Odds ‘n Sods:

Several readers mentioned this: 20 Things You Will Need to Survive When the Economy Collapses and the Next Great Depression Begins. The writer is a bit naive, but seems to be well-intentioned.

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Details emerge about the new Supreme Court nominee: Clinton staff: “We are taking the law and bending it as far as we can to capture a whole new class of guns.” Kagan wrote the Clinton ban on gun imports.

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Ian sent us a news story link that illustrates how paper currency privacy (and ease of transport) is slipping away: Organised crime fears cause ban on 500 euro note sales. Look for the truth behind the headlines, folks. Think about the face value of what you can fit in a money belt today, and what options will exist in a few years. Here in North America, $500 Canadian dollar notes are now available only on the collector’s market. (But thankfully, they are still legal tender.) And anything larger than a $100 USD bill would not be available without paying a large collector’s premium, and presumably even then wouldn’t be accepted as legal tender in the U.S. or abroad.

Jim’s Quote of the Day:

“A graduation ceremony is an event where the commencement speaker tells thousands of students dressed in identical caps and gowns that ‘individuality’ is the key to success.” – Robert Orben

Note from JWR:

Today we present another entry for Round 28 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round will 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 between $500 and $600, 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.), and D.) A 500 round case of Federal 5.56mm XM193 55 Grain FMJ ammo, courtesy of Sunflower Ammo. This is a $199 value, and includes free UPS shipping.

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, and B.) two cases of Meals, Ready to Eat (MREs), courtesy of CampingSurvival.com (a $180 value).

Third Prize: A.) A copy of my “Rawles Gets You Ready” preparedness course, from Arbogast Publishing, and B.) a Royal Berkey water filter, courtesy of Directive 21. (This filter system is a $275 value.)

Round 28 ends on May 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.

Some Tips and Tricks on Raising Meat Rabbits, by Christine W.

Food production is the most important skill in survival. Without sufficient food you’re sunk. You won’t have the energy to protect yourself or your supplies, you won’t be able to get firewood to keep warm, or water to stay hydrated. So yes, you can live for weeks without food, but only if other people are there to take care of you and they have enough food! And meat is one of the best energy foods. Unfortunately most meat production is a high feed/time endeavor. It takes a lot of feed and time to get that cow to butcher size. Two years from birth to butcher if you’re looking at optimum growth. Plus a cow standing out in a field is going to draw attention, even if you live in the boonies. That’s why rabbits are such a good survival idea. They are very low profile, quiet, easy to raise, healthy, easy to feed, reproduce quickly, and reach butcher size in 10 to 12 weeks. No other livestock animal has a better feed to weight ratio. Meaning it takes less feed to get your rabbits to butcher size than any other meat animal. There are some great rabbit raising books out there with the standard information, but some info is only learned by experience. These are tricks about rabbit raising that we had to learn the hard way through trial and error, or was passed on to us by other rabbit raisers. So if you are a rabbit raiser or just starting a rabbit journey I hope this helps!

Health
Do not use straw in rabbit cages. If mice have been in the straw their feces and urine can carry infections that will spread to your rabbits. We had this happen! Old newspapers, clean grass hay, or dry wood shavings are the safest.

Wood Shavings as litter: I would only recommend putting litter like wood shavings, clean grass hay, or newspaper in cages for pregnant females for their nesting box. But wood shavings have a drawback. The dust can get in the babies eyes causing eye problems. We had this happen too! Mother rabbits should make their nest out of fur they pull off themselves, more on that later.

Clean litter trays frequently, at least once a week. Rabbit urine is high in ammonia and can cause health problems for your rabbits if left to accumulate. Keep your rabbits in a well-ventilated area. Rabbit droppings make excellent compost!

Give your rabbit a piece of natural wood to chew; they really like apple wood branches. This helps keep their teeth from growing too long.
Always put an untreated piece of board in the cage for your rabbit to sit on. Meat breeds are heavy and the pressure can cause sores called hutch sores to form on the bottoms of the feet.
If hutch sores occur build an outside run for your rabbit. Cover on the top with wire or wood but not the bottom. Let the rabbit run on ground until the sores are healed. Letting the problem go can cause feet problems or even death!

We use wire stackable cages with wire bottoms with trays underneath each rabbit to catch the urine and feces. We use wood shavings in the trays to absorb the urine and keep the smell down. It works much better than newspaper or straw. Stackable cages take up less space, are easy to clean, and make rabbit chores go faster. They are also easier to keep in a secure location like a garage or basement. Worth the price in my opinion.
Empty aluminum soda pop cans are fun and safe toys for rabbits to play with. Rabbits get bored too and can start destructive behavior! But be careful, a few rabbits will actually bite through the metal. If you have one of these then take the can out and try something else.
Always provide a mineral salt lick for rabbit health. Make sure its “mineral” not plain salt. And stock up, they are cheap right now, but may be unavailable later.
Keep rabbit food secure from mice. They carry diseases!
Give pregnant and nursing females oats (about ¼ cup per day), they love it and it helps build up fat stores for good baby production. Also give to babies to fatten them up for dinner!

Kindling/Baby Problems
This is the most problematic aspect of rabbits. You will devote more time to kindling (rabbit birth and newborn babies) than anything else in rabbit care. While rabbits are easier to breed and raise than chickens in my opinion, that is only true with a good experienced doe (female rabbit). If you have good mom, baby care on your part is non-existent. Here are some hard learned tricks to problems.
Do not use wood shavings in kindling (birth) box! Give the doe newspaper or clean grass hay if it seems like she is not pulling fur good enough. Putting grass hay and newspaper in may also stimulate her to start building a nest. Do this about a week before kindling (birth).

