i've gone from feeling good with a few 2L pop bottles and a weeks’ worth of food in the pantry, to many months of food and 6 months’ worth of water and not feeling that safe. i had backups to everything by hydro and still didn't feel i was near done. when my food storage grew to well over a years’ worth, i felt a lot better. . . then i moved, i had more "free space" that felt too empty, i had a small garden that didn't grow that great the first year. . . i added a 6 fruit trees and felt a little better. . .
things kept growing, the garden got 9x bigger, and 10 fruit trees turned to 23. . . grain and long term food storage grow 4x in size. . . i have 3-4 years of fire wood, alt power, a great security system, with only a few short falls, i'm sitting better then i ever thought i would. i long ago surpassed my early goals, i've grew much more then i ever wanted too. . .
yet, i don't feel i'm nearly done.
sure i have projects, fuel shed, pony panel for the genny, maybe even get the alt power down to throwing a switch. . .i want to grow more, be closer to self-sufficient, some goats, rabbits, chicken and ducks, and grow at least part of their feed. . . i have some updates ready to add to the security system. . .
but there's not much out there that i *NEED*.
i'm not sure what will really make me feel "ready" or "complete". . . maybe a bigger group working closely to have a number of nearly self-reliant friends nearby, but that's not an easy thing to drum up.
i guess one thing that is very important to me is flow . . . when i do jobs; i like a nature flow to them . . . a routine. at work for example, i like to get my "sheet" ready, write down all the need to know things about each patient (i'm a nurse) then i meet them and get report, i plan my night (or day) by the duties that need to be done in a timely manner, i medicate, settle them to bed, do my MARS (medication lists, for the next day) then i eat, then chart, and the whole while having to do rounds, fix problems, clean poop, etc lol. there is a flow to it.
there is no flow to my garden yet, it's still about learning, growing, and getting better. if everything died i won't feel it's a fail, it's still learning something. this year i had a lot, but not enough i felt was needed for spending a day canning. i did dry a lot, but most stuff was used raw. something’s i didn't plant enough of, others too much. my fruit trees gave me nothing. what fruit i had fell off before it was anything of any size. early spring, frost, and drought . . . what a year.
i don't get those "panic" feelings when i read the news any more, i haven't for a while, a number of months anyhow. i don't get that feeling "it's coming soon". (i think it might, but i don't feel off guard from it) the world seems to be getting crazier and crazier, yet, i feel pretty calm about it. There is an element of faith in that, but i think my preps also give me that "safer" feeling.
i see people all over "losing it" from what's going on in the world, even those that aren't affected to a huge degree yet. (sure we are all affected, but i'm not talking about living on the streets and stealing to eat) things got bad, and people flipped out. riots in civilized countries over gov't cuts. . . middle east is seemingly crazier than ever before . . . and people aren't coping with their own "little" problems, little things are being blown way out of proportion. . . there's always a fringe of nut jobs, but lately there seems to be more of them. Smart people going bat shit nuts. (batman killer, dude that mailed those body parts here in Canada to parliament and the B.C. school etc)
we have the worse Russian drought in decades, last year, , in the US this year, driving up food prices, people closing dairy farms because they can't afford hay, corn being made into fuel instead of feed or food, the selloff of beef leading to low prices now, and likely high prices later, only continues the hurt more. . .locally the loss of 90% of fruit tree produce, high fuel prices, drought, strange weather on the whole, near war in the ME with the west, Russia backing Syria, Iran and Israel at each other. . . all sounds like Armageddon or WWIII about to start off, and it's 2012 not just the Maya calendar thing, but the high solar cycle going on too lol.
i'm not sure about what you have seen, but non preppers are starting to talk about all this crazy stuff happening at the same time. people are scared. a non prepper friend had her kids ask if the world was ending, she said "no" but i'm not sure she believed the answer, one of her coworkers also looked worried too. People don’t “talk” like that. It’s fairy tale, stuff in books or movies, or paranoid nut job stuff, but normal, non preppers are seeing things that scare them.
And I’m sitting here not overly concerned, is it I’ve turned numb? I’m too tired? I’m feeling somewhat ready? I’m kidding myself? Maybe I’ve gone crazy and I’m waiting? Maybe I really don’t believe things will get to a really horrible point for me (the force is strong in this one). I look at the past, and all the other times things were going to all fall apart and didn’t. but then I think of the great roman empire or japan before they were nuked. (or japan being nuked) or japan melting down. . . yes bad things happen, but not to me, my faith and will has kept me afloat so far.
