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Alaska facing record 12 feet of snow in 48 hours
Bill Masen - November 7, 2021 https://www.foxweather.com/weather-news/alaskans-brace-for-a-record-12-feet-of-snow-in-two-days
For those of us who experience true bad winters at times, this freak of nature could be worth watching and learning from as one POSSIBLE consequence of climate change
Read MoreHow do you stack your firewood? Bark up, or bark down?
Jay ValenciaContributor - November 7, 2021 The people of Norway are serious about their firewood. So much so that Solid Wood by Lars Mytting (title changed for English release) spent more than a year on the nonfiction best-seller list in Norway. The book even sparked a 12 hour long television program about wood in which 20% of the population tuned in. During this 12 hour show, people started texting in complaining about how the wood was stacked in the program.
What they found was that about 50 percent of people preferred to have the wood stacked with the bark facing up to protect the wood from rain and snow,
and the other 50 percent preferred the wood stacked with the bark facing down to protect the wood from moisture on the ground.
(best picture I could find of this)
This even turned into a joke on the Disney movie Frozen where two citizens argue about which way the wood should be facing, which is where I learned about all this while watching with my daughter.
Some people even turn wood stacking into an art form.
Think this is all absurd? Read this New York Times article about it https://archive.md/nfaFd
So what is the proper way to store firewood? Well, in my opinion, I think bark side up is correct. If stored outside it will act like shingles and keep the wood dry from rain, also if you had the bark facing down, the U shape of the bark would trap moisture and encourage decaying.
Having proper airflow and spaces in between your wood is the most important factor however to allow drying.
How do you store your firewood? Bark up, or bark down? Exposed to the sky and ground or lifted up off the ground and covered? Indoors or outdoors? Stored in a circle or tower? Facing north, east, south, or west? Does any of this even matter?
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Austin,Texas DHS plan worth studying
Bob - November 6, 2021 https://www.governing.com/community/report-identifies-issues-in-austins-disaster-preparedness
Good morning,
Austin, Texas developed a plan that addresses the deep freeze and lose of much infrastructure.
Austin’s DHS and a consultant (Why the need for a consulting firm ?!) made some recommendations well worth studying.
Note “no crew members … knew how to operate a gear switch”. Before a prepper buys anything, do think of the required support system: basic field expedient repairs (even if used at home and not in field), spare parts (consider the spares as “merely” a cost of the main gadget, eg generator, being purchased) and tools/lubercants/related.
Under section titled “Shelters”, note “staffing shortfalls and availability of volunteers”. I’m posting this link not to single out and focus on Austin, Texas … it’s about the same here for private citizens …
Note recommendation: “identity a list of medical shelters and general shelters with durable infrastructure”.
All wheel drive emergency vehicles are far from being economical for year-round use. This specific subject is really a “it takes a village”.
Where do the Austin, Texas taxes go to ? Please be reminded by me this this link if from “governing.org” !
Does not * Hagerty Consulting* firm serve as a huge flare indicating the problem ?!
……
Would never have guessed roads could become useless without support.
Read MoreA British prepper supply store
Bob - November 6, 2021 https://www.cornwalllive.com/news/cornwall-news/gallery/meet-cornwalls-survivalist-prepping-nation-6093283
Good morning,
Above article is about a prepper store.
Article has link to this store named “Prepper Shop UK”, owned and managed by Lincoln Miles.
At the store link’s section titled “Urban Essentials”, I have a copy of the Field Manual “First Aid For Soldiers”. This FM is somewhat outdated. The best book IMO featured is prepper medical care is Dr William Forgery, M.D.’s “The Prepper Medical Handbook”. Might still have a copy here. Of course, regardless of my opinion, Dr Forgery’s book is also somewhat outdated when focused to the current US medical scene.
I take due note that the Brit’s 50 cal ammo cans feature the newer HAZMAT label with number. This replaces the older “class C” label for small arms ammo (In US the 50 cal is still “small arms”).
I do recommend Lincoln Miles get some fire extinguishers for his inventories.
The prices appear to be real good.
Read MoreRussia cuts gas to Europe and amasses military on western borders
Bill Masen - November 6, 2021 Russia cuts gas to Europe and amasses military on western borders (msn.com)
Russia deploying large military forces to its western borders and has cut essential natural gas supplies to Europe. Basically Putin holds all the aces and the knock on effects could be catastrophic for Europe this winter.
