Looking Back Over COVID – Part 2, by N.C.

(Continued from Part 1. This concludes the article.)

The Jury Is out:
  1. A CO2 rifle to practice transitions between targets and follow-up shots

I’m a big fan of training marksmanship with an air rifle. 10m shooting with air rifle taught me more about follow through than my .22 did. It’s also easy to incorporate a daily routine of even just 5 good precise shots. However if you want to practice multiple shots you’re mainly in CO2 territory. Your only other options are Airsoft or the relatively new PCP semi-automatic world. I bought an expensive (for me) clone of the ruger 10/22 from Umarex that runs on CO2 to practice multiple shots on a single and transitions between targets.

It works, even shooting as fast as I can, I haven’t noticed any issues with freezing or shots dropping as the temperature lowers. The weight is about right though center of gravity isn’t the same as the real ruger. It’s accurate enough for me to practice what I want to practice with it.

The jury is still out because I have only used it a handful of times. It’s a bit of a hassle to load. You don’t have fast magazine changes or large magazines. And because it doesn’t hold charge well, once you puncture the CO2 canister you’re kind of committed for an hour to use it all. Overall it’s not convenient though it is more convenient than a range trip and air pellets and CO2 canisters didn’t disappear the same way that 22lr did. I’m conflicted still. I need more trigger time on it.

  1. Fermenting experiments

The biggest experiment I tried was using my wife’s sourdough starter to ferment ginger beer. It worked. There was plenty of carbonation but it quickly developed a bitter and sour aftertaste. The window of goodness was pretty tight. I also tried using baker’s yeast to ferment ginger beer and included some black pepper in the fermentation and that worked very well. It’s fun, it’s not hugely useful but it is good. The fact that you can use regular bread yeast and it freezes for years and still works is useful. Fermentation helps keep things safe to drink as well as adding variety. I need more experiments with things that are naturally obtainable in my zone, hard cider, mead, and the like. It is good to know that in a pinch sourdough works.Continue reading“Looking Back Over COVID – Part 2, by N.C.”

The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

“And it came to pass, that, as he was praying in a certain place, when he ceased, one of his disciples said unto him, Lord, teach us to pray, as John also taught his disciples.

And he said unto them, When ye pray, say, Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done, as in heaven, so in earth.

Give us day by day our daily bread.

And forgive us our sins; for we also forgive every one that is indebted to us. And lead us not into temptation; but deliver us from evil.

And he said unto them, Which of you shall have a friend, and shall go unto him at midnight, and say unto him, Friend, lend me three loaves;

For a friend of mine in his journey is come to me, and I have nothing to set before him?

And he from within shall answer and say, Trouble me not: the door is now shut, and my children are with me in bed; I cannot rise and give thee.

I say unto you, Though he will not rise and give him, because he is his friend, yet because of his importunity he will rise and give him as many as he needeth.

And I say unto you, Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you.

For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened.

If a son shall ask bread of any of you that is a father, will he give him a stone? or if he ask a fish, will he for a fish give him a serpent?

Or if he shall ask an egg, will he offer him a scorpion?

If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children: how much more shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him?” – Luke 11:1-13 (KJV)

Preparedness Notes for Saturday — February 26, 2022

February 26th is the birthday of Major-General Orde Charles Wingate (born, 1903, died 24 March 1944), an eccentric British Army officer who organized special military units in Palestine in the 1930s, and in Abyssinia, Sudan, and Burma during World War II. He is most famous for his creation of the Chindits, airborne deep-penetration troops trained to work behind enemy lines in the Far East campaigns against the Japanese during World War II.

February 26, 1993: A truck bomb built by Islamic extremists explodes in the parking garage of the North Tower of New York’s World Trade Center, killing six people and injuring more than 1,000 others.

