Anybody doing any Prepping??

[pete42]

The prepping I do is the same each month. I spend $75.00 each and every month on canned food and donate it to the local food bank as there's people that need it more then me.

That's very generous of you
Something we all should try to do give what you can.

[Wild Bill]

If you have outdoor skills you have a good start. Check out this web site, lots of information out there. www.chefnoah.com Hope for the best and prep for the worst!
Bill

[Catherine+twins]

I have always lived where summer storms knock out the power, and winter storms knock out the power and leave you snowed in, even in town. I spent about half of my childhood on a farm, miles from town, and was taught to make a grocery list and buy for at least a week at a time, no driving to town on a moment's notice to buy something I/we forgot. And of course, when we butchered a steer or all of the cockerels from a hatch of chicks, we had meat in the freezer for quite a while. We had staples in the pantry--flour, sugar, salt, baking powder,pasta, rice, dry beans, cans of soup and vegetables. We didn't call it "prepping," but we always had a variety of food for at least a week, usually a month, and more if we ate a more limited diet.

We had friends and neighbors who stored enough food for a year. I was always told it was just in case the family breadwinner lost his job and the family fell on hard times. Made sense to me. I felt like a slacker, not having a specific list to prove how long I could live on my pantry supplies. I'm not obsessive about it, but I have my mother's and step-mother's habits of maintaining a supply of staples and canned goods, not to mention a freezer with a variety of meats (and 27 freezer bags with 2 cups each of pumpkin puree from this year's enormous pumpkins!). I also grow a garden every year, and we have a couple of hens in the back yard that lay eggs about 8 months out of the year. I figure I can easily feed us for about 3 months, if we eat a lot of pumpkin soup. In gardening weather, I can feed us much longer.

So, am I prepping? Well, not for the end of the world. I'm prepared for life (power outages, heavy rain, heavy hail, heavy snow, even loss of natural gas, as happened in neighboring counties for over a week a couple of years ago). Civil unrest? I don't see it happening, but if it does, well, the town where I live does have a history of rolling up it's welcome mats and sealing itself off from everyone else.

[S. Heisley]

Being prepared is especially important if you have any food allergies. (There's no way that I could eat those MREs.) Here are a few things that I've come to understand that might be helpful:

Plan to rotate your food by stocking in a convenient location & using it as a part of your regular meals, replacing it as you use it.
I was keeping a 90 day supply of food in containers, under the guest bed. But, what I discovered is that, when it's too far from the kitchen area, food doesn't get rotated like it should. So, this winter, I'll be adding extra shelves to my pantry to store extra food on, to make it easier to rotate.

Food and Water storage in more than one place is good!
You never know what is going to happen. You can stock your home with food and water and that works okay if you are in a "shelter in place" situation. However, look at what happened to the people who met the fury of Hurricane Sandy! Many homes flooded and some burned to the ground.

Keep some canned goods on hand.
People used to think that if they stored a good supply of dehydrated food, they were ready. But, you need water to drink and to reconstitute dehydrated foods. We have since seen that, in a disaster, finding safe drinking water can be very difficult and storing or carrying a lot of water may be problematic. If you have some canned soups (preferably low/no salt varieties) and drinks on hand, you may be able to survive until you can get or make enough safe drinking water.

Keep your trailer's galley stocked.
For most of us who have trailers, stocking that is a no-brainer. Just keep your galley stocked with enough food for a nice, long camp trip. Even when I was tent camping, I always kept at least 3 days worth of food and water ready to load, in case of an evacuation order, earthquake or whatever. A 3-day supply used to be what was suggested, until Katrina hit and we all found out how long we might be without help. On my 3 week camping trip this summer, I took enough food to last the entire trip plus yet it was contained enough to be able to fit in a bear box. I'm going to try to restock those supplies after every camp trip.

Remember to stock health aids (eye glasses, medicines, etc.)
When you get a new pair of glasses, stick the old pair in the glove compartment of your tow vehicle. If something happens to your new glasses, you'll know right where your spare pair are!

If you have medicine that you can't live without, try to stock an extra container of it in your trailer. With some medicines, the pharmacies don't allow you to do that; but, if you talk to your doctor about it, sometimes, he or she can give you free samples or write you a one-time prescription, with the understanding that you promise to rotate your stored medicine with the new. Don't forget to store extra ankle wraps, bandages, aspirin, etc. in your trailer or tow vehicle, too!

Don't forget to store food and water for your pets!
Again, store food and water for your pets in at least two places. If they need medicine, store some of that too. If you are away when a disaster occurs and can't get to your pet, a neighbor might be able to help, if you've thought ahead and have supplies at home. Remember to keep supplies in the trailer for your pet, too!