Russia cuts gas to Europe and amasses military on western borders (telegraph.co.uk)
Read MoreMiddle Kingdom making itself a prepper nation
Bob - November 5, 2021 https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-china-59133027
Good afternoon,
This short article tells of China wanting families to stockpile some foods.
Of course some Chinese have always been preppers.
Read MoreUK media focusing on pan US shortages in stores
Bill Masen - November 5, 2021 Please ignore anything political in the DM article and focus on the logistical issues.
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10094485/Biden-ridiculed-online-EmptyShelvesJoe-frustrated-shoppers-complain-shortages.html
EG this sort of detail rather than the political sniping.
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Fear, scary movies, our evolution; values to a prepper
Bob - November 3, 2021 https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/fear-can-be-fun-and-it-might-even-be-good-for-you
Good morning,
Had thought I posted this article several weeks ago. Apparently not. Redundancy better than neglect. Some forum member might need this info now.
Note: “When the fear subsides, … pleasure”.
Note: “stress hormones”.
Did not know about Oxytocin and hugging.
Note Dr Mendez’s “Risk takers … “.
Note: “., short-term fear can have psychological benefits … to practice controlling”.
Read MoreThe need for insecticides in your survival garden
RedneckContributor - November 1, 2021 I’m a long time gardener that has a small vegetable garden, that provides lots of great food for my wife & myself, plus we have a rather large orchard (over 150 trees). As a prepper, I plan for an extreme scenario, where possibly for a year or more, we might have to become self sufficient to survive. Obviously, to rapidly become self sufficient, the number one thing you need is lots of garden seed, so I keep several hundred pounds in cool storage and add approximately 50lbs per year. Most seed will become much less viable after 3-5 years, so it is important to add new seed to your stores each year.
Sounds great, but there is something many preppers don’t plan on… battling insects when you just might need every plant to survive. My many years of gardening has taught me one thing and that is, at least where I live, there is no such thing as organic growing for many foods. This year has been especially bad for critters wanting to eat up my garden. Beetles of all sorts have been especially bad from the tiny ones you can barely see to the big ones. Squash bugs will kill any squash (or similar) within a few weeks. Now we have army worms attacking the grass all around this whole area.
Picture this. We have a crisis & all good preppers pull out their hoes & seed & put in a nice, big garden. The plants start off great, but then your squash starts dying and most of your other plants’ leaves start looking like swiss cheese… full of holes. What good are those seeds & implements if you can’t control the bugs?
My solution is insecticides. Yes they have all sorts of bad connotations, but if you really want to protect you food, and possibly your life, you will need them. Some insecticides are much safer than others. Spinosad is my go to insecticide, as it is one of the safest & some folks consider it organic. If applied properly, around dusk when the pollinators have left, it will only kill insects that bite into the plant… the bad guys. Once dry, it doesn’t harm the other insects & pollinators… the good guys. I purchase a quart of Conserve SC, which has a very concentrated amount of Spinosad for under $200. 1 oz of that makes 10 gallons, so that single quart can make over 300 gallons of insecticide.
Another rather safe insecticide is Cypermethrin, is a very concentrated synthetic pyrethroid that kills insects on contact. It is considered very safe & safe around animals. That same chemical is used in my fly spray system in my horse barn. I’ll be spraying that tomorrow on my grass to kill the army worms. It only takes 3 oz per acre. Another contact killer I use in my garden is BioAdvanced Vegetable and Garden Insect Spray Concentrate. I use this as little as possible.
My point is not to push any specific insecticide. I too keep lots of insecticide soaps & oils, such as Neem oil. I’m just letting you know some of what I use. My point is to remind any prepper that plans on growing their own food, that they really need to have insecticides on hand… and a lot of it. Besides having it on hand, it would be nice if you have some experience using it prior to a crisis, where a mistake can mean you and yours going hungry. I’ve found soaps & oils can be effective but sometimes you need something a bit stronger, at least IMO.
Read MoreSpecialized prepper multitool for food preparation
Bob - November 1, 2021 This multi-tool is for preppers – food preppers that is
Good morning,
It’s about a gadget for food preparation when out in the field and this multitool is the de factor kitvhen drawer of gadgets.
It’s approximately configured like a Swiss Army Knife. It has a cheese grater, inter alia – amongst other things. Not familiar with “Zester”.
One thing I’m sure the gadget cannot do is open Brazil nuts. My method requires use of a crash ax and multitool with a vice grip.
