So are you prepared?

What are you prepared for?
How are you prepared?
How long are you prepared for?

Other than a total financial collapse I think I am pretty well prepared for most disasters, and even civil unrest events. Between the fireplace, the grill / smoker, and propane cook top I am confident that with my dutch oven and other cast iron pots and skillets that food prep will not be a problem. If the power goes off we have hurricane lamps for light, and the knowledge to build oil lamps.

http://down---to---earth.blogspot.com/2009/07/how-to-make-oil-lamp.html

Making your lamp is relatively easy, and most likely you will have many of the materials on hand already. Here’s what you’ll need:

A wide-mouthed glass jar (a quart-size wide-mouthed canning jar works really well)
A short length of flexible steel wire (1 1/2 or 2 times the height of the jar)
A wick
Olive oil
Putting Together the Lamp

1. Form one end of the steel wire into a long hook, about the same height as the jar. This hook holds the wire on the jar and doubles as a handle to pull the wick up for lighting. (See photos in the Image Gallery.)

2. Take the other end of the wire and wrap it into a coil, creating a wick stand about an inch or two tall that sits on the bottom of the jar.

3. Pinch the top of the metal coil onto about 2 inches in length of wick so that about a quarter inch or less of the wick is sticking up above the wire coil. Any longer and the wick will smoke. The other end of the wick will be soaking in the olive oil.

4. Add enough olive oil to your jar so that the level is just under where the wick is pinched by the wire. Any higher and you risk putting out the lamp with the oil.



Read more: http://www.motherearthnews.com/diy/make-olive-oil-lamp.aspx#ixzz2kUd8Y7ub


Food stores? well we typically keep a few months to a full years supply of meat on hand. A small generator rigged up with a wood gas generator (http://www.woodgas.net/files/FEMA_emergency_gassifer.pdf) will keep the freezer running for years. A solar battery charger, 12 volt car battery, and an inverter also can keep it running for a long time.
In my barn sits 40 pounds of winter wheat seed, two pounds of sweet corn seed, a pound of seed for green beans, and black eyed peas, 4 ounces of tomato, spinach, bell pepper, cayenne pepper, turnip, summer and winter squash beet, carrot, radish, cabbage, brussel sprout seed. There's even an ounce of tobacco seed (for barter or personal use). Our pantry is full of canned goods, and our second refrigerator / freezer is full of summer / falls bounty. (Ok not as full as we had planned due to the summer garden being a wash, but the fall garden really produced well). Our short fall will be having to haul water from a well on the family farm a few miles away.

Seriously, do you save seeds? Do you have enough food on hand for more than a day or two? Emergency water supply?

I think we would be OK for a few months with water being the exception. We are on a community well with personal wells being illegal. I have some water stored but not nearly enough for long term disasters. I cannot store extra outside of the house because of the freezing conditions we experience.

We have several cooking options, grill/smoker, rocket stove, natural gas kitchen stove w/o electronic ignition and basic campfire setup. I have stainless steel and cast iron cookware that would work for any cooking option. I want to build a haybox cooker but could make a temporary one from a cooler and things on hand. I've also been toying around with the idea of purchasing a propane turkey fryer to use for canning outdoors.

Lighting----oil lamps, solar path lights, candles/matches, flashlights & glow sticks. I've kept the glow sticks on hand since DS was little because they were a safe & cheap light source for kids to handle.

Heating/cooling----woodstove for heat if electric goes down. Cooling would be window screens and the backyard shade tree along with a hand held fan.

Garden tools, raised beds and seeds on hand to grow more food. Canning supplies to preserve what we grow.

I need to pickup some more first aid supplies but barring a major accident we could get by with stuff on hand.

I've gleened much knowledge from various sources over the years and have some printed materials available as resources.

I feel a lot LESS prepared than I used to since the move.

We HAD (and D2 still has) a cast iron fireplace insert that will heat the entire house. Here we have poor insulation and a fireplace that is for pretty - complete with broken gas log insert.

I still have a good store of canned goods, two freezers full of food, dehydrated goods, and most of all the knowledge that is needed to get the job done.

I left D2 with my water stores, but we live near a good flowing river at this spot. I will need a means to filter and clean that water but it is available at least.

The old home had grapes, berries and fruit trees as well as a lot of perennial herbs and medicinals in place. This spot has much more space. We have chickens and a sheep who is meat on the hoof and an old pony that could still help if truly necessary. We are also near several wildlife areas here and have a large resident deer population.

I also have a seed store. Mostly because I can't pass up end of the year sales.  

I'm not prepared that well. I just have too much to do and not enough hours in the day to get it all done. However, I am farther ahead now than I was last year, so that's a plus.

Slow & steady always wins the race! It's taken me many years to get to where I am with my preparedness level.

I think we're pretty prepared. We have at least a years worth of food. We have a solar freezer in case power goes out, so our meats should be ok. We converted one of our spare rooms into a pantry and it's full of vegetables, flour, sugar, salt, ect. We also save seeds and have wheat berries as well as a hand grinder. We have well water, but also have both the pool and hot tub for extra water storage, not to mention the water storage in the RV. We have a propane stove in the house, and the wood stove in the outdoor/summer kitchen. We also have the icebox in the summer kitchen. We have tested it and it stays cool enough to store eggs and milk in. Besides the stoves we also have 2 smokers, a fire pit and grill. We have a lot of access to free pecan wood. We heat the house with a wood stove, and also have a kerosene heater and fireplace. We have fresh eggs from the chickens and fresh milk from the goats.