If you have children, ensure that your school is prepared
Most schools keep enough food on hand to feed all the children for three days, should a disaster strike where the parents can’t pick up their children. However, don’t take that for granted. Call and ask/demand that they do that. If your child happens to be wheat or dairy intolerant, request that the school carry a special supply of food for your child’s needs. Food rations are available for these allergies; but, in most instances, they must be requested in advance.

Those of us on the forum are lucky.
We have the ability to survive, thanks to our shared knowledge and camping abilities. Still, there is always something new to think about or add to what we already knew. Maybe, in some way, the above will help some of you to think of things that hadn't previously come to mind.

Stay safe and well.

[GerryS]

:thinking: Isn't a bad thing to be prepared,is it?

Will

It just worries me that we have become a "we won't share" type of society. Not this forum, but on another one, many seem to be looking forward to the chance to have a civil or I should think, and uncivil war! There's something wrong with that. I'd like to ship them all off to a deserted island so they can get their kicks without harming us pacifistical people.

You should be prepared reasonably. I refuse to spend all my money on guns and ammo for something that should never happen. I guess it is folks who are so fearful, that they have bunkers and stockpiles of ammo. What happens to old caches of ammo?

Like I said, I am prepared in case my area gets cut off by a natural disaster, which does happen every few years here. I don't get the guns out, I take in friends who can't get to their houses, and I have fed neighbors who had moved here recently and didn't know that floods and slides happen.

The great thing was that the friend who was marooned at my house, went out and started helping a woman move her horses to higher ground. That's part of civilized survival.

You're right,it is a shame we are selfish. But Whois REALLY selfish?

I'm more concerned that no one takes responsibility for themselves, an expects a small percentage to take care of everyone.

[S. Heisley]

kinda funny but mom has a bad habit of hoarding food from growing up in a poor sharecropers famly.

we country folks and have been all our lifes used to canning and freezers full of chicken and home grown beef and some times a pig.

going to town for us is every 2 weeks for grocerys.

we do the laundry in town to at the laundry mat due to our well making water for just 10 mintues.

but the story I was going to tell is mom made some fudge one year for christmas and hid it under her bed to keep the men folk me and dad and matt from cleaning her out in one day on christmas day.

well the story short she forgot the dang fudge.

and not kidding she found it a year later on next years christmas.

we ate year old fudge one year no lye!!!!!!!

mom still has a hard time living down that one!!!!!!!!!!

slow

...Love that fudge story, Mike!

[8ball_99]

I do not think they will be able to outlaw guns. I wouldn't be surprised though if they start trying to restrict more and more what you can buy. Assault rifles, High capacity mags, ect.. I really hope they don't get away with it.. I enjoy shooting and consider it a hobby more then anything. The bad guys will always have guns plain and simple.. You remove them from the good guys and all you do is make people easier targets. If a group of guys knows they can break into a home and not get shot at I honestly think we would have many more home invasions then we do now.. And we already have to many here.. Besides a hobby I think having a few good fire arms and ammo is just a good idea. Keep a decent rifle and shotgun for hunting. Have a pistol or two for personal protection. No reason to have a huge stock pile inless its something you use. If there is a major disaster like a flood, storm, power outage, ect. Looting and home invasions are a very real problem. When people need something they dont' have they will do what every they can to get it.. If that means taking it by force from the people that have it. They will. When we had the tornados here and the mass power outage we had tons of looting. Bad enough a dusk till dawn curfew was put into effect in the damaged areas. Also had a couple of shootings that were people defending their homes or business from looters. Law enforcement held a press conference defending it. Saying look people have a right to defend themselves and their personal property.. You come onto to someones property and force your way into their dwelling they have every right to stop you.. Didn't hear as much about looters after that.......

As far as not sharing.. I don't think I should work to take care others that don't.. If I have a family member or friend that falls on hard times. I'll share what I can and help them out. I do not want whats mine to be handed out by someone else to who they see fit.. As far as sharing during a disaster I will to a point. When there wasn't any power around here I loaned out my generator, One of my extra LP tanks ect. Guess what those people that borrowed from me now have their own incase something like that happens again.. Is it selfish to take care of you and your family first and for most? I don't think so.. I also think its everyones responsibility to do the same. So where some might think I'm a little selfish. I think others who don't do some basic planning irresponsible and expecting help from others when everyone has the same problem to be selfish.. If neither one of us can go buy food for a couple weeks. Why should I have to supply someone else because they did not prepare like me? Its my job to provide for my family.. Not my family and my neighbors, that young couple down the road ect..

