Is anyone preparing for the future?

[Riverrose28]

well I thought I was prepared, guess what, I'm not. Last night we had a sever storm move through with several tornados. I had already gone to bed, nearly jumped out of my skin when the storm hit, I swear the house was moving. The first problem was I had bottled water and coffee, but was out of charcoal, so no coffee, bad enough no air conditioning, so dogs and I slept on the deck after the storm, skeeters tore me up, so now I need to buy netting! I was so pround of myself last night as dinner was all we provided, potatoes from the garden, peas from the garden, and eggs from the chickens, well, I didn't fill all the water bottles, so my poor chickens had to wait for water after the power came back on. I guess I'm learning as I go.

 

[Boss Mare]

I am not prepared and don't plan to be....what happens, happens. However, there were some awful storms last night in MD! I was prepared enough with a generator, candles and water.. Always have some sort of canned food or food worthy of grilling. Fortunately lost power for only minutes thankfully we are usually in a good location and don't lose power long term. Even last year with hurricane Irene it was 1.5 days.

 

[susanne]

Michelle, If it were just a matter of SHTF paranoia, I'd be with you, but as you mentioned, there are many reasons for and many degrees of preparedness and self-sustainable living. Many would reject my reasons (not wanting to depend on big agri, petroleum interests and banks), yet have their own. Storms can isolate to a frightening extent and are an excellent reason to be prepared for at least a week.

Riverrose, Yours is an excellent heads up.

 

[Boss Mare]

I think those prepared and are striving to be or are self sustained or mostly are quite admirable.

Just won't work for me, considered.. Wavered.

I don't even have a desire to go camping without common luxuries.. Nonetheless be without power for any fair amount of time. Last year during hurricane Irene - lost power at approximately 6pm by the next night I was in a hotel room only to have power come back on at 9pm. Numerous others in and around my location went a week or more. Thankful for our location.

 

[chandab]

I don't even have a desire to go camping without common luxuries..

Me, too!

Nonetheless be without power for any fair amount of time. Last year during hurricane Irene - lost power at approximately 6pm by the next night I was in a hotel room only to have power come back on at 9pm. Numerous others in and around my location went a week or more. Thankful for our location.

We had a bad winter storm knock out our power, we were without for 10 days, we got by with a generator and a propane heater. With livestock, you gotta just stick it out. It sucked, but so glad it was a relatively mild winter.

 

[circlesinthesand]

I don't think any of us really WANT to go without the comforts, but I think sometimes we will need to regardless of what we want. I was like you, I always evacuated to hotels, until the dang hotels were the ones getting hit. For Hurricane Lily we lost power at the hotel before we lost power at home (I know I had left my cat at home and was calling to talk to him during the Hurricanes, praying I still had a home to go home to) so I went home. Home was ok, but the surrounding area ended up being severely damaged, we were out of power for 3 weeks and I spent that time at my MIL's who at least had a generator.

Then Hurricane Rita hit and we had just watched the heck that was Katrina so we evacuated to Arkansas...only to have the same thing happen (hotel lost power and tornadoes were dropping down all around us) and we were farther away from home. Again, weeks til we were restored. Each time my home was fine, it was the surrounding areas that caused the power loss.

Then in the middle of a clear and pretty week, I was working from home, lost power when the rain started, decided to take a nap then woke up to water coming in my front door. I lost my home to a freak flood that dropped 18 inches of rain in about a 5-6 hour period in what the news people called a Train of Storms. I called my husband to tell him that water was coming into the house. I needed him to come pick me up on the highway because my car was underwater and if I backed out onto the street I'd surely flood the engine.

(BTW, the water went up from there after I packed what I could and left, it ruined the engine and interior and was a total loss)

So calmly called my husband, explained the situation and politely asked if he could please come get me and the dogs the heck out of there, I'd appreciate it. He thought I was joking. Took me 3 phone calls, the last of which was a hysterical rant as the water was really pouring in by that point, and making him call his sister (who is with the state department of health and safety) for him to realize I meant what I said. When he had left that morning the drainage ditches were dry and where he was working about 45mins away there wasn't a cloud in the sky. Heck when I decided to take my nap it was still pretty dry, certainly nothing to worry about, then I walked down the hall and splash. Dang, did a pipe bust? nope...just a little rainstorm. When all was said and done and they let us back into the evacuated area, I ended up with over 2 feet in my house, ruined appliances, ruined furniture, ruined walls, ruined boxes of papers and photos in the bottom of my closet. Just Lots of ruined.

