Preparedness for when

pineapple

agreenmess wrote: »

Hello all, just started reading the beginning of this thread, on page six, and just wanted to say that I'm just starting up prepping, does anyone have any tips or advice for starting up??

I would make a list (I'm a big fan of lists ). I would start by deciding what period you want to prep for (mine was 6 months but I've fallen off the wagon somewhat). I would then divide the list into groups. Mine was staples of one kind or another plus regularly used non food items like toiletries, cleaning items etc.
I acquired 2-4 weeks worth fairly quickly then sat and waited for good bulk buys and offers - ticking off stuff as I got it.
I would second the advice about sticking to what you normally use - the old adage is 'buy what you need and use what you buy'
Though I did get extra - firelighting gizmos, water purification stuff etc. Frankly you can go on for ever and only the well off can prep for everything. In my dreams I'd be living off grid, in a climate friendly area teaming with wildlife, with a safe, clean water supply, surrounded by fertile land.... In my dreams

BessieBooBoo

pineapple wrote: »

Though I did get extra - firelighting gizmos, water purification stuff etc. Frankly you can go on for ever and only the well off can prep for everything. In my dreams I'd be living off grid, in a climate friendly area teaming with wildlife, with a safe, clean water supply, surrounded by fertile land.... In my dreams

(Sigh) in my dreams I am living in the country too, in a passive solar hobbit hole, not needing energy to heat it. And having an orchard, veg garden, bees, chickens, livestock, root cellar, wine cellar, larder full of preserves, AND not having to work zero hours contract sitting by the phone.... And soap, candle, basket making, clothes weaving, ferret knitting, etc.

Still, trying to make the best of it in our cul-de-sac (or Coronary Close, as we fondly call it, due to the preponderance of older generation, which, sadly, seem to be keeling over on an all too regular basis here).

Must be summat in the water....

BBB

homesteadchick

BessieBooBoo wrote: »

(Sigh) in my dreams I am living in the country too, in a passive solar hobbit hole, not needing energy to heat it. And having an orchard, veg garden, bees, chickens, livestock, root cellar, wine cellar, larder full of preserves, AND not having to work zero hours contract sitting by the phone.... And soap, candle, basket making, clothes weaving, ferret knitting, etc.

Still, trying to make the best of it in our cul-de-sac (or Coronary Close, as we fondly call it, due to the preponderance of older generation, which, sadly, seem to be keeling over on an all too regular basis here).

Must be summat in the water....

BBB

And in MY dreams, I'm your neighbour.
Well... living 5 miles away, because I like it quiet. ;-)

But I'd help you out if needed. I'm good at that sort of thing..

homesteadchick

I think it's easy to get carried away. And it's easy to get discouraged as well.
Thinking you possibly can't do 'all that!' and then end up not doing anything at all.

There are some different goals amongst us. I do what I do because:
1. I LOVE my way of life!
2. I love my home grown stuff. It tastes SO much better! and it's clean and healthy. I love fresh meat, without antibiotics and other nasties hidden in there somewhere.
3. It is much cheaper to 'do it yourself' for the most part. and it might not be cheaper than the cheapo value stuff, but it's Organic after all!
4. I am a Pagan. I love Nature. I live by the seasons. I believe the earth is Mother Goddess. This urban homesteading thing keeps me connected to the earth, and to life. It is my way of worshipping.


So maybe AGREENMESS, you can figure out the WHY of it first?
WHY do you want to 'prep'?
and then start to think of what you can do small scale to get started.

First human needs imo are Water, Food, shelter, clothes. Anything else, comes later.

Start small.
Start simple. Start with little things.
A few extra tins of food that your family will eat with your weekly shop is already a start.
Or even before that! Organise your house, to make space for a little extra food storage.

You'll be fine.
Let's just assume that the world as we know it won't end tomorrow. Take your time and figure out WHY and HOW you want to do this.

Oh and welcome.

:T

GreyQueen

Hello and welcome in, agreenmess.

Like the others have said, take it slowly and deffo 'do a pineapple' and make with the lists. The best prep is to sit quietly with a cuppa and think things through with pen and paper.

Food; you'll have to eat. Are the lion's share of your food supplies in the freezer? Does this include the big ticket items like meat and fish? How long will they be safe in a powercut? Your freezer's instructions should tell you how long things will be safe in a closed freezer with the power off. You'd be advised not to open it. If you're in and out of your freezer twice a day normally, what will you do for supper?

Have you got shelf-stable storage? Tins, packets, bottles, dehydrated stuff. Have you got alternative methods of cooking? Do you know how long they take to cook your usual food? Have you thought about alternate faster-to-cook foods? What's the nutritional balance like?

Are your priceless family photos, documents, etc backed up somewhere off-site in case of a total loss of your home and contents? Copies of receipts etc for proof-of-loss for insurance purposes? Could have fire, gas explosion, catastophic subsidence, flood.

