Preparedness for when

maryb

MrsLurcherwalker wrote: »

If we have seeds that are hard to get germinating He Who Knows pops thim into a lidded plastic box with a layer of damp kitchen towel in and pops them into the airing cupboard for a few days, you have to keep your eye on them as when they do get going they grow the rootlet like crazy, if you've an airing cupboard it might gain you a few days on sowing then in the greenhouse, worth a try maybe? Lyn xxx.

Thanks Lyn, I'll try that

AutumnWinterSmiles

Hello again all & thanks to you all for being so welcoming! It warms the cockles of my heart!

I have missed this board in just the few days I've been away! It has been a manic week and I've barely had time to think. But in the little time I had to think, I've found time to get a little prepping in! Very little, mind. But every little helps and hopefully time for more before the weekend is up. During the week I managed to stock up on a couple of extra tins and also some bottled water.

I have been thinking about how I would cook with no power, or in an emergency situation, and loved the link to the Halfords site re the cooking equipment. Will be having a look at that.

I know what you all mean about feelings of unease/impending doom. Some days i can just generally lose faith in the human race....sounds dramatic but society today can be so harsh and cruel. Times like these I realise how unstable our world is and I know I must step up my prepping!

Was that a bit of a depressing post? Sorry if so!

Be back more this weekend, I'm sure!

B.

Frugalsod

maryb wrote: »

Just seen this on ZH

http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2014-05-29/we-shouldnt-be-shocked-new-proposal-we-are.

So basically eliminating cash would make it much easier to do a Cyprus but the pain would be less immediate and obvious - but also last longer

The suggestion that it would reduce crime is spectacularly wrong. In the US much of the drugs trade is now financed by Tide washing detergent

http://theweek.com/article/index/225597/the-amazing-tide-detergent-crime-wave

The fact is that if like most people you have little money in the bank then negative interest rates will have absolutely no impact on your savings. It will hit anyone with savings badly. Will they pay us to have an overdraft?

Though I never thought Rogoff was that credible when he was so selective in picking countries that had large debts. He ignored the UK after WW2 which had government debts three times the level that we have now, but we had very little private debt then.

Zero hedge is quite selective in its choice of data, and they are all wrong when they go on about Keynesianism when we have not had any Keynesians running the central banks or government policy for 30 years. We have had a bunch of monetarists and neo-classical economists running economies for the last generation and just because they decide to spend some extra money to boost the economy does not make them Keynesian policies. What they have been doing is trying to reflate the credit bubbles to get the whole ponzi finance scheme up and running again. It might work for a while but eventually the cracks will show and we will suffer a massive correction at some point, which will be very painful. You cannot have rampant house prices rises and rent increases with falling or stagnant wages. Eventually you will get millions of workers being unable to afford rents. Without tenants BTL will be broke and then the banks will repossess all those millions of properties.

Eventually it will mean very significant drops in income and that will be painful for anyone who has not cleared their debts. I suspect that eventually TPTB will have to come up with a new debt jubilee at some point rather than face the fact that millions of former home owners/ angry voters will be repossessed. That or come out with a new currency like Weimar marks.

twiglet98

Butterfly_Brain wrote: »

Elderflower cordial
Elderflower champagne
Elderflower Sugar for baking
Elderflower Cup cakes using elderflower sugar
Elderflower Jelly
Elderflower and strawberry or raspberry jam


Elderflower salad dressing
50ml/2fl oz elderflower cordial
50ml/2fl oz cider vinegar
100ml/4fl oz oil
salt to taste


Just put in a jar and shake well


Frozen elderflower posset by Mary Berry
http://www.bbc.co.uk/food/recipes/frozen_elderflower_07251


Key Lime and elderflower pie
http://www.bbc.co.uk/food/recipes/key_lime_and_elderflower_59661

White grapefruit and elderflower marmalade

http://www.thekitchn.com/recipe-white-grapefruit-and-elderflower-marmalade-recipes-from-the-kitchn-198960


Apple and elderflower cobbler
http://www.bbc.co.uk/food/recipes/appleandelderflowerc_85238


