# Scary thing we will have to do !



## Pete3512

Are you prepared to do things that you never though you could do ? You better mentally prepare your self above all things you prep for you better prepare your mind !


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## Davarm

"I" have gone through some pretty bizarre scenarios in my mind, if I find myself in anything worse than some of those, the world will be a pretty messed up place even by my standards.

But really, on a serious note, what type of things are you thinking of.


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## Clarice

Pete3512 said:


> Are you prepared to do things that you never though you could do ? You better mentally prepare your self above all things you prep for you better prepare your mind !


I'm not sure what you mean by your question. You can imagine all types of horrible things and scare yourself silly. As long as you are mentally prepared to just get thru each day to the best of your ability and have skills, knowledge and determination you will come out on top most of the time. We are so use to our conviences the hard work needed to live in a world turned upside down will be enough to scare some into inaction. Preparing meals from scratch without a microwave or electric stove or electric can opener, washing really dirty clothes by hand and hanging them out to dry, planting and harvesting a garden with out the luxury of gas powered equipment the thought of these things would turn most of our citizens into useless cry babies, I'm sad to say.


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## NaeKid

Pete3512 said:


> Are you prepared to do things that you never though you could do ? You better mentally prepare your self above all things you prep for you better prepare your mind !


:scratch

Ummm .... dig root-vegitables from the ground or pick tomatoes? I don't know what kind of horrors come from that, can you explain more as to this?


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## TheAnt

NaeKid said:


> :scratch
> 
> Ummm .... dig root-vegitables from the ground or pick tomatoes? I don't know what kind of horrors come from that, can you explain more as to this?


Perhaps he is a vegetarian and is contemplating what he might have to do in SHTF if his garden doesnt produce??? Perhaps he will have to eat Fido? :lolsmash::lolsmash:


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## Davarm

Hey Ant, I got no problem eaten Fido, we would just call it an Irish wake for a close friend. I'll just draw the line at skunk or possum n sweet taters.


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## TheAnt

Davarm said:


> Hey Ant, I got no problem eaten Fido, we would just call it an Irish wake for a close friend. I'll just draw the line at skunk or possum n sweet taters.


Hehe, my Dad says when we were growing up that everyone at the church pot luck wanted to know what our family brought. Some wanted to know so they could try some kind of strange meat... others wanted to know so they could steer clear of it.

I think my Dad was born in the wrong century and probably should have been a lone trapper in the wild country...


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## The_Blob

Davarm said:


> Hey Ant, I got no problem eaten Fido, we would just call it an Irish wake for a close friend. I'll just draw the line at skunk or possum n sweet taters.


I can say for a fact that there will definitely be NO other source of meat left (sooner than anyone thinks IMHO) before I'd eat my dogs... the CAT on the other hand...   :lolsmash: ... jk

10 horrible things that can happen when :shtf:
1. eat a pet? yes, but as a last resort
2. kill someone? yes, in self defense, as quickly as possible
3. steal from others? yes, eventually I might have to
4. abandon a friend/family member? I really don't know, by the time I decided to, it would probably be too late to make a difference one way or the other
5. eat something gross, like bugs or garbage? Hell, I already DO! 
6. betray friends/family to save own ass? no, probably not
7. share food with strangers? ok, not horrible in & of itself, but the ramifications could be, but yes, some of the 'this-is-all-I-have stash' (which consists of expired canned goods)
8. defend friends/family to the death? if I have to... but I'm a TRUE patriot, I don't die for my cause, I make the other sonovabitch die for HIS! 
9. self-amputate? I'm of the opinion that would only prolong my demise, but :dunno:
10. commit suicide? no, I think it's selfish, and I'm too stubborn

wow, that was harder than I thought...


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## gypsysue

Well, for people who have never killed or even cut up an animal, it will be pretty scary. We lived in a city 20 years ago and there were women in my neighborhood that had never cut up even a supermarket chicken. 

Eating food you grew yourself is scary for some people. In that same city (Salt Lake City) we lived in 20 years ago there were fruit trees all over the city, thanks to the pioneers who settled the valley. Every year bushels and bushels of fruit fell to the ground. I'd go around the neighborhood asking if I could at least have the windfalls on the ground. Nearly everyone told me to take all the fruit I wanted off the whole trees. Why? They were scared to eat it because it wasn't government inspected or regulated and might not be safe to eat. 