If you have to evac at a minute's notice, could you grab a bag of essentials, sturdy footwear and a coat and be out the door? Could you do this in your jammies in the middle of the night? My neighbours had to do this a few years ago on order of the fire brigade (gas explosion and then fire in a tower block).

Do you have cash? In a financial crisis, the banks might be locked down and ATMs not working. Think Cyprus. ATMs require electricity, too. In a crisis like a riot, it may not be safe to go to one. If it all goes hopelessly Argentinian, you might wish you'd hung onto your scrap gold, too.

If you have a vehicle, is the tank kept nearly full? You may need to get somewhere in a hurry and the fuel stations are blockaded. This doesn't have to be the end of the world, it could be a family crisis, run to hospital, whatever.

If you had to make an emergency dash across country/ county or city, do you know alternate routes in case the main road is blocked? AA Road Atlases are in the cheap shops for £1-£2, great to have a paper map and not just rely on sat-nav.

Is your phone charged fully? Do you have a paper list of your essential phone numbers in case the phone is lost/stolen/broken/flat?

If you use prescription meds, are you stocked up? How many days or weeks' supply do you have? What would happen if you couldn't get them? I'd die, which concentrates the mind wonderfully.

Water; if the supply is off, have you a reasonable supply of drinking water stored? Self and pets? Wet wipes for personal hygiene? A pot to p in, as the saying goes? Paper plates/ cups/ bowls to use in case there isn't sufficient water to wash dishes? Are you on top of the clothes washing/ dishwashing?

You need to think that if the electricity is down all over, even urban areas will be pitch black. Torches, candles, hurricane lanterns, windup lanterns, all those need to be considered. Matches and lighters, too.

If your work/ social life/ other callings take you away from home via car, it's a good idea to have a basic toiletry kit and change of clothes as well as warm layers. For winter, food and drink, a shovel and a blanket could be useful.

Imagine you're snowed in/ stuck behind an accident/ broken down and needing to crash in a community centre or unexpected overnighter somewhere in an emergency.

Above all, it's important to pay attention to what's happening in the world. Not just what the mainstream BBC or ITV or Sky News has to say, either. They're The Establishment, and they'll be among the last to tell you what you really need to know.

It's a rare life which passes entirely without a crisis and some people will have more than their fair share. By taking the time to think about prepping, you've taken the first step to making sure that you come out of a crisis in the best possible shape with the minimum of angst.

Good luck and happy prepping!

BessieBooBoo

Hello again all

On the news front, did anyone see the item about 'growing' burgers in a lab? From the stem cells of a dead cow?

Just at the end of it, the commentator threw it the line, '...as the demand for meat is unsustainable...'

Yeesh. They did say it cost a mere £250,000 for it.

I was surprised that it was said so casually, like a throwaway comment, and wondered if TPTB are that desperate to find food alternatives for the existing population.

Sorry to be paranoid, but, I feel kind of wary about things 'grown' artificially, be it GM crops, or lab burgers. Call me a Luddite, but I'd rather things weren't too messed around with before I put them in my mouth. I like it local, organic (if funds stretch to it) or at least free range, scampering around on real grass before it's on my plate....!

There's always porridge. (With milk, no sugar or salt, served with chopped banana or fruit, natch).

BBB
(Puts on tin hat)

BessieBooBoo

homesteadchick wrote: »

And in MY dreams, I'm your neighbour.
Well... living 5 miles away, because I like it quiet. ;-)

But I'd help you out if needed. I'm good at that sort of thing..

Hello HSC

Thanks.:)

It would be nice to have a neighbour! Even if I have to use a signal mirror/torch/swradio for help!!

BBB

(Off dreaming again... Maybe Cody Lundin would like a guest?)

GreyQueen

BBB, thinking of Soylent Green? _pale__pale__pale__pale_

jk0

Someone on Chris Martenson mentioned they dug a well in their basement and found water 15ft down.

Has anyone in the UK done anything like that? How do you know where to dig?

GreyQueen

jk0 wrote: »

Someone on Chris Martenson mentioned they dug a well in their basement and found water 15ft down.

Has anyone in the UK done anything like that? How do you know where to dig?

Quite a few people have the knack for dowsing for water.

Depending on the geology, water might be shallow or deep. It might not be potable. I think you need an extraction license to drill for your own water supply, but don't know for sure.

The cottage I was born in was built in the early years of the 1600s. There was a filled in well in the yard, under grass when we had it, but the ground always struck hollow when you walked over it, according to my parents.

Mum grew up in a string of tied cottages within a few miles of each other. Several had no running water. In one, you had to go to the dairy (it was a farm cottage but the dairy was long-since redundant). There you had to pump up the water with a cast-iron hand pump.

Slugs used to come up with it quite frequently, she recalled - eww!