Economics and Investing:

Forecaster predicts the next crisis

Bob Chapman: A Nation Exclusively Run For Corporate Interests. (Thanks to John R. for the link.)

G.G. sent this: Egypt and the growing problem of global inflation.

John also mentioned a guest post over at Zero Hedge: The Road to Madness Is Paved With $100 Bills

Your Cheat Sheet to the 11 Countries Which Could Follow Egypt’s Lead

Huge Winter Storm Threatens Wheat, Cattle

Items from The Economatrix:

Nine Signs that the Price of Oil is About to Soar Beyond $100 a Barrel  

Less Than a 3% Drop in Asset Values Could Wipe Out Wall Street 

Are Gold and Silver Still a Buy?  Absolutely — Here’s Why

Odds ‘n Sods:

Michael H. sent a link to some useful New Madrid Seismic Zone graphics.

   o o o

Norman in England sent: 10 Things That The Egypt Riots Can Teach Us About What Happens When Society Breaks Down

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Tim R. suggested this photo essay: Protest spreads in the Middle East

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J.B.G. sent this: Bill would require all South Dakota citizens to buy a gun. It appears the legislator’s intent is to illustrate that the government can’t force anyone to buy any product–even health insurance.

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Tamara K. (of the View From The Porch blog) had some comments on the chaos in Egypt: It’s getting positively Rawlesian over there… (Thanks, Slick, but I thought that “Rawlesian” referred to the solutions, rather than the problems. Oh well, Malthus got branded the same way…)

Jim’s Quote of the Day:

“Equo ne credite, Teucri. Quidquid id est, timeo Danaos et dona ferentes.” (“Don’t trust the horse, Trojans. Whatever it is, I fear the Greeks even bearing gifts.”) – Laocoön, as quoted by Virgil, The Aeneid

SurvivalBlog Writing Contest — Round 32 Winners

We’ve completed the judging for Round 32 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest!

First prize goes to J.E. for: Preparing for the Aftermath–Lessons from the 1930s, which was posted on December 24, 2010. J.E. will receive: 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 $392 value.) C.) A 9-Tray Excalibur Food Dehydrator from Safecastle.com (a $275 value), D.) A 250 round case of 12 Gauge Hornady TAP FPD 2-3/4″ OO buckshot ammo, courtesy of Sunflower Ammo (a $240 value), and E.) An M17 medical kit from JRH Enterprises (a $179.95 value).

Second prize goes to Frank J., for TEOTWAWKI Home Dentistry, which was posted on January 27, 2011. Frank will receive: A.) 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 $400, B.) A $250 gift card from Emergency Essentials, and C.) two cases of Meals, Ready to Eat (MREs), courtesy of CampingSurvival.com (a $180 value).

Third prize goes to C.J. in Montana for Returning to My Retreat After a Three Year Absence: Lessons Learned, which was posted on January 17, 2011. C.J. will receive: A.) A Royal Berkey water filter, courtesy of Directive 21. (This filter system is a $275 value.) , and B.) Expanded sets of both washable feminine pads and liners, donated by Naturally Cozy. This is a $185 retail value.

Runner-up prizes go to eight writers:

Each of these writers will receive a $30 Amazon.com gift certificate.

Note to all prize winners: Please let me know your e-mail addresses for the Amazon gift certificates. (Those will be sent via e-mail.) I’ll also need both the USPS and UPS addreses for the top thre prize winners.

A New Prize!

We are pleased to announce that an additional prize will now be included as part of the Second Prize package for the upcoming rounds (starting with Round 33) of the writing contest: a Glock form factor SIRT laser training pistol. It is a $439 value. These are being kindly donated by the manufacturer, Next Level Training. We have one of these SIRTs here at the ranch, and it gets a lot of use. It is an excellent way to develop speed and accuracy with absolute safety. Not only does it save on ammo, but it helps keep you at a high level of training, even during inclement weather. It has also provided us a way to practice “force on force” training for our family. (That was something that I had never felt comfortable with, using “triple confirmed” unloaded functional guns.)

Today we begin Round 33 of the contest. Round 33 ends on March 31st. Here is the first entry:

Building a Dry and Warm Temporary Shelter With No Tools, by Richard B.

Building a Dry and Warm Temporary Shelter With No Tools, by Richard B.

If you ever find yourself in the wilderness without any hope of finding rescue in a day or more, you don’t have any camping equipment, fire starting tools  and no way of knitting a 0 degree sleeping bag before nightfall, you may need to build a shelter.  The only other alternative in cold weather is to sleep during the day and stay awake all night with a fire or continually move to stay warm.  In this type of situation, you may be there for multiple days, and it may rain sometime during your time in the woods.  You need to stay warm and dry and get rest to survive.

Non fire shelters are built and used all the time but mainly by squirrels and mice etc….  The Indians knew this and they observed what works in nature and replicated the construction of these shelters.  They do work for humans but there are some specific steps, methods and rules to follow to make the shelter warm, dry, and wind proof.  