So after that long ramble (sorry night shifts do this too me lol) I’m caught between the feeling of I’m ready, with a lot of projects left to finished, and a belief that things will work out. (at least for me) even if things do get worse.
Now. . .
have you found your comfort zone with your preps? Does your faith lead you to a similar place as mine has?
do you have a plan to get there comfort level? a time frame?
do you feel somewhat ready? for something big but short lived?
Years I ago I said things like “WHEN the SHTF” now I’m really more of an “if” not even an IF lol. i know how my preps have changed, i'm not sure when, how or why i've changed . . .
Ramble off. . .
adsum. . . aut viam inveniam aut faciam
wow excellent post
my end goal is to out live my mom, my critters and those pesky co-workers that drive me nuts 
Wow, that was a great post, enjoyed reading it, and I know where you are coming from, I was not happy with alot of thing that went on this summer, but It gave me different challanges and allowed me to figure out a number of things, I don't think we are ever done in regards to things that can be tweeked and or added, certain weakness's etc, but at the moment, yes, with the different things we have in place at the moment, we are both feeling pretty settled.
http://livingmydreamlifeonthefarm.wordpress.com/
Philippians 4:6
"Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God."
...Nothing wrong with a little meditation to settle the mind.
In the end, that's what I try to do.
Hey Entropy FANTASTIC job.I am in the stage as You accept it gives me peace of mind.Do not think of it as prepping but as a dream life style .You know you are not dependent on anybody.I agree with you that we need people (friends) of the same mind set.That why I like to meet (get together) with some of the people but so far in my area (North East Ont.) we just talk.It would be really nice to meet every so often exchange some ideas and encourage each other.One think works for me You should try . Download your favorite music and always start your day with beautiful music.Life is what you make it.BY worrying we do not change anything.
Henry
good discussion
I come from a background of survivors, not that my parents fought in any wars but they survive and fight when things are down. My grand parents were both Partizans in the former Yugoslav army, my great grandfather was in a few wars and so on.
I have learned what I could from ideals and concepts from my family and now need to create a new legacy.
My prepping is generational.
Once I feel that all my plans are in place for my family and close friends I plan to make sure my children have the knowledge and knowhow to continue to maintain it. I have a plan for ny life time but I plan more for my childrens children and so on. Some knowledge, skills and ideals will always be passed on.
It wont hurt that we will have a few BOL and the ability to get to them.
So I prepare for generations to come.
Hi Entropy,
What is my end goal? When I was nearing adolescence (decades ago), I experienced firsthand living through food shortages in a third world country. One week, my main concern was making the soccer team, but the following week, I was getting in line at 4:30am at the bakery to buy (and fight/elbow for) some bread. Panic shopping and hoarding was crazy. In a span of 18 hours, all the store shelves were bare, there was widespread looting, and the local gangs were charging inflated prices for basic needs like rice and flour. My family was in the upper middle class, and kidnappings/robbery was common, so I had my own 9mm pistol by the time I was 14.
As soon as I turned 16, I joined the military. Sign-ups at my high school actually started on my birthday. I wouldn't trade it for anything else in the world, especially during my formative years. Apart from the physical fitness, discipline and combat training, the best part about it was being constantly deployed for disaster relief, defense and rescue. Flash floods, fighting off mountain rebels that would raid/pillage villages, digging through rubble after earthquakes, rescuing people trapped in houses buried under a mudslide... It gave me purpose. 27 deployments in 2 years. I felt connected with the civilians who relied on us. I was doing my duty for my country. Civilians would volunteer and help us string up makeshift cable guides across rivers that had washed out bridges. Others would risk their lives to pass information regarding the locations of known rebels. Despite the millions of people in our country, it was a very, very tight knit community.
Here in Canada, I'm experiencing a more individualist society. Preppers, on a positive note, won't strain or burden society like those who loot and clear out the store shelves in the event of a disaster, because they've already made preparations months or even years ago. On the other hand, from my experiences on this forum, people are secretive of their preparations and would rather look out for themselves only, rather than the good of the community. It is undeniable that we must look towards the health and safety of our family first, but I think it is most important to note that society survives because people work together as a community. Again, from my experience, the villages that banded together to defend each other survived, while the isolated family out in the boonies (literally) were hacked apart by raiders, their guns be damned. All for a few pigs and a teenage girl to prey on.