And that was 20 years ago. I imagine it's worse now. How many germ-a-phobe people are going to dig in the dirt? There are people who will lose it completely when their standards of personal hygiene have to be lowered. Do you think they'll fare well with things in the course of obtaining food, either plant or animal? :gaah:


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## The_Blob

gypsysue said:


> Well, for people who have never killed or even cut up an animal, it will be pretty scary. We lived in a city 20 years ago and there were women in my neighborhood that had never cut up even a supermarket chicken.
> 
> Eating food you grew yourself is scary for some people. In that same city (Salt Lake City) we lived in 20 years ago there were fruit trees all over the city, thanks to the pioneers who settled the valley. Every year bushels and bushels of fruit fell to the ground. I'd go around the neighborhood asking if I could at least have the windfalls on the ground. Nearly everyone told me to take all the fruit I wanted off the whole trees. Why? They were scared to eat it because it wasn't government inspected or regulated and might not be safe to eat.
> 
> And that was 20 years ago. I imagine it's worse now. How many germ-a-phobe people are going to dig in the dirt? There are people who will lose it completely when their standards of personal hygiene have to be lowered. Do you think they'll fare well with things in the course of obtaining food, either plant or animal? :gaah:


Didn't they spray *malathion* and other nastiness in a LOT of places 20 years ago, and wasn't it (intentionally) highly publicized (to cause fear/control the sheeple)? Even so, washing fruit with baking soda and water will remove malathion.

that was a serious question, not a critique


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## HozayBuck

*I read the re-read his question.. it's pretty vague , kinda an open question .. I think Blob got it right, not just things we may have to eat...

I under where he's coming from I think... meaning can you do all the things it might take to live.. like eating long pork..  or your neighbors dog or cat.. or maybe the neighbor... some people say they could never kill another person even to protect themselves...

AND! he has a point.. lots of folks may not have given thought to what may happen ...and how they will respond.

I'm lucky ...or maybe not but I've pretty much got it all covered ... 
I don't want to fire on anybody , but will coz I've been there done that... and have eaten a lot of things that would turn off a lot of folks..

I guess if I make snake chili and cornbread and somebody don't wanna eat...fine with me!.. when they die of starvation I'll keep their gear... *


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## Gypsyshome

Hi all, I just finished reading the mans first hand account of Bosnia in 1992. It really helped me think about how we are going to deal, when SHTF...Pete is right, it is clear to me, we have to "get our mind around" all the things listed...Some of the things are really funny, to people that, say, raise and butcher their own animals. I am a nurse and have to say for us women; we can deal with blood and guts better than some men....just sayn' lol. I didn't even want to touch a gun, now i have a concealed weapon license. and so it goes we have to be able to JUST DO IT! I would really hate to kill my pets, BUT know if its necessary, its necessary. i hope the rabbits can survive and reproduce, thats the plan. My main concern is having a clan to watch my back. gypsy's move a lot, I did so, WHO CAN YOU TRUST? i grew up in Ohio and my gut says, head for the hills and caves but we are getting too old to deal with the cold winters. so on to plan B....underground I guess like the viet cong, I'll be a tunnel rat, maybe. Its easy to dig in this sandy ground in No. Fl. we are planning a tornado shelter below ground so two birds, what do you think? all suggestions welcome.
And Thanks for being here.


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## Clarice

The way to get your mind around what may come is act on it now. Start a garden, get a few chickens & rabbits if you can, go to the gun range and shoot a few rounds, try cooking over an open fire, hand wash your clothes and hang them out to dry. Prepare, prepare, prepare. It's great to read books on "How To", but if you don't put into action some of these things now the resources may not be availble after TSHTF.


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## ContinualHarvest

Clarice said:


> The way to get your mind around what may come is act on it now. Start a garden, get a few chickens & rabbits if you can, go to the gun range and shoot a few rounds, try cooking over an open fire, hand wash your clothes and hang them out to dry. Prepare, prepare, prepare. It's great to read books on "How To", but if you don't put into action some of these things now the resources may not be availble after TSHTF.