The basic design is an elongated “A” frame with a ridge pole that you sleep under.   Ribs (endoskeleton) are rested on either side of the ridge pole to form a slanting stick cave.  Leaves are piled on top of the ridge poles as siding for water shedding and insulation.   Additional branches are laid on top of the leaves (exoskeleton) to hold the leaves in place. A hatch is made to close the entrance enclosing you in a cocoon of leaves.  Now for the details 

1. Making a rake
When making this type of shelter you will need the ability to gather a large quantity of leaves.  Squatting down and sweeping leaves with your hands is brutal labor and will burn more calories than if you were standing up raking.  This type of shelter can take 8 hours or more to build when done correctly but that is if you have a rake to assist you and you move fast.  Finding a natural branch formation of a rake, well, don’t count on it.  So you either have to know how to make cordage or how to use what you have with you.  There is not enough room in this article to instruct on making cordage so we will suggest, for sake of time, to use shoe laces, belts and any other material you may have.   A simple branch with a Y about 4 feet in length is a starting point.  Find a second Y branch that is smaller in all dimensions and lash its Y in between the longer branch’s Y using laces and a cross beam for stability.  You will end up with a rake that has 4 end points which is much better than using your hands or feet as you will work faster and not burn as much energy.  A tarp, jacket  or some piece of material would be nice to rake leaves onto and transport them to your shelter.  But if none are available, making a travois from sticks may be the only option you have.  These tools may take a few hours to build but invest the time in making them as it will absolutely save you time overall. 

2. Find a location. 
Do not build a shelter in a low area or you may find yourself in a small stream at 2am watching your bedding and shelter flow downhill.  Not a good time to realize you are sleeping in a wash.  Think about water flow and spot the areas you will be above the flow zones.  If you are building your shelter next to a hill, you need all the leaves to be left untouched on that hill above your shelter as that keeps water from hitting dirt and flowing right down to your shelter, possibly in a mud slide.

The location should have a tree that has a Y formation approximately 2 – 3 feet from the ground. This will be used to hold one end of the ridge pole off of the ground.  If no such tree is available you will have to make an “A” frame out of lashing two (3 to 4 feet in length) sticks to your 9 foot (or more, but not less) ridge pole.   A side view of the completed structure will be the same form as a man doing a push up at the apex of his thrust.

3 Measure and adjust.
Laying on your side under the ridge pole, the underside of the ridge pole should not be any further away from your shoulder than 7 – 9 inches (approximately the distance from your thumb to your pinky with your fingers stretched out widely.)  This maximum distance allows your body heat to be captured and help warm the cavity or cocoon area of your shelter, but also allows you to move without moving the shelters skeleton.  More on this later.   If it is too tall, either break the two legs of the structure to lower it and keep the legs at an approximate 60 degree angle, or find other legs or another tree.  This angle is important for water shedding.

4.  Create the rib cage.
Procure sticks to lean up against the ridge pole adhering to the 60 degree angle.  Make sure the ribs do not extend beyond the top of the ridge pole.  This too is important in water shedding as it will create a V (looking down the length of the ridge pole) shaped tub to hold water as well as provide an extruding stick to transport rain directly inside. Use as many poles as you can to form the ribs, the more the better but economy of time is also important.  Keep in mind you will need more of these sticks to rest on top of the structure after you have applied the leaf covering.  If you make the opening small, just large enough for you to shimmy your way in, you will have less area to seal with leaves once you are inside. 

5.  Apply the leaf siding.
You will find instructions and videos on YouTube to make this type of shelter but I have yet to find one that speaks about the proper method for laying the leaf piles against the Rib Cage.  Raking a pile of leaves for your shelter results in leaves oriented in many different ways.  As the siding of a house is layered flat against the wall overlapped by the siding above, the leaves have to be layered flat against each other.  Take both of your hands and swat the pile of leaves 20 or more times with your fingers outstretched and palms down like you are playing a bongo drum.  This patting will force the majority of the leaves to lay parallel to the earth.  This is important as when they are laid against the rib cage at 60 degrees, any rain will hit the surface leaf, roll down ward and onto the leaf beneath it and continue on its way to the ground.  Therefore, it is extremely important to make your leaf siding 2 feet thick at a minimum or else the water may reach the inner layer of leafs before it reaches the ground.  Do not skimp on the 2 feet thickness even if you feel it won’t rain as this depth also provides an insulation layer that uses your body heat to warm the cocoon.  If the cavity is too big, if you do not lay down enough leaves to sleep on, if the depth of siding is not 2 feet, you will have marginal results by either getting wet, the air in the cocoon is only a few degrees above the outside air or the ground sucks out your body warmth.

Once the leaves are oriented, put one arm under the pile and your other arm on top of the pile directly over you other arm.  Pinch the pile together between your two arms, lift and carry to your shelter.  Start at the bottom and gently lay the siding pile against your shelter.  Cautiously remove your arm from beneath the pile attempting not  to disturb the leaf siding keep the leaves oriented broadside to broadside. 

Repeat this process all the way around the shelter except for the opening.   Once one level is complete around the bottom, apply a second layer above the first layer and against the rib cage working your way to the ridge pole.   Continue this process all the way around until the entire shelter is covered with leaves.  At the ridge pole, over lay the siding piles from one side so that they extend above and beyond the other side’s top siding pile.  This will send any rain striking the top of the shelter down one side of the shelter and not allow it to fall into the cocoon as easily.  Once the entire shelter is covered with this layer of siding piles, start over and apply a second layer.  This should give you the two feet of leaves if the piles you lift are thick.  Repeat this exact same process until you have layers that reach the two feet level.  Any more than two feet is a bonus but by the time you have two feet of leaves you will be ready to be done with the process.

This is by far the most time consuming activity in creating this shelter and can take 5 hours or more if this is built correctly.  It is also the most critical step, the part where cutting corners leads to failure and the part that you will be tempted to skip on. Do not skimp on the two feet of leaf siding and do not short cut on orienting the leaves.  

6. Fill the cavity.
When ground is cold and comes in contact with your body or cloths, it will draw the warmth away from you and drops your body temperature.  Leaves will insulate you from this effect but only if you have a thick enough layer between you and the ground and the leaves are dry.  To accomplish this, find the driest leaves you can and fill the inside of the cocoon to the top.  Stuff extra leaves just inside the entry hole that you can use to stuff into the opening once you are inside.

