Surviving the Coming Crises

SpaceEagle Published 04/12/2011

I don't want to alarm everybody, but if you're still holding on to the idea that President Obama is going to fight for the people and make everything flowers, butterflies, and rock candy mountain, you're mistaken. He's already shown multiple times that he caves in to the greedy. He's going along with cuts that are going to affect the working class and the poor severely. If you think things are bad now, you'd better hold on to your hat because we've only seen the tip of the iceberg. The U.S. Titanic is about to plow right into the part of the iceberg hidden under the water and rip the whole side of it off, leaving its buoyancy severely lacking as we drown in our economic debt. I'm going to give you some suggestions that may help you survive, at least for awhile.

There are many things you can do to try to survive. Some of this information comes from my relatives who lived through the Great Depression. Make no mistake about it, things are about to get as bad as if not much worse than they were then, no matter where you live. If you think you're just fine, you have a lot of money in stocks and bonds, you have a secure job, or any of these other things, I'll let you know that some of my relatives were VERY wealthy before the stock market crash that led to the Great Depression. They lost everything they had. There were no jobs to be had to speak of.

If you haven't already noticed, food is going to be in short supply. Maybe some of you remember your relatives talking about Victory gardens.

Well, what kind of victory will a garden achieve, you might ask?

The victory might just be saving your life, the lives of your family members, and the lives of your neighbors if you can get them involved and get them working on the same things. If you want to survive, you're going to need a garden. If you haven't already started planting a garden, you'd better get your behind out from in front of the TV set, video games, and computers and start planting one. If you don't like the fact that I'm not using fancy words to emphasize the cataclysms, too friggin' bad. This isn't about trying to impress your well-educated buddies. This is about surviving what is coming to America. I'm just going to give it to you straight. You'd do well to spend less time trying to correct my spelling and grammar as long as what I'm writing clearly enough for you to understand and save that time for making preparations. The fancy writing can come later once we've become self-sufficient enough to have time to write a little.

The next time your kid asks for a new video game, I suggest that you go down to the hardware store and buy him a hoe, and axe, a hatchet, a machete, a sharpening stone, a wedge (for splitting pieces of wood that are more stubborn), a sledge hammer to hit the wedge with, a regular, hand operated saw, a plane for making your own boards out of trees, since lumber is undoubtedly going to increase in price, too, and be sure you have a hammer and wood chisel since it's likely that you soon may not to be afford these things when inflation gets into full swing.

When planning your garden, look and find what grows well in your area. Remember, you can't survive on just greens and tomatoes. Be sure you plant some more filling things such as beans for protein and potatoes for starch that will stick with you for awhile. If you're in an area where you can have chickens, it would be a good idea to get a rooster and hen and start letting them hatch some chicks. If you don't have money for seeds right now, look in your kitchen pantry or cabinet and see what kind of spices you might have that are seeds such as whole cuminos, fennel, pepper corns, or anything else that is a whole seed and see if you can get some of them started in some pots. Plain popcorn may grow if you have some of that available. Take the seeds out of tomatoes if you are lucky enough to have some and dry them so you can plant them. You can let some potatoes go until they get eyes and cut off a slice with the eyes and plant that. You can plant sweet potatoes. Plant whatever you can.

It wouldn't hurt to go ahead and start stocking up on some large bags of dried beans, rice, canned goods, and anything else that you can stock in large quantities which might help you get through for awhile until your garden and animals start producing. Be sure you store them in containers that aren't easily chewed through by rats or other pests.

It's a good idea to be real friendly to the wildlife if you have some that come into your yard. If things get really bad, they may have to become a source of food. You need to know how to shoot or trap animals and know how to gut them, skin them, and cut the meat for preparation. Be sure you have some decent knives with which to do the job.

A good folding knife that is partially serrated can come in handy for many things when you're trying to survive. You may need to carve some wood, saw through a small branch, or any number of other things. Don't rely on electric tools because there may come a time when you can't afford electricity. If you're talented, you may be able to create a windmill out of an old alternator and light your house with wind power as long as the wind is blowing. You can buy 12 volt lights which will at least allow you to have light when it's dark. You'll need a bank of batteries to store the power for when the wind isn't blowing. Wind can also be used to pump water as many farms have done for years.

