Other then what you said that's about it for the obvious, one thing you might take a look at for some excellent training for self sufficiency and learning some excellent skills is your local search and rescue organization...I would recommend Foothills search and rescue, and or cochrane search and rescue, these are all volunteer units and have web sites to get more info...40 dollars a year dues and you get training that would normally cost you thousands of dollars to learn they are for all walks of life and all ages....

Some knowledge that would be useful in a longer term situation would be seamstress, horticulture, animal husbandry, veterinarian or vet assisstant, horse training, nutrition.... just a few thoughts.

If you are a horse person, there are a number of people that offer ferrier courses. As a bonus, most Ferriers work for cash. 😀
Also, there are a number of historical groups which demonstrate older skills at museums and such. They are always willing to talk and most wish to pass on their skills before time erases the skills entirely. The is an inherently social aspect to these groups as well which might help sell the idea of attending to reluctant spouses.

Hello amf and welcome to prepping.
All the suggestions given so far are on the money, depending on your interests, research may bring other attractive careers.

Since you are a stay at home Mom, there are many things you could try to fit into your schedual if you have time.
Do you can food?
Do you garden?
Does your family go camping or hunting?

I hope these questions help and also that you and your family can make it to the next meeting in Bieseker.

you could get a job at a prepper supply store, and give us all discounts!!

Nice one Buggie. Anything healthcare related will make you a valuable addition to any community and will give you the basis for an income even if it is in "kind"... IE food or others expertise.

Agriculture/gardening

Hey Everyone,

Thanks for all the responses! I really like the idea of Search and Rescue training though it'll have to wait a few years since I can't leave the house for a SAR with two little guys at home. At the minimum I should get some basic CPR/first aid ... sheesh!

We do grow a garden, though I have realized it would never be enough to sustain us. My mother-in-law is a fantastic resource --- she was a market gardener for 30+ years and is an expert at growing a ton of food in a small space. I'll have to ask her to teach me how to can since we do have a pressure cooker and tons of mason jars sitting around.

I think that healthcare is probably the best option, yknow? In case something DOESN'T happen, you can still make a really good living. It's just a matter of finding something I would enjoy. On one hand, I don't mind taking a non-dream job to pay the bills and get ahead, on the other hand it's not fun to invest in a career choice only to find out you hate every minute of it. Guess I will have to do some intensive research since I have the time do it. Paramedic seems the most appealing (other than the shift work) as you would have tons of skills that wouldn't necessarily rely on electronic machines, like an ultrasound tech or MRI tech would.

Maybe I should START that prepping store? Hahahaha.

Thanks again for all the suggestions and keep them coming if you have any more!

Amf

fyi, Paramedics have the highest level of job turnover rate in any of the Emergency services, due to stress on the job, shift work, and the highests level of PTSD outside of the military due to the calls they respond to. It takes a very special kind of person, and alot of people dont realize that until they get out there. As a first responder, I know that the initial scene survey of a fatal vehicle accident, or an infant death can be extremley mentaly disturbing. Luckily for me as a firefighter, I only deal with the patients until the paramedics arive (eventually lol), then they are out of our hands and we take a secondary rescue role. The paramedics are in charge of that patient until the handoff to the emergency or trauma unit, therefor they are exposed to the situation longer.

But on the other hand, it is a very good career, with many rewards both personal and monetary. There is nothing as rewarding as saving a life from certain death, and people will be proud to say that they know you. In a SHTF scenario, having been exposed to terrible things in a professional enviroment would make dealing with the stresses and visuals you would most likley come across in a catastrophe much easier to handle, not to mention the medical emergency and trauma skills you would have collected. Plus you get to hang out with us Fire Fighters alot, and who doesnt want that!

good luck in whatever you choose, please keep us informed! and good luck in your preps. The gardening and storage techniques are something that if you choose to become a paramedic will definatley be able to not only prepare your family, but will also be useful as a stress reliever, which is extremly important. sometimes all you need is a little ray of sunshine at the end of your day to put things in perspective. Maybe your ray of sunshine could be eating a tomato out of your own garden.

Just another quick note... I beleive it takes 2 years of schooling to become a certified paramedic, as well as several months of time to accumulate the necesary pre-requisit training just to get in to the paramedic program.

Perhaps Nursing would be a valid option? There is a 2 year condensed Nursing program at University of Calgary (not sure where you hail from), and at the end of it you are a fully licensed Registered Nurse (RN). My girlfriend is an RN, and she currently makes $12 an hour MORE then me. Just saying lol.

