# Has it started to sink in yet?



## tac803 (Nov 21, 2010)

Just curious how many people have a feeling that time is running short. I have a sinking feeling that we're getting a lot closer to uncharted territory and am getting more serious about prepping. I have no idea what's coming first, but I'm thinking that none of it is going to be good.


----------



## kejmack (May 17, 2011)

Yeah, when I saw the stock market close numbers on Friday, I got a really bad feeling.


----------



## JustCliff (May 21, 2011)

A lot of that going around. You not in the boat alone.


----------



## ComputerGuy (Dec 10, 2010)

I just don't know how to convey my thoughts and feelings in to prose. My brain says within 2-3 months. My heart wants longer to prepare more


----------



## partdeux (Aug 3, 2011)

ComputerGuy said:


> I just don't know how to convey my thoughts and feelings in to prose. My brain says within 2-3 months. My heart wants longer to prepare more


I'm thinking more like 9-15 months


----------



## Davarm (Oct 22, 2011)

I was making plans to move my family out of country until I relaized that it was all starting several years before I had thought it would. I could not leave my daughters and grandson here with all the uncertainty to go set up a homestead there. It it hit the fan here before I could get back for them I would never be able to forgive or live with myself.

I will give it anywhere between tomorrow and 15 months.


----------



## Dixie (Sep 20, 2010)

I have a bad feeling for Sept. 2012, have since the beginning of this year. Could be personnal, statewide, country or global...just don't know.


----------



## kappydell (Nov 27, 2011)

most folks i ask say they hear the footsteps of something sneaking up....glad ive been prepping a while already, t'would be nerver wracking to be just starting now.


----------



## purecaffeine (Nov 2, 2011)

My preps are pretty half-arsed because we're planning to move back to Australia in the next year ... so hopefully "it" doesn't happen before we move back from NZ and I have the time to prep, including at least half a year to plant a garden, put in a rainwater tank etc.


----------



## BlueShoe (Aug 7, 2010)

Any of the people I talk to at the office are completely clueless. All the people I talk to in the field are not.


----------



## Davarm (Oct 22, 2011)

purecaffeine said:


> My preps are pretty half-arsed because we're planning to move back to Australia in the next year ... so hopefully "it" doesn't happen before we move back from NZ and I have the time to prep, including at least half a year to plant a garden, put in a rainwater tank etc.


What is the general openion of how it will be when TSHTF in Australia and NZ, does everyone expect Mad Max senarios or what?

Just curious bout how those in your neck of the woods see the outlook for the future.


----------



## purecaffeine (Nov 2, 2011)

I haven't been prepping long enough to have a network of contacts in AU or NZ although there are others from there on this forum, but I feel safer in New Zealand than Australia. That said, NZ would make a great invasion staging point to take on Australia.

NZ has 1.6m fit for service with 9k active personnel.

AU has 8.5m fit for service with 59k active personnel.

However for non-military SHTF events, Australia is in drought in most areas whereas NZ gets a lot of rainfall in many areas and decent rivers thanks to snow which AU's older geology and thus lower topography doesn't match for given surface area.

AU seems to have greater risk of bushfires and floods, NZ has greater risk of tsunamis, hurricanes, tornadoes and earthquakes.

I would not like my chances in the hills of Australia although kangaroos would provide better return on investment for hunting than rabbits in NZ but my plan relies on trapping not hunting as I don't own a firearm - not worth the hassle with our gun laws.

If I were permanently in NZ and had proper preps I would definitely feel safer here. Australia's a big place ... as soon as fuel goes, you're pretty much stuck where you are. At least here I can get across from one side of the country to the other on a single tank and that gives me a lot of options.

I'd have to research this but I feel that there is far more produce and cattle within 100 miles of where I live in NZ than within 100 miles of my hometown in Australia.

There are no nuclear power stations in either Australia or NZ.

