart, liver and kidneys in the stew.

You do not know me but I have been living the life all my life. I was taught how to skin and dress a rabbit without a knife as well as how to cook it in its own skin–no waste!
 
My warmest regards and best wishes in the success of your new book, – Gavin W.

Economics and Investing:

Silver Prices Beaten Down By a Strong Dollar

Chris G. recommended this: California and Bust . Chris notes that this article was recently referenced by Rush Limbaugh and in Zero Hedge.
 
Quick Fix In Europe? Dream On

 

Items from The Economatrix:

The End Of The Inflation/Deflation Debate

There is No Plan to Fix The Economy

Economists Agree:  We Are in a Depression

From California to New York, the Tide of Protests Keeps Rising

Some observations (circa 2007) from the late Derry Brownfield: Our Land is Collateral for the National Debt.

Occupy Wall Street:  The Word is Getting Out

More People Sought Unemployment Aid Last Week

Is US Economy Flirting with Modern-day Depression?

Odds ‘n Sods:

Absolute OPSEC Stupidity: Hiding Gold in All the Unusual Places. A reader in Nevada wrote to mention that he found Chad Venzke’s home address in Wisconsin in less than a minute with an internet search. Even worse than waking up to find his yard dotted with holes would be waking up to see a pistol in his face, and a demand to “Take a little walk, with a shovel.”

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For anyone that is considering moving to North-Central Idaho, be sure to check out the latest ultralight flying video by “ttabs”. It looks like most of it was shot over Elk River, Orofino, Dworshak Reservoir, and the edges of the Camas Prairie. Great stuff! (This is the same gent who shot the fantastic video showing some of the towns in the eastern Palouse Hills region that were settings for my first novel, “Patriots.”)

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Over at KK Cool Tools: Portable AC Power–Alien Bees Vagabond Mini. JWR’s Comments: Not bad for $240. Note the USB output and Anderson Power Pole input (for 12 VDC charging) connectors. Obviously a very good design. OBTW, there are several reviews of this unit by professional photographers available at YouTube.

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More painful truth in The Eye of The BeHolder: Executive Branch: Republicans Say Holder Received at Least 5 Fast and Furious Memos. (See the PDF of the heavily-redacted memos.)

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France bans ketchup in cafeterias. (This news brought to you by The Ketchup Advisory Board.)

Jim’s Quote of the Day:

“And David spake unto the LORD the words of this song in the day [that] the LORD had delivered him out of the hand of all his enemies, and out of the hand of Saul:
And he said, The LORD [is] my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer;
The God of my rock; in him will I trust: [he is] my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my high tower, and my refuge, my saviour; thou savest me from violence.
I will call on the LORD, [who is] worthy to be praised: so shall I be saved from mine enemies.
When the waves of death compassed me, the floods of ungodly men made me afraid;
The sorrows of hell compassed me about; the snares of death prevented me;
In my distress I called upon the LORD, and cried to my God: and he did hear my voice out of his temple, and my cry [did enter] into his ears.” – 2 Samuel 22:1-7 (KJV)

Note from JWR:

I was pleased to see that Amazon.com has dropped their price on my novel “Survivors” again, to just $12.92. That’s not bad for a hardback book, these days. The price drop is no doubt based on economies of scale. They keep re-ordering a lot of books from my publisher!

Letter Re: Homemade Powder Solvent For Gun Cleaning

Sir:
I’m a benchrest shooter and gunsmith, and I use quite a bit of cleaning solvent. When I used to buy it, I would buy it by the pint bottles. While not terribly expensive, it was still a cost. I asked fellow shooters what they used and most did as I did, buy it. Then I asked a very successful shooter what he used and he said “my own brew”! Just what I wanted to hear. He was nice enough to share his brew mixture, and that is all I’ve used since.

There are a couple main things you’re trying to do, or combat, with cleaning solvents: carbon fouling and copper fouling. Carbon is the byproduct of the burned powder. Copper fouling is bullet jacket material that has plated itself in the bore. If you used lead bullets, you would have to contend with that, but I don’t, so this is targeted for using copper jacketed bullets. Carbon is probably the toughest to get rid of, it is extremely hard and stubborn. It can build up and degrade accuracy. The best way to keep it in check is to not let it build up in the first place, by cleaning when the barrel is new and not shoot a hundred rounds before cleaning. But sometimes you have to deal with what you have, now. Copper fouling does the same thing, it builds up in the barrel and just keeps getting worse.