I knew Sonshine was well prepared, but I am glad to see others who are also prepared for emergencies.

I think over the years I've switched from being a prepper to just living a prepared lifestyle, which I think is the key. Yes, you need things on hand for emergencies, but they should be things you are using daily/weekly/monthly not stuff tucked away until an emergency arises. Why have a bunch of gadgets taking up space that you may never use?

There are a few exceptions like a generator, oil lamps, hand well pump etc, that will be important to have and will make your life easier if something does happen.

hmm, "prepared lifestyle" ... I like that, good description

We have had to use our preps on a few occasions already.

A couple of times we have been without electricity due to ice storms. One time for 14 days and another time for 10. We were able to stay in our old house and live quite well when others in the area were filling up shelters and hotels.

The other time we really used our preps was when I first filed for disability. I couldn't work and had no money coming in (from me) for over 6 months. We have been a two paycheck household for many years and it was a very hard time for us financially, but at least we ate well.

I like the term "prepared lifestyle" too.  A few years ago I was in prepping mode, but now we sort of look at our lives as being prepared for daily living.  We did buy long term storage foods and toiletries, and I also stock up when I see canned goods on sale or if we go to a warehouse store.  I enjoy having things on hand.   We have a generator and access to water, and we've always burned wood - it's a part of the lifestyle in this area.  Skills are important and DH especially is skilled at all kinds of outdoor things - he's had to be, and to learn to do things from a very young age.

There are some things I'd like to stock up on still, like sleeping bags and lamp oil - I like the lamp ideas here.  Lighting is one of the places I feel we are weak.

Great thread!

Gramaki you are correct that skills are important too. You need to have a basic understanding of surviving all types of emergency situations and possess common sense when it comes to actually thriving/surviving during those situations.

I like "prepared lifestyle" too. IMO, being prepared means a lot of things. Yes, there are the things needed to be physically prepared, but being prepared spiritually is the most important. None of us knows what tomorrow will bring and there's no way to be prepared for every contingency. If we do what we are suppose to do, God will take care of everything else. I believe in being prepared because I believe it's scriptually sound. Throughout the Bible God teaches us to be prepared to take care of our family and whoever else God sends our way.

Amen, sister!

I also say "Amen" to that Sonshine.

Well said, Sonshine.. we can't be prepared for every contingency. For a long time I had anxiety about this whole issue, but after preparing as well as we can I came to the conclusion that living prepared in every way is the best, and it is the best legacy for our children and grandchildren. Spiritual preparation for whatever brings and the life hereafter truly is the most important. We are called to work diligently while we are here in all aspects.

When we lived in the cabin I felt comfortable. We had wood heat, solar and wind elec., hauled water and kept large catchments pretty full at the barn, garden, and house with a set up system. I was good at keeping both food items and misc. things stored up. We also had lots of hay stored. At any given time I think we could have went 3-4 months at least and longer if we knew we needed to. We always have chickens growing and producing meat and eggs as well as rabbits and then our hogs, goats, and sheep.

Since getting our new home I feel much more vulnerable. We used a lot of our savings to get set up and I know eventually we will get back to where we were but still not as sufficient as the little 3 room cabin.

I am in exact same boat. I was prepared in my old house. In the new one I am playing catch up and feel very vulnerable. We need to get back to a secure place soon.

Slow and steady gals, you'll get back to that warm & secure place.

Patrice, I have come back and read this several times. It is so true and sometimes I just need to be reminded to keep on the path and things will work out the way God intends.

We live the prepared lifestyle and have done so for a number of years. I would guess we have 6 months food on-hand at any given time. Basically when I shop I'm replacing what we've used from the pantry. I shopped today for the first time since Dec. 27 except for picking up a gallon of milk. I have water stored -- not enough for long term, but enough for several weeks. We have a ranch house with a full basement so plenty of storage space. I also have plenty of otc meds, personal supplies, tp, etc. for 6 months. One thing we cannot store are dh's meds as he can only get them 30 days at a time and has to be out before he can get more. I get my meds 90 days at a time so depending on where I am I either have 90 days or less although I can fill my before I'm completely out.

We have a whole house generator so as long as we have natural gas we'll have electricity. We also use natural gas for cooking, heating and our water heater. We do have a kerosene heater that would keep a room or two warm. We have a Coleman camp stove and charcoal grill that could be used for cooking. We have kerosene lamps, battery lamps and candles so plenty of light.

My motto is to do the best I can with God's help and leave the results to Him.

I try to stay prepped for all weather emergencies. We grew up with a pantry and I've had a pretty fully stocked one for years. I try to keep ahead on everything we'll need whether it's food, personal products, clothes or healthcare items. It boggles my mind that people don't keep at least a week's worth of food on hand at all times. I can understand if you are experiencing an extreme financial hardship but to just shop daily for food is crazy.

PATRICE IN IL wrote:I try to stay prepped for all weather emergencies. We grew up with a pantry and I've had a pretty fully stocked one for years. I try to keep ahead on everything we'll need whether it's food, personal products, clothes or healthcare items. It boggles my mind that people don't keep at least a week's worth of food on hand at all times. I can understand if you are experiencing an extreme financial hardship but to just shop daily for food is crazy.

Us too. We were both raised with plenty of food stores, and home canned garden raised foods were at least half of what we ate.

Daily trips to the grocery store for food is either insanity or a deep faith in man. Either way, count me out.

I try not to go shopping more than I have to. I did a bit of food shopping yesterday when I was in Wally World, but unless hubby and I do some tomorrow, I don't have to go again until next week at the earliest.