You might want to consider some sheep or goats rather than a powered lawnmower because the cost of fuel may just be too high and perhaps too scarce for you to afford any. If you have enough land for some cattle, it would be wise to at least have a cow for milk. Remember, though. You'll have to be able to grow enough feed to feed the cattle, sheep, or whatever you decide to grow.

If you don't have a cat, you might want to get a couple. They can kill rats, roaches, and other insects when you can no longer afford insecticide. Fly swatters work pretty good on insects, too, if you can still find a decent one. A good dog like a German Shepherd might be wise too. Not only are German Shepherds good protectors, they are good with children, unlike Pit Bulls, who are primarily raised to fight one another.

For entertainment, I suggest going down to a pawn shop and getting a musical instrument. Learning to play an instrument is much cheaper than going to dine at a fancy restaurant or going to see a movie. You might end up discovering you have talents you never realized you had. Even if you don't become a virtuoso, you can entertain yourself, your family, and your friends when all the work is done for the day and there seems like there's nothing left to do. Besides, you're going to need a break from the hard work of being self-sufficient from time to time.

Another idea that came to me is get an above-ground pool to raise some fish in. You'll need a large aerator and a filter might help. It's probably cheaper than digging a pond or having one blasted. If you have the money to do so now, though, that's something you should consider if you don't live in a sandy area like this where the water just seeps down into the dirt.

Learning to sew by hand, knit, weave, and crochet are good things to be doing with your time. You'll be able to make useful things much cheaper than buying some designer label at a store. If you can learn to play an instrument well enough, you can invite neighbors for dances inside your house and learn to be sociable with them once again. If you have a patio or a deck, those are good places to talk to your neighbors. You'll be able to help one another better if you have good communication between you. You may find that you need to pool with neighbors to get enough gas to get a vehicle to the hardware store to pick up supplies that you'll need from time to time. You might want to buy a horse or two if you live in an area where you can keep them. They're a good source of transportation if gas gets too high. You might want to start building a wagon, if so.

Another thing you should start stocking up on is medicine. Be sure you have a good first aid kit put together. If you don't have the money to go out and buy one, you can buy the things one at a time. Be sure to have some aspirin, grow yourself some aloe vera, which is good for burns and cuts since it not only replaces protein in your skin from burns, but also contains natural antibiotics. Get yourself a good book on first-aid since it's likely that it's going to be difficult to afford a doctor. Get yourself a good book on healing herbs and making tinctures, such as Back to Eden. An old Boy Scout handbook can be very useful as well. It can teach you how to navigate in the woods, teach you to read a compass, teach you some basic first-aid, teach you to navigate by the stars, and other useful things. I just found out that there is also the Back to Eden Cookbook, which may be useful as well.

If you have dandelions in your yard, don't pull them up. You can eat the flowers and leaves and you can make a good coffee substitute out of the roots if you roast them. If you're going to have a flower garden, I suggest that you make it a garden of edible flowers. Flowers that are poisonous may look pretty, but they're not going to do you much good if you're hungry and they'll take up precious room and fertilizer that you could be using to grow things that you can eat. You'll also need a grill on which to cook your food when there is no electricity. You should store some water as well. You can get chlorine dioxide pills or iodine pills to purify the water and may need them if you have to get water from a lake or stream.

You'll need to learn how to can your food. Be sure you get some Mason jars and a pot or pots large enough to boil them in. Be sure you have the lids, too. Remember, you may not have electricity to operate your refrigerator or freezer. If you have a house that you really can't afford, it might be a good idea to try to sell it and get into something you CAN afford. If you have money left over, buy yourself some of the things I mentioned so you can start getting ready to survive the coming crisis.

Here are some good survival videos that might be helpful. Be sure to check out their channels for other videos they've posted.

Channel:

SustenanceNCovering

This channel is good, especially for people who are beginners.

Prepper Basics for Newbies