Prepper House Hunting – Part 2, by Mrs. AK

…another housing bubble. It might be prudent to hold off on purchasing at this time. Rather than paying top dollar for a place less desirable than your last piece of property, it might be wise to rent temporarily until after the bubble bursts. Just a thought… MM60 Here are some interesting properties I came up with on Zillow in the northern half of Vermont for under $100,000 with at least two bedrooms and 10 acres: https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/306-Old-County-Rd-West-Burke-VT-05871/241627067_zpid/ https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/392-Davis-Rd-Island-Pond-VT-05846/118028768_zpid/ https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/789-Belvidere-Mountain-Rd-Bakersfield-VT-05441/2092740837_zpid/ https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/87-Wilderness-Dr-Lowell-VT-05847/2095352481_zpid/ https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/672-Tenakee-Rd-Lowell-VT-05847/75447567_zpid/ https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/2343-Carter-Rd-Lowell-VT-05847/227720276_zpid/ mark AK good plans you’ve put out. I escaped 17 yrs ago to move to northern Maine. Wished we had done it years ago. Found a decent place,began fixing it up and plan on staying right here when the SHTF. Lots of like minded people, low taxes,what you do on your land is your business. Plenty of affordable houses. Good luck to you in your search. anonymous Thank you…




Letter Re: A Home Purchasing Guide for Rookies

…property, but those responsible to the taxing authority for assessment claim the value is $Y and will apply the published tax rate accordingly. Find out more about the region’s tax rate decisions, the kinds of spending it tries to do, the way properties are assessed, and how closely properties’ prices match their assessed values. Finance: “…I have chosen to place this mortgage with the small community bank in the rural city we are moving to.” Mortgages are typically sold by the initial mortgage lender to other investors or companies to service. There may be several such sales during the lifetime of the mortgage. While the small community bank gets some benefit, and good for them, they are not likely getting the effect of all the interest money paid on the loan. Selecting the local bank may not accomplish as much for the local community as you think. Budget – Down…




Medical Action Sheets, by K.B., M.D. – Part 1

…not immune to it. Use gloves, and properly dispose of all bandages, et cetera. Medications Prescription antiviral medication, such as Zovirax (Acyclovir), or over-the-counter cimetidine (Tagamet) 200mg three times daily and 400mg at bedtime. Continue cimetidine for 1 to 2 weeks until outbreak symptoms have lessened. Anti-inflammatory for pain control. (These include acetaminophen, ibuprofen, or naproxen.) Remember to see your doctor ASAP, if possible! Tomorrow Join us tomorrow for Part 2, which will contain medical action sheets on “New Influenza Treatment, Colds, and Pneumonia”. See Also: 2- Medical Action Sheets, by K.B., M.D. – Part 2 (Active on 12/27/18) 3- Medical Action Sheets, by K.B., M.D. – Part 3 (Active on 12/28/18) 4- Medical Action Sheets, by K.B., M.D. – Part 4 (Active on 12/27/18) SurvivalBlog Writing Contest This has been part one of a four part entry for Round 80 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The nearly $11,000…




Using Your Smart Phone as a Survival Phone, by Kelly H.

…longer flows. I find that charging batteries rather than charging a cell-phone directly is more effective and offers more versatility. The Tekkeon TekCharge allows you to charge your phone with AA batteries. Applications: The real survival information comes by way of Apps, or applications. Almost all are free on an Android phone, and can be transferred from a PC at home to your phone. This allows you to download Apps without having a cell-phone carrier. There are literally thousands of Apps that could be useful in an emergency situation. These are ones I have personally used: Apps usually download to your phone’s internal memory by default. Because of this, the first app you should download is called “App 2 SD” or an equivalent. What this does is transfer any downloaded App to your SD card for permanent storage. SD Cards can be interchanged and offer much more space than the…




