PREPPING ... who was already doing it?

Check out YouTube for "dry canning" rice, beans, flour, etc.

 

Seriously consider adding one of the many centerfire pistol caliber carbines available. 22lr will certainly do it, but even with modern manufacturing rimfire ammo is still notorious for misfires.

 

I'd love to do that. I'd hate the power usage for filtering though - what with being solar!

We also have the advantage that our water doesn't freeze. Our winters dip below freezing (celcius) fairly regularly, but for various reasons it doesn't freeze outdoor water, nor the ground.

 

We no longer do anything (animals or plants) that aren't directly useful for survival - except the family dog

Having said that, I produce enough food to actually sell some (not that I do, or have yet!) so can understand the interest in turning it into a side line.

 

Filtering is why I have two ponds. But you can go about filtering in several ways. Two of my filters are 5 gallon buckets full of rocks. I just drilled a bunch of holes in a five gallon bucket and filled it with some of our local stone ..... mostly sandstone, and place an airstone in the bucket surrounded by rocks. I have 2 vivosun air pumps with one being a spare. The air displaces the water in the bucket and bacteria grow on the stone inside the bucket eating fish poop and stuff. Then I try to keep plants growing to keep nitrogen down. In my climate .... zone 7 .... plants are needed to keep algea and cyanobacteria at bay. My big pond and filter pond work differently.

 

This is my filter pond during setup. The big pond is on the other side of the pipe. 6x8 foot. The pump carries the water from the filter pond up to a shallow basin full of rocks. This falls into the top pond. The pipe is used to set the water level in the top pond and since it falls as fast as it is pumped both ponds stay at the proper water level set by the height of the pipe.

 

The big pond. Attached to filter pond.

 

What does Zone 7 indicate?

 

It usually doesn't get below 10 degrees F in the winter.

 

You can never have enough ammo. But I digress...
I started prepping when the creeping chaos of socialism started becoming apparent. I started with the TEN CATEGORIES OF SUPPLY outlined in the military. Its a good checklist. Water purification, not just water. Long lasting food including freeze-dried. Weapons. Ammunition. Hygiene items like toothpaste and kotex. Health items like painkillers, surgical gear and dental instruments. Barter items like ammunition, booze, tobacco and chocolate. Tools, especially gardening tools. And a library that tells you how to use them. Library for medical, construction and everything mechanical. Solar rechargers. Dried beans, dried fruit, Gold won't help much (You'd need a laser to cut a piece able to buy lunch). As you choose, remember that there may come a time that things of value won't have any resemblance to what is valuable now. The only things of value that will matter then will be things you can eat, drink, shoot, or screw.

 

One doesn't need to be off the grid to be prepared, just being able to still function somewhat normally off the grid is all that is required.

 

Being off the grid means death. Having a team that includes WARRIORS, carpenters, farmers, doctors, electricians, etc,... means you will survive.

 

The irony being that in doing all this, you will actually live more like a socialist, than any of these flakes who actually call themselves socialists.

Meantime ... your iteration of preparedness is so different to mine, and quite interesting as a result. Mine is all about the ability to produce food, access water, and build shelter. The only things I would stockpile would be medical, I suspect.

My main concern would be people who aren't capable of fending for themselves. City people, IOW. They scare the hell out of me now, just because they're so utterly dependent on systems being fully functional 24hrs a day. I can't imagine what they would/will become once there are real threats to their supply.

 

I agree. That's one of the reasons I moved to my current location. I was born and raised in New york City (shhhh... don't tell anyone). Due to the military I have lived in NJ, MA, NH, PA, VA (3x), FL, TX, MO, CA and more. When I lived in San Diego I had all sorts of ideas what would happen if SHTF. It would be awful with essentially only three roads out of town. Now I am in a town carefully selected for medical assets, a combat arms National Guard unit, lots of fresh water, food and more. And mobs won't pass through here on the way to somewhere else.

 

Good plan! We have a property on the edge of a carefully selected town, for similar reasons. It's our bug-out location.

I do sometimes wonder about the city fools, though ... I mean would they really be a threat? I suspect a huge proportion are so helpless that they'd just lie down and die of starvation. The super fit sporty types might have a reasonable chance - assuming they have the knowledge - but the indoors types would not have the stamina to do what it takes to survive.

 

My 50th high school reunion is next month, delayed due to the China Virus. My old buddies from so long ago, still in New York seem to think that America is doing fine, primarily due to the strength of the DOW. I think I'd be very uncomfortable surrounded by people who think like that, so I'm not going, using ill health as an excuse.

I'll be at my 50th West Point Reunion in 2025 however... with bells on! (If the country survives that long...)

 

I have lots of Katadyn water filters. The good things about them are high capacity and reusable filters. Another good idea is "purslane" (portulaca oleracea sativa). Its a weed grows easily and is very high in nutrition. I'm not much in the way of gardening and am always looking for good ideas to help.

 

Stay safe!

 

We collect rain water via roof, and store in 3000 gallon tanks. We also have access to river and pond water .. which can be filtered and boiled.

For us, gardening is NUMBER ONE (after water of course!). Producing your own food is very liberating.

 

I try to avoid vegetables. I'm a carnivore. Its ribeyes, loaded baked potatoes, and beer for me. I'm ready to eat like a rabbit if I must, but I'll postpone that as long as possible with a full freezer, lots of canned meat, dry meat and neighbors that raise cows. My new home town has about 100 miles of ranches and farms in all directions.

 

How's your health, if you don't mind my asking? That's a very health-unfriendly diet

We're basically the opposite. We'll live on meat if we have to, but prefer an 80% plant-based diet.

 

My health is great. When I decide what to eat I am much more interested in waht tastes good that what the medical effects are. I am an old guy... steaks, chops, potatoes, beer... I don't GRAZE... I EAT. I didn't go to a great college, work my buns off all my life... to be a rabbit.

 

Well good for you. It worked for my grandfather, and he added a pack a day bless him. Died quietly and peacefully of heart failure at 85 .. barely a sick day in his life prior to that, always skinny, and golfed til he was 80. Having said that, he had an enormous amount of luck. That combination will impact our health significantly, in most mere mortals - long before age 85.

 

Interestingly, we see it the other way. Because we worked so hard to get where we are, we want to live as long as possible in excellent health and fitness. We want to get plenty of mileage out of our investment

 

I'm in no hurry to go... but I don't want to be around so long that I'm spending my waning years drooling on myself, wondering what my name is.