SCP Survival

Best Survival Gear and Supplies

Why I Began Prepping (widowed after 42 years)

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Food Storage Pantry

As many of you know, I was widowed after 42 years of marriage and although I didn’t consider myself a “prepper” I did always keep a well stocked pantry because my former husband was pretty much housebound from brain tumor surgery for 26 years, and I couldn’t just run to the store…time wise or financially.

When I needed something I always bought two.  I worked a full time job and had an aide to help care for him while I worked and then spent my evenings as his caregiver, so time was not a luxury for me.

My 2nd husband had been a bachelor for over 20 years and loved the outdoor lifestyle, so did a lot of that and had TONS of camping gear and stuff “put aside” in totes etc.

I couldn’t really “get into” the prepper mentality.  I just didn’t seem to line up with what I felt was necessary.  I knew enough to know that a family needed to be able to survive for 3 or 4 days but weeks? Months? Years?

My husband just patiently took me to expo’s and let me read camping books etc., until one night I was reading and I heard a tiny little voice that reminded me of the parable of the 10 virgins in the Bible.

Food Storage Buckets

When I remembered that parable, I also remembered that only 5 of them were obedient to obtain their lamps, fill them with fuel, trim their wicks, and then wait … and the others were found wanting. When they came to the wise ones and tried to beg for oil, they were turned away.  That was enough to convince me that I needed to listen to my husband.

We didn’t really start at zero in our preparations, but I did start at zero “mentally”.

The first thing I began to do was visit our local Aldi’s store and because I was still supplementing my social security and MrWE2 was making good money, began buying “flats” of canned vegetables, canned fruits and canned meats. We also invested in some can organizers and filled those.

When I used something from the can organizer, I bought two to replace it. We built on that mentality and still do.

We then “advanced” to gardening and learning to dehydrate first and pressure can secondly.  From that point we began to learn more about “buckets with gasket sealed lids” for long term storage.

Not that we feel comfortable with where we are at (who ever will?), but we re-directed some of our energies to finding ways to keep ourselves warm and cook the foods we had set back.

We also have “precious metals” and the things they need… Enough for us to be able to find meat if we needed it.

We also have some antibiotics for our “fish.”

Rice Tubes for Storage

We’re now trying to incorporate adding things to our pantry that we can share with our neighbors in a crisis situation such as my “rice tubes“, ramen noodle soup cups, flavored chewing gums and candles and “community building”.

We won’t be planting this year because we’ll be moving from here to the roost and just won’t have the time necessary to take good care of our raised bed garden, even if it is pretty easy to care for (The Square Foot Gardening System by Mel B) we still need the time.  We’ve got a lot of knowledge being soaked in and hopefully enough provision to get us through to a new planting/harvesting season if something bad should happen.

We have two “likeminded” couples that we stay in pretty close contact with and we all know we’ve got a place to go if we needed to “load up and go”.

I think we’ve watched these past few years where storms have devastated whole cities and how the residents suffered so greatly.  They suffered from the loss of their homes, jobs and vehicles… But they suffered being cold, wet and hungry and having to be “herded” into government provided facilities where they didn’t even know the people sleeping or eating around them.  Children having to sleep in the arms of a parent to stay safe from predators and single women terrified in a dangerous world.

I guess the question isn’t really “where to start”, so much as “when to start“.  The answer in our opinion is NOW! Even if it’s just an extra can of soup, do it NOW.  It just might be the determining factor of where you huddle during a crisis…in your home, in your travel trailer, in your tent…or with strangers.

Hopefully this will encourage some of you who question the “why” of making provision for yourselves in an emergency and help some of you who are hesitant or feel overwhelmed about “where to start.”

I Survived The Georgia Ice Storm in 2014… Here’s A List of The Supplies I Used:

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On February 12, 2014, an ice storm blanketed a large part of Georgia, with the accompanying power outages and trees down and icy roads.  As I sat in the dark in my home in Sylvania, Georgia, I wrote down a few observations about this experience and supplies that I used. Then I finished this up after the power was restored.

The following is a list of what worked for me in this situation:

  1. Mr Buddy Heater Portable Little Buddy propane heater. Nice, safe propane heater rated for indoor use. I already had a good supply of the small propane bottles. Used a total of 4 during the 2 evenings I spent at home. I turned it on for about  5 hours each evening and it took the edge off the cold in the living room. Closing off the 2 doors to the bedrooms and dining room made more efficient use of the heater. Of course I turned it off before going to bed. This year I plan to buy the Big Buddy heater and several large propane tanks to fuel it. These are safe for indoor use and can also be used for camping, etc.
  2. gas one stove
    Bev: I’m hoping this is the correct stove.

