I was so glad to find your work right after reading about the horror of tank bottoms. It keeps me informed but not scared beyond a reasonable level. Adaption is going to be the key for all of us - unbridled panic doesn't do anything constructive. And that's you - your voice is the calm bridle on my daily panic moments.
Glad we found each other! This summer has been a great course in threat response. As I learned on a deeper level, you don't do what we did out of fear. It was a challenge. It was work. It was learning. It was incredibly frustrating at times, but also deeply rewarding.
Tbh, we are still on 25 harvests, fertilizer, fuel, lubricants etc. The shortages and high prices will be felt eventually and go exponentially longer than the primary conflict caused shortages.
We've been living with these threats for five years now. They're perennial threats. So, yes, stay prepared. Be so prepared that it's not even "preparing" anymore. It's just how you go. Need tires? Don't wait to replace them. But also, understand that you have to balance your desire to buy two sets of spare tires with your other needs and capabilities. That's what I'm saying.
You’re the best, Jessica, and I hope you know that. Not perfect — none of us is — but doing & figuring out hard things, and then sharing the lessons learned.
Thank you, as always, for the rational approach you bring to a fundamentally irrational situation 🙏
Yes. This is the way. It's funny because I guess that hysteria sells? Because there is no end to the doomers talking about the end of the world. But, the thing that I realized is that if it is the end of the world, no amount of prepping is going to prepare me for it. I can get ready for a couple weeks of supply disruption and I can do that without turning my life upside down. And the fact is that this is what we need to be doing regardless. Stay within your limitations and work with what you have. Thanks for your sense-making, Jess.
A lot of community colleges and online schools offer a version of that designed by the same instructors as an intro to electrical wiring. I took it because it usually counts toward your official certification/education requirements. So, I'd see if that one is offered locally and call the school to verify the credits.
I don't prep for the end times. I prep for every day occurrences. I prep for a paycheck that runs out before the month does. I prep for snowstorms where the roads are impassable for a week or so. I prep for the entire family coming down with the flu and we are unable to shop. I prep for unexpected layoffs and downsizing of companies.
I have a garden because we enjoy eating real tasting food. I've learned to repair before replacing an item because replacing is expensive and the new item is usually crappy. And there is a satisfaction when I do fix something so it's better than before.
I buy food and household supplies at a sale price because I know next week that price will be higher. That stuff sitting in my pantry and being used is our personal savings account. My ten cans of tuna will not save us from Armageddon but it will save us from using the ever increasing price of gas to go shop at the grocery store.
Yes, we are living in frightening times. But I was raised by depression babies who did remember devastating economic down times. Prepping was a given in my childhood household but it wasn't a doomer scenario. It was careful household management. It was just what prudent people did and then you go on with your life.
If you have neighbors with manicured lawns, pulling off all your survivability projects while keeping good relationships with them must have been one of your significant achievements. 😉
I truly love you Jessica. Can I adopt you? I have adopted so many young people as I have attained the Crone status in life. You are special. Don't forget that -special!
Thank you so much for sharing your insights and experiences. They make a real difference! I have appreciated the detail of rain harvesting and am quite intimidated. I have a question to see if you considered and disregarded the idea, and if so why. If asphalt roofing has all the toxins would it make sense to cover the tiles on occasion with some sort of sheeting to get the barrels full with fewer toxic chemicals? I would think it would still need filtering but would the sheeting be helpful to cut down on the filtration needs? I have not tried it but wanted to see what you think. Thanks!
we’ve built a new life off grid . Bit by bit in a grounded way . We don’t even touch growing all the food we need and we are fortunate living in an agrarian Society food is all around us. We have water catchment . We have the basics adobe no need for heat or cooling .. Seed collecting .
I was so glad to find your work right after reading about the horror of tank bottoms. It keeps me informed but not scared beyond a reasonable level. Adaption is going to be the key for all of us - unbridled panic doesn't do anything constructive. And that's you - your voice is the calm bridle on my daily panic moments.
