New Zealand: Thoughts After Seven Years, Part 3, by Nivek

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Part 3

 

Weather

Weather in New Zealand is widely varied with the north island getting much more rain than the south island. An exception on the south island is the far south-western tip called the Fiordlands. It’s a very rugged place with thousands of waterfalls. It is worth seeing. The north island has higher temperatures and higher humidity. I chose a location on the top of the south island that would have the most sunshine and dryer weather. I am a desert person and it takes a lot of getting used to the humid conditions.

Take a look at some weather sites to see yearly averages to get a better idea of the climate you’re looking for. The storm systems can come from many directions and I have found that the weather prediction accuracy is very low, especially in our valley. The mountain ranges surrounding our valley greatly affect the weather patterns.

Here are two New Zealand weather forecasting sites:

Gun Ownership

This is one topic that a lot of you are surely interested in. First of all, you can own pretty much anything you want. I don’t think you could have a Barrett .50 caliber, but I’m not sure. Once you are a permanent resident you can own a firearm. The process is to go down to the local police station and fill out a form. Next you schedule a date to take a firearms safety course and written test. Once you pass, a policeman or inspector involved in firearms will inspect your home to insure that you can store the weapon properly. They are most concerned with thefts as that’s how most of the gang members obtain their weapons. Once you obtain your ID card you are then able to go and purchase your weapon. They do not record serial numbers and the gun store does not report your sale to the police as far as I know. The gun store will only sell to permit holders.

Continue reading“New Zealand: Thoughts After Seven Years, Part 3, by Nivek”

Editors’ Prepping Progress

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To be prepared for a crisis, every Prepper must establish goals and make long-term and short-term plans. Steadily, we work on meeting our prepping goals. In this column, the SurvivalBlog editors review their week’s prep activities. They also often share their planned prep activities for the coming week. These range from healthcare and gear purchases to gardening, property improvements, 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 the Comments. Let’s keep busy and be ready!

JWR

I’ve been quite busy with writing, editing, and radio interviews in the past week.  And of course there were the usual winter chores: firewood hauling, livestock feeding, and stock tank filling. The weather has been mixed, and generally colder. This winter, I don’t expect things to warm up until late February or even early March.

We’ve had a young stray (or full-on feral?) cat hanging around the Rawles Ranch for the past two months. It is so skittish that we can’t get within 50 feet of it.  It has been freeloading cat food from the outdoor cat food bowl that we maintain for our two regular barn cats. (Those two cats are very friendly, since we raised them from from kittens.  Truthfully, they’ve become beloved house cats.) I’m wondering if this new cat will stay, and if it does: will be a good mouser? If so, then he/she will be welcome to a share of the cat food.

Avalanche Lily Reports

Dear Readers,
For me, this has been the perfect winter weather week.  Cold temperatures (between 2 and 26 degrees Fahrenheit) with fresh, fluffy, dry snow, and white all over.  Beautiful!

I’ve been able to ski or hike for about five hours this week.

Eloise did some hiking in our driveway and on the county road with her Bugout backpack.

This week I accomplished these things from the list of things I wanted to do:

I did not sleep out in the tent in my Wiggy’s bag, as I had planned. However, I did snuggle in it outside on our porch swing for three daytime hours, wearing only my regular clothes (jeans and t-shirt, socks, and a wool sweater) a warm hat.  I did so while searching the Internet and doing my duoLingo language lessons. The outside temperature hovered around 26 degrees F.  The bag kept me comfortably warm.  I imagine that I could stay in it all day and night outside and be fine.  I was driven inside only because the wind changed direction and blew our woodstove smoke down to me.  I waited patiently for the wind to change direction again but after 15 minutes, it hadn’t changed direction and I had had enough of it and went inside.

We acquired winter weight polyproplene long underwear for everyone in the family and they have passed the winter workout sweat test for warmth and wicking abilities. (Not that one should be sweating too much outside in the winter if you are going to be remaining outside.) I will continue using them from now on with my workouts.  They were Wal-Mart specials. They are doing a great job.

