“Education is our passport to the future, for tomorrow belongs to the people who prepare for it today.” 

Hey there, remember us? It’s been a while since our last post. Thanks for all of the comments and emails asking if we were ok or if we’d bugged out. It was nothing like that. We’re all fine and doing well. However one of life’s little storms blew our way and a confluence of home, prepping, work, and other projects began to hit all at the same time. We’ve worked through many of them but I suspect that our posting frequency won’t rebound completely for a little while to come.

We’ve been reading a lot of good books, been to some training, and read some very interesting blog posts and news articles recently. Here are the ones that made this week’s Friday Five from PreppingToSurvive: Spy agencies have access to your financial records, NYPD plans to track every vehicle as it enters or leaves Manhattan, adding herbs to your garden, a box cutter is the becomes the weapon of choice for a deranged man, and the IRS claims authority to read private communications without warrant.

IRS Claims Authority to Read Emails without Warrant

In documents acquired by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) through the Freedom of Information Act, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) claims that auditors do not need to seek judicial approval or warrants to read people’s private emails, text messages, or other forms of electronic communications because there is not an “expectation of privacy.” From The Hill.

NYPD to Track Movement of Individual Vehicles

In a story reminiscent of the former Soviet Union’s repressive and invasive security measures, the New York Police Department as unveiled a plan to use license plate readers to track vehicles as they enter and leave Manhattan. The information can purportedly be used after a terrorist event. From The Huffington Post.

Mass Stabbings at Texas College

A deranged man with a box-cutter like weapon randomly attacked other students at Lone Star College near Houston, Texas, earlier this week. During the spree, 14 people were injured; four of them seriously. Fortunately, other students rushed the man, subduing him until police could arrive on the scene minutes later. From FoxNews.

Growing Herbs at Home

Many preppers and homesteaders strive to become as self-sufficient as possible. We want to rely on the fragile system as little as possible; we don’t want to be at the mercy of the supply chain and the disruptions that could cause barren shelves. So, we stock up and learn to grow our own food. Just as we’ve recommended that you stock up on barbecue sauce, salad dressings, and spices to bring variety to your post-TEOTWAWKI diet, growing your own herbs is a way to become self-sufficient at it. Here’s an overview of the herbs you can grow. From Savvy Gardener.

Spy Agencies Have Access to Your Finances

You can’t make this stuff up. Here’s a quote straight for respected news agency Reuters. “The Obama administration is drawing up plans to give all U.S. spy agencies full access to a massive database that contains financial data on American citizens and others who bank in the country, according to a Treasury Department document seen by Reuters.” From Reuters.

A free people ought not only to be armed, but disciplined; to which end a uniform and well-digested plan is requisite; and their safety and interest require that they should promote such manufactories as tend to render them independent of others for essential, particularly military, supplies. ~ George Washington in his First Annual Message to Congress on the State of the Union

Unless averted in the final hours, sequestration set to start today, slashing spending in a lot of different areas of the U.S. government. Some would argue that this is good and needs to happen while other believe it’s draconian and will send the economy into a downward spiral. Whatever you’re thoughts on the matter, it’s clear that this along with many other news items are giving us ample warning to prepare for times of scarcity. Here’s what we found interesting this week in the Friday Five from PreppingToSurvive: Homeland Security orders a citizen to lie, the New Madrid fault is not dormant, America is losing farmers and farmland, is Christian prepper and oxymoron, and Monsanto sues farmers – again!

New Madrid Quake

Seismologists believe that the largest and most powerful earthquake to strike America was not where you might suspect, in California. No, it occurred along the New Madrid fault that runs through Amercia’s heartland. And what’s more, evidence suggests that it’s active every 200-300 years. This week, a subtle reminder of it’s presence struck Trumann, Arkansas with a 3.6 magnitude quake. Even if you don’t live near the fault line, a massive quake would disrupt East-West transportation for years. From KAIT8.com.

