# Tid bits of wisdom from lessons learned



## Bushpig (Feb 20, 2014)

I have been on here a little while now and there is tons of great info and people. In fact there's so much info it's hard to find something new to add or share at times. Each thread has great info and ideas along with some wisdom from trial and error. With so many new people's eyes opening or those venturing into new skills its hard not to make mistakes. What are some of the mistakes you've made or would advise one to avoid for a newbie besides don't rush to spend your money on the latest tacticool gadget out. Something more along the lines of IMO it is better to spend the extra to buy quality gear then to buy something just to fill the need OR don't go out to try a new skill without a proven back up should you not be as good as you thought. Just thought it might be nice to have these tid bits in one location.


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## tleeh1 (Mar 13, 2013)

Good question. Off the top of my head...

Use what you store; practice with the tools you have; listen to folks that have been there; keep an open mind; don't try to do everything at once.


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## Geek999 (Jul 9, 2013)

Don't sweat TEOTWAWKI when you aren't ready for a hurricane.


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## tsrwivey (Dec 31, 2010)

Make your preps fit you & your family. We've been prepping since 2009 but the reasons we prep, how we prep, & the events we prep for have changed dramatically over the years. For example, everything we read said to store wheat & so we did. When we really dug into the equipment & other ingredients it takes to actually turn that wheat into bread, we decided it wasn't for us. Besides, we don't eat much bread anyway! We still have wheat berries but they will likely be sprouted.

Never say never! When I first heard of prepping for EMP's, I thought that was a lot of trouble for something not likely to happen. However, when my oldest moved into town, married, & had a baby & our middle child was spending most of her time away from home, it occurred to us what it would be like if an EMP hit. We would have no way of contacting them or getting them to us. What good would all of our preps be if we couldn't even help our own kids & grandbaby? Now are we prepared with a vehicle to go get them in & a plan for meeting up.


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## RevWC (Mar 28, 2011)

I prep for food, water, seeds, and ammo..and the tools required to provide them. ie..shovels, hoe, water filters, containers..etc..


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## Country Living (Dec 15, 2009)

Make sure you have a plan - a roadmap - of where you are and where you want to be in one month, six months, one year... Winging it is not a plan.

Geek hit the proverbial nail on the head. Run family fire drills. Have a family weather plan (hurricane, tornado, flood, etc.) so you know where to go and when to get there. Identity theft is your most probable disaster - put a freeze on your credit at all three bureaus and watch all of your financial accounts like a starving hawk. Fund your emergency plan every payday. Get out of debt. Don't buy "stuff" unless it's a life necessity. Get annual wellness exams, along with dental and vision checkups.

Prepping is a lifestyle. The apocalypse isn't your worst enemy - it's fixing your credit after someone trashed it. It's having your health crater because you didn't think someone your age could get <fill in the blank>. It's not having a dime in the bank because you are so deeply in debt.

You'll find when you start connecting the dots things will start falling in place. Staying in good health allows an active lifestyle. Getting out of debt gives you, besides peace of mind, the freedom to make choices that might not otherwise be available. Learning skills that might be useful in a grid down situation - priceless.


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## jnrdesertrats (Jul 3, 2010)

Well I just threw away enough canned peaches to sponsor a pie eating contest.:brickwall:
Whether you have a little or alot keep track of it.


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## JayJay (Nov 23, 2010)

jnrdesertrats said:


> Well I just threw away enough canned peaches to sponsor a pie eating contest.:brickwall:
> Whether you have a little or alot keep track of it.


Okay--I'll bite--and please don't tell me the best by date was old...I have commercial canned peaches from 2008.


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## camo2460 (Feb 10, 2013)

The best survival tool that can be had is your mind. During survival stress the attitude that you take, and the decisions that are made as a result of that attitude, can often mean the difference between life and death. So train yourself to accept and deal with uncomfortable situations: being hungry, thirsty, to cold, or to hot etc. This training can be done in a safe manner, say with friends on a camping trip. Develop some scenarios, and then practice dealing with them, monitoring your mental state and your attitude through out. Be honest with your self, and make the simulation as real as possible, with out getting to crazy.


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## crabapple (Jan 1, 2012)

There are 7 way for me to start a fire & then there is char-cloth.
I think char-cloth is a waste of time, if you have the fore sight to make it, then you have the fore-sight to pack a better way to build a fire.
But my Eagle Scout son thinks it is a good way to start a quick fire.
So now I have a need to know how to make Char-cloth.

Point: Do not limit yourself to what you like or think is best, learn as much as you can.
You never know what training, skill or knowledge will safe your life.


We do not rise to the level of our Expectations.
We fall to the level of our training.
WARRIOR QUOTES


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## helicopter5472 (Feb 25, 2013)

What everybody said above....... 

PLUS

I live on the East Coast, frozen ground during the winter required me to change from alum. tent stakes to sharpened steel ones, a little heavier but saves that extra trip to anger management class...


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## LincTex (Apr 1, 2011)

Bushpig said:


> What are some of the mistakes you've made or would advise one to avoid for a newbie besides don't rush to spend your money on the latest tacticool gadget out.