Continue reading“Editors’ Prepping Progress”

The Survivalist’s Odds ‘n Sods:

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SurvivalBlog presents another edition of The Survivalist’s Odds ‘n Sods— a collection of news bits and pieces that are relevant to the modern survivalist and prepper from “JWR”.  Today, we focus on how the Queen of England Has a Bug Out Plan. Pictured is Balmoral Castle, in a vintage photo.

The Earth’s Fast-Moving Magnetic North Pole

This is some food for thought: Earth’s Magnetic North Pole Was Moving So Fast, Geophysicists Had to Update the Map

Why We Need Standard Capacity Magazines

Reader D.S. sent us this article link: Houston Gunfight, Deadly as OK Corral; Home Owner Uses AK47 in Self Defense ~ VIDEO. JWR’s Comments: I wish the leftist politicians would understand…For a gunfight, in the  modern context, a 30-round magazine is not “high capacity.” It is standard capacity. And just one magazine may be insufficient, especially when you face multiple opponents.

Los Angeles Anti-NRA Witch Hunt

Over at Bearing Arms: Los Angeles To Force Contractors To Reveal NRA Ties. JWR’s Comment: This is starting to take on the proportions of a full-blown Witch Hunt.

The US Army Is Equipping Soldiers With Pocket-Sized Recon Drones

At The Byte: The US Army Is Equipping Soldiers With Pocket-Sized Recon Drones.  And here is a link to a more detailed article: US Army soldiers will soon be armed with these game-changing drones that fit in the palm of your hand. JWR’s Comment: With a one-way range of 1.24, the energy density of the battery used must be very advanced! (Thanks to G.P. for the link.)

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

The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

“This is the copy of the letter that they sent unto him, even unto Artaxerxes the king; Thy servants the men on this side the river, and at such a time.
Be it known unto the king, that the Jews which came up from thee to us are come unto Jerusalem, building the rebellious and the bad city, and have set up the walls thereof, and joined the foundations.
Be it known now unto the king, that, if this city be builded, and the walls set up again, then will they not pay toll, tribute, and custom, and so thou shalt endamage the revenue of the kings.Now because we have maintenance from the king’s palace, and it was not meet for us to see the king’s dishonour, therefore have we sent and certified the king;
That search may be made in the book of the records of thy fathers: so shalt thou find in the book of the records, and know that this city is a rebellious city, and hurtful unto kings and provinces, and that they have moved sedition within the same of old time: for which cause was this city destroyed.
We certify the king that, if this city be builded again, and the walls thereof set up, by this means thou shalt have no portion on this side the river.

Then sent the king an answer unto Rehum the chancellor, and to Shimshai the scribe, and to the rest of their companions that dwell in Samaria, and unto the rest beyond the river, Peace, and at such a time.
The letter which ye sent unto us hath been plainly read before me.
And I commanded, and search hath been made, and it is found that this city of old time hath made insurrection against kings, and that rebellion and sedition have been made therein.
There have been mighty kings also over Jerusalem, which have ruled over all countries beyond the river; and toll, tribute, and custom, was paid unto them.
Give ye now commandment to cause these men to cease, and that this city be not builded, until another commandment shall be given from me.
Take heed now that ye fail not to do this: why should damage grow to the hurt of the kings?

Now when the copy of king Artaxerxes’ letter was read before Rehum, and Shimshai the scribe, and their companions, they went up in haste to Jerusalem unto the Jews, and made them to cease by force and power.
Then ceased the work of the house of God which is at Jerusalem. So it ceased unto the second year of the reign of Darius king of Persia.” – Ezra 4:11-24 (KJV)

Preparedness Notes for Friday – February 8, 2019

On February 8th, 1963 the Kennedy administration issued an order prohibiting travel to Cuba and banned financial transactions and commerce with Cuba, by U.S. citizens.

