Prepping around the world – How other cultures use their natural resources

UbiqueContributor - April 3, 2021

I like learning about people. I am especially fascinated by how they utilize their natural resources, sometimes in the harshest of environments, in order to survive.

Have you ever wondered how other cultures around the world practice their version of preparedness?

I ask it because, really, that is what is at the very heart of preparedness: our survival wherever we find ourselves.

I’m inviting anyone who wants to join in, to pick a place on the Earth and do a search for how the people who live there use their natural resources to feed, clothe, shelter or defend themselves. How do they survive? 

A couple of links and a bit of info about the survival item and resources that are used by the people you researched. It doesn’t have to be a thesis, just quick and fun exploration.

I’m kicking this off with the Eskimo (referred to as Inuit in Canada) folks.

How about the waterproof gut parka made of seal intestines and sewn with dried grass that becomes a waterproof thread. That same grass is used to make socks! How cool is that?

In their culture, wastefulness is considered being disrespectful and their elders use every scrap of their wildlife harvest.

This was something my family also practised for the same reason, so I paused to consider how a culture so far away could be so similar to mine. It would be very easy to hunt or fish with them.

I love how they use their natural resources and I will be considering how I can adapt that thinking to my own environment.

Here are the links, and I really hope you join in. This prepper project could be a lot of fun.

Waterproof Gut Parka with Photos

Clothing made from their natural resources

Okay, who is next?

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I’ve always thought the Aboriginal Australians were pretty neat. I’ve always seen them as a true surviving culture who face extremes with very little. Here’s a little I was able to gather from the research I did on them:

 

Gideon, Thank you for a very interesting read on Australian Aboriginal people.

With those conditions in Australia, every day must feel like disaster day to the aboriginal people. With those harsh conditions and variety of dangers they could certainly teach all of us a thing or two about prepping and surviving!

The fire plough is similar to a fire starter used here. The net looks like it was hand woven and would take time to complete.

I wonder what used on the back of the spear? I couldn’t quite make out the material.

That cane fish trap is really neat. I’ll bet that it could be used here, too. I also like that stone fish trap. It could be adapted here also. I’m making a big mental note on those two methods. Just imagined be lost somewhere, but without fishing gear – With reeds you could weave something like the cane fish trap and the stone fish trap could also work.

They use bone tools like the Eskimo/Inuit people. I would have never imagined that ground shells could be used for paint.

Thank you Gideon for replying with this great entry. I definitely learned some good takeaway skills re the fishing.

 

Been learning about the keto diet lately, how people are able run their bodies off of fat instead of sugars (typical american diet). And I thought it was interesting how the inuit’s would live off of really fatty meat like seals. And that makes sense because they couldn’t grow typical grains, corn, and other vegetables that would turn into sugar.

 

Hi Alisa, Thank for joining this global prepping trip. I was surprised to find out that the Keto diet was developed in the 1920’s to treat epilepsy.

I thought the same thing about the Inuit diet and a relationship to the Keto Diet, but I was so surprised to find out it is not what we think:

“However, in multiple studies the traditional Inuit diet has not been shown to be a ketogenic diet.[12][13][14][15] Not only have multiple researchers been unable to detect any evidence of ketosis resulting from the traditional Inuit diet, but the ratios of fatty-acid to glucose were observed to be well below the generally accepted level of ketogenesis.[12][13][14][15]”

The article linked below talks about how “Inuit might consume more carbohydrates than most nutritionists have assumed.[16] Because some of the meat the Inuit eat is raw and fresh, or freshly frozen, they can obtain more carbohydrates from their meat, as dietary glycogen, than Westerners can.[16][17] The Inuit practice of preserving a whole seal or bird carcass under an intact whole skin with a thick layer of blubber also permits some proteins to ferment into carbohydrates.[16]”

Who would have thought that you could get carbs due to fermentation? I wonder what changes happen to our foods, especially the foods we store for prepping if we were to ferment them?

