Are You Stockpiling Now? If so, what?

I've been stacking up on degrees, experience and knowledge for the past 25 odd years. I bet they are much more valuable than any cellar full of canned foods.

Originally posted by Sri Oracle
I walked 15 blocks home from a carpentry gig today...

I harvested 5 pints of wild raspberries along the sidewalk on the way home.

Of Course you washed 'em...
because of all them dogs 'rinsing' those little patches of green foilage.

but there is something to be said of building a tolerence by ingesting small amounts of pissy 'toxins'...
hope you enjoy your bounty !

reply to post by St Udio


I am no Dr. but I believe urine is sterile.

It's sterile in the bladder. As soon as it leaves the body, it starts getting nasty.
That is where that stink comes from. I wouldn't risk it bro.

While I was planting 13 rows 40 feet long of tomatoes of several varieties for differing reasons, (among many many other plants I started months ago) The guy that did my comp. work came by, rock and roll blaring Tillers and trimmers buzzing, nails being put on the new chicken house roof, and me splattered in good rich soil Ive been working for 10 years, I welcomed him into the back yard as the cherry bossums rained down on us I walked with him to the gardens and made a deal with him, I said listen, I dont have enough money to pay you all in cash but would you be willing to trade for fresh, non GMO, non hybridized, plants and or vegetables and fruits?
I have sank all I am and have into food production for myself and my community. I even grow a row or two for the local food harvest, to supplement low income families. I sell very little and limited to a select few, mostly politicians and emergency services people, and all of my family and extended relatives.
The hardest part is getting help. I am on my own pretty much and am always glad when someone shows up to lend a hand, pull a weed (God only knows I so blessed in that arena) Plant something, till or mow, So when thinking about stocking up, that is like teach a man to fish and he will eat for a life time thinking...
Teach a man to grow, and nothing you buy in walmart or even your local garden centers, that is a conspiracy I became aware of many years ago. The seeds are hybridized and meant to keep you coming back for more.
We can do this my friends and that will be the ultimate way to deny ignorance.

One more thing, finding people 'willing' to do the work, as a nation we have grown soft and dependent, it was easy it is still easy, but stock up on people of like minds that you trust and that are willing and able to contribute when the time comes. That beer drinking buddy is great now, but if he is useless in a NWO scenario, time to drop him and find the people that are viable and intelligent. Weird but true, people are lazy, but they underestimate far too may of us, weather here in america or abroad.
Many of our ali nations will be getting hit soon too, this is world wide.

[edit on 22-4-2008 by antar]

reply to post by IAF101


Good for you, I have been to the school of hard knocks, What have you learned and what do you have to contribute and or share?

FYI - Twinkies are not storable. I had one mold in it's wrapper once. Ew.

Most canned goods and things only have the shelf life of about a year. Raw honey keeps forever, as does seaweed (nori) that you can get at your local asian market. The honey has enzymes that keep a digestive system healthy and sugar for energy. It can be food or medicine on open wounds. (Although toddlers and babies should never eat honey)

The seaweed is super nutritious. I also buy bags of rice crackers wrapped in the seaweed and have developed a taste for the stuff. They are cheap in bulk and I eat them so often that I haven't really tested how long they will store.

Lentils are your friend. Learn to cook indian food and you'll know how to make whole balanced meals out of practically nothing (but lentils, water, and seasonings.)

I just bought a sprouter for wheatgrass and clover, and I've started a garden this year in a friend's yard. I'm saving heirloom seeds. And I'm learning all kinds of practical skills like knitting and foraging.

I'm a lone-wolf camper so, as survival water filters go, I've never tried anything that I can't carry in my coat pocket.

The Iodine is terrible. I used to use them all the time but the water tastes horrible (even with the neutralizer), the iodine water doesn't quench my thirst and tends to suck the energy out of me.

I like the MIOX system the Marines use. They are made by MSR but you can get the military-grade ones on ebay if you are lucky and have the cash.

MIOX

I have a Berkey at home and can vouch for those. Great if you plan to stay in one place as they are not portable.

Get your hands on some EPI-PENS. Its a great barter item and will save lives

I've stockpiled all that I can stockpile (small house) and I have to manage rotating the goods, so I have a dozen or so #10 cans of freeze dried foods with a 30 year shelf life... and I would say at least a few months of regular food supplies if we ration our portions and food preps if a catastrophe happens.

Right now I'm concentrating on my container garden and trying to keep a something in production at all times. I'm also in the process of investigating small solar kits for backup power.

As to what to stockpile:

Rice, Flour, Beans/lentils, Noodles, Powdered Potatoes and Milk, Salt, Sugar, Honey and a variety of just add water mixes including drink mixes.

I pretty much have everything I need all the time due to my lifestyle and where I live. It's not so much farming here as being skilled in hunting and fishing and understanding local edible plants. We have a distinct advantage as moose is considered the only meat you can live on exclusively and not suffer for lack of nutrition.