—

SurvivalBlog Writing Contest

Today we present another entry for Round 99 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round include:

First Prize:

  1. The photovoltaic power specialists at Quantum Harvest LLC  are providing a store-wide 10% off coupon. Depending on the model chosen, this could be worth more than $2000.
  2. A Gunsite Academy Three Day Course Certificate. This can be used for any of their one, two, or three-day course (a $1,095 value),
  3. A course certificate from onPoint Tactical 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,
  4. Two cases of Mountain House freeze-dried assorted entrees in #10 cans, courtesy of Ready Made Resources (a $350 value),
  5. A $250 gift certificate good for any product from Sunflower Ammo,
  6. American Gunsmithing Institute (AGI) is providing a $300 certificate good towards any of their DVD training courses.
  7. Two sets of The Civil Defense Manual, (in two volumes) — a $193 value — kindly donated by the author, Jack Lawson.

Second Prize:

  1. A SIRT STIC AR-15/M4 Laser Training Package, courtesy of Next Level Training, that has a combined retail value of $679
  3. Two 1,000-foot spools of full mil-spec U.S.-made 750 paracord (in-stock colors only) from www.TOUGHGRID.com (a $240 value).
  4. Two Super Survival Pack seed collections, a $150 value, courtesy of Seed for Security, LLC,
  5. A transferable $150 FRN purchase credit from Elk Creek Company, toward the purchase of any pre-1899 antique gun. There is no paperwork required for delivery of pre-1899 guns into most states, making them the last bastion of firearms purchasing privacy!

Third Prize:

  1. Three sets each of made-in-USA regular and wide-mouth reusable canning lids. (This is a total of 300 lids and 600 gaskets.) This prize is courtesy of Harvest Guard (a $270 value)
  2. A Royal Berkey water filter, courtesy of Directive 21 (a $275 value),
  3. A transferable $100 FRN purchase credit from Elk Creek Company, toward the purchase of any pre-1899 antique gun.

—

More than $725,000 worth of prizes have been awarded since we started running this contest. Round 99 ends on March 31st, so get busy writing and e-mail us your entry. Remember that there is a 1,500-word minimum, and that articles on practical “how-to” skills for survival have an advantage in the judging.

 

Looking Back Over COVID – Part 1, by N.C.

I’ve been looking back a lot, for the last two months. We are slowly getting back to normal in the US. It seems there’s a degree of normalcy on the horizon albeit with a thousand possible dangers beyond it. Before I lose myself in preparing for that future I want to look back at the last emergency to see what lessons I can draw and share.

In many ways, because my family was generally spared tragedy, I can look at this as a sort of dry run. I don’t want to diminish those who lost, every life lost was a tragedy for someone, and you all have my condolences. Stepping back from the personal to the societal view though this could have been far, far worse. On the continuum between the sniffles and airborne AIDS, COVID was certainly closer to the sniffles. Thank God.

For this article I want to focus on the tangible side of things. I’m dividing them into failures, successes, and jury’s out. Then the surprises that hit me from considering what I did during the pandemic. I highly suggest running your own self-audit as well as learning from mine. Readers of this blog were more ready than most but looking back I think we all have things to learn and share.

Failures

Failures teach us far more than our successes but it’s human nature to ignore our failures when nothing bad occurred as a result. If you want to be prepared you don’t have that luxury. In my view, in the context of a pandemic, these are the largest failures I have found.

  1. My procedures did not keep sickness from my house

In the early days of the pandemic when there was so little known and China was actively obfuscating what they knew I took my precautions seriously. For my family one of us went to work about 1 time a week and worked from home the rest of the time. One person went grocery shopping 1 time a week. If you had been outside, you stripped your clothes off in the entryway, the clothes went straight into the washing machine, the person went straight to the shower. While out I gave everyone a generous 6+ feet of personal distance, went shopping at off-peak hours, and generally avoided being around other humans. We don’t have family nearby so we didn’t try to run a “bubble” with families or neighbors. We kept very isolated.

It didn’t matter.

The procedures failed to keep sickness out of my house.

Doesn’t matter if it was covid or some other respiratory disease. We went down. Compared to what I saw others doing we were more serious about our precautions than most.   How did it come in? Anybody’s guess. I didn’t disinfected the outside of each object that came into the house but if it was picked up in person that wouldn’t have mattered.

  • takeaway question: how long did your procedures keep illness from your house?

