Hey Antsy,

Stop holding back and tell us how you really feel on this topic. No more sugar coatings, tell it as it really is!

Life ain't fair. The only one who can get your life back on track is you, not anyone else. Self-sacrifice, family sacrifice, and employment sacrifice. We all get to make choices, as we are free to do so. Put your kid through college or buy a piece of land for a retreat. Buy a new people mover van or get an off-road 4x4 in case of doomsday. Take the job that pays like crap but lets you work 90 hours a week, so you can stash some for a rainy day.

In the end, if I buy a lotto ticket and IF I win the lotto. I will still invite you to my place in the hills and we can plan how to survive the end of the world. Of course, until I win the lotto I will be in the ranks of those who know what to do but have a shortage of cash. I don't drink, I don't gamble and I don't smoke, I am trying to find a vise I can eliminate so I can afford to do more.

This is a thought provoking topic, and I hope others will join in and express their desires to win the lotto.

Mountainman.

and to add on that... your not going to be able to buy everything you want the second you want it. im learning that the hard way as a new prepper. Prioritize what you WANT to get as well as what you NEED to get, place it in an order, price things out, then start saving for them item by item.

I know crybaby loves youtube knowledge, so here is a good video for new preppers who are looking to get organized, or even for "experienced" preppers who feel like they are all over the map. might seem pretty basic, but it helps to have the visuals for it:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8ihbq__dHmc

A personal philosophy.. You can have... be.... or do anything you want.... IF you are willing to meet three criteria.
1: You have to really want it.... not fantasize or dream but IN YOUR GUTS want it.
2: You have to be willing to work for it.. put in the hours, the sweat and sacrifice.
3: You have to be willing to pay the price. This is where most fall down. EVERYTHING has a price... some more than others... as you said.. that trip... that new car... smokes...
If you meet these and follow through the ONLY thing that can stop you is death. Preparation is MAYBE 1/2 about "stuff".. the rest is about knowledge and experience. Stuff will cost you and will take an adjustment of resources for most. The knowledge and experiecne is free. Between the internet and a good library you have all the resources you need. The rest is time and investment in yourself. Only you can decide.

I wanted to learn more, be preppared for combat, the woods, the cold, life.. so I joined the Army.. Canadian Army.

I can make any thing from almost nothing, survive with almost nothing, thrive with just a little bit. Want to learn, want to do something for your country or your life. JOIN THE MILITARY

get out and just do stuff, quit all the computer surfing and crap. I am hardly on the computer anymore, I got back into doing stuff, good luck.

...Prioritize what you WANT to get as well as what you NEED to get, place it in an order, price things out, then start saving for them item by item.

Buggie is bang on. Make a list and prioritize it based on YOUR OWN personal situation. We all have different situations based on our jobs, families, homes, etc. Make your list and start working thru it checking off items as you continue to be able to. Re-Check the list and change it as you situation requires.

In regards to what Ansty says about winning the lotto, I hate to break it to folks out there but it wont help. Even if you won a few million today, it is about more than simply having money. That money will never make up for CryBaby's 20 years of investment and experience. Time and experience are key! if you do not grow or hunt your own food today, or currently can and preserve food, then how can you expect to when a crisis suddenly hits.

I bet if I won the lotto and gave crybaby a million he would let me stay at his place lol. problem solved!

A personal philosophy.. You can have... be.... or do anything you want.... IF you are willing to meet three criteria.
1: You have to really want it.... not fantasize or dream but IN YOUR GUTS want it.
2: You have to be willing to work for it.. put in the hours, the sweat and sacrifice.
3: You have to be willing to pay the price. This is where most fall down. EVERYTHING has a price... some more than others... as you said.. that trip... that new car... smokes...
If you meet these and follow through the ONLY thing that can stop you is death. Preparation is MAYBE 1/2 about "stuff".. the rest is about knowledge and experience. Stuff will cost you and will take an adjustment of resources for most. The knowledge and experiecne is free. Between the internet and a good library you have all the resources you need. The rest is time and investment in yourself. Only you can decide.

Great post Bear,

I agree, but would like to add:

'Stuff' and material possessions means absolutely nothing to me.
I'd give it all away ten fold just to have the chance to see my son again.
Without my faith, family and friends ..... I am nothing.

If it were all taken away tomorrow, I could survive, and would happily start all over again.

I do what I do to keep my family safe, nothing else.

As far a sacrifice, it should be the first part of preparation.

Sacrifice means not buying a $1.50 dust pan for six years until the mortgage was paid off, like I did.

Actually saving until there was funds to buy what was needed and not what you wanted.

When the kids were little, we camped under the stars, swam in the river, ate hamburger helper instead of going to Disney.

I was not born with a silver spoon and will most likely have to pay to bury both my parents.

I sacrificed and made the right decisions, that's all.

Great thread and good vid Buggie.

Most of the times you need to lose something in order to get something. In life you can't have it all. But what I wanted to say is that usually after the sacrifice comes the reward when you get what you have been sacrificing for. In the preppers business the bitter irony is that you are preparing for something that you wish will never happen. Yes, you may sleep a bit better knowing that you're a bit more prepared but you know that if SHTF and TEOTWAWKI comes it's not gonna be fun no matter how well prepared you are. That makes the sacrifice even harder. I try to cope with this by actually using all the knowledge and stuff I'm getting, as new hobbies. I like fishing and I hope I will enjoy hunting soon. Looking forward to "playing" with the HAM radio and I hope we'll do more camping next year and so on, you got the idea. Not all the stuff will be fun but I've made my choice and there is no way back.
Also another vital thing we shouldn't forget is that we are preparing for something that my never happen in our lifetime and we should not live for preparing but prepare for living after SHTF. Antsy, you said this at the last meeting and I liked the way you put it then, maybe you can say it again here too.

All the best

.

Ahh...we win millions every other day (damn junk emails keep telling us so) but this doesn't stop us from scrimping on stuff to prep oh no 😀

Absolutly Prom! The who reason I took up fly fishing and have started bow hunting again. Skills that can be enjoyed now and usefull now, but could mean survival later.

...get a prescription for some happy pills (I hear the grey ones are fantastic)....

Time to Antsy up.

Thought this was funny Antsy, because my wife hates me telling her the latest news, stating that she is happy with her "Blue" pills until the SHTF for real!!! lol