What are you preparing for?

[frustratedearthmother]

I feel a lot like Bettacreek. I prepare for whatever the situation might be. Yes, I was one of those that stocked up for Y2K. I was freshly divorced with custody of my children and there was no way in heck that MY kids were going to go hungry, or cold, or dirty, or.... if the SreallydidhitheFan. It just made sense to me. My mother wasn't big on preparing, but I learned a lot of things from my grandmother. Waaaay back before organic was a buzz word - she was doing it. She canned, she grew food on her entire city lot - front yard and back, lol.

I've been through several hurricanes here on the Gulf Coast. There have been times when a little tropical storm knocked out electricity for over a week. We had no generator then - but we had a freezer full of meat. In order to keep that meat from being wasted we had the mother barbque of all barbeques. We opened our freezer for the entire neighborhood and had total strangers sitting on the porch sharing our food. It was awesome, and thankfully our insurance covered the loss of the meat. But, it was still a loss that I don't want to deal with again. My freezer now is full of the fruits of my own labor - naturally raised chickens, venison, organic garden produce...

During Hurricane Ike - we were without power for almost two weeks. It was a great opportunity to learn a lot. For this one we had a generator and plenty of gasoline. I ran the generator sporadically - just long enough to keep the freezer cold. We had enough gas to loan it to the neighbors for a few hours each day so they could keep their own freezer going.

Then we had a four month period when DH was unemployed. It was nice not to worry about spending money on groceries during that time. We had everything we needed and rarely spent a dime at the grocery store.

My kids tease me and say when the "revolution" happens, they're coming to my house, lol. My point to them is that we've already weathered plenty of "revolutions" and because of some forethought - we were fine. I like that feeling.

 

[baymule]

I am not prepping for the end of the world, 'cause if that happens, then I ain't gonna need all that stuff anyway. If I go to Heaven, I won't need it, if I go to He11, then it's all gonna burn up! I have a bulging freezer, a stocked pantry, 2 buckets full of wheat, a bucket of quinoa, and a bucket of sugar. I decided to buy in bulk because it is cheaper to do so. I just got a grain mill that has a motor and a hand crank. I will grind wheat and make my own bread. I have chickens in the back yard and a garden in the front yard. I can, freeze and dehydrate what we don't immediately eat. I do this because that is what you do when you have plenty. When the tomatoes are loaded and there is no way to eat 27 tomatoes every day for a month, then I can them, I make soup and can it, I dehydrate them. It tastes so good later when they are out of season. I go to the pick your own blue berry farms around here and pick 20-30 pounds of bluberries and freeze them. Had blueberry cobbler last week, sure was good!

Hurricanes are the usual thing around here. Ike landed a huge oak tree on my house, crushing one end of it. Fortunately, it was on the garage side, so only got damage to the garage, kitchen and dining room. Better than landing on the bedrooms! Two very important things to have on hand in emergency situations. Wine and brownies. Yup. Brownies are the ultimate comfort food and wine is so that there is an oak tree laying on your house, it's raining in your kitchen and dining room, but you really no longer care! Yup, brownies and wine are great stress relievers. And because the tree fell on the side of the house where the power lines come in, it was almost a month before we got power back on!

Hurricane Rita was an event because most of Houston evacuated and in the blind panic, a 1-2 hour trip took 26 hours, then they ran out of gas when they got here! They were scared, hungry and had nowhere to go and no gas to get there! We put up people in our schools and churches. We fed them and sheltered them and just did the best we had with what we had. And that scene was repeated in every town in a 100 mile radius north of Houston.

If you have never seen ALL the grocery stores empty and closed, Walmart closed up with plywood over the doors, gas stations closed, pitch black darkness with not even a street light on, then you can't imagine the gratefulness to see them open back up. When the grocery stores reopened, the meat counters were bare, the freezers were empty, there were a few scattered canned goods, just a few of this and a few of that. The atmosphere was quiet, respectful, and grateful. Lowes reopened, but only let a few people in at a time. We waited in line in the rain for a chance to get inside to purchase tarps and plastic to cover the gaping hole in our roof.

I am no longer employed due to quitting to care for my mother. She now lives with us. So that is a very good reason for buying in bulk. It is cheaper and by buying a lot at a time, I get to skip the steadily rising prices, at least until I run out! Next on my list is organic non-GMO corn, so I can make my own cornmeal. I get food grade buckets from the local doughnut shop and use my food saver to seal everything up. When my mother sold her house to move in with us, I scooped all her canning jars to add to my own collection. Not a doomsday prepper, just a smart redneck! (is smart redneck an oxymoron?)

 

[rhoda_bruce]

I'm try to be SS anyway, but to tell the truth, I think the country will collapse. I can't see it NOT happening.

 

[Bettacreek]

There was a thread on another prepping forum... Someone was actually shocked to see a homesteading section. I was shocked that they were shocked. Then someone said that the Alaska: Last Frontier show wasn't about prepping, because they were preparing for a known reason... I'm still confused on that note. So, it's only prepping if you're expecting an alien invasion? Anyways, it just makes sense to have food and supplies to last you awhile. Before they had grocery stores (which wasn't all that long ago really) what do you think people did? It's new that people don't have enough to last them at least a winter, not new that people have food and supplies to last them!