If you get a used gun and it is fouled pretty bad, you may want to use something other than this cleaner at first. Abrasive cleaners (JB’s, Iosso) do a good job of getting through this stuff. It takes some elbow grease to work it back and forth and you need to keep changing patches, but it will get through it. Once the rough stuff is gone, then using this mixture cleaner will get the rest. [JWR Adds: The general consensus is to avoid abrasive bore cleaners, unless it is absolutely necessary. In my opinion, on a very pressing emergency would dictate that. Otherwise, nothing more abrasive than a brass bore brush should ever be used.]

[JWR Adds This Warning: All of the usual precautions for handling caustic and flammable fluids must be taken, such as wearing goggles and rubber gloves.]

So how to make it? There is an initial expense to this, but it goes a long way and my formula makes quite a bit. First, go to a GM car dealer, and buy a few cans of “GM Top Engine Cleaner”, ask if they have it in the metal can. It is my understanding the newer Top Engine Cleaner comes in a plastic bottle, and may not be as effective. I’m not sure since I have the metal can cleaner. I would think it would still work okay. It comes in a 15 ounce can and it the basis for the cleaner. It has the chemicals in it for fighting carbon deposits. [JWR Adds: Very similar products are sold under various brand names as Upper Cylinder Lubrication & Injector Cleaner.] You can scale how much solvent that you want to formulate in a batch by the number of cans of Top Engine Cleaner that you buy. The second ingredient will be the hardest to get, and that is strong ammonia. Ideally, find a blueprint shop, large printing shop, and ask if they have 28% ammonia. It comes in a gallon jug. Trust me, don’t sniff it, it will clean your sinus’ like you’ve never known. The next ingredient is Marvel Mystery Oil that you can get in most auto parts stores. Lastly is regular Hydrogen Peroxide which you probably already have.

Get a colored glass container, brown, blue, something that is tinted. All of these solvents comes in colored glass to keep out sunlight. Some of the whiskey/bourbon/scotch bottles are brown and work fine [if prominently labeled “Poison” and with a description of the contents.]. Shake and pour in a 15 ounce can of top engine cleaner. Measure 25 ML of ammonia, 5 ML of peroxide and 5 ML of Marvel Mystery Oil and dump it all in. It won’t explode, don’t worry. Shake it all up and you have a top notch bore cleaner. The Top Engine Cleaner goes after carbon deposits, the ammonia and peroxide attack the copper fouling, and the MM oil acts like a penetrating oil that helps get under the deposits and keeps the bore conditioned.

The ammonia reaction to copper fouling will turn a white cleaning patch blue, or rather the patch will pick up the blue tint from dissolving the copper. It a good tell-tale indicator of how well the barrel is cleaned. You don’t have to get every last bit out, but if there are heavy deposits, it will be a deeper blue, when getting fairly clean, it will be a much lighter blue.

I use this on all of my rifles, and for pistol barrels. Most of my rifles are bolt actions, and cleaning is easy, but use a bore guide to keep the cleaning rod from damaging the barrel. If you have an lever gun or semi auto, you may have to clean from the muzzle. Beware that you can severely damage the end (what is called the crown) by letting the cleaning rod drag over the edges of the barrel end. I would recommend getting a “coated” cleaning rod to help with this, but still, go slow and watch the rod position to keep it centered in the barrel.

There are a couple substitutions I’ve heard that you can use Mercury Quicksilver Gear Lube. It is a product made by the Mercury Outboard Motor company. It must have the same properties as the Top Engine Cleaner”. The ammonia is the toughest to get, and may even have some restrictions now, given the state we’re in. You need the strong stuff. The 28% I referenced is what I have. Most blue print shops now use large copy machines instead of the old “blue prints” where the ammonia was used. You may be able to find some strong ammonia at commercial janitorial suppliers. You can substitute Kroil Penetrating Oil for the Marvel Mystery Oil. Kroil is a penetrating oil, not exactly easy to find but it is available. – W.S.