    GasOne butane stove. No fuss to operate and easily heats water, coffee or anything you want to cook on the burner. Be sure to set it up on something sturdy and non-flammable. Do not set it on a wood composite table, or anything plastic.

  3. Instant tea, coffee, hot cocoa– very comforting in the cold. I filled an old thermos with the hot drinks and they stayed warm for about 3 hours. The first thing I ordered when the power came back on was a new 2 liter thermos bottle and a 24 oz. wide mouth bottle for soups, stews, bulky food.
  4. Instant oatmeal, canned soup, canned stews– quick, nourishing meals. I also personally like the single serving Spam slices– but some folks can’t stand the stuff.
  5. Car charger and portable charger for cell phone. I charged up my phone on the hour ride home from work and I also have a portable battery operated charger and a solar phone charger. As we had a little warning that this storm was coming, I made sure my Kindle was fully charged before going to work.
  6. Weather radio with a hand crank as well as battery and solar back up– a must have to keep up with what is going on.
  7. insulated thermos A thermos, or 2 or 3. I never see a thermos mentioned in prepper articles- but they are so great to keep food hot. I had an old one that belonged to my dad and a small one from a garage sale. As I said before, I ordered 2 more when I could.
  8. Wool socks, long underwear, oversize sweats to layer over other clothes. For the 2 days I spent without heat and light, I constantly wore 3 layers of clothes and managed to stay warm enough- but it wasn’t fun. Also a knit hat really helps keep your head warm.
  9. This is just a personal need- a large sweatshirt or old sweater you can put on the dog. Even inside with the propane heat, my Dane was still shivering, so I put an old sweater on her and she curled up and went to sleep.
  10. Extra quilts, blankets, sleeping bag. I scour garage sales and thrift stores and can often find used wool blankets and sleeping bags for less than $3.00 apiece. I have a water bed, and when the power goes out it gets cold quickly. To use it, you must insulate yourself from the cold water with heavy quilts and blankets.
  11. Not a necessity but nice to have to pass the time – battery operated cd/dvd player and cassette player. I love to listen to audio books.
  12. Good led flashlights and lots of batteries. I also have some chemical light sticks, kerosene lantern and candles for backup. I have a large Coleman 4 panel flashlight with detachable panels. It will light up a good sized room, and you can use the panels separately in another room – outside if necessary.
  13. Heavy duty space blankets– I have the all weather blanket from Grabber Outdoors. As well as wrapping up in it. You can drape it- silver side up in back of you on the chair or couch and it will reflect the heat. That works great.

car stuck in ice storm After 2 days, I took the food from my freezers (still frozen solid) down to my daughter’s house, as she had power and an empty freezer. I lost some food, but not a lot thank goodness.

I also abandoned ship on the third day and went to stay with my youngest daughter, as I had to work the weekend and needed a bath and clean clothes. My driveway remained blocked for six days and I had to get out by driving through the back field and through my landlord’s yard.

ice storm georgia power pole So I feel I came through the storm in pretty good shape, but there is definite room for improvement.

It was a wakeup call for me to get better organized and have my preps in a centralized location instead of all over the house. I’m glad the situation didn’t last longer than it did, and I can’t imagine how the folks coped after Sandy for months on end. I am glad for the preps I had, and hope  my adventure will help out someone else think about getting ready for the unexpected.

Some Other Weird Prep Items from Wyzyrd

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I was going through one of the containers, and ran across a few things that don’t make it onto a lot of “Survival Gear” lists, but can come in very, very handy.

1. A “4-in-1” Farriers’s Rasp

Now, I haven’t been in kicking distance of a horse in a long, long time, and this tool is intended for trimming horse’s hooves for shoeing them.

However, if you ever plan on doing any “rough” woodwork, ever, you probably want one of these in your kit. This tool is a half-round wood rasp and wood file, all in a compact 8-inch package.  Steel projects will wreck it, but it will clean up after your knife/axe work in record time.

2. A Dollar Store metal-bristle BBQ grill cleaning brush.

If you use that rasp/file on green wood, or plastic or aluminum, the teeth WILL clog with a lot of “compressed crap” and eventually work about as well as the back of a credit card. The same goes for metal-cutting files.

You can go buy a specialist machinist’s tool called a “File Card”- a brass or steel bristled brush intended for cleaning files, for $20-50. Or, you can go to a Dollar Store or a Walmart and get a metal-bristle brush for a buck or 2. You have sharpening tools for your blades, same thing for files and rasps.

