Emergency & Long-Term Preparedness

[HollyJo]

Clary,
I looked back and found some great links posted by you on "How to"..

Thanks,
Holly

[Clary]

Hi Holly--While you were looking back, I was typing this up for you :

Clary, I would like to start, but am not sure where to start... I am a firm believer, that we need to be prepared.
Welcome! A quote I like: "We all need to begin to improve starting from where we are..." Fortunately, HollyJo, it is so much easier today to find support, resources, charts, preparedness websites, etc. than it used to be.

When you say "gamma seal lid"....? Are the containers themselves expensive?
There are many places to buy containers and lids. I've even noticed the food grade containers in such unexpected places as Wal-Mart and sporting good stores. Some people re-cycle them from businesses that have the 5 or 6 gal. buckets that had foods or liquids shipped in them (bakeries, fast food places, etc). A google search, or any of the comparison shopper websites, will probably have prices and shipping to compare. I do most all my shopping on line, so I don't have storefront suggestions.

I haven't reviewed this long thread on "Emergency & Long-Term Preparedness" lately, but perhaps the gamma lids were discussed in the thread. I remember that we discussed "containers" on the "discussion board", also. You can also do a "search" here on this McDougall board page, for "gamma lids". I remember that we have had discussions on the board about the lids and containers.

Is it normal to get with a group and purchase things by the bulk? Sorry for all the questions, but I would like to at least get started..
There are probably as many different ways to approach short term and long-term preparedness as there are people!
One of our long-time Board members, Chile (and others), has posted information in the past about group buying, CSAs, and co-op buying, etc. and she also has her own blog on the web. Really great stuff. You can find a list of her posts here with a search for "author".

One suggestion is to go back to the very beginning of this thread and-as you have time, regularly read a few posts . It is filled with a variety of ideas, LINKS to a variety of related subjects to do with preparedness, and suggestions how to prepare, resources, foods, storage ideas, etc.; experiences, reports after disasters (lessons learned, warnings, observations, etc.) We have board members who have reported on their personal experiences during and after weather disasters--floods, power outages, tornadoes, and so forth.
I do some of my on line preparedness shopping at http://www.beprepared.com , at http://www.shelfreliance.com ,at http://www.vitacost.com , at http://www.Costco.com ; and locally at Wal-Mart (7 gal. water storage containers/lanterns/some camping things, shot gun shells, etc).

I subscribe to SEVERAL blogs and newsletters, such as:
http://safelygatheredin.blogspot.com/
I learned a lot of basics at this website:
http://www.providentliving.org/channel/ ... -1,00.html scroll down to LINKS on the page).
I think you can probably find discussions w/in *this* thread about those websites and what they offer.

...and I understand that Glenn Beck recently posted a "Beginner's" list at his website home page, http://www.glennbeck.com w/ suggestions for those wanting to begin to prepare for emergencies and long-term food storage.

Thanks,

You are welcome, HollyJo. Good luck. I hope you will share your experiences and discoveries with us here. Clary.

[HollyJo]

Thank you, Clary!

Thanks for taking the time with such a lengthy reply, I am sure I will have much to look into this week.

One of the things that scares me the most right now, is the location we live in. We just moved, and I am surrounded by businesses.
I need to find the nearest secluded mountain, and become familiar with it.
I did live right outside the Smokey Mountains, and I was pretty familiar with some off the beaten path places from our Backpacking excursions.

Holly

[Clary]

Hard, red winter wheat; white rice; quick oats; and pinto beans--dry-canned, in #10 size cans w/oxygen absorber sachet in each can, in cases of six, prepared for LONG-TERM storage. Prices stated include shipping.
http://store.lds.org/webapp/wcs/stores/ ... _N_image_0

Food Storage Calculator for Emergency Storage (enter number of family members, then scroll down to read amounts of grains, legumes, etc. suggested-and ignore the non McDougall items, of course! ):
http://lds.about.com/library/bl/faq/blcalculator.htm

I understand that for those living near enough to a "store", and can pick up their prdts., the prdts. can be purchased for less, because shipping is deducted. I don't know that from personal experience nor have I validated it.

