Level -99: Obama will pay for everything.
Level 100: I want to make a sandwich. Oh look! We have a dozen jars of peanut butter!
Level 99: I’ve slightly depleted our supplies but this peanut butter sandwich is delicious.
Level 100: Mrs. Curmudgeon replaced the missing jar!
Level ???: Just now six cases of canned goods arrived! (The UPS guy hates us.)
Bonus tip: If you stack plentiful canned goods throughout the year and visit the range regularly, Burt Gummer will come on Christmas with his deuce and a half. He leaves a brick of .22s for every good survivalist.
Glad that you’re feeling well enough to start posting again, I missed your thoughts. The idea of “prepping” is really just a modern version of ‘putting something away for a rainy day’ IMHO. I remember cleaning our my grandmother’s kitchen when she had to move in with my aunt; she had stuff in the back of the cupboards that hadn’t been on store shelves for decades! I guess raising kids during the Depression (the one in the 1930s, not the one coming up) meant she knew how to plan for the bad times while praying for the good ones.
Options, I call prepping (not your favorite word) thinking problems out and setting up options.
Having two years worth of food set aside is a nice option when ever increasing prices and shortages become even more common. People scoffed when I said that two years ago. It’s going to get worse.
Every time I use up an item, I buy two+ to replace.
Firewood, I cut some of mine, I find I can get more time value by working and paying someone who has the youth, strength and equipment to do it for me. Having two+ years of bad cold winters firewood is a nice option.
Already have spring clean up and add an extra year firewood (green but I have time) set up.
Currently -15 degrees outside (no wind), grids up so the wood stoves are nice assistance to the main heaters. I’ve turned off the grid heat for 24 hours to test the wood stoves. I’m pretty sure I can keep it warm enough that sweaters will suffice. Plumbing will be safe, we’ll be chilly.
Solar electric, even though currently still not “Cost effective.” is sure nice when the rest of my neighbors are calling the power company and recharging their cell phones at my house. A few hundred watts of solar can do a LOT of critical needs, like lights and refrigeration-freezers.
Having an installed hand pump means a power outage isn’t End of the World in a few days or shortly after your water storage is used up.
The snow plow broke one of my driveway chain supports, to be replaced this spring. Nice to have a locked driveway to discourage casual non-visitors. Not many want to walk up my driveway after stepping over the chain.
Self defense, the stuff in your hand beats the beauties in the safe. Last time I needed some it was an unknown dog acting oddly. Startling to see it adsorb several 22 rounds before wandering off. Might upgrade that carry.
My neighbor had a .380 round just bounce right off the skull of an aggressive dog.
But the mail carrier says he’s never seen a dog that didn’t back down after being peppersprayed.
Carrying both isn’t a bad idea, and your dog will survive a pepper spraying if it turns into a melee’, while you might be unwilling to take the shot.
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Two canned products I’ve had storage issues with, tomato products and Spam. The acid can cause issues on the tomato products (I’m sure you know) and I’ve had Spam go bad from processing micro-holes (???pin holes – that’s how they described it). My rotation rate on canned goods is 2-8 years past date, you may be faster.
Sometimes a can goes bad but I don’t fret over it. I figure some minimal loss of materials during storage is an unavoidable part of having materials in storage. I worry even less about it during a time of high inflation. So long as inflation is at “Carter The Sequel” numbers, every can of beans, box of bullets, or stashed 2”x4” is gaining value at well over 10% annually. An occasional bad can of Spam is a small loss compared to “earning” 10% annually on the whole pantry.
The chewie commercial says, “Sounds like we’re getting Peanut Butter.”
Sounds like you are doing the Alpha Strategy of buying needful items (like 2X4’s that appreciate in value 🙂
The Alpha Strategy: The Ultimate Plan of Financial Self-Defense Hardcover – January 1, 1981 by John A. Pugsley (Author) 33 ratings Hardcover $17.50 14 Used from $10.46 7 Collectible from $18.00 A practical investment guide offers advice on beating inflation and protecting savings by investing in real goods as opposed to paper claims on wealth.
Your library can get it from intra library loan.
That along with useful skills, trusted friends and some luck is a pretty good hard times survival plan in my opinion..