[Vedette]

Hi Mike
Has the wind stopped out there in Wyoming?
How ar your plans coming along for your new tailer?
Maybe Angie would like a nice 5 wide if you designed it with lots of windows????
Good Roads
Brian

[Vedette]

Hi Mike
A friend is moving back east and came over today to see if I wanted anything he was going to leave behind.
So I dropped over to his place and gathered up a very nice little Bonair popup tent trailer. Thinking it would make a nice TD platform until I saw how nice it was. Too nice to cut up!
Also said I would take the 1973 VW van in his back yard.
He wondered what I was going to do with it as it had no motor???
I can see a cool TD body made from it.
You know me........Think outside of the box, be creative, and build something unique.
Good Roads
Brian

[8ball_99]

lol I think you miss read my post. I did not say I would not help others.. Infact I said during the extended outage here I loaned out quite a bit of items, everything from a 1000 dollar generator to Lp bottles.. I simply said My family comes first. Its not just me I have a wife and 2 boys. In a disaster if I think we have it to spare I don't mind. I was simply saying people expecting help from the people that have because they did not take basic precautions to provide for their family makes them selfish to me. The guy that has just enough for his shouldn't be expected to split his little for the ones with none.. Hope that makes since..

[stumphugger]

Slowcowboy and I both live in rural areas. I think we may be used to having to pull together with neighbors to get things done.
In one little area I lived in, my neighbor across the street had a generator, I had a low riding pickup. We loaded the generator in the pickup and he drove his generator around, plugging in refrigerators just long enough to cool off the freezing compartments.

I still don't have a generator, because then you have to have gas and that is a problem here. I don't want to store a lot of it. Instead, I keep cans of food handy.

My mom did the same thing as Slow's but not the fudge thing. That was good. I also have my precious jars of canned huckleberries--picked and canned by me.

You help your neighbors. They might have a skill to help you in exchange. While my neighbors were charging up refrigerators, I was making them latt'es and cooking on my Coleman stove and sharing.

It has always been quite civil during our disasters. I live in a good place. People aren't rich here. Most are at the other end of the spectrum but know how to get by. Maybe that's the secret?

[rowerwet]

a couple of years ago we had a big ice storm in the northeast that knocked out power to my neighborhood for almost a week, after I figured out how to hook my new generator up to the house a day or so in, I made sure my neighbors knew I had a kerosene heater for them to borrow. when I was away at work (1 hr drive) and we had another big ice storm that took out the power, a couple guys in the neighborhood came over to see if everything was ok and got the generator started for my wife. In the 10 years I lived in Maine I had to shovel less than five times as my neighbor across the street came over in his tractor to clear the snow for no charge. When we had a huge tree that needed to come down, one neighbor got someone who did tree work for a living from church to take it down for cheap, all of the guys in the neighborhood got together and cut the tree up and took care of all the limbs and brush. It was great to know I had neighbors who looked out for each other, now I live in a large city and know some of my neighbors, but half expect some would steal something more than help out in a disaster, storm or flood.

[NathanL]

Living in the country along the gulf coast you always have to be prepared. In the last 20 years I have been without power for 21 days once, 14 days twice and several time of several days. After Katrina I stayed here without leaving the house for just over 3 weeks with no real issues. I keep a 500 gallon tank of diesel that is shared between the truck and tractor and other equipment that is used by the generator. By using it at the right times I was able to stretch it out for 3 weeks and never lost any food in the freezers etc...

The second day after Sandy I saw people standing in front of their house in a middle class neighborhood saying they really needed food (their house didn't flood) and I couldn't understand that at all.

[NathanL]

Slowcowboy and I both live in rural areas. I think we may be used to having to pull together with neighbors to get things done.
In one little area I lived in, my neighbor across the street had a generator, I had a low riding pickup. We loaded the generator in the pickup and he drove his generator around, plugging in refrigerators just long enough to cool off the freezing compartments.

I still don't have a generator, because then you have to have gas and that is a problem here. I don't want to store a lot of it. Instead, I keep cans of food handy.

My mom did the same thing as Slow's but not the fudge thing. That was good. I also have my precious jars of canned huckleberries--picked and canned by me.

You help your neighbors. They might have a skill to help you in exchange. While my neighbors were charging up refrigerators, I was making them latt'es and cooking on my Coleman stove and sharing.

It has always been quite civil during our disasters. I live in a good place. People aren't rich here. Most are at the other end of the spectrum but know how to get by. Maybe that's the secret?

Scout out gas stations with generators. The gas station down the road from me has a big generator they share with the water company to pump water up the tower next door and they always have the ability to pump gas. Of course if you live in an area with a 100 people per acre you probably are just going to be sitting in line either way.

[Strangelymade]

To answer the original question. Yes I do.