Elderflower and honey ice cream
http://www.bbc.co.uk/food/recipes/appleandelderflowerc_85238

Gooseberry and elderflower jam
http://www.milomade.co.uk/blog/2010/06/how-to-make-gooseberry-elderflower-jam/

Elderflower Panacottahttp://britishfood.about.com/od/eorecipes/r/ElderflowerPannacotta.htm

Elderflower cured trout
http://honestcooking.com/scandinavian-twist-elderflower-cured-trout/

Gooseberry creams with elderflower

http://www.deliaonline.com/recipes/cuisine/european/english/english-gooseberry-creams-with-elderflower-and-gooseberry-compote.html

http://www.redonline.co.uk/food/recipes/rhubarb-and-elderflower-flans

http://www.herbsociety.org.uk/kh-hedgerow-to-kitchen-elderflower.htm

http://www.goodtoknow.co.uk/recipes/519946/elderflower-and-lemon-drizzle-cake

http://fussfreeflavours.com/2012/03/recipe-elderflower-marshmallows/

http://thingswemake.co.uk/2013/06/29/orange-elderflower-liqueur/

Elderflowers can also be dried for use later on in the year

What a fantastic list! Huge thanks BB for this, and to Mrs LW for asking the question I was about to ask!

jk0

Frugalsod wrote: »

Eventually it will mean very significant drops in income and that will be painful for anyone who has not cleared their debts. I suspect that eventually TPTB will have to come up with a new debt jubilee at some point rather than face the fact that millions of former home owners/ angry voters will be repossessed. That or come out with a new currency like Weimar marks.

Thanks Frugalsod, you seem quite knowledgeable about these things.

Rogoff was saying that he thought governments should coordinate the switch away from paper money, presumably so that people won't just start dealing in dollars when pound notes disappear.

Would this possibly be the point that they introduce the world currency we've heard about?

GreyQueen

Morning all.

Governments get very exercised at the slightest attempt of everyday folk to make some of their transactions off the books, whether that means a cash-in-hand tradesperson or the LETS system type currencies.

Local currencies keep wealth local, where it circulates to the common benefit. National currencies enable wealth to be siphoned out of communities altogether. Heaven help us if there is a one-world currency; the nation state will bleed from all orifices.

Cash is a bit of a generational thing. My middle-aged peers use cash for many things, as well as electonic banking. The twenty-somethings I know don't even carry cash in most cases, they do everything by swipe card/ online/ via their idiot phones. Boy will they have a rude awakening if the system goes down.

I fins myself thinking of how the gypsies and travellers store their excess wealth; typically gold jewelry and coins and things like Crown Derby, with the understanding that these are portable stores of wealth, not keepers. I've also encountered wealthy people who, in the stagflation of the 1970s, put some of their wealth into antiques..............there's more than one way around it.

I detest the idea of having all my transactions visible. And that's not because I spend my hard-earned on hard drugs or other nefarious products. I just like to have that stuff private.

But the coming generations have effectively been conditioned to use money electronically with no thought of the data trail they are leaving behind them.

[Deleted User]

Given that fianacial collapse is inevitable and probably not as far in the future as we'd like it to be, surely the best way of preparing ourselves and our lives for that event happening is to pay off as much of the debts we have as possible, clear them completely if you are able and change the lifestyle we live to a much simpler and less consumer oriented basis, with as much built in self reliance as it's possible to have on an individual footing as we all have different levels we're able to go to. Prepping really isn't just about storing tins and having a BOB and plans to evacuate if necessary is it? Having a mindset that allows you to accept the necessary changes that are going to be forced on you, perhaps even anticipating those changes and making them voluntarily before they are forced on to you must give you a better outlook in your future?

GreyQueen

MrsLurcherwalker wrote: »

Given that fianacial collapse is inevitable and probably not as far in the future as we'd like it to be, surely the best way of preparing ourselves and our lives for that event happening is to pay off as much of the debts we have as possible, clear them completely if you are able and change the lifestyle we live to a much simpler and less consumer oriented basis, with as much built in self reliance as it's possible to have on an individual footing as we all have different levels we're able to go to. Prepping really isn't just about storing tins and having a BOB and plans to evacuate if necessary is it? Having a mindset that allows you to accept the necessary changes that are going to be forced on you, perhaps even anticipating those changes and making them voluntarily before they are forced on to you must give you a better outlook in your future?

