(LAST IN THIS SERIES)
WE JUST DON'T KNOW WHAT THE FUTURE HOLDS.
THINGS CAN CHANGE IN A SECOND.
THINKING BACK OVER MORE THAN SIX DECADES, I SEE HOW TAKEN-BY-SURPRISE I WAS ON MORE OCCASIONS THAN I CARE TO RECALL.
A SUDDEN STORM ON A LARGE RESERVOIR WHILE FISHING, CAPSIZED BOAT, WATER MOCCASINS DIVING OUT OF TREES AND SWIMMING MY WAY.
SWIMMING OFFSHORE, SOUTH FLORIDA, A SCHOOL OF MULLET SUDDENLY PUMMELING MY BODY, DRIVEN BY....SHARKS.
ATTACKED FROM "OUT OF NOWHERE" BY A PSYCHIATRIC PATIENT, CAPTIVE FOR HALF A DAY.
HELD AT BAY BY A RABID DOG ON A SIMPLE NEIGHBORHOOD WALK.
TWO TORNADOS, THREE HURRICANES, TWO FIRES, STRANDED OVERNIGHT IN THE EVERGLADES, AWAKENING TO SEE A WOLF STARING ME IN THE FACE IN DEEP WOODS....
LIFE HAS A WAY OF SURPRISING US, OF NOT "PLAYING FAIR", AND HOW WE RESPOND MAKES THE DIFFERENCE, SO OFTEN, BETWEEN LIFE AND DEATH.
YOU MAY CHOOSE TO BELIEVE THAT LIFE AS WE KNOW IT WILL NEVER BE INTERRUPTED, THAT THINGS WILL BE JUST FINE FOREVER, AND THAT PREPARING FOR A MEGA-DISASTER, OR EVEN A "MINOR" ONE IS SILLY, IRRATIONAL, PARANOID, WHATEVER.
YEAH, I THOUGHT THAT, TOO...UNTIL I WAS ABOUT 7 YEARS OLD AND A TORNADO WAS TEARING THE ROOF FROM OUR HOUSE.
IT DID NOT TAKE MUCH TO CONVINCE ME THINGS CAN GO FROM GREAT TO STRUGGLING TO LIVE IN THE BLINK OF AN EYE.
LEARNING WHAT I DID FROM THAT ONE EXPERIENCE PREPARED ME FOR ALL THE OTHERS, OR ELSE I PROBABLY WOULD NOT HAVE SURVIVED ANY OF THEM.
WE ABSOLUTELY DO NOT HAVE TO LIVE IN A PARANOID FEAR, NOR EVEN MILD FEAR.
WE SIMPLY NEED TO BE PREPARED.
WE MERELY NEED TO DISCIPLINE OURSELVES TO REMAIN CALM AND FIND WAYS TO SURVIVE.
IF WE FOCUS ON FEAR, WE WILL NOT SEE MEANS OF ESCAPE.
I DO NOT ADVOCATE VIOLENCE, AND HATE WAR, BUT I BELIEVE IN AN ARMED SOCIETY, A SOCIETY THAT CAN USE WEAPONS TO GET FOOD, AND SO I BELIEVE THE SOONER WE BECOME SKILLED IN THAT, THE BETTER.
WHEN WEAPONS ARE BANNED, ONLY CRIMINALS WILL HAVE THEM.
IN A "HELL BREAKS LOOSE" SCENARIO, YOU WON'T LAST LONG IF YOU CAN'T HUNT, FISH, RAISE AND/OR FORAGE FOR FOOD.
IF YOU HAVE NO MEANS TO PROTECT YOURSELF "OUT THERE", YOU'LL MERELY WIND UP AS TARGETS OF UNSCRUPULOUS PEOPLE WHO WILL TAKE ALL YOU HAVE.
WE WILL DO WELL TO GAIN KNOWLEDGE OF PRIMITIVE WEAPONS FOR THE SAME PURPOSES.
A LOWLY SLINGSHOT WILL BRING DOWN SOME GAME.
IT CAN ALSO PERSUADE MARAUDING CRITTERS TO LEAVE YOUR CHICKENS ALONE!
NONE OF US KNOW HOW THE PERSON NEXT DOOR WILL REACT IN SUDDEN CRISIS.
WE ARE A NATION ON THE VERGE OF "CRACKING" FROM DAILY STRESS, UNCERTAINTIES, SMALL UPSETS THAT TURN INTO MONSTROUS THINGS THAT SET PEOPLE OFF WHOM WE THOUGHT WERE "GOOD JOES" .
BE OBSERVANT.