 

[Mattemma]

I just prep for the times when dh's paychecks are real low.Sometimes we just don't have the money to buy food! There might come a day when the paychecks stop.He might get sick,fired,or god forbid die.Like an emergency savings fund the prepping of food and other supplies just makes sense.Never know what the future holds.

Also, we have been without heat,gas,and electric from hours to days.Good to have things on hand to deal with those situations.No furnace in January for 6 days when it was single digits was a nightmare.Lesson learned: Stuff happens.Go figure the time our furance was broke was the ONLY single digit days,lol.

Noticed the products get smaller,but they are charging more. I don't usually buy sugar,but got it for my water kefir grains,and saw that it is now 4 pounds instead of 5.Here I thought I was getting a good deal at $1.78,but alas it was only 4 pounds.When I started looking I could not find ANY sugar at 5 pounds being sold. Those few cents for each product will be adding up.Utilities are up too.It is just getting harder to make it on an average income.Add to that health issues and you are screwed.

Prepping cushions the blow of life's hardships.

 

[rhoda_bruce]

I went thru Katrina and it was bad and the aftermath wasn't a cake walk either. Eventually someone came around and turned back the power and we hired contractors to lift the house and put it back straight.
But what I'm waiting for is when there isn't a hurricane, but the lights go off and no one is coming to turn them back on and they won't be turned back on. It can happen. And it took me about 4 years to pay off the contractors, but at least I had contractors. I'm waiting for the day when you need extra help, you best make a big meal and invite the family, so they can tackle the project.

 

[Mattemma]

The potheads and crackheads, the executive elite, and soccer moms will storm the pharmacies and Dr. offices to loot their drugs. And the drug supply will not last more than a week or two.

No worry from the potheads I am sure.They will have people storming THEIR homes and yards for that bit of weed.

Good post! I just listened to the audio of One Second After. Little doubt that the behavior of people in that book could indeed happen regardless of the actual cause of the beakdown.

 

[Mattemma]

The "experts" in my area keep warning us that a big earthquake is emminent. .....

We had a number of earthquakes here.One really rocked the house last New Years day.Was pinned on the local fracking in PA.Does that matter to the goernment? Naw,they increase the fracking all around us,and tell people to get earthquake insurance.

 

[wooddustmaker]

Haven't been on in a while. I don't "prep," I live a lifestyle that suits me and my family. Simple, lots of hard work, but the pleasure of knowing that we did it ourselves. I don't like being caught with my pants down, never have, never will. To look in the pantry, the best looking stuff is the stuff we canned ourselves. Love looking at that deep purple grape juice, the Golden apple juice, the jams and jellies, etc.

Never thought I would have kids. After my divorce, found a great gal that came with three tricycle motors. What a life change. I sleep good at night knowing that they are learning the skills that they will need to survive. Nothing extreme, basics like sewing, canning, raising a garden. It has its moments, but wouldn't trade it. We have all of our basics covered. Just working to get the back up plans in place. Have a few weak areas that need some work, but nothing that can't, or won't get done. A little time, and some redneck ingenuity seems to go a long way.

"Prep" all you want, but how are you going to replenish what you had if you dont know how, or practice living that way? Just my nickles worth of free thinking tonight.

 

[rhoda_bruce]

I totally understand. Feel the same. About a year ago, I determined that we really didn't need a tv room, but we did need a pantry room....not a pantry cupboard. So out went the tv, along with all its attachments and in came a bunch of metal shelving units, my grandmother's old table, all my wine making and canning supplies and I began buying in bulk.
Okay, now it costed a lot to buy all that food, but what I wanted to do was slowly fill all the masons until I no longer had room for the store bought stuff and when I was out of it, it would be Okay because they would have been replaced with our own home canned food.
Then my grandparents both died and not only did I have my 26 years worth of masons, but I inherited all of her's, which easily doubled my jars. You can bet I began filling them.
Sometimes I work my tail off and putting food up takes me a good while. There are those who might wander why I bother. I sometimes ask myself that too, esp when the amount of time, work and fatigue, don't seem to cancel out the $ value. But those jars take up just as much room, weather they are filled or empty, so they might as well have food in them. My freezer is full, but if the power is shut off, I have only so long before I have to eat all of its contents, can it or run by generator....but again, how long will I use the generator??? IDK.
Slaughtering.......I've have seen people get chickens straight run, plan on killing their extra roos and not. Makes no sense to me. There goes all your profits. All your hens are being over harassed. The roos are getting mean and your coop isn't a safe place to just walk into. I refuse to have set all this up and not turn a profit. I need 1 roo in each of my projects.....thats it. I need one gander with my goose. I need one drake with my 6 ducks....no more. I do need meat on my table sometimes. It only makes sense that I slaughter my unwanted male birds and eat them. I know I'm eating healthy animals. I know they were killed as kindly as possible and properly bled. I know no one washed them down in bleach. I know they weren't pumped full of antibiotics or steroids. Its not my favorite chore, but once I tend to the chore, I can sit back and watch, while my females get first pick on the grain, which somehow lasts much longer and you can bet my grocery bill will be decreased too.
I have 5 children of my own and I somehow have extra children on the place at all times, which just seem to want to watch my every move. They all know something about where our food comes from. My children must help me with the chores. They are learning how to take care of themselves. You never know....they might have to take care of themselves one day. For all I know, maybe I'll have to take care of myself. Have to, not choose to. I'm glad to come from people who had these skills.