Letter Re: Horsemanship for Preppers

Jim,
The cover art on your latest novel prompts these comments about horses.  There may be  folks who are thinking that in the future horse power would be a viable alternative for transportation, agricultural, and other uses.   It can be.  But you need to be aware that horses are not just hairy vehicles, and they don’t come with an owner’s manual.  They are thinking, feeling, decision-making animals.  And regardless of how well trained they may be when you get them they will quickly settle, for better or worse, at your level of knowledge and experience.  If you don’t know what you’re doing you may fairly quickly wind up with a horse that is useless, dangerous, or both.

If you’re considering the use of horses in the future it would be prudent to learn all you can now.  And that means hands on learning.  Book learning won’t do.   The only thing that will keep you safe is knowledge and awareness.

A lifetime isn’t long enough to learn all there is to know about horsemanship, but it’s a start.  Find a competent teacher, start now, and enjoy the experience. – Rick S.

JWR Replies: Thanks for your letter. A good deal of the story in “Survivors” has to do with the lead character getting to know and work with his horse, an excellent gelding named Prieto. Yes, I agree that there is a steep learning curve.  For newbies, I recommend that they learn from a pro, and that they spend a lot of time around horses before they ever even consider buying one to bring into their family. (Yes, I do mean family.) Clinton Anderson’s excellent series of instructional DVDs (such as Downunder Horsemanship- Gaining Respect and Control on the Ground) are a great start, but there is no substitute for lots of hands-on time. Frankly, most people’s temperaments are better suited to buying an ATV than a horse.

The Mainstreaming of Survivalism

When a news giant like CNBC starts quoting SurvivalBlog at length, then obviously we are starting filter into the mainstream of public consciousness. Here is an article that is a case in point: Buying Coins to Hedge Against Inflation. As one reader put it: “It brings a smile to my face when we’re way ahead of the curve.” By the way, I hope you’ve already got your nickels squared away. You’ve had plenty of warning, since I first mentioned this in SurvivalBlog back in 2007. The window of opportunity for acquiring nickels before their debasement is likely to close soon.

Don’t get me wrong… I don’t expect the nation to suddenly go all Rawlesian–with everyone from 18 to 80 toting .45s, voting for Ron Paul, getting right with God, putting in big gardens and laying in two year food supplies. The shift of a survivalist mindset won’t come until after there is a major “Crunch”. But once this shift occurs, it will be profound. In fact, I predict that in the aftermath of a full scale socioeconomic collapse, there will be no more “survivalists”, per se. There will just be survivors, and statistics. The paradigm shift to prepper mindset will become so ubiquitous that it will simply be the norm. Hence, it might not even carry any special appellation.

I’m sure that most of you reading this have grandparents that lived through the Great Depression, and surely you witnessed them carrying on with the rest of their lives being very thrifty, avoiding debt, and wasting nothing. Just think of that effect amplified a hundred-fold. That will become the collective mindset of the next generation: Armed to the teeth, distrustful of statists and unsound currencies, and feeling compelled to always keep a very well-stocked pantry. That will be the new “normal”–the new mainstream. That should last for a generation or two. Then, inevitably, complacency will set in, and the cycle will repeat. That is human nature.

Letter Re: A Book Shopping Experience

Mr. Rawles:
I just picked up your latest novel “Survivors” today at my local Barnes and Noble store.  Surprisingly, they had it prominently displayed on their “New Arrivals” display table!  Some time back, I had them order “Patriots” for me.  You would have thought I asked them to give me their only kidney.  How times have changed. 
 
I dearly love the disgusted, displeased look on the tattooed, goth, über-liberal checkout girl’s face when I make my purchases.  It’s why I still buy my reading material in the store. 
 
Love your work and the blog.  Thanks for your efforts! – Bill in Florida

JWR Replies: I should remind all SurvivalBlog readers to please give retailers other than just Amazon some business.   Although I used Amazon ranking as a benchmark for tracking the recent Book Bomb Day, there are other vendors that deserve some biz, including Barnes and Noble.  And for those of us that like to support local “Mom and Pop” bookstores, check out IndieBound.org.

Economics and Investing:

US’s Geithner warns Europe crisis a global threat. (Thanks to Alex B for the link.)

Peter Schiff: U.S. Dollar is the Monetary Titanic

A sign of our nation’s doom? Nearly Half of U.S. Lives in Household Receiving Government Benefit

G.G. flagged this: Americans have no choice but to get more frugal
Why We Are Just Half-Way Through The Global Economic Crisis
 
The Metals Trade: Why I’m Still Really Bullish On Silver

Items from The Economatrix:

Leaders Push World to Depression

Underwater Mortgages Could Sink US Without a Trace

Banksters Expect Global Meltdown Within 12 Months

Bank of America Website Still Having Problems. Steve Quayle Notes:  “Flee as fast as you can and get your funds transferred to another bank!”