For a city person needs would be quite different I think. Even though I'm in Anchorage its just for work and a huge wilderness is walking distance away. Hunting here is so easy its embarrassing almost and the Salmon; they call it combat fishing here. Without the normal limits one could fill a truck with salmon in a day when the runs are hot and heavy.

When I go out to an area where a breakdown could mean days or weeks I pack some stuff with me in my vehicle.

Rope and twine.
Plastic sheets.
Stick matches in watertight containers.
Steel wool and a flint and steel.
Fishing line and hooks and lures.
Wool blankets.
Shovel.
Axe.
Wood saw (chainsaws are useless when the gas runs out).
Candles.
Hunting knife and pocket knife.
Hand crank flashlights and AM Radio.
Maps of the area (major importance)
Compass.
Sidearm for Bears and Rifle with a few extra boxes of ammo.

With those things I can survive for years. People should ignore those survival TV programs where they struggle just to start a fire or catch a fish. They never cease to amuse me as they don't appear to have a clue. Ignore the weekend survivalists with there magnesium alloy equipment as they could get a person dead. They learn some skills but a few classes is not the same as a lifestyle.

I grew up in a home where we only bought in the store that which we could not grow or hunt ourselves. Other than restaurants I never had the displeasure of the canned crap on store shelves until my Father died and we moved to a city. The certainty of my abilities from that I consider a tool.

If someone is serious and they don't know how to fish or hunt, learn. Do what many have done and plant a small garden to learn the basics. If you think going vegetarian will sustain you and yours, think again. Animal protein is the difference between survival and death. This will not be "Survivor" where the crew picks you up at the end of the week.

Spend a week with just a simple survival kit in a real environment. You can learn without risk the things you won't have time to learn when push comes to shove. There will be no phones, no police, no electricity, no gas, no grocery stores, no indoor running water and survival will take every waking moment and ounce of energy.

A person needs to learn to eat what is available and forget personal distastes. If you can have only one food source to survive for a few day a tub of animal fat would be the best, so like I say forget what you consider good food.

Edited to say I forgot a couple of important items. A pot for boiling water and cooking. Stainless steel or cast iron. SALT! It will be more valuable than gold.

[edit on 4/22/2008 by Blaine91555]

reply to post by St Udio


I'd also add that drinking urine is an urban myth. Don't do that!

I've got a week's worth of meals in tinned form, and that'll be what i take with me if the shtf.

I do recognise that i'm gambling with my life here - a week's worth of food isn't an awful lot.

I'm counting on my timing - if i go into the wilderness and use the time on what i have available, meanwhile making mental notes as i go along as to viable locations for finding food (farmland, vegetable gardens, watering holes) in the hopes of sustaining myself after i ran out of my initial food supply, i'd have about 4 days at best in which to practice my techniques properly - sneaking about, making traps, learning to fish, aiming a bow and so forth (i already know how to make a decent camoflage for a small one-man shelter).

Naturally, i won't be limited merely to my own abilities, as i will be using my sneaking skills to snoop about in places i shouldn't be - perhaps hording vegetables or stealing the odd chicken, or even a weapon would be sweet if i get real lucky and stumble into someone's secret arms cache when they aren't looking.

I'm not bothered about gettin' caught, so long as the guy i'm stealing from doesn't try to buttrape me (marselles wallace style) i won't make things hard on the guy.

There are two types of stockpiling - the stockpiles of resources, and the stockpiles of Ability.

The day i figure out how to lockpick a door will be the day that i become happy with my own skills at self-Preservation.

Of course, i could just use my already prepared knowledge of how to blend in with the crowd in order to take advantage of the hoarders...

reply to post by Anti-Tyrant


not a good idea imo, people are not going to be hesitant to off an intruder or even anyone suspicious on or near their property in a sitx scenario. Smart people will have traps, and a well armed family.. you're probably better off offering a service of some sort in exchange for a meal or goods. Instead of lock picking, try learning something more useful that would make invaluable to whatever community you go to. If you are skilled, you increase your chances for survival.

reply to post by worldwatcher


I can sneak about and make things difficult for people, and that's my most useful skill in a sitX scenario.

At best, i would hope to be working as some sort of lookout or a scout or something that doesn't require a whole lot of brainpower - i know i'm not a herdsman or even a doctor, those are skills that people who had structured lives and a decent sense of worth instilled in them when they were young have.

All i have self-confidence in is my ability to protect myself from harm, both physical and psychological.

Sure, i could do the work for my meal, but i'm thinking an awful lot of people will have a similar idea - and not everyone likes having a guy watching over them they hardly know.

I might get lucky, i might not.

There is a chance that simply being seen by certain people would result in my immediate execution by sniper fire (if this SitX gets bad enough, and people start turning on one another, this is something i will be expecting whenever i approach another human being).

Again, i might get lucky, and i might not.

There is one thing i know about survival - the guy with the most guns wins.