My point is that my end goal is to build a network/community of preppers who can rely on me, and who I can, in turn, rely on. I will prepare myself and my family for the worst case (realistic) scenario that can affect my locale, and hopefully have a network of allies who can make use of my contributions, and who in turn I can depend on for their own skill sets.
I hope that wasn't too grim. 🙂
An outstanding post Entropy, good to read with excellent incite. We all started to prep for individual and personal reasons. Some have just begun this journey other like yourself are well along the road. There does indeed seem to be a perfect storm brewing but if nothing happens maybe we will look back at this time in a few years and think were worrying unnecessarily. There will always be challenges but being prepared gives peace of mind and lets us get on with life. Prepping becomes a way of life. Personally I will continue to tweak my plans, improve my stores and hopefully continue to learn new skills.
I don't think that you have turned numb, just the opposite. You have been aware of the situations around the world that can affect you well being for years while others are just discovering them now. They are rightly shocked, you are not. You have a plan, a plan that has been developed over time. You have yours stores and you know you can survive most situation. You are not apprehensive about your future whereas the general population are. It seems to me that you are not overly concerned because you have peace of mind.
Not wanting to keep the grim side going, but maybe I need some words of wisdom from others or just a kick in the ass. I joined here just a few weeks ago and have found everything here to be very informative.
The issue I now have about my end game is this. Reading the fictional pieces such as Patriots, Union Creek journal and Alas Babylon has got me down. I originally had my plans to be able to outlast any event thrown at us (my DW and 3 other couples that are like minded with the males split between law enforcement and military and the ladies have nursing and animal care covered). Now after reading these pieces, I dont think my small group can survive an onslaught by the expected roving bands of evil. I realize that in each of these books, the survivors banded together but my thoughts here are that with like minded people spread out over such vast distances, the thing that keeps us out of harms way at the beginning, will it make our doom far easier for the bad guys? I dont see the ability to band together for mutual protection as so few people in the area of the world that I had planned on bugging in are available for this.
In these books, the usual areas of the US where there seems to be a pioneer, small government, we can do things on our own, type of spirit seem to be the areas where more survive long term and can survive and flourish. Does this mean that rather than bugging in at a location (somewhere around the Algonquin Park area in Ontario is what we had intended) that I had assumed would be good as it would be out of the way and not on a traffic corridor is a bad choice and maybe moving out west (Canada or the U.S.) for the reasons mentioned above, is the better option?
I too apologize again, for the negative tone. Being a neophyte here, I am hoping that others have gone through the same mental battles and would like to learn how to come out the other side of this quandry.
This post is not meant to take anything away from anyone's beliefs and preparations, and I applaud those in the advanced stages of prepping, but these are just my thoughts and questions and where my head is at right now. With some trepidation, I will now hit the enter button.
Hi Entropy,
What is my end goal? When I was nearing adolescence (decades ago), I experienced firsthand living through food shortages in a third world country. One week, my main concern was making the soccer team, but the following week, I was getting in line at 4:30am at the bakery to buy (and fight/elbow for) some bread. Panic shopping and hoarding was crazy. In a span of 18 hours, all the store shelves were bare, there was widespread looting, and the local gangs were charging inflated prices for basic needs like rice and flour. My family was in the upper middle class, and kidnappings/robbery was common, so I had my own 9mm pistol by the time I was 14.
As soon as I turned 16, I joined the military. Sign-ups at my high school actually started on my birthday. I wouldn't trade it for anything else in the world, especially during my formative years. Apart from the physical fitness, discipline and combat training, the best part about it was being constantly deployed for disaster relief, defense and rescue. Flash floods, fighting off mountain rebels that would raid/pillage villages, digging through rubble after earthquakes, rescuing people trapped in houses buried under a mudslide... It gave me purpose. 27 deployments in 2 years. I felt connected with the civilians who relied on us. I was doing my duty for my country. Civilians would volunteer and help us string up makeshift cable guides across rivers that had washed out bridges. Others would risk their lives to pass information regarding the locations of known rebels. Despite the millions of people in our country, it was a very, very tight knit community.