That said, when it comes down to the sorts of likely disasters I'm planning for including snow storms, hurricane, power outages, food shortages, earthquakes, tsunamis, epidemics and civil unrest I reckon AU and NZ are fairly even.


----------



## kappydell (Nov 27, 2011)

nothing like being afield to clear all the nonsense out of the brain....


----------



## lotsoflead (Jul 25, 2010)

I just feel the Hawks are getting us closer to WW3


----------



## Jezcruzen (Oct 21, 2008)

Ummm, I've had that feeling since 1972!


----------



## GaryS (Nov 15, 2011)

Jezcruzen said:


> Ummm, I've had that feeling since 1972!


For me, the expectation of an impending fertililzer/fan occurrence has been around since the Carter administration. It ebbed and flowed with every election, but the current mess has me more worried than ever.

Thoughts of armed confrontation between countrymen have been fleeting in the past, but today I see intense efforts by many to destroy America, and a growing resistance to that plan. American patriots are arming and preparing to throw the enemy out, and this time the enemy is on our shores and speaks the same language. I only hope that sane heads prevail and that we can find a way out of this situation through the ballot box.

As far as time frame...unless Europe goes bust and drags us down, I see tensions continuing to fester and build, but actions holding off until we see the results of the next election.


----------



## Tweto (Nov 26, 2011)

*Europe is sliding into colapse*

As of last week, the strongest of the European country's Germany is now unable to sell bonds to meet their obligations. To sell their bonds they will have to raise the interest rates. The beginning of the end.


----------



## partdeux (Aug 3, 2011)

Dixie said:


> I have a bad feeling for Sept. 2012, have since the beginning of this year. Could be personnal, statewide, country or global...just don't know.


IMO, we'll see some additional quantive easing (aka hyperinflation) to keep things rolling until the next election... then I expect all hell to break loose.


----------



## Nadja (Jan 12, 2011)

I see us holding together somewhat at least until the next elections. After that , it is anybody's guess. But it ain't looking good


----------



## SageAdvicefarmgirl (Jun 23, 2011)

GaryS said:


> For me, the expectation of an impending fertililzer/fan occurrence has been around since the Carter administration. It ebbed and flowed with every election, but the current mess has me more worried than ever.
> 
> Thoughts of armed confrontation between countrymen have been fleeting in the past, but today I see intense efforts by many to destroy America, and a growing resistance to that plan. American patriots are arming and preparing to throw the enemy out, and this time the enemy is on our shores and speaks the same language. I only hope that sane heads prevail and that we can find a way out of this situation through the ballot box.
> 
> As far as time frame...unless Europe goes bust and drags us down, I see tensions continuing to fester and build, but actions holding off until we see the results of the next election.


My family, too, has been alternately prepping, then not, since Carter...funny! A lot has happened since then...I got married, raised 4 kids, moved about 20 times. My husband and I began buying real estate and even when we moved, we never sold, just rented out our place, in case we might wanna come back to that one, or the other one. We own (not paid off, tho
 ) 6 homes in 3 states. The one we live on now only has 2 acres, but about stone's throw away we own a home on 10 ac we are renting to our son's in-laws who are on board w/us for prepping.

My prediction in the US is this: inflation and unrest til the election, so Nov 2012 will begin the chaos which will become cataclysmic with the "end of the world predictions" for 12/21/2012. Even tho everyone knows that's hokey, they will feel scared enough to start ransaking groc stores, etc, and it will set off panic, and become a "self-fulfilling" type prophesy.

Just my opinion...


----------



## kappydell (Nov 27, 2011)

i do wish politicians did not see going to war as a convenient way to prop up a bad economy....sure, it might work, but so would other things (and it is not just in our country they think that way). we need to research our people before we vote them in folks, and i don't mean by accepting the self-serving lies they all seem to cook up at election time. look at their long-term records. the cynic in me says that the economy was allowed to fail so folks would be distracted and vote their pocketbooks instead of using their heads! if they do we are in it a whole lot deeper than our knees...