Most definitely carry the needed cleaning products along with this field expedient kitchen tool(s). Otherwise the bugs / animals will follow.
Read MoreAvoiding a Halloween disaster
Jay ValenciaContributor - November 1, 2021 With Halloween right around the corner, I wanted to share some of the safety tips that I have used over the years. Maybe it’s a bit overkill, but I haven’t lost a child to Halloween yet. There are tips that all can benefit from, those with children and those who will just stay home.
Take your children trick or treating to known houses of people you trust. Check the sex offender registry and avoid those houses when trick or treating. Download the NSOPW app from your app store to see a map of houses to avoid wherever you go. Go out early and go home early. As the night goes on, people get drunk, it gets darker, and the older kids are out and about pulling tricks. Tell people which routes you will be walking and when you will be home. Inspect candy for any that have been tampered with by squeezing the packaging. If there isn’t a little bubble of air, it might have been opened. Look for any candy that your child may have a food allergy. One of the biggest dangers during Halloween is cars. If your three year old is running around in a black gorilla suit, it will be hard for a car to see them. Make safety fun for them by buying glow in the dark paint, using reflective tape, create a costume with LED lights, or a cheap option is buying packs of glow stick bracelets and necklaces from the dollar store. Make your children as visible as possible. If possible, avoid wearing masks that can obscure your vision. Drive slow and have your lights on as you are going around the next few days. Charge up and bring a headlight or flashlight when going around with your children. Print off your contact information and pin it to the inside of your child’s treat bag and costume. If they get lost, they can show that to someone to help reunite you. Before going out, make sure your and your child’s cell phones are completely charged and you have settings like Find My iPhone turned on. Take pictures of your children with and without their costumes on right before they go out, this can be used to show people or the police a description of your child if they get lost. Don’t make it scary for them and tell them it’s in case they get lost, just mention how you want it as memory. Do the same for your teenagers, no matter how much they complain and whine. Things happen unfortunately. If you are handing out candy, have some pepper spray close by the door in case you have some drunk teenagers come by that try and cause trouble and enter your house. Again, things happen, be prepared. Pull the jack o lanterns in when you are done handing out candy for the night and you turn your porch light off. Unless you want to pick up pumpkin guts from teenagers going around pumpkin smashing. Make sure any security cameras and home alarm systems are armed are working properly a couple days before and after Halloween. Do an extra security sweep around your property and house. Make sure all windows, doors, and padlocks are secured. People are just out and about looking for trouble. Bring a small first aid kit with you when trick or treating, running around in the dark can lead to some injuries. Have it nearby as well when carving pumpkins. If you are sick or think you have COVID, please do not go out trick or treating or hand out candy. There will be many more holidays you can enjoy, take it easy and watch a scary movie at home. Read MoreBrit article on Brit preppers
Bob - November 1, 2021 Good morning,
Per title, article tells of more acceptance of prepping after BREXIT.
Article mentions Mathias, West Virginia. This place next to Virginia and just north of George Washington National Forest. Since the forest is Federal land, it can be readily packed with Fed LEOs. The mentioned 50 cal machine gun is something “frowned upon”.
Reminder to forum members of the American upstart colonies: “torch” means in American English “flashlight”.
Read MoreMassive Facebook, Instagram / internet outage
Bill Masen - November 1, 2021 Its global FB and many other mass user sites have been down since 5PM GMT, nearly 5 hours out of action.
Read MoreCurrent global problems could worsen because of diesel shortage in China
Bill Masen - November 1, 2021 Some news agencies are taking an ever more closer interest in the economic problems in China, In some cities truckers are limited to 200 litres a time, but when you leave the cities people are waiting up to a week to refuel. This is having a major impact in china being able to meet its export obligations and even driving up food prices as well. The cost of fuel has doubled in some areas and one of the knock on effects is that Vegetables in some areas are now more expensive than meat.
https://www.wionews.com/world/due-to-fuel-shortages-china-rations-diesel-424700
https://www.globaltimes.cn/page/202110/1237632.shtml
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-59059093
Read MorePreparing for evacuation to a public shelter
Nanb - October 30, 2021 I realize this is not what most folks here, including myself prepare for. But recent massive flooding in my area has me wondering- if I could not shelter in place, AND my vehicle was flooded (many people in my town lost their cars)or roads were closed, and I ended up in some sort of community shelter, what would I wish I had packed? Across the board from hygiene, to privacy and comfort but also personal security and preventing theft, etc?