Filling to the top provides two requisite features and one feature that is nice to have.  One: It gives you the insulating layer between you and the ground when you crawl in and work the leaves underneath you.  Two: It also lifts you up closer to the top which is where your body heat will rise to and be caught by the two feet of leaf siding.  Three: Finally. it provides a softer surface to sleep on.  Comfort is not required but any comfort in this situation is greatly appreciated and can make a large difference in attitude the following morning. 

7. Cover the shelter with branches.
The leaves are there to protect you from the wind, rain and cold.  But the leaves are easily removed by wind so a second layer of ribs (or sticks) must be used to hold them in place.  I have had wind blow at my shelter in varying speeds but the air inside these shelters does not move because of the two foot thick walls.   Lay the exoskeleton on top of the leaves the same way the endoskeleton (inner rib cage) was built.  This holds the leaves down.

8. Make the hatch.
If your rake will cover the opening, you will have no need to make a hatch as you can use that.  If you have to make one then you can use your rake as a starting point but do so only after the leaves have been gathered.  The goal is a flat grouping of sticks that you can pile leaves upon after they have been oriented and will not allow the leaves to fall through the gaps in the sticks.  If you can lift it off the ground and the leaves do not fall through, you have a good hatch.  The purpose of the hatch is to seal the opening after crawling in.  You accomplish this by reaching out and pulling the hatch up bringing the leaves with it to seal up the entrance.   You may have to stuff leaves in any gaps once inside to seal it completely.

9.  Using the shelter
Before entering the shelter use the bathroom and avoid drinking liquids that will make you want urinate in the night.  If you have any water or any supplies you may need during the night, put them in the shelter before entering.  You do not want to go in and out of this shelter as it smashes down the leaves.
Enter the cocoon feet first.  Lift your legs to attempt getting them as high up on top of the leaf pile as possible.  Wiggle your way in trying to keep on top of the leaves and use as little movement as possible as this smashes the leaves down and removes the insulting air layers.  Once inside, pull the hatch to seal up the opening.  Use the extra leaves you pushed inside to seal up the opening with as thick a layer of leaves as possible. 

If your leaf siding is thick enough and your bed of leaves is also, your body should generate enough warmth to keep you at a temperature that will not allow your body to enter hypothermia.  If it was built well enough it may even be a temperature that allows you to sleep all night without discomfort.  

A few words of warning and advice. 
This shelter is a fireless shelter for obvious reasons.  Do not attempt to bring coals or any type of exposed flame into the shelter.  Although you can escape easily enough by kicking up and rolling out of it,  you don’t want a fire to burn your shelter and possibly the area you are living in.

If you leave this shelter for even one night, remove all of the leaves from the inside carefully.  Smack the sides of the shelter and look for any signs that some rodent or reptile has taken over your abandoned shelter.  Nothing like crawling in and finding you have a roommate at 2 in the morning. 

If you are practicing this in national forest, you cannot leave a structure made of natural material standing once you abandon it.  That is illegal.

Finally, this shelter is to be made when you can find an abundant supply of dry leaves.  Not all the leaves have to be dry for the siding but it is imperative that the leaves used inside that you will be laying on are dry and that no moisture from the leaf siding is dripping moisture into the cocoon.  If leaves like this cannot be found or it is raining when you are building this shelter, you must make a different type of shelter that will incorporate a fire.  The shelter described in this article is not that type of shelter.

If you are starting this type of shelter later in the day (after 1p.m.), It may be a better idea of gathering up as much food as you can for the next day and make any preparations for the night and then get as many hours of sleep that you can because you will have to stay up and move all night.  You will not have time to finish this type of shelter and you will skip steps and build a bad shelter.  You will then be exhausted from trying to get it built and you will have a miserable night, exhausted and cold. 

If you are making this shelter in the late spring through early fall,  keep in mind that you will be sleeping in the insects world.  Chiggers, fleas etc.. are a pest and cause a level of frustration in your survival situation that can be demoralizing and push you to giving up.  Eucalyptus, Sassafras, Pawpaw trees provide natural insect repellents in their leaves, just to mention a few.  You can lay them or mix them in with your bedding, lay down a layer before putting in your bedding, crush them and stuff them in your socks and any other way you can use them as a barrier between you and the insect world.  Research and practice identifying these and the many other trees that have this ability.

Post-TEOTWAWKI and Off-the-Grid Entertainment, by Reed C.

As a newcomer to the “prepper” lifestyle, I’ve been devouring the wonderful information I can find on SurvivalBlog.   These articles have prompted some deep and serious thinking from both me and my wife.  But one day, as I was reading about food handling and storage and how to survive after the crunch, I began to consider what it would be like to spend many long months locked up in a safe-house somewhere with two young children.  I remembered the Diary of Anne Frank, and how much they suffered from boredom while locked up in the attic of their safe house…and I suddenly realized that we may have overlooked a very important part of post-collapse survival: entertainment and pass-times.   Yes, I know there will be a lot of work to be done that will keep survivors very busy during most of the day.  But think back to the early settlers; after a very long day mending fences, caring for livestock, or plowing fields, the family retired to their homes and engaged in down-home entertainment.  And periodically, neighbors came by and they enjoyed some wholesome fun.    One amusing thought occurred to me as I thought this through:  In a post-TEOTWAWKI world, much of what I do today for “entertainment” would no longer be for fun, but for survival:  hunting, fishing, gardening, camping.  So obviously, those topics are not included.  I guess we have that to look forward to!  In a post-TEOTWAWKI world, husbands won’t have to beg for permission to go fishing or hunting!   This led me to do some research into the kinds of entertainment that would work off-grid.  Forget your X-box, forget NetFlix.  We’ve now entered a realm of entertainment that, in some parts of the  country, has been forgotten.   Board games and other indoor games can be both educational and simply entertaining.  They can be enjoyed silently, or as part of a raucous party.  They are cheap, can be found used in consignment shops for pennies, and really help pass the time on rainy or snowy days.  My personal favorite is Chess, as it can be enjoyed as a beginner or, if you want to improve, literally offers a lifetime of learning and improvement, and has been proven to be one of the finest games for actually improving thought and intelligence.  Even if you don’t play chess today, get books such as Guide to Teaching Chess, Chess for Children, Chess Tactics for Children, Chess Workbook, on chess openings.  This one game alone will give you years of learning and enjoyment with one simple game.  Also, it would be helpful to get a few extra pieces just in case they get lost or broken.  Suggested games include:  