Here in Canada, I'm experiencing a more individualist society. Preppers, on a positive note, won't strain or burden society like those who loot and clear out the store shelves in the event of a disaster, because they've already made preparations months or even years ago. On the other hand, from my experiences on this forum, people are secretive of their preparations and would rather look out for themselves only, rather than the good of the community. It is undeniable that we must look towards the health and safety of our family first, but I think it is most important to note that society survives because people work together as a community. Again, from my experience, the villages that banded together to defend each other survived, while the isolated family out in the boonies (literally) were hacked apart by raiders, their guns be damned. All for a few pigs and a teenage girl to prey on.
My point is that my end goal is to build a network/community of preppers who can rely on me, and who I can, in turn, rely on. I will prepare myself and my family for the worst case (realistic) scenario that can affect my locale, and hopefully have a network of allies who can make use of my contributions, and who in turn I can depend on for their own skill sets.
I hope that wasn't too grim. 🙂
first off, thanks for everyone reply, part of me felt that my middle of the night rambling might lead to white coats coming to get me lol. i'm glad it was taken the way i meant it. (my communication skills are crap at the best of times, 2am leaves more to be desired)
RabbitTeeth, what a crazy start to a young life, and you made it thru. i hope Riggs413 takes a long read of this, because in the end, you do what you have to and you survive. . . i wanted to touch on a couple of things. for me, i've worked very hard on my preps for a long time, too long to just stick my neck out there and invite a bunch of strangers from a prepping board to come see my stash. with the house, trucks, and stocks, i've put 400,000 in to my preps. (this isn't a hobby, it's a life style) while i'm going to help those that i can, when the time comes, i can't be having everyone depending on me without doing there own work.
while i believe community and networking is the most important thing in this stage of "my end game" i can't risk taking on someone not willing to work, but would possible take, when the time comes. i need friends with the same goals, values, and commitment as me. anything less i feel i'm putting my family at risk.
i'm not sure i could ever turn anyone away with a true need, but i also can't save the world.
so while i'm stuck between needing a good network, and risking being stuck alone. . . i'm trying very hard to find good local people i can depend on, because i know if the "connection" is between us, i'm going to feel i must pull out everything i can to help.
a good example is a friend was helping me today, we hit a wall, called up another friend, he dropped everything was down there to brainstorm with us in less then 10 minutes. both those guys KNOW beyond any doubt that if they called me, i'd be there no matter what. that's the commitment i offer, that's what my closest "family" offers. (and neither of them are blood family.
thank you for sharing, i'm going to have to read this again. . .
worked all night, slept 2 hours worked all day 😛 i hope my reply made some sense!
adsum. . . aut viam inveniam aut faciam
Not wanting to keep the grim side going, but maybe I need some words of wisdom from others or just a kick in the ass. I joined here just a few weeks ago and have found everything here to be very informative.
The issue I now have about my end game is this. Reading the fictional pieces such as Patriots, Union Creek journal and Alas Babylon has got me down. I originally had my plans to be able to outlast any event thrown at us (my DW and 3 other couples that are like minded with the males split between law enforcement and military and the ladies have nursing and animal care covered). Now after reading these pieces, I dont think my small group can survive an onslaught by the expected roving bands of evil. I realize that in each of these books, the survivors banded together but my thoughts here are that with like minded people spread out over such vast distances, the thing that keeps us out of harms way at the beginning, will it make our doom far easier for the bad guys? I dont see the ability to band together for mutual protection as so few people in the area of the world that I had planned on bugging in are available for this.
In these books, the usual areas of the US where there seems to be a pioneer, small government, we can do things on our own, type of spirit seem to be the areas where more survive long term and can survive and flourish. Does this mean that rather than bugging in at a location (somewhere around the Algonquin Park area in Ontario is what we had intended) that I had assumed would be good as it would be out of the way and not on a tra
ffic corridor is a bad choice and maybe moving out west (Canada or the U.S.) for the reasons mentioned above, is the better option?
I too apologize again, for the negative tone. Being a neophyte here, I am hoping that others have gone through the same mental battles and would like to learn how to come out the other side of this quandry.