Homeland Security Seizes Boat When Owner Refuses to Lie

It was supposed to be a simple process. Buy a boat in Canada and bring it home to the Pacific Northwest. And it would have been except for a simple, easily corrected typographical error that mis-valued the boat in question. When the new owner pointed out the error to Homeland Security, he was told to lie and sign the document anyway. Eventually his boat was confiscated. Yes, a government official with a badge and a gun ordered a citizen to lie and when he didn’t, his property was seized. From Uncrunched.

America is Losing It’s Farms

In the early 1970′s, Secretary of Agriculture Earl Butz famously warned American farmers to “Get big or get out.” Changes to the U.S. farm policy seemed to reinforce that mantra and a new era of food and food production was ushered in. With it, came the likes of high fructose corn syrup. And his legacy lives on. Last year, America lost almost 12,000 farms and over 3 million fewer acres were planted. From Bloomberg BusinessWeek.

Monsanto Sues over 400 Farmers

While European Food Agencies conduct investigations into the safety of Genetically Modified Organisms (GMO) crops, here in the U.S. Monsanto is aggressively defending it’s patented seeds by dragging farmers into court. The agriculture giant sued over 400 farmers across 27 states in January 2013 alone! According to some reports 86 percent of corn, 88 percent of cotton, and 93 percent of soybeans grown in the U.S. are currently GM strains. From Natural News.

Can Christians be Preppers?

Whether you’d call yourself a Christian or not, you’ve probably heard many of the parables that Jesus shared with his disciples. The Good Samaritan is one that almost everyone is familiar with. You’ve also probably heard of the Golden Rule, too. So if Christians are called to help others and to treat others as they’d like to be treated, can Christians be preppers? Can a Christian follow his faith while at the same time prepare for times of scarcity and eventually turn others away? Chris Ray at Prepared Christian has an interesting article about just that. From Prepared Christian.

Everyone can use a little more nutrition in their diets.  A lot of the food available on store shelves these days is nutritionally inferior to what our grandparents ate.  From the bleached bran-less flours to the tomatoes “developed” for picking and shipping unripe, much of the natural healthy content of common foods is missing unless we eat them in their whole forms.  The best way to get the freshest whole foods is to grow them ourselves.

Growing ALL of our own food is a pretty lofty ideal.  We strive to make progress in this area every year, but that’s a tall order.  One thing everyone can make time and space for is growing sprouts.

What are “sprouts”?

A “sprout” is simply a seed allowed to germinate and grow a shoot.  Most people are only aware of bean and/0r alfalfa sprouts.  In reality, there are a couple dozen seeds you can eat as developing shoots.

We’ve all heard the arguments for “whole grains” and how nutritionally superior they are compared to the refined and processed choices.   Sprouts are all that and more.  They provide all the fiber and whatnot, but as a raw (live) food, they are packed with amino acids and enzymes that can help us utilize the nutrients in the other foods we eat.

Take the wheat berry.  (As a prepper, you probably have buckets and buckets of that!)  Each kernel contains the bran (outer protective coating), germ (the part from which the growing plant will develop), and the endosperm (the food source).  Wheat is extolled for its vitamins, minerals, lignans, and other phytochemicals.  It is a good source of Vitamins B and E, selenium, phosphorus, potassium, and magnesium.  Except for those with gluten intolerance or similar conditions, whole wheat is considered a terrific food.

Now consider what happens as a seed sprouts.  When water penetrates the bran layer, it stimulates the germ to develop.  The starch in the endosperm gives the shoot the energy it needs to grow.  As any sprout shifts from seed to growing plant, its nutritional profile is magnified (by up to 600% in the case of vitamin C sometimes!).  The percentage of some enzymes contained in the organism is highest at this point too.  If allowed to grow until the first seed leaves appear, you can get a nice boost of chlorophyll too.