Get a nice cast Iron dutch oven. Makes cooking over a fire much easier. Will last a lifetime if you take care of it.


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## md1911

I own a Dutchoven. My question is can anybody explain to me how to bake bread???????????????? Lost


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## Emerald

md1911 said:


> I own a Dutchoven. My question is can anybody explain to me how to bake bread???????????????? Lost


with it in a regular oven or over coals?


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## Davarm

Some of the cookware now known as dutch ovens are not what are needed to bake bread on/at a campfire. What you need to do it well is the extra large ones with peg feet on the bottom and a flat lid, one large enough to put your bread pan in. 

The idea is to put your bread dough into a smaller cast iron pan and sit that one into the large dutch oven. The large pan is then placed on a bed of coals and coals are placed the top of the flat lid. Used in this manner, you can bake just about anything that you could in a conventional oven(with some practice, of course).

Another method, and probably easier for the inexperienced camp fire baker is to use a reflector oven. They are devices similar to but much less expensive than the solar ovens that average around $250.00 for a low end model from a commercial source. You put the bread pan into it and point it at the camp fire and let it bake via reflected heat from the camp fire. This is probably a better choice to start with while you are getting your feet wet in camp fire baking.

Source of my information - A brother in law that is competitive Chuck Wagon Cook.


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## md1911

My Dutch oven has legs and a lip for coals on the lid. My problem is it Burns or is not cooked


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## Davarm

md1911 said:


> My Dutch oven has legs and a lip for coals on the lid. My problem is it Burns or is not cooked


Do you put the bread pan into the dutch oven or put the dough directly into the large oven? It may just be a matter of practice, their is a (big)learning curve with this type of baking. You may want to give the reflector oven a try and work up to the dutch oven.

However you do it(baking), with a dutch or reflector oven, it is a skill well worth having and I encourage you not to give up on it. My brother in law has prepared some Gourmet meals at the campfire but he has been at it just about all his life.


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## BillM

*Start with*

Start out with corn cakes and pan cakes.

You can make ash cakes and pita bread over a fire pretty easy.


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## lazydaisy67

I think one of the hardest things for me will be thinking about friends and family who thought/think I'm a freak for prepping and who then will not have anything stored away and no way to get it. Not in an "I told you so" sort of way, but in an "oh, how I wish you could have seen things differently" sort of way. And harder still will be turning them away when they show up at my door. 

I often think about ways we (as humans) will handle death on the scale that I think we'll be seeing. I don't know what to say about dealing with it other than to have and continue to strengthen your faith. For me personally, there won't be anything that could help me cope better.


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## md1911

Baking is no one of my strong suites. I didn't use another pan inside the dutch oven. I will try that this weekend thanks


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## Emerald

md1911 said:


> Baking is no one of my strong suites. I didn't use another pan inside the dutch oven. I will try that this weekend thanks


Have you looked at the chuck wagon sites or the Dutch Oven sites.. there are formulas(they use charcoal briquets but I have used about the same sized coals) for baking..
My favorite way to bake bread in cast iron is to heat the bottom and lid hot. then dump the dough ball in, close it off and put the hot lid back on with about 11 coals on top and there should be about 12 to 14 coals under the bottom.. about 20 minutes in start checking.. in about 30 minutes it should be done.. it will not "brown" on top like you are used to but should be cooked thru..
If you prefer square/rectangle loaves then heat the cast iron the same and and when it is nice and hot put your pan with the raised loaf in.. 
I've made plenty of bead/biscuits/cake that way and I still get a few "dark spots" on my breads and such.. it happens and when you're hungry no one passes it up.
if you have tin foil you can dig a whole.. get a fire going in the hole and when you get a nice bed of coals you put your DO of beans/stew in the hole on top of the coals.. put a nice layer of tinfoil(I've seen it done with burdock leaves also) on top and then put the dirt back on and let it cook.. if you do this in the morning it will be done about mid to late afternoon..
There are tons of techniques online for outdoor cooking with dutch ovens and cast iron so just do a bit of looking and you would be surprised what people are doing with cast iron and a few coals.:2thumb:


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