----------



## Meerkat (May 31, 2011)

Not nearly as prepped as I'd like,but doing what we can. I don't know when it will happen but I do know this nation has never been more divided .Not even in civil war period.
Problem will be feeding the animals if the garden feeds us .


----------



## kilagal (Nov 8, 2011)

I think prepping should be like breathing. Everyone that wants to live should do it. But then again it is not going to happen. I have one brother and no sisters and dh is from a large family of 10 kids. And NONE of those people prep. To me it is a very sad thing. And none of them even plant garden. They would rather get food stamps and food bank help. And yes some of them have had very good jobs. And yes some of them still work. So not all of them are on stamps or bank. but they would rather do that than plant or prep. It is the mentalaty of the beast. We just do not even talk about it all any more.
They all knew that dh quit a job 6 years ago and went to the job he now has. He had worked at the other place for 27 years. It was very hard work without a 401K. He had a chance to get the job he now has. But to take that job he had to take a HUGE pay cut. We took almost 1/2 by the time hours and wages were put into it. Well everyone knew that and were afraid we would ask for help. Which we didn't. WE do prep. It was hard and I will admit that. 
And now dh is getting to the age of retirement. We do have a 401K where he works now. But still it is a scarey thing to think about. 
WE do garden. We got bees last summer. We have some fruit trees. We can, dehydrate, butcher. 
But no matter where you are in prepping you will then always find more things you would like to do. But always start with the basics. Food, water and a way to keep the body warm in winter. Then branch out from there.


----------



## GaryS (Nov 15, 2011)

As mentioned in earlier posts, the country is more divided than ever, and the patriots are coming down from the hills.

A few years ago, did you ever think you'd read a blog post like the one in this link?

TL In Exile: The Call For A Summit


----------



## lefty (Sep 29, 2011)

I have been prepping since th early 80's in one way or another. The SHTF situation that I saw as the one most likely to occur has changed over time as has my situation. The little voice inside that has been telling me to be prepared has now become a screaming banshee. And for the first time I feel our government is a seriuos threat to our personal freedom and rights. I pray never but fear soon


----------



## Davarm (Oct 22, 2011)

lefty said:


> I have been prepping since th early 80's in one way or another. The SHTF situation that I saw as the one most likely to occur has changed over time as has my situation. The little voice inside that has been telling me to be prepared has now become a screaming banshee. And for the first time I feel our government is a seriuos threat to our personal freedom and rights. I pray never but fear soon


For the first time in my life, I am truely afraid of the goverment.


----------



## tac803 (Nov 21, 2010)

SageAdvicefarmgirl said:


> ....My prediction in the US is this: inflation and unrest til the election, so Nov 2012 will begin the chaos which will become cataclysmic with the "end of the world predictions" for 12/21/2012. Even tho everyone knows that's hokey, they will feel scared enough to start ransaking groc stores, etc, and it will set off panic, and become a "self-fulfilling" type prophesy.
> 
> Just my opinion...


That's an interesting perspective. If enough people become uneasy about events and realize that they don't have what it takes to feed their families, it could turn ugly fast. If enough people see other people running around in a panic, then mob mentality could take over. I'm thinking that there are people in high places who would relish that kind of event. That kind of a scenario would give them an excuse to try to shut down the Constitution.


----------



## lotsoflead (Jul 25, 2010)

Davarm said:


> I was making plans to move my family out of country until I relaized that it was all starting several years before I had thought it would. I could not leave my daughters and grandson here with all the uncertainty to go set up a homestead there. It it hit the fan here before I could get back for them I would never be able to forgive or live with myself.
> 
> I will give it anywhere between tomorrow and 15 months.


when you move out of the country, you become a refugee in another country if you're an American. If things get so bad here that people think they should leave, things will be a lot worse in most countries and they certianly will not want Americans moving in. I wish all the Americans who have enjoyed our freedoms and good times would run now so the rest of us know who is with us.


