Practical Multigenerational Housing, by Hollyberry

Editors’ Introductory Note: Outwardly, the topic of this article might seem tangential to SurvivalBlog. But please consider that a natural disaster, a societal collapse, or even just sudden unemployment might throw some odd groups of people together to live under one roof. It might be relatives, or it might be some close friends. Or it might just be “that guy who you know from church” with the well-honed tactical skills. Take this prospect seriously, and plan accordingly. (The painting above is titled The Bedroom, by Pieter de Hooch, dated 1658.) — JWR

Proverbs 16:31 teaches us: “A gray head is a crown of glory, it is found in the way of righteousness.”

Many people I know are raising their grandchildren due to various reasons, but the most common reason is the child’s parent(s) just can’t seem to realize they are adults with responsibilities that don’t involve drinking, drugs, or shacking up with really bad choices for partners. And many folks I know are now having their parents or grandparents move. In this day of extremely high daily living costs, several generations under one roof is not uncommon.

In America, decades ago, it was very common for my friends to have their grandparents move in with them. As a child, I remember friends who had grandparents move in with their parents. I loved going over there to play, since I ended up with more grandparents! People are also combining households due to illnesses. Multi-generational living is very common in other countries. This is an opportunity to learn about cultural and family traditions and maybe start some new family traditions.Continue reading“Practical Multigenerational Housing, by Hollyberry”

JWR’s Meme Of The Week:

The latest meme created by JWR, based on a suggestion by SurvivaBlog reader Mike R.:

AOC Dunning-Kruger Meme

Meme Text:

Breaking News! Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez
Has Been Named: President of the Dunning-Kruger Society

Links:

Notes From JWR: Do you have a meme idea? Just e-mail me the concept, and I’ll try to assemble it. And if it is posted then I’ll give you credit. Thanks!

Permission to repost memes that I’ve created is granted, provided that credit to SurvivalBlog.com is included.

 

 

 

The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

“Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me.

In my Father’s house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you.

And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.

And whither I go ye know, and the way ye know.

Thomas saith unto him, Lord, we know not whither thou goest; and how can we know the way?

Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.

If ye had known me, ye should have known my Father also: and from henceforth ye know him, and have seen him.

Philip saith unto him, Lord, show us the Father, and it sufficeth us.

Jesus saith unto him, Have I been so long time with you, and yet hast thou not known me, Philip? he that hath seen me hath seen the Father; and how sayest thou then, Show us the Father?

Believest thou not that I am in the Father, and the Father in me? the words that I speak unto you I speak not of myself: but the Father that dwelleth in me, he doeth the works.

Believe me that I am in the Father, and the Father in me: or else believe me for the very works’ sake.

Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father.

And whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son.

If ye shall ask any thing in my name, I will do it.

If ye love me, keep my commandments.

And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever;

Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you.” – John 14:1-17 (KJV)

Preparedness Notes for Saturday — June 7, 2025

June 7th, 1099: The First Crusaders arrived in Jerusalem.

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On June 7th, 1663: In the Hudson Valley, the Munsee and Esopus bands of the Delaware Indian tribe made a surprise attack on the Dutch settlement of Wiltwijck (later re-named Kingston, New York). They killed 25 settlers and took 45 more, as hostages.

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June 7th, 1776: Richard Henry Lee of Virginia proposed to the Continental Congress a resolution calling for a Declaration of Independence.

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June 7th, 1967 was the day of Jerusalem’s redemption from foreign governments in the Six Day War, placing it back under Israeli sovereign control after having been occupied by various forces for more than 2,500 years. This was in accord with the UN General Assembly’s vote in 1948.

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Today’s feature article was written by our Field Gear Editor Emeritus, Pat Cascio. Please pray for his health.

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We are seeking entries for Round 119 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. More than $960,000 worth of prizes have been awarded since we started running this contest.  Round 119 ends on July 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. In 2023, we polled blog readers, asking for suggested article topics. Please refer to that poll if you haven’t yet chosen an article topic.

