On Burying Treasure

Apodemus

Ok, if we are specifically talking about hiding a suitably damp-resistant package containing 100 £20 notes, then I stand by my suggestion of under a flat gravestone in a remote, no-longer-used burial ground.

schiff

Presumably one day Father A is going to be a captured fugitive - sorry Father but it will happen - and all these posters on MSE will be charged as being accessories. I think it's nice to have something in common with the adjacent cells rather than taking pot luck. One can hardly wait.

shaun_from_Africa

schiff wrote: »

Presumably one day Father A is going to be a captured fugitive -

You can be a fugitive or you can be captured but you can't be both at the same time.
Once captured you become an ex-fugitive.
Pedantic mode off.

FatherAbraham wrote: »

Well, we talked about keeping some cash on one's person earlier in the thread, but one hundred twenty-pound notes is actually quite a bulky pile, fairly uncomfortable to wear, and thus a safe, accessible, unguarded stashing place, iif available, is preferable.

100 new and uncreased notes is actually only slightly over 11mm thick so not really that bulky at all, in fact, this probably isn't much different to the thickness of a folded wallet.

grey_gym_sock

Puddylove wrote: »

I once had to bury a friend's deceased Guinea pig in a field (clay soil, drought) at night. I dug for what felt like hours, with my friend sobbing quietly beside me, until the light of our head torches attracted the local constabulary. Difficult times.

Therefore I suggest you consider soil type, rainfall, depth and digging utensils, proximity to local roads, as part of your plan.

what i learnt from this is that, if you're burying treasure somewhere you might be disturbed, you should take a dead guinea pig with you to provide a cover story.

wmb194

FatherAbraham wrote: »

The specific scenario which leads to needing liquidity isn't the point. If you only prepare for specific scenarios, the ones you manage to imagine in advance, then you'll be vulnerable to situations which you didn't conceive of. It's no use crying "It's not fair! I never thought that X could happen!"

So every scenario under the sun?! So what about the scenario where you arrive at your stash covered in blood and brains? You'll need a cache, not a stash, with far more materiel than just a few banknotes but judging by your OP this has already been discounted. Carrying some cash covers most non-extreme scenarios and, as Shaun says, 100 notes isn't so much: I've carried that amount in an envelope in my front jeans pocket. This can be in addition to an underground stash because in one obvious scenario you won't be able to get to it. (Anyway, I'm not even sure why "one month's net salary" is the magic number.)

I agree, in every non-bizarre delusion comfort is paramount, so perhaps instead a man purse or bum bag? I'd also carry a miniature trumpet in case during your escape you ever need to gain favour with a difficult child.

Apodemus

schiff wrote: »

Presumably one day Father A is going to be a captured fugitive - sorry Father but it will happen - and all these posters on MSE will be charged as being accessories. I think it's nice to have something in common with the adjacent cells rather than taking pot luck. One can hardly wait.

I'm working on the assumption that Father A is trawling (as opposed to trolling!) for ideas for a crime novel...and that is what I'll say in court!

This is also why he doesn't want to give away the actual scenario, as this would be the main plot of his story.


Actually, I'm mainly just surprised that we've all been sucked in and this has now run to a fourth page!

Gadfium

Rather than looking for ideas to bury money in the event of a zombie apocalypse, perhaps FA should be seeking some psychological help? in all my time I have never heard of anyone wanting to bury money in case they became a fugitive and escaped the law. That's a level of paranoia that probably needs specialist help...

Apodemus

Gadfium wrote: »

Rather than looking for ideas to bury money in the event of a zombie apocalypse, perhaps FA should be seeking some psychological help? in all my time I have never heard of anyone wanting to bury money in case they became a fugitive and escaped the law. That's a level of paranoia that probably needs specialist help...

Oh no, Zombie Apocalypse! Hadn't thought of that...scratch my burial ground idea!

Malthusian

FatherAbraham wrote: »

You see, that's the problem with specific scenarios, isn't it? Because if you were trying to avoid a new girlfriend's murderous ex-husband, or a lynch mob accussing you of necrophilia, then your "hand yourself over" idea looks a bit daft, doesn't it?

No, the idea of doing anything else looks even more daft, because if the police don't even suspect you of committing a crime then there's nothing to stop you walking into the nearest police station and asking for their protection. Now, sadly we all know the police are a bit useless at that, but even if they refuse to do anything, you don't need to go home and wait to become a victim. If it's not the entire machinery of the state chasing you but a single man or group, there is nothing to stop you fleeing to a friend or a relative or a random AirBNB and carrying on using your credit cards and online banking.

The buried treasure scenario only makes sense if it's the police after you. If it's a crime you didn't commit then the best survival strategy is the one that gives you the best chance of a continued happy life, and that is to hand yourself in and clear your name in the courts. If it's a crime you did commit then the best survival strategy was not to commit it in the first place.

Gadfium wrote:

Rather than looking for ideas to bury money in the event of a zombie apocalypse, perhaps FA should be seeking some psychological help? in all my time I have never heard of anyone wanting to bury money in case they became a fugitive and escaped the law. That's a level of paranoia that probably needs specialist help..

Really? You must not use the Internet much, or watch TV. People have been fantasising about life on the run since The Count of Monte Cristo. Every university has a zombie survival club nowadays.

Gadfium

Malthusian wrote: »

Really? You must not use the Internet much, or watch TV. People have been fantasising about life on the run since The Count of Monte Cristo. Every university has a zombie survival club nowadays.

I first used the Internet in 1994 on a 14.4k dialup modem. Infoseek and Altavista (remember them) had a total listing of less then 200,000 webpages on the whole web.

The thing with fantasies is that they are just that- fantasies. Once you start obsessing about them or trying to turn them into real life then you start to have a problem.