—

Our shipping department is being inundated with the same question: If you received an e-mail stating that your SurvivalBlog.com order is now complete, it means that the shipping department has finished packaging it and it is either in the mail, or in a bin on it’s way to the Post Office. SurvivalBlog’s part in the order is now complete. It still might take as long as a week for the USPS to get your Archive USB stick order to your door.

—

SurvivalBlog Writing Contest

Today we present another entry for Round 81 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The nearly $11,000 worth of prizes for this round include:

First Prize:

  1. A $3000 gift certificate towards a Sol-Ark Solar Generator from Veteran owned Portable Solar LLC. The only EMP Hardened Solar Generator System available to the public.
  2. A Gunsite Academy Three Day Course Certificate. This can be used for any 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. DRD Tactical is providing a 5.56 NATO QD Billet upper. These have hammer forged, chrome-lined barrels and a hard case, to go with your own AR lower. It will allow any standard AR-type rifle to have a quick change barrel. This can be assembled in less than one minute without the use of any tools. It also provides a compact carry capability in a hard case or in 3-day pack (an $1,100 value),
  5. Two cases of Mountain House freeze-dried assorted entrees in #10 cans, courtesy of Ready Made Resources (a $350 value),
  6. A $250 gift certificate good for any product from Sunflower Ammo,
  7. American Gunsmithing Institute (AGI) is providing a $300 certificate good towards any of their DVD training courses.

Second Prize:

  1. A Model 175 Series Solar Generator provided by Quantum Harvest LLC (a $439 value),
  2. A Glock form factor SIRT laser training pistol and a SIRT AR-15/M4 Laser Training Bolt, courtesy of Next Level Training, which have a combined retail value of $589,
  3. A gift certificate for any two or three-day class from Max Velocity Tactical (a $600 value),
  4. A Three-Day Deluxe Emergency Kit from Emergency Essentials (a $190 value),
  5. 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).
  6. An assortment of products along with a one hour consultation on health and wellness from Pruitt’s Tree Resin (a $265 value).

Third Prize:

  1. A Royal Berkey water filter, courtesy of Directive 21 (a $275 value),
  2. A large handmade clothes drying rack, a washboard, and a Homesteading for Beginners DVD, all courtesy of The Homestead Store, with a combined value of $206,
  3. Expanded sets of both washable feminine pads and liners, donated by Naturally Cozy (a $185 retail value),
  4. Two Super Survival Pack seed collections, a $150 value, courtesy of Seed for Security, LLC,
  5. Mayflower Trading is donating a $200 gift certificate for homesteading appliances.

Round 81 ends on March 28th, 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.

New Zealand: Thoughts After Seven Years, Part 2, by Nivek

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Part 2

I’ll begin Part 2 with some random thoughts. I am just going to comment on various items from daily life.

A Small Country

One really important thing is the size of the market here in New Zealand. The population is something over 4.5 million spread out over an area about the size of California, and then split into two islands. The U.S. has well over 350 million people. This makes world products to be priced high here because the market share is low and the logistics are difficult to get things down here. Another factor is that almost the entire population in New Zealand is concentrated into a few major cities and the remaining population is spread out over the rest of the country.

Living in New Zealand

It has a clean environment and it’s great for kids to grow up in. Hiking, biking, sports, swimming, hunting and fishing are all major activities. Sports in schools are also a big deal along with overall healthy activity. In our school, the kids at year four go on overnight camps for two days. Each year the activities get more difficult and they all run a cross country race which is 2-3 kilometers long. The year eight students go on a week-long backpacking trip through the Able Tasman Park. All trips have parent volunteers along with teaching staff to ensure a safe trip. The adults are all screened to insure safety.

As mentioned before, they have a very good school system. Yes you still have to do the leg work to find what you want. And there are some trouble schools with lower scores and bullying problems.