First Time Mothers
Almost everyone you talk to and every book you read will say that first time mothers will always loose the first litter of babies. And frankly this is pretty true. But I have noticed that it is usually due to the mother not making a good enough nest and the babies getting chilled as they are born furless. Also the mother almost never gives the first really good feeding that is necessary after birth, causing the kits to be weak. Put those two together and you have dead babies! So here are ways I have solved this problem. Works in other situations too.
Chilled babies: So you go out and find babies chilled and close to death. Or maybe you think they are dead. Hold on! Unless the baby is actually frozen to the wire they may be just barely still alive. Get them inside and if they are hardly moving submerge them up to their neck in warm (not hot!) water. Be careful to not get the head wet. I have had babies that were so still it took this measure to show me they were alive. And like a miracle they came back. Now after they are moving pretty well take them out and gently rub them with a warm dry cloth, being careful of the umbilical cord area. Once dry put them in a box with a heating pad covered with a folded towel or hot water bottles to keep them nice and warm.

Weakness due to lack of milk
If momma didn’t feed them right after birth your going to have weak babies who will be unable to nurse the next time, or if momma rejected them and you need to put them on a surrogate mother (more on surrogates later) the babies will need enough energy to nurse once put back with a mom. Here is what I do and it usually works. Make a warm sugar water solution 2 parts water to 1 part table sugar. Put in an eyedropper and put in warmed babies mouth. Do not give to a chilled baby! Wait until you warm it up. Give only one drop of sugar water at a time; it is horribly easy to drown these babies! After two drops stop. With any more you risk drowning the baby. You should see them swallowing while feeding, don’t force it. You will see these babies start moving around making noises and looking for food as energy increases. Now you know they are ready to be given back to mom or surrogate mom. If you fear it’s too cold outside bring mom to the babies inside to feed them. Mother rabbits only feed babies once a day. Some moms won’t feed under these conditions and then your going to have to try taking babies out to mom twice a day and bringing them inside until they get fur. Or to solve this problem keep your rabbits in a rabbit barn with heat available, or only breed in warm weather.
Insufficient Nest: Mother rabbits should pull out their fur to make a nice warm nest, but first timers almost always do a bad job. If this happens you’ll have to do it for her. After birth (if you do this while mom is still pregnant you can kill the babies inside her due to her struggling) take mom out and gently pull fur from her tummy and sides. It will come out easy due to hormones and reveal her nipples to babies. Shove all this fur into a nice nest shape and make a hollow with your fist. Put babies in and cover with fur. Now put mom in and watch closely. If she tries to reject them you will know because they will start screaming as she hurts them. Get them out! Now you have a problem. Hopefully you can find a surrogate mom.

Surrogate moms: I always breed more than one rabbit at the same time, that way if one mom rejects or has too many babies to support you can give them to another mom. Most rabbits can only support about 8 to ten babies at one time. And if you are breeding meat rabbits your going to have big litters. If different litters are born too far apart it is harder to get the surrogate to accept them. So breed together. Here is how to get a surrogate to accept different babies. In the morning (not night) take the babies and put them in the new nest. Cover well with moms fur so they will smell like the other babies, you can also rub vanilla extract on moms nose to help mask the scent. Now watch mom closely, if she rejects you will know. Check the babies a few times first day, trying not to upset mom. The more you mess with a new mom the more likely she is to kill her babies.

As I have said meat rabbits have big litters so your other moms may not have room to take more babies. What then? Well, you can keep another smaller breed of rabbit just for surrogating. The smaller lops make excellent moms. We always bred our pet Holland at the same time as the meat rabbits. Smaller rabbits generally have smaller litters, but can still support up to eight babies. Our Holland was a rock! She accepted anything and always took great care of her litters. Also bonus, you can tell whose babies are who’s. This is important for future breeding purposes. If all babies look alike then you will not be able to tell which babies came from which moms for future breeding.

Buck Problems
Most bucks (male rabbits) have no problems except one. Due to living in a small cage they have very little staying power when it comes to breeding. So when you are trying to breed a male to a female he gets tired very quickly. The solution is to give your buck an open space or rabbit run to live on. His muscles will be stronger and he will breed better as a result. Just make sure it is secure from dogs and predators!
Predator problems – Animal and Human
Rabbits are a prey animal for pretty much anything bigger than a squirrel. So securing your rabbits is a major concern. The biggest predators Pre-SHTF are neighborhood dogs. They get really excited when they see a rabbit and kill mode kicks in! Even a Yorkie could kill your rabbits simply by jumping at them and barking. Rabbits aren’t the cleverest of creatures and panic easily. When they get really scared they will run circles in their cages and jump up sometimes breaking their own backs! Any rabbit not in a secure cage is a sitting duck for owls, dogs, cats, hawks, raccoons, skunks, badgers, possums, and mean kids! And that is just in town! So my advice is put your rabbits in a rabbit barn. This can be a humble shed, garage, or basement. This will become even more important in a SHTF situation. You will not want people [outside your family] knowing that you have meat available.

Heat – The Silent Rabbit Killer
The most tragic thing to come home to is a barn full of heatstroke-killed rabbits. Rabbits can die of heat stroke in 80 degree Fahrenheit weather. That’s it! They are covered in nice warm fur, which is great in cold weather, but not in the heat. Here are the ways to avoid heat death:
1. Shade! Never, ever, put your rabbit hutch in direct sun in warm weather, or they will die! Put your hutches or cages in the shade of a building or tree.
2. Always provide frozen water bottles for your rabbit to lie on in the heat. I like big 2 liter ones for our meat rabbits because they last most of the day. Keep one in the cage while the other one is in the freezer refreezing.
2. Always provide lots of water in the heat. Use water bottle feeders so the rabbits can’t defecate in them or spill them.
3. In really hot weather 90 or above soak the hutch roof and sides in water from a hose several times a day to cool it down.
4. If you notice your rabbits panting take action immediately, your rabbits are in heat stroke! Mist your rabbits with the hose and put frozen water or pop bottles in the cage with them. Monitor to make sure they are cooling down.
5. If a rabbit is laying still in the cage and won’t wake or is sluggish but still breathing it is now in a coma from heat. Get it out and submerge in a bucket of cold water up to the neck. It should revive if not too far gone.

Conclusion
Rabbits are an easy animal to raise once you get the cages and feeders, and much of that you can make yourself. They are also perfect for kids to care for, as they are small, cute, and generally non-aggressive. The worst you will get from a rabbit is a bad scratch. A cow or a pig however, could easily kill or injure your eight to ten-year-old child.

