PREPARING against a financial/catastrophic crisis - SURVIVAL TIPS

[praisingHisname]

Question--can you freeze eggs or cheese? THis thread is a very timely reminder. I have been miserably irresponsible with money this year and it's time to snap to attention and start with these ideas. THank you all. And any help with the egg and cheese question would be huge!
I freeze cheese whenever I find it on sale...it does fine. I freeze eggs because I have chickens. I crack them open into small plastic containers and use them for cooking. So far it has worked fine. :thumb

[tom_roberts]

Hey everyone,

I was wondering if we could get a discussion going on TIPS and STRATEGIES on surviving a financial/catastrophic crisis.

I was one of those people who had to call my mortgage company this week to find out whether we had a FIXED or ADJUSTABLE rate mortgage. Unbelievably, our zipcode has the HIGHEST foreclosure rate in the United States!

Some of our strategies are:

1.) Saving CASH (in case the banks shut down, or we lose access...)

2.) Stock piling on food and water (other emergencies could arise...)

3.) Placing ourselves on a TIGHT BUDGET.

4.) Taking better care of ourselves/health, as we don't need medical problems when the economy/money is TIGHT. (My family is walking more, being more active, and reducing stress.)

5.) Getting our lives right with God. (I don't worry about the future, as I have eternal security, and an advocate who knows my every need.)

I've noticed some changes in my family, since we've started this tight budget...

1.) We eat out less
2.) We realize we don't need half the stuff we thought we "needed"
3.) Less stress over finances.
4.) We feel better
5.) We seem happier...

How is that possible?

I've been turning the TV off more, and we've been sitting at the table more -- board games, family conversations, and the food is even better! (Homemade, carefully prepared, etc.)

Sobering thought:

Is this what America needs to draw closer to God? Trimming the fat? What does it take to get us to stop and think about what is really important in our lives? It certainly isn't money.

Many years ago when my husband and I were first married, we were always broke and having to borrow from his dad. Although we paid him back EVERY TIME, we became conscious of the fact that we didn't want to appear that we only called whenever we NEEDED something. So we made an effort to CALL FREQUENTLY, and not ask for money.

I feel this way about our relationship with God. Many Christians wait until they NEED SOMETHING before they pray. It is really important to establish a relationship with God that isn't always about, "I NEED"...

What is your family doing to prepare for hard times? Any pointers or tips I hadn't mentioned?


Ruth

Yes I do

I am a survivalist, I was one be for i got saved and found out
What is really going to happen

and I am one now as I live in Hurricane ally

My parents grew up during the Great Depression and instilled
the value of being prepared

They always told me it could happen again, someday perhaps:idunno

I live in the south and as a young boy i started hunting and fishing at an early
age , camping as well as i enjoy that much

Fist you have to decide what you expect to have to survive thru

then plan accordingly

As for firearms, well thats always been one of my fun things to do as well

so yes, i am fully armed{do not forget the ammo}
at least 5000 rounds for each weapon

I like MUCH more:)

So what are you planning for?

a nwo takeover?
peak oil?
a comet?
the tribulation
teotwawki?
riots?
Storms?

Or just a depression?

I prepare for all cause i do not know what tomorrow may bring
I might not belive in all of them but better safe than sorry

Tips ?

food food food

Rice and beans keep well and together make a complete protein
they store well too in mylar bags in food grade plastic buckets

Sugar
oil
lard
Pasta
Grain mill
wheat
Bullion chicken pork beef seafood etc
powdered butter
canned butter
powdered eggs
canned meats

the above is a short list of staples, there are many more
also familiarize your self with shelf life and goods rotation

now if you can-------- canning yourself that is------------your in business

cook 5 lbs of you favorite meats and can in Gallon Jars
cheap and tasty but be sure to pack them in cardboard
to prevent breakage

I can go on and on about food but if you have questions please ask

A bug out plan
at least a primary secondary place

cache your stuff and spread it out

a bug out bag, this is for emergencies
good to keep on you , remember those poor folks that froze to death last year
in Oregon i think?

