Jamin

Today I got together with some people. A lady did a lesson on making then canning your own jelly. It was pretty easy. Actually doing it together with somebody experienced took a lot of the mystery out of it. Aside from jars there isn't really anything needed which isn't in a normally equipped kitchen. Best of all we all left with a recipe plus a small jar of strawberry jam.

Assuming you reuse the jars, which everybody does, then procure berries at sane prices it's very cost effective. Also it gets my foot into the door of a very useful skill set. If I can find jars then strawberries at sane prices I'll be making some jam pretty soon.

Pride

So many times people let their pride stand in the way of bettering themselves. Dudes are worse about this than chicks for whatever reason. We dudes seem to have the impression that we can shoot like Chris Costa and fight like a young Mike Tyson even if we can't hit a barn from the inside or beat up a 12 year old yellow belt Taekwondo student.

My point is that we need to objectively assess our own skills to find the strengths and shortages. We then need to seek out qualified people (paid or not) to help work on those shortages. Sucking it up and taking a couple classes or spending some afternoons with a friend learning can do a world of good. Not fun to admit not knowing something but the short term sucking it up to fix the problem beats a whole life of continuing to know know the thing.

Have you let pride stand in the way of bettering yourself?

AR-15 Lower Receiver Build

So to start out I had a stripped lower reciever, a DMPS lower parts kit, a Brownells receiver extension AKA buffer tube and stock, some punches and a little hammer. The Glock tools were tossed into the order as they are a nice thing to have. I hopped onto the AR-15.com build guide and got started. It was helpful to have it open in two tabs so one could stay on the picture with the part diagram instead of scrolling back and forth.

Yes that is a tiny hand with a toy truck in the photo. I was getting set up right about his bedtime.

We will start with the Bad, then move onto the Ugly and close with the Good.

The Bad:

Lets just say I am not mechanically inclined. Tiny little pieces that have to go together in specific ways aren't my thing. Imagine if Homer Simpson and the Keystone Kops tried to build an AR-15 lower receiver.

Things got rolling and were going OK until the #*$%)#* #*%$))#*ing Pivot Pin Detent and Spring. Those suckers went flying off to the abyss of our home. After some looking and harsh words I decided to grab the other parts (there are two of each piece) and just keep going. That #*$)(@#ing spring bent but I had a second one. It would probably still work but the idea of using a knowingly flawed part did not appeal to me. That front pivot pin detent and spring are probably the hardest part of the whole lower build. I kept going on figuring this part could be figured out later. About half the parts need to be taken out then put back in but nothing was particularly difficult and I kept a decent pace.

Once I got to the end of the lower build I had to have that other Detent Pin and Spring. Realizing I had some spare parts lying around I decided to see if these parts were on inventory so things could get finished up. Thankfully I had the parts. Getting the rear detent pin in, the buffer retainer compressed and the stock screwed on was kind of awkward. Anyway it got done.

Doing a functions check the trigger was not rebounding properly/ reliably. I then pulled out another lower to take a look. The trigger spring was not properly in place. To take it out I pretty much had to pull the whole thing apart but since I was a bit ahead on the learning curve it was only a 10 minute thing.

All in all it is done and took about 2.5 hours. During that time I ruined/ lost about $3 in parts. I suspect another build would take an hour and not have any lost/ damaged parts.

The Ugly: The implications of lost or damaged parts are significant in some sort of worst case scenario. Folks who plan to build or fully disassemble weapons would be well advised to have some of those little parts on hand. Had this been a worst case scenario and I didn't have the spare parts my AR-15 would be nonfunctional for the want of $3 in parts which would be like really really bad.

Getting into my spare parts I saw we have a less AR-15 spare parts than I thought. Will address this shortage at some point.

The Good:

I know more about the function of the AR-15 than I did before. While the building wasn't fun I am pleased to have done this. Also I learned a new skill. Getting to the level where I am a competent Armorer (able to restore the gun to factory specs) on all of our core weapons and some common other ones is something I want to do.  Also now I have to go to the range to do a test fire which is a good excuse reason to go shooting.

My Gut is Telling Me

1) Store food. Lots and lots of food.

2) Develop skills to do things for myself and to trade with others.

3) Fill in the little holes in our systems. This ranges from a $40 sling that makes a $1,000 gun functional to yeast that will help turn flour into bread or little pieces of kit to make rough living more comfortable.

4) Address deficiencies in my weapons handling/ defensive/ tactical training.

5) Get into the best shape of my life.

I don't know what any of it means or where it came from though most of it makes sense.

Range Report- 25 September

Got some range time today which was pretty awesome. I have forgotten what a great stress reliever shooting is. The revolvers were fun as always. Decided to hold onto the one that I was looking at selling. It is a sweet shooter and would not bring a ton of money on resale. Forgot to bring the Browning Buckmark which was a bit of a bummer.