This next point from the same article was incredible. The Inuit people do not consider themselves the “owners” of the food, it is for anyone who is in need of it. It is explained in this next paragraph:

“Inuit often are relentless in making known that they are not like Qallunaat in the sense that they do not eat the same food and they are communal with their food. Qallunaat believe that the person who purchases the food is the owner of the food and is free to decide what happens to the food. Searles describes the Inuit perspective on food by saying that “in the Inuit world of goods, foods as well as other objects associated with hunting, fishing, and gathering are more or less communal property, belonging not to individuals but to a larger group, which can include multiple households.” Food in an Inuit household is not meant to be saved for the family who has hunted, fished, gathered, or purchased it, but instead for anyone who is in need of it. Searles and his wife were visiting a family in Iqaluit and he asked for permission to have a cup of orange juice. This small gesture of asking was taken as offensive because Inuit do not consider food belonging to one person.[3]”

It makes me wonder how what our prepping would look like if our society held the same belief around food – whoever is in need of it. All the scenarios that have been run about desperate people killing or hurting others for food would be irrelevant.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inuit_cuisine#:~:text=Their%20urine%20volumes%20were%20also,to%20be%20a%20ketogenic%20diet.

Good to hear from you Alisa Felix. Really enjoyed how you associated Keto Diet and the Inuit natural diet. That association brought up some surprising twists and turns, as well as new considerations for prepping in this part of the world.

 

Good morning Ubique,

The key word is “society” (and word in title “culture”) and not “food”. Some societies ration food; others do not.

It started as one of the foundation blocks of post hunter-gather society. The “hydraulic societies”, those having their food source available only by human effort for irrigration projects.  The related building block were the societies growing food from rainfall and thus not needing the stricter ruled societies of waterworks and more demands of labor for survival.

An excerpt from my notes on this; A quote from somewhere: “More than 30 of the world’s 191 nations receive more than a third of their water from outside their borders”. 

 

Good morning, Bob,

I really appeciate the input on the effects of post hunter-gatherer society and “hydraulic societies.”

The distinction between the societies reliant upon irrigation vs. rainfall is worth noting for prepping. As our climate changes, we may need to bridge the two methodologies to grow our food.

Your quote stopped me cold. Wow. We are really lucky here. It also makes me want to find out how those nations cope with those conditions.

I remember from info via a water watchdog org that Pepsi was buying up rights to water. Interesting lead to follow.

 

Bob -I remembered name it was the Polaris Institute and here is there link

https://www.polarisinstitute.org/

They have very good information on the state of water affairs in this world. They are are Canadian watchdog group.

 

Ubique, I know Polaris Institute via my research on the Keystone XL pipeline.

Much of the BIG international matters like water, petrol, health care delivery, transit routes, are really worked at national levels out of public sight.

 

Bob – I had a flash of Dune “the spice, the spice…”

I used to follow the money, maybe now the water

 

It’s still the $, Ubique.  I had a high school job helping to build the desalination plant at Guantanimo Bay. It wasn’t built for free.

Glance at the Aswan High Dam and the upstream (south) neighbor nations.  Even with the water treaty, The dam is also known as a target. Much $ is used to keep the peace. 

 

Bob, 

Desalination is a big project and ditto for Aswan (many fingers in that project), so $ still factor.

Guatanamo base was supposed to be like ’50’s era environment.

 

Correcting last sentence: life on base was supposed to be like living in a ’50’s era environment.

 

Wow! I never would have guessed that fermented meat can turn into carbs. Thanks for the enlightenment!

That’s a beautiful philosophy about food not belonging to an individual and is available to anyone. Wish that one day we as a society could live that way. 

I wonder if during times of low hunting if they have those tendencies to hoard or maybe store away a bit of food for themselves. I lose track of who I am and get snappy at my spouse when I’m overly hungry and tired. Or is it so ingrained in their culture that they don’t even think that way? Just thinking out loud here. Really neat culture.

The inuits are the ones that sometimes use dog sleds for transportation too right? I watched the movie ‘Togo’ last year and that was an inspirational movie.

 

Hi Alisa,

There are so many incredible things we can learn from other people and now we don’t even have to travel to do it because technology has opened those channels of communication and learning.

I was touched by their philosophy also. It’s a bit Star Trek in thinking – education for everyone and no one uses money.

Yes, Inuit people use dog teams. I haven’t see Togo, but I have heard it is an incredible movie.

Another culture that is very interesting is the Samoyed people who also are the people who had Samoyed dogs.