1) Don't make tacticool a priority, ever! KISS principle applies. If you think you are going to be taking on a horde of ten attackers (and winning) you have already lost. I'll take one good deer rifle with a 3x9 scope (or better) over 5 handguns.

2) Security is everything. All the stored food, tools, fire wood, PM's, etc is worth NOTHING if you can't keep it for your own uses.


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## jnrdesertrats (Jul 3, 2010)

JayJay said:


> Okay--I'll bite--and please don't tell me the best by date was old...I have commercial canned peaches from 2008.


It wasn't the fact that they were 2 years past the expiration date. They did not taste good or right. Maybe if that is all I had to eat I would chance it. Thankfully that is not the case. I took it as a learning opportunity and moved on.


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## Caribou (Aug 18, 2012)

The more excited I am about something the more I step back. For example: I get a number of catalogs. When I receive a catalog I go through it and mark everything I "need", then I set that catalog aside for a week or two. When I finally go through the catalog and place my order I only order about 10% of what I first drooled over.


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## Bushpig (Feb 20, 2014)

LincTex said:


> 2) Security is everything. All the stored food, tools, fire wood, PM's, etc is worth NOTHING if you can't keep it for your own uses.


Another mistake and lesson we learned was back in 2011 we were moving. We rented a storage unit to put some stuff in as we needed to be out in a hurry as we had 5 days from closing to turn over keys. We were not ready in the new place and put some of our preps in the unit. In less then 30 days it was broken into. Thankfully we had renters insurance. Bad thing was some of the stuff taken was hard to find items no longer made. I would find another way to have stored this stuff if I had it to do again.


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## SouthCentralUS (Nov 11, 2012)

It has been my experience that just after you buy something it goes on sale at a deep discount. Watch the trends and buy smart.


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## helicopter5472 (Feb 25, 2013)

SouthCentralUS said:


> It has been my experience that just after you buy something it goes on sale at a deep discount. Watch the trends and buy smart.


That's happened to me twice with Sportsman's Guide. I get my item in the mail and they send a catalog that has the same item I just received for several dollars cheaper. Some days you can't seem to win... :surrender:


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## siletz (Aug 23, 2011)

Don't buy a bunch of seeds now and think that you can begin a garden after a crisis event. Gardening is a learned skill and you don't want to be cracking open the seed container for the first time in the midst of chaos.


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## doubleTHICK (Jun 19, 2012)

siletz --> Holy Crap how this is so true about the seeds/garden paradigm. Never had a garden in my life but went gung-ho at my local nursery . . . long story short - first time gardener and packs of seeds EQUAL a crapton of weeds.


Lesson Learned:
An easy one for me to remember and to pass on for others. Just because I am able to buy the latest fanciest gizmos and gadgets has no real world affect on my abilities to actually use the gizmos or gadgets. 
Kind of like saying by buying a pair of $300 JeBron James basketball shoes will make me play exactly James; well this applies to most things in life. 

Yes, I know, rookie newb move but I can look back now and laugh.


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## LincTex (Apr 1, 2011)

siletz said:


> Don't buy a bunch of seeds now and think that you can begin a garden after a crisis event. Gardening is a learned skill and you don't want to be cracking open the seed container for the first time in the midst of chaos.


LOL! I bought a big assortment of Heirloom seeds to start "seed saving".

Some plants yielded enough seed to replace the ones I planted, 
and barely a little more. Some did much better, but still not a bountiful surplus!!


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## TheLazyL (Jun 5, 2012)

LincTex said:


> .. I'll take one good deer rifle with a 3x9 scope (or better) over 5 handguns....


Agreed.

The opposing riflemen brought rifles so they'd never need get within your pistol range.

It would be like me bring a knife to a gun fight. Outcome just isn't going to be in my favor.


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## crabapple (Jan 1, 2012)

siletz said:


> Don't buy a bunch of seeds now and think that you can begin a garden after a crisis event. Gardening is a learned skill and you don't want to be cracking open the seed container for the first time in the midst of chaos.


My father had a lot of seeds, mostly beans & corn, in the freezer.
Ten year after his death we are still planting those seeds & saving new seeds.
But I think you are saying that I should fire my guns now, so I will know how they works.
Same with a garden.
I have been growing a garden for 41 year & this is the first I have had a good stand of carrots.
I have planted them 3 or 4 seasons, but this is the first time I got more than 2 or 3 carrots.
So one could stave to death growing carrots the way I grew them.
Deer could eat your crops at night, but you could kill the deer.


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## siletz (Aug 23, 2011)

crabapple said:


> But I think you are saying that I should fire my guns now, so I will know how they works.
> Same with a garden.


Yep. My point exactly. It seems like there is the thought out there that all you would need to do is have some can of seeds sitting in your freezer and the first time you would try to garden is when your life depended on needing to grow a great crop and harvesting it's seeds for the next one. Gardening is not a hard skill but it is a steep learning curve. I've been gardening for over 20 years and still learn something new each year.


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