If you had 5 to 10 does breeding every two months you would have a good meat supply for the year. Another major advantage is that you can butcher for daily needs. If you butcher a hog or cow you have to process, pickle, salt, or freeze hundreds of pounds of meat all at once. It’s a tricky business to do safely. With rabbits you have no possibility of spoilage and a nice pelt of fur to turn into clothing. We have seen interest in our rabbits triple in the past months. So much so that I have run out of breeders to sell. This is something that has never happened to me before! People are waking up and looking for ways to ensure food safety. If you are looking to buy breeding stock then make sure they are young (under a year of age) or proven to be fertile, and buy from a good breeder who knows about proper care and feeding. Good Luck!

Two Letters Re: The Skeptical Spouse

Mr Rawles,
I have shared the experiences of many with skeptical spouses. My solution has been a very gradual (and low-key) process of preparing and building up a basic supply of items/food in combination with education and hints of what was going on around us (local crime issues, Hurricane Katrina experiences, etc.). Again, she wasn’t too happy with my weapon and ammo purchases, but accepted it grudgingly. She began warming to the issue of “being prepared” with some of the bad weather in 2008, when she realized that as new home owners, we now had to solve our own problems. We also began to expand our larder from the perspective of “her convenience.” I then installed the safe to protect “her valuables” as well as my guns. However, “Snowmagedon” in January this year was her wake-up call, and I was far away overseas at the time. Every time she needed something (our young clueless neighbors as well) she went into the basement (my bunker-of-redundant-redundancies) and found what she needed. Granted, she was often surprised by what she found (when did you get that!?), but she ultimately needed it and was very thankful. She may still call me Burt Gummer and accuse me of preparing for the “Zombie Apocalypse,” but it is said in a much more affectionate tone of voice now .- J. in Conn.

Sir;
In my case getting my truly skeptical spouse of 13 years on board was easy: I gave her “Patriots” to read. She asked me many great, probing questions as she read it, often about terminology and the like. She was clearly deep into the story and the material. She is now fully on-board with had previously been my solo efforts at preparedness. I’ll spare you the details but it has been a truly amazing thing to watch and has brought us even closer than before, something I did not think possible. So I guess you could say your book can now be considered a “relationship strengthener”!

Economics and Investing:

Several readers sent this news item to file under “I told you so”: Gold hits all-time high as investors seek haven

Arnaud de Borchgrave: Stock Market Time Bomb?

Reader Rich in Montana notes that recently “two minutes of honesty slipped out”, on the David Letterman Show: Hmmmm…. A Crack In The Dam?

Bill Downey sent me his essay “Brother Can You Spare a Trillion?” Since SurvivalBlog is intentionally light on graphics (in deference to our readers that use mobile devices), I’m pointing you to the essay (with charts) which is already posted at the excellent Zero Hedge blog. The charts and text that Downey presents are alarming!

A press release from the National Inflation Association: The World’s Fiat Currency System Risks Collapse

Unions warn of Greek-style riots in Britain against public sector cuts after court victory over capping of redundancies. (A hat tip to Brian B. for the link.)

Items from The Economatrix:

Roubini: We Will Have Even More Crises in the Future

Germany Might Have to Pay Entire Euro Aid Bill!

Unions Warn of Greek-Style Riots in Britain

Stock Market Crash Exposes World of Electronic Trading

Ron Paul: How the Euro Bailout Will Lead to Currency Collapse

US Exposure to EU Bailout is $50 Billion

Schwarzenegger Preps “Terrible Cuts” to Close Deficit

Odds ‘n Sods:

Jonathan H. suggested this article: The Failure of the Unfree Market. Jonathan’s comment: “Big changes are coming soon – the 72 year rule predicts the downfall of Social Security in 2012. It doesn’t necessarily mean a societal collapse, but definitely fundamental changes are coming, as you have been warning.”

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Arab World Grapples with Food Shortage. (A hat tip to Bob G. for the link.)

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The folks at Centerfire Antennas (one of our former advertisers) has an incentive deal for newly-licensed Hams. If you contact them with your new call sign that was issued between 4/1/2010 and 8/31/2010 then you’ll
receive $25 credit towards their antennas and co-ax.

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Looking for some .30-06 armor piercing (AP) ammo? The DoD’s Civilian Marksmanship Program (CMP) just got a batch that they are offering for sale. This was mentioned this in their latest newsletter: “The .30-06 AP ammo that we now have available includes headstamps: AYR, SL, TW, and LC. Dates of manufacture vary from the 1940s to the 1950s. Most of the ammo is corrosive, but some may be non-corrosive. The ammo is packaged in 8 round M1 Garand en bloc clips, in bandoleers, in spam cans. Purchases of multiple cans will be shipped in what appear to be the original wooden crates (two spam cans per crate). Cans and crates will be selected luck of the draw as to the head stamp. 4C3006U202-192P. Single spam can (192 rounds). $60.00. S&H at $8.95 per can.” (State and local restrictions may apply!)

Jim’s Quote of the Day:

Jim’s Quote of the Day:

"Socialism is a philosophy of failure, the creed of ignorance, and the gospel of envy, its inherent virtue is the equal sharing of misery." – Winston Churchill

Notes from JWR:

Reader Justin S. sent me this article that has some OPSEC implications for prepared families: Multi-level bunker found under East Austin home. Justin’s comment: “I thought this might interest you if you haven’t already seen it. The implications are obvious and interesting. Does the man get to retain his property or does he have his weapons and house confiscated for ‘building code violations?'” Learn from this, folks!

—

Today we present another entry for Round 28 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round will 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 between $500 and $600, 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.), and D.) A 500 round case of Federal 5.56mm XM193 55 Grain FMJ ammo, courtesy of Sunflower Ammo. This is a $199 value, and includes free UPS shipping.

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, and B.) two cases of Meals, Ready to Eat (MREs), courtesy of CampingSurvival.com (a $180 value).

Third Prize: A.) A copy of my “Rawles Gets You Ready” preparedness course, from Arbogast Publishing, and B.) a Royal Berkey water filter, courtesy of Directive 21. (This filter system is a $275 value.)

Round 28 ends on May 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.