 

Pandemics, riots & no kosher food: The doomsday scenarios of an Orthodox prepper

For celebrants: Happy Easter and Good morning. For others: Good morning,

Had not planned to post to this thread; wasn’t ready with my collected material for an island society working on currently. Still, …… above link tells of 2 “sub-societies” and how they “prep”.

Above links features an Orthodox, kosher diet, Jewish guy who moved from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania to Israel and is a prominent prepper. Also featured: the LDS society also known as Mormons. Both these “sub cultures” of overall society have specific prepper efforts.

In link, note the picture with label “Tactical Seat Cover”.  Sandy, Utah is LDS country.

I had to pause after reading: “Matzah, the ultimate prepper food”. 

Wander’s important quote:  “a network is key to long-term survival”.

 

Hi Bob,

And a “Hoppy” Easter, to you also (sorry it’s the chocolate rush this morning)

Really great article! Joshua’s prepping mindset is very balanced and practical. As he pointed out, a gun is no good if you don’t know how to use it, and also with reference to grain if you don’t know how to mill it.

He also mentions an important point about preparedness for financial disasters. We are all witnessing the fallout from Covid-19 and it’s impact upon people and business. There is the historical examples of The Great Depression, recessions, and other countries, like Argentina and Japan with their long economic stagflation.

I take those events as a call to be as self-sufficient as possible and able to barter my skills for what I am unable to produce myself, and further, be prepared to live without I can’t provide through the first two means in the event of a disaster of long duration.

The grain, honey, oil and salt he referenced were exactly the items I began to store because of their ancient connection to long term storage. They were the “basics” of long ago.

I knew without iodine one could become ill and that iodized salt was my best source of it. Raw honey was a source of carb and good for healing inside and out. Oil because our brains need fat to function properly (and also if one prefers not to boil everything over a campfire in a disaster – I like my fish fried.) And the grain because of it’s long term storage, versatility and nutritonal component.

There was an Indigenous reserve in Manitoba who brought in Israeli consultants to assist them with food production methods on the reserve and irrigation.

The Israelis are considered the best irrigation experts globally. As far I know today, that still holds true.

Matzah – ultimate prepper food – not without the hummus!

The LDS folks have a food calculator which is very helpful and I learned about their canning locations many years ago. They had one in Winnipeg.

We can still learn from other people regardless of personal beliefs or other distinctions.

Those prepper seat covers – Wow! – I want one, except I wouldn’t have anything to put in the gun holder.

Great article Bob, I really enjoyed reading it and learned from it. Keep ’em coming.

 

 

There is another Country I would like to include: The Netherlands. I got so taken with that Inuit/Eskimo raincoat yesterday that I completely forgot the land of my maternal ancestors.

I believe the Dutch are a good example to preppers of resilience and how to use creative thinking to cope with and adapt to the less than perfect qualities of an environment. Their ability to organize and formulate strategy is also noteworthy. They are a tough and plucky bunch.

I grew up listening to a lot of old Dutch sayings. We even had one engraved on a pendulum clock that hung on the wall.

It had a figurine of Atlas holding the world on his shoulders with the inscription: “To each his own.” It was the pithy Dutch way of saying: “Mind your own business.”

There is another saying I heard growing up: “God created the earth but the Dutch created The Netherlands.” They are a cheeky bunch. But, there is some truth to that saying.

“It is worth noting that while dikes are not unique to The Netherlands, they have provided the country with one undeniable distinction: it constitutes the only country in the world whose key areas were reclaimed from the sea, not from neighbors.”

The Dutch are master engineers who reclaimed and continue to reclaim their land from the sea. And, as the quoted article below explains, it may all be due to a cat.

https://blogs.umb.edu/buildingtheworld/waterworks/protective-dikes-and-land-reclamation-the-netherlands/

The Dutch are innovative people and they need their engineering skills more than ever now. Like other people, the Dutch are battling the effects of climate change upon their Country.

They have fought floods for thousands of years and have a “waterschappen” or local councils charged with preventing floods, that exist to this very day.

Now the local councils must deal with sea level rise, in addition to more incidents of flooding from rivers that flow from Belgium and Germany.

In the next article below, there is a description of how the Dutch began to cope with the increased water levels in their rivers.

They created the “Room for the River” program, where “at 34 sites, engineers moved levees away from rivers to create more space for the water to protect against flooding.”