Read MoreWashing machine broken, might want to try something non-electric
PrepPrepPrep - October 29, 2021 What would you use to wring out clothes, that *does not hurt your hands*? The washing machine just broke. Maybe I can get it fixed, maybe not, but it occurs to me to have something for backup. My hands can’t really do the wringing on their own at all any more, although I have done it in the past. I see some hand wringers (mangles) online, and would like to avoid something that is going to break.
Read MorePreserving meats with salt
Matt Black - October 29, 2021 This is kind of a splinter conversation based on the one started by Jay Valencia (Avoiding freezer burn when storing meat). I mean, prior to the advent of refrigeration, this was *the* method of preserving meat.
I’m wondering if anyone has any practical experience, advice, or tips for preserving meats with salt, in case refrigeration (and freezing) isn’t an option.
Read MoreHas anyone bought any “cheap but worth it” prepping supplies from Wish.com?
lsmith - October 28, 2021 I’ve found that there are many potential prepping supplies on wish.com for a very low price (+shipping from China) and was wondering if anyone has had luck finding worth it items to round out their preps there? I’ve seen molle first aid bags, ferro rods, solar items, and other such things there for very low cost. Of course, I’m aware that the quality of many of their items is questionable, but I was curious if anyone had found items that are worth it? Many items seem identical to what I find on amazon. Thanks!
Read MorePreparation for flying?
Hardened - October 28, 2021 I think this is the worst time to be flying and have no plans to fly. However, the other day a question arose in my mind, “What if I had to? How would I prepare?”
If you were to fly on an airplane, what would you bring with you?
My first thought was that I would want excellent respirator and eye protection. It would need to be comfortable for a long flight (which is inherently uncomfortable to begin with). I would need to feel confident that nothing would slip off of my face by accident. This line of thinking made me want a full mask [1].
Then I thought, what about drinking water? The Aerospace Medical Association recommends drinking 8 ounces of water each hour flying because the humidity in the cabin is low (20%) [2]. I would want to be able to drink without taking off my mask, so that steered me to a gas mask with a drinking tube such as the Avon C50 [1].
I know that wearing a N95 with an exhalation port is illegal in San Francisco, for example [3]. Does this apply to airplanes as well and do gas masks have exhalation ports?
What about the social impact? I usually try to keep a low profile while travelling, especially to other countries, to minimize being targeted for crime while I’m outside of my home environment. Wearing a gas mask would draw a LOT of attention to me.
I appreciate your thoughts.
[1] https://theprepared.com/gear/reviews/best-gas-mask-respirator-survival/ [2] https://www.asma.org/asma/media/asma/Travel-Publications/HEALTH-TIPS-FOR-AIRLINE-TRAVEL-Trifold-2013.pdf [3] https://sf.gov/information/masks-and-face-coverings-coronavirus-pandemic Read MoreMy winter safety kit
rangerjohn - October 27, 2021 Greetings all,
I love the kit builder on this site. Having said that, I put together something I am calling My Winter Safety Kit.
Feedback, comments, questions?
Read MoreHas anyone made and used a snare or trap for small game?
Henry Tubbs - October 27, 2021 In various bushcraft books and even in the SAS Survival Handbook it talks about snares and traps as a method of passive hunting. Has anyone made and used one of these to catch something?
There are so many varieties like a spring snare, figure 4 palute deadfall, and more.
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Need advice on my winter vehicle emergency kit
Liz Klein - October 27, 2021 Winter is coming. I hate my commute during this time of year and always dread getting stuck. So I’m trying to prep now before it gets cold and miserable.
I have snow tires on my car, am up to date with repairs, and have my normal everyday get-home-bag that has maps, fire starters, food, first aid kit, etc… But I wanted to get your advice on my Winter additions. And The Prepared has a pretty nice Kit builder that I thought I would try out. Here is a link to my kit:
My budget is kinda small so these are things I just had around the house, but is there anything you recommend that I add or replace? Tell me the why behind your suggestion too.
Thanks guys!!
Read MoreFox news ” Twitter boss reports likelyhood of hyperinflation
Bill Masen - October 27, 2021 Something to definately be monitoring fairly closely.
https://www.foxbusiness.com/economy/twitter-ceo-jack-dorsey-hyperinflation-warning
Twitter founder Jack Dorsey has issued a cryptic warning that “hyperinflation” will “change everything.”