I have been working on being more intentional than I have in the past when it comes to shooting. Either starting from the low ready or holster and shooting controlled pairs at multiple targets. Reloads were often used. If I wasn't sold before the modern isosceles is definitely the ticket. The Glock 19 shot like a champ. There is a reason lots of really smart folks use them.

Practicing with the gear I carry with has been interesting. Like the gun, belt and leather. However my spare mag storage needs to be addressed. I have been tossing a spare mag in my off hand cargo pocket which sucks a lot for the reload. Might as well stop to get a drink of water, use the bathroom and wash my hands during a speed reload. The back pocket is better (at least it won't get turned around) but not by much. Granted carrying a 15 shot pistol a reload is unlikely but I like having one around. I've been meaning to get a spare mag pouch and start using it for CC but this really beats that point in.

All in all I was pretty happy with things especially considering pistol range time has been pretty light for a pretty long time. A pair of good ear muffs would make things a bit more pleasant and a shot timer would help me get serious about training.

The old 30-30 needed some love. It is one of those models that came with the infernal cross bolt safety. Hating said safety I promptly removed it. That left the rifle functioning how it should but with noticeable and unpleasant holes in the sides of the receiver.  Did not want the safety back but didn't want the holes either. the whole thing bothered me so it got stashed away in the safe. Recently I used some google fu to see if other people have had this same problem.

Stumbled into this article by a fellow who had the same problem. For less than a buck at the hardware store I got 2 1/4 in nylon hole inserts and gave it a shot. The gun looks like it should, well at least to a quick glance which is good enough for me. I had considered selling the gun and getting an older one (a 16" 30-30 trapper would be great but it is pretty low on the list) without the safety which is an infernal nod to our overly legalistic society but this solved the problem.

Look it is probably a bad idea to do any at home gunsmithing, let alone messing with safety features. As such I cannot recommend it to anybody and in fact suggest not doing it. As an adult with a decent understanding of firearm safety and the safe handling of this weapon I made a choice that may not be right for others.

Any day shooting is a good day. Most things went really well and there is some stuff to work on.  Planning to do some research and start incorporating dry fire practice into the mix. Hopefully there will be a lot more shooting happening (shooting for monthly as a goal) so this will be a more frequent feature.

Get out there and train!

News and Posts Worth Reading

On the news front:

 Iran threatens to attack US bases in the event of war. This is just ridiculous in so many ways.

Posts worth reading:

The New Renaissance by Paratis Familia. Something to consider for your own personal development and for raising kids.

Pre crisis contracts in Argentina by Surviving in Argentina aka FerFal's blog. My .02 cents on the matter. Timing things to make out better with debt is problematic and a big bet. Also it is clear to me that the trend is clearly to take care of banks and big business at the expense of normal folks, not the opposite. In other words it is far more likely that you would get bent over somehow than that you will be able to stick it to big banks or businesses.

Skill Saturday: Curing and Maintaining Cast Iron

I have been slacking on this feature. On a tangent I was recently asked if it would be possible for me to do some stuff with video. There are some PERSEC concerns. I am not putting my face out there on the web any time soon and would probably use backdrops or whatnot. We have a video camera but I am not entirely sure of it's capabilities. Will have to do tests at some point.

Anyway today I am going to talk about cast iron. Cast Iron and I had a love hate relationship but seem to have figured it out. If you haven't picked it up I like low maintenance things that can take a beating. It is not an accident that I shoot Glocks and drive Japanese/ Korean cars. Non stick stuff is easy but it doesn't wear very well. My observation is that it needs to be replaced every couple years even if you buy quality. I hate products that do not wear well and like ones that last forever, or at least a long time. Obviously pots and pans that last forever have some preparedness benefits. This leads to my cast iron dilema.

I used some cast iron while camping as a kid but not extensively. Being quite heavy it is relegated to car camping or long term base camps. As an adult we got a cast iron frying pan a couple years ago. I never did a lot with it, the thing sort of got rusty and then sat in a cupboard. Since redeploying I wanted to get this sorted out.

The method I have found successful for curing cast iron is as follows: Clean and wash the pan (or whatever), if there is rust take care of it with an SOS pad, steel wool or fine sand paper. Wash, immediately dry with a towel then put it on a burner set to high (or in an oven) to heat it up and get rid of any remaining moisture. You can let it cool or not after this, my observation is that it doesn't actually matter.

Preheat oven to 500 degrees. [If your pan has some baked on junk or residue put it into the oven for an hour, this should burn it off. ] When the oven is up to temp take out some crisco (do not use vegetable oil, it leaves resedue) and use a rag or paper towel to LIGHTLY coat the pan. Stick the pan in the oven bottom side up and put a cookie sheet, ideally an old nasty one, or covered in tin foil, below it to catch drips. This is important because I have heard that if you do not a bunch of junk will drip onto the bottom of the oven and burn. Set the timer for an hour. Go do something else.