1.      Chess 
2.      Checkers
3.      Backgammon
4.      Monopoly
5.      Sorry
6.      Uno
7.      Charades
8.      Pool (billiards)
9.      Ping Pong
10.   Darts
11.   Cards (don’t forget the chips)
12.   Any others you enjoy  

I personally am not a fan of puzzles (I guess Chess is my puzzle), but just about everyone else I know enjoys puzzles of some sort. 

Here are a few puzzles to look for:
1.       Easy child-friendly puzzles
2.       Hard multi-thousand piece jigsaw puzzles
3.       Cross word puzzle books
4.       Sudoku books and games
5.       Rubik’s Cube
6.       Any others you enjoy  

My family watches very little television and instead engages in various arts & crafts activities.  There are many kinds of art that could be enjoyed, but I’ve left out sculpting and other similar ones because storing clay for long periods of time is difficult, it’s bulky and expensive, and ultimately you’ll burn through that kind of material quickly. 

Here are just a few art supplies:
1.       Wood crafting/whittling tools
2.       Knitting supplies
3.       Sewing supplies
4.       Quilting supplies
5.       Paints
6.       Art Paper
7.       Crayons, coloring pencils
8.       Origami Paper  (With instruction book)

 

Educational supplies:
1.       Old fashioned bound-copy Encyclopedias
2.       Dictionaries/Thesaurus
3.       Writing materials
4.       Manual type-writer and extra ribbons, ink
5.       Math flash cards (addition, subtraction, division, multiplication)
6.       Math exercise books
7.       Geometry and Algebra text books
8.       History books
9.       Geography books
10.   Anatomy & Medical books
11.   Farm/animal husbandry books  

 

One of the most important things I realized I’d not heard or read mention of, is Music.  I can’t imagine what my life would be like if I had to live the rest of my life in a post-TEOTWAWKI world without any music.  Since I already play many instruments, I plan to have a stash of them at my retreat, and books to teach the young’ns how to play and pass on the skills.  The instruments I list below would give you enough to literally have a small band.  Believe it or not, places like Musiciansfriend.com often have many of these instruments for less than $100.  I bought a fantastic Mandolin for about $100.  I’ve seen fiddles by the same makers for around that.  The point being, you don’t have to spend $800 or more per instrument.  Also, search on Craigslist, you’ll find steals there.  I got my daughter a $600 flute for $80.  (Note I don’t put a Piano in there because they are just too darn cumbersome, but if you have the space at your retreat, that’s the best instrument to learn music on…but they require tuning):

1.       Fiddle
2.       Guitar
3.       Banjo
4.       Mandolin
5.       Harmonica
6.       Melodica
7.       Accordion
8.       Flute, penny whistle, or recorder
9.       Acoustic bass or hollow-body bass
10.   Hand drums (bongos, Irish “Bodhran”, congas, tambourine, maracas, etc)
11.   Introductory books for each instrument teaching note-reading, scales, and basic theory
12.   More advanced music for reading
13.   Tuning forks (assuming an off the grid lifestyle, this solution requires no batteries)  

Let’s not forget all those fun, traditional outside games and of course, the supplies necessary to enjoy them for years without being able to run down to a market and buy items:

1.       Flag Football
2.       Baseball/softball
3.       Basketball (anyone going to have a court at their retreat?)
4.       Volleyball
5.       Badminton
6.       Dodge ball
7.       Soccer
8.       Kick ball
9.       Archery (obviously fun for kids and great training for survival)  

Before I conclude, there is one more area that I should cover.  One thing I learned years ago as a camp counselor was that there will be rainy, cold and miserable days when the children might be bored with their usual games, or those games have broken or worn out, and it will be important to give them something to do.  Make sure you have a great book on games that do not require supplies.  I highly recommend this book: 175 Best Camp Games   On Wikipedia, I also found another list of traditional games people used to play and you might want to compile a list like this one for those rainy days.  

JWR Adds: Here at the Rawles Ranch, we have stocked up on enough home-schooling books for a full-blown total isolation Blast From the Past-style education to college level for all of our children. We have found that library book sales are the best place to find reference books, encyclopedias, and all the classics, sometimes for incredibly low prices.

Letter Re: Earthships: Sustainable Living for TEOTWAWKI

Dear James Rawles,     
We have lived in a Earthship for 12 years.  It is an excellent way of life and very fulfilling to be able to build your own house.  But living in the the dry desert southwest does not provide enough [captured rain or snow-melt] water to grow enough food to survive.  We need a well to provide water.  It is run by solar panels and a jack pump.  But in the summer monsoons or with the winter clouds we have to use a generator, for both pumping water and enough power to run the house. In times of really expensive gasoline or lack of gas we will be in trouble.  

