Blackout…. Now What..??

[JK4Woods]

Premise -> When (if) a tipping point is reached and the Deep State Cabal commits to a last ditch desperate action to create chaos, fear and confusion, (possibly with the intent to cover their sins and obfuscate their individual roles in the manipulation), and the banks close for ten days, plastic cards don’t work, and the lights go out simultaneously; what actions should we faithful sheep be prepared to do?

I’ll start a list:

1. Store up more water (fill bathtubs).
2. Lock gates and doors.
3. Clear bushes for better sight lines out windows.
4. Prepare to use alternate source for heating.
5. Prepare and post a tight schedule/ priority list for water use.
6. Quickly determine perishable food stores, and prepare to utilize them.
7. Agree upon home security measures, and procedures on how to answer the door.
8. Practice light and sound discipline and think about drifting cooking aromas.
9. Set up a duty watch security system.
10. Determine what kind of response will be made in the seconds between observing a group approaching and when they arrive.
11. Decide what kind of authorities will be obeyed.
12. Predetermine to what extent sharing of stored preparations will be extended.
13. Ready small amounts of sharing items, like 2liter soda bottles filled with water, and zip lock baggies with rice or beans and salt to hand out.
14. Combine vehicle trips, (with security measures).
15. Drain fuel from your cars parked outside.
16. Prepare defensive resorts in case your house is shot upon.
17. Inventory first aid items.
18.
19.
20.


The list could grow to be lengthy. Depends on how placid the general population are vs. how quick the “takers” start looting, first businesses then homes for food, water and other valuables.

Knowing that it will take about 54 hours before the masses start to become restless, what steps need to be taken immediately upon the surprise of finding the TV and cell phone stopped working..??

[Godislove]

I've heard that it's good to have some sort of security lights on the outside of your house because if people are going to do something shady they may prefer to do it under the cover of night and sometimes just having a security light flip on is enough to help deter them.

[EmmaLee]

This ^ is very true. I recently read a poll that was taken of incarcerated burglars, and by far, the one thing that deterred them the most from breaking into a house was if it was well lit outside. If they were going to commit a burglary, and one house had lights on outside, and the one next to it didn't, they would 100% of the time choose the house that did not have outside lights on.

Another good thing to do right away, as soon as it's a true SHTF situation, is to trash the outside of your house - as in, spray graffiti on the house, spread some garbage around, make it look like it's already been looted, and there will be less of a chance someone will bother breaking in.

[JK4Woods]

Both excellent points. Especially in normal times.

But if the power is out (widespread blackout), it’ll be dark outside. No street lights, no building lights, no ambient reflected lights from the surrounding city.

Those solar charged motion sensor lights would still work. Six or eight around the eaves of one’s house would work.
Good idea!!

[EmmaLee]

Yes, solar lights are a good choice - that's what we have around our house (in addition to the regular, electric lights) and they do a great job of lighting things up.

Also, a large dog or two, with large barks, is good to have, and is the next best deterrent after lighting. They require a lot of food and space though, and training, so are not for everyone. You can also buy gadgets that have recordings of large dogs barking, which some people set up by their front/back doors, so if someone rings the bell or knocks, the recorded dog barking goes off.

Having steel reinforced doors instead of just wooden ones, is also good. Bolt locks on all doors, and good locks on windows, of course. Lock your bedroom door at night, that way you have an extra minute to get armed before a burglar gets to you.

Another good thing to do is, before a grid-down scenario (or other equally bad situation), write up a list and time-line of what you would do when _____ happens - and actually go through the motions of doing those things to see how realistic your list is. Plus, it will fill in some blanks of things you hadn't thought of until you've actually run through the scenario. Such as, in the first 30 minutes after the grid goes down, we will do ____________. And just keep going down the list with attached time-line.

[JK4Woods]

8769546C-F42F-41A4-9FDB-54DC2012C052.jpeg (363.37 KiB) Viewed 1220 times

[Godislove]

Listed below is just a link to an article I found that has some other good ideas but one idea they had was to make a list of last minute preps or things you would like to have from the store and you'd be paying in cash for your items. It would basically be your last chance store run.
I don't really know the time window for how many days/hours until people start panicking or losing it but I would imagine you'd probably want to do this is the first 24-48 hours if possible.

https://theprovidentprepper.org/prepari ... o-do-list/

[JK4Woods]

Cash will be king for a couple weeks.