“Under the plan, people had to move away as workers demolished their farms and houses to create room for future flooding. In addition to widening the river, workers also built bike paths atop new dikes and levees, and they created natural spaces along the rivers where the people had moved out. The plan was executed according to the Dutch polder model in which government, water boards and residents negotiate as long as it takes to come up with solutions everyone can live with.”

Dr. Haasnoot, a researcher who was interviewed in the article explains the Dutch approach to water management: “In the Netherlands, we’re good at this integrated approach in which we look at problems at a national level with all stakeholders to find solutions that are good for all sectors of society, like agriculture and fisheries, but also for recreation and nature,” she said.

They are also preparing for lower water levels in the rivers, which will mean salt seawater deeper in the delta and then seeping into farms and damage to the fertile land surrounding it.

The Netherlands are the second largest agricultural exporter by dollar value in the world, so they are taking action to protect this and other assets.

They may not be able to win the battle on the effects of sea level rise upon their Country. The Dutch are looking at other models of survival: relocating more people as they did before, raised homes, floating homes, and even creating artificial islands.

https://www.pbs.org/wnet/peril-and-promise/2019/07/dutch-barricade-against-climate-change/

They are a people who live on borrowed land and now on borrowed time in the face of climate change and the effect upon their Country.

I am amazed at how they adapt and engineer ways around the various situations that could be disastrous to them. Many of their solutions are straightforward and practical.

Flooding? Relocate the low lying homes, compensate the people properly and take more action. The Dutch know not to put all their prepping eggs in one basket.

I think that is a good lesson for us as preppers. Don’t over think things. Formulate simple straightforward solutions. Be ready to change and adapt, always.

 

The Dutch are still one of the world’s best-organized societies. The good foundation stones were kept and the bad ones ditched.  The socio-economic-politico aspects of the Dutch Reformed Church is a key foundation stone.

The famous Dutch artists were masters of psychology. The famous Dutch mariners were masters of navigation and trading.

Today, the world’s largest ocean port … size measured by cargo values … is Europoort, Neth. Cargo is petroleum.

Engineering must also include the windmills.  Public health ?  Why have foot infections when wooden shoes will suffice. 

I am now in the mood for a cigar. 

 

Bob, 

If I couldn’t live in Canada, I would live there for how their society is organized and also for their egalitarian attitude. They work hard and play hard. They enjoy their lives in a healthy way.

My grandfather was a master cigar maker after they got off the boat they lived on and became land dwellers.

As for wooden shoes, yes, I had a wearable pair and used them. In my younger and more bohemian days, I wore them out and about. They offered great traction in the winter and also a useful deterrent in the pubs.

Those days are long gone, now I would just wear them to the coop grocery store if I still had them.

 

Never knew that about the Dutch. We live in a possible flooding zone, so I would like to learn more about what to do if we have a year of heavy rains, how to divert and protect our house, and things like that.

Many people are in possible flood zones, but just don’t know it because the city’s sewer systems are so well designed. But what happens if those fail, are overwhelmed, are destroyed in a terrorist situation, or are not maintained in an emergency? Then it’s every man (or woman) for themselves.

You can learn how to handle the situation or you can just sit and watch your live’s savings and memories of your house float away.

 

Alisa,

Something that can help if you are in a possible flooding zone is a backwater valve which prevents the sewage from backing up into your basement. Some insurance companies also offer a discount on your insurance if you have one installed.

I got mine done for the same reasons, heavy rains and people overflowing the sewage system by pumping their flooded basements into that system.

https://www.squareone.ca/resource-centres/getting-to-know-your-home/backwater-valve

Other ways to divert water away from your home is properly grading your property so that water flows away from your house and doesn’t pool on the property. Grading means that you are sloping the soil away from your house. There are many articles available and here is one example. Your local county may also have information for you.

https://braytopsoilandgravel.com/yard-grading-tips-the-right-way-to-grade-your-yard-to-ensure-you-have-good-drainage/

Another overlooked way of preventing flooding is ensuring that your gutters and downspouts are clean and free for drainage. I see downspouts flipped up all the time and that just means the waterwill shoot straight through to the foundation.

