Posted on 05/12/2012 2:48:24 PM PDT by blam
On a related note, I read an article here that Joplin is recovering much better from their tornado than Tuscaloosa (I know that’s a different AL tornado). This was attributed to way too much gov’t regulation in Tuscaloosa (”we want upgrade the look of the city when rebuilt”), vs. a loosening of regulation in Joplin (”we want the city rebuilt, we’ll get out of the way”).
Here, I think this is the article I read:
http://mercatus.org/expert_commentary/tornado-recovery-how-joplin-beating-tuscaloosa
I’ve been calling the lever action rifle “the original assault rifle” for years. Not a bad plan, especially in the East in built up or wooded areas where you really don’t need much range. If you might need to make shots at 100 yards or more, you really want a true rifle caliber, and a not a pistol caliber carbine.
Thanks for the ping to this.
>>>>take the water you use to soften the beans overnight and drink it.
>>Don’t do that. It contains the tri-saccharides and the breakdown products that WILL cause gastric distress.
Isn’t that the stuff that Beano breaks down? Would it be good to include a couple bottles of Beano in your prep supplies, along with the beans?
That’s an excellent response, thank you. Prepping seems to be somewhere between surviving on your own for two years and getting by if the power is out for 72 hours. But it certainly doesn’t hurt anything to at least be ready for that 72 hour part.
” That’s an excellent response, thank you. Prepping seems to be somewhere between surviving on your own for two years and getting by if the power is out for 72 hours. “
In extremis, Prepping is about surviving long enough to be able to adapt to a new reality - one in which very little that we rely on and take for granted exists, or is relevant..
Thus, for me, the underlying basis for all of my preparations is mental and emotional — developing the skills and attitudes necessary to carry on - and thrive - after the stored supplies run out....
I Googled Insulin + shelf life and get discussion forums about it but nothing definitive. Answers range from 30 days to 2 years, that’s a rather wide range.
I don’t use insulin but my wife does and the doc prescribes it for 30 days at a time.
I know money is not that important when it comes to things like this but I have no idea what it even costs as all we pay is a $5 co pay and I know for a fact that all our insurer will pay for is 30 days at a time.
The money part wouldn’t stop me but I seriously doubt that the doctor could be talked into much more that a 60 or 90 day supply. I am going to talk to him, he probably knows more about the realistic shelf life than I’ve been able to find on the internet anyway.
We have canned food stored and some dried food and at any given time about a dozen or so cases of bottled water in and near our garage refrigerator, we drink a lot of water and rotate the stock, in addition we are also pretty well stocked up on non perishables. I’d like to do more but there’s a practical matter of limited space.
I’ve never owned more than two guns and a moderate supply of ammo, I’m currently the owner of only 1 gun, a .357, 7 shot revolver I keep at bed side.
Side story - a couple of years back when an ice storm knocked out electricity at my mother’s house in Missouri, she was without running water for over a week, rural like area and electric pump. She had gallons and gallons of water stored in the shed, she had labeled them with the date that she stored it, some of it (in milk jugs) was dated in the late 80’s.
My brothers and sisters and I were quick to caution her not to drink it but she was way ahead of us, she used that water for flushing the toilet. She had plenty of sealed bottled water for drinking.
I was thinking that here in the south some extra screen wire could be a good barter item. Be sure to include some No-See-Um Wire in your stash to. (Especially along the coast)
Over at survivalblog.com there are some articles on herbal substitutes and making your own insulin. Some of the articles and links there are from MDs. Not an easy process but something to consider.
Other answers are a propane powered fridge to keep it cool.
Those don’t work here in Florida. The humidity is usually too high.
I don’t know if you have ever read Little House on the Prairie books, but I remember Ma Ingalls added baking soda to dried beans when cooking which supposedly helps with their digestibility. Also I have read it is helpful to add ginger.
Most recently I read about some Indian spices that are commonly used to de-gas beans, which are a major component of their diet. I bought “Ajwain seeds”. To use, multiply your # cups dry beans by 3 (= X). Add 1/4 tsp. Ajwain seeds per (X). So 2 c. dry x 3 = 6, which calls for 1 1/2 tsp. Ajwain seeds.
Re: Insulin
If you have not already read the post apocalyptic novel “One Second After” by William Forstchen you might find it interesting.
Breifly, it is the story of a modern day small town and its residents in the aftermath of an EMP attack. The protagonist has an insulin dependent daughter and has to cope with the limited supply of insulin as well as the preservation of their small personal supply in a world without electricity and refrigeration.
It is a good read and very thought provoking.
I would include whatever I could think of.
For me the goal is not to run to the store and get some emergency supply.
I have bottles of beano and some other gas buster(can’t remember the name) at my office and in two bathrooms at home.
Making a decision to prep or not is a judgement call. People choose to take different paths in llife. This is just one of many life decisions we all face.
IMHO anyone who would take the time to belittle and harange preppers has a serious character flaw.
Conservatives generally accept the fact that different people may have different beliefs and choose to live in different ways. We belive the world is large enough for that kind of diversity as long as it is not destructive to others.
But rabid Islamists, socialists, leftists, racists and many others cannot stand the thought of living in a world where everyone does not agree with their views and does not live according to their rules. Even though many of these people preach diversity the truth is they cannot abide true diversity of thought any more than do militant Islamists. These kind of people cannot just pass by someone engaged in an activity they do not agree with. Just knowing it exists gives them furor and rage.
It looks like we have some people like that on FR - people who cannot just let us have a constructive exchange of ideas and information related to prepping, but instictively become combative when they are exposed to ideas and choices they do not agree with.
Every prepper should own a good 12 gauge shotgun. The Maverick 88 (from Mossberg) can be bought at Wal Mart for $200, and an 18 inch barrel for it can be bought for under $80. The lowly 12 gauge has a wide variety of rounds which can be fired through it, making it a multi-purpose tool. There are several alterations to the ammo which an individual can make to improve the ‘impact’ of the cheapest rounds (cut shells, wax slugs, bird shot melted and molded to make slugs to put back in the primed and powdered shells).
“I only buy during the glut during harvest.November/December”
Excellent advice. I hadn’t thought of that. Perhaps that’s why I thought I got such a smokin’ good deal this last purchase ‘cause it was right around that timeframe.
I use the popcorn popper with an 18” screen “chimney” stuck in it to keep the hyper-energetic beans from escaping. I stopped by the local thrift store the other day looking for Coleman stuff, and happened to notice they had two of them sitting on the shelf. One was marked $1 and the other $1.25.
It’s interesting to me that more people don’t consume their coffee this way. The benefits are without question. It’s much cheaper, stores for a hell of a long time, the process of roasting is simple and enjoyable, you roast it to your desired finish (dark, medium, lighter, blended, etc) and the final product can’t be matched by commercially roasted bean. Freshness goes without sayin’.
This is so true.
Over the years I have kept a list of FReepers who exhibit these flaws...once they're on the 'list', they'll never get another word from me.
This jerk Yardstick made the list last night.
From what I can tell, all the cool kids on the coffee forums do it. I haven’t yet but probably should.
No it doesn't. You simply can't prepare enough to escape the roving bands of unemployees!
In a true SHTF situation, what are you going to do when confronted by desperate parents who have to listen to the heart rending cries of their children going to bed without any Xbox or SpongeBob?
How are you going to hold off the entire state of Rhode Island when they show up at your door ready to kill for a canapé?
Sure, you talk big now, but when all the non-preppers become bullet-proof, special forces, terminators, I'm just going to sit back and laugh, because you were foolish enough to prepare for an inescapable conclusion!
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