Glad we found each other! This summer has been a great course in threat response. As I learned on a deeper level, you don't do what we did out of fear. It was a challenge. It was work. It was learning. It was incredibly frustrating at times, but also deeply rewarding.
Tbh, we are still on 25 harvests, fertilizer, fuel, lubricants etc. The shortages and high prices will be felt eventually and go exponentially longer than the primary conflict caused shortages.
Stay prepared. Rotate your stock.
Lubricants and rubber (tires) will be hit hard.
We've been living with these threats for five years now. They're perennial threats. So, yes, stay prepared. Be so prepared that it's not even "preparing" anymore. It's just how you go. Need tires? Don't wait to replace them. But also, understand that you have to balance your desire to buy two sets of spare tires with your other needs and capabilities. That's what I'm saying.
Some people’s children 🤬
You’re the best, Jessica, and I hope you know that. Not perfect — none of us is — but doing & figuring out hard things, and then sharing the lessons learned.
Thank you, as always, for the rational approach you bring to a fundamentally irrational situation 🙏
Yes. This is the way. It's funny because I guess that hysteria sells? Because there is no end to the doomers talking about the end of the world. But, the thing that I realized is that if it is the end of the world, no amount of prepping is going to prepare me for it. I can get ready for a couple weeks of supply disruption and I can do that without turning my life upside down. And the fact is that this is what we need to be doing regardless. Stay within your limitations and work with what you have. Thanks for your sense-making, Jess.
What course on electrical wiring did you take?
I took this one: https://www.ed2go.com/courses/construction-and-trades/trades/ctp/residential-electrician
A lot of community colleges and online schools offer a version of that designed by the same instructors as an intro to electrical wiring. I took it because it usually counts toward your official certification/education requirements. So, I'd see if that one is offered locally and call the school to verify the credits.
Hope this helps!
Thanks. I had forgotten about our local community college.
Yeah. I've been promised The End since I was born. 🙄
I don't prep for the end times. I prep for every day occurrences. I prep for a paycheck that runs out before the month does. I prep for snowstorms where the roads are impassable for a week or so. I prep for the entire family coming down with the flu and we are unable to shop. I prep for unexpected layoffs and downsizing of companies.
I have a garden because we enjoy eating real tasting food. I've learned to repair before replacing an item because replacing is expensive and the new item is usually crappy. And there is a satisfaction when I do fix something so it's better than before.
I buy food and household supplies at a sale price because I know next week that price will be higher. That stuff sitting in my pantry and being used is our personal savings account. My ten cans of tuna will not save us from Armageddon but it will save us from using the ever increasing price of gas to go shop at the grocery store.
Yes, we are living in frightening times. But I was raised by depression babies who did remember devastating economic down times. Prepping was a given in my childhood household but it wasn't a doomer scenario. It was careful household management. It was just what prudent people did and then you go on with your life.
👏👏👏🏆
If you have neighbors with manicured lawns, pulling off all your survivability projects while keeping good relationships with them must have been one of your significant achievements. 😉
I truly love you Jessica. Can I adopt you? I have adopted so many young people as I have attained the Crone status in life. You are special. Don't forget that -special!
I've bought some things from the farm stand, but still haven't really been in a grocery store yet. I'm assuming prices went up?
Some of us are old enough to remember the wisdom of the master:
"It ain't over till it's over." -Yogi Berra (1947)
(Plagiarized for profit by Lenny Kravitz... without accreditation)
Thank you so much for sharing your insights and experiences. They make a real difference! I have appreciated the detail of rain harvesting and am quite intimidated. I have a question to see if you considered and disregarded the idea, and if so why. If asphalt roofing has all the toxins would it make sense to cover the tiles on occasion with some sort of sheeting to get the barrels full with fewer toxic chemicals? I would think it would still need filtering but would the sheeting be helpful to cut down on the filtration needs? I have not tried it but wanted to see what you think. Thanks!
Slowly since November 2020
we’ve built a new life off grid . Bit by bit in a grounded way . We don’t even touch growing all the food we need and we are fortunate living in an agrarian Society food is all around us. We have water catchment . We have the basics adobe no need for heat or cooling .. Seed collecting .