Bear in mind that many cases of COVID are asymptomatic so even if you succeeded in keeping symptoms out, be very careful in assigning yourself a passing grade here.

Continue reading“Looking Back Over COVID – Part 1, by N.C.”

Editors’ Prepping Progress

To be prepared for a crisis, every Prepper must establish goals and make long-term and short-term plans. In this column, the SurvivalBlog editors review their week’s prep activities and planned prep activities for the coming week. These range from healthcare and gear purchases to gardening, ranch improvements, bug out bag fine-tuning, and food storage. This is something akin to our Retreat Owner Profiles, but written incrementally and in detail, throughout the year.  We always welcome you to share your own successes and wisdom in your e-mailed letters. We post many of those –or excerpts thereof — in this column, in the Odds ‘n Sods Column, and in the Snippets column. Let’s keep busy and be ready!

Jim Reports:

I’ve been on the road since Wednesday, gathering inventory for my antique gun biz. The Elk Creek Company shopping cart system has been put on hiatus, until my return. That should be on or about March 3rd.

To clarify my post from last week: On February 16th, I received a letter from the branch manager of my bank in Reno, Nevada, informing me that she was closing my account. This was an account that I’d had held for nearly 20 years. It was a shock to suddenly and unexpectedly be “de-banked” by Nevada State Bank. They closed my account with no reason given other than a vague mention of  “changes in the economy”, and the branch manager has not returned my calls. I suspect that it was because I’m publicly outspoken on a number of issues. This incident is just one more evidence that we are living in the age of deception and betrayal.

Continue reading“Editors’ Prepping Progress”

The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

“Then came all the tribes of Israel to David unto Hebron, and spake, saying, Behold, we are thy bone and thy flesh.

Also in time past, when Saul was king over us, thou wast he that leddest out and broughtest in Israel: and the Lord said to thee, Thou shalt feed my people Israel, and thou shalt be a captain over Israel.

So all the elders of Israel came to the king to Hebron; and king David made a league with them in Hebron before the Lord: and they anointed David king over Israel.

David was thirty years old when he began to reign, and he reigned forty years.

In Hebron he reigned over Judah seven years and six months: and in Jerusalem he reigned thirty and three years over all Israel and Judah.

And the king and his men went to Jerusalem unto the Jebusites, the inhabitants of the land: which spake unto David, saying, Except thou take away the blind and the lame, thou shalt not come in hither: thinking, David cannot come in hither.

Nevertheless David took the strong hold of Zion: the same is the city of David.

And David said on that day, Whosoever getteth up to the gutter, and smiteth the Jebusites, and the lame and the blind that are hated of David’s soul, he shall be chief and captain. Wherefore they said, The blind and the lame shall not come into the house.

So David dwelt in the fort, and called it the city of David. And David built round about from Millo and inward.

And David went on, and grew great, and the Lord God of hosts was with him.

And Hiram king of Tyre sent messengers to David, and cedar trees, and carpenters, and masons: and they built David an house.

And David perceived that the Lord had established him king over Israel, and that he had exalted his kingdom for his people Israel’s sake.

And David took him more concubines and wives out of Jerusalem, after he was come from Hebron: and there were yet sons and daughters born to David.” – 2 Samuel 5: 1-13 (KJV)

Preparedness Notes for Friday — February 25, 2022

February 25th is the birthday of bluegrass music legend Ralph Stanley (1927 – 2016). His harmonizing and high tenor solos had an almost haunting sound to them.

—

Today, in place of our Economic &Investing column (normally posted on Fridays), we are presenting a guest article authored by Arkadiusz Sieroń.

—

SurvivalBlog Writing Contest

Today we present another entry for Round 99 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round include:

First Prize:

  1. The photovoltaic power specialists at Quantum Harvest LLC  are providing a store-wide 10% off coupon. Depending on the model chosen, this could be worth more than $2000.
  2. A Gunsite Academy Three Day Course Certificate. This can be used for any of their one, two, or three-day course (a $1,095 value),
  3. A course certificate from onPoint Tactical 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,
  4. Two cases of Mountain House freeze-dried assorted entrees in #10 cans, courtesy of Ready Made Resources (a $350 value),
  5. A $250 gift certificate good for any product from Sunflower Ammo,
  6. American Gunsmithing Institute (AGI) is providing a $300 certificate good towards any of their DVD training courses.
  7. Two sets of The Civil Defense Manual, (in two volumes) — a $193 value — kindly donated by the author, Jack Lawson.