Preparedness Principles – Part 2, by Old Bobbert

…one of the many free applications enabling free download / conversion ability for my specific computer system parameters. My current choice is “CLIPGRAB FOR MAC”, and it is available for both PCs and Macs. And yes it is free. Bobbert’s Answer 3, Easy?- Yes, sorta! I slowly found this methodology to be easy after about 8+ years of frustrating experiences. Good luck! It is important that you choose a free download app that will download multiple videos at the same time easily, and that will function without constant oversight. Read the app’s specific data in advance so as to not waste your time needlessly. I found that the best / fastest time to let the computer (not me personally) do the actual work is often during the very late night hours when fewer area net users are slowing down the time needed to download. My usual practice to locate and…




Storing Valuable “How to” Digital Data, by Slate Creek

…your file will be saved in your download directory. After you have your file downloaded, open up that directory and try to run it. Your device may or may not automatically run the video depending on if you have the software installed for videos. The most common is the Windows media player if you are running a Windows OS device. If you have a tablet or cell phone or running Linux, you will have to research and find a suitable player for your device. There are many YouTube video converter programs and Video / Media players and I have only given one example here of the one I choose to use. More than likely there are better products, usually free, to accomplish the same task. Accessing the data in the future So the day comes that you actually need to access this information with some type of device because we…




A Memoir On One Family’s Move To The American Redoubt- Part 4, by X. Liberal & China Doll

…and squared, the tongue and groove porch ceiling components were installed. Then the sheets of OSB boards nailed over the ceiling boards and with a last bit of effort, placing a sheet of synthetic tar paper to seal in the porch roof prior to the steel sheets being installed. Foam Roof (The contractor company required one day to complete the foam roof.) At this point the labyrinth of 2x8s are nailed into place on the roof completing nice 4×8 squares. Underneath that 2×8 maze, remember that you already completed the tongue and groove pine wooden ceiling and a sheet of synthetic tar paper stapled over top of it. Since this is the American Redoubt, there are weather elements you might not see in other parts of the country, such as massive/heavy-weighted snowfall in Montana, extreme high-powered wind in Wyoming, or rain/hail/sleet/snow and massive water gushing from the sky in Idaho,…




Medical Emergency Sheets – Part 1, by K.B., M.D.

Today begins a four-part article series called “Medical Emergency Sheets” in an effort to assist fellow readers who may face certain emergencies. Why? During an emergency, people panic and may forget what to do or may never have had any medical training whatsoever. Circumstances may also require immediate action which won’t allow time to peruse medical articles or books. While we still have it, call 911 first and always get help from medical professionals! I do, however, encourage you to make a notebook with dividers for certain categories (various body parts, diseases) and place these Medical Emergency Sheets as the first page in the appropriate sections. Read, review, and practice what you would do in different emergencies. I also hope that you will obtain some of the fine medical reference materials available and print off many of the excellent medical articles from SurvivalBlog. Consider making notebooks for your grown children…




Medical Emergency Sheets – Part 3, by K.B., M.D.

…it. Otherwise wounds may be closed with steristrips, medical staples, or sutures as needed. Cover the wound with antibiotic cream and a sterile dressing unless contraindicated. Treat the patient for shock, elevate the wound, consider what choice of pain medication, and reassure him or her. Here is a brief sheet.     WOUNDS MEDICAL EMERGENCY SHEET COMPRESSION- PUT DIRECT PRESSURE ON THE BLEEDING SITE TO GAIN CONTROL. ELEVATE THE SITE ABOVE THE LEVEL OF THE HEART. CALL 911. ADD EXTRA BANDAGE/GAUZE ONTOP IF SOAKS THRU. DO NOT REMOVE IT!!! IF NEEDED, USE CELOX OR GRANULATED SUGAR. IF WORSE, APPLY A TOURNIQUET- 2 INCHES ABOVE WOUND, NOT TOO TIGHT (JUST ENOUGH TO STOP THE BLEED), AT 2 HRS TRY TO SLOWLY DECREASE THE CONSTRICTION.   CLEAN- USING LOTS OF WATER AND SOAP (PREFERABLY LIQUID RATHER THAN A USED BAR) ALLOT 2 OUNCES (60CC) OF WATER PER HALF INCH OF LACERATION OR…