TAKE TIME TO KNOW YOUR SURROUNDINGS, SEE ESCAPE ROUTES, SEE EVERYTHING.
NEVER TAKE ANYTHING OR ANYONE FOR GRANTED.
LISTEN TO YOUR "GUT INSTINCT".
LISTEN TO YOUR BARKING DOGS!
KEEP THE IMPORTANT CLOSE.
IF THE LIGHTS WENT OUT RIGHT NOW, AND THEN YOU HEARD YOUR WINDOW BREAKING AND STRANGE VOICES, WHERE IS A FLASHLIGHT, PHONE, WEAPON, CAR KEYS?
IF A SUDDEN MUDSLIDE SENT YOUR HOME DOWN A SLOPE, HOW WOULD YOU FIND YOUR LOVED ONES AND PERHAPS RESUSCITATE A CHILD?
WE CAN FACE THESE QUESTIONS AND HUNDREDS MORE LIKE THEM, FIND ANSWERS AND HAVE THAT DONE, CATALOGED IN OUR MINDS, OR WE CAN IGNORE THE POSSIBILITIES OF SUCH, THEN REGRET FOREVER IF SOMETHING HAPPENS AND WE WERE HELPLESS BECAUSE OF IGNORANCE OF WHAT TO DO.
BRAVERY IS A GRAND THING, BUT BRAVERY THAT HAS NO IDEA WHAT TO DO IS USELESS.
ALWAYS HAVE A PLAN "A" AND AT LEAST A PLAN "B".
MAKE SURE ALL PLANS ARE REALISTIC AND WORKABLE.
SOMETIMES, THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN LIFE AND DEATH IS A SECOND'S WORTH OF HESITATION.
BELOW, FIND LINKS, SUGGESTIONS FOR OTHER BOOKS, ARTICLES, ETC, THAT WILL HELP US MAKE IT IN HARD TIMES, WHETHER DISASTER STRIKES OR WE JUST FIND OURSELVES IN ECONOMIC DIFFICULTY.
IF WE CAN FIND AND OBTAIN THE BARE NECESSITIES OF LIFE, THE BOTTOM-LINE ESSENTIALS, THEN WE CAN GO ON OUR WAY TO BETTER TIMES.
JUST GROWING A FEW VEGETABLES, GATHERING A FEW WILD EDIBLES, MAYBE LEARNING TO FISH, START A FIRE AND COOK FOOD OVER THE FLAME, STOP BLEEDING FROM A WOUND, SIMPLE THINGS, WILL GIVE US NOT ONLY MORE CONFIDENCE, BUT ALSO MAKE LIVING LESS COMPLEX, AND EVEN LESS EXPENSIVE.
KNOWLEDGE EMPOWERS.
KNOWLEDGE REMOVES FEAR.
WE CEASE BEING AFRAID OF THINGS WE GROW TO UNDERSTAND.
WE REMOVE "UNKNOWNS" AND SO WE RELIEVE STRESS.
IF ALL HELL BREAKS LOOSE OR NOT, WE SHOULD BE PREPARED, ALWAYS, IN EVERY WAY POSSIBLE.
WE CAN DEVOTE MORE TIME TO MAKING SURE WE CAN SURVIVE DISASTER, SETBACKS, AND HELP THOSE WE LOVE TO SURVIVE, EVEN IF IT MEANS SPENDING LESS TIME BEING 'ENTERTAINED'.
REST AND RELAXATION IS NICE, BUT NOTHING MUCH WE DO WHILE RESTING AND RELAXING AS MOST AMERICANS DO WILL GIVE US SKILLS TO STAY ALIVE IF THINGS GO VERY WRONG, SUDDENLY.
BEFORE I FORGET: SOMEONE QUERIED, "WHERE IS THE PART ABOUT MAKING SURE DEAD BODIES AND HUMAN WASTE DON'T MAKE US SICK?"
ANSWER: NEVER TOUCH DEAD BODIES OR HUMAN WASTE WITH BARE HANDS. WASH YOURSELF WELL, AFTER YOU DIG DEEP HOLES, PUT IN THE DEAD BODIES. DO THE SAME FOR HUMAN WASTE. COVER UP THE HOLES. MARK THE SPOT. DON'T LIVE OR GROW FOOD NEAR THE HOLES FOR A LONG, LONG TIME,
DISINFECT, EVEN BY FIRE, WHERE THE DEAD DIED, WHERE ANYONE URINATED, DEFECATED , BLED OR VOMITED.
COMMON SENSE IS COMMON TO MOST WHO DON'T FIGHT IT.