How to Sprout Seeds

There are many good posts and tutorials on sprouting seeds out there.  No fancy equipment is needed.  It  can even be done in a canning jar.  Alternately, you can purchase a seed sprouter.  This is what we have and like a lot.  With this set-up, I can start a new batch of seeds every day or so and I only have one thing to add water to or harvest.

What to Sprout

Which seeds you turn into sprouts will largely be a matter of what fits your tastes.  There are a few things you should not sprout.  But there are plenty of things you can use to produce a variety of nutrients and flavors.

You can purchase sprouting seed mixes to get you started in finding your favorites.  This is how we started out.  We now enjoy things as varied as clover, wheat, broccoli, dill, fenugreek, and radish as well as the more traditional bean and alfalfa.  I have learned that I must stick a little masking tape label on the side of the tray to identify what is in it.  In the time between adding the seeds and harvesting, I tend to forget which kind I put in each.

A Few Words of Caution

Seeds and the resulting sprouts should be handled carefully (with clean hands, containers, etc).  Every so often, a news story breaks about people getting food poisoning from sprouts, but as far as I know, they are from commercial sources.  Sprouts thrive in the same environments that some germs do, so always take care to wash everything well, refrigerate or eat them when ready, etc.

Also, here are a couple lessons learned the “hard way” (pun intended).  Pick through your sprouted beans carefully!  We nearly broke teeth the first time I put bean sprouts on a salad.  Even though in my head I knew that it was common for a few seeds in any given batch to not germinate, it did not occur to me to examine them all before tossing them in.  Those beans that had not sprouted were like little rocks!  Also, we found that adzuki beans tend to stay rather firm even when sprouted and we will probably only use them when we intend to add them to soups or other foods where they  may be softened by cooking.

Sometime in the future, I may do one more post on some additional ways you can use sprouts besides the age-old salad.  In the meantime, if you have some favorites, please mention them in the comments section.

Related Posts

• The Outdoor Pharmacy, part 5: Oregano
• Wheat, part 3 (Alternatives for Those with Wheat Allergies)
• Tea for Good Health
• Eating the Fruits of the Land: Blackberry Pie

Like many preppers, I carry a small backpack with me everywhere I go. It’s in the back seat when I run to the supermarket or to the office. It’s on my back when I take a hike through the woods. I don’t go anywhere without it. Call it my security blanket; just having it brings a sense of comfort.

In it, I carry my just-in-case supplies. I have my survival kit, my first aid kit, my survival knife, some homemade MRE’s, rain gear, and an assortment of other items that I may need in case of an emergency. Whether I’m stranded on the side of the road or lost in the woods while hiking, these items will help make my unplanned adventure much more pleasant. I’ll share the contents of the bag sometime in another article.

You Can’t Just Read About It

There are a lot of prepper web sites that describe how to make a good bug-out-bag or get-home-bag. There are even entire books on the subject. Those resources are great places to start thinking about the contents of your bag.

Sometimes new preppers will read through those lists and think that everyone should include everything on the list. If a little is good, a lot is better. But those resources are not the final word on the subject. You should customize and personalize your bag to meet your needs, not the needs of someone else.

What I need in my pack will be different than what you may need in your’s. My experiences and knowledge are different that your’s. I’ll want to include items that augment my experiences and you’ll want to do the same. The scenarios that I’m preparing for may be different that what you are likely to experience in your life.

I live in a rural community and my daily commute takes me down back roads. I also spend a fair amount of time in the woods hiking and camping. My bag is designed with that lifestyle in mind. If you live in an urban setting and ride the train to work each day, your bag will likely be different than mine.

The gear that we choose to keep in our bags will be different based on our skills and our expected uses or possible needs for the bag.

Testing Your Bag

After you’ve put together your bag, it’s important to test it. It’s only through a simulated emergency that you’ll truly discover items that are missing from your supplies. You’ll also identify items that you don’t need to carry, that are providing little benefit but are adding weight an bulk to your bag.