 

 

Review: Springfield Armory Kuna, by Pat Cascio

Author’s Introductory Note: I mostly retired from writing more than two years ago, for a number of health reasons. I had several strokes plus a host of other health problems. I used to be able to type 100-to-125 words per minute, but now I can only type 30 words per minute. I was in the hospital several times – at one point, I had blood poisoning, and the ER doctor said I was within a couple of hours of dying. Not a good thing. During another hospital visit, I had uncontrolled internal bleeding and was given 21+ units of blood.

Springfield Armory’s “Kuna” is their latest handgun offering. I’ve tested hundreds of firearms over the years. However, the Kuna has impressed me like no other. The Kuna is listed as a Personal Defense Weapon (PDW). While it is too big for concealed carry, it is now my first choice should I need a firearm to defend my small homestead.Continue reading“Review: Springfield Armory Kuna, by Pat Cascio”

Editors’ Prepping Progress

To be prepared for a crisis, every Prepper must establish goals and make both 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 the Odds ‘n Sods Column or in the Snippets column. Let’s keep busy and be ready!

Jim Reports:

I hauled more than a dozen Gorilla Carts of compost to edge of one of our treelines, to form squash planting mounds.  Lily planted those immediately after we soaked them with a sprinkler.

Our daughter dragged dozens of downed limbs out of our woodlot, to stack another slash pile.  For a little gal, she is a very hard worker.  We are proud of her.

I’ve been busy packing and mailing out Elk Creek Company orders, during our current sale on  pre-1899 Mauser rifles. I expect a lot more orders, now that we’ve bumped our silver divisor up to  26.5 times face value.  That is the most that we’ve ever allowed, when taking pre-1965 silver coins in trade.

Now, Lily’s part of the report…

Continue reading“Editors’ Prepping Progress”

The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

“Through desire a man, having separated himself, seeketh and intermeddleth with all wisdom.

A fool hath no delight in understanding, but that his heart may discover itself.

When the wicked cometh, then cometh also contempt, and with ignominy reproach.

The words of a man’s mouth are as deep waters, and the wellspring of wisdom as a flowing brook.

It is not good to accept the person of the wicked, to overthrow the righteous in judgment.

A fool’s lips enter into contention, and his mouth calleth for strokes.

A fool’s mouth is his destruction, and his lips are the snare of his soul.

The words of a talebearer are as wounds, and they go down into the innermost parts of the belly.

He also that is slothful in his work is brother to him that is a great waster.

The name of the Lord is a strong tower: the righteous runneth into it, and is safe.

The rich man’s wealth is his strong city, and as an high wall in his own conceit.

Before destruction the heart of man is haughty, and before honour is humility.

He that answereth a matter before he heareth it, it is folly and shame unto him.

The spirit of a man will sustain his infirmity; but a wounded spirit who can bear?

The heart of the prudent getteth knowledge; and the ear of the wise seeketh knowledge.

A man’s gift maketh room for him, and bringeth him before great men.

He that is first in his own cause seemeth just; but his neighbour cometh and searcheth him.

The lot causeth contentions to cease, and parteth between the mighty.

A brother offended is harder to be won than a strong city: and their contentions are like the bars of a castle.

A man’s belly shall be satisfied with the fruit of his mouth; and with the increase of his lips shall he be filled.

Death and life are in the power of the tongue: and they that love it shall eat the fruit thereof.

Whoso findeth a wife findeth a good thing, and obtaineth favour of the Lord.” – Proverbs 18:1-22 (KJV)

Preparedness Notes for Friday — June 6, 2025

D-Day was 81 years ago, today. I was born in 1960, just 16 years after D-Day.  I grew up living near a lot of World War 2 veterans. I hunted with some of them up until the 1990s.  It causes some cognitive dissonance to consider that today, the youngest veterans of that invasion, assuming that they were then 19 years old, would now be 100 years old! – JWR

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Today is the birthday of American gun designer Hugo Borchardt. (June 6, 1844 – May 8, 1924). He was born in Germany. He is best known as the designer of the recoil-operated pistol that bears his name.