In an hour take the pan out using a potholder because the pan is quite hot. Use a clean rag or paper towel to wipe off the excess crisco or any burned on junk. If nothing comes off then you are done. If stuff comes off then grab your crisco rag or paper towel and LIGHTLY recoat the pan then put it back in the oven for an hour. I found two cycles of coating and an hour in the oven left a nice shiny black pan that is easy to cook with. YMMV.

During this whole thing be careful because the pan will be hot. Also it will stay hot for a suprisingly long time.

Cooking with cast iron: Cast iron needs some sort of oil like product to prevent stuff from burning and getting stuck. Not a lot necessarily but some. It cooks very evenly which is nice.

Maintenance: Water is to cast iron what crack is to Charlie Sheen, a significant problem. DO NOT LET CAST IRON SOAK IN A SINK FULL OF WATER. DO NOT LEAVE CAST IRON WET. Scrape off all the food or residue, wash it normally, dry immediately with a towel and then into the oven or onto the burner to heat up and burn off any remaining moisture.

One benefit of cast iron being a big piece of metal is that you do not need to be afraid of hurting some finish like you would a nonstick pan. You can ruin the nice black oil coat (called a Patina for some reason) but that can be fixed by curing it. I once used a steel wire brush attachment on a drill to clean up a particularly abused dutch oven.

Note: I am certainly not saying this is the only way to cure, clean and use cast iron. Other folks might do something that is better. This is just the way that works for me.

With some reasonable adaptations cast iron can be rewarding and enjoyable to use.

Download the Firefox Book Today!

Well maybe you don't really need to do it today but definitely should do it. Download the first Foxfire book here. The second and third books were available some time ago but I couldn't find them in a dilligent 30 second google search. The first one is IMO the best of the bunch anyway.

Download it and either print it out or buy a hard copy. You can get a set of the first three books (after that it gets more crafty for the sake of crafty than practical) in a box, used but not abused, for under 50 bucks. Considering what printer ink costs and that actual books are nicer anyway it might not be a bad way to go.

Skill Sunday: Packing a Backpack/ Ruck

I planned to write this post today but remembered that I did it years ago. Anyway this throwback post on how to pack a ruck is worth checking out if you are not solid on the topic.

Azimuth Check

I have stolen this title from Lizard Farmer who runs an excellent newish blog that focuses on retreat/ farm/ ranch defense. His post was more a check on how folks thought his blog was doing. I will head in a different direction. My azimuth check is more about the direction from where my/ your overall situation was to where we want it to be. I will break it into a few categories.

Finances:
How is your debt situation? Do you have any debt with an adjustable or otherwise particularly high interest rate?

Do you have some savings for if something happens?

Do you have some money accessible to buy things if there is an event that interupts normal banking (this means cash on hand)?

If you can afford it have you considered putting some money into precious metals? There isn't a right or wrong answer to this one. Folks differ widely on this topic.

Health:
Are you and your family of a reasonably healthy body weight? If not are you making tangible progress towards getting there?

Do you have any health/ medical/ dental issues that could be improved but have not been? Maybe you need an elective surgery or have been putting off dental work or need to get into physical therapy to get something worked out. Bringing us back to the last question it is utterly amazing how many medical issues decrease or go away if you get to a reasonably healthy body weight.

If applicable do you keep a stash of essential perscription meds on hand? Keeping 30 days on hand is ok, 90 days is pretty decent and will cover a lot of issues but of course more is better. It may mean paying out of pocket but consider the alternative which is, to varying degrees, very ugly.

If applicable do you have at least a pair of spare glasses in your current perscription (two or three would be better)?


How are your chompers doing?

How are you doing at physical fitness? Can you walk long distances with a load? Run fast for short periods and slower for longer ones? Control your body weight through a variety of tasks and obstacles? Lift heavy things or carry another person?

Skills and Training:

Can you make a fire? At night? Can you do it when it has been raining for a week strait?

Can you find your way around with a compass and a map?

Can you make or improvise some sort of shelter to be as comfortable as possible in a variety of situations?

Can you turn basic staples like flour, rice or wheat into a decent or even tasty meal?

Can you grow or raise your own food?

Can you find or gather food from fishing, hunting, plant gathering or something else really cool I have never heard of?

Can you fix stuff? Mechanical things? Small arms? Brick and mortar? Wood? Plumbing? Electrical?

Can you engage targets with personal weapons in realistic circumstances?

Can you organize a defense be it at home or in some sort of hasty situation?

If the Chinese invade or whateveer can you plan and execute small unit Red Dawn/ partisan/ G style offensive operations?

Stockpile and Equipment:

How is your food storage doing?

Do you have personal weapons as well as the stuff needed to use them? Do you have some spare parts, cleaning stuff and ammunition to keep your guns running without a trip to Wally World or the local gun shop?

How are you doing at storing all of the other stuff like medical supplies, batteries, fuel, cleaning and hygiene stuff, spare parts, etc all to keep on keeping on as well as you can without outside assistance?