Continue reading“New Zealand: Thoughts After Seven Years, Part 2, by Nivek”

Economics & Investing For Preppers

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Here are the latest news items and commentary on current economics news, market trends, stocks, investing opportunities, and the precious metals markets. We also cover hedges, derivatives, and obscura. And it bears mention that most of these items are from the “tangibles heavy” contrarian perspective of SurvivalBlog’s Founder and Senior Editor, JWR. Today’s focus is on investing in AR-15 family rifles and lower receivers. (See the Tangibles Investing section.)

Precious Metals:

Central Banks Haven’t Bought This Much Gold Since Nixon Closed The Gold Window

o o o

ETF Gold Holdings Hit Highest Level Since 2013 In January: WGC

 

Economy & Finance:

California home sales volume lays low

o o o

At Seeking Alpha:  As The Global Economy Slows, The Grab For Yield Will Accelerate

o o o

Here’s how many people Tesla laid off at its California facilities

Continue reading“Economics & Investing For Preppers”

Preparedness Notes for Thursday – February 7, 2019

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February 7th, 1867, was the birthday of Laura Ingalls Wilder. (She died February 10, 1957). SurvivalBlog highly recommends the Laura Ingalls Wilder books as well as her biography.

On this day in 1775 in London, Benjamin Franklin published An Imaginary Speech in defense of American courage. The speech was intended to counter an unnamed officer’s comments to Parliament that the British need not fear the colonial rebels, because “Americans are unequal to the People of this Country [Britain] in Devotion to Women, and in courage and worse than all, they are religious.” Franklin’s response included his usual wit and acuity.

—

SurvivalBlog Writing Contest

Today we present another entry for Round 81 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The nearly $11,000 worth of prizes for this round include:

First Prize:

  1. A $3000 gift certificate towards a Sol-Ark Solar Generator from Veteran owned Portable Solar LLC. The only EMP Hardened Solar Generator System available to the public.
  2. A Gunsite Academy Three Day Course Certificate. This can be used for any 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. DRD Tactical is providing a 5.56 NATO QD Billet upper. These have hammer forged, chrome-lined barrels and a hard case, to go with your own AR lower. It will allow any standard AR-type rifle to have a quick change barrel. This can be assembled in less than one minute without the use of any tools. It also provides a compact carry capability in a hard case or in 3-day pack (an $1,100 value),
  5. Two cases of Mountain House freeze-dried assorted entrees in #10 cans, courtesy of Ready Made Resources (a $350 value),
  6. A $250 gift certificate good for any product from Sunflower Ammo,
  7. American Gunsmithing Institute (AGI) is providing a $300 certificate good towards any of their DVD training courses.

Second Prize:

  1. A Model 175 Series Solar Generator provided by Quantum Harvest LLC (a $439 value),
  2. A Glock form factor SIRT laser training pistol and a SIRT AR-15/M4 Laser Training Bolt, courtesy of Next Level Training, which have a combined retail value of $589,
  3. A gift certificate for any two or three-day class from Max Velocity Tactical (a $600 value),
  4. A Three-Day Deluxe Emergency Kit from Emergency Essentials (a $190 value),
  5. 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).
  6. An assortment of products along with a one hour consultation on health and wellness from Pruitt’s Tree Resin (a $265 value).

Third Prize:

  1. A Royal Berkey water filter, courtesy of Directive 21 (a $275 value),
  2. A large handmade clothes drying rack, a washboard, and a Homesteading for Beginners DVD, all courtesy of The Homestead Store, with a combined value of $206,
  3. Expanded sets of both washable feminine pads and liners, donated by Naturally Cozy (a $185 retail value),
  4. Two Super Survival Pack seed collections, a $150 value, courtesy of Seed for Security, LLC,
  5. Mayflower Trading is donating a $200 gift certificate for homesteading appliances.

Round 81 ends on March 28th, 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.