Hardly anyone even has those old style credit card machines that rolls over a triplicate charge form, and impresses the raised edges of the credit card.

So once ATM and point of sale credit card machines stop working….

Go to a “We Buy Gold” type of store and see about buying silver coins. Especially pre- ‘69 coins made of mostly silver.

[Down_the_rabbithole]

I still refer back to an old document called "Words from a Bosnian Survivalist" (you can search it out. I tried to attach a PDF but I guess it's too large). It's a man's experience of going through the Bosnian war with his family and it has a ton of interesting, real life examples of surviving through a hellish experience. He discusses is how lighters were one of the best bartering items, as everyone needed fire and they are small and easy to carry. He also talks about how sanitation and medical supplies were extremely valuable as well as skills like knowing how to suture cuts. There is a lot in it. Anyway, it's an interesting read...

[FrankOne]

I still refer back to an old document called "Words from a Bosnian Survivalist" (you can search it out. I tried to attach a PDF but I guess it's too large). It's a man's experience of going through the Bosnian war with his family and it has a ton of interesting, real life examples of surviving through a hellish experience. He discusses is how lighters were one of the best bartering items, as everyone needed fire and they are small and easy to carry. He also talks about how sanitation and medical supplies were extremely valuable as well as skills like knowing how to suture cuts. There is a lot in it. Anyway, it's an interesting read...

many years ago, a guy was posting on a site I visited about his experiences in surviving the collapse of Argentina. I copied off alot of it. He later wrote a book on his experiences. His viewpoint is very practical and very much aimed on how things proceed from the moment that an economy begins to collapse and through the panic etc. I don't have his book, but I would guess it's much more detailed than his posts were.

The one tip that really struck me deeply was that he said "people migrate to water". If you take a moment and let that sink in, it could cause you to rethink the entire scenario. People won't stay in their homes if water is too far away. (no power means no water in about 95% of cities today) Backup generators don't last long if they can't get fuel. I live in a small rural area and when the power goes off, the water tanks for the area are drained in about 8 - 12 hrs. The wells stop pumping.

https://www.amazon.com/Modern-Survival- ... 9870563457

[FrankOne]

1. Establish contact with family members. (ham radio, battery powered)

18 - Conduct radio checks with those in your group. (need to pre-establish this)
19 - Call a meeting with your group. Go over area plans. Set up guard duties.
20- Make popcorn (solar power, gas or wood fire)
21 - Watch a doomy movie. (solar power).

[h_p]

I still refer back to an old document called "Words from a Bosnian Survivalist" (you can search it out. I tried to attach a PDF but I guess it's too large). It's a man's experience of going through the Bosnian war with his family and it has a ton of interesting, real life examples of surviving through a hellish experience. He discusses is how lighters were one of the best bartering items, as everyone needed fire and they are small and easy to carry. He also talks about how sanitation and medical supplies were extremely valuable as well as skills like knowing how to suture cuts. There is a lot in it. Anyway, it's an interesting read...

I know who you're talking about. His name is Selco Begovic. He's got quite a bit of content out there--interviews, podcasts, books--about his experiences. If anybody wants a glimpse into hell on earth: https://www.amazon.com/Dark-Secrets-SHT ... 1792159226

[mudflap]