Second Prize:

  1. A SIRT STIC AR-15/M4 Laser Training Package, courtesy of Next Level Training, that has a combined retail value of $679
  3. Two 1,000-foot spools of full mil-spec U.S.-made 750 paracord (in-stock colors only) from www.TOUGHGRID.com (a $240 value).
  4. Two Super Survival Pack seed collections, a $150 value, courtesy of Seed for Security, LLC,
  5. A transferable $150 FRN purchase credit from Elk Creek Company, toward the purchase of any pre-1899 antique gun. There is no paperwork required for delivery of pre-1899 guns into most states, making them the last bastion of firearms purchasing privacy!

Third Prize:

  1. Three sets each of made-in-USA regular and wide-mouth reusable canning lids. (This is a total of 300 lids and 600 gaskets.) This prize is courtesy of Harvest Guard (a $270 value)
  2. A Royal Berkey water filter, courtesy of Directive 21 (a $275 value),
  3. A transferable $100 FRN purchase credit from Elk Creek Company, toward the purchase of any pre-1899 antique gun.

—

More than $725,000 worth of prizes have been awarded since we started running this contest. Round 99 ends on March 31st, so get busy writing and e-mail us your entry. Remember that there is a 1,500-word minimum, and that articles on practical “how-to” skills for survival have an advantage in the judging.

Shortages, a 7-Year Food Supply, and Beating Inflation – Part 4, by SaraSue

(Continued from Part 3. This concludes the article.)

As discussed previously, I followed two important principles in achieving a 7-year food supply using basic foods. First, let “everything from scratch” be your motto, avoiding processed and genetically modified foods. Second, buy in bulk. These two principles together will contribute to good health and definitely get you ahead of the steep inflation curve. Take the time to read the book, Nourishing Traditions, that I refer to as the “food Bible”. It will help you understand the real nutritional needs (“nutrient dense foods”) of adults and children, give you recipes, and help you avoid fad diets and food cravings.

In the following paragraphs, I give examples of the things I’ve purchased and their current cost that got me to the 7-year food storage plan for one person. If you wonder about why I purchased a certain quantity of this or that, my choices were dependent upon: the most protein and fiber per buck, and what I personally like. Your choices will be different.Continue reading“Shortages, a 7-Year Food Supply, and Beating Inflation – Part 4, by SaraSue”

Inflation Peak – High Risk Or Opportunity For Gold?, by Arkadiusz Sieroń

Editor’s Introductory Note: Today, in place of our Economic &Investing column (normally posted on Fridays), we are presenting a guest article authored by Arkadiusz Sieroń. This piece was first published by Sunshine Profits. It is reposted with permission.

—

Not only won’t inflation end soon, but it’s also likely to remain high. Whether gold will be able to take advantage of it will depend, among others, on the Fed.

Do you sometimes ask yourself when this will all end? I don’t mean the universe, nor our lives, nor even this year (c’mon, guys, it has just started!). I mean, of course, inflation. If only you weren’t in a coma last year, you would have probably noticed that prices had been surging recently. For instance, America finished the year with a shocking CPI annual rate of 7.1%, the highest since June 1982, as the chart below shows.Continue reading“Inflation Peak – High Risk Or Opportunity For Gold?, by Arkadiusz Sieroń”

The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

“We are living in a sick society filled with people who would not directly steal from their neighbor but who are willing to demand that the government do it for them.” – William L. Comer

Preparedness Notes for Thursday — February 24, 2022

On February 24, 1970 an avalanche took the lives of 29 Swiss Army officers in Reckingen, Switzerland.