Saving in the Hard Times, for the Harder Times, by Mrs. C.J. in San Diego

I am by no means a financial expert and have lived most of my life from paycheck to paycheck, so the first thing I thought of when I read “Patriots: A Novel of Survival in the Coming Collapse”was “Wow, those guys must have been rich to buy all that stuff!” I was very overwhelmed and felt somewhat hopeless that I could ever have enough money to buy the things we needed to make it through TEOTWAWKI, especially now that the economy is worsening, and people have less and less money. So I set out to figure out what I would have to do to scrape together enough money to start preparing. I have compiled a few of the tips and tricks I have discovered over the last few years here, in hopes of sharing my knowledge so others can follow suit and become better prepared in these hard times.

A few notes here before we go on:

A. In this article I will refer to any “extra” or “saved” money as TEOTWAWKI Funds (or “TF“). This is to be used for buying your preparedness supplies, not hoarded away in a bank account as useless cash.
B. There IS a difference between “NEED” and “WANT“. Anything you buy requires three things; Money– not only for the purchase, but also for operation, maintenance, storage, licensing etc. Time– not only to find the item, but also for maintenance and repair. Space– to keep it in. Never buy on impulse. If you want something go home and think on it for a few days. Ask yourself: is this necessary? Who is it being purchased for? What will it be used for? When will it be used? Where will it be used and stored? Why is it needed? How can I pay for it? Most of the time when people sit down and think about it, a “need” actually isn’t a need–it is actually a “want”.

With that being said, here are some of the things I have learned. No one thing is going to save you a ton of money, but added all up together can mean the difference of having money for your TF or not… Think and act as if you are poor and you will have more money in the end!

The Big Things-

1. Credit Cards- Do Not live off your credit cards! Do Not pay credit cards with other credit cards. Do Not pay recurring bills on credit cards. See a trend? Credit Cards should be used for emergencies only. Sell what you have to sell and do what you have to do to get them paid off to a zero dollar balance, then Do Not use them. If you can’t help yourself, take them out of your wallet and leave them at home. I can’t overemphasize this enough; too many people stretch themselves thin by living over their means and off their credit cards. That is not what they are meant for, and doesn’t do anything except get you further and further in debt.

2. Entertainment- Living in San Diego, I am in the epitome of wealth, status, and spending, so the first thing we will talk about here is entertainment. Do you really need those Pro Sports Jerseys, barbecues, flags, #1 fingers, helmets, cups, bottles, pens and all the other useless stuff they have? No you don’t. Put your money in your TF, and get your head out of the clouds. In fact, why not take up hiking or running, (which, incidentally, are free) and start training yourself for TEOTWAWKI. Buy yourself that expensive coffee every morning? Guess what, you don’t do it– brew your own at home and save a bundle! Spend money on toys? Do you really need an electric airplane? Gas-powered RC car? Boats? Quads? 50″ Flat-screen TV? $5,000 stereo system? New china set? New furniture? I think not. Make do with what you have and save your money. What good is a high definition TV going to do for you when there is no food? Nothing. In fact, sell your big expensive items, downgrade, and use the extra money for your TF.

3. Cars and Appliances- Do you really need that new BMW you’ve been looking at? Ahem, no you don’t! If you have a vehicle that is paid off or close to it, it would be cheaper to keep that vehicle and fix it up than to buy a new one- even if you had to put a new engine in it! Better yet, if it’s financed, sell the vehicle you have- get out from under that loan- and go buy a used multi-purpose vehicle in cash. Even if you had to replace the whole drive-train in a used vehicle, it’s still cheaper than buying a brand new car! Also, while we’re on the topic of cars. Limit your driving and errand running; If you need a gallon of milk, don’t make an extra trip to the store- wait until you need to do your weekly grocery shopping. You will save so much money in gas alone just from cutting out useless running around. Limit your driving; write down where you go in one week’s time, and cut out or combine trips.

4. Electronics and Gadgets– people think they need things they actually don’t. Do you really need that new fridge, stove, washer, computer, cappuccino machine? CD, iPods, Blueray discs? I think not! As long as it works then keep it! If it stops working, learn how to fix it, and only then if it is too expensive to fix, sell it as used junk and buy another one, used. I see people all the time buy new appliance after new appliance needlessly, and it’s such a waste of money.

The Little Things-

1. Clothes- This is a big one for women, but also applies to men. Everyone already owns clothes. Look in your closet and arrange them to category. Work clothes. Play/ Relax clothes. Clothes for getting dirty. Clothes for going out. Do the same for shoes. You only need just a few per each category. That’s pretty much it. Sorry women, you don’t need 20 pairs of shoes and 15 purses. One works just fine. Get yourself a nice pair of sturdy boots and put the extra money in your TF. I haven’t bought new clothes in years. Take care of the ones you already have and you will be just fine- you can even alter them if they don’t fit or need adjusted for a very small fee. Again, cheaper than buying new ones. When you have to buy new clothes, buy ones that are on sale, functional, and easy to take care of. Sorry to say, you don’t really need a $200 pair of jeans, or a $500 cashmere jacket. Take the extra cash and buy TEOTWAWKI gear.

2. Food- This is an important one and not just for people new to survivalism. I have slowly learned how to cut our food bill- it does take some work, but it’s very possible. If you can cut your current food bill in half, then you could be using that other half to buy store away foods!

First– grow as much of your own food as possible! (Including animals; chickens and rabbits are cheap and easy to keep!) Even if you have a small yard, or no yard at all, buy some 5-to-15 gallon buckets and grow plants. You can set them up on your lawn, balcony, or even in your driveway if need be. You would be amazed at how much food you can get from pots. From just four big pots I got tomatoes all summer long, never had buy a single one. For whatever you can’t grow, buy your produce at the local vegetable stand or farmers market. Find the cheap ones. Either of these are usually much cheaper than the grocery market. Also, don’t buy expensive exotic fruits and veggies- you don’t need them.

Second– don’t buy name brand products. Most of the time the store-brand tastes exactly the same, and in many cases is even manufactured in the same plant!

Third, look through the weekly circulars and newspapers and find the cheapest meats, milks, and cheeses, etc. More likely than not, you’ll have more than one grocery store close to you, so it won’t be a big deal to go to more than one. Do not think that “I can only shop at this store.” No you can’t- you can shop anywhere the prices are cheap!