Is the stuff you have put together into kits or packages or systems that will meet your needs on short notice?

I am sure there are some good questions that I missed. This covers a ton of ground so do not be ashamed if there are some areas where you fall short. My goal is to give you some areas to think about and see where you are at. Every one of these questions is not equally applicable to all situations. Like many things you would be well advised look at these questions with brutal honesty, action what is applicable and disregard what is not.

Hope you all had a great weekend!

Skill Saturday- Skill Development

skill/skil/

Noun:

The ability to do something well; expertise. A particular ability

 I decided to start paying more attention to skills here. Starting by talking about what skills are and different ways you can develop them seemed like as good of a place as any. To me skills differ from education or knowledge in that they relate so some sort of a specific action or end product. A mechanic could show his skill by fixing a vehicle or a chef by making a tasty meal.

Broadly speaking skills tend to be more difficult to develop on you own than knowledge. A guy who reads the right shelf of books and has a decent memory could learn a lot about history for example. It would be much harder to learn to fix engines from a shelf of books.

Thankfully over the last couple decades between how to tapes and DVD's, the internet, reasonably priced recording equipment and youtube there are some readily accessible individual options other than trying to figure things out from a small black and white picture in a book. Being able to read about something and see another person do it goes a long way towards making it actually work. Assuming we are talking about a reasonably simple skill and you are a moderately intelligent person this is often enough to get started.

The upsides of this self guided at home type learning are that you can do it whenever and almost wherever you want. You can learn skills that are uncommon in your area or you don't want to advertise pursueing for whatever reason. The downsides are that it is seriously limited in what you can learn. Complex skills with multiple things going on at once (shooting, hand to hand combat, complicated auto repair, etc) do not typically work well with this style of learning.

 In many cases the easiest way to develop a skill is to find somebody who has that skill and get them to show you how to do it. This is a good place to start for most skills. Look at people in and around your family/ friends/ work circles. Somebody probably knows how to do basic auto maintenance, another guy might know how to do tile or plumbing or shoot a gun. Typically folks are willing to help you out. Just about everybody likes an excuse to practice their hobby so if the skill falls into that area you are probably good to go. If it is something a guy does for a living like auto repair or construction it is a bit harder. Offering to help them work on a project of theirs vs offering to let them do their job outside of work and fix your car/ toilet/ whatever for free is something I have seen work well.

The upsides of this style of learning are that it is convenient, comfortable and cheap. All of these are good things.

The downsides however are noteable. Sometimes free training is worth exactly what you paid. Jimbo the gun guy or Bob the shade tree mechanic might be completely uncapable or even dangerous. Unfortunately folks with no experience in an area are often not capable of assessing an individuals skill or ability at instruction.  Often instruction in this style is limited by time and effort by both parties. If your 65 year old retired neighbor shot high power for 4 decades and is lonely he might teach you almost everything he knows over a few years of Sundays at the range but if your 30 year old cousin who casually target shoots takes you to the range once the amount of skills you get will be pretty minimal.

Also different groups vary but it is my observation that often skills tend to cluster in groups based on region/ socioeconomic/ cultural leanings. The odds that a rural Wyoming community has folks who can teach you to shoot or hunt are a lot higher than in Manhattan. On the other hand Jim the rancher probably can't do the paperwork to set up a dummy corp incorporate your small business in 20 minutes during a Saturday BBQ. Sometimes skills you need do not exist inside of your social group.

As with anything in life, you get what you pay for.

The next option is looking to local groups or clubs. Join an outdoors or orienteering club or whatever. This may cost a little bit of money but if paying a $20 membership fee and doing some stupid meetings lets you get a skill that you need it is a good investment. The upside is that you can pursue specific skills in this way. The downside would be that it really only applies to certain hobby type skills.

The last option is getting professional training in the area(s) you are weak in. If you really want to learn how to do something getting quality training from an expert is a hard option to beat. For specific skills which have a high level of technical complication that you really want to get good at this is probably the best way to go. Unless your good buddy is an MMA fighter or a tactical marksmenship instructor who is willing to teach you for weeks or years for free this is really the only viable options. One thing to consider is how much time and money you would need to spend to reach a given skill level. Lots of schools can teach you to be a decent defensive handgun shooter in a weekend for a few hundred bucks. Spending 2 years going full time to a technical school to learn to fix engines is a lot harder to pull off. The only real downside of this plan is that it is expensive. The old addage about trading time and convenience for money probably applies here.

Anyway while not exclusive the ways we talk about developing skills are pretty representative of the available options.

Thoughts?

Skills and Mindset

Recently I realized something that I do not like about this blog recently. There is not anywhere near enough discussion of skills, mindset's or training taking place here. After looking around long and hard for somebody to blame for this shortcoming I was unable to find anybody but myself.

I got to thinking about why exactly this is the case. The answer came about pretty easily. This blog is largely a reflection of what I am doing, working on or thinking about. Skilss haven't been a big part of this personal journey in survivalism or it's subsequent twists and turns.