New Zealand: Thoughts After Seven Years, Part 1, by Nivek

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Part 1

Many of you have probably wondered about “bugging out” to another country. I would like to share with you what I have learned after living in New Zealand for seven years. I will try to organize my thoughts in different categories to help you get some answers. The first part will cover why and how I made the leap. Part 2 of the article will discuss various experiences. Part 3 will cover weather, gun laws, cars, car insurance, and shopping. And in Part 4 I will finish by covering taxes, telecommunications costs, and post a “points system” locales evaluation spreadsheet that I came up with. You could customize this to help you decide on choosing other major or difficult decisions.

To begin with, I never considered moving to another country until I had children, later in life. Before marriage I could easily move around and stay one step ahead of any situations that I did not like or to take off and simply try something new. An example of this freedom was in 1995. I was working for an engineering company. I was one year out of school with a civil engineering degree. On a Friday I saw an ad online in the Seattle newspaper for an engineering job in Alaska. I interviewed for the job the next Tuesday on the phone and accepted the position. I gave notice and just two weeks later I was driving up the Alaskan Highway.

Before being married and having children I could pack up at the drop of a hat and relocate without worrying about anything I had left behind. It would be a long list if I were to write down everywhere I have lived and worked. Ah, the happy times of being single and free. I did settle down a bit later on so that I could build up capital for retirement.

Late in life, marriage and children came along. I had to consider their needs first. The primary areas of my concern were safety and education–along with the children having a chance to experience being a kid. I didn’t want to carpool to every school activity or have to watch out for gangs and drug needles in the parks. So I started searching the web. New Zealand came out on top of the search.

A Kiwi Norman Rockwell Moment

I would like to share a moment I experienced about six months after my family arrived in New Zealand. We were in Picton. This is a small town at the top of the south island. It’s where the ferry comes in and connects the north and south islands. My wife had a friend that owned a dairy shop–a place to by a loaf of bread, rent a movie or get some ice cream or milk. My children were there playing with their children. I sat in the car across the street next to a small park. I was listening to the radio. It was a nice summer day and three kids ranging in age from about 5 to 10 walked across the grass in bare feet. They went into the shop and came out a few minutes later with ice cream cones. The oldest child looked out for the younger ones as they crossed the street. They slowly walked back across the park eating their ice cream, laughing without a care in the world. To me it was like a Norman Rockwell scene. There were no caps on backwards or pants hanging down.

Continue reading“New Zealand: Thoughts After Seven Years, Part 1, by Nivek”

The Survivalist’s Odds ‘n Sods:

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SurvivalBlog presents another edition of The Survivalist’s Odds ‘n Sods— a collection of news bits and pieces that are relevant to the modern survivalist and prepper from “JWR”.  Today, we focus on power grid vulnerability to cyber attacks. EMP, CME (severe solar storms), and physical infrastructure attacks are not the only risks!

Power Grid Vulnerability: Utilities Fined for “Serious Cyber Risks”

This troubling article illustrates the vulnerability of our three national power grids: Secrecy Reigns as NERC Fines Utilities $10M citing Serious Cyber Risks.  Here is how the article opens: “The North American Electric Reliability Corp. (NERC) imposed its stiffest fine to date for violations of Critical Infrastructure Protection (CIP) cybersecurity regulations. But who violated the standards and much of what the agency found remains secret. In a 250 page regulatory filing, NERC fined undisclosed companies belonging to a so-called ‘Regional Entity’ $10 million for 127 violations of the Critical Infrastructure Protection standards, the U.S.’s main cyber security standard for critical infrastructure including the electric grid.
Thirteen of the violations listed were rated as a “serious risk” to the operation of the Bulk Power System and 62 were rated a ‘moderate risk.’ Together, the ‘collective risk of the 127 violations posed a serious risk to the reliability of the (Bulk Power System),’ NERC wrote.” (Our thanks to J.M. for the link.) I hope that more Americans–especially our legislators–wake up to power grid vulnerability!