We lived in the city without power for a week during the most massive tornado outbreak in the country back in 2011. I'll tell you what happened:
- police set up a curfew at night. Since criminals don't obey curfews, we heard a lot of gun shots in our neighborhood. Across from us, a guy raised some kind of rare breed of pitbulls, and someone tried to kick down his fence and take the puppies. He scared them off by firing a couple rounds into the air. My wife sat in the driveway in the car during her security shift at 1 am and watched the whole thing while charging her phone that didn't have signal.
- another neighbor who lived a block away carried his 357 openly during the day while conversing with neighbors. He wanted them to see it on him he said after someone threw a brick through his back door window. He slept on a couch next to that door for a few days afterwards.
- a store owner shot and killed a guy - he was the brother of a student at the school I taught at. She claims they shot him for no reason - he was trying to get some diapers for his baby. At 3 am. uh-huh....
- in fact, there were so many crimes committed that I read an estimate that only 10% of the cases had any kind of resolution. We left our hefty and cranky dog outside at night in our fenced yard. He was a great asset to our security.
- kroger would only let a few into their store at at time. They had armed guards escorting folks around in the dark store. They wouldn't sell milk (no refrigeration). I rode my bike to the store with luggage racks to stock up on fresh food and bread and candles and stuff.
- Lines for gas were about 2 miles long. And you could only get 5 gallons at a time. They had to use generators to operate the pumps. Cash only. the 2 mile lines took about 6 hours to navigate. A city council member was arrested for using the "police only" gas station to fill his personal vehicle ("rules for thee, but not for me"). We didn't see the point - where were we going to go? The day before the outage, we were low on gas in both cars, but the wind and rain was so bad, I thought, "I'll fill up tomorrow." I have never made that mistake since then - always fill up at no less than 1/4 tank; never leave both cars empty, and never put it off till the next day, even if we have to pay extra. Keep extra gas in jugs for all equipment (sawmill / lawnmowers / tractor / chainsaw), and keep their tanks full. Keep extra oil / antifreeze, always have extra filters / hoses / etc. on hand.
- We had no contact with extended out-of-state family for that time. Meanwhile, I guess they were watching the news wondering if we were all right. Local family invited us over for a BBQ of all their frozen meat that was going to go bad. Had the power outage continued, they probably should have just smoked it. I cooked up our freezer pizza in a dutch oven with a wire rack in the bottom - turned out pretty good. We were thankful that the outage happened in April, and not Jan-Feb, or August. Weather was perfect, and we had no alternate heat source at the time. We played a lot of card games and board games, did laundry in a wash bin and hung it on the fence to dry. We had hot water with our gas heater. We really missed ice.

*******
things that are great during an outage:
- a way to make ice. This was our #1 problem - keeping things cold. Although, we would find a way to do without ice if the outage was going to be long-term (months/years). At the cabin, I have 24 solar panels ready to go - need to get batteries and a regulator and build a garage so I can mount them to the roof, but their main job will be to provide a little power to the house for emergencies - and especially the refrigerator.
- a source of water - probably two is better - like a well and a local stream, and a way to purify it (tablets / boiling / filters - and extra filters).
- a heat source and a way to cook over it/ on it (like a wood stove).
- guns. lots of them. and lots of ammo.
- a mean (to them) dog with lots of teeth. or multiple dogs.
- living in the country
- a neighborhood plan for security
- bicycles
- a way to board up your windows. Folks in Hurricane country know all about this. I had a neighbor who had 1" plywood sheets cut to shape for all the windows in his house. Won't protect you from bullets much, but will stop folks from throwing a molotov cocktail through your dining room window or smoke bombs or whatever, and also protect you from prying eyes at night if you have your own power.

******
things that will probably get you killed during an extended outage:
- a little gas generator running all night when no one else has one. You can hear them for miles during an outage when there are no other sounds. Like an invitation to criminals: "we have power! come kill us and take our stuff!" Remember: only 10% of those crimes got punished.
- getting in the middle of a crowd to protest......anything. avoid crowds. Goes for long gas lines, and anywhere else folks gather. avoid it.
- an anti-gun sign in your yard. what that sign really says is: "Easy pickings".
- an ongoing spat with neighbors. don't make people hate you before or especially during an outage. tensions are going to be really high.
- bragging about how much food you have stored and how prepared you are. Just shut up about how much better off you are. Listen a lot, don't say much when in unknown company.

[gradles21]

1. Loot your local supermarket

[mudflap]

I should add to that "gas generator" -
a lot of people realize the noise will attract criminals, so they put the thing in their garage to run it - and then die from carbon monoxide poisoning.
or they think they can hook it up to their house with no idea how to do that - and die from electrocution.

Be extremely careful during an outage not to get hurt - don't climb trees unless absolutely necessary. don't try to improvise with unsafe stuff (like try to jack up your car with blocks or something that wasn't made to jack it up, and then it falls on you and there are no ambulances coming). The medical establishment is going to be overrun - think of a "4th of July emergency room", but now it's 100 times worse. everyone is going to be getting hurt. don't be one of them. don't take risks. don't eat questionable or rotted food.