ALL THE BEST.
AS OLD SPOCK SAID, "LIVE LONG AND PROSPER"... I SINCERELY HOPE.
---
RESOURCES:
[ COPY AND PASTE INTO YOUR BROWSERS THE FOLLOWING LINKS.
I USUALLY MAKE THEM "CLICKABLE", BUT LET'S CALL THIS "LESSON #1 IN DOING THINGS THE 'HARD WAY' ".]
~ TURNING THE SOIL WITHOUT TILLING: USING A BROADFORK
https://youtu.be/Lfa1h4T2UYc
~ RUSSIAN GENTLEMAN MAKES HANDLEBAR TILLER
https://www.facebook.com/vadim.yandraikin/videos/803890989704733/
~ SMART PLANTING, THE REALLY ANCIENT WAY
How to Plant an Iroquois Garden
http://www.notechmagazine.com/2013/02/how-to-plant-an-iroquois-garden.html
~ ALTERNATIVE TO CONVENTIONAL RAISED BED GARDEN
Straw Bale Gardening
http://www.notechmagazine.com/2012/12/straw-bale-gardening.html
~ BUILDING AND EQUIPMENT PLANS, AGRICULTURE,
UNIVERSITY OF TENNESSEE.
OVER 300 DESIGNS.
http://bioengr.ag.utk.edu/extension/extpubs/planlist97.htm
~ CAMP STOVES AND MASONRY, OUTDOOR COOKING.
http://bioengr.ag.utk.edu/extension/extpubs/Plans/6259.pdf
~ PLANS FOR A 3-ROOM LOG CABIN
http://bioengr.ag.utk.edu/extension/extpubs/Plans/5507.pdf
~ 800 ANTIQUE FARM TOOLS.
IF YOU CAN SEE SOMETHING, CHANCES ARE YOU CAN MAKE IT YOURSELF.
http://www.antiquefarmtools.info/index.htm
~ HOW TO MAKE LOW-TECH FARMING DEVICES.
THE "OLD WAY" REVISITED.
Handy farm devices and how to make them
by Cobleigh, Rolfe
https://archive.org/details/cu31924080109832
ALSO AVAILABLE IN PDF FORMAT:
https://ia700409.us.archive.org/25/items/cu31924080109832/cu31924080109832.pdf
(about 300 pgs)
~ VERTICAL GARDENING AND OTHER HANDY THINGS.
WHEN SPACE IS LIMITED, OR YOU JUST WANT A 'LOWER PROFILE' FOR YOUR GARDEN, PLANT UPWARD!
http://www.verticalveg.org.uk/
...AND...
HOW TO HAVE MORE ABUNDANCE.
WORM FARMING AND OTHER TIPS.
http://www.verticalveg.org.uk/tag/abundance/
~ ONE OF THE MOST INTERESTING AND USEFUL WEBSITES I HAVE FOUND IN MANY MOONS!
"OLD AND INTERESTING"
HOW THEY USED TO DO THINGS.
http://www.oldandinteresting.com/default.aspx
~ "SISTER SITE" TO THE ABOVE AND EVEN MORE USEFUL LOW-TECH TOOLS AND TIPS.
http://www.homethingspast.com/
~ THE OPTICAL TELEGRAPH.
ANCIENT "EMAIL" AND NETWORK
http://www.lowtechmagazine.com/2007/12/email-in-the-18.html
~ INVALUABLE BOOK OF FIRST AID FOR THE OUTDOORS
Outward Bound Wilderness First-Aid Handbook by Peter Goth and Jeffrey Isaac
~ LIVING CRAFTS, by George Bernard Hughes, 1954 version.
BOOK highlights a score of crafts, not as a casual spectator but as the craftsman himself sees it, process by process, step-by-step. With historical background.
~ OLD WAYS OF STAYING WARM, EFFICIENT INSULATION
http://www.lowtechmagazine.com/2015/02/heating-people-not-spaces.html
~ HOW TO WEAVE A MAT.