no need for that to happen with a survival bag on you

A good shelter can be built on the cheap
rent a back hoe

go to your spot
dig your bunker
line it with rubber
cover it with railroad ties

and the back fill from digging

plant grass and flowers on top of it/doubles as a good root cellar too:nod

have it near your sight so if you need to you can hump it there on the double

read and understand this free on line book

surviving a nuclear war
written by oak ridge scientist Cresson Kearney

make a fall out meter--plans included in above mentioned book

find out the prevailing winds in you state as well as a fema
chart for nuclear targets in the united states

Keep potassium iodine around

Ban together with other believers if possible

and pool resources, learn how to trap game

study the British SaS manuals on bases and defense
understand How to survive and protect you Children

[RRuth]

Yes I do

So what are you planning for?

a nwo takeover?
peak oil?
a comet?
the tribulation
teotwawki?
riots?
Storms?

Or just a depression?



I'm preparing for:

Economic Depression
Layoffs
Natural disaster

Prepare for tribulation??? Absolutely not. I won't be here.

[Watching & waiting]

I've read the Cresson Kearney book, highly valuable to have on hand for an emergency!!

[Abigail]

We had considered buying a gun. Yes, it is unfortunate that we have to think this way, but we live in town. Massive unemployment would place us at great risk for home invasion.

We too feel that stocking up on staples (beans, canned goods, powdered milk, etc.) are important. I've always kept a full pantry.

Anyone stockpiling gasoline?:wave

Hi RRuth; I posted today in a thread ChristinCheryl started at http://www.rr-bb.com/showthread.php?t=8989 that also discussed emergency preparedness issues. In that thread, I shared my first-hand experiences in Katrina.

Funny you ask about gasoline. I don't stock it at present in that I hesitate to stock it in my garage that is full of moving boxes (combustibles), BUT I have about 10 of the 5-gallon red plastic gasoline cans and a supply of Sta-bil. After Katrina, gas was rationed within the disaster zone, if it was available at all. People were driving to Baton Rouge to get it, and would try to fill up cans while they were at it, since this practice wasted a good percentage of the gas you made the trip to get! Well, what with everyone else having the same issue, good luck finding ANY of the red cans; I managed to snag a couple of 1-gallon ones, which didn't help much. There's no other safe way to store/transport it without those cans. People were also burning it in generators and for chainsaws, too, so the 2-stroke (I think that's what it's called) engine oil was needed in separate cans for things like that where gas/oil mixes were required. That meant separate red gas containers.

I learned numerous small lessons like this that I would never have considered before. Who would have felt it necessary to have that many 5-gallon gasoline containers?

Thanks for starting this thread; I know a lot of people just don't see the need, but like I stated in the other thread, after 911 and Katrina, I don't consider concerns like these to be paranoid anymore. I've lived in the Gulf South my entire life, and thought I knew about hurricane preparation; Katrina proved me wrong. I've come a long way in preparing in the almost 2 years since, and am still not comfortable with my level of preparedness. I just :pray pray that the Lord protects my family for the rest.

That's why I'm so grateful for all the suggestions and ideas; PLEASE don't think ANY contribution is trivial; a simple thing like red gas cans, for instance can make a huge difference to a family in riding out an emergency.

Abigail

[tom_roberts]

I'm preparing for:

Economic Depression
Layoffs
Natural disaster

Prepare for tribulation??? Absolutely not. I won't be here.

I understand:)

I know so many survivalists and not all are Christian

I feel as you do about stocking up

[RRuth]

I've come a long way in preparing in the almost 2 years since, and am still not comfortable with my level of preparedness.


That was quite an eye-opening experience you had with Katrina, Abigail. Thanks for sharing that link with me! With this experience behind you, WHAT are you doing differently in regards to preparedness? Would you say we need 2-3 months supply of drinking water? More?

Also, I totally sympathized with your horror story of the heat, the lack of wind, and the mosquitoes, etc. I've often wondered how we'd fare over here with our sweltering weather (those drasted mosquitoes are around in the winter too!)

Ruth

[Abigail]

That was quite an eye-opening experience you had with Katrina, Abigail. Thanks for sharing that link with me! With this experience behind you, WHAT are you doing differently in regards to preparedness? Would you say we need 2-3 months supply of drinking water? More?

Also, I totally sympathized with your horror story of the heat, the lack of wind, and the mosquitoes, etc. I've often wondered how we'd fare over here with our sweltering weather (those drasted mosquitoes are around in the winter too!)

