Freeze Dried Friday:

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Welcome to Freeze Dried Friday on SurvivalBlog! We’ve been making so many things in the Harvest Right Freeze Dryer that we want to share some of them with you. If you have something wonderful you’ve prepared in your freeze dryer that you would like to share with SurvivalBlog readers, take a photo of it and send it in along with a description. We might just feature you here! The pride and joy of the week is our batch of genovese basil, but first:

Odds and Ends

it’s been a slow week this time around for freeze drying. We only ran five batches in total. One of the joys of the prepper mantra of multiple streams of income is that every once in a while, one of those income streams becomes like a dragon. Problems engulf and consume you. I tease my wife that I am a firefighter at home too— putting out the biggest fire, slathering grease on the loudest squeak— whatever it takes. It’s a good feeling when things get back to normal.

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Economics & Investing For Preppers

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Here are the latest 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 JWR. (SurvivalBlog’s Founder and Senior Editor.) Today’s focus is on  investing on ultra low production number cars. (See the Tangibles section, near the end of this column.)

 

Precious Metals:

Clint Siegner at Activist Post: Preparing to Barter and Trade With Precious Metals Is NOT a Loony Idea

o  o  o

High Anxiety In Marketplace Propels Gold To Seven Week High

 

Commodities:

Natural Gas Prices Poised To Rise As Exports Boom

 

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Editors’ Quote of the Day:

“Government-to-government foreign aid promotes statism, centralized planning, socialism, dependence, pauperization, inefficiency, and waste. It prolongs the poverty it is designed to cure. Voluntary private investment in private enterprise, on the other hand, promotes capitalism, production, independence, and self-reliance.” – Henry Hazlitt

International Travel Preparation- Part 2, by O.D.

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Yesterday, in Part 1, I shared about the importance of getting your vaccinations before travelling to international destinations. I also shared various preps, including some of the things I find helpful to carry, where I recommend a person stay, and what not to bother with. I also shared that from time to time when I was staying some place for awhile, I have purchased and stashed an old bicycle to have on hand in case I needed to “get out of Dodge” quickly and quietly. No matter whether you are having to get out of Dodge or you are just going about your normal business, you need to be able to walk comfortably. Let’s take a look at what is required for this.

Outfitting The Walkin’ Dude- The Essentials

  • Boots for walking. You need well broken-in boots with toe protection; they need to be tough enough to kick-and-stomp with if it comes down to that.
  • Water storage. I carry two empty Platypus flat-bag water packs in my carry-on luggage plus whatever water bottles I can pick up. Also, I take water purification iodine and a filter straw (I also always carry packets of oral rehydration powder, not just because I might end up despite this precautions with dirty water but in case I come across a child who is dying of dehydration. Some things can’t be passed by). (BTW, recipes for making a fair replica of ORS (oral rehydration solution) from commonly available ingredients are freely to be found on the net. This is absolutely worth knowing.)

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Letter Re: Plan “B” Power

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Hugh:

I got a little solar set up. I put most of the panels in a cabinet, leaving one up to “trickle charge” the batteries and keep them up. It did not work. In trying to save the batteries, I employed a Honda EU2000 with the dc charging feature. That EU2000 was how I was going to smooth over charging issues during consecutive cloudy days. The problem is, the measured voltage range between full capacity and the minimum you should tolerate is very small. The EU2000 does not have a charge controller. “Keeping an eye on the process” does not work. Personally, I bounce from project to project between work and family life. Does anyone out there have a suggestion for a charge controller that would work well with the EU2000? – RV

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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 “HJL”. Make sure you read the article on the updated NIST recommendations for electronic passwords.

Incorrigible Bear

In Durango Colorado, a bear broke into an SUV and took it for a short joy ride. It yanked the steering wheel off of the column, ripped the radio out of the dash, released the emergency brake and rolled it down a driveway and into a mailbox and over some utility boxes at 5 A.M. It then busted the rear window in its escape. Authorities are sure it was a bear because it apparently defecated in the car (likely because it was nervous over the vehicle moving). I wasn’t sure for a while if we were talking about an incorrigible bear or a teenager. Apparently a late frost damaged the berry production and the bears are hungry. If you live in the area, make sure you take proper precautions. Thanks to H.L. for the link.

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International Travel Preparation- Part 1, by O.D.

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When the mushroom cloud goes up or the grid goes down, those of us preparing will be fortunate if we are home or at our pre-planned bug out location and with our family. But many of us work away from home, with a sizeable minority of us travelling out-of-country. What then? Are you prepared for international travel?

Getting All The Way Back Home

I’ve been flying to and from work for about three decades, usually not to places high on the “must-see for the party scene” list. On my second-ever expatriate assignment, I got a quick and extremely pointed wake-up call when I was hijacked on the taxi ride in from the airport. Now I may not be able to see ahead to the future, but I am a relatively quick learner from the harsh past. And now, everyday travel prep is second nature, especially when going to places where the rule of law still doesn’t apply or has been worsening.

Some of these places, for example, include the “Trashcanistans”, Sudan, or Brussels. So, I will share a few comments on what I have personally found to be useful. I have only needed some of it for real on two occasions in 28 years. However, during those two times I was very pleased to be my own backup.

Continue reading“International Travel Preparation- Part 1, by O.D.”

Economics & Investing For Preppers

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Here are the latest 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 JWR. (SurvivalBlog’s Founder and Senior Editor.) Today’s focus is on investing in  Trading Cards. (See the Tangibles section, near the end of this column.)

 

Precious Metals:

Investors Should Take Advantage Of Gold’s Summer Doldrums – Mickey Fulp

o  o  o

Stunning Results: Four Top Primary Silver Miners Production Plummets

Stocks:

When Will the Tech Bubble Burst?

o  o  o

Over at the CNBC Cheering Section: S&P 500 and Dow hit record highs, led by financials

 

Commodities:

I missed this interesting article when it ran back in April: Nickel Market Beware: Batteries can no Longer be Ignored – Roskill Information Services

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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 the movie Copperhead.

Books:

Conscience of a Conservative: A Rejection of Destructive Politics and a Return to Principle. Note:  Senator Flake is a pseudo-Conservative and a Republican In Name Only (RINO.) I’m recommending that you read the book as an insight on how how the RINOs manipulate and operate. The career-entrenched RINOs in Congress are currently squandering the opportunity of the majority that was handed to them in the last election. They have no intention of “draining the Swamp.”  They are are, in fact, the Swamp Creatures.

o  o  o

A Guide Book of United States Coins 2018: The Official Red Book

 

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A Quiet Life: How to Lower Your Profile or Go Fully Off the Grid

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Part of my work life in most weeks involves consulting phone calls.  The majority of my clients are in the U.S. and Canada.  Not surprisingly, many of my clients have questions for me about privacy.  These questions are generally along three lines:  1.) Buying guns privately, 2.) buying land privately, and 3.) how to avoid paper trails on storage food purchases.  In this essay,  I will try to address all three of those topics, as well as a few related points. One of the key concepts herein is Going Analog.  But first, I’ll mention completely dropping off the grid.

Going Dark

The Going Dark concept implies someone cutting off all normal contacts. This is often coincident with relocating in an attempt to disappear without a trace.  This extreme in privacy is only required for someone in duress.  That is, for instance, someone who is the target of a manhunt,  for a criminal case witness who is at risk, someone evading an abusive ex-spouse, or someone who is fleeing creditors.

Details on fully Going Dark are included in several popular books, such as: How to Disappear: Erase Your Digital Footprint, Leave False Trails, And Vanish Without A Trace.

For most of the rest of us, simply lowering your profile is sufficient.  The following are few suggestions:

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