A Job is Becoming a Dim Memory for Many Unemployed

Oil Above $82 on Positive News For Europe Banks

30-Year Mortgage Below 4% For First Time Ever

Odds ‘n Sods:

F.J. spotted this: Better Sterno Alternative

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Idaho Bowhunter Reportedly Kills Charging Wolf. Moral of this story: Don’t mess with an Idaho Granny that packs a .44 Magnum.

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David O. wrote to mention a “Horse of a Different Color”: Oilfield Camouflage. With oilfield workers up in “The Oil Patch” in North Dakota now often making $300 to $500 a day, I suppose some of them have a budget for this… In related news: Double your salary in the middle of nowhere, North Dakota

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Rex B. sent this: ATF officials demoted in latest Fast and Furious fallout

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It wouldn’t be a proper October without one of these news stories: The Race to Grow the One-Ton Pumpkin. (Thanks to regular content contributor F.G. for the link.)

Notes from JWR:

Yesterday (October 5th) I heard from my publisher that they are blazing through the first 35,000 copies of my novel “Survivors” so quickly that they’ve already had to order a second press run of 15,000 copies. That second printing was ordered just the day after the book was released. No doubt a good part of the strong demand can be directly attributed to SurvivalBlog readers. I can’t thank you enough, folks!

Some folks have written to mention that they want to buy copies of “Survivors” by the case (for resale or for gifts). Be advised that they come 20 copies to the case. Some fairly deep discounts are available. You can contact the Atria/Simon & Schuster’s wholesale order desk. Bookstores and folks that sell books at gun shows and preparedness expos can order in any quantity from both the publisher and any major book distributor, using these International Standard Book Numbers (ISBNs): ISBN-10: 1439172803 or ISBN-13: 978-1439172803.

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Today we present another entry for Round 37 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round include:

First Prize: A.) A course certificate from onPoint Tactical. This certificate will be for the prize winner’s choice of three-day civilian courses. (Excluding those restricted for military or government teams.) Three day onPoint courses normally cost $795, and B.) Two cases of Mountain House freeze dried assorted entrees in #10 cans, courtesy of Ready Made Resources. (A $300 value.) C.) A 9-Tray Excalibur Food Dehydrator from Safecastle.com (a $275 value), D.) A $250 gift certificate from Sunflower Ammo, and E.) An M17 medical kit from JRH Enterprises (a $179.95 value).

Second Prize: A.) A Glock form factor SIRT laser training pistol. It is a $439 value courtesy of Next Level Training. B.) A “grab bag” of preparedness gear and books from Jim’s Amazing Secret Bunker of Redundant Redundancy (JASBORR) with a retail value of at least $300, C.) A $250 gift card from Emergency Essentials, and D.) two cases of Meals, Ready to Eat (MREs), courtesy of CampingSurvival.com (a $180 value).

Third Prize: A.) A Royal Berkey water filter, courtesy of Directive 21. (This filter system is a $275 value.), B.) Expanded sets of both washable feminine pads and liners, donated by Naturally Cozy. This is a $185 retail value, C.) A Commence Fire! emergency stove with three tinder refill kits. (A $160 value.), and D.) Two Super Survival Pack seed collections, a $150 value, courtesy of Seed for Security.

Round 37 ends on November 30th, so get busy writing and e-mail us your entry. Remember that articles that relate practical “how to” skills for survival have an advantage in the judging.

Fear Versus Preparation, by Theresa P.

