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Nor' Easter, I don't know what you mean exactly about other people. To me that depends i guess on what you mean. Prety much for me it is my wife n' me. We rent and share this place with the land lord owner, who allows us about anything we ask for in land use, so foods we grow count him, and if they didn't I would have no idea what to do with the current surplus.
Living rural, most of our friends live far away, mostly out of state. I won't mind other people, but in SHTF most of them will be total stangers as I see it. For them I will feed them once, maybe fix their stuff if I am told of it, but once that's done I would want them to leave.
The other option is to call me Boss and go work in the garden, or woods, getting in the things that matter to ME.
'IF' I were on the move i might like a single meal, and if not, hang out doing work i would do anyway which my hopes would be shared labor for one common cause, which is to live another day.
In SHTF, I am thinking I could be pretty handy to have around. I can run a little forge for simple things, work in tool stone and kinda know some skills in a wide scope of things, that no one today considers very important. Once in a while I even get hired for some of them.
I am cheating of course since these skills are going past 30 years learning.
Nor' Easter, I don't know what you mean exactly about other people. To me that depends i guess on what you mean. Prety much for me it is my wife n' me. We rent and share this place with the land lord owner, who allows us about anything we ask for in land use, so foods we grow count him, and if they didn't I would have no idea what to do with the current surplus.
Living rural, most of our friends live far away, mostly out of state. I won't mind other people, but in SHTF most of them will be total stangers as I see it. For them I will feed them once, maybe fix their stuff if I am told of it, but once that's done I would want them to leave.
The other option is to call me Boss and go work in the garden, or woods, getting in the things that matter to ME.
'IF' I were on the move i might like a single meal, and if not, hang out doing work i would do anyway which my hopes would be shared labor for one common cause, which is to live another day.
In SHTF, I am thinking I could be pretty handy to have around. I can run a little forge for simple things, work in tool stone and kinda know some skills in a wide scope of things, that no one today considers very important. Once in a while I even get hired for some of them.
I am cheating of course since these skills are going past 30 years learning.
This is Nov 1st 2010, me of course.
paid too.
Just a note Mac to really really be prepared and something to work towards it to own your home not rent. You never know if your landlords situation might change and all your hard work that you done is going to end in vain so make 2011 the year that you own your own home no matter what it takes!!!!
No, any day the Govt wants it can say the dollar is worth less than a roll of toliet paper, and claim the houses on the lands whether or not you have a vault full of papers that are sort of green.
no matter what happens to the LL, I have Rights to the garden till that harvest is over. I don't need to sleep in a box to have those Rights. The Govt can't take that Right, and i have every Right to defend the garden from friend, foe, and tasty varmints.
If I wanted to I could take the soil too since I made it all. I doubt I would go that far, but I own that soil. This place used to be the fair grounds and where we are is the old 1 mile oval race track, which was clear cut and stripped of all the top soil. The fair grounds closed for good in 1930. The LL brags about the 60x 100 garden and the fact i made the soil, so everyone around here knows i made that soil and I am making more now. In spring I expect about 12 cubic yards like I did last year, more. Not sure what to do with that. The garden will be no bigger.
Well you caught me in another lie. Last fall I removed soil and 1/2 of the strawberries from the that much of the garden and made a new patch apx 20 x 38, where along the edges will be more punkins, maybe squash. If I don't rid myself of 200 really good strawberry plants some time over next harvest i am going to have a problem. The old patch is 100 x 4 feet.
I can still sleep in the National Forest for so long as I please. I did it before and so know I can do it anytime I want. Now I know no none will even bother to come looking for me.
Why are you giving me almost good advice anyway? I hope your ok, but gotta wonder since you and I do not see things a like a bit.
Aptor, I expect the LL will live here untill he dies. Since over time we became friends, and he sees the fruit of the labor, I will also care and feed him in SHTF. He knows that, we feed him now. he does 0 labor in the garden, but pays the land taxes, which we share, and he pays the power for the pumps, which we share, but most of his shares are food which is cleaned and cooked for him, hot meals served up and he does not wash a dish if we get to it first.
He may die before my wife (48) and me (59) but no one knows that for sure. If that happens I will find another like situation or live in the woods which is not a problem for me.
Most any B&B will hire a labor, wood lot manager, horse ride trail rider, barn keeper, sleigh driver any place in the USA I might like to go. They like the tooling and that I can fix about anything they got that breaks. I am not worried a bit. Here I get a 1 ton truck a car carrier trailer, a bob cat skid steer, a mini toyota truck to use as if they were mine. I own another 4x4 full size plow truck, a 3/4 ton van with no rust, a car 85' Volvo turbo, 2 motorcycles, and 2 trailers.
I have a full complement of car tech tools torches welder, air compressor, mine. The LL has a full blown machine shop, is a machinits and a real electrical engineer, and he has that type of tooling.
We duplicate power wood working tools in part, but I have some he doesn't have, and his shop has tools I don't have but we don't have the ned to ask to borrow any tools.
I have 18th and 19th century wood working tools, more for working stone, more for sewiing cloth and leather. Some refined for back packing, like a draw shave knife, and other assorted tools to have in a pack for primitive doin's.
Like Alfred Newman WHAT Me Worry? not a chance... If hell goes into a handbasket the day after tomorrow the only thing that will change for me is time. Everyone will be living in 19th century time or worse. Don't get started on my heart meds again, since I don't take any never did and never will.
If not having any kills me so be it.