Filling in the Gaps on Firefighting and Emergency Medicine, by Nate

…if you choose to keep a wild grass on this perimeter, it is still important to be armed with a large diameter hose ready to put out the errant spark or to wet the ground to prevent the much smaller grass fire from encroaching on your compound. If your entire house catches on fire, you’re quickly no better off than any other joe blow, so the most important safety factor here is prevention.  Good habits from you and your family and new extended family come TEOTWAWKI must all remember the basic fire rules, but those are predominantly common knowledge so I’ll skip them for now.  You should never have to leave the room to get a fire extinguisher, especially if you are in the kitchen or any room that regularly has a heating source in it (garage, living room, workshop etc)  If you are using a standard compact fire extinguisher…




From David in Israel: Peace Corps Remote Area Development Guide Available Online

I have finally found one of my favorite books available as a PDF. This Peace Corps Remote Areas Development Guide is just what anyone would need to jump start a agricultural settlement and everything else the small town would need. Unfortunately the [photo reproduction] quality [of the PDF file] is low, I have packed my hard copy of this practical pocket guide with me for many years from my college Bugout Bag to here in Israel….




A Poor Man’s Guide to Prepping and Food Storage, by T.P.

…do what I can to survive, and the knowledge that free food is out there for those willing to glean it. And isn’t that what survival prepping is all about? Learning to make the best use of skills and resources, learning new skills, and possibly making do with what you have when the time comes? It may not be the ideal way, but it works for me and mine, and it is what I can do. Also, there is a certain satisfaction in enjoying a fine, nourishing meal of the best kind–free. On to the specifics. I get tons of produce. It is generally just fine, but may have a few blemishes, like the produce you would get from an organic garden. I determined long ago that I like fruits and veggies on the very ripe side, as it tastes best. One good example- bananas with spots are much tastier…




Letter Re: NIOSH Pocket Guide to Chemical Hazards

JWR: I would also recommend the Emergency Response Guidebook published jointly by the USDOT and Canadian and Mexican Transportation agencies. This reference (ERG) lets you identify the material being transported by pipeline, tanker truck, or railcar. As a guide for First Responders to a HazMat accident, it also lists specific hazards and evacuation distances in the event of spill or fire. I use this book to evaluate how at risk I am to accidents involving bulk materials being transported nearby. You need to pay attention to the placard (label) information on the side of the tanker. In my community I frequently see tanker trucks and railcars placarded “2448 Molten Sulfur”. Looking up Sulfur, Molten in the Emergency Response Guidebook tells me it is a flammable solid, and that I should stay upwind and evacuate at least 330 feet away from a spill. The evacuation zone increases to 1/2 mile if…




Scot’s Product Review: Work Sharp

…people think they should have come up with, too, when they saw the Work Sharp. To use it, the first thing you do is pick the right grit. It comes with three different belts– an 80 grit one, a 220 grit one, and a 6,000 grit one. The 80 grit one is for a really, really dull knife (and I had some of those) or for things like lawn mower blades or shovels. Yes, you can sharpen shovels, and when you do, you will kick yourself for not doing it sooner. If your knife isn’t extremely dull, you will probably want to use the medium grit belt, though if that doesn’t work, try the coarse belt. Next, you select the guide that has the correct angles for the tool you are working on. You get two guides with the Work Sharp. One has a 25 degree bevel for outdoors knives,…




Five Letters Re: The Survivalist’s Guide to Martial Arts

…observation is that if you follow the advice of the author and look at Muay Thai, be sure you’re getting the real deal, and not American kickboxing, which is the watered down for American competition version. In fact, try to stay away from anything geared towards sporting competition, but look for something that does have lots of contact sparring. You need to learn how to hit and get hit, and how to fight through moderate pain or shock. John McCain suggests that people should familiarize themselves with pain before they have to endure it for real, and for once I agree with him completely. As always, hope it helps. I’m no expert, and YMMV, so take it with a grain of salt and do your own research and experimentation. No art will do you any good if you don’t like it well enough to practice. – JJ in North Carolina…