In typical Dorsey style, the social media CEO tweeted out his comment, saying that “it will happen in the US soon, and so the world.”
Hyperinflation is typically very high and accelerated inflation. Researchers have documented 57 cases of hyperinflation as of 2018, with the first recorded episode occurring between 1795 and 1796 in post-revolutionary France, according to The Economist.
Some economists and writers have looked at possible hyperinflation in the U.S. as early as March 2021 when the economy started to get back on track after an artificially depressed year due to lockdowns and immense restrictions during the coronavirus pandemic – policies that officials started reversing as vaccines became more available.
The term raises some grim images, with Venezuela the most recent example and Zimbabwe perhaps one of the most famous examples of hyperinflation.
“This is meme economics,” Bloomberg Businessweek wrote earlier this year.
“Fear of inflation – if not outright hyperinflation – helps explain the meteoric rise of Bitcoin,” the article argued. “It’s behind distrust of the Fed. And it feeds congressional opposition to President Biden’s $1.9 trillion pandemic relief plan.”
Indeed, Republicans have warned of inflation since the start of the summer when gas prices first started to tick upward and prices followed shortly after: consumer prices rose 5% over the 12 months between June 2020 and June 2021, The Associated Press reported.
This marked the largest one-year increase since 2008, and possibly the biggest since 1992 – excluding more volatile items such as food and energy.
Rep. Jim Banks, R-Ind., said his constituents have “seen the higher prices on gas in particular, but also groceries and the cost to keep their businesses running.” Such voters, he said, “know, intuitively, that this is due to Democrats’ economic agenda and big spending plans.”
Prices have continued to trend upwards as an historic global shipping backlog delays the transport goods and services across the board, slowly driving up prices for everything from toilet paper to toys.
Gas prices in some have hit around $4.00 a gallon, such as in California, Hawaii and Nevada, according to AAA. Premium in these states is almost at $5 a gallon.
Read More“Listening to Katrina” website: Bugging out is a tool to escape danger and then find home
RS - October 27, 2021 The recent discussions about Hurricane Ida reminded me of a website I had skimmed years before called “Listening to Katrina” (see here: http://www.theplacewithnoname.com/blogs/klessons/ ). I re-read the website in full, and think it has a key idea that people here may appreciate thinking and talking about, so I made this new thread.
(I did a quick search, and didn’t see too many official The Prepared contributor articles on the recovery process, aside from making sure that important documents are in the Priority #1 bag for bugging out.)
The “Listening to Katrina” website is an extended read about the author’s personal experience with evacuating for Hurricane Katrina, starting the recovery process for his family, and a lot of discussion of what he learned about general emergency preparation from his experiences, listening to the experiences of others and combing through additional information available. It’s mostly the view of one person, so in addition to the news and historical records he draws from, it’s replete with anecdotes, opinions and personal color. I don’t anticipate readers here will agree with everything on the site.
Instead, I want to point out the part of his discussion that struck me the most: his philosophy about the ultimate goals of preparing (especially bugging out, but also bugging in). If you would like to read it in his words, that specific page is here: http://www.theplacewithnoname.com/blogs/klessons/p/0025.html
Here’s my summary of that page: the point of bugging out (and bugging in) is to…
First, Safeguard your health and wealth by letting you escape from/avoid danger
Second, Help you “Go Home”
Third, Help you profit by using “the rebuilding as an opportunity to grow wealth”
The second point is what made the biggest impression on me when I reread the website (years after first encountering it and not remembering much beyond “put information about insurance and identification into your bug out bag”). A lot of discussions around bugging out and bugging in rightly emphasize how this lets you avoid/reduce danger. But equally important is to emphasize how bugging out/in is a tool to facilitate your recovery process.
Whether Getting Home is returning to your previous home, or finding/building a completely new home, the goal of bugging out/in isn’t to be bugged out/in forever, it’s a stepping stone. It’s a tool you use to safeguard your health and wealth, and to create the launching platform for Finding Home, wherever that may be. So, planning to bug out/in shouldn’t be divorced from planning to recover/Find Home. Connecting the two addresses the question “after you’ve successfully evacuated to ____/after The Event has passed, then what?”
I’m adding this philosophy to the toolbox I use for evaluating my personal preparations — specifically, asking the question “will this prep also help me Get Home, wherever that may be?” Hopefully that is useful food for thought.
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