The reason that skills haven't been a big part of my journey are that I came into this thing fairly comfortable with my skillsets. At the risk of tooting my own horn when I became seriously interested in survivalism I had a solid outdoor background, decent hand to hand and firearms/ tactical skills and a variety of little stuff learned from rural living and various redneck jobs. Certainly not saying that I know everything or am a master of anything but somehow I had a pretty good grab bag of skills to work with.

Once I started getting into this I pretty much needed stuff to feed the skill sets that already existed. This I have been more likely to be thinking and talking about something related to food storage than how to cook with a camp stove as I can do that. While I have worked on a small skill here or there it hasn't been a big part of my personal preparations.

I want to add these parts to the blog in greater frequency, mostly for readers. The way I talk and operate here works for somebody with a background similar to mine but would fail miserably for a lot of people. Different folks need different things to become more fully prepared. The desired endstates are the same but how to get there is different based on where one currently is. A super rural small scale organic farmer/ rancher has different needs and concerns than a big city SWAT cop. Obviously what is good for one person isn't necessarily good for another.

In any case broadly speaking my lack of discussion of skills is an issue. In the worst extreme it could leave them with thousands of dollars of stuff they don't have a clue what to do with. I will try to consciously step back and talk about different foundational skills to the best of my ability.

Priorities should probably go to the most foundational stuff. You have got to learn basic weapons handling before you learn to shoot steel at 1,000 meters and how to change the oil before rebuilding an engine. This also helps because it typically puts the easiest targets in front of you first. Finding a basic (qualified) instructor in firearms handling, outdoor skills, auto maintenance, etc is probably something you can do pretty locally and cheaply. Heck if you are willing to invest some time and sweat equity money may not even be an issue. Less so if you want to shoot like Sammy The Seal or Wally the Super Woodsman who an go into the woods with a knife and build a shopping mall.

Personally I have some things to work on. Mostly because of the eccentricities of Germany (as well as our OP Tempo and deployment) the skills I need to develop have pretty much been in a holding pattern. I need to get better at mechanical stuff and harvesting wild game/ plants. I could greatly benefit from some targeted professional firearms training. Additional medical training is always beneficial. I am almost surely missing other stuff. Some of these things will take sweat equity and the rest will take cold hard cash.

Not quite sure how I will do this. Maybe a weekly feature or something. Despite any of my failures as a blogger please pay attention to the skill sets which you have and those which you lack. Work to close the gap between the two. Come up with some sort of plan that will allow realistic progress towards these goals.

What Did You Do To Prepare This Week?

Some weeks you end up buying a bunch of stuff and this was sure one of them. Prices seemed right so we bought silver and gold. I got a bunch of stuff to finish off the get home bag which I am pretty psyched about. I ordered a Nalgene bottle  with matching steel cup, another knife sharpener, some more water purification tablets, one of those heavy duty emergency blankets, too much stuff to remember or list. I will probably talk about it at some point once things arrive.

Also  we seem to be fiddling some with alternative transportation. I got a bike, though sadly not a sweet Harley. Also I found a small wagon, like to pull the kid around in. It is pretty cool. It has little seats and a place for him to put a sippy cup. We took it out this weekend and he really liked it. Being able to move him and a bit of stuff in a way that he is happy with is significant. Also the wagon led to a slew of Oregon Trails jokes which was big fun. These little steps may just take us somewhere.

Anyway that is what we were up to this week. I hope you all did some good stuff. Remember it isn't just about buying things. Exercise, learn and practice new skills, network and build relationships, work on your tribe. Just do something that makes you more prepared than you were last week.

Teach Your Boy To Sew

The other day my roomie, a guy I’ve known for awhile now asked if I knew anybody here who can sew. I asked what he needed done and it turned out he had a couple pair of torn pants. I asked if they were clean and then to see them. Realizing it was something I could fix I said I would get to it when I could. Just strait holes worn at points of stress so it was easy. (On an unrelated note I think the cloth used for Multi Cam is lacking in durability. Also the addition of zippers to the ACU model of uniforms sucks. You can’t fix a zipper in the field for love or money but a small sewing kit and a few buttons can keep a pair of BDU’s (even the summer ones are much more durable)in serviceable condition almost indefinitely. End rant on how these uniforms are lacking.)

In any case everyone needs to know how to sew, at least at a functional level. I don’t sew things that are nice like a dress shirt but can patch a rip or put on a new button to a pair of work clothes or a field uniform. This skill has let me keep a lot of stuff workable for prolonged time periods.

Sewing is a skill everybody should have.

Little Choices

The thing is that life is just a series of small choices. We make them literally every day. Over time these choices add up to our lives. While we are somewhat constrained by various rules, regulations and laws I don't see a point in dwelling on that. You can work to change things you don't like, figure out how to deal with them, ignore them, whine and complain or some combination theiron. However please remember that a choice to do something you really can't afford or put away a few dollars, hit the weight pile and road for a run or sit on the couch eating fast food, practice your skills and improve your preps or sit staring at the TV and or computer. These choices will over time add up to your life. Make good ones.