A tip for checking your gutters is to use a make up mirror (the inexpensive swivel type in a one piece plastic frame and stand (one side regular, one side magnified – in a plastic frame with a stand).

I screwed the base (there was a hole for mounting so easy peasy) to a piece of scrap wood. I can walk around the perimeter of my house and check the gutters now, without lugging a ladder or climbing one.

 

Thanks for the links and tips. That’s interesting how that backflow valve works, we are going to have to get one of those. 

Appreciate the help!

 

Good morning Alisa,

Re: heavy rains, protect house;

Just one of several “tools” is the new type of “sandbag” that swells up when soaked with fresh water.  Costs are much more than the traditional type of sandbag that is filled with sand, dirt, sometimes cement.

However, these new “sandbags” are worth researching as something well worth it to protect dwelling.

If/when time permits, … actually not time but  my mental status – so much, too much going on here … will see if I can find info on this new “sandbag”.

……

Yes, the best sewer systems fail. Our area record documents this.

 

https://www.wwtsasia.com/sandbags.htm

Above is a basic info type link to this self-inflating “sandbag”.

It is not applicable to seawater; only freshwater.

The big box stores of the US carry them.

 

Those look like a good solution Bob. The downside to the cheaper sand bags is that it takes time to fill them up.

If the rains are coming down, do you want to be out there for hours filling up bags of dirt?

Do you even have that much dirt on your property?

How long will it take to fill enough bags to surround your entire house multiple layers high? 

These bags overcome those problems and are probably worth the extra money.

 

Alisa,

They use that type of self-inflating sandbag here also.

It is faster to deploy them over the team of people needed to fill, tie, and pass regular sandbags.

 

One important aspect I have noticed among many preppers, off gridders, home steaders, self reliance types from places like australia, eastern europe, artic natives, southern remote areas of south america, much of indonesia etc etc  is few of them use large vehicles for their preps or every day lives.  Feet, bicycles, ponies, kayaks, dug outs, tuk tuks, small engined motorcycles .

its part economic, part practical ( fuel and spares availability and money) part geography, part cultural, part common sense. many cannot afford the bigger vehicles we tend to rely on so if there is a crash or collapse or whatever they are far less impacted than we are.  They are far more adept at getting around without metalled roads that we rely on.

Theres a TV series on You Tube called the worlds most dangerous roads, its mainly about truckers but does feature most other members of society. They simply do not rely on the high tech big engined vehicles we do.

From EMPs to oil crises to mega disasters those folks are likely to be badly impacted by a disaster as we westerners will be.

 

Bill,

A really great point about the differences in transportation prepping between various countries. We are so used to our methods that it is easy to forget that it is not the norm for other places. It is also something we can all learn from and adapt to our preparedness. Even a proper pair of walking/hiking footwear is something many preppers overlook.

We had a similar tv program here. I think it was called “Off Road Truckers” where they ran the Arctic roads and also they went to India. Wow, the roads in India were an eye opener. Very scary. I don’t know that I’d want to even walk one of them.

Your post got me thinking also about how fast our road infrastructure could become a problem locally. We have problems with highways, some due to methods used, but also due to weather conditions and frost/heave cycles. Those cycles are known to crack foundations in basements in parts of Winnipeg. It only affects certain areas.

We have pot holes in roads that can be so bad, the road almost become impassable. I had to slalom my way through a highway we use last year. The only other way to get to where I need to go was with a major detour, which also applied while they were “repairing” the highway. The highway is still a problem that requires a major upgrade.

It makes prepping sense to pay attention to the parts of our infrastructure in need of maintenance or repair so that we can anticipate problems if a disaster hits.

 

One rather ancient UK report warned that many single lane A roads, most B roads and all C roads would become overgrown, broken up, partially flooded, subsided and unsuitable to most vehicles between 3 and 5 years of a collapse. Only motorways / freeways remaining structurally sound but likely clogged with abandoned vehicles.

 

Bill, So it is also a concern for you also. That very much underscores the need to factor alternate transportation into prepping.

Thank you for raising that point because I’d wager that many preppers overlook it.

 

So true, Bill.

Much is already distilling down to “F.L.C.” – Feet, Leather Covered.

Less the restricted-access critical infrastructure routes, roads will not – cannot – be maintained. Stalled vehicles alone close the road.  Our hurricane history establishes this. Motor vehicles … new regs govern ATVs _ All Terraine Vehicles. Was recently informed that waterways will get max restrictions on use.