----------



## partdeux (Aug 3, 2011)

tac803 said:


> If enough people see other people running around in a panic, then mob mentality could take over.


All you have to do is watch the black friday sales at Walmart and other stores. that's the mentality you're going to be dealing with, and it was only over saving a few dollars. If people get hungry to the point of starving...


----------



## lazydaisy67 (Nov 24, 2011)

I totally feel like something is going to happen. The frustrating part for me personally is that I can't fathom what it is and guessing just makes me crazy. I WANT to prep, and try to, but once I see what we don't have, what we will need how much of everything, etc. I just want to sit down and bawl my eyes out. 
I know there's no way to tell ahead of time, but it seems like prep (for me) completely depends on the 'what' part of the equation. If it's Yellowstone blowing up or a comet or asteroid, forget it. I don't think even the best of preppers could survive through that. If it's an economic collapse, which I believe we could survive, I'm not nearly prepared enough. My mind flits from garden seeds to instant coffee to toilet paper to guns so fast it makes my head spin and I can't fully concentrate on any ONE area. 
I've kind of been in a state of mini panic for the last year, without knowing why exactly. Before a year ago, as with so many of the sheeple, I went blissfully about my days with little if any concern for prepping. One day, out of the blue it just nagged on me that I needed to start, so I started looking for sites like this to help me get info.


----------



## Clarice (Aug 19, 2010)

I know the feelings you guys are experiencing. No one can have the exact date or what incident will set it off, but soon very soon. Am I ready? Better than some and not as good as others. Outside of a nucular event I know we will survive. We have no way to shelter against fallout.


----------



## Jimmy24 (Apr 20, 2011)

I see austerity measures or food prices being the two main triggers. If either happens. It will start in the big cities first as usual. But if food prices/supply is for real, it won't take but two weeks before the masses/hoards begin to filter out, looking for food/supplies. That is when it will get stupid, IMO.

That will be when the guberment will enact martial law. It will get nasty. The troops may/maynot decide to shoot fellow countrymen. If they do, that may be the final trigger.

JMO

Jimmy


----------



## kilagal (Nov 8, 2011)

Lazydaisy, first you at least know you need to prep. There are a lot of people that still do not know that. Or just don't want to do it.
But start small when you get into this. First keep track of the groceries that you use for a week. That includes the salt, baking powder, etc. Then the next time you go shopping if you have the money to do it just buy 2 of everything that you would normally buy. Then you would have food storage for l week. No big panic. 
Lists are a big help for you at this point. 
Also if you can't do this there are a lot of lists done online. Like $5 a week prep list. Do a google search for it. I am not sure they may even have it here on this site. If you can't find it let me know and I will help you find it. But it does help a lot for beginners. 
Well I am off now to bring in the firewood, feed all the critters and then water the spinach in the cold frame in the backyard. 
Oh and now is a good time to start planning a garden if you can do it.


----------



## kappydell (Nov 27, 2011)

lazydaisy i have been prepping for years and i still feel the way you do sometimes - that i want to sit down & bawl. sometimes I find myself a secure corner and I do, it relieves the stress a bit. then i pick myself up and keep going. nobody ever gets it all covered. Murphy (and his law) being the stinker he is, we will be swapping between ourselves to cover the gaps anyway. Lists help me focus so i get more things done on 'those days'. 
You have the smarts and the will to prepare and survive, and that is the critical part.
welcome to the ranks of the awakened. although it is scary to consider what the future may bring, it is far, far better to look the future in the eye than to have it sneak up on you. 
partduex i agree that black friday was an interesting preview of how stupid folks can be and perhaps why crowds & public areas should be avoided when things go critical.