The Next 30 Years Thinking Small

It has become abundantly clear to me that I will have to work harder, smarter and make better choices than my parents did to achieve comparable results. Since I have made decent choices and seem to be continuing to do so I'm not that worried about me. Presumably Wifey and I will do pretty OK. However when it comes to Walker I have some concerns. I grew up in a superpower and more likely than not he will grow up in one power among many, certainly a large and rich country but not as large and rich as it used to be. I am sure the risks for only acquiring mediocre skills and making mediocre choices will be far higher for him. I think that like most things the answer is small and local. I can make sure he gets a good education and has access to college or a trade. We can, through positive modeling push him in these directions. We can make sure that he values education and knows how to handle money. We can also teach him some useful life skills. I guess beyond that it will be up to him. However since his biggest dilemma right now is the fact that he wants to feed himself and is unable to do so effectively (drops stuff and smashes it all over the place) we've got awhile to worry about his path as an adult. However we have started funding his college so it isn't that far away. Like a lot of big goals the key to that seems to be planning. We have done the math and it is certainly doable for us assuming an average income. However if we did like so many parents and started thinking about it at 17 we would be hosed. Prior planning prevents piss poor performance.

New Years Resolutions: January Update

I've decided that instead of just randomly reviewing my progress and changes in goals I will do it monthly. Accomplished goals will be lined through and changes/ additions and commentary will be in italics.

People:


1. Maximize family time. I think spending at least a hour of good undivided family time a day is doable on all but the longest work days. More on weekends. This one is coming along pretty well.

2. Take better care of myself. I need to work on getting at least 6 hours of sleep even when I get off work late. Also I need to eat more regularly (I have started to get busy and just not eat) and like most people could also consume more green stuff. Find a suplimentary (to regular PT) exercise program that I can really stick with. I got busy and this goal sort of ebbed/ flowed and then just slipped away over the past year. I'm not in bad shape but could definitely be in better shape.

3. Better prioritize tasks and be more efficient.

Money:

4. Become debt free- Should be done in by the end of March

5. Fully fund ROTH IRA's for Wifey and I.

5.1 Learn about how to analyze and value individual stocks.

6. Add at least $500 (ideally $1,000) to our emergency fund.

7. Buy some silver. It is somewhat flexible but am leaning toward 90% coinage. I hesitate to say an exact amount because as I noted last year price swings change those goals from being realistic to unattainable.

8. Start funding Walkers college education.

Of course we will also continue to not make stupid choices.

Skills and Education

9. Study insurgent/ guerilla/ partisan tactics. This has the added benefit of being 'red hat' stuff for work.

10. Get better at first aid/ trauma stuff. May get moving on this next week.

11. Shave with a straight razor. Sharpen it also. (implied task, get a straight razor)

12. Work on making antennas for world band radio’s and tuning into a variety of stations around the world.

13. Get better at using Excell. Particularly writing formulas to get the most out of what the program is capable of. This will help me with work, blog stuff, preps and life.

14. Learn more about IED construction, emplacement and use.

15. Read a couple of significant books. I wouldn't say classic but but old, noteable type stuff. In particular Edward Gibbon's The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire is on my list. Also read the entire Bible.

Alternates- Skills are an area where things seem more prone to changing due to factors beyond my control. I decided to come up with a few alternatives against that scenario.

Get better at making flat bread

Learn some HTLM

Get better with Powerpoint

Things:

Family/ Life:

16. Probably going to purchase another vehicle. A fairly low mile mid sized SUV with a decent sized 6 cylinder engine (3.5Lish or above) and 4WD. It goes without saying that we will pay cash.

Prep Stuff:

I did a couple of things differently here. I broke stuff down by category. Also if you notice there are numbers after the goals. Those numbers are a tenative plan on what order I will acquire this stuff.

Force Protection Stuff-

17. 1x bullet proof vest. Probably class II or IIIA concealable type-2

18. 3x gas masks-9

Firearm Stuff-

19. Folding stock for my AK and a US palm grip-1

20. 500 rounds of .38 special-5.1

21. 500 rounds of 12 gauge buckshot-5.3

22. 1 case 7.62x39 hollow points-5.2

23. AK spare parts-11

24. Buy more mags. In particular a few more Glock happy sticks and a half dozen each for the AR and AK. I am not in a bad place but if I happen to have a couple extra C notes lying around in the late fall this is where they will go- 12 This one might just have to get bumped up in priority with all the shenannigans that have been going on recently.

Food and Water-

25. 4x Berkley black filters-3

26. 1x Katadyn replacement filter-7

27. Nice solar oven-4

Energy and communication-

28. Bigger and better solar trickle charger (folding mat type)-10

29. Compact world band radio-6

Random

30. Get 2 spare Cold Steel folding knives (my EDC) and a leatherman for a rainy day-8. I actually got a Gerber at no cost from work which lets me make a leatherman I already have my primary backup multi tool.