[mudflap]

1. Loot your local supermarket

for real. those employees are probably not going to care. just make sure it's a small "woke" chain store (walgreens / cvs / etc.), not an independent mom & pop store in a small town. the small town store is going to be armed to the teeth.

and not walmart, aka "FEMA COLLECTION POINT". they'll DEFINITELY have armed security (probably from the UN) helping them out. I wouldn't even pull into a walmart parking lot. death trap. nope nope nope.

[Cruiserdude]

We lived in the city without power for a week during the most massive tornado outbreak in the country back in 2011. I'll tell you what happened:
- police set up a curfew at night. Since criminals don't obey curfews, we heard a lot of gun shots in our neighborhood. Across from us, a guy raised some kind of rare breed of pitbulls, and someone tried to kick down his fence and take the puppies. He scared them off by firing a couple rounds into the air. My wife sat in the driveway in the car during her security shift at 1 am and watched the whole thing while charging her phone that didn't have signal.
- another neighbor who lived a block away carried his 357 openly during the day while conversing with neighbors. He wanted them to see it on him he said after someone threw a brick through his back door window. He slept on a couch next to that door for a few days afterwards.
- a store owner shot and killed a guy - he was the brother of a student at the school I taught at. She claims they shot him for no reason - he was trying to get some diapers for his baby. At 3 am. uh-huh....
- in fact, there were so many crimes committed that I read an estimate that only 10% of the cases had any kind of resolution. We left our hefty and cranky dog outside at night in our fenced yard. He was a great asset to our security.
- kroger would only let a few into their store at at time. They had armed guards escorting folks around in the dark store. They wouldn't sell milk (no refrigeration). I rode my bike to the store with luggage racks to stock up on fresh food and bread and candles and stuff.
- Lines for gas were about 2 miles long. And you could only get 5 gallons at a time. They had to use generators to operate the pumps. Cash only. the 2 mile lines took about 6 hours to navigate. A city council member was arrested for using the "police only" gas station to fill his personal vehicle ("rules for thee, but not for me"). We didn't see the point - where were we going to go? The day before the outage, we were low on gas in both cars, but the wind and rain was so bad, I thought, "I'll fill up tomorrow." I have never made that mistake since then - always fill up at no less than 1/4 tank; never leave both cars empty, and never put it off till the next day, even if we have to pay extra. Keep extra gas in jugs for all equipment (sawmill / lawnmowers / tractor / chainsaw), and keep their tanks full. Keep extra oil / antifreeze, always have extra filters / hoses / etc. on hand.
- We had no contact with extended out-of-state family for that time. Meanwhile, I guess they were watching the news wondering if we were all right. Local family invited us over for a BBQ of all their frozen meat that was going to go bad. Had the power outage continued, they probably should have just smoked it. I cooked up our freezer pizza in a dutch oven with a wire rack in the bottom - turned out pretty good. We were thankful that the outage happened in April, and not Jan-Feb, or August. Weather was perfect, and we had no alternate heat source at the time. We played a lot of card games and board games, did laundry in a wash bin and hung it on the fence to dry. We had hot water with our gas heater. We really missed ice.

*******
things that are great during an outage:
- a way to make ice. This was our #1 problem - keeping things cold. Although, we would find a way to do without ice if the outage was going to be long-term (months/years). At the cabin, I have 24 solar panels ready to go - need to get batteries and a regulator and build a garage so I can mount them to the roof, but their main job will be to provide a little power to the house for emergencies - and especially the refrigerator.
- a source of water - probably two is better - like a well and a local stream, and a way to purify it (tablets / boiling / filters - and extra filters).
- a heat source and a way to cook over it/ on it (like a wood stove).
- guns. lots of them. and lots of ammo.
- a mean (to them) dog with lots of teeth. or multiple dogs.
- living in the country
- a neighborhood plan for security
- bicycles
- a way to board up your windows. Folks in Hurricane country know all about this. I had a neighbor who had 1" plywood sheets cut to shape for all the windows in his house. Won't protect you from bullets much, but will stop folks from throwing a molotov cocktail through your dining room window or smoke bombs or whatever, and also protect you from prying eyes at night if you have your own power.