Having worked as a counselor in various positions, I have had the opportunity to view the system from many angles. What I am seeing scares me and should scare you too, not the type of fear that freezes you or drops you into a strong state of denial but the fear that motivates you to take close inventory of what is important in your life and causes you to initiate a plan to protect yourself and those you love.
I must have looked like an odd duck when I worked as a drug and alcohol counselor. My co-workers were left wing liberals and I am very conservative. While they ate their tofu products for lunch, I ate deer, rabbit, squirrel, or something I grew or collected myself (much to their horror). When I ate the eggs from my chickens, one of my co-workers exclaimed she would never eat an egg from a chicken as all her eggs come from the store; the same woman was working on an education degree to become an elementary school teacher with full intention of working in a public school setting.
I am seeing people from all walks of life fearing 2012.… as if the doctor diagnosed them with a terminal disease with a set number of months left to live. I see various types of reactions:
*Individuals in complete denial – asserting our system could never fail – believing there are too many programs to help people that are having difficulty. These individuals view the government as a parent with an endless bank account that can continually bail out its delinquent dependent children.
*Individuals trusting their pastors who tell them preparation is equivalent to a lack of faith because God is going to rapture the believers up right before anything bad happens.
*Individuals who realize that they should prepare but don’t want to make sacrifices with their current financial budget so they ignore what they see and write it all off as a y2k scare.
*Individuals at various levels of preparing and many that believe totally preparation is not necessary as imagining a world without electronics and electricity is beyond their comprehension.
*And there are those who are living their lives the way they want to now with the intention of taking by force what they need from those who have been diligent in preparing.
 
The best advice I could give is sit down with your loved ones and make sure that you completely understand each other and are on the same page. After a 4 year courtship with a man who claimed he wanted us to become self-sufficient, I found myself single again when he left after a series of tropical storms hit our area leaving much devastation. My property held – just had the minor inconvenience of no electricity which I saw as a time to test our resources. He left after the power came back on – with the belief he was running to a world that would never change… would always have the lights on… would always have stocked grocery stores and convenient marts full of gas. He ran to a place he felt he could live it up and experience all the things he was not going to willingly ever give up. He ran to his friends that call us “preppers” loony like those who called Noah nuts for building an ark in the dessert. The rain is coming folks. In fact… pun intended… it never really has stopped where I am at.
I have had some time to contemplate what happened to my failed relationship and it made me realize that he will not be the only one of us who runs. Some will run right into the arms of the enemy and gladly share what they know and where they came from. Some will jump off the cliff with the others when the SHTF. Some times we won’t be surprised at this and sometimes we will.
Make sure you are on the same page as your loved ones. Everyone has a special talent or ability that they can bring to the survival package. If things are not working now before anything catastrophic happens, then you can pretty much count on them not working at all if something happens. Change … dramatic changes… have the potential to bring out the worst in people. Panicked people can’t think and often do stupid things.
Also make a plan for how you are going to deal with all those who will not be in your immediate family/group but show up after the collapse. If you are a survivalist or prepper, you are noticed no matter how inconspicuous you try to be. We are noticed because we are different and there is nothing wrong with that. But that difference will be why they will be headed our way and not to their buddies who didn’t do anything to “weather the storm”. What is your plan to protect your own? How far will you go to accomplish that? Is everyone in your family and group on the same page with this? Figure this out now – because during a collapse, there are too many other pressing things you will be faced with you may not have anticipated.

I found out how panicked a community can become when the power went out for almost a week during tropical storm Irene. Panicked people have difficulty thinking as it is hard for the average person to imagine a world without electricity. Some basic things got my neighbors through the week once I explained how to use some basic items most people have around their homes already.