I would have accomplished a couple other goals by now but with me deploying and Wifey going home we have so much happening that I am holding off on doing much of anything. For the immediate future I am just going to keep my life simple and hold cash. At some point when we both get settled that may change. Due to this not much will happen in terms of stuff for awhile.

The American Dream Revisited

Mayberry mentioned the American Dream (read my old thoughts here) in passing recently. While we don't agree on everything and do frag eachother from time to time I really enjoy his blog. Anyway I got to thinking about the American Dream today.

The real question in my mind is a) if the American Dream is still realistic b) and if so for who then c) under what conditions. Before getting into this too deeply I think it is worth noting that in the roughly decade or so before the 2008 housing bubble and the subsequent Great Recession this dream was seriously amped up. Homes got bigger, the huge increase in home prices lead to paper gains people borrowed against to buy all sorts of stuff and generally a lot of folks went into a consumer spending frenzy. A more traditional post WWII American Dream of buying a solidly decent home, having a conmfortable life, helping the kids through college and retiring comfortably is what I will base the rest of this on.

To question a) if the American Dream is still realistic, yes I would say that it is still realistic. I can say this confidently because plenty of people are still doing it. Don't buy into all of the doomer stuff. People are currently buying homes, putting kids through college and retiring which is clear proof that it can be done. Also I dare say that recent events should be a serious caution about getting too far into debt and buying a home you just can't afford.

To question b) and if so for who, the answer is a lot more complicated and a lot less optomistic. The sad fact is that for a variety of factors a lot of people are getting squeezed out of the middle class. Low skill manufacturing jobs are going away or becoming crap jobs, cost of living and (broadly speaking) housing are going up and American Dream is slipping out of these people's reach. If you look at what a lot of folks earn, a reasonable % of income that can be allocated to housing and average home prices in a lot of areas and for a lot of people the numbers don't work. America is facing some demographic shifts and the middle class as a broad group are losing. These folks are losing much more than most. Unfortunately they are coming to face the choice between figuring out how to earn more money or accepting a new normal. That new normal is going to mean a lot of things but most noticeably moving to areas with lower housing costs or some sort of alternate housing.

To question c) under what conditions I think the answer is multi part. We are going to have to make more good decisions and choices then the Greatest Generation or the Boomers did to get comparable outcomes. In particular we are going to have to put a lot more energy and effort into positioning ourselves to earn a decent living, not just at one particular job but over our working lifetimes. The good paying jobs with minimal prerequisites are largely gone and the ones that are left aren't very secure. We are also going to have to start earlier and do better with our financial planning. Homes and educational expenses (middle class/ American Dream staples) are a lot more expensive than they used to be. More significantly almost all of the responsability for retirement has shifted to the individual.

What can we do to be in the best position possible. Making the choices to get a degree or truly skilled trade that can earn a good living is so important to this. The difference in 20 or 30% income will separate a comfortable middle class type existence and something less comfortable. Buying homes a lot more like the Greatest Generation than the boomers will help us get into a good spot. In other words buy a modest (for your income and situation) home, pay it off and LIVE THERE. If you need to move don't upgrade substantially and certainly don't keep upgrading.

We can also take a lesson from the Greatest Generation when it comes to saving. Those folks did a lot of it and so should we. Surely hard learned experiences from the Great Depression were a factor in this but so was their lifestyle. Since they bought a modest home, paid it off and kept it there was plenty left over to save. As some Boomers are about to start learning if you keep trading up homes, live right up to or beyond your means and finance all sorts of stuff that doesn't leave much to save for the proverbial rainy day.

RE: BUILDING UP YOUR CONFIDENCE AND SKILLS IN THE SEWING DEPARTMENT

Dear TOR:


Welcome back home. Looks like we will be having a white Christmas....

Re the article.

During WW2, while most things in the UK were going down the tube, second hand stores were doing a booming, and unrationed, business. I think the same thing will happen in the US when TSHTF. There are so many people with excess clothing, both cheap and well-made types, that I don't really foresee needing to do a lot of sewing "from scratch."

Patching, general repairs and alterations, otoh, will be very important. These are entirely different skills, and in many ways, much easier to do. I recently found some excellent beginner sewing books for sale at our library book sale. Paid 50 cents each and bought all they had. For fancy hand-sewing (decorative knots and stitching, get books on needle-point, embroidery, petit-point, cross-stitch, etc. There are many magazines and blogs available, too.)

For those folks who are sewing shy, just learning how to hem, put in a fold at a waistband, or put on buttons and snaps, are very good places to start. Actually, just learning how to thread a needle is a good first step. In fact, realizing that you need to stockpile sewing supplies (called notions) and putting together a sewing kit might be an "adjustment reaction" that a lot of people need to go thru.