THEN hubby got a job with the sheriff's office and is required to stay in the parish even during evacuations. So we have stayed at my dad's new house (that is what I'm modeling my house after.) We lost power for Ike and the other one that hit about the same time...sorry it was Gustav then Ike. We had the generator running in an hour's time after the power went, didn't loose a single frozen food, kept everything going and were cool and comfortable. I figure if it's gonna get ya it's gonna get ya no matter the time, place or preparation but I figure you might as well be home and as comfortable as possible so I try being prepared and ready to be as self sufficient as much as possible so we can just ride it out.

The rest is a push for sustainable living but also a push for HEALTHY living.

 

[MajorClementine]

We have about a 3 month supply of food (canned goods etc) at all times. Stuff that can take a beating or be underwater for a bit and still be okay. We also have mega huge first aid kits (duffel bag size) in each vehicle and one in the house. Hubby is an EMT so this is a must for us. We are putting together a 72 hour kit for our family this summer. I grow a lot of the produce we eat and we have chickens for eggs and meat. They are hardy breeds that go without supplemental heat or light all winter. We also consider owning our horses and guns as part of our preparedness. You never know durning an evacuation if the roads will be too congested to get out. There are also a lot of old hunting and mine shacks in the mountains around here and if we have to we can head up into the mountains and live for quite a while. We've got heavy bedrolls and tents in a place we can grab them quickly. It may sound extreme but we've enjoyed gathering up what we need and making a plan for the "what-ifs" in life. It's nice for us to know that should something happen we can be self sustaining and not have to wait for the red cross or someone to bail us out.

 

[Bess Kelly]

I -- like many on this forum -- live on retirement income, some part-time work and have a "larger than most" herd of minis (38). Many are elders (ten 24-29) and having served me well when my farm was young, showing regularly, breeding, etc., etc., so they have earned and are receiving comfortable retirements, I LOVE that I can still provide for and enjoy them.

Preparedness in part of life. Living 50 miles from East Coast of VA means we have a need to prepare for the annual hurricane and Nor'Easters that frequent us. Our winters are "mild" but, limbs on power lines are a threat as are ice/snow on roads. While my preparations are often of a seasonal nature, I also have to consider I have no partner to help me and mom lives here with the big "A".

For ME it is necessary to have a least a week of readiness......animal feeds, personal needs, etc. A new generator comes in next week.

Economy plays a role in my forward thinking. "Set" income needs to cover the ever increasing increases in costs. One way to do this is to grow some veggies, have eggs, chickens, pastures, etc., all available. So that is my personal way of being prepared. Old age and owning minis is not for the faint of heart

I vividly remember my grandmother making soap, vinegar, canning, butchering, etc. Have always loved to be able to do this (she had NO electric, wood stove, drop a bucket well, outhouse, etc.). I can butcher, can and do most of my own repair work. Hey, you can't run to a motel with 38 minis in tow...

Can you?

 

[dixie_belle]

I remember a time when canned veggies were on sale 10 for $1.00 If you would have told me that these same canned veggies would be over $1 a piece, I would not have believed you. I am not stocking up on freeze dried foods. They have a 25 year shelf life. Can you imagine that????? So if something happens, I can eat well now. And if nothing happens I have a huge stockpile of foods that I can eat up to 25 years from now. AND I paid for it in today's dollars. If a can of green beans is over $1 now, just imagine what it will be 25 years from now. Heck, I may not eat these cans, I may sell them and make money. But it pays to be safe.

This year, as an experiment, I started a veggie garden. I'll get a pressure canner next year so I can can my veggies rather than freeze them like I did this year. We're doing as much as we can to be as self sufficient as possible.

And my best asset is my husband who is sorta like McGyver. He can build anything, fix anything, do anything. Our "storm shelter" will be awesome when it is finished. It'll hold 1000 gallons of water, a 10 x 10 pantry, full kitchen and run on our solar panels if need be. And it'll be underground so heating and cooling will not be a concern no matter what the outside temperature is.

I absolutely hate this feeling of "what if". I feel like there is a black cloud hovering over us. I hate to admit it, but I'm sorta scared of the future.

Does anyone else feel this way?