JWR Interviewed on the Pending Private Party Gun Transfer Ban

I was just interviewed on the Reluctant Preppers podcast about H.R. 8 — the pending Private Party Gun Transfer Ban.  Therein, I gave a summary of the proposed law and the short-term tsunami in gun prices that will be felt in the interval between the law’s passage but before enactment. I also explained the probable long term effects in the market for pre-1899 antiques.

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

The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

1

“One of the reasons that we find so few persons rational and agreeable in conversation is there is hardly a person who does not think more of what he wants to say than of his answer to what is said. The most clever and polite are content with only seeming attentive while we perceive in their mind and eyes that at the very time they are wandering from what is said and desire to return to what they want to say. Instead of considering that the worst way to persuade or please others is to try thus strongly to please ourselves, and that to listen well and to answer well are some of the greatest charms we can have in conversation.” – Francois LaRochefoucauld

Preparedness Notes for Wednesday – February 6, 2019

2

Ronald Wilson Reagan was born on February 6th, 1911. He was an American politician and actor, who served as the 40th President of the United States from 1981 to 1989. Prior to his presidency, he served as the 33rd Governor of California from 1967 to 1975, following a career as an actor and union leader in Hollywood. Reagan implemented sweeping new political and economic initiatives. His supply-side economic policies, dubbed “Reaganomics”, advocated tax rate reduction to spur economic growth, control of the money supply to curb inflation, economic deregulation, and reduction in government spending. In his first term he survived an assassination attempt, escalated the War on Drugs, and confronted an air traffic contoller’s strike.

—

The new 2005-2018 SurvivalBlog Archive waterproof DVD sticks are selling out rapidly.  We started out with 1,000 of them on January 5th, and now have less than 100 available. Notably, many folks are placing orders for 2 or 3 at a time. We should be caught up with mailing out the initial rush of orders by February 14th. (More than 400 have already been mailed.) After the first 1,000 sell out, there could be a delay of up to 45 days before we start shipping the second batch. And that batch will be just 500 sticks. When we advertise with:  “allow 4 to 6 weeks for delivery”, we are being realistic. The demand has been heavy!

—

SurvivalBlog Writing Contest

Today we present another entry for Round 81 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The nearly $11,000 worth of prizes for this round include:

First Prize:

  1. A $3000 gift certificate towards a Sol-Ark Solar Generator from Veteran owned Portable Solar LLC. The only EMP Hardened Solar Generator System available to the public.
  2. A Gunsite Academy Three Day Course Certificate. This can be used for any 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. DRD Tactical is providing a 5.56 NATO QD Billet upper. These have hammer forged, chrome-lined barrels and a hard case, to go with your own AR lower. It will allow any standard AR-type rifle to have a quick change barrel. This can be assembled in less than one minute without the use of any tools. It also provides a compact carry capability in a hard case or in 3-day pack (an $1,100 value),
  5. Two cases of Mountain House freeze-dried assorted entrees in #10 cans, courtesy of Ready Made Resources (a $350 value),
  6. A $250 gift certificate good for any product from Sunflower Ammo,
  7. American Gunsmithing Institute (AGI) is providing a $300 certificate good towards any of their DVD training courses.

Second Prize:

  1. A Model 175 Series Solar Generator provided by Quantum Harvest LLC (a $439 value),
  2. A Glock form factor SIRT laser training pistol and a SIRT AR-15/M4 Laser Training Bolt, courtesy of Next Level Training, which have a combined retail value of $589,
  3. A gift certificate for any two or three-day class from Max Velocity Tactical (a $600 value),
  4. A Three-Day Deluxe Emergency Kit from Emergency Essentials (a $190 value),
  5. 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).
  6. An assortment of products along with a one hour consultation on health and wellness from Pruitt’s Tree Resin (a $265 value).

Third Prize:

  1. A Royal Berkey water filter, courtesy of Directive 21 (a $275 value),
  2. A large handmade clothes drying rack, a washboard, and a Homesteading for Beginners DVD, all courtesy of The Homestead Store, with a combined value of $206,
  3. Expanded sets of both washable feminine pads and liners, donated by Naturally Cozy (a $185 retail value),
  4. Two Super Survival Pack seed collections, a $150 value, courtesy of Seed for Security, LLC,
  5. Mayflower Trading is donating a $200 gift certificate for homesteading appliances.