In the winter it is true that it doesn’t freeze inside but living in a house colder that 65-68 is uncomfortable. A wood stove is an excellent idea when the weather outside is -20. With all the windows, the heat escapes at night.  Learning to live in more extreme temperatures help, wearing sweaters, more blankets at night et cetera, but the extremes in the summer are more difficult.  Fans are okay, air conditioners are prohibitive in their electric usage, so wet tee-shirts and spending as much time outdoors is the answer.  

It is true we don’t have a regular electric bill or water bill, but when we do it is a doosey.  (Calling the well driller to haul the guts out of the well or buying heavy batteries, when needed.) And when the septic system fills up you either dig it out yourself or call a professional.  

If you keep all your amenities including your big screen television, electric clothes dryer, electric freezer then the cost of your solar system will be astronomical.  Learning to be conservative with your electric usage is necessary.  

The design with all the windows is wonderful for all the passive solar heat collecting, but does make it a high safety risk in security.  We live beyond the boonies so that isn’t a concern for our chosen level of preparedness.  

I don’t mean to sound pessimistic, just realistic. We have no mortgage and that has made it possible to make lots of other preparations.   We love our house and our lifestyle, but like any house it has its limitations and upkeep. Thanks, – Craftyam

Two Letters Re: First Aid Kits Are Not Enough

James,  
The letter “First Aid Kits Are not Enough” is a great example of the need for all of us to lay in a large supply of real first aid equipment! The place I would recommend everyone start is the Israeli Battle Dressing (known as the “Emergency Bandage” here in the U.S., and as “IBDs” in military and police circles). They generally go for $5-6 on the net, and can be had cheaper in quantity. I know I can’t go to any drug store and secure first aid materials that will do what it does for $5!   IBDs are manufactured and distributed by PerSys Medical of Texas, and they have a free “how to apply” video on their site, which is available directly from them as a CD-ROM, all for free.   There are many other bandages like it on the market, (CinchTight, etc.), and all I’ve tried will work. But, I find the IBD to be the best over-all design and easiest to apply, so that’s what me and mine have standardized to. However, the point here is that while Red Cross First Aid is a wonderful program, and 4×4 gauze pads have their place, those things are only a basic foundation when it comes to serious wound treatment. Learning the proper application of a military grade trauma dressing should be a high priority for every member of the family! We should own large amounts of such dressings and carrying them with us at all times! (I carry six in my vehicle and one in my coat.)   Here is an article about the Tucson, Arizona, mass shooting, describing why. – Bill from Ohio

 

Sir:
I have very extensive medical and first aid kits. Among the items I have stored are alcohol, betadine, iodine, witch hazel, and hydrogen peroxide. I kept the various liquids in the manufacturer’s original plastic bottles. I then stored the bottles in the gasketed, air tight, water and crush proof, green metal cans with which we are all so familiar. The cans have been stored in the house, at a fairly constant moderate temperature.   Apparently hydrogen peroxide is much more volatile than I realized. I recently checked my supplies and found that the peroxide in nearly every bottle had eaten its way thru the plastic and leaked into the can. In one case the peroxide had then eaten right through the metal can itself. I’ve had no problem with any of the other liquids.   A friend of mine has had the same problem with the peroxide he had in his b.o.b., after less than a year of storage. He also had kept the bag and contents in his house.   For now on we will both be keeping our hydrogen peroxide in containers separate from all other supplies. And we will be checking it much more often for bottle integrity. – Jim in Ohio

Avalanche Lily’s Bedside Book Pile

Here are the current top-most items on my perpetual bedside pile:

  • I finished reading The Rancher Takes a Wife. (That I described in a previous column.) What a great book! The last part of the story told of some extreme difficulties that Pan (Rich’s friend and business partner) and his wife went through up at the Home Ranch 200 miles from the nearest town. It was a true test of strength and stamina. I won’t tell any more, so as not to give the story away. I highly recommend folks reading these books. I still have to read Richmond Hobson’s second book, Nothing Too Good for a Cowboy, which I had skipped. (I was anxious to read about Rich’s courtship and marriage in his third book.)
  • Jim just watched a DVD on Model 1911 pistol detail disassembly and cleaning, featuring master pistolsmith Teddy Jacobson. Jim really liked its thoroughness and the close-up photography. Teddy Jacobson really knows his stuff and he positively exudes his decades of knowledge in his videos. There are now 23 videos in the series, and Jim highly recommends them. Some of the models covered in the series include Glock pistols, SIG pistols, and S&W revolvers.
  • The next video I plan to watch is the Backyard Food Production DVD. Jim watched it before we got married, but I haven’t yet seen it.
  • I just started skimming through a couple of books, edited by Abigail R. Gehring, released in 2009 and 2010 by Skyhorse Publishing. They are titled: Homesteading and Self-Sufficiency. They are are chock full of beautifully detailed photos. More later.

Economics and Investing:

Authoritarian governments start stockpiling food to fight public anger

Nearly 11 Percent of US Houses Empty (Thanks to G.G. for the link.)

Bank of America dealt another foreclosure blow in Nevada

Items from The Economatrix:

Energy Stocks Push Indexes Higher  

Oil Prices Rise on Egypt Unrest, Brent Tops $100  

Consumer Spending Up 0.7% In December  

Egypt’s Economy Hurt as Travelers Avoid The Unrest  

World Stocks Fall on Egypt Turmoil  

Gold Premiums Highest Since 2004; China Stock Up

Odds ‘n Sods:

Detroit Police Department Shooting Video Released. Note that the perp dives head first over the counter to get an advantageous shooting angle. Watching that, something tells me that he might have been high on cocaine or some other illicit drug.