It helps if you don't have a bunch of people around you who are unarmed and are non-combatants.

Ok... On the Water.............

If you have read this far YOU DESERVE to know.......

The ONLY "Filter" to use is the General Ecology First Need. Its actually a rated as a "Purifier". Approx $90.00

A First Need "Base Camp" is about $ 550.00, and will do close to 1000 Gallons, with a replacable cartridge for about $ 80.00.

Bacteria are 4 microns across. The First Needs 'filter' to 0.1 microns.

The Katadyne and Miox only go to 4 or even 2 microns on a good day. 0.1 Microns for the First Need is 1/10th of a micron.

Bacteria are getting SMART in the last 9 years. they Have LEARNED to turn sideways and fit through a 1.0 micron filter pore, instead of getting caught 'long ways' at 4 microns.

Get it ?

Also, has charcoal to remove VOC's chemicals, pesticides, even radionucleotides. Uses Ionic attraction to capture and hold particles which transport and act as vehicles for Viruses! EPA approved for Viruses!

Nothing else is worthy! It does not matter if your "filter" can do 50,000 gallons, if you get sick from the first gallon.

0.1 microns is the best 'hand pumped' fitration you can get without wasting water, as with a RO system. A RO system also requires water pressure above 'hand pumped' pressure, and wastes 1/2 gal to flush the membrane for every gallon produced as 'filtered'.

See this FAQ from the Research and White Papers of misc. survivalism a few Years back. Nothing has changed, except the intelligence of the Bacteria, and some new Strains have appeared.

athagan.members.atlantic.net...

Have a nice day, and DO NOT Drink The Water... with out one of these!

You'll be sorry!




Then store food and sanitary supplies. Dont forget to store several gallons of Bleach. Even over Fuel or Ammo. Hospital Grade disinfectants. Actually, ammo is probably way down the list , (over 1000 rounds). Lets be real. I need to Drink, Eat and stay clean more than I need to 'go bang' 1001+ times.



Blitzkreigen

Guns, gun parts, ammo, top of the line med kits with real RX not just asprin, gear, tools, and solar sheets aka solar chargers. Water is on a well with a few backup hand pumps. Food is next on my list.....lots of food and ammo..LOTS...also have a gasoline tank 2000 gallons..all of which I can use even if things go fine.

Stockpiling? Ha!

Can't even afford anything to eat for right now. :-/

reply to post by mattifikation


Frequently asked questions on PRUDENT food storage:

waltonfeed.com...

rice is 13.00 a bag for 50 lbs. beans are 3.00 for 10 lbs.
nutrigrain bars are 9.00 for a box of 24. ( All at Sams )

Internet is at least 20.00 a month, cell phone 'at least' 50.00 a month...
1 Mc. Donalds Meal is 10.00.

I guess its 'how much of an emergency' do you see coming?

Food is increasing at a rate of 4.5 % MINIMUM per year.
Milk and Meats are up 13%.

Investing in FOODS right now is better than the Stock Market Returns. and its hard to eat a stock certificate.

Best Regards,


Blitzkreigen

Yes as a matter of fact... I am stockpiling just a few minor things that may come in handy in the near future, and if I don't use them then... knock on wood... I might need to someday. So here is my list and reasoning, incomplete as always.

On an immediate level:

1. Ammo: .22LR
-------------------------
It's dirty cheap and lightweight for the capability and highly useful. For what you would spend on a box of 9mm or .223's you get a couple thousand rounds of 'ole .22. Works in 75% of my immediate grab-and-go firearms. And yes, I'm sure the self defense crowd will balk at the idea, but hey, it's better than nothing.

2. Foodstuffs:
-------------------------
Beans, rice and canned goods et al... just because.


3. Knowledge:
-------------------------
It's also dirt cheap... maybe even free for the taking for some, and well... it's better than none at all.


If all else fails, well then comes ingenuity and logic which are always needed.

Use what you have available.
[oh, water... well, hehheh I have one that has a hand pump if needed]

The Bosstones said it best....
I've never had to knock on wood, and I'm glad I haven't yet... because I'm sure it isn't good, that's the impression that I get.



Regards,
T Minus

[edited since I lost my train of thought]

[edit on 23-4-2008 by telemetry]

reply to post by BluByWho

Just sum info that may come in handy if you don't already know. Most dogs ( i have three) don't view outside gardens as table food and will munch on, or pull at the leaves of the plants. One of mine got real sick couple years back, we couldn't figure it out, finally found out she was chewing on the leaves from the green pepper plants. Mine also seem to have an extreme attraction to home grown tomatoes. You might wanna keep them away from the garden. Also sounds as if this will be your first garden, if you don't want to use pestcides, plant marigolds around your tomatoe plants. Aphids will kill off your tomatoes faster than anything else, but they hate the smell of marigolds, hence no pestisides. Another good tip is to plant something that attracts ladybugs as they will eat the insects that would eat your crop.