Fourth– this one is a little more time consuming but very worth it. Get a large bag and envelopes (for sorting) and collect as many coupons as possible. Circulars, newspapers, and the internet are all great sources. Also, you can call or write most manufactures and they will send you coupons for free. Look every week and keep adding to your collection. Then when the weekly circulars/ ads come out, find items that are going on sale and match up your coupons. Example- a jar of mayonnaise is normally $3.99, it goes on sale for 2 for $5.00, then you have a manufacturers $1.00 off coupon, now you have twice as much mayo for the same price! You just cut your food bill in half! It takes time, but is worth it!  We used to spend about $300 for a full grocery cart of food, we can now get the same amount of food for about $150-to-$175!

Fifth- consider learning how to can and store your own food. Extra tomatoes from your garden? Make spaghetti sauce and can it! It will last months instead of days. You may never have to buy spaghetti sauce again!

Sixth- Always use your leftovers and be creative! Use meat as a flavor enhancer not a main dish. Instead of serving a steak with a side of pasta, chop it up, add it along with your older veggies, canned tomatoes, pasta, spices and voila- what could feed two, can now feed four or more!

Seventh- Don’t eat out! You are better off using the money and going to the grocery store; what could potentially be only one or two meals can easily be six or more.

Eighth- just because your eating cheaper doesn’t mean eating less healthy. We don’t eat any fast food, frozen dinners, et cetera.  Stay away from chemicals, and veer towards healthy well balanced meals. Stick to the basics, lots of fruits and veggies, potatoes, grains, and healthy lean meats. If you are overweight then consider losing some, it may mean the difference between life and death if you have to make a run for it. If your very thin, consider gaining some- you might need a little extra reserve in the times of need.

Last- Don’t buy Tupperware, Zip-loc bags, Rubbermaid boxes, twist ties, and other various expensive “food storage” products. Save your glass jars from your mayonnaises, salsas, spaghetti sauces, etc. You can sterilize them and reuse them to store your foods- for free! [JWR Adds: I look for Tupperware and Rubbermaid containers as well as heavy duty canning jars used, at garage sales. These containers effectively pay for themselves, since they allow my family to fully utilize left-over food, even if they are just dog scraps.]

3. Utilities- This may seem like a big “duh” factor, but you would be surprised at how many people “know” and don’t follow their own advice. Don’t leave water running. Turn off lights when not in use. Unplug appliances when not using- including televisions and computers. Don’t use the heater; installing a cheap wood burning stove can save you thousands on your heating bill. And as unpleasant as it sounds, don’t use the air conditioning- or cut way, way back. Another option is a swamp cooler, they use less electricity and are better for the environment. Hang clothes out to dry instead of using a dryer. This saves a bunch! Case in point: A lady that I know living in a two bedroom house was spending approx $250 a month on electricity bills living the typical American way. But we live in a four bedroom house and our electricity bill runs about $40 a month. [JWR Adds:Pay particular attention to the profusion of AC to DC power adapter “power cubes” all over your house. You might be surprised to find how many of these are on, 24/7/365.Would you leave the same number of light bulbs on all the time? (Some power cubes suck as much wattage as a 40 watt light bulb.) Leave them unplugged except when you are actually using them! One good way to manage this is to put all your power cubes on power strips. When you are done using the appliance, flip off the switch on the power strip!]

4. Kitchen, Cleaning, and Health Products- Most people spend hundreds if not thousands on bathroom cleaners, kitchen cleaners, paper towels, Lysol products, beauty products, etc. Contrary to popular belief you don’t need to. First- Buy yourself a few gallons of standard laundry bleach, dilute it to 1 part to 20 for cleaning, mix it and put it in a spray bottle. Clean with white wash cloths or rags that you can wash and reuse. You never have to buy a different cleaner for every room again! You can clean the kitchen, bathrooms, floors, walls, windows, pretty much anything! Just be careful of colorfast items, carpet, and clothing- it will bleach and discolor them! You can also use ammonia and lemon juice as well for cleaning various surfaces. Two- Use plain ivory soap for hand and dish washing- it’s cheaper, safer, and has less chemicals than most stuff out there. Three- Use only rags or washcloths for cleaning, drying, washing, and wiping. You don’t need napkins or paper towels either- use rags. Disposable Diapers? Nope- get reusable ones. Four- Health/ Beauty products- I see people buy so many health and beauty products that it’s literally cluttering up their lives! Pick one shampoo, one conditioner and one body wash, buy in bulk and forget all the extra expensive soaps and beauty products. Ladies: you don’t need $150 eye cream and hundreds of dollars worth of make-up and facial care products. Get yourself one good cleanser and one good moisturizer and that’s all you need! This is a huge area in wasting money because people trick themselves into thinking they need the items when they actually don’t. Four- Laundry detergents, soaps, shampoos, etc, use as natural product as possible while finding great deals, use your coupons, and buy in bulk. Beware of bulk warehouses though and do your research, some items can be great deals while others not. Warehouse A is famous for buying in bulk, you get a case of soup (8 cans) for $9.90. But you may be able to the grocery store and get them individually for less than $1.00 each. Do your research, and shop smart.

5. Recycling- Recycle everything you can. You pay for it in the first place, so why not get a little of it back! Give your scraps to your animals; dogs, chickens and rabbits can eat most leftovers and you could potentially save money in feed bills, and the chickens and rabbits will in turn create more food for yourself. I also believe in giving your animals the best natural nutrition, but you don’t have to go out and buy the most expensive food- pick a high quality food where you can get coupons and buy in bulk. Compost- put all your food scraps and biodegradable items in a compost pile. You will get back nutrition for your plants instead of buying commercial fertilizers. Recycle cans, bottles, jars (that you don’t keep) and glass. Use old paper for tinder in your fireplace or wood burning stove and burn it for warmth. Another plus: If you are buying much less stuff you’ll have way less trash!

I hope that these few things have helped at least some people to open their eyes and realize that just because we were raised a certain way, does not mean that we can’t change or learn a better way! Be smart, be deliberate in your thinking, and don’t buy useless stuff! Good luck!