Augmenting the negatives, fuel will not be available.

I use a concept called “Rapid Reaction Prepping”. Am planning to shelter in place but understand rapidly changing circumstances might dictate otherwise.

My sophisticated concept is Grandma’s shopping cart with 2 wheels on a collapsable basket. All else is as delusional as an emergency flight to the bunker in New Zealand – on a Folker Friendship aircraft. 

 

I hate to get political but I do believe there is a trend of many of our governments to try and drive us away from our own private vehicles and also to travel much less. its only a gut feeling , but its a growing gut feeling.

 

Bob, 

After reading Bill’s post, my brain already went to a shopping cart plus ensuring that packs are very comfortable and don’t cause chafing or blisters anywhere. A walking staff doesn’t hurt either.

The cart isn’t a crazy idea. I was able to assist a traveller who had to journey across Canada because of financial crisis after his wife died. He was using a baby stroller designed for jogger. It worked well for him.

 

I think gear like this possibly may become common in time.

 

Bill,

I marked their website after seeing your post. That is a nice outfit. I really like the ability to convert from single wheel harness to double wheel cart set up. I also like that you can break it down and carry it or to store it.

The all terrain aspect of the single wheel with harness is perfect for off road/low key walking.

Thank you for posting this info and the photos.

 

Make sure to carry spare tubes and manual hand bike pump

 

Good morning Ubique,

A baby stroller is a clear illustration of foundation planning for a pod evacuation.  My history research told of someone in 19th century leaving St Joseph, Missouri for wagon train trip “out West” with a wheelbarrel.

When the walking staff selection and modification makes it multi-function, it becomes a reqjuirment no less so than a first aid kit.  The staff with fitting making it a pike pole … to push or pull objects off of path, to a tent pole to a signal pole … lashing a small strobe light on a raised pole increases visibility of strobe something like geometricly.

A couple in my neighborhood co-op prep group displayed an innovative walking staff.  It was 2 PVC pipes, the smaller one inside the larger and both held in place by bolt and wing nut at top and bottom. The staff can be reassembled to twice the side or as 4 poles for a canopy tent . Some paracord wrapped on PVC pole serves as good handgrip. 

My staff is an actual firefighter’s pike pole. Also carry a cattle prod.  All the mammal wildlife in this area are deemed by authorities to be rabid and one of my evac assignments is to keep ’em away from us.

 

‘Mornin Bob – Up last night posting two new threads and researching some “how-to’s.”

His baby stroller was really aerodynamic because it was intended for jogging. I can believe someone using a wheelbarrow in that era. Basically, it came down to make do or do without. People were also adventureous back then, ready to get out there and explore.

I like the multi function/purpose amendments to the walking staff. That is something I am adding into my to do list.

The pvc pipe staff is brilliant and good multiuse also. I think multi purpose items are critical for many scenarios, but especially if relying upon foot powered transport.

It would make sense to get a pike pole per the walking staff amendments above. I am sorry to hear that you have to rely on a cattle prod due to rabies. Are the wildlife dying out due to the spread of rabies or can they cull them to stop it spreading? Do you have to be innoculate with rabies vaccines like vets do?

How you formed your neigborhood co-op prep group would be a really good topic, Bob. With a respect for your op-sec/privacy, but how you started and figured out who to involve might really help a lot of people. In some threads I noticed some people are trying to form community in urban areas. Also, one of the threads, I posted in the wee hours was related to FEMA, statistics and normalcy bias. You know your stuff in this area and if (only if) you have the time, could you do a quick check on that one? It was a really long day yesterday, and I want to ensure it makes sense 🙂

 

Good afternoon Ubique,

Pike poles can be made for light utility work, eg walking on a trail, with 2 long machine screws and fasteners like a wing nut.  2 diagonally-drilled holes at end of pike pole – not ti interfere with telescoping extension – makes a rudimentary pike pole.

From what I understnad more and more widlife in the mid-Atlantic get infected with rabies. For those planning to go into the forest areas / wilderness types of geography, it is ideal to get a pre-rabies vaccination series of shots/jabs. I got mine via working for an oil co.  It’s a medical decision for person to get health care provider advice.