USEFUL FOR A NUMBER OF THINGS FROM GROUND COVER TO CONVERTING TO WINDOW SHADES, DOOR COVERINGS, UMBRELLAS, TOTES, ETC.
http://primitiveways.com/mat.html/pages/mat01.htm
~ PEDAL POWER, HOW TO POWER MANY THINGS USING A STATIONARY BICYCLE.
http://primitiveways.com/mat.html/pages/mat01.htm
~ THE LOWLY WHEELBARROW AS TRANSPORT FOR PEOPLE AND SUPPLIES.
http://www.lowtechmagazine.com/2011/12/the-chinese-wheelbarrow.html
~ MECHANICAL TRANSMISSION OF POWER, IN 3 PARTS.
http://www.lowtechmagazine.com/2013/01/mechanical-transmission-of-power-stangenkunst.html
http://www.lowtechmagazine.com/2013/02/the-mechanical-transmission-of-power-jerker-line-systems.html
http://www.lowtechmagazine.com/2013/03/the-mechanical-transmission-of-power-3-wire-ropes.html
~ HUMAN POWERED CRANES AND HEAVY-LIFTING DEVICES
http://www.lowtechmagazine.com/2010/03/history-of-human-powered-cranes.html
~ HOW TO MAKE A BASKET FROM BARK
http://primitiveways.com/bark_basket1.html
~ BRAIN-TANNED HIDES FOR ROBES, ETC
A VERY IN-DEPTH ARTICLE.
http://primitiveways.com/buffalo_hide.html
~ MAKING LARD SOAP...YOU WON'T BELIEVE HOW GOOD IT IS FOR YOUR SKIN!
http://frugalandthriving.com.au/2014/more-for-your-moneypork-shoulder-part-five-old-fashioned-homemade-lard-soap/
~ FOR THE LADIES!
SEE WHAT A WOMAN CAN DO WITH TOOLS!
DO-IT-YOURSELF, REPURPOSING, ETC/
http://ana-white.com/
~ MENDING CLOTHES WITHOUT A SEWING MACHINE
http://www.care2.com/greenliving/more-mending-basics-no-sewing-machine-required.html
...AND...
http://digitalcommons.unl.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1158&context=a4hhistory
~ THE ABSOLUTE WEALTH OF INFORMATION THAT CAN BE FOUND ON ALL TOPICS AT THIS WEBSITE BOGGLES THE MIND!
IT'S CALLED "DIGITAL COMMONS".
HOW-TOs FROM COLLEGES ALL ACROSS AMERICA.
CLICK THE LINKS AND GET A FREE EDUCATION!
http://network.bepress.com/social-and-behavioral-sciences/sociology/service-learning/?utm_campaign=PDFCoverPages&utm_medium=PDF&utm_source=digitalcommons.unl.edu%2Fa4hhistory%2F113
A 4-H CLUB IN NEBRASKA HAS SEVERAL DOWNLOADS TO TEACH SCOOL-AGE CHILDREN SKILLS.
http://digitalcommons.unl.edu/a4hhistory/?utm_source=digitalcommons.unl.edu%2Fa4hhistory%2F113&utm_medium=PDF&utm_campaign=PDFCoverPages
~ JUST A FEW WORDS OF WISDOM FROM OUR ELDERS, WITH LINKS TO LEARNING.
http://frugalandthriving.com.au/2014/advice-that-never-gets-old-47-frugal-tips-from-our-grandparents-era/
~ NATURAL, BETTER WAYS TO GOOD HEALTH.
THE ARCHIVES HERE OF PEER-REVIEWED STUDIES ON NATURAL HEALTH ARE WORTH A FORTUNE!
www.greenmedinfo.com
~MAGAZINES TO TEACH YOU SELF-SUFFICIENT LIVING.
LOOK FOR OLD COPIES, SEE ARTICLES ONLINE, OR SUBSCRIBE TO ONE FOR ABOUT $12 TO $15 A YEAR.
*MOTHER EARTH NEWS
*GRIT
*CAPPERS
~ JUST TO GET YOU STARTED THINKING ABOUT FOOD WASTE.
WE AMERICANS, TAKEN TOGETHER, THROW OUT ENOUGH EDIBLE FOOD EACH YEAR TO FEED ANOTHER COUNTRY OR THREE.
STOP IT!
LEARN HOW TO USE EVERY MORSEL OF FOOD NOW, SO WHEN ALL HELL BREAKS LOOSE, MAYBE YOU'LL HAVE ENOUGH TO LIVE!
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/03/04/dining/efficiency-in-the-kitchen-to-reduce-food-waste.html?_r=0
~ VERY UNIQUE PROJECTS GEARED TO SELF-SUFFICIENCY AND SUSTAINABILITY.
http://unconsumption.tumblr.com/archive
PLEASE NOTE:
EACH WEBSITE WILL LEAD TO MANY OTHER LINKS.
IF YOU LIVE TO BE 1,000, YOU CAN NEVER LEARN ALL WE OUGHT TO KNOW.
BUT YOU CAN LEARN A LOT!
LEARN, PLEASE, SO THAT YOU DO NOT PERISH!
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