Ruth

:waveHi Ruth! You'd better believe I'm on board with preparedness! It rather scares me, because I find myself going to levels with it and playing "what if" scenarios with myself that I would have thought NUTS before!

I'm doing so many things differently, that it's hard to choose, I'm afraid this post will be long...OK here goes; I've found that it helps to consider the problem in categories; essentials first: Water, Food, Clothing, Shelter, Power, Medical...and to consider more than one alternative for each. I've done this on paper and by reading the wealth of free info that's out there on the internet. We can be a priceless resource of knowledge for each other...at the cost of an internet connection. Mapping it out on paper first saves panicked impulse purchases that wastes precious resources. Reading the experiences of others also prevents wasting money on things they've tried that are poor quality or don't work.

Believe me, my story is NOTHING compared to thousands of others in our region. Keep in mind that I came home to a minimally damaged home with running water (albeit low pressure) and a town with basically intact infrastructure, even though powerlines were down everywhere and many roads were impassable. We had NO flooding. That factor alone was critical to us. In many areas, the flooding went up into people's attics, as you may remember from the news accounts.

From a preparation point of view, even people who had extensive supplies would have lost all of them in the floodwaters, even if they had moved them into the attic. It's that kind of thing that has me thinking "Plan B,C, and D." For example: storing a major portion of "preps" away from your home, but where? A storage facility (expensive) a vacation cabin (even more expensive) a friend's home who lives out of your area (you could in return store for them...and unlikely you will both be affected at the same time...that could work!!) I'm doing that kind of brainstorming that costs nothing but time, that I consider well spent.

Also, keep in mind that even the essentials take up a LOT of space. To put it into perspective, just a single routine grocery shop for a family can easily fill the trunk of a car; all that is consumed within a week or two. We're talking about having several months supplies here; some people are storing for even longer. So, think storage bins (rubbermaid), clean garbage cans (can also be used to collect rainwater or to store water), vaccuum sealers (protection from floodwaters, but expensive/difficult to waterproof everything), metal adjustable/rolling shelving (adaptive to changing needs, strong...Sams Club has good ones that aren't outrageously expensive) Sentry has a waterproof/fireproof safe in a couple of sizes; it's heavy but an essential for your important papers. Under $50 too; $$ well spent.

You've asked me about the heat. You're right, it is a HUGE concern; you can DIE from heatstroke, after all. OK, here's my hard-earned .02.....with extended power outages, you have to think alternative power, which is available in more than one form, from cheap (Fans) to very, very expensive. (Solar Panels, Windmills) So your means will dictate what you are able to do.

Most of our modern houses are built with A/C systems in mind. Old houses were built with things like window placement to take advantage of cross-ventilation, transoms that could be opened for the same purpose, high ceilings, porches to provide shade. Well, I learned this: I DO have high ceilings in my newer house, AND a lot of trees shading it (that only by the grace of God did not fall through our roof). It made no difference, since the window placement did not allow for cross ventilation, and there was no breeze anyway.

So, what to do? One was to use a generator (which burned gasoline) to power a small window A/C or some fans to one bedroom so you could at least sleep at night and maybe to your refrigerator/freezer. Even in our hurricane-prone area, relatively few own generators. They are very noisy, the decent ones are very expensive, they burn a lot of (rationed, scarce) gasoline/diesel, they are a target of thieves (the noise says: Hello! We're home and we're prepared!) Now, I've noticed in our local Home Depot a model that is hardwired into your home and runs off natural gas, which would eliminate hauling gas or diesel. It's very expensive, and in some types of situations would natural gas be safe? Big explosion risk. Some people DIED because they didn't know you can't use these things indoors or wired them incorrectly, etc. We decided not to demonstrate our ignorance and passed on the idea of a generator. You must know in advance what you are doing with those things.