Letter Re: Managing Back and Joint Pain

Jim,
I recently “took a bad turn” and re-experienced some back pain. My original injury was in 1979, when I was in the military. After three days I decided to see a chiropractor … like many men, I will see a Doctor only when I have one foot in the grave … (insert visual of wives nodding their heads here). This painful episode got me thinking about survival pain management.

In a previous career, I was the Safety Manager at a poultry processing plant. One of my duties was to manage the in-house Clinic staffed with RNs and LPNs and Paramedics. The jobs at the plant were highly repetitive and strenuous. We saw lots of ergonomic problems that had to be treated, managed and creatively eliminated.

It occurred to me tonight that in a survival situation, even a mild one, we will find ourselves involved in very physical and repetitive tasks that can result in long term pain, swelling and nerve damage if not treated quickly and effectively without having the luxury of using the local physician or pharmacy.

The problem with ergonomic injuries is the swelling, which left untreated, can cause nerve compression damage and long term debilitating pain. Not being able to effectively use your hands after developing carpel tunnel or having severe pain when walking can seriously reduce your ability to engage in needed activities.

Long story short is that, as part of survival preps we should seriously look at pain and injury management and prevention. Powerful pain killers that adversely affect our mental capacity is not a long term or even short term solution. Powerful pain killers should only be used for traumatic injuries and then only for a few days. Extended use can be debilitating, as well as make you live with the side effects.

One of the real problems with pain is that the body muscles overreact causing continual stress and that makes things worse. Managing the pain and swelling is the key.

For my recent pain, the Chiropractor used a Transcutaneous Electrical Nerve Stimulation (TENS) Unit in the office. It worked great. I asked if there were any home versions of the TENS Unit. The answer was yes. I found the one I bought on Amazon.Com. I received the shipment it today and it works great.

I thought I would share some other practical therapy and ergonomic prevention measures that we used for employees:

1. Compression gloves – these are thin elastic gloves that really work to prevent hand pain and cramps. We not only used these at the plant, but my wife used them to elevate her hand pain she experienced while sewing. For some, these gloves can prevent carpel tunnel syndrome from developing. You can find them on line and in sewing supply catalogs.

2. Compression wraps – used post-injury, they can help with swelling and pain management. Be sure they are not too tight.

3. Hot wax soaks – We melted paraffin in a crock pot (not too hot) and used it for those experiencing hand pain. Just dip in the hands and remove. The wax stays on your hands and stays warm. A very effective relaxant and therapeutic treatment. Use 4 to 8 times a day to manage pain. This also gives your hands a rest period.

4. Ibuprofen and vitamin B complex – Double the recommended Ibuprofen dose and four times the daily Vitamin B. This was actually prescribed by our company physician and it works for not only controlling pain and swelling, but speeds recovery and healing for muscular-skeletal disorders. [JWR Adds: Doctors advise that there is no harm in increasing the dosage of water soluble vitamins (which include vitamin B), but beware of over-dosing the fat soluble vitamins, namely vitamins K, A, D, and E. (Use “KADE” as your pneumonic.) These can cause poisoning!]

5. Warm-up – before engaging in repetitive or strenuous activities, warm-up the muscles and joints.

6. Work hardening – All new employees were provided supervises work hardening exercises and the amount of activity from first day to two weeks was strictly managed.

7. Vibration reduction gloves – these are generally for use with powered hand tools that create vibration. Excessive exposure to tool induced vibration can and will cause long term tissue damage. These gloves can also be used to absorb shock from non-powered hand tools.

8. Ergonomic matting – these are used for jobs that require prolonged standing such as meal prep and workbench tasks. These mats will prevent back and leg fatigue, especially when accompanied by the use of a small step to alternately rest one foot/leg at a time. Being able to shift position while working is a basic ergonomic strategy.

20 More Ergonomics Tips

I can drive a nail with a hammer (skill knowledge) but it would be unreasonable for me to expect that I could do it for hours, day after day like a professional framer who has experience in proper tool & body mechanics and has a body conditioned to do this physical work (conditioned experience). In a survival situation, especially those that are long term, we can quickly take ourselves out of the game when we develop, what is called in the industrial and job ergonomics world, Muscular-Skeletal Disorders (MSDs).

Ergonomics is the study of motion, force and stress on a body at work. and in a survival situation, our bodies will be engaged on a lot of that, including use of tools with which we are not proficient . you can’t be everything all at once. But we can use the knowledge gained from industrial ergonomics to lessen the occurrences and effects of MSDs while we ramp up our skills and proficient use of tools in a real world situation.

There are two types of causes of MSDs – Overuse and single event trauma. We have all heard the term “tennis elbow” which is inflammation of the elbow tendon from overuse. A muscle tear would be from a single forceful event. Both are classified as MSDs.

Having had a career in industrial safety, I could go on for hours about ergonomic problems and solutions, but time and space being the limiting factors, I will provide some bullets that may get you thinking about survival ergonomics and do some research on your own. The following list is in no particular order:

1. Job Hardening – Getting the body ready to work includes a ramp-up over time so you can do the hard physical work without injury. Work to strengthen your body core muscles – abdomen, back and sides – to help prevent back injury from repetitive or stressful exertion.

2. Pre-work warm-up – Most gym rats and all professional athletes with do a lot of warm-ups and stretches before starting any strenuous activity. While muscles warm up fast, tendons and ligaments take longer due to the very minute blood flow to and in them. For survival preps, extended, full range of motion exercises with low weight is better than pushing a lot of heavy iron in the gym.

3. Environmental effects – Negative effects, such as high and low light conditions, high and low temperatures, uneven footing, and noise contribute to increase in injuries.

4. Pain & swelling – Tissue swelling causes nerve compression (pain) which can lead to irreversible nerve damage. Muscle and joint pain causes your body to compensate with other muscles, causing strain and more pain and unbalanced effort. Use ice & heat for pain and swelling and medication for reducing inflammation and pain. Once the swelling and pain reduce, get the joint moving again. Don’t stabilize the joint for extended periods. This can lead to loss of range of motion and muscle atrophy. Understand how and when to use hot and cold packs to more quickly recover.