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Reader Larry L. mentioned Sail Mail.  Cruisers all over the world send and receive e-mail wirelessly by using a Pactor modem on their SSB ham radios.  It is slow does not allow graphics, but it works!

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R.M. let us know that there is an iPhone app that will let you receive rapid notification of major solar events.

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Please pray for peace, safety, and a good government for the people of Egypt. The news reports look troubling, like this one: Egyptians stock up on food, water as protests rage, and this one: Egypt Rapidly Running Out of Food.

Jim’s Quote of the Day:

“Jimmy Carter will go down in American history as `the president who lost Iran,’ which during his term went from being a major strategic ally of the United States to being the revolutionary Islamic republic. Barack Obama will be remembered as the president who `lost’ Turkey, Lebanon and Egypt, and during whose tenure America’s alliances in the Middle East crumbled.”- Aluf Benn in the daily Haaretz.

Notes from JWR:

The recent news headlines from Egypt show a similarity to many of the TEOTWAWKI predictions we’ve seen mentioned in SurvivalBlog. In the past three days, we have witnessed: an interruption of communications, chaos and looting on city streets, those who are in-the-know quickly and quietly Getting Out of Dodge, many policemen staying in their stations or even at home to protect their own families, mass prison escapes, neighbors teaming up in ad hoc teams to protect lives and property, and the military either unable or unwilling to step in to stop most crimes. The Egyptian food-price-protests-turned-revolution should be a lesson to us.

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Today we present the final two entries for Round 32 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 $392 value.) C.) A 9-Tray Excalibur Food Dehydrator from Safecastle.com (a $275 value), D.) A 250 round case of 12 Gauge Hornady TAP FPD 2-3/4″ OO buckshot ammo, courtesy of Sunflower Ammo (a $240 value), and E.) An M17 medical kit from JRH Enterprises (a $179.95 value).

Second Prize: A.) 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 $400, B.) A $250 gift card from Emergency Essentials, and C.) 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.) , and B.) Expanded sets of both washable feminine pads and liners, donated by Naturally Cozy. This is a $185 retail value.

Round 33 begins tomorrow and ends on March 31st, 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.

Earthships: Sustainable Living for TEOTWAWKI, by Sgt. P.

How much did the average home owner in the United States pay for utilities last month?  Last Year?  How much will they pay for utilities by the time they pay off their mortgage?  If they averaged $250 per month in utilities, which is below the national average of “$264.33 per month” (Statistic quoted by White Fence) the answer is shocking.  With the average home loan lasting 30 years, without taking into consideration rising costs, utilities would be $90,000!  For that amount of money this homeowner could put one child through a four year-degree at a very nice university.  What if I could explain how to build a home that would have little or no utility costs and cost the same or less to build as a conventional home?  I think that everyone should consider living in a growing architectural design called an Earthship because it will provide housing to live sustainably with no utility bills, ever.

There is an Earthship community where people live and work on their own property; and share labor and food with each other.  “Stacked up in the foothills of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains near Taos, New Mexico, is a community of ‘Earthship’ houses, a pioneer of the Rural Earthship Alternative Community Habitat (R.E.A.C.H.) concept.  Earthships incorporate walls made of discarded vehicle tires, rammed earth and concrete, systems for recycling water and waste, solar technology, and a design that reflects the local adobe vernacular. Designed by architect Michael Reynolds (who lives in the one at the top), they are almost entirely self-sufficient in energy” (2010, Martin Bond).  Whatever a household does not grow or raise themselves they trade with another households that do; back and forth until everyone in the community has everything they need.  Communities such as this one are popping up all over the world. 
Earthship homes are designed to be self contained living units with the construction being out of various recycled materials.  The load-bearing walls are made of counter-stacked, earth-packed, used tires much like a brick wall, only much wider.  “The major structural building component of the Earthship is recycled automobile tires filled with compacted earth to form a rammed earth brick encased in steel belted rubber. This brick and the resulting (load) bearing walls it forms are virtually indestructible” (2010, Earthship Biotecture 1).  These tires can usually be acquired free from local tire companies because the companies have to pay to have them removed so they will happily give them away, ultimately saving them money.  Aluminum soda or beer cans can be acquired free and are used as bricks for interior, non-load bearing walls.  Glass wine or liquor bottles are cut with a wet-saw and placed end-to-end inside non-load bearing walls.  This allows light to shine through, creating beautiful kaleidoscope effects inside the home.  Once the home is complete, the owner can immediately start growing their own food and raising their own meat to supply themselves with the basic sustenance of life.  Because the building will supply the owner with clean drinking water, electricity and comfortable temperature control, there is no need for exterior supplied utilities.  This means the owner has no bills to speak of except the occasional trip to the grocery store for what the Earthship itself cannot provide the owner and propane for backup hot water generation.

Earthships also provide their owners with the three basic needs in life; shelter, food and water.  Additionally, they can provide income if wanted.  If everyone in the United States lived in an Earthship, this country would no longer be dependent on food and fossil fuels imported from all over the world, or huge water and waste treatment plants, run by the government.  This would also eliminate huge corporations controlling public utilities and deciding how much they want the populous to pay for their basic essentials of life.
           