We got our power back in about two weeks, so we just toughed it out. (unfun) After the storm, entrepreneurs have come up with a lot of alternatives. My favorite cheap one is battery powered fans that run on D cells. About $20-30 each. I have four of them, as well as two car fans that run off "cigarette lighter" plugs (Murphy's law is alive and well...our car A/C went out during the evacuation...that was fun!) I also got one of those self-contained battery jumpers for cars that have standard electrical plugs in them. I got mine at K Mart. You can plug a small fan, electric light, your cell phone charger, etc. into it. The unit recharges either by electricity in your house or in an emergency by the cigarette lighter plug in your car. Very limited uses, but under $100 for a nice one. And it jumpstarts your car or puts air in your tires with no outside help, which makes it worth it for that alone. For several complicated reasons, I came back before the all-clear, and had I broken down there would have been no one to help, so I'd invest in one of these multipurpose units.

This sounds silly, but believe me it worked. Soak kitchen towels in ice water, if ice is available and roll them up and put them around your neck. Cools you off a lot; I've read somewhere that it cools the blood going to your brain...all I know is that it helped a lot. Also, an old-fashioned cologne called "florida water" used along with that keeps the towel cool much longer. That also works, why I don't know.

You asked about water. That's a critical problem, especially in extreme heat. We didn't really care much about eating, but went through much more water for drinking purposes alone than the 1-2 gallons a day that is recommended. I'm in the process of moving out of this godforsaken area, (please pray for our house to sell, by the way!) so I've not done anything about bulk water storage, and I'm not comfortable about that. However, I have gathered several very cheap items that will allow me to collect and store some quickly should another emergency happen in the meantime.

Go to a Dollar General, or similar type store and get some of those plastic tubs with the rope handles, for $6 each. I must have about 6-8 of them that I've kept clean and ready for use, for water storage AND for washing clothes if need be. They, along with those blue tarps, can also be used to collect rainwater (which is much cleaner than pond/ditch water). I also have a BIG plastic Rubbermaid lawn cart. The thing is sturdy and has big wheels. It could collect rainwater, haul firewood, etc. If I had any advance notice, I'd simply fill them up with municipal water from my tap. Also keep several jugs of regular Clorox bleach for water purification. Being from southern Louisiana, I also own a "Crawfish Pot" and two propane canisters, so I can boil a large quantity of water outside if need be. For those who don't know what that is, it's basically a huge stockpot. DPFan had a good suggestion about the Berkey filter, that's on my list but funds are low right now.

I'd suggest keeping several cases of individual water bottles, as many as you have room for. They will save on having to wash glasses and cups when water supplies are low, and may help people from getting sick from improperly washed dishes and glasses; dishwashers sterilize much better than we can by hand, but aren't available in power outages. Also easier to throw them into an ice chest; it really helped having COLD drinks in that heat. Also, cases of gallon size jugs are very helpful/convenient for cooking purposes, and cut down on the amount of water you will have to boil if you are on a "boil order" like we were.

I'm also saving the jugs from the "Arizona" brand of tea; they're very heavy gauge food grade plastic. A good "free" way to stock up on water. Some of the lighter jugs tend to leak. I've seen other jugs that some juices come in that are heavier as well. Just an idea for those with limited funds or for anyone who wants to be frugal.

I know this response has been long; I can't seem to help myself when I get started on this topic...but if I can help anyone else realize the necessity of being prepared as one can (while leaving the rest in God's hands) it's worth it. You wouldn't believe the things I've learned from posts like DPFan's and others of the same mindset. Many of the smaller details and ideas can make a huge difference, and needn't always be expensive. Your first post was awesome and stated everything in a very succinct and orderly way...I tend to ramble...

Abigail

[RRuth]

WHERE did you get your battery powered fans? I want some!

Ruth

[Abigail]

Thanks for all your information! A wealth of info, and much needed.

We have a tropical storm headed for Texas right now. Fortunately, I live on a hill, so all these floods haven't affected my home. But due to unforseen weather damages, our city water could be placed on boil alert, interrupted electricity, etc. Happened so many times!

WHERE did you get your battery powered fans? I want some!

Ruth

You're most welcome; hope some of it helps you. I bought my fans at both Bed Bath and Beyond and Winn Dixie (grocery) I THINK I've seen them at Linens n Things, but I'm not sure. They take eight D cells, but that's also why they put out a decent amount of breeze too.

Here's a link that I hope works: http://www.bedbathandbeyond.com/product.asp?order_num=-1&SKU=14055045

Hope the storm spares you or at least won't be too bad...off to check out weather.com!!:typing

Take care...Abigail