----------



## Meerkat (May 31, 2011)

kappydell said:


> lazydaisy i have been prepping for years and i still feel the way you do sometimes - that i want to sit down & bawl. sometimes I find myself a secure corner and I do, it relieves the stress a bit. then i pick myself up and keep going. nobody ever gets it all covered. Murphy (and his law) being the stinker he is, we will be swapping between ourselves to cover the gaps anyway. Lists help me focus so i get more things done on 'those days'.
> You have the smarts and the will to prepare and survive, and that is the critical part.
> welcome to the ranks of the awakened. although it is scary to consider what the future may bring, it is far, far better to look the future in the eye than to have it sneak up on you.
> partduex i agree that black friday was an interesting preview of how stupid folks can be and perhaps why crowds & public areas should be avoided when things go critical.


 I agree . But then Black Friday is'nt the only evidence of how stupid most of us have become. We passed naive decades ago.


----------



## GaryS (Nov 15, 2011)

Lazydaisy, in my opinion, prepping is not a end game, it's a mental attitude. It does no good to worry to the point of tears or panic. Everything you do to prepare puts you ahead of the naive masses. One or two weeks of extra food means you can feed your family during what would probably be the most chaotic period of any situation. 

You don't have to spend a lot of money to feed a family to survive for a week. If it's all you have, rice will keep you alive, and if you add a bit of flavoring, it's tasty. Mix in a can of stew or bullion and it makes dinner, or add raisins, sugar and milk made from a box of dry milk, and you have breakfast or dessert. Stick to the inexpensive basics to begin.

Don't concern yourself with guns as a first step. Lots of folks are like me, with extra guns and ammo for those who don't have them. 

Concentrate on food and water first, then add small amounts of other things as you can afford them, and just realize that you will never be done prepping.


----------



## HozayBuck (Jan 27, 2010)

*As for me ??? My spider senses started tingling back in 68 and have never stopped, the issue with this is that as time passes and nothing happens I have not really put the effort into it that I should, not that I haven't or don't prep but not like I should be..

I'm sure when the SHTF for Custer up on the Rosebud he was thinking..crap, why did I not bring the 2 Gatling guns I turned down...:dunno:

I have had things that would be worth their weight in gold and sold them or traded them away... hind sight..

So a word of advice don't fall into the trap I did.. what don't happen in you're life time may very well happen in your kids or grand kids time, and a lot of things we have at hand today may be "Against the Law" in 20 years ... so we really aren't prepping for ourselves but for our future...

So now I'm playing catch up when I should be " sitting back on my sack of seeds smiling..."( lets see who knows that line!!!)

the Battle for our tomorrows is being fought today.... *


----------



## TheAnt (Jun 7, 2011)

HozayBuck said:


> *As for me ??? My spider senses started tingling back in 68 and have never stopped, the issue with this is that as time passes and nothing happens I have not really put the effort into it that I should, not that I haven't or don't prep but not like I should be..
> 
> I'm sure when the SHTF for Custer up on the Rosebud he was thinking..crap, why did I not bring the 2 Gatling guns I turned down...:dunno:
> 
> ...


Have you been chewing those weeds again!?!?! Y'all come back now, ya hear!


----------



## ComputerGuy (Dec 10, 2010)

HozayBuck said:


> So now I'm playing catch up when I should be " sitting back on my sack of seeds smiling..."( lets see who knows that line!!!)
> ... [/B]


Wild Wood Weed. Jim Stafford. Yes I just dated myself!!

lol


----------



## weedygarden (Apr 27, 2011)

HozayBuck said:


> *As for me ??? My spider senses started tingling back in 68 and have never stopped, the issue with this is that as time passes and nothing happens I have not really put the effort into it that I should, not that I haven't or don't prep but not like I should be..
> 
> I'm sure when the SHTF for Custer up on the Rosebud he was thinking..crap, why did I not bring the 2 Gatling guns I turned down...:dunno:
> 
> ...


In the early 70's when I was quite young ;-), I saw a book in a store talking about the coming collapse. Why did that speak to me and not others?