—

Note: I was down with a head cold for a few days, and now I’m traveling out of state on an inventory buying trip.  Therefore, I’ve put Elk Creek Company on hiatus for a week, and I’m omitting The Survivalist’s Odds ‘n Sods column that is normally posted each Thursday. Thanks for your patience. – JWR

SurvivalBlog Writing Contest

Today we present another entry for Round 99 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round include:

First Prize:

  1. The photovoltaic power specialists at Quantum Harvest LLC  are providing a store-wide 10% off coupon. Depending on the model chosen, this could be worth more than $2000.
  2. A Gunsite Academy Three Day Course Certificate. This can be used for any of their one, two, or three-day course (a $1,095 value),
  3. A course certificate from onPoint Tactical 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,
  4. Two cases of Mountain House freeze-dried assorted entrees in #10 cans, courtesy of Ready Made Resources (a $350 value),
  5. A $250 gift certificate good for any product from Sunflower Ammo,
  6. American Gunsmithing Institute (AGI) is providing a $300 certificate good towards any of their DVD training courses.
  7. Two sets of The Civil Defense Manual, (in two volumes) — a $193 value — kindly donated by the author, Jack Lawson.

Second Prize:

  1. A SIRT STIC AR-15/M4 Laser Training Package, courtesy of Next Level Training, that has a combined retail value of $679
  3. Two 1,000-foot spools of full mil-spec U.S.-made 750 paracord (in-stock colors only) from www.TOUGHGRID.com (a $240 value).
  4. Two Super Survival Pack seed collections, a $150 value, courtesy of Seed for Security, LLC,
  5. A transferable $150 FRN purchase credit from Elk Creek Company, toward the purchase of any pre-1899 antique gun. There is no paperwork required for delivery of pre-1899 guns into most states, making them the last bastion of firearms purchasing privacy!

Third Prize:

  1. Three sets each of made-in-USA regular and wide-mouth reusable canning lids. (This is a total of 300 lids and 600 gaskets.) This prize is courtesy of Harvest Guard (a $270 value)
  2. A Royal Berkey water filter, courtesy of Directive 21 (a $275 value),
  3. A transferable $100 FRN purchase credit from Elk Creek Company, toward the purchase of any pre-1899 antique gun.

—

More than $725,000 worth of prizes have been awarded since we started running this contest. Round 99 ends on March 31st, so get busy writing and e-mail us your entry. Remember that there is a 1,500-word minimum, and that articles on practical “how-to” skills for survival have an advantage in the judging.

Shortages, a 7-Year Food Supply, and Beating Inflation – Part 3, by SaraSue

(Continued from Part 2.)

Food Basics

In 6 months, I was able to stock up on basic, healthy, foods for a single person relatively inexpensively. You won’t necessarily have to take what I did and multiply it by the number of people in your household because it depends upon food needs and tastes. I avoid “emergency food supplies”, which are basically either dehydrated or freeze-dried foods at a premium price, because the budget matters to me. I avoid processed foods unless I see an exceptionally good sale, and know that these items will be good for the purposes of bartering or charity. Most processed foods are “meal-sized”, which makes them handy to pass on to someone in need. Some processed foods, like peanut butter, are less expensive to buy than to make, although the cheaper brands are chock full of sugar and other oils, so look at the ingredients list before buying. The following is the process I followed in order to achieve the 7-year goal in 6 months while not breaking the bank. If you’ve got loads of money, you can do this in a few days.

But first, the best advice I can offer is to know how your family eats and start taking daily notes about types and quantities. If you save your grocery receipts, that’s a good way to eyeball it. In reviewing your grocery receipt, remove everything from your grocery list that is not a necessity, and focus on food. For instance, you won’t need that air freshener should SHTF, although you’ll wish you had it. LOL. I know someone who recently got very serious about providing nutrient-dense food for her large family of little ones while on a budget. I suggested that she read the book “Nourishing Traditions” by Sally Fallon. It’s chock full of information about basic foods and the types the body needs in order to thrive. I recommend it for everyone.