Suggested items for a hand-sewing kit:

Needles in a variety of sizes, including self-threading ones if you can find them.

Cotton or cotton/polyester thread in different colors, but esp. black, white, brown(s), blue(s), red and green. Pure cotton thread sometimes shrinks in hot water when you wash clothing, so I try to go with a combination-type.

Very fine fishing line (use for hemming or repairing heavy duty clothing)

Waxed dental floss (excellent for sewing on buttons)

Straight fabric shears and pinking shears (these are the ones that have the sawtoothed edge and are used for cutting cloth so that it doesn't unravel)

Thimble(s)

Pin cushion (I use a bar of soap which helps to keep the pins and needles slick)

Straight pins (the larger the head the better) and safety pins, several sizes, including diaper pins

Ruler (12 and 36 inches)

Measuring tape (not metal ones like those used for carpentry. Sewing tapes are made out of soft cloth or other bendable material so you can measure around waists, etc.)

Wooden darning egg (I was taught to darn using an old lightbulb. Cheaper, but a bit more difficult to handle)

Darning needles

Marking chalk or transfer paper (to transfer pattern lines onto cloth. We used to use true carbon paper, but there are probably other products available now)

Marking roller (a pizza cutter with a light hand will do in a pinch. You have to be careful not to cut through the pattern OR the material.)

Sewing hoop (used primarily for fine hand work like cross-stitch, appliques, needle point, etc., but also very useful for small repairs where it helps to stretch out or stabilize the material)

You can also add various standard patterns, extra zippers, extra buttons. I keep a button jar and cut all the buttons off any shirts that I am recycling into rags or other projects.

If you will be using a sewing machine:

You will need much more thread and BOBBINS, which are parts of the machine that enable simultaneous stitching on both sides of the fabric. Usually, you fill the bobbin with the same thread you use for the top stitch, but you don't have to. Some projects intentionally use two colors for contrast.

If you are really concerned about having to live off-grid, you might want to start looking for a "treadle" sewing machine, which uses foot-power, not electricity. They are still available, and though might require some repairs, are often comparatively inexpensive.

Best Yuletide Greetings to you and yours,

SaddleTramp

BUILDING UP YOUR CONFIDENCE AND SKILLS IN THE SEWING DEPARTMENT

When the SHTF it's unlikely that the big box store from which you buy your pants and shirts is going to be open for business.  I strongly feel that in order to be a well-rounded prepper you need to learn the the basics of sewing.  This is the story about how I got on the road to learning the absolute basics. 

I started off buy making patch work quilts by hand.  Patch work quilts are easy because they only involve straight lines.  You can use just about anything to make a patch work quilt - old work shirts, old bed sheets, clothes the kids have outgrown, etc.  Start small so you don't get overwhelmed or frustrated.  Make a patch work quilt that would fit a twin size bed.  If that sounds like too much work think about making a lap quilt.  Curtains are also a great project for beginners because they usually need only simple stitches and straight lines.  Curtains can be made in an afternoon.

The next thing I did was buy an old Singer sewing machine and I made patch work quilts on the machine.  I bought a sewing machine that only had the easy and basic stitches.  There are a lot of sewing machines on the market ranging from a $125 (for a used one) up to several thousand dollars.  I suggest putting off a purchase of an expensive sewing machine until you feel comfortable on a basic model.

My next step was to buy sewing "projects" that came in boxes.  For example, I made two teddy bears from a sewing kit that I bought at the fabric store.  The kit was inexpensive and the instructions told me exactly what to do.  The kit allowed me to understand the importance of patterns.  It also helped me to understand how sewn objects are put together.  As silly as it sounds that teddy bear kit was a real confidence booster for me. 

Another great way to understand how clothes (or other sewn items) are put together is to take them apart piece by piece.  Learn how they are constructed by deconstructing them. 

A few days ago I bought another sewing kit with instructions and material for an apron inside.  My confidence waxed and waned as I worked through the project.  The lady at the fabric store told me that it only took her an hour to complete the project.  It has taken me a day and I'm still not done, but I must admit that the apron looks pretty good.  By using this kit I was able to learn even more about patterns and sewing techniques such as how to sew on a ruffle.  My confidence is slowly rising even further.

My next (and last) step will probably be to buy a simple pattern to make a shirt or maybe a skirt.  I'm excited because it's taken me a while to get to this skill level.

I began sewing about 3 years ago.  Sewing is part art, part science, part skill, and part luck.  It is not something you can learn overnight!!!  Start small, stay within your skill range, don't give up, go slow, and only work on projects that look fun so you will stay interested.

If TSHTF and the big box store and the local seamstress is AWOL it's important that you be able to know how to make basic clothing.  Food and firearms are important but clothing to brave the elements is essential also.

by Sam In The Trailer Park


TOR HERE: I just want to thank Sam for the post. On another note I am pleased to announce that her trailer park still hasn't been wiped out by a tornado.