Well said that woman!

Yes, those of us who are a bit old-fashioned already, in respect of knowing how to mend and sew, cook from scratch, preserve, garden etc will probably be in a better place, mentally, that those for whom these things are alien.

Effectively, we'd only be going back to what was the norm 2-3 generations ago.

The tins are just to get you over the crisis, ultimately one would have to be cultivating veggies, raising small livestock like chickens and rabbits, perhaps a bit of hunting, an d going back to a more modest way of life.

My Dad was talking yesterday about being a young adult in the 1950s. People didn't have a lot but didn't get greatly exercised about it. Most people were pretty chilled; you went to the pub for a bit of recreation, or out on a walk or bike ride. If you really wanted to go further afield, there were trains and buses but with working 5.5 days a week, folks mostly stayed close to home.

I guess when the S does HTF (and I'd rather it never did) some of us will be running around like headless chickens yelling they can't do this to us!! and some of us will be nodding sagely to ourselves and going here it comes.......

Mind you, with a fire in a neighbouring flat in the past few weeks, I thought my BOB was going to be deployed in earnest, but it was contained and it wasn't necessary - and long may it remain unneccesary.

Frugalsod

jk0 wrote: »

Thanks Frugalsod, you seem quite knowledgeable about these things.

Rogoff was saying that he thought governments should coordinate the switch away from paper money, presumably so that people won't just start dealing in dollars when pound notes disappear.

Would this possibly be the point that they introduce the world currency we've heard about?

Yes if they abolish paper money then there will be alternative that will take their place. If you are concerned that all your transactions will be tracked by the government you might simply stop spending. Last thing that you might want an authoritarian government knowing is that you subscribe to a prepper magazine or buy considerably more food than an average person. If they were to abolish one form of paper as you said people might switch to another currency, and use that as a black market currency instead. To co-ordinate every country doing the same will be impossible. Some countries do not have the financial infrastructure to do it. Criminals use valuable artworks to pay for large drug shipments. So there could be many new "currencies" that will be off the record. The barter economy might come back with a vengeance as people start to fear a dictatorship in all but name. They could simply raid everyones bank account and digital wallet if they want to balance their books. Also if you can control a persons access to their own money you can control them.

Frugalsod

MrsLurcherwalker wrote: »

Given that fianacial collapse is inevitable and probably not as far in the future as we'd like it to be, surely the best way of preparing ourselves and our lives for that event happening is to pay off as much of the debts we have as possible, clear them completely if you are able and change the lifestyle we live to a much simpler and less consumer oriented basis, with as much built in self reliance as it's possible to have on an individual footing as we all have different levels we're able to go to. Prepping really isn't just about storing tins and having a BOB and plans to evacuate if necessary is it? Having a mindset that allows you to accept the necessary changes that are going to be forced on you, perhaps even anticipating those changes and making them voluntarily before they are forced on to you must give you a better outlook in your future?

I would agree with that. Personally I am hoping that they can keep the whole house of cards going for a few more years so I can fully prep for the inevitable. What I would add is that with the governments idea to raid bank accounts if they owe tax and have more than £5000 then if you have spare cash invest it in things around the home, in things that have a high rate of return like insulation, things that cut the cost of running your home. If you are craft minded a sewing machine as that can keep you in clothes and possibly earn you extra income. When I bought my Kenwood Chef a couple of years ago I spent a fortune, but I reckon that with the fact that I can now do so much with it, and use it almost every day that it has paid for itself already. That works out at around 40 to 50% per annum rate of return. That is far more than I would ever get in a bank account. Just think of what you could get an if it would cut the costs of running your home then work out how quickly it will pay for itself. LED bulbs are like that. They cost a lot to start with but are half the running costs of even low energy bulbs.