I like to test myself and my survival pack regularly. I hike into the woods a short ways, perhaps a 1/2 mile or so, carrying only my survival backpack. I usually make a debris hut, start a fire, and prepare to spend the evening in the woods using only the items in my pack.

Since this is only a test, I usually have some additional supplies in my truck. If I truly need them, I can always hike the 1/2 mile out to the vehicle and get them. I try not to do that, but I have done it on occasion.

Over this past weekend, I made one such outing. It went very well. Here are a few observations from my experiences that may help as you’re putting together a pack or planning a test.

• Emergency Thermal Blanket. Although I carry an emergency thermal blanket in my survival kit, I apparently don’t really know how to use it to keep warm. It was cold over the weekend, considerably colder than the meteorologists predicted and I tried to use my thermal blanket for warmth. It didn’t work. I’ll need to do some research on how to best use it. I’ll keep it in my gear for now since it has other purposes: signaling, rain catch, waterproofing a shelter, etc. 
• Insulate the Shelter and then Add More Insulation. As I shared in 5 Tips to Improve Your Cold Weather Shelter, smaller shelters are better when it’s cold. Your body heat can warm a smaller shelter and keep you warm. However, it’s very important to make sure the shelter is insulated very well. Add a good layer of leaves to your shelter and when you think you have added enough, add twice that much.
• Cedar Boughs are Good Insulation from the Ground. The earth will steal much needed heat from your body if you lie directly on the ground. A good layer of insulation is needed to keep you off the ground and away from the earth. A thick layer of cedar boughs works well for this.
• Speed Kills. When building a shelter in cold weather, work at a slow and steady pace, taking breaks as frequently as need to cool down. Strip off layers of clothing to help regulate your body heat and prevent perspiration. Sweat will wet your clothes and make you that much colder in the middle of the night.

Overall, my last test went very well. As I improve my skills and my knowledge increases, I’ll continue to test myself and the gear I’ve selected for my survival pack. As they say, Perfect Practice Makes Perfect.

Have you had to rely on your pack? What do you wish you’d known beforehand? 

Related Posts

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Every homestead needs a good supply of small meat animals- something the family or group can eat in a meal or two so that spoilage and waste are not a problem.  We have tried a couple things, but for years we mainly relied on chickens because they were more cost-effective than others (like turkeys).

We still utilize spent layers and surplus roosters with dumplings and in soup, but for tender by-the-piece type eating, you really need young meaty types.  The industry standard for decades has been the Cornish-Rock hybrid.  Initially, individuals were selected for fast growth and more breast meat.  Over time, they have been further “fiddled with,” the result being that  you can now grow a bird from a few ounces at hatching to 7 or 8 pounds in less than 2 months.  Amazing, yes;  ’normal,” no.

About three years ago, we decided that we just had to find an alternative to raising Cornish cross chickens for meat.  They are so unpleasant to take care of and you just know you are doing them a favor on “processing day.”

Beyond all the GMO type issues, there was the very practical perspective of unsustainability.  These creatures are not something you can naturally breed in your own backyard;  you have to purchase them as day-old chicks from a hatchery.  This is no good from a preparedness aspect.  About two years ago, we decided to try rabbits as an alternative.

Steep Learning Curve

As usual, I read every book, article, and blog I could find before we made our foray into rabbits.  Then I began watching Craigslist ads to find hutches and the going price and availability of various breeds.  Once we acquired some hutches, we visited a local breeder and got even more information from him.  We bought two Californians and set up our rabbitry.  We eagerly awaited our first litter.

And we waited.  And we waited.  We bought an additional doe to speed this project along.  And we did have a litter finally. It was born on an extremely hot day.  The mother did not give birth in a nesting box, but rather on the wire and most were mortally injured before we found them.  The rest died within 2 days though we had carefully put them in the box with gloved hands.

This dismal story has replayed itself in several different variations many times since then.  Either our rabbits would not breed or they would give birth on a day that it was 17 degrees or the mother would not care for them, and so on.  Whatever the particular reason for the death of that litter, it has always been the same outcome, with one exception.  Even out of that bunch, only one lived to breeding age.