Our co-op, by initial agreement is proprietary; aspects cannot be discussed. It’s really a basic and clear-enough procedure. Those few in prepper group/homesteading group – whatever name, agree to participate. The rural counties here have 1 office for economic development.  They have info and additional access to business vehicles such as info to form a corporation, a partnership, a not-for-profit, a partnership with limited liability, a co-op,…….

Ref above, think of a few close friends wanting to start a restaurant or beauty parlor.  A co-op is about the same initial aspects of formation.

Didn’t see any FEMA link in re statistics, normalcy lists. 

 

And a hearty Good Afternoon, to you Bob,

I’ve been in the fresh air building stuff today, so I am energized, hence the “hearty” in my greeting.

Pike poles sound to be a very handy item. and on my list.

Good to know about rabies shots in mid-Atlantic. If I head out to visit my friends in NB, I will be sure to check if it’s a problem out their way. I had rabies shots for a bat exposure. They’re not always easy to access. Two nurses did a relay run to get both shots. I didn’t know that there were two different medicines involved in rabies shots. 

Actually, rabies location, exposure and type of animal involved would be a good statistic for preppers to track. If SHTF, I would want to know the current risks.

Okay, got it on the formation. It makes sense. 

Glad you found the FEMA link on the other thread.

 

I like that idea of the expandable pvc pipe pole. Smart!

 

I don’t look around the world to study other cultures and how they live.  I look right here where I live but back in time 100 years or so.  So much has changed in just 100 years that if you study our ancestors, it is like looking at a completely different culture in another country.

I have been blessed to have some old folks in church, who lived here as kids during the great depression era.  This was before electricity was brought everywhere, so they mainly lived very similar to their ancestors of 100 years prior.  I am always asking how they farmed and how they solved problems I would run up against if every we lost our grid for long term.

One of my favorite books is Collard Greens: Growing Up on a Sandhill Subsistence Farm in Louisiana During the Great Depression.  It is incredibly interesting and is full of info that explains self sufficiency.  This family had almost no money, yet lived well and never went hungry.  https://www.amazon.com/collard-greens-Subsistence-Louisiana-Depression/dp/1434394360

The old timer that delivers my hay told me he was born on my property during the depression.  They were too poor to pay the doctor and they had to go get the doctor with a mule because the roads were so bad.  So the doctor was paid with a country ham.  Really odd thing was the doctor also said to name the kid after the doctor.

 

Good morning, Redneck,

I see, you don’t change locale, you change the era and that also counts for studying another culture because of all the changes during that time frame.

I was discussing this exact point this morning. My grandfather was born in 1875 and lived to 100, passing in 1975. The changes he saw were monumental because of the point in time that he was alive on this Earth.

There were massive evolutionary leaps in that time frame. Now, we build on existing technology and while there is growth, it isn’t quite the same as what he experienced. He saw and experienced so much change and innovation.

A very good idea to “data mine” the elders for prepping information. It is a sorrowful fact that elders are not valued for what they have experienced. Apparently, many people prefer to learn the hard way.

Thank you for the book link and it is on my reading list. I like books or listening to people who worked with what they had. It is a fallacy that good living involves buckets of money. Money is a tool. Resourcefulness and ingenuity are better tools.

So in the last paragraph, was the man who delivers your hay really named after the doctor? I mean a country ham is usually a very nice gift and I would think pretty good payment back in the depression.

See, I got to “travel” to another culture and time travel, too 🙂

 

Yes, he had the same first name as the doctor.  I wonder why he requested that?  Wonder if he was single?

It is an amazing book.  Collards aren’t the main focus of the book & barely mentioned.  But because they were so nutritious and grew so well, they would also use them to feed the farm animals.  I never would have thought to do so.

Speaking of collards, mine made it all the way thru the winter and are now bolting, with beautiful yellow flowers attracting many bees & butterflies.  I chopped down most but left some on the back row so that I can collect the seed.  Amaranth will be going in that bed in a few weeks.  A sweet lady from church, from that old generation, passed away this week & prior to the service yesterday, we fed the family at church… as Methodists do.  I made up a big pot of collard greens as my contribution.  My wife made pound cakes.

 

Redneck,

Ohhh…now I get it. lol (I can be a little slow on the uptake some days).