This post is not meant to take anything away from anyone's beliefs and preparations, and I applaud those in the advanced stages of prepping, but these are just my thoughts and questions and where my head is at right now. With some trepidation, I will now hit the enter button.
everyone situation is different, and you're have a network that's sounds pretty great. i have dogs, and only my own experience for their health care, (i'm an RN with a LOT of doggie health care experience. . .) but no one else in my family has any military or LE experience, most haven't fired a gun/rifle/shotgun and actually hit too many targets same me and the wife (she's a little better then me, but i won't tell her that lol)
remember life isn't fiction! and in those books the looters and raiders aren't being shot at by real bullets. they may not keep coming unless they have no other choice. read the fiction for inspirations, read things like Rabbitteeths posts for knowledge.
i very much disagree with running to the woods to bug out. if you leave your home, you should have a place to go, either a pre stocked place, or with a friend that will take you in with what you bring.
my friends have a list of what to bring, we made it together. . . if they showed up empty handed i'd feed them forever just because of their skills. but they are far away. . . bugging out to any of our places would likely remove us from the danger zone. . . (unless it was very wide spread) still my point is, you bug out to a shelter and preps, never to the woods, mountains, or anything in between, not having a place to go makes you a refugee, and that is not what preppers do!
i have a place in the US to go, but it's very unlikely i could make it in a very bad situations. . . if i made it, i'd be as set there as if i was here. even if i showed up with nothing. (earning my keep would be hell maybe but i KNOW i'd be safe)
group buys of land are hard, but if one of you lived in a farming area with a small or moderate size farm you could go far as a group.
one things i must say is take your time and prep right, don't be panicked, buying crap, or putting yourself into debt over a worried feeling. there is time. . .
i'm not sure where you are with preps, but you have a great start to a network, you are far beyond what i have here. if trouble started tonight, i have two shooters, 5 dogs and electronic eyes and ears. at least you have a few shooters! (oh yeah and i have ALL THE RIGHT GUNS lol)
keep pushing on, don't let the bad possibilities get you down, let them inspire you to move forward, and help your group move forward. there is a lot that can be done about any problem given enough time and thought. (money helps too)
keep on keeping on, i think you've got a great start.
adsum. . . aut viam inveniam aut faciam
all good points riggs413....no one really knows whats gonna happen on this crazy rock!! All we can do is prepare for whatever comes down the pipe. I applaud the fact that you have a group with you willing to take on the challenge with you. Remember that "bugging out" isnt always the right thing to do. Sometimes "bugging in" is the way to go. Plan for both scenarios. I honestly dont know what I am going to do to bug out!!...I am prepared for it, but where do you go?...you dont own any of the land out there? forests are either owned by Ag Canada or the farmers. Do you have any ideas on how to procure land with little cost? It would be greatly appreciated. Until the shtf, learn, prep and continue to make contacts as they may be the difference in this world in success or failure!!
I am unfortunately not yet at the comfortable stage and can only see a pile of stuff yet to do, but each day gets us a little closer to our goal so I am pleased with our progress.
Sometimes though I need to take a break from reading all the 'doom and gloom' just to keep my head screwed on straight or I fear I would end up a total loon 😆
I think in relation to safety it can be difficult not to be somewhat of an island when people around you show no interest in prepping for any reason.
But that said whilst we know of a few people locally (within 100 km radius) who are prepping or seem inclined that way, there is at present little organisation between these people, distance is an issue there.
The area we live in whilst not prepper oriented does have a very strong community spirit and I believe the people would all pull together if the SHTF.
Being in a closed valley we don't get through traffic, just local traffic, everybody know everybody else and families often share meals together privately or at community functions, and bonfires become big social events. We went to one last night at a neighbours with about 120 adults and children, shared a meal, night time walk by the river, jolly good night 😀
I would hate to be bugging out after the SHTF to a rural area I was not previously known, as I believe the people won't be terribly welcoming of blow in's from the city invading their land.
Cares what is the approximate population of the town/city where you live? Hope you do not mind, just looking at possibilities.
Closest town is 6000, but I think that includes the surrounding rural area.
The valley possibly has about 300-400 people in it.
This is basically why I wouldn't look at bugging out....I seriously don't think I could find a safer place to go.
If we HAD to bug out we would be hitting the bush as there would be no other choice I believe.
About 6 hours from Sydney, 8 hours from Brisbane.
15-20 min from small town of 6,000 (including surrounds)
45-50 min from large town of 80,000 (including surrounds)
100 acres (selling other parcel of 150 acres)
Great place to be...in my opinion anyway 😀