Round 81 ends on March 28th, 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.

Give Us This Day Our Daily Bread, by C.J.

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Bread has been called the staff of life. Throughout history has become a staple to diets across the world. There are literally thousands of bread recipes to be found in cookbooks, online, and in grandma’s little recipe file. Most recipes are actually very similar with the only difference perhaps being a little more or less flour, salt, leavening, or other agent. The one thing in common with most rising breads is the process. Adding ingredients, kneading for a given length of time, allowing to rise then baking. Hoping to find at the end, a perfectly risen mass of wonderful bread exuding a fresh aroma that is beyond compare. And if all goes well, that is exactly what you should end up with.

What I am offering today is a process that I have used for a very long time to bake a week’s worth of bread at one time, with minimal effort and a never-fail methodology. Most of my bread recipes utilize five full pounds of flour–which is how it is typically sold at a grocery store. No measuring cups, weighing, or worrying about whether you forgot to add a cup or added one too many.

Why I use bread flour…

The only real difference between bread flour and all purpose flour is the protein content. Bread flour will give a lighter softer texture, while all purpose flour will give a firmer texture and crust. Other flours can be used as well–although I have not tried them. Almond flour and coconut flour are just two that come to mind. If you prefer a darker crust, then add a few tablespoons of sugar or honey.

Continue reading“Give Us This Day Our Daily Bread, by C.J.”

JWR’s Recommendations of the Week:

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Here are JWR’s Recommendations of the Week for various media and tools of interest to SurvivalBlog readers. This week the focus is on MagPul D-60 AR-15 drum magazines. (See the Gear section.)

Books:

I’ve mentioned this book several times since I started SurvivalBlog back in 2005. It was formerly published by the now sadly defunct Paladin Press. I consider it a classic, and I’m glad to see that it is back in print: Total Resistance. If you don’t already have a copy on your bookshelf, then you should!

One reviewer had this to say: “Much of the minutiae may not be as useful anymore, for example how to take down phone lines, and there are other facets which simply did not exist in the author’s time, for example drones or digitized electronic warfare. Other facets are too specific to the Swiss military (e.g. instruction for specific mines, grenades) and the author assumes his audience (which were Swiss military and Swiss citizens who had undergone requisite military training) is already versed in basic fire-and-movement, weapons handling, patrolling, etc.

Nonetheless, the book is still highly relevant to the modern, American reader. The general strategies, maxims and insights still hold true. As a book on the mindset and process behind guerrilla warfare, I have yet to ready anything superior. Additionally, the author spends a great deal of time on 3 things that are almost always absent from other treatises: 1) the methods of the enemy to psychologically and socially disrupt resistance to its occupation; 2) how to form and grow secure social organization which will allow for resistance and guerrilla groups to form and survive; 3) the implications and issues of establishing PR, propaganda, finance, etc. for the resistance. Even the classics on guerrilla warfare, such as Mao’s and Che’s books, avoid these topics almost entirely and focus more upon a general notion of ‘spirit of resistance’ or on tactical considerations.”

o  o  o

For folks who often travel by commercial airliner or train and enjoy audiobooks, several of my books are available on Playaway pre-loaded compact digital audio players. These clever little devices resemble standard compact MP3 players, but are laminated with book cover images. They come with a pair of earbuds. The Playaway titles include Patriots and How To SurvIve The End Of The World As We Know It.

 

Movies & Television:

This movie helped me understand Ultra-Orthodox Jewish culture and values: Fill The Void

o  o  o

The Patriot

o  o  o

Find this for your kids: The original, and now considered quite politically incorrect animated television series,  Jonny Quest.

 

Continue reading“JWR’s Recommendations of the Week:”