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The 6th of June is also remembered for the birth of Dieudonné Joseph Saive (born 1899.) He was the designer of many well-known firearms including the Browning Hi-Power, the FN49 and co-designer (along with Ernest Vervier) of the very popular FN-FAL, which was issued to the militaries of more than 90 countries.

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Also on this day in 1949, George Orwell’s novel of a dystopian future, Nineteen Eighty-Four was published. The novel’s all-seeing leader, known as “Big Brother,” became a universal symbol for intrusive government and oppressive bureaucracy.

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SurvivalBlog Writing Contest

Today we present another entry for Round 119 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 $2,000.
  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 Peak Refuel “Wasatch Pack” variety of 60 servings of premium freeze-dried breakfasts and dinners in individual meal pouches — a whopping 21,970 calories, all made and packaged in the USA — courtesy of Ready Made Resources (a $350 value),
  4. American Gunsmithing Institute (AGI) is providing a $300 certificate good towards any of their DVD training courses. Their course catalog now includes their latest Survival Gunsmithing course.
  5. HSM Ammunition in Montana is providing a $350 gift certificate. The certificate can be used for any of their products.

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
  2. A $269 retail value survival-ready power package from Solar Power Lifestyle. This includes two Solar Power Lifestyle 25W Portable Solar Panels, plus a $150 gift card to use for any purchase at solarpowerlifestyle.com.
  3. Two 1,000-foot spools of full mil-spec U.S.-made 750 paracord (in-stock colors only) from TOUGHGRID.com (a $287 value).
  4. 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 gun purchasing privacy!

Third Prize:

  1. A Berkey Light water filter, courtesy of USA Berkey Filters (a $305 value),
  2. Two sets of The Civil Defense Manual, (in two volumes) — a $193 value — kindly donated by the author, Jack Lawson.
  3. A $200 credit from Military Surplus LLC that can be applied to purchase and/or shipping costs for any of their in-stock merchandise, including full mil-spec ammo cans, Rothco clothing and field gear, backpacks, optics, compact solar panels, first aid kits, and more.
  4. A transferable $150 FRN purchase credit from Elk Creek Company, toward the purchase of any pre-1899 antique gun.

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More than $960,000 worth of prizes have been awarded since we started running this contest.  Round 119 ends on July 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. In 2023, we polled blog readers, asking for suggested article topics. Please refer to that poll if you haven’t yet chosen an article topic.

For Want of a Nail: A Preps Inventory System – Part 4, by J.M.

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

What I’ve covered so far are the absolute basic things you need to know to use Obsidian for an inventory management systems. There are a number of other potentially useful capabilities you can use to enhance your inventory system that I’ll cover next.

Where’s Waldo?

Another potentially useful feature of Obsidian is the ability to assign a geographical location to a note. Say, for example, you have a couple of buried caches that you want to include in your inventory and you’d like to be able to include a map of their location. There’s a community plugin called Map View that provides the capability to include geographic coordinates in a note and show that location on a map within Obsidian, or include a map image in the note itself. There are a lot of different options for adding map information to your notes using Map View – you need to figure out which one works best for you.Continue reading“For Want of a Nail: A Preps Inventory System – Part 4, by J.M.”

Economics & Investing For Preppers

Here are the latest news items and commentary on current economics news, market trends, stocks, investing opportunities, and the precious metals markets. In this column, JWR also covers hedges, derivatives, and various obscura. This column emphasizes JWR’s “tangibles heavy” investing strategy and contrarian perspective. Today, we look at the global debt crisis in general and the U.S. National Debt, in particular.