In addition, we have had several other rabbits just die for no apparent reason.  We have since decided that adult mortality may have been related to water bottles allowed to run dry by the adolescent children charged with caring for them.  Sigh…

All the way around, this has been a very frustrating project.

Rethinking the old way

We are always interested in going the most natural route with regards to food and farming.  If we can simplify our operation and reduce our labor, all the better.  We decided to rethink the way we were running things.

In nature, rabbits live in burrows and warrens.  They select foods for themselves and give birth in cozy nests underground where the offspring are not at the mercy of weather extremes.

We have had our hutches located inside what was previously the henhouse and attached chicken yard on the northern and eastern walls with shade provided by large trees.  Our birds are all in “chicken tractors” now so the structure could be entirely repurposed.

After thought and discussion, we decided to give them the run of the “rabbithouse” and yard and hope for the best.  We were aware of some possible problems, including that they may dig out and disappear, but we decided we had little to lose at this point besides the feed bill.

A New Plan

We knew that we had to have a way to catch the rabbits in the future.  Chasing them around to catch dinner would be undesirable if not impossible if they had holes they could disappear into.  We took apart the hutch I wrote about here and affixed the 3′ x 3′ fence part to a wall within the structure.  We made this into a “feeding station” so that the rabbits had to come into an enclosure (where we can catch them) to get food and water.  We leave one of the little hinged doors open.  The house itself also has a small knee-high guillotine-style door going out to the yard that we can close.

We made sure the yard had no easy places to dig out and then set up the food, water, and minerals.  One by one, we brought the rabbits into the rabbit house and put them into the feeding station.  We allowed each to eat and drink and then go exploring.  After one had left, we brought the next one and repeated this procedure.

Altogether, we released 6 does and 2 bucks, some of which had never met each other.  We saw one scuffle when the most dominant doe chased another out of the house and we have seen the bucks pursuing the does, but otherwise it’s gone pretty well.  A little fur blowing around, but no blood.

The house is probably about 8′ x 10′ and the yard is around 25′ x 40′.  That gives them plenty of room to get away from each other.  In addition, they can take shelter under the empty hutches and the low hanging branches.  I have even seen one doe dozing in the old chicken nesting boxes that are about a foot off the ground.

Each morning, we’ve done a head count.  So far, there have been no escapes and no attempts that I can see.  That could be in part to the big salivating dogs that patrol the perimeter.  It took 4 days for any to even show an interest in making tunnels since they were so happy with their new-found freedom.

So far, so good.  I’ve even witnessed what appeared to be a successful mating- that is an improvement in itself!  Maybe by this summer, I can give you a good update about how it’s working out.

Anyone else tried a warren arrangement and have any pointers for us?

Related Posts

• Why Turkeys are Probably Not the Way to Go
• Homestead Geese, part 2
• The Case for Ducks
• You Cannot Rely on Hunting After TEOTWAWKI

In this week’s Friday Five from PreppingToSurvive: a prepping site choke full of information and links, economic woes still plague Greece, new study finds “toxic” gene in GMOs, China implicated in international computer hacking network, and 7 tips for planning for hard times.

The More You Know…

If you are a fan of the works of Cody Lundin, you’ve probably heard him say “Knowledge is power. It’s lightweight. It lasts a long time. It doesn’t rust.” All of that is true. But scouring the web looking for good reliable sources of information about prepping and survival can be time consuming. There are a number of sites that we turn to as good sources of information. Knowledge Weighs Nothing is our latest find. It’s a compilation of links to other sites. From Knowledge Weighs Nothing.

Greece’s Economic Woes Continue; Man Trampled Getting Food

Catering to the appetites of it’s viewers, the American mainstream media tends to zero in on a story and then move on to the next one when interest wanes. Such is the case with the Greek financial crisis. But despite it’s absence in the news, the story is still unfolding. Recently, as farmers were distributing free food to protest high production costs, a man was trampled in the crowd while trying to secure food for his family. From RT.