Once you understand how and what your family eats, think seriously about modifying the diet to remove processed foods. Removing processed foods will not only improve your health, it will save you an enormous amount of money. For instance, a Rice-a-Roni box of rice pilaf in the smaller box (6.5 oz) might cost $1-1.50. If you bought 10 of those, you’d have less than a couple of pounds of actual rice that you paid $10-15 for. Whereas, you can buy 20lbs of rice for a few dollars more – anywhere from $17-$20. Wouldn’t it be worth it to learn how to make rice pilaf from scratch? What about Red Beans and Rice? You get the picture.

Another example, I purchase organic wheat berries that have a long shelf life, rather than flour, and grind the wheat into flour. It costs about $17 for a 25lb bag of wheat berries. If you don’t want to fool with grinding, you can still get ahead of the game by purchasing flour in bulk. There is a non-GMO brand called Wheat Montana that you can get in 10-lb bags from Walmart inexpensively. My point is that it takes a pound of flour to make a 1 lb loaf of bread, which translates into 25 loaves of bread for $17, which translates into ~68 cents a loaf. Have you seen the price of a good loaf of bread lately? Eeek! I use a few different types of flour for different recipes (breads, pastries, rolls, pasta, dumplings, tortillas, etc.), but I’ve learned how to do this over time. Continue reading“Shortages, a 7-Year Food Supply, and Beating Inflation – Part 3, by SaraSue”

Preparedness Notes for Wednesday — February 23, 2022

February 23rd is the birthday of Captain Isaac Davis (February 23, 1745 – April 19, 1775), a militia officer and gunsmith who commanded a Minute Company in Acton, Massachusetts during the Battle of Concord.  He should have the same historical stature (and statues) as John Parker. (Pictured.)

February 23 is also the day that six Marines from E Company, 2nd Battalion, 28th Marines raised the American flag atop Mount Suribachi during the battle of Iwo Jima.

Today is the anniversary of the beginning of the Battle of the Alamo (February 23 – March 6, 1836).

—

SurvivalBlog Writing Contest

Today we present another entry for Round 99 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round include:

First Prize:

  1. The photovoltaic power specialists at Quantum Harvest LLC  are providing a store-wide 10% off coupon. Depending on the model chosen, this could be worth more than $2000.
  2. A Gunsite Academy Three Day Course Certificate. This can be used for any of their one, two, or three-day course (a $1,095 value),
  3. A course certificate from onPoint Tactical 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,
  4. Two cases of Mountain House freeze-dried assorted entrees in #10 cans, courtesy of Ready Made Resources (a $350 value),
  5. A $250 gift certificate good for any product from Sunflower Ammo,
  6. American Gunsmithing Institute (AGI) is providing a $300 certificate good towards any of their DVD training courses.
  7. Two sets of The Civil Defense Manual, (in two volumes) — a $193 value — kindly donated by the author, Jack Lawson.

Second Prize:

  1. A SIRT STIC AR-15/M4 Laser Training Package, courtesy of Next Level Training, that has a combined retail value of $679
  3. Two 1,000-foot spools of full mil-spec U.S.-made 750 paracord (in-stock colors only) from www.TOUGHGRID.com (a $240 value).
  4. Two Super Survival Pack seed collections, a $150 value, courtesy of Seed for Security, LLC,
  5. A transferable $150 FRN purchase credit from Elk Creek Company, toward the purchase of any pre-1899 antique gun. There is no paperwork required for delivery of pre-1899 guns into most states, making them the last bastion of firearms purchasing privacy!

Third Prize:

  1. Three sets each of made-in-USA regular and wide-mouth reusable canning lids. (This is a total of 300 lids and 600 gaskets.) This prize is courtesy of Harvest Guard (a $270 value)
  2. A Royal Berkey water filter, courtesy of Directive 21 (a $275 value),
  3. A transferable $100 FRN purchase credit from Elk Creek Company, toward the purchase of any pre-1899 antique gun.

—

More than $725,000 worth of prizes have been awarded since we started running this contest. Round 99 ends on March 31st, so get busy writing and e-mail us your entry. Remember that there is a 1,500-word minimum, and that articles on practical “how-to” skills for survival have an advantage in the judging.