1. Garbage pails cleaned with some dish detergent or bleach can become great rain collectors to collector house water that runs from a gutter. This water can be used for bathing, cleaning, flushing toilets, and when filtered – using a coffee filter set in a strainer can be used for consumption. This water can also be boiled for those concerned with drinking filtered rain water.
2. Those cute solar lights that outline people’s driveways, walkways, gardens, etc make great indoor lanterns at night. They can be placed in a Mason jar or plastic bottle (stake down) and carried around the house or set on a table or shelf. The more sunlight available that day – the longer they will be lit at night. This not only saves batteries and candles but is a safe alternative that many people already own.
3. Use items thawed items in your freezer first. If food seems questionable it is still probably safe enough to be used as feed for dogs or cats if used right away. At my house – the saying is – nothing goes to waste. If we can’t eat it, either the cats, dogs, goats, ducks, or chickens can. The very little that is left over after that ends up in the composting bin for use as my medium for starting seeds in late winter for spring planting.
3. Restless adults, teenagers, or children can find entertainment in board games, cards, or story telling. Devastating storms don’t have to be devastating to families. This can be used as a bonding time without having to fight distractions from electronics, television, phones, etc.
4. Humor… humor…humor… Use it generously… Laugh. Depression is contagious …. But fortunately so is a positive attitude which is what you are going to need to recognize resources you already have around the house if you get caught with your pants down and did not prepare.
5. Toilets do not need to be flushed every time you use them. Flush them if someone has a bowel movement – all other times keep the lid down until the smell tells you it needs a flushing. This conserves a tremendous amount of water. Placed any used toilet paper in a lined garbage can to be burned later – clogged pipes or overflowed septic tanks can only make matter worse at this point.
6. Your hot water heater is a good source of water along with your pipes in your house when you run out of rain water you collected in a storm.
7. Bathing – collected rain water can be heated up with a gas stove, wood stove, or even a pot on your grill. What is really nice is the grills that have the burner attachment to them. Do NOT bring your grill into your home. That is dangerous. At our house we heated up enough water on our gas stove for each person to get cleaned up by a modified sponge bath accomplished by placing the heated water in a bucket in our bath tub. With a cup, we would scoop out just enough water to get our bodies wet and pour it on ourselves, then lather up, and use the rest of the water to rinse – if you use a cup you will use less water which means less waste and less time to heat up the amount of water needed. Since we were in the bath tub while accomplishing this the water and soap suds stayed where they belong.

I found that the things that concerned my neighbors the most (ones who had no survivalist prepping mindset) was eating, bathing, lighting at night, and ability to use toilets all of which I showed them can be accomplished with a few simple items they already have around their house.

Good luck with your prepping. Make it fun. Maintain your humor. Hug your loved ones frequently – well not so frequently they think you are completely nuts. If you are reading this blog then you are already concerned about what you see in the world and see that some changes need to be made to ensure long term survival. Give yourself a pat on the back for it – you are already ahead of the masses–even if you feel you have a long way to go in your preparations.

Letter Re: Observations on a Prepper Family’s Move to The American Redoubt

James:
My husband and I fell in love with a section of [what is now called] the American Redoubt long before I discovered SurvivalBlog.  We dreamed of retiring in that part of the country as so many of his co-workers have done.  We even went looking for property years ago in the hopes that we would have a place to go to in our old age.  We couldn’t afford any at that time, but the idea stayed in the back of our minds.  Our dream was put on hold when he suddenly passed away, but after he died I got  my first computer, and I discovered SurvivalBlog.  God put the dream back in the forefront of my mind.         

Now I debated for quite some time whether or not this dream was truly from the Lord or just my wanting a change, but the more I read this blog and the more I listened to the radio and talked with my friends about the situation in America both economically and spiritually, the more that moving made sense. I resided in a very liberal state with no hope of redemption as far as I could see and I had a family to raise.  But I had other family nearby – especially my In-laws, and I felt I could not abandon them so soon after their only son’s death.   However, earlier this year, at the unusual suggestion of my Mother-In-law, God gave me the opportunity to actually visit the area in question and provided a sweet and knowledgeable realtor to help me begin seeing the possibilities.  Once again I fell in love with the American Redoubt and felt that deep desire to leave where I had been for so long.  Through some eye-opening observations I experienced after returning home, it was clear to me that God was indeed opening the doors for a move.   That was Spring and after a whirlwind summer with some surprising “God moments”,  I am now living in the American Redoubt.      

To give some perspective on the lessons I learned, I must mention that I had almost convinced myself that moving out of my city and state would never happen.  In light of that I had decided that a “bug in” position was the obvious choice for me while living in the city as I was located on high ground, had some extra space, a large yard and would probably be the only one in my family who had thought of preparing for when TSHTF.  I faithfully stocked up on as many items as I thought necessary – some recommended on SurvivalBlog or by blog contributors, some ideas encouraged from other preparedness sources.  I bought shelves for my kitchen pantry that allowed FIFO [rotation] for my stock of canned food; I created a second pantry in a seldom-used room and slowly filled it;  I added shelves in closets and filled them.  If TSHTF I thought I would be partially prepared for the family members who would land on my doorstep.        