5. Lifting – Proper lifting must include evaluation of the weight, bulk, body position, grip engagement, starting and ending position of the object. The safe lifting zone is between the knees and shoulder. Consider asking for help or using mechanical assist devices

6. Carrying – Flip through some old National Geographic magazines and see how people have carried large, bulky and heavy material on their backs and on their heads. These are not recommended. Breakdown large loads into several smaller ones when rearranging, stocking shelves, etc. Use wheeled helpers such as carts, wagons, bicycles, wheelbarrows, and hand trucks to move heavy material over a distance. Put some bicycle wheels on a child’s wagon and you have a great cart.

7. Backpacking – Experienced backpackers know to keep things light and compact. Heavy items go low in the pack and close to the body to reduce stress from an unbalanced pack. How far can you carry your bug-out-bag?

8. Hands – Rule number one is to keep wrists in a straight and neutral position. The force required to grasp, pinch, or squeeze is multiplied when the wrist is out of neutral position. Working with cold hands is an extreme hazard. Use gloves that are suited for the job. Consider a range of gloves such as sure grip, anti-vibration, compression, warmth, and cut resistance. Make sure the gloves fit well and work with the tool you are using. Improper and extended use of vibrating or impact tools can cause irreversible nerve damage to the hands and wrist

9. Feet – Good non-slip, supportive footwear can prevent injuries. Consider using arch supports and sole inserts for extended comfort and cushioning when moving over flat surfaces, uneven terrain, and climbing ladders. Good work shoes/boots are generally not designed for extended walking or hiking and the reverse also applies. Eye strain – General body fatigue can result from eye strain caused by too much light, too little light or doing fine, close detail work for an extended period. Have good sun glasses and be sure any area in which you work has good lighting. Take eye rests every 15 to 20 minutes when doing close detail work such as sewing.

10. Back – We all know to lift with our legs, not our backs. Lifting and twisting especially in a repetitive motion will cause injury at some point. Our backs are just not designed to do this with even a moderate weight.

11. Repetitive motion – Be sure to stretch and warm-up and take rest breaks. Use fingerless compression gloves for hand work that requires using fingers to repetitively manipulate objects. Use anti-fatigue matting when standing for long periods at a task. Vary your tasks so you don’t fatigue specific muscles. Avoid using your body to create impact force.

12. Tools – Properly designed handles to fit your hands are essential. Handles that are too big or too small with quickly cause hand fatigue. Hand geometry should allow a straight and neural wrist position. Consider the weight and bulk of a tool when selecting your tools. Usage position is important. Off-balanced or twisting or overhead use of tools can cause MSDs.

13. Pushing and Pulling – From a body mechanics standpoint, it’s better to push an object rather than pull it. Make sure you have a good grip and do not flex your wrists if you are doing repetitive work that involves pushing or pulling.

14. Sitting – Extended sitting while working should be done so that there is no stress on the lower back. Knees should be above the hip joint.

15. Standing – While doing work for an extended period at a work bench or counter top, use foot rests, soft anti-fatigue matting and shift your weight periodically. An adjustable work height will be a bonus to keep you from hunching over.

16. Squatting – Watch your body mechanics of moving up or down when squatting. You should generally avoid this position while working.

17. Mechanical advantage – Use levers, block & tackle, hand trucks, pull/push carts, wheel barrows and anything that will minimize the force and exertion you must provide with your body.

18. Temperature – Working in either high and low temperatures can cause rapid overall fatigue that can cause MSDs.

19. Sleep deprivation – Not getting enough sleep creates body fatigue and affects judgment which leads to an injury prone condition.

20. Be prepared to avoid recognize and treat MSDs in a survival situation. Being flat on your back in pain or having lost the effective use of your hands can make it a very bad day for surviving.

I could go on and on about ergonomic solutions that employers (and OSHA) have found effective that could be directly transferred to crisis survival activities, including properly designed tool handles, job rotation, frequent breaks for rest and stretching, etc. Check out the ergonomic sections at the OSHA web site for solutions to problems that you have not yet encountered.

I’m sure there are other non-pain pill pain management and expedited healing techniques, including hot and cold compresses, that are “outside the box” and could be very useful in a SHTF situation.

In keeping with the “if you have two, you have one” dogma, I am ordering another TENS Unit to put in my Faraday cage.

Regards, – Marc N. in Alabama

Economics and Investing:

Les K. sent this: Federal Reserve opens credit line to Europe

Breakfast with the FT: Nouriel Roubini. (Thanks to Mike O. for the link.)

Kevin S. forwarded this: U.S. Debt Shock May Hit in 2018, Maybe as Soon as 2013: Moody’s.

Fed Restarts Currency Swaps as EU Debt Crisis Flares. Read between the lines! Cui bono?

Stocks Mostly Hold Gains After European Bailout

SEC: Regulators Yet to Determine Cause of Plunge

Items from The Economatrix:

US Gold Coin Sales Surge as Investors Flee Risk

Who’s on the Hook for the IMF’s Greek Bailout?

Fears Intensify About Greek Crisis’ Impact on US

Celente on the Greece Riots

Taking Weighty Steps Making a Golden Getaway (The Mogambo Guru)

US Gold Coin Sales Soar on Economic Anxiety

Has Gold Become a New Reserve Currency?

Broader U-6 Unemployment Rate Increases to 17.1% in April

Odds ‘n Sods:

Mountain lion confirmed in rural Greene County, Indiana (Thanks to SurvivalBlog’s Editor at Large Michael Z. Williamson for spotting that article.)

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A word of warning to field foragers: Hemlock May Have Caused Tacoma Woman’s Death. (It is important to learn how to identify poison hemlock — not to be confused with the various hemlock trees.)

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K.L. in Alaska spotted this piece in a Prescott, Arizona newspaper about Cory Lundin: Local survival teacher gets Discovery Channel TV series

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You read about this first in SurvivalBlog: Could another Icelandic volcano erupt soon?

Some recent twisters — a photo essay. (Be prepared, folks!)