I have moved quite often. I bought a package deal of 1 year's food storage, and then sold it when I moved once. I couldn't see moving that much food 600 miles.

I have educated myself and have all too slowly worked on prepping. I have never really had much money to work with, and I have never had anyone else around, with exception of one friend who lives 1000 miles away, that was on the same page as me.

When Y2K was on its way, I did some preps and my daughter still makes fun of me about that. I just don't talk to her about it at all, because she is not someone who gets it. The reality for me is that Y2K was like a dry run. It helped me to see if there was anyone who would get it, or not. No one in my sphere gets it.

I have always bought extras when I see good deals on food. I also read the lists and set goals for myself, such as, I have read that you need 20 pounds of salt per person per year. That is an easy deal at Sam's Club. 25# of salt was less than $5.00, less than a 5 gallon bucket, if purchased new with a lid.

I just keep shopping, not making a spectacle of myself with overloading my cart and drawing unnecessary attention. If something is a really good deal, I go to the store extra times that week. For instance, during the holidays when baking goods like flour and sugar are on special, I might get 2 bags of each every time I go to the store. If I run into someone I know, and I have, and they asked why I was buying so much flour and sugar (10# each, not really alot), I tell them I am doing some holiday baking for my colleagues. They know I bake some good stuff.

I also keep my mouth shut. If someone gets it, we will understand that between us. Preaching or trying to convince someone else to prep just tells them that they need to come to you when TSHTF. This is what will happen: You have it, they don't, they want it, and they will want you to give it to them. No matter if you do or you don't, they will run their mouths, others will be on your doorstep and, then what?

I don't think anyone is as prepared as they want to be. Some people have a few days extra and think they are good to go. Some have a month or two worth, and it is the same story. One year's supply seems to be the gold standard. Some people get there and think they have arrived. While I think a year's supply is awesome, I personally would be happier with 10 years, 20 years or 30 years worth of food and supplies. I know that little will really stay stable that long, but I would rather have it and have it spoil than not have anything.

lazydaisy67--Research, and start as some said, buying double of what you are buying for day to day, and put the extra in your food storage vault so that it won't be raided for you day to day.


----------



## ComputerGuy (Dec 10, 2010)

I like what Weedy and some of the others have said.

Each day I go to the commissary on base to get lunch. Everyday I buy 3-8 cans of meat, veggie, fruit, or what ever. Ofter a week I have a case of something.

Last week there was a special on chicken noodle soup for 50 cents a can. Each day I got lunch and a few cans. 

Adds up at the end of the week. Slow and methodical, like the tortoise.


----------



## Obligated (Apr 11, 2011)

I am rather confused just now so if this post should go in another thread would some kind soul direct me?


Here is an issue that has stuck in my mind this week. I live in the suburbs with plans to relocate on land. The plan is to be ready should my adult children have a SHTF event in their lives or if it is a major event. Every day I am reading, getting ready for a major stock pile in December, etc.

If money is now in bonds and annuities, what do we do? Do we take the money out, costing a major tax, and buy the land? Are people thinking all of those investments will be gone ( not so much stocks ) or that the money will be useles within the next three years?

I cannot allow fear to direct my life, but I do need to have as much info as possible.

Thank you


----------



## Frugal_Farmers (Dec 13, 2010)

It sinks in every day I wake up. The only think I can do is minimize those outside influences that can effect my life and lifestyle. Being prepared has no timeline. Just plan and prepare as if something can happen right now.


----------



## JayJay (Nov 23, 2010)

kappydell said:


> lazydaisy i have been prepping for years and i still feel the way you do sometimes - that i want to sit down & bawl. sometimes I find myself a secure corner and I do, it relieves the stress a bit.


Well, at least I'm not alone. I did that this morning screaming at the walls..I WANT MY COUNTRY BACK!!!

I'm from the 60s..man, it is hard to explain this feeling unless you are 'this' age.