Earthships are normally built on the downhill slope of a south facing hill but this is not a necessity; a level plot is sufficient.  The “hill” design is so the main structure of the home is underground, keeping it cool in the summer and warm in the winter; and the southern face of the home is almost completely made of windows.   These south facing windows allow the sun to heat the walls and floors.  This keeps the temperature in the home comfortable during the winter time when the sun is low in the sky as well as bringing in natural light for the plant life year around.  The average temperature in an Earthship is 70 degrees, year-round.  This temperature is controlled by the occupant through various means built-in at the time of construction.  Vent tubes placed inside of the uphill section of the construction near the floor bring in air from behind and above the home; the air cools as it passes through the earth.  Skylight vents in the ceiling also allow hot air to escape upwards and bring in cool air from the front of the house through windows that open.  This cools the home during the summer and also allows various insects to enter the greenhouse area and pollinate the plant life.  Closing these vents during the winter eliminates this cooling effect allowing the sun to warm the home.  This is an extremely efficient form of heating and cooling, requiring no outside power whatsoever. 
           
Earthships also supply their owners with an abundant amount of fresh water from rainfall, even in very arid climates.  The water collected is then used four times.  Runoff from rain collects in a cistern where it is cycles through a copper pipe to keep bacteria from growing.  When the inhabitant requires water, it is run through a filtration system to make it cleaner than most municipal water supplies.  “Earthship Biotecture has created a board that contains a series of filters and a pump that does this.  They call it the Water Organization Module” (2010, Earthship Biotecture 2).   The first use of the water is for various household duties including drinking, cooking, washing dishes, and taking showers.  This converts clean water into gray water.  Gray water is then recycled the second time by being pumped into the in-home garden where it feeds the plants that will feed the inhabitants.  This is completely safe because no human waste has been introduced into the soil.  Once the water settles down at the low end of the planter system, it is then pumped to a holding tank where it waits to be recycled for the third time to fill the toilets.  Water used to flush the toilets is now considered black water.  The black water is pumped outside where it collects into one of two types of water treatment areas.  The most common is an ordinary septic tank.  Bacteria in the septic tank break down the human waste and the leftover liquid is fed into the ground through a leach field.  “The septic tank contains baffles that prevent any scum that floats to the surface and sludge that settles to the bottom from passing out of the tank. The gases that are generated vent to the atmosphere via the plumbing vent system. From the septic tank, the segregated and relatively clear liquid flows into a small distribution box where it is then metered out to several perforated pipes” (2010, InspectAPedia.com). 

This type of single-home sewage treatment is used worldwide in areas not connected to sewer systems.  The other type of black water treatment is a self-contained flower garden where the black water feeds into a large area of plants, not suitable for human consumption completing the fourth phase of recycling.  This area is completely sealed so no sewage can leak into the surrounding ground and water table.  These plants soak up the water and treat it through natural processes of bacteria and decay.  Animals can eat this grass, bee’s can pollinate the flowers and these animals can be used for food and the bees, of course, produce honey.  This is completely natural as the black water being recycled through the earth and then through the plants, makes it safe for the animals to eat the plants, and ultimately, humans to eat the animals.  Human food cannot be produced this way, because our digestive system does not break down waste as well as the animals digestive system does. 

Sunlight and wind are utilized through photovoltaic panels and wind generators to produce the electricity needed to power the home.  A bank of 12 volt batteries are used to store the electricity produced by these sources and the home mainly runs on fixtures and appliances designed to run on direct current or DC.  An inverter converts the DC into alternating current (AC) for appliances that require AC.  To send power through power lines over long distances requires AC; that is why alternating current is the world standard.  DC is actually much more efficient when power is not required to travel long distances.  Modern Earthships have all the amenities of any home built from conventional means including large screen televisions and high speed Internet.  Propane can also be used for refrigeration or an alternate hot water source.

It takes approximately one-year for the food growth cycle to become established and the home owner accustomed to it.  Once these factors are in harmony with each other; the balance of food production versus use, the owner will incur very minimal monthly food costs.  Earthship inhabitants can teach these methods of living to their children who can either choose to live in their parents Earthship or build one of their own.  The entire process is self-sustaining and continually replenishing itself; thus an Earthship could provide all the basic needs of an entire family.

The cost comparison from conventional home construction and Earthship construction can vary from much lower to much higher than conventional construction depending on how much the owner wants to put into their Earthship.  Earthship architecture keeps the up front cost of construction to a bare minimum because most of the structural materials are either free or very cheap.  Some owners have even built Earthships with no mortgage after completion.  Those building Earthships can rack up expense very quickly with the purchase of the water treatment units and the power generation systems.  Most builders of Earthships choose to save money by building their own wind generators and solar panels, whereas others purchase top-of-the-line, most expensive components saving time and workload. 

When one considers how much money an average homeowner will spend in utilities throughout the length of their mortgage, I believe that everyone should consider building an Earthship.  Wouldn’t it be nice to have no bills to speak of?  Earthships are self-sustaining and for this reason are fast becoming a more main stream option, attracting people from all walks of life.  Imagine never paying utilities, well into your retirement age.  My wife and I are looking for land to build our own Earthship, you should consider joining us.

References and Illustrations:

Blue Rock Station.
           
Earthship Biotecture 1.
           
Earthship Biotecture 2.
           
GreenHomeBuilding.com

Home Quotient. “Food Production”
           
Home Quotient. “Windows”
           
InspectAPedia.com.

Low Carbon Trust. “Photovoltaic & Solar Hot Water”

Specialist Stock. (Specialist Stock photo by Martin Bond used with special
permission via e-mail.)

The Open End. “Phoenix Bath”

The Practical Environmentalist. “Earthship Walls”

WhiteFence.com.