Jim’s Quote of the Day:

“Freedom is not a place to visit, or a thing to be achieved. Freedom is a commitment, a way of life that will endure only as long as men love it for themselves and their children, more than their weariness, or their fear, or vain comforts.” – Michael Casey, Phil’s Stock World March 27, 2010

Letter Re: The Basics of Starting to Prepare

Long term survival means you need a three part system. You need (1) Water, (2) Food, and (3) Security. most people only prep for two of the three or one of the three. I know too many “preppers” that say “all that I need is my AR-15 and a ton of ammo”, but the issue with that is obvious. you will have to turn into a bad guy and steal or kill for the other two. I also know guys who say ” will hoard a 90-day supply of food and water, and my neighbors will help me keep my stuff. Right, because your neighbor is the guy with a gun and no food or water. You need all three in combination, or none of them matter.

Another thing to consider is in a SHTF situation how are you going to do some common things? Let’s take a few things and look at how we are going to deal with them in the future. First, are you going to bug in or are you going to bug out. Well, a lot of this depends on what is the SHTF scenario. Take for instance a dirty bomb attack and you live within the danger zone, or the danger zone where the winds are taking the fall out to. In this situation it is obvious you need to bug out. On the other hand what if the same dirty bomb hits, but it is far enough away to impact others, but only impacts you in Electricity, Water, and other utilities. In this situation I would say you need to bug in.

So you have similar things happening, but totally different out comes. What I am trying to say is you need to be prepared for all types of bugging situations. You need a good 72 hour bag for each person, a first aid kit for either each person(level 1) or a first aid kit level 2 for your family(also, you need to think about taking some first aid classes to go with the tools). I mean what good is it to have a suture kit and bags of intravenous fluid, but not know how to use them? You also might consider a bug out kit for the vehicle you are using, and that also brings up the question, what makes a good bug out vehicle? Now I am not going to tell you the best vehicle, because the area you live in determines a lot of this, but more than likely an older SUV with a carburetor and points will usually be a good choice, for a few reasons. You will be able to haul more gear(including food and water), you can haul more people, most are four wheel drive, and the carburetor and point systems are the only sure way to avoid the pitfalls of an EMP.

Continuing the bug out scenario, consider where are you going. Practice the route, all times of the day and night. Know alternate routes to get there, and map these out. Consider alternate locations, you never know where a disaster man made or natural will occur. Store the gear you need at the locations, that way if you are in route and have to ditch the vehicle you can grab your 72 hour bag, hike the rest of the way, and know that when you get there, you can live.

Do not count on the generosity of others. There will be a few people that will help you, but for the most part civilization will be, well, uncivilized! Don’t think my neighbor has a place I have heard about, or, I can go stay with my mom or kids. If this is not what you, and they, have planned then they do not have enough for you and them. (Another thing to consider is it takes approximate 2,000 plus calories to live, but in a high stress situation you need more than that, some times a lot more.) So do have a plan, don’t rush into things. Think out as many possibilities as you can and plan for all of them. You can not have every possible thing in your possession, but you can account for as a bunch.

A word about bug-out-bags, first aid kits and gear. Stock them with what you think you will need for a real world problem. As things in your life or the world change, change the items in the bags. For instance, in summer you may not need a wool sweater, but in winter you might. if you live in Arizona you probably will not need a winter parka, but if you live in Colorado you more than likely will. Be smart when you are prepping, again this is a lot of common sense, but using common sense when you are calm and only preparing for the situation is easier than throwing a bunch of junk together when you a scared because the Chinese have landed on the Pacific coast Also, one more thing about vehicles. You need to always make sure and maintain your BOV, seems simple, but how bad would it be if you have not driven it in three months and go to start it and the battery is dead, or having to head out at night and the headlights being burned out, think!

Now, onto bugging in. If you decide it will be safer for you and yours to stay in place, then do it! You need to be able to assess the situation and make an informed decision. So now you have decided to bug in and the power is out, natural gas is gone or worse, on fire at the transfer station, Now what? How are you going to cook that three months worth of food? Did you think to buy a propane system and propane? Did you think of a solar oven? there are hundreds of things to think of. When you where putting your food and water stores together, did you get all of the meds you and your family will need for the next 90 days, a multivitamin supplement for each of you, and did you go over all of this with your spouse of another responsible person if you are to get injured or become ill?

This is not a complicated thing, but it does take preparation. You need to go over this over and over, until you and everyone you are bugging in with know it backwards and forwards…

If you live in the mountains [or a northern climate], did you think of how to heat in a grid-down situation? You live in New Mexico, did you think of how to have enough water to work in the heat? there are so many small things to think of, you need to really plan for your area and for your own personal needs. I can tell you a hundred things to look at, but most of them will fit me and my family, but may be totally wrong for you and yours.

A thing that I did not think about until recently, communication. If the SHTF then more than likely you will not have a working cell phone. Did you plan on it? Did you buy a CB or ham radio? Do you have a way to power them? There are [photovoltaic] solar panels, generators, and wind turbines. So many options, but what is right for you? It all depends.Wind is great if you live in Kansas, but solar is better if you live in Florida. As a prepper I can tell you ideas, and problems, but you need to come up the best solution for you.

There a hundred things to consider, rain barrels for extra water for cleaning or boiling for drinking and cooking, food and water for your pets, fuel for the generator,vehicle, and cooking appliances, and so many more. We over the next few weeks and months will hit as many of these as we can. If you have a question, ask, I will get you the answers. We will learn this all together.

A few things all of us need to think about is long term food, water, and security.

( a little note: the point of all of this is to survive. This seems obvious, but if you make it through what ever happens and can go past your 72 hour kit, your three month supply of food and water, or if you are very ambitious, make it through the one year mark, and you die because you have no skills to thrive after, then what is the point of all of the prep? One thing you need to consider doing outside of the prep most people teach about is learning to live without technology. Growing your own food, hunting for your own meat, and a trade or skill to barter. In most SHTF scenarios the government will have failed or collapsed and the money you have will be useless. So if you are a stock trader for a living, then learn a trade or skill that will be useful in a market that doesn’t need a banker. The point is to live on, and take care of those in your family and hopefully help others around you.

May God bless you and yours. In Christ’s Love, – Brother Robert