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I am almost 60 years old.  I have a neurological disease which has forced my early retirement.  I am single, never been married, and have no children.  My parents are both deceased and my sister is deceased.  My brother is retired and lives in Florida.  [Some deleted, for brevity.] I also do not have any friends.  My best friend decided that since she couldn’t see the effects of my neurological disease then I must be faking it and being lazy to retire early.  She doesn’t see me writhing in pain most evenings even though I take a lot of pain medication.  So, I am old, alone, poor and on a fixed income and disabled.  My only companions are my three dogs, all collies.  But, I am preparing and planning for TEOTWAWKI.  For all those who aren’t preparing I can only shrug and wonder why they are so blind and/or lazy.

Neither of my parents were well educated but they were both intelligent people.  They were married in 1933, the depth of the Depression, but my dad would do any work he could find and they never went hungry.  My mother was always prepared for unexpected company so we always had extra food around the house.  She would take advantage of coupons and sales to stock up on things we would eventually use.  I grew up to be totally independent.  I worked from the time I was 10 years old, babysitting and taking in ironing, etc.  I worked my way through college with a degree in laboratory science.  That is a good field, and I was never out of work, but you don’t get rich doing it.  I could go anywhere in the country and get a job.  I’ve lived in nine different states, from Indiana to Hawaii.  The last two years I worked I could see the writing on the wall, my forced early retirement due to disability.  So, I began socking away as much money as possible and paid off my bills.   I was living in Denver, Colorado, at the time and I knew when I retired I would have to move because it would be too expensive to live in Colorado on a fixed income.  I could see the housing bubble coming, so I sold my house, moved into a friend’s basement and saved more money.  Thank God I sold it when I did or I’d still be sitting there, in a house worth far less than I’d paid for it and probably unable to sell it.  I would’ve lost it because my house payments would’ve eaten up my entire disability income.

My parents and their parents were all from the Ozarks, and I had spent a lot of my time there as a child, so it seemed like home to me.  Since I had also lived many places and travelled a lot, I knew there were few places to compare to it, especially to the relatively low cost of living and relatively mild four-season weather.  Although I considered many places, I knew it would have to be somewhere west of the Mississippi.  I know there are alot of nice places in the eastern part of the country, but it’s just too crowded for me.  The place I live now is far from a freeway or interstate, far from any major airport and the nearest town of about 1,100 people is five miles away.  I was able to purchase my home for the cash I got out of my house in Denver, so I have no house payment.  I have two acres of heavily wooded land and rocks.  Not good for gardening, but very good for being inconspicuous.  My health prevents me from gardening on a large scale at any rate.  I am gathering tools and equipment for container gardening. 

In my food storage plans, I am including my dogs, since they are my family.  I always keep as much dog food on hand as we can use before it goes bad, and I am purchasing enough rice and beans and wheat to feed all of us for at least a year.  If whatever TEOTWAWKI scenario  disrupts society for longer than a year, it is doubtful that I will survive much longer than that, anyway.  I hope to supplement our food by shooting or trapping squirrels and birds, mainly for the dogs.

I am also reading and learning about chickens and rabbits.  Next spring I expect to get my first chickens.  After that, if my health holds and the end doesn’t come too soon, I hope to add the rabbits and maybe a goat or two.  I plan on getting Angora rabbits and will raise them primarily for their fur as Angora fur is in demand with fibre artists and I can sell it, but they will be available for meat if TSHTF.

Although I was born and raised in the city, I have always been a country girl at heart.  For several years I owned a house and 5 acres on the outskirts of the city in which I worked and commuted.  I had two horses and several dogs and cats.  I eventually gave up the country life because I found the commuting too draining.  But, I  always knew that when I retired I would return to the country.  I spent about 20 years, on and off, living in Denver, so I taught myself to camp in the mountains.  None of my friends liked to camp and only one of my dogs liked it.  I’ve travelled and camped all over Colorado but one year I discovered a valley that was just the most beautiful and perfect I had ever seen and I bought five acres there.  I tent camped there for many years, but by the time I was in my 50s I was ready for a better bed.  I bought a “vintage” travel trailer. It is 13 feet long and is not self-contained.   With no water and no electricity it was good experience for TEOTWAWKI .  I gave serious thought to building a cabin on that land and making it my retirement home, but it is at 8,000 feet altitude and the snow and thin air would quickly be hard on a retired, disabled single woman. 

The first year of my retirement to the Ozarks, we had a major ice storm.  I was without power for nine days in sub-freezing weather.  This was also good experience for TEOTWAWKI and I discovered several problems with my ‘retreat.’  The major one is water.  I have a well and the pump is powered by electricity.  No power, no water.  I think that is the major weakness that this country will face, whether in the city or the country.  Fortunately, since my dogs can drink a gallon of water a day, I had already built up a fairly large stock of water.  I had gallon jugs in my storage/porch and 200 gallons in barrels in the barn.  I never had to open the barrels.  I also had a major advantage over some folks in that my house has been equipped with ventless propane heaters in the living room and one bedroom and I had, with a certain amount of foresight, filled up my 500 gallon propane tank that Fall.  Between those two heaters the house stayed liveable.  I had all my camping gear for cooking and a healthy supply of extra propane bottles.  I also had one propane catalytic heater from my camping supplies that I used in the bathroom to heat that room up for when I took my sponge-baths.  I also have a large collection of oil lamps.  My two favorite ones are from each of my grandmothers and are still in perfect working condition even though they must be over 100 years old.  They got me started collecting, so I had plenty of lamp light and didn’t have to use flashlights all the time.

