SS challenge! - 100+ steps to self-sufficiency

[Britesea]

but are those friends close enough to you in the event that travel becomes difficult?
I want my neighbors to be alive and able to help guard my back while I'm getting trying to repair the fence.

 

[NH Homesteader]

Yes, they are. I am not saying I hate my neighbors and wish them ill, I was just commenting on the different attitudes in different regions.

 

[lcertuche]

I have always made a point of being friendly to everyone. It's funny but most my neighbors I met when I started going to a church in town a few miles away. I could see any of my neighbors pitching in during a SHTF scenario. We already share what resources we have.

 

[milkmansdaughter]

Great thread!

Maybe it was listed but I'd say learn the dangers in your area and

a) be prepared to defend yourself and your own (not just from two-legged predators, but also from poisonous snakes, fire ants, wasps, scorpions, spiders, bears, etc...) Be prepared before there is an emergency.

b) Know more than how to use a bandaid. Can you set a broken bone, stop bleeding, treat a burn, identify a stroke or heat exhaustion? Do you know what to do for bites, stings, nettles, cuts? Could you protect the flock from coyotes? Save the chicks from snakes? Protect your own from human predators?

Accidents happen. Animals bite, kick, scratch, step on you, pin you to the side of a fence. Hammers attack thumbs. Ladders slip. Tree branches fall. Machinery breaks. Mud is slippery! BUT you're out there a part of it all, and the struggle is what makes the reward a reward. There's no WOW factor to opening a can of store bought veggies and dumping them in a pan, but there is when you open your own jar in February and know you planted it, weeded it, watered it, protected it from insects and disease, harvested it and canned it.

I'd also say that two more things set the people here apart from most of our neighbors. One is the willingness to learn. Looking up answers, asking questions, being willing to admit we don't know it all but being willing to learn. The second is being willing to WORK. In a society addicted to ease and comfort and convenience, it takes a different kind of person to get out of the house to weed a garden, shovel sh@#, fix a broken fence, build a rooster house/pigpen/outhouse, get out in the rain (or hurricane) to fix a roof or to check on animals, plant a garden, take care of it, harvest it and save it to feed your family through a winter. It takes time and money and effort to dig up weeds, clear land, and make it productive and pretty.

Hats off to everyone here for being different!

 

[lcertuche]

You're right about being prepared for emergencies. I was stung in the backyard this morning by some yellow jackets while letting my dog do her business. If I had been allergic to stings then it would be really tough to deal with in a SHTF scenario. It was bad enough with the pain without that factor to deal with. Can you stock up for that situation. Thank God none our family have deadly allergies but many do.

 

[Mini Horses]

I have a Foodsaver vac/seal. While it is super for pkg of freezer meats/fish...saves from freezer burns!...it is a fantastic was to save "things" for other situations. Seal up matches, meds, seeds, valuable paperwork, etc. Have it ready to go.

 

[Britesea]

I have all my extra seeds vacuum sealed, hoping they will stay good longer that way. I will have to test them when it's time to plant again.

 

[milkmansdaughter]

Great idea @Mini Horses ! And waterproof!

 

[Beekissed]

Most important tool for SS, IMO? The ability to change your mindset. Change it from the American dream, that's drilled into us from birth, and switch it to a different dream...one that isn't based on acquiring things in order to be thought of as a success. Living on and making do with very little that the world finds of importance will go a long way towards getting a person to that level of independence but few are willing to go there.

True success is contentment with whatever you may have. The man who can remain content, despite changing circumstances in jobs, health, family, status, homes, wealth, etc., is truly rich indeed and is well on the road to being more independent of the world. That ability to adapt and not feel anxious over things lost is one of the most valuable tools one can acquire for the journey.

Being prepared for any changes in your world starts in the mind and heart, not in what you have in your tool shed or pantry. The time to start that preparation is NOW, not when you need it during an emergency, but practicing it daily so it isn't a tool you aren't familiar with when you truly need to utilize it.

If you can start any sentence with "I just couldn't live without (insert gadget, food item, appliance, comfort item, etc.)" then you haven't started changing your mindset. I've found, in a crisis, there are very few things humans can't live without other than the essentials of food, water, shelter from the elements.

 

[frustratedearthmother]

Seal up matches, meds, seeds, valuable paperwork, etc. Have it ready to go.

Great idea!