[Clary]

The current December 2010/January 2011 edition of "Mother Earth News" contains a well-done emergency preparedness article regarding "Emergency Survival Kits"--which is an excerpt from the book: When Technology Fails, by Matthew Stein, advertised as "...a comprehensive guide to the sustainable living skills you need to take care of yourself and your family in times of emergency."

[Clary]

The Shelf Reliance website is offering many of thier free-standing "rotate-the-cans/first-in-first-out" shelf systems on sale for 30% off.
http://www.shelfreliance.com
Look for the "Food Rotating Systems" link.

[HollyJo]

Thanks Clary! That is a great website! I think I will order the book, "When Technology Fails".

The Self Reliance website has alot of great products, that are inexpensive to get a good start.
I think because we Backpack in the Back Country, we have some things that would be very useful.

Holly

[Clary]

Who knew?
Run out of baking powder just when you need it? Make baking powder from standard pantry items.
http://safelygatheredin.blogspot.com/20 ... owder.html

[Clary]

Thanks Clary! That is a great website! I think I will order the book, "When Technology Fails".
The Self Reliance website has alot of great products, that are inexpensive to get a good start.
I think because we Backpack in the Back Country, we have some things that would be very useful.
Holly

You are welcome...
Among two of my adult daughters and myself, we have two of the biggest Harvest series free-standing shelves, and several sets of the Cansolidator plastic "rotating" shelves put together in various ways for different sized cans, and different locations. We are all very pleased with the use of them and the quality.

A third daughter and her husband are still deciding if they have space for a free standing unit--that Santa might bring, if they do!

[HollyJo]

Clary,
That would be an awesome gift for your daughter!

[Clary]

Handy book to read and use to make preparations before an emergency, and to have on hand during a "no utilities" emergency:

Apocalypse Chow!: How To Eat Well When The Power Goes Out: by Jon Robertson, Robin Robertson
Affordable copies currently available at http://www.half.com
http://product.half.ebay.com/_W0QQcpidZ ... rZ46453758

Apocalypse Chow is only one of several books written by Jon and Robin.
A few of their other books on my wish list --not necessarily related to "Emergency Preparedness, --just the promise of good reading and useful ideas and enjoyable recipes. :
~Vegan Unplugged: A Pantry Cuisine Cookbook and Survival Guide
~The Sacred Kitchen: Higher-Consciousness Cooking for Health and Wholeness
~The Sacred Bedroom: Creating Your Personal Sanctuary
~Fresh from the Vegetarian Slow Cooker: 200 Recipes for Healthy and Hearty One-Pot Meals That Are Ready When You Are

[Clary]

Thanks Clary! That is a great website! I think I will order the book, "When Technology Fails".

The Self Reliance website has alot of great products, that are inexpensive to get a good start.
I think because we Backpack in the Back Country, we have some things that would be very useful.

Holly

When I searched for the book on line, I discovered there are at least TWO editions--each with a different subtitle, and the 2008 edition appearing to be the one quoted from in "The Mother Earth News" article:

When Technology Fails: A Manual for Self-Reliance, Sustainability, and Surviving the Long Emergency--2008

When Technology Fails: A Manual for Self-Reliance and Planetary Survival--2001

[Clary]

Edit

[HollyJo]

Thanks for the update on the book..I will make sure it is the 2008 version.

I found the "Apocalypse Chow" on amazon, and am ordering it later tonight as I have more shopping to do anyways.

Is your last post from recent weather, or the "big" flood this past year? We are 3-4 from Nashville, and it's snowing!

[Clary]

Thanks for the update on the book..I will make sure it is the 2008 version.

I found the "Apocalypse Chow" on amazon, and am ordering it later tonight as I have more shopping to do anyways.

Is your last post from recent weather, or the "big" flood this past year? We are 3-4 from Nashville, and it's snowing!

Not about recent weather...
I don't know why that snippit showed up there!! I edited it out because it makes no sense there, and I couldn't figure out for sure which of our weather-related topics in this thread it referred to, because it had today's date on it.
I'm farther south in TN, near the AL state line, and we've had snow off and on all day, and the ground is icy, and the snow is starting to stick, and the phone call just came that the kids are out of school tomorrow. Many Happy Kids!