For the first several days, I was trapped in my house by downed trees in the driveway.  I could barely even get out of the house, so many branches were down on the house.  So, even if I had desired to go to one of the shelters that were established, I could not have gotten there.  But, as people with animals know, dogs are not allowed at most emergency shelters and I would never go off and leave my dogs behind.  Eventually, my closest neighbor came by and he and his brother used their chain saws and opened a path through my driveway.  I was deeply appreciative and tried to at least pay them for the gas, but they wouldn’t accept anything in payment.  I was somewhat surprised, since they hadn’t been overly friendly before (or since).   After they opened the path in my driveway, I drove to town in my four wheel drive vehicle and bought a chain saw and some oil.  They were just about out, I got there just in time.  I went to the camping supplies area and thought I would just buy a couple more cans of propane, but the camping area had been stripped.  There was a man standing there in the aisle, with his arms at his sides and his head drooping.  I feared he had a family at home without any preparations.  The grocery shelves had also been stripped.  The local radio programs I listened to were full of stories about families who had no water or food or heat, or even diapers for their babies.  What is wrong with people like them?  Don’t they feel any responsibility to adequately provide for their familes?

My father had taught me how to use a chain saw, but I don’t like them.  I found, however, that the vibration from the chain saw made my neurological condition worse and soon was unable to continue the work.   But, I was at least able to get the doorways cleared and get an area cleared for the dogs to do their duty.   I wished I had a fireplace or wood-stove and that is on my list of need-to-buy.

My house is old and it needed a new roof when I bought it.  It took me two years to save up enough money for the roof and even though it was much more expensive, I had a metal roof installed.  I also had some gutters installed and I am in the process of planning a gutter and rain-barrel system to collect water.  That, by the way, is another problem with Colorado.  Catching the rain that falls on your own roof is illegal there, thanks to water treaties with neighboring states.  I mean, talk about Big Brother!   I am also hoping to have a cistern installed for my well and an above-ground tank installed on the slope above my house, for fire prevention and storage.  Of course, those are expensive projects and since I am unable to do the work myself it becomes even more expensive since I have to hire it done.  So those projects may have to wait until I win the lottery.  And, it will be a long time until I win the lottery, since I never buy tickets.

When I lived on my house and five acres in the country, back when I was still young and working, my dad gave me a .410.  I thought he was crazy.  I don’t hunt and would never kill an animal.  But, he didn’t feel comfortable with his youngest daughter living 40 miles outside of town all alone.  As it turns out, I actually used it once or twice.  In the winter, a pack of coyotes that lived in the woods behind my barn would creep up close to the barn, looking for food no doubt.  I don’t think they’d ever have hurt the horses, but they scared them and I if I heard the horses getting anxious, I’d go outside and scare the coyotes away by firing that .410 over their heads.  Since then I have added two 9mm handguns to my ‘arsenal’ and my next purchase will be a [larger bore] shotgun.  I discovered that my two closest neighbors have been burglarized, so I’m prepared.  I’ve also had a fence installed around my house.  There are only two gates and both are padlocked.  Next I’m having a gate installed at the road end of the driveway.  Far too many people seem to drive up my driveway, look around and then turn around and leave.  One night, we heard someone fall over some leftover metal from the roofing project that is still laying at the side of the driveway.  The dogs went running down the fenceline barking their heads off.  As I got to the door with a flashlight, I heard a big diesel engine start up down by the road, and could hear them as they powered up our dead-end road towards the county road.  Next time, instead of running to the door with a flashlight in my hand, I’m running to the door with a loaded gun.  Just so ya’ll know…I don’t have much, but I intend to keep what’s mine.

My sister’s son lives about 250 miles away from me.  He and his extended family have come to visit me a couple of times, until I let them know I wasn’t able to cook for his mob and wasn’t going to give them a bunch of money or anything.  He spends all his money on Harleys and tattoos.  He was kind enough to let me know that if TSHTF he plans on coming down here.  I told him fine, but bring your own food, and it might be a good idea for him to start stocking some here now.  He kind of looked at me funny.  He told me seven months ago that he would come down in a couple of weeks to help me with a project I have going, but I haven’t received as much as an email since, so please don’t think I’m being hard on family!

I am in the process of learning some new skills that might be useful.  I figure with my background in chemistry that candle-making might be a perfect match.  So far, I have only bought a few books but I need to get going on those plans.  I also hope to learn to can and dry food.  I have also bought a large bucket of sprouting seeds and have some seed growers that I plan on using this winter.  I have a large collection of sewing supplies as sewing has been a life-long hobby.  I would like to find a treadle sewing machine, but since they are antiques, now, the prices have been unrealistic for me.  I do have two machines, however, so if necessary, it would be possible to jury-rig a treadle system.  My dad was always in the garage, building or doing something, and if I wanted to spend time with him, I was in the garage, too.  Consequently, I’m fairly handy with tools and have  a pretty good collection, and I even know how to weld.  The main limitation for those types of activities is my health. 

So, even though I’ve retired I haven’t completely given up to the rocking chair yet.  I’m still learning and planning and just about every spare dime I can scrape up goes to cover another component on the survival lists.  I still have lots to do and don’t plan on giving up and letting the Golden Horde get what’s mine without a fight.  I’ve fought to survive my whole life…no one’s helped me.  So, what else would I do?  And my nephew?  If he plays his cards right, when I’m gone, he’ll be left a fully-stocked, paid-for retreat.  Not that it will do him any good, he’ll probably just sell it and buy another motorcycle.  But, ya can’t eat Harleys, can ya?