Precious Metals:

With both world war tensions and a global debt crisis brewing, the precious metals bull market is picking up speed. I took note that spot gold stood at $3,393.60 USD per Troy ounce on Thursday morning. It seems likely that Mr. Bull may be taking another run at $3,500, soon.  The last time that happened was on April 22nd. Meanwhile, spot silver jumped 3.74% to a quite respectable $36.03 per Troy ounce.  I expect the silver-to-gold ratio to continue to narrow, throughout the rest of 2025. Ditto for the platinum-to-gold ratio. – JWR

o  o  o

Bank of America Eyeballs $4,000 Gold and $40 Silver.

o  o  o

‘Gold As Collateral For Internationalized Yuan’ Is Agenda For BRICS 2025 Summit.

Economy & Finance:

A very informative video, from Jeff Snider of EuroDollar University: This Is What An Economic Collapse Actually Looks Like. JWR’s Comments: I concur with Snider, generally. A global recession is waiting in the wings and there is a likelihood of deflation in Europe in China. But meanwhile, inflation will re-emerge in the United States. If interest rates spike in the U.S., there could be a debt crisis for the U.S Treasury — and the Federal Reserve banking cartel will not be able to stop it. Plan accordingly. (Especially vis-à-vis your precious metals and crypto portfolios.)

o  o  o

Brookings: What are the risks of a rising federal debt?

o  o  o

“Punished For Living Debt Free”: Canadian Man’s Credit Score Wiped By Equifax After He Avoids New Debt.

o  o  o

Billionaire Ray Dalio warns of ‘economic heart attack’ as debt crisis escalates.

o  o  o

OECD: Global Debt Report. Here is an excerpt from the report’s opening summary:

“Sovereign bond issuance in OECD countries is projected to reach a record USD 17 trillion in 2025, up from USD 14 trillion in 2023. Emerging markets and developing economies’ (EMDE) borrowing from debt markets has also grown significantly, from around USD 1 trillion in 2007 to over USD 3 trillion in 2024. The outstanding global stock of corporate bond debt reached USD 35 trillion at the end of 2024, resuming a long-term trend of over two decades of consecutive increases in indebtedness that came to a temporary halt in 2022.”

Continue reading“Economics & Investing For Preppers”

The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

“They’re murdering us here. Let’s move inland and get murdered.” – Colonel Charles D. Canham, 116th Infantry Regiment commander, on Omaha Beach. June 6, 1944. (Pictured later, as a Major General.)

Preparedness Notes for Thursday — June 5, 2025

On June 5, 1284, Charles of Salerno was captured by Roger of Lauria during a naval battle in the Gulf of Naples. This was part of the Sicilian Vespers uprising, a.k.a. the War of the Vespers. (The outbreak of that war is depicted above.)

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June 5, 1827: Turks captured the Acropolis and took Athens during the Greek War of Independence.

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June 5, 1851: Harriet Beecher Stowe published the first installment of Uncle Tom’s Cabin in The National Era. She was the sister of firebrand abolitionist Henry Ward Beecher.

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I noticed a couple of interesting Idaho listings now posted over at the Jonathan Rawles SurvivalRealty.com site:

Please keep SurvivalRealty.com in mind, whether you are buying or selling.

—

SurvivalBlog Writing Contest

Today we present another entry for Round 119 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 $2,000.
  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 Peak Refuel “Wasatch Pack” variety of 60 servings of premium freeze-dried breakfasts and dinners in individual meal pouches — a whopping 21,970 calories, all made and packaged in the USA — courtesy of Ready Made Resources (a $350 value),
  4. American Gunsmithing Institute (AGI) is providing a $300 certificate good towards any of their DVD training courses. Their course catalog now includes their latest Survival Gunsmithing course.
  5. HSM Ammunition in Montana is providing a $350 gift certificate. The certificate can be used for any of their products.

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
  2. A $269 retail value survival-ready power package from Solar Power Lifestyle. This includes two Solar Power Lifestyle 25W Portable Solar Panels, plus a $150 gift card to use for any purchase at solarpowerlifestyle.com.
  3. Two 1,000-foot spools of full mil-spec U.S.-made 750 paracord (in-stock colors only) from TOUGHGRID.com (a $287 value).
  4. 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 gun purchasing privacy!