3. Canned Sardines (imports, in olive oil)

This is definitely a “WTH?” item. I’m not at all a “picky eater”, but, after growing up in the 50’s and 60’s with a Mom who couldn’t cook her way out of a paper sack, canned sardines is one of the few food items that makes me run for the latrine, immediately.

BUT, these are not the stinky, rotten-smelling canned sardines my dad used to mix with ketchup and chopped onions for sandwiches, every Friday.

They taste GOOD. Really- I’m not kidding. 3 pieces (according to label) are 200 calories/ 13 grams protein. Right around 2 bucks a can at most grocery stores, or pick up a case of 25 cans here.

How to Purify Water with The CWater Desalinator

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When travelers are lost, stranded or in an emergency situation, one of the most difficult parts of waiting for help to arrive is finding fresh, potable water.

Although tales abound of shipwreck victims finding novel sources of drinking water, there might be an easier way to stay alive if you ever find yourself in an emergency.

This design, called CWater, by Chinese engineer Chao Gao uses a simple solar purification method to transform just about any source of water into potable liquid. With a readily available source of fresh water, survivors have a better chance of staying alive and relatively healthy until help arrives.

The CWater is lightweight and small enough when compressed to be carried on life boats or in backpacks. Its innovative design could easily be applied to places where clean drinking water is scarce, or even used in disaster relief efforts to keep refugees and survivors healthy until permanent living situations are arranged.

The design took second place in the recent Incheon International Design Awards. The ingenious design requires only that the foldable device be placed on the ground or directly on the water. Water vapor collects in the chamber and is purified solar rays. A batch of clean, drinkable water is ready in just shy of two days.

If you haven’t fully created your emergency water plan, it’s important to do so. Remember, a solid plan includes options for water storage, purification, and resupply.

Slow-Cooker Carnitas [Recipe]

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This isn’t really a soup, but a successful experiment that would work well in a thermal cooker, as well as an electric crock pot. Amazing flavor, not much work. I saw a menu item called “Beer-Braised Carnitas” on a website, and wanted to try it without slow-cooking in melted lard. :)

  1. I found a 3 lb bone-in chunk of pork butt (shoulder) on “reduced for quick sale.”
  2. Sprinkle  with a little salt and pepper.
  3. Leave the fat cap on.
  4. Brown heck out of it on all sides in oil (This step can probably be skipped, but it makes it taste better)
  5. While the meat is browning, stem and seed a couple dried Ancho and Pasilla chiles. These are not at all “hot” – kinda fruity flavor.
  6. Toss them in your slow cooker along with handful of dehydrated onion flakes, ground cumin, some minced fresh garlic,  some dried oregano leaves, and about 2 bottles of beer (I’d go for a dark-ish lager. Yuengling Light was what was sitting around, and it worked admirably)
  7. Put your pork butt into the slow cooker and add water or chicken stock to cover the meat about 2/3 of the way. (I had some that needed to be used in the fridge)
  8. Either bring it to a boil and put it in the thermal cooker, or turn your slow cooker to High for about 4 hours, then go to low and ignore all day.

Shred up the meat – it will fall apart but still be moist and tasty. Great tacos/burritos/etc. Wonderful in omelettes or other dishes. Blend up the beer and veggies as a sauce or soup/stew base.  There’s nothing stopping you from adding onions, carrots and potatoes if the cooker is big enough, for an incredible stew.

The only downside? I have to go out and get more tortillas.

Easy Bread and Rolls [Recipe]

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I’ll pass along my mother’s bread recipe. My mother taught me this probably 35 years ago, and it is so simple to remember that you don’t even have to write it down.

It basically uses ‘1’ of everything, and with a little common sense, it’s easy enough to remember 1 of what.

You Will Need:

Bread and Rolls Recipe

For each normal loaf of bread, or pan of rolls, use the following:

  • 1 Cup  Water
  • 1 Pkg  Yeast    (or teaspoon, if you use something other than the packets)
  • 1 Tablespoon Honey   (or sugar, if you prefer)
  • 1 Tablespoon  Butter  (shortening, whatever you prefer to use)
  • 1 Teaspoon  Salt
  • 1 Egg
  • However much flour it takes

Directions:

Mix the water, honey and yeast and let it sit for a bit in a warm place before adding the egg, salt and butter and starting to mix in the flour.  We always mix it, knead it until it feels right, let it rise in the mixing bowl, punch it down and knead a bit just to get the air out of it, form it into loaves or rolls, let it rise again and bake it.

For anyone with any bread baking experience at all, this is probably the simplest recipe you’ll ever find and it works perfectly every time.

(submitted by Randy Bock)