Peace....JayJay


----------



## gypsysue (Mar 27, 2010)

Obligated said:


> Here is an issue that has stuck in my mind this week. I live in the suburbs with plans to relocate on land. The plan is to be ready should my adult children have a SHTF event in their lives or if it is a major event. Every day I am reading, getting ready for a major stock pile in December, etc.
> 
> If money is now in bonds and annuities, what do we do? Do we take the money out, costing a major tax, and buy the land? Are people thinking all of those investments will be gone ( not so much stocks ) or that the money will be useles within the next three years?
> 
> ...


Tough call. The question might be, is your money better invested in those bonds and annuities, or in land? If your goal is to relocate to that land, what is your time frame? Is it something you could do now? Is there a reason you're waiting?

In many places land prices are at the lowest they've been in the last decade. Would the tax be less if the money is "invested" in land? I don't know if there is a tax break for buying land, it's out of my realm of knowledge. Would the investment in a great deal on a piece of land be of more value than what you'd lose paying the tax on closing out your investments?

If your research leads you to believe your investments could become worthless or at least worth less than they are now, I'd consider buying the land and start getting it set up. If the SHTF (and it could in many ways or on many levels for you or family members, at any time), it would be a hard time to be withdrawing your money and shopping for land, then doing whatever was necessary to make it livable.

Not an easy thing to know for certain. Good luck.


----------



## Jezcruzen (Oct 21, 2008)

The criminals populating our Senate are currently debating a bill that would allow the military to abduct American citizens here in the US without habius corpus and imprison them indefinitely without warrant. This is what those whom you elected are doing while they are unable to pass a budget. So, what do any of you think?


----------



## horseman1946 (Oct 19, 2011)

I started prepping in the 80's, and not because of Reagan, whom I admire as the greatest president of the 20th century, but because of Carter's inflation. I forsee a situation similiar to the Wiermar Republic after WWI. A pound of butter cost a million marks. I well remember Carter's inflation, I bought my home in 1977 and got it before the 19% mortgage rates hit. My next door neighbor bought his house 12 months after I did, my rate was 9%, his was 17%. 

I started with prepping by bringing MRE's home from my duty with the VaNG, soldiers would throw them away, unopened, and I would bring them home. This continued over the next seventeen years of my service. I don't know how many I have, but the count is in the hundreds. I also brought home cans of dehydrated meat, canned biscuit mix, canned cookie/cake mix, and I can't remember the rest.

I also buy bulk food, and I buy extra when I shop. I don't pass up any good deals. For instance, I bought a case of pancake mix, just add water, 8 two pound bags for $12.00. This was at a local bulk food warehouse, and on the same day I also bought olive oil for $6.00 a gallon. I don't buy anything I have to preserve.

Our local flea market vendors sell OTC drugs like Alka-Seltzer Plus, cold and pain pills, vitamins, etc. All are expired dates from stores like Rite-Aid, CVS, but if I stored them they would be out date anyway. With the amount of Zombies manufacturing Meth in this area, this avenue of acquiring OTC drugs will soon be closed, bank on it.

I prepare for the worst, hope for the best. It is better to be an ant than a grasshopper.


----------



## Obligated (Apr 11, 2011)

GypsySue, thank you for the response. 

I hope to stay here for another year for several reason, mostly I have a 96 year old grandmother I do not want to leave and she cannot leave her doctors. comforts, etc. 

I look on unitedcountry.com and landwatch.com every few days. If the perfect place came available I think a road trip will be in order and the decision will be easier. 

As much as I am looking forward to this, I agree with Jay Jay.


----------



## Immolatus (Feb 20, 2011)

Obligated said:


> I am rather confused just now so if this post should go in another thread would some kind soul direct me?
> 
> Here is an issue that has stuck in my mind this week. I live in the suburbs with plans to relocate on land. The plan is to be ready should my adult children have a SHTF event in their lives or if it is a major event. Every day I am reading, getting ready for a major stock pile in December, etc.
> 
> ...


