Stephan Pastis aces it again. Click the image to be taken to a larger version of the cartoon at the "Pearls Before Swine" Web page.
It's funny, of course, but it's also something to keep in mind when we talk about preparing for emergencies. We can make all the plans we like, and stockpile goods and materials to our heart's content, but in the end, if something nasty happens, we'll just have to deal with it on the fly. It may destroy all our preps, and disrupt all our plans. We have to be flexible enough to "roll with the punches", adapt our plans, and do whatever is needed to get through the situation. It may not even be possible to do that . . . in a critical situation, survival is not a guaranteed outcome.
Anyone who tells you to "buy this" or "build that" to be sure of survival is talking through his or her hat. By all means, prepare yourself and your supplies for emergencies; but flexibility, adaptability, good health and fitness are going to be much more important than most people realize.
Food for thought.
Peter
13 comments:
Having a destination to re-locate to is very useful to have already planned out. If already have that, an alternative in case that location is compromised is even better.
You do what you can and hope for the best, that's how it works...
Don't forget those that have devolved to constant doomsday predictions and fear mongering... (aka Canadian Prepper...)
Don't just be wildly paranoid, be astutely risk averse.
Agreed. Perspective is important, as is a reasonable evaluation of the potential hazards in your area and the severity of each.
To give an example, if you live on a hilltop, flooding from a local river is unlikely, but wind damage and lightning are more likely than a house down low.
Some areas are more likely to have problems with crowds or overzealous LE; some areas, like where I am now, are remote enough that highway problems can easily lead to empty shelves.
Jonathan
I use my employer as a yard stick.
The VP's have connections and they all are pretty regular in when they vacation.
Just as word of the wuhan flu started hitting the news and most people had not heard of it, I noticed that a 80% of the VP's suddenly took trips to their cabins or started working from home. That encouraged me to run through contingency plans with the family and we added some extra preps we had been buying slowly. A few weeks later the new was crazy and a week after that we were in lock down.
Exile1981
Yes. most of the doom preppers are making a good living pointing us in the right direction (LOL). When it comes you will have what is on you to survive with and that takes training. Mostly to see what can be done with what you can get. At Krav we like to say we are the weapon, everything else is tools.
did everything right, moved out of the cities, saved money to buy rural farm homestead, stocked the preps, built the systems, only to have my partner cheat on me and try to kidnap my son. clearly I needed to make better choices
Bad luck is a reality at times, but you're still alive. Hang in there...
"Dirt-Cheap Survival Retreat: One Man's Solution" by M D Creekmore
https://www.amazon.com/Dirt-Cheap-Survival-Retreat-Mans-Solution/dp/B00VSC2URU
You don't need a Taj Mahal.
"The Dirt-Cheap Survival Retreat: One Man's Solution" by M.D. Creekmore
https://www.amazon.com/Dirt-Cheap-Survival-Retreat-Mans-Solution/dp/1983810592
This is the correct Big River address for the $13 book. The previous book was $50.
You don't need a Taj Mahal for your BOL.
I read things like this and try to get into the minds of the Jewish side of my father's family living peacefully in Czechoslovakia in March '39?
"We've always dealt honorably with our neighbors and friends; where are we to go? Why didn't we leave 10 years ago?"
"Will the Christian side of the family risk their lives to help us?"
"Who could have seen this coming?"
"I fought with honor in the last war; will that be taken into account?"
Nope! They were all slaughtered!
When the Hammer fell that one guy that had stored away every book needed to rebuild civilization from scratch was also a diabetic and when the insulin was gone, so was he. You can prepare all you want and then the bad thing you cannot do anything about happens. Recently, it was a recently retired friend with decades of retirement and a brand new house who got whacked in the head by a stroke.
it's always something but the Guide had it right. Expect the unexpected.
Life is always a series of choices in an unknowable environment, with Murphy waiting to tell you to roll a D-20, roll for initiative, or make a saving throw against hostile purple auks.
We looked for a place with few intrinsic risks, a good variety / selection of resources, access to specialists nearby, and comfort / ease of life for us.
Our smaller Indiana town (6000) has adequate rain and water, is surrounded by farms, pigs, cattle, dairies, and truck gardens, is away from large cities, Interstates and US Highways, has adequate medical and other services, and is 40+ miles from a decent regional hospital.
The population is stable and responsible, and we have a non obvious very comfortable house that is to our taste. This is the basis for our survival should things get stupid.
Food, water, medical supplies, tools, skills, etc are as the situation calls for.
Some things can't be avoided. We are usually downwind of Chicago, and a megaton ground burst would be a 'bad thing", but we're not on the outskirts of St Louis.
Do what you can to avoid the most likely problems, and be aware of the world. Good luck.
John in Indy
Post a Comment