As I am still learning about preparedness, I took the easiest path to begin and gradually added.  Food and toiletries came first followed by grid-down supplies. Then I bought chicks and raised them in my backyard (well aware of the vague language in the city ordinance) and when they began laying their eggs I shared them with the neighbors so as to calm any protest.  I installed raised beds in my back yard and planted vegetables and herbs until I was out of room and then I slowly put raised beds in my front yard in order to increase my organic crop.  My neighbors wondered why I had ripped out half of my lawn but accepted the fact that I didn’t want to mow so much grass.  Around the perimeter of my yard I planted as many edible trees as my property would allow.  Every inch of fence would soon be covered in vines which would also help camouflage the raised beds from the street.  One could say it was bad OPSEC to have such obvious food sources, but my neighbors knew me well and welcomed the excess bounty and the conversation-piece yard.  Some of them began their own gardens and we shared around the block. It was almost like hiding in plain sight. And given the fact that I lived in a walled neighborhood, banding together to block off the Golden Horde would be feasible. So staying in my area was not too bad of an option considering the close-knit neighborhood, its location, and the proximity to family, friends and church.  What I didn’t realize is how all that preparing would look to those family and friends as they helped me pack and move.      

When I decided to put my house on the market, my oldest son and I packed up much of the “stock” items to put in storage to prepare the house for sale.  I chose to empty the second pantry first and store the Mason jars I would not be using until after the move.  Since I labeled the boxes, they were innocuous enough on moving day.  I did not label them “emergency supplies” or “Long-term storage”.  The only problem was the volume of boxes.  Being prepared means large numbers of items and there were a lot of extra boxes.  I wasn’t certain they would all make the trip.      

After the house sold (one of those “God moments”) and we were able to return to the north to find a new home (another God moment), we packed as much as we could in the weeks between houses.  That left the last-minute items, furniture, and the storage facility.  We emptied the storage facility and placed the boxes and items in the front room so as to ease the labor on the day of packing the moving truck.  We scheduled the day and some family and a sweet group of friends showed up to help with the final items.  That is where the OPSEC became an issue.  Packing the load was a challenge with many eyes wondering at the obvious numbers.   The curiosity continued with the unpacking crew.      

Have you ever needed a reason to explain why you have enough toilet paper packages to cover a bedroom floor?  Or why you have so many extra cans of beans or bottles of bleach?  Having two pantries is one thing when you are not going anywhere, but emptying them and finding room for them in a U-Haul creates new problems.  (We did learn that toilet paper works well for the nooks and crannies.  Uncle W. packs a tight ship!)      
Moving from a warm climate to a cold climate does allow for some explanations – especially to a “snow novice”.  “Just in case we get snowed in” sounds reasonable enough for some items, but not for everything. 

Explaining certain heavy containers that actually hold the nickels you don’t want discovered is a bit harder. Laughing them off as a generic coin collection seemed to pacify the curiosity.  Fortunately, no one saw the shotguns and we homeschool so the numerous boxes of books and curriculum was understandable.               

Having some items in five-gallon buckets raised some eyebrows but the chicken food is in buckets so I assume they thought I had a lot of chicken food.  (The chickens made the trip in a trailer and laid eggs along the way!!)  The large collection of Mason jars was obvious as I do canning and am learning to make jam and jelly. Most of those comments were about how much fun it will be to put up new types of fruit.   I tried to camouflage as many things as possible and label generically (which is a problem when deciding where to place the boxes while unpacking) but some things can’t be packed until the last day and with all those people packing it was impossible to hide everything that needed to be kept private.  I was able to quickly hide some items in the car without anyone observing and some things were wrapped in blankets and trash bags.  Thankfully, I was also able to share from my bounty with the helpers and with others and hopefully bless them in a small way..  Perhaps they’ll remember me as the woman who shared her stuff.  If I ever move again, I will try to do a better job of making my supplies seem less obvious or consume them before calling for help!      

So now as I unpack and unpack and try to fit everything into a new configuration,  I am hoping that my movers will forget the unusual supply of items they saw and lugged around.  I plan to settle in before the winter and get to know my new surroundings and maybe meet some like-minded SurvivalBlog readers.  The area I moved into already has some “survivalists” nearby of which I have been “forewarned”.  I am truly looking forward to living the dream I shared with my husband that the Lord has graciously let my family begin experiencing.  I will take a good look at the OPSEC in my new location and perhaps one day if things go downhill the Lord will allow me to use my better hidden supplies to help others.  Maybe some of my “movers” themselves will begin thinking of their own future and take the necessary steps to begin their own preparations.  If they inquire, I will gladly point them to SurvivalBlog. – R.G. in the Great North