This should be its own thread...
Man oh man thats a tough one.
We will tell you to sell it all and run for the hills (buy the land). A strict traditional financial advisor will tell you youre nuts for even considering it. That leads me to believe that the truth lies somewhere in the middle. Question is, what does that mean? Sell half and use that half as a down payment? You also need to balance your personal goals with the money. If you want to go and live on said land, then that weights it heavier against the investments.
This requires a serious discussion with someone who knows their stuff, in investments and taxes. If you do seek out said advisor, you might want to be straight up with them and tell em "I'm afraid of the financial future of the economy, and need some advice." There has to be some middle ground that would minimize your tax hit. Anyone in the family know of someone like this? An advisor who works for themselves and gets paid by the hour, and isnt trying to sell you something? Thats the key point. If they work for a brokerage house, or a firm with ties to one, then they are biased against you from the start.
Funny but true story.
In my younger days, I wanted to work for one of the investment firms. I didnt want to be a broker, cause I'm not a very social person and had no interest in sales, I wanted to be a numbers guy behind the scenes.
First interview with Prudential we had to take a standard psych test. during the test, wearing a suit with about 10 other applicants and a bunch of head stiff types, I started laughing during the exam. The question was "Do people like you?" Now who would answer that in any way except "Yes"? Me. I wrote in the margin "What kind of question is that?" As I turned in the test, I asked the stiff "Who writes these questions?" Needless to say I didnt get the job. My mother said the questions are designed to weed out jokers like me.
AmEx. On the second interview (I learned my lesson with the psych test, and it was multiple choice on a computer) I had to pretend to be a travel agent and sell to the guy who was interviewing me. Pfft.
The somewhat relevant story:
New England Financial: While on the interview, there was a sales meeting with some head honchos from the main office, going over some new 'instruments' (annuities) they were trying to sell. 3 different interest rates with corresponding commissions (the higher the rate, the lower the commission). The guy says "Your goals and your clients goals are not going to be the same, so you have to find a middle ground" which drew a snicker from everyone there.
So, they are not working for you, they are working for the firm. Stay away from those types. Find an independent investent advisor.

My advice? Sell all of that soon to be worthless junk and build that bunker!

_Consult your financial advisor before making any invesment decisions based on some nutjobs advice on a prepper forum._


----------



## lazydaisy67 (Nov 24, 2011)

I think the panic feeling is the 'not knowing' for me personally. If a storm is coming, we go into the basement. We can DO something to prepare for that very specific event. This state of affairs we call life in America scares me because it's all so up in the air as to WHAT is going to happen, WHEN it's going to happen, and how severe it will be. 
I hear they are trying to pass a bill that will put you under suspicion of terrorist activity if you have more than 7 days of food stockpiled. What then? The national guard comes to your house, takes your food and hauls you to Guantanamo? It's all scary, but rest assured I WILL do what I can to keep my family fed and in tact for as long as I have breath in my body.


----------



## kappydell (Nov 27, 2011)

Well said, weedy! I was raised to always have a stocked pantry (old fashioned country folk, you know) and when Y2K approached I prepped in earnest and never really stopped consciously prepping since. Dont talk about it anymore, and yes, if someone asks, I bake a lot (or am buying for myself and my retired aunties who don't get to the stores to buy at the sales....).


----------



## BillS (May 30, 2011)

I feel like things will be happening soon. I have the feeling that the collapse in Europe will have much worse consequences for the dollar and for America than most people realize. I expect to wake up one morning to find that the dollar was been seriously devalued. I think a European collapse will cause banks in America to collapse too. We could live in a vastly different world 2 or 3 months from now. If not in 2 or 3 months then certainly by the end of 2012.

I didn't start prepping until May of this year when I saw the Porter Stansberry presentation.

http://www.stansberryresearch.com/pro/1103PSIEOAVD/OPSIM530/PR


----------