Third Prize:

  1. A Berkey Light water filter, courtesy of USA Berkey Filters (a $305 value),
  2. Two sets of The Civil Defense Manual, (in two volumes) — a $193 value — kindly donated by the author, Jack Lawson.
  3. A $200 credit from Military Surplus LLC that can be applied to purchase and/or shipping costs for any of their in-stock merchandise, including full mil-spec ammo cans, Rothco clothing and field gear, backpacks, optics, compact solar panels, first aid kits, and more.
  4. A transferable $150 FRN purchase credit from Elk Creek Company, toward the purchase of any pre-1899 antique gun.

—

More than $960,000 worth of prizes have been awarded since we started running this contest.  Round 119 ends on July 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. In 2023, we polled blog readers, asking for suggested article topics. Please refer to that poll if you haven’t yet chosen an article topic.

For Want of a Nail: A Preps Inventory System – Part 3, by J.M.

(Continued from Part 2.)

For security reasons, the Obsidian folks are pretty strict about letting you install Community plugins. You first have to go into the ‘Community Plugins’ section in ‘Options’ and turn off ‘Restricted Mode’ before you can install any plugins. Then after you install a plugin you have to verify you want to install it, and after it’s installed you have to click the ‘Enable’ slide switch to enable it.

When a core or community plugin is installed a new button will usually appear for it at the bottom of the left pane of the Options dialog. If you click on the plugin’s name under Options you can change the configuration for that plugin. If you want to learn more about what a plugin does and how to configure it you can search for the plugin’s name on the Obsidian Plugins page and click on the ‘Learn more’ button for that plugin.

I’ll be discussing how I use these plugins throughout the rest of this article.Continue reading“For Want of a Nail: A Preps Inventory System – Part 3, by J.M.”

The Survivalist’s Odds ‘n Sods

SurvivalBlog presents another edition of The Survivalist’s Odds ‘n Sods. This column is a collection of news bits and pieces that are relevant to the modern survivalist and prepper from JWR. Our goal is to educate our readers, to help them to recognize emerging threats, and to be better prepared for both disasters and negative societal trends. You can’t mitigate a risk if you haven’t first identified a risk. In today’s column, we look at the recent Ukrainian drone strikes on Russian bomber bases.

Details on Ukrainian Attack on Russian Bomber Bases

Operation Spider’s Web: How Russians Were Tricked Into Bombing Themselves. Here is a Fair Use pericope:

“The drones were assembled in Chelyabinsk, inside a rented warehouse. Ukrainian operatives—likely supported by embedded agents or sympathetic locals—built First Person View (FPV) drones using materials sourced from within Russia. These strike platforms were hidden inside wooden modular cabins constructed to look like prefabricated houses. Beneath the roof panels, drone bays were concealed between structural beams, with remotely operated opening mechanisms to allow launch on command.

Once sealed, the cabins were loaded onto civilian trucks. The vehicles were then handed over to unwitting Russian drivers, recruited by Artyom, a 37-year-old ethnic Ukrainian who coordinated logistics under the cover of a private construction job.

The drivers were told they were transporting portable homes to regions like Murmansk, Irkutsk, Ryazan, and Ivanovo. Each was given a delivery plan, a route, and a schedule. During transit, a mysterious intermediary would call and issue final location instructions—always near military infrastructure.“

Continue reading“The Survivalist’s Odds ‘n Sods”

The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

“Qui desiderat pacem, praeparet bellum.” Translated: Let him who desires peace, prepare for war.” – Publius Vegetius Renatus, commonly known as Vegetius, a Roman writer of the 4th Century, A.D.. (This quote is usually cited in the form: Si vis pacem, para bellum — “If you want peace, prepare for war”)  From: ‘De Rei Militari’ 3, prologue.