Prepared? I Hope So, by C.W. in Arizona

Those of us who wish to be prepared for whatever may lay ahead, are always faced with unique situations and challenges.  Those challenges may include such things as: lack of funds, a difficult location, non-supportive or elderly or disabled family members, your age or stage in life, etc. The list goes on and on. However, is it imperative to find solutions and make plans?  I think so! 

While my situation is a little unusual, I count myself as truly blessed to be one of those individuals who knows the time to be prepared is now, rather than later.  I am not about to be deterred or overwhelmed.  I do not want to face these challenging times without a plan. Neither should you. 

The questions you ask now may be the key to your successes later.  I knew I needed to have a plan or plans that I could realistically attempt to implement.  I began by making an assessment of my situation; then formulating several plans along with a variety of solutions including skills and preps that could work for my unique circumstances.   While my needs will be quite different from yours, the process of forming the plans will be easy to follow.   If I can do it, you can do it.

My circumstances are as follows:  I am a 59 year old female…wife, mother of two sons ages 26 and 36, grandmother of five, and a retiree from the teaching profession.   

My husband and I purchased a second home about six years ago where we could spend warm winters prior to and during our full retirement.  Our thinking being that the prices were going to continue to rise rather than decline.  Oh, wow, were we wrong!  Since my retirement, I have been spending the winter months at the second home in the warmer climate.  My husband who is self-employed could do the same, but has chosen to reside in the colder climate during the winter months and remain involved with our business. The youngest son resides in the same state as dad and is a full-time student/part-time employee.  The oldest son is self-employed and lives in a very large state in the south with his wife and five children. Okay, my circumstances are not really a problem so far, just somewhat unique.

Challenges are as follows:

Differences of opinion exist within the family:  I know the times are changing!  My oldest son knows the times are changing!  We are both spending our time and resources seriously preparing for the very difficult times that we believe are ahead of us.  Husband and younger son think the two of us are way off base and have done little or nothing with regard to preparing for what is ahead. 

Do I bug in or bug out?  Bugging in will mean being alone without a support system, in a city of 3 to 4 million “sheeple.”  Bugging out will mean driving across country alone in what could be difficult circumstances, for a distance of 1200 to 1800 miles, to get to family.

Do I travel 1,200 miles… to my older son’s home in a conservative state where he is quite prepared to take care of and defend his family and their home; knowing full well that I could become an additional burden to the already large family?  He and his wife are hoping that I will join them.

Do I attempt to make the 1,800 mile trip back to my husband and younger son, which happens to be in a fairly liberal state with much more extreme weather conditions; only to find that there have been no provisions put aside or preparations made for difficult times ahead?  For heaven’s sake, they don’t see the train wreck coming!

What am I preparing for? I am preparing for anything and everything that is not the norm; whatever, whenever, or wherever that may be.

Here is what I have done so far or possible solutions for potential challenges:

  1.  I maintain a three to six month’s storage of foods that I eat regularly. These foods can and usually are taken with me when I make my seasonal shift from one location to another.
  2. I have purchased a S&W .38 revolver with Crimson trace laser, an S&W Bodyguard with laser, a Ruger 10/22, and a Ruger Mini-14 Ranch Rifle, each of which are stainless steel with synthetic stocks and easy to maintain.  I have a nice supply of ammo.
  3. I obtained my concealed carry weapon’s permit for two states; the third state recognizes one of the acquired permits.
  4. I made the change from driving a small luxury car to a nice 6.2 liter crew cab pick-up truck.  Yes, it takes more fuel, but it is safer and more capable of being driven under difficult weather or road conditions.
  5. I purchased a very quiet used Honda generator that only had logged 10 hours of use from a relative who needed the money. That was an awesome deal at half the price of a new one.
  6. I purchased a half dozen fuel containers, which I can fill within minutes.  I am getting closer to filling and rotating on a regular basis.  I do have Sta-Bil in my preps.  I have also calculated the amount of fuel it will take to get to the shortest destination.
  7. I purchased a Coleman Dual Fuel Camp Stove and keep fuel on hand.
  8. Since I live in a desert climate, water storage is a must.  I always maintain a good supply in transportable containers.
  9. I keep a nice amount of cash on hand and also have a good amount of Silver Eagles as back up.
  10. I keep all documents including my passport in a ‘grab and go bag’ along with a good B.O.B. filled with cold weather clothing and survival gear.
  11. I purchased a good quality sleeping bag, which is also included in the B.O.B.
  12. I have made a very serious attempt to acquire new and used books, which I feel would be quite useful if the internet becomes unavailable.
  13. I read survivalblog.com daily and always monitor world events via real and preferred radio or television stations.
  14. I have made a commitment to read The Bible daily, as well as other very informative books.
  15. I do take medications on a daily basis, and make purchases through a national chain.  Because the insurance does not want to allow more than a 30 day supply per renewal, I am considering larger purchases through Canada.  This is not my preference, but may be my only way of obtaining a supply that would last for more than one month per renewal.

Did all of this happen overnight?  Absolutely not! I first evaluated and prioritized! I have since acquired the skills and preps over the past two years as my money would allow.
Do I have all of the answers?  Heavens no! However, knowing that I have acquired some new skills and new useful items, gives me more confidence that I will be prepared for the coming changes.  I simply pray I will know what to do and where to go when the time comes that I must make that decision. 
 
Are you prepared?  I hope so!  If not, and you have been waiting for a nudge to move forward with your plan, consider this article to be that nudge.  Don’t plan to fail, because you failed to plan.  What are the possible challenges you and your family may be facing in a natural or man-made disaster or event?  Come up with solutions and set your goals to be accomplished within a realistic time period.  Face one challenge at a time, and get to it!  Time may be running out!