I wouldn’t have thought of Collards for farm animals either, but if the nutrition works, why not.

I have a call back tomorrow on lumber prices to build my planters. They will be 2′ deep x 3′ high x 8′ long, with a trellis framed and attached to the back of each planter. There will be 4 planters in a row/section positioned in various points on the perimeter of my property. 

The first batch will be 8 to cover the north side in 2 sections and then the south with another 8 split into 2 sections as well. They won’t interfere with the raised beds in the back yard.

I am trying an experiment this year with older seed and germination. I have some heirloom seeds, like  Hidatsa bean that I am going to try to sprout for planting this year. It was a long term experiment in prepping for seed storage and viability of that seed. 

Also, I just put in my seed order for wildflower, calendula, zinnias, and licorice mint seeds all of which will nurture the bees. Bonus is that they look beautiful and will be in my new planters. I have a ton of work to do outdoors and finally the conditions are to the point where I can begin to move my raised beds around and build outdoors (although I have used the kitchen for construction when spring didn’t get here fast enough).

My paternal Grandma was Methodist – Grandpa wasn’t, but he did use his potato fork to ensure she wasn’t upset by people who tried to change her beliefs at the back door. It was my first lesson in improvised weapons and alternate uses of a potato fork.

Now I want pound cake….Seriously you and the Mrs. are good folks.

 

Hah, I only have to look back 50 years to see where I lived and how it used to be. Most working classes people like me could not afford a motor car, those who could 99% bought second hand vehicles, average engine size was UNDER 1.5 litres. Most folks used buses, bicycles or motorcycles. In the street I grw up in there was only two cars , one owned by a young vet and the other by a magistrate.

Roughly 80 houses in our street in the early 60s and two cars.  Now that same street averages at least two cars per house.

We had one small supermarket, now there are seven.

I remember being hit between the eyes with a piece of pipe by accident and I had to get two buses to hospital on my own as both my parents were unavailable.

But I do remember with absolute clarity all of the older ladies in our street making preserves, smoking hams and fish, using hay boxes to store potatoes and other veg in their larders to survive through the winter ( few could afford fridges or freezers)

No central heating, just one open fire place in the living room, usually coal.

 

Bill,

What I get from that experience is that you are closer to preparedness skills than some of the people I see around me from the same generation.

There seems to be a distinction where I am between people who had to utilize self-sufficiency skills and a less coddling approach to their rearing and the others in that same generation who seem to have missed all that.

I think part of it must be how these skills are handed down through generations. So a point on preparedness and thank you for raising this, is that I am not going to assume that everyone in the same generation has been exposed to the same lessons.

We had an outhouse – very very cold although you take the Spartan award today with that pipe story and having to take two buses. Wow!

 

Yes poverety breeds creativity and improvisation.

 

Bill, 

Indeed and well said.

Poverty is the opportunity to rise above and beyond the circumstances of life. It is the crucible that tempers one’s character and resolve.

In the long run, you have a more practical and deeper understanding of life than the one who held a silver spoon since birth.

I wouldn’t exchange the experience I have today for an easier past. There’s not enough money to buy it, nor anyone strong enough to steal it away : )

 

What about the indigenous cultures of your locale? For example, I’m relatively close to Cahokia. The people at Cahokia grew corn relatively late in their city’s history. Prior to that they grew domesticated grains that we have lost, like goosefoot, little barley, marshelder, maygrass, and erect knotweed. (See Four Lost Cities: A Secret History of the Urban Age by Annalee Newitz). I also learned recently that some Native Americans use ash as a seasoning. (See The Sioux Chef’s Indigenous Kitchen by Sean Sherman with Beth Dooley). I’m really looking forward to having a grill one day to try out making my own culinary ash.

 

Hi Lindsey! 

I wonder how you would season your food with ash and how it would taste. Please give us an update if you ever try it! I’ve only done it once before when camping when my marshmallow that I was roasting fell into the coals. hehe…

Another indigenous culture that comes to my mind is the Ute tribe. That’s where the state of Utah got it’s name. I read a quick article about them and learned that they were constantly moving according to the seasons and took advantage of the resources available in that little ecosystem that they were currently in. Guess I won’t complain when I move every 10-15 years because this group was constantly on the move.