(edit: maybe I need a career change too haha)

I had a thought last night after I wrote the last post --- if I was a paramedic I would be called out in any kind of large-scale immediate emergency , which would take me farther from my kids and prevent any kind of potential bugging out with my family. So scrap that!!!

I've contemplated nursing because they are so in demand, but I think it's the same thing as you said, Buggie, lots of stress and shift work. Plus most are getting burnt out.

Sigh. My problem is I can find problems with any potential plan/career/situation.

ETA: What does your girlfriend enjoy about it? What does she hate about it? Personally, I don't enjoy hospitals and my mom says she doesn't think nursing would be good for me. But I realize there are many different kinds. Do like the idea of 2 yrs RN or even LPN. My husband is going into his last year of an undergrad engineering degree and I dont think I could handle throwing us into another 4 yrs of post-sec.
amf

amf - have you considered a career in the trades? the AB gov't has an ambitious training program in place to encourage women in the trades and I think you will find that the skill set is just as valuable pre as post SHTF. In fact, if SHTF means a gas leak in your home to you, being a licensed gas fitter or plumber would mitigate the S altogether. 🙂 There is decent money in the trades, high demand, somewhat regular hours (depending on the trade), and I find that the work environment is catching up to the rest of the world where safety and respect is the norm. It's not perfect, but without more intelligent young people coming into the industry and demanding change, how can it become so? Just something to consider.

Antsy

Oh man. If I had access to the library of knowledge that an experienced market gardener has, I'd be milking that cow for all it's worth - so to speak 🙂

My mother in law and both my sisters' in law are RN's. Here in Ontario, I can tell you that the pay is very good...but the hours are crap. They all have crazy hours, both shift and overtime. My mother in law actually retired, but went back to work as the senior nurse in a retirement home. She believes she works more hours now then she did at the hospital when she was there. It's a case of when someone doesn't show up (and it happens a lot) she gets called in; when there's vacation gaps in the schedule, she gets called in. That sort of thing.
Both of my sisters' in law work in hospital. One works the floor where they basically send older people till they die (I have no idea what it's called...sorry for being blunt about it). She works crazy shift work hours, but it's mostly midnight to morning. The other sister in law works in the emerg - again, crazy hours.

Hope this doesn't deter you if you wanted to work in the nursing field...I just wanted to mention that from my experience through the in laws, the hours aren't at all stable for them - but the money is really good.

Runs With Scissors

amf - have you considered a career in the trades? the AB gov't has an ambitious training program in place to encourage women in the trades and I think you will find that the skill set is just as valuable pre as post SHTF. In fact, if SHTF means a gas leak in your home to you, being a licensed gas fitter or plumber would mitigate the S altogether. 🙂 There is decent money in the trades, high demand, somewhat regular hours (depending on the trade), and I find that the work environment is catching up to the rest of the world where safety and respect is the norm. It's not perfect, but without more intelligent young people coming into the industry and demanding change, how can it become so? Just something to consider.

Antsy

This is bang on the money too. I went through my auto service apprenticeship about 3 years ago. Worked in the day and went to school twice a week at night for a couple of hours.
I'd like to say, as an adult that switched careers and has been used to doing things with a bit of an independent mind - I'd been in a job previously that gave me leeway in how I did things before I switched over...if you take an apprenticeship, be prepared to eat a lot of crap during it. You'd likely be working under someone that is younger or silly in the head (in your/my opinion) and in most cases management and the licensed person your working under look at you as the dog that gets to do the crap nobody wants to (take it, it's good learning anyway) or as a punching bag to take out the crap they had to during their apprenticeship (this is the really hard part I found) and it really takes a lot to have to eat the crap before you get the license and seal. That's the goal though...get that paper and seal. The ride kinda sucks, at least it really did for me.
There are lots of trades to choose from too. I like that I went into auto service, as I learned about fundamentals of electrical, plumbing (making brake line fittings and such), hydraulics, basics of machining even and some welding. It's a real jack of all trades kinda thing when one really looks at it. And it's really not just a man thing anymore...I was in the last all male group I think, as the year groups after mine were about 60/40 split males to females.

Welding would be fantastic to get into. It's good money where I am, there's not enough of them so getting a job is pretty easy. Getting schooling for it is sort of the hard part here, as there's a list line for the courses...from what I've heard, there's many people learning the trade here and shuffling off out west - don't know if that's really true or not.

Runs With Scissors