Just fer you I mashed my left hand really bad Dec 31st. You get to call me dufus! Ain't that nice?
My left hand is a series of tan, pale green and sickly yellow LOL The last ring/pinky fingers don't work very well, but they will be fine, just fine. Now that 60 pound steel plate I was pulling down that came loose suddenly just might go to the junk yard and be made into something Chinese.
Of course before that happens it might get to be a target. I am not too sure I have a rifle that will punch thru that steel plate though. I bet I can dent it good never the less.
Last, i know how to walk away from everything I ever had, and start all new again for so long as I live. Women have been doing that to me since I was 14 years old.
HEY, c'mon everyone...I didn't expect / want this to turn into one mans saga
Really ask yourself - Can you go downstairs, RIGHT NOW, and turn all your utilities OFF and survive for 1 lousy week ??? Let alone a month or 2
Cuzz to be honest, when SHTF, you may not have any warning
I am ready.
Sorry, but I am always up for a good challange. With me you created one. I got around 3,000 Buck Skinner buddies that at least 1/2 would meet this for a month easy.
i had hoped you would just be ammused. Sorry mac
I would have a terrible time with no utilities Thankfully our ENTIRE house runs on a generator if our power goes out I can still run my warm tub, watch TV etc. I know this wouldn't work in the fan scenario, but, in most situations of storms etc. it works just fine
Aptor all that is covered here too, the gennie can run every thing in the shop and the house at the same time till the propane runs out. That counts the tig welder, mig wlder too. Used correctly that might make something over a year with no new propane. I heat my bed room with 4 alladin lamps if I want, 3 have run all evening. I have other oil lamps not in use, that could light the house, and a spare wood stove just not hooked up that could heat the house.
There is enough food here that if nothing else from outside came now, there would still be food here after next harvest. We would lack some meats and things like ice cream if nothing new came, plus dog food.
Mac, no problem, I tend to stay amused on message boards. Or I might be somwhere else...just look at my stats -60 posts in 4 1/2 yrs.
Guess I was really after a lot of posters here to "put their money where the mouth is " so to speak. How many say they can vs how many have. Sort of like sky diving...plan all you want, but till ya jump you will never know if you can.
I still think many will have a problem with long-term survival.
I still think many will have a problem with long-term survival.
Most definitely. Unless you are living far from civilization, it is hard to think of everything you rely on for day-to-day living, even when the power is out for a week. It no longer matters if you have two weeks of food, or a month, or even a year's worth. You have to be able to grow, gather, kill, and save. Not as an aside, no grocery store to supplement, no regulated stove to help can, no rotitiller to turn the soil, etc.
If a SHTF event really happened, it would be a extremely tough few months for most people--even those prepping now, because they would know that they have to make their reserves stretch as far as possible to prepare for the unexpected. (Your crop doesn't come in, you don't make a kill right away, etc.) Mac seems prepared beyond this, and I imagine most of the artic homesteaders are, too.
outnabout, I agree. Sorry to have messed up. I about broke my left hand Dec 31st, so I am killing time. I would prefer to be working on the machine I damnned near broke my hand on, or cutting in the wood pile, or cutting standing dead to make a sugar shack of, or anything besides getting my butt all pins and needles sitting in this chair. It is seldom I am hurt that bad to know I had best set it out or else.
This morning I went to Dover on a errand and am back and have nothing to do. Really I am sorry to have messed this post up.
A lot of people do not see what's coming. I will gladly grant that. My LL has a bad time seeing things ahead, but he is catching on. This morning he was wondering about this Springs probable $4.00 per gallon gasoline, knowing his disel 1 ton dump will cost even more. I made mention that so will toliet paper, dish detergent, and everything also cost more.
Then I said it isn't really these will cost more, but that the dollar is weaker again.
Now I ask a question of you. The other day a silver ingot of .999 fine went to 31 buck on line. A old real silver dollar that had once been in circulation went up to $25.00.
If you compare a fedral reserve note to the silver dollar it takes 25 paper useless trash notes to buy 1 silver dollar.
Since this is true, google Ampex, then it stands to reason that 1 fedral reserve note is worth 1 cents worth of silver. That would be something like 1.12 grams avoirdupois. I made a mistake and used avoirdupois, when I should have used Troy.
So what will a dollar be worth when gasoline is $4.00 a gallon?
Now most people read that and probably roll their eyes and look up. Happens I bet. They just can't get around the idea of a dollar not being worth squat, because it has always been worth something, and fail to get the idea that the fedral reserve is no part of the Govt, or the Govt treasury.
I know if people wake up one morning and on the news if there is any, and find the dollar is suitable for butt wipe, then they will be wide awake, but not doing a whole lot.
About the time panic sets in and they call somebody like the cops, and find the cops won't work for free, I expect there will be a massive problem. I just won't be party to the problem myself.
So what do you think?
crazyme, yeah my lifestyle is a little different. I simple refuse to be dependant on anyone. Once this old ways was a hobby, that grew to be a life style, then with open eyes I saw this day coming years ago.
Took a ride around the USA looking for a better place to be, and found I had left it behind. Since then what matters to live has been all I have been doing.
If the SHTF, and I need transport i am gonna steal Aptors horse I have that skill set too LOL
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I mashed my left hand really bad Dec 31st. You get to call me dufus! Ain't that nice?
Thankfully our ENTIRE house runs on a generator if our power goes out
I can still run my warm tub, watch TV etc. I know this wouldn't work in the fan scenario, but, in most situations of storms etc. it works just fine