 

[Bess Kelly]

I love being able to have some control over the chemicals in food and the cans they are often put into. The next thing of any monetary size that I'd like to have at my farm are some solar panels. Well, a set-up of solar power for use. That would be awesome. I'm not nuts over all this but, I do have a frugal outlook. I've had a life blessed with much.

Currently have some solar lights in a couple sheds, and two very reliable solar fence chargers. I'm putting in a small greenhouse at this time from mostly recycled materials. Not hyper about things but I personally would like an amount of self sufficiency that makes me comfortable for future support. It has enabled me to stay comfortable. Used to love to sit in the cellars of grandparents and marvel at the jars and jars of canned food.

 

[Riverrose28]

I've been canning my own veggies for decades! That way I know how much salt and no preservatives, I also can jams and jellies, and have even won a few prizes at the county fair. Problem sometimes is Mother Nature, we lost all our corn and green beans already, so I went a got more seed this morning for a late crop, our lettece also burnt up. The heat is oppressive. The storm that came through here last Fri. night did teach me a lesson, we need to be set up all the time, not just in the winter, and things need to be more accessable, not tucked away in a closet. So now the air mattress is on a table in my bedroom, all water is done everyday, nothing is put off till tomorrow! WE had decided after the storm that if the power was still off that evening we would gas up the generator and do water, then hook it to the horse trailer, (we have living quarters with air) and take the dogs in there with us. I'm an old woman with OA and just getting up and down on the deck was a job, but I can't leave my fur babies they are used to sleeping with Mom!

 

[Jill]

Just saw this and boy does it tie in so well with this topic and current events.

"Will anyone call out Jon Stewart, Stephen Colbert, and other leftists on TV who mocked me for advocating emergency preparedness? How are they feeling today as local New York reporters say people are literally dumpster diving for food and supplies?" -- Glenn Beck

http://www.glennbeck.com/2012/11/02/flashback-stephen-colbert-mocks-food-insurance-preppers/

 

[JennyB]

There is nothing wrong with being prepared for disasters...gardens, your own food, guns, ammo, etc. We have those things, but I would like to be MUCH more self-sufficent than we are now...I just hope we are Raptured before the Tribulation days come, then we won't have to worry about any worries

Hard for people in big cities who rely on city water. If there was anyway possible for you to collect rain water...water in my opinion is the #ONE thing you can't have enough of.

Blessings, especially for the folks who have been harmed by Hurricane Sandy

Jenny

 

[dixie_belle]

Funny how this topic is so relevant today, after the terrible storm up north. And when I hear the people moaning about they are hungry because they have no food, it reminds me how glad I am that I have prepared. We can go a long, long time without going to the grocery store. My food stores will surely outlive me! My kids are going to wonder what I was thinking when they find all this. Hopefully I'll never need any of it. But if I do, I will sure be happy it's here. And not only do I have food that has an expiration date of 25 years, but we've got two 500 gallon water barrels.

 

[2minis4us]

No, not preparing, but we do own a grocery store.

 

[Sue_C.]

I have to wonder though...how having a fully stocked cellar is going to help one when it too, is under several feet of water? That is the problem I see...how CAN one be "prepared" when something so out of the ordinary happens?

 

[susanne]

.

I suppose it's bad form to quote oneself, but I will anyway...While I tend to scoff at the doomsday prophesies, being prepared to weather at least a week or two on your own is simply common sense. Even fairly ordinary events (power outages, ice storms, floods, etc.) can be disastrous if we don't prepare. I agree with Sue regarding the possible negative of huge food stores, but that's no reason not to have at least a reasonable backup. A supply of canned foods can withstand most disasters and could save your lives.

One of the most important things they tell diabetics (esp. type I) is that what may be a minor inconvenience to most, such as a traffic jam, can be life threatening to a diabetic without emergency food. Then there are cases like Katrina, ice storms, even the recent Colorado hailstorm and other natural disasters that can isolate people and wreak havoc upon the unprepared. Whatever the reason, everyone should be prepared for at least a week of isolation, and that includes food and water for pets and livestock. We were hit by a freak 3 foot snowfall just as we needed to buy hay. We could not get out of our driveway, let alone down our mountain road. Fortunately one of our neighbors had a barn full of hay and a tractor, so we were okay, but we learned our lesson -- we always buy hay before we run low.