Potentially “Toxic” Gene found in GMOs

While the US FDA assures consumers that Genetically Modified Organisms GMOs are safe for consumption, the rest of the world is doing it’s own, independent research into the matter. Recently, the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA), Europe’s official food watch dog agency, found that 54 of the 86 GM plants approved for consumption contain a gene that could produce toxins that are dangerous to people. Critics of GMOs point to a fatal flaw in the 20-year old testing process. From Mail Online.

China implicated in Computer Hacking Scheme

Mandiant, a leading information security firm based in Virginia, released a study that points a finger at a covert Chinese military unit known as Unit 61398 as a primary source of computer hacking since 2006. Over the past 6 years, the group has purportedly hacked into 141 companies in 20 different industries, including industries that China has announced are strategic emerging markets for the country. China has denied the claims. From The Economist.

Tips for Preparing for Hard Times

Many people now look at the U.S. economy and wonder about it’s sustainability. Can any country continue to live and spend beyond it’s means indefinitely? The U.S. owes almost $17 trillion and is routinely spending more than it takes in. Our natural intuition tells us “no, this cannot go on forever.” So, many people are preparing for hard times in the near future. Here are 7 tips on how you can begin preparing. From Activist Post.

You’ve probably heard the term Meal, Ready-to-Eat, or MRE for short. It’s a term coined by the U.S. Military in the 1970′s when the armed services recognized the need to provide troops in the field with a variety of nutritionally balanced meals that were relatively easy to carry, had a long shelf-life, and could be eaten in remote areas where no additional cooking supplies were available.

MREs have evolved over the years, getting better with each iteration. New entrees and side dishes have been developed that are actually relatively tasty.  However, MREs are designed for very active soldiers to eat on a short-term basis, typically 3 weeks or less. Each MRE contains an average of 1,200 calories and 52 grams of fat. Certainly not a diet you’d want to sustain you for the long run.

In recent years, MREs have been marketed to civilians. Campers and backpackers have bought the civilian MREs for their excursions into the woods. Preppers have also bought a lot of the meals to prepare for times of scarcity. This can be pretty expensive though.

Making Your Homemade MRE

A few years ago, I began making my own homemade MREs. I use the when I go backpacking or spend the weekend in the woods. I also keep several of them with me in my Get-Home-Bag that travels with me everywhere. Here’s an example of a breakfast homemade MRE that carry.

• 2 packages of instant oatmeal
• 1 granola bar
• 2 paper towels
• a plastic spoon
• a tea bag

To make the MRE, I place the contents of the meal in a food saver bag and use the food saver to vacuum seal the bag. This process removes the air from the bag which helps to preserve the contents.

Here’s how the finished product looks.You can improve upon this design by adding other items.

Although I haven’t tried it, I suspect that, if I’m careful, I can boil water over an open flame in the plastic food saver bag. You can also mix the oatmeal in the little packets eliminating the need for a bowl or plate. Take care since the water will be very hot.

Technically, this is not a Meal, Ready-to-Eat since it requires some external components, namely a source of heat to cook the oatmeal. For me, that’s not a problem since I always carry several ways to make a fire with me and at this point I’m not trying to evade someone or escape detection. If you prefer, you can make the completely self-sufficient by adding a flameless heater and some water pouches. For me, those enhancements are not worth the added expense and effort.

I’ve also made other meals using cracker packs, bouillon, and Ramen noodles. I’m not sure exactly how long these meals will last. I suspect quite a while. Like a good prepper, I rotate through my stock on a regular basis, eating the older meals while making new ones. Since I spend the weekend in the woods regularly, eating what I store is not a problem.

Having a few of these tucked away in my bag provides a sense of comfort that should I need to spend an unplanned night away from home, I won’t go hungry.

Have you made MREs? Got one that you’d like to share? Let’s hear it. 

Related Posts

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