******
things that will probably get you killed during an extended outage:
- a little gas generator running all night when no one else has one. You can hear them for miles during an outage when there are no other sounds. Like an invitation to criminals: "we have power! come kill us and take our stuff!" Remember: only 10% of those crimes got punished.
- getting in the middle of a crowd to protest......anything. avoid crowds. Goes for long gas lines, and anywhere else folks gather. avoid it.
- an anti-gun sign in your yard. what that sign really says is: "Easy pickings".
- an ongoing spat with neighbors. don't make people hate you before or especially during an outage. tensions are going to be really high.
- bragging about how much food you have stored and how prepared you are. Just shut up about how much better off you are. Listen a lot, don't say much when in unknown company.

Holy carp. Most wouldn't ever think something like that could go down here in 'Murica.

[mudflap]

We lived in the city without power for a week during the most massive tornado outbreak in the country back in 2011. I'll tell you what happened:
- police set up a curfew at night. Since criminals don't obey curfews, we heard a lot of gun shots in our neighborhood. Across from us, a guy raised some kind of rare breed of pitbulls, and someone tried to kick down his fence and take the puppies. He scared them off by firing a couple rounds into the air. My wife sat in the driveway in the car during her security shift at 1 am and watched the whole thing while charging her phone that didn't have signal.
- another neighbor who lived a block away carried his 357 openly during the day while conversing with neighbors. He wanted them to see it on him he said after someone threw a brick through his back door window. He slept on a couch next to that door for a few days afterwards.
- a store owner shot and killed a guy - he was the brother of a student at the school I taught at. She claims they shot him for no reason - he was trying to get some diapers for his baby. At 3 am. uh-huh....
- in fact, there were so many crimes committed that I read an estimate that only 10% of the cases had any kind of resolution. We left our hefty and cranky dog outside at night in our fenced yard. He was a great asset to our security.
- kroger would only let a few into their store at at time. They had armed guards escorting folks around in the dark store. They wouldn't sell milk (no refrigeration). I rode my bike to the store with luggage racks to stock up on fresh food and bread and candles and stuff.
- Lines for gas were about 2 miles long. And you could only get 5 gallons at a time. They had to use generators to operate the pumps. Cash only. the 2 mile lines took about 6 hours to navigate. A city council member was arrested for using the "police only" gas station to fill his personal vehicle ("rules for thee, but not for me"). We didn't see the point - where were we going to go? The day before the outage, we were low on gas in both cars, but the wind and rain was so bad, I thought, "I'll fill up tomorrow." I have never made that mistake since then - always fill up at no less than 1/4 tank; never leave both cars empty, and never put it off till the next day, even if we have to pay extra. Keep extra gas in jugs for all equipment (sawmill / lawnmowers / tractor / chainsaw), and keep their tanks full. Keep extra oil / antifreeze, always have extra filters / hoses / etc. on hand.
- We had no contact with extended out-of-state family for that time. Meanwhile, I guess they were watching the news wondering if we were all right. Local family invited us over for a BBQ of all their frozen meat that was going to go bad. Had the power outage continued, they probably should have just smoked it. I cooked up our freezer pizza in a dutch oven with a wire rack in the bottom - turned out pretty good. We were thankful that the outage happened in April, and not Jan-Feb, or August. Weather was perfect, and we had no alternate heat source at the time. We played a lot of card games and board games, did laundry in a wash bin and hung it on the fence to dry. We had hot water with our gas heater. We really missed ice.

*******
things that are great during an outage:
- a way to make ice. This was our #1 problem - keeping things cold. Although, we would find a way to do without ice if the outage was going to be long-term (months/years). At the cabin, I have 24 solar panels ready to go - need to get batteries and a regulator and build a garage so I can mount them to the roof, but their main job will be to provide a little power to the house for emergencies - and especially the refrigerator.
- a source of water - probably two is better - like a well and a local stream, and a way to purify it (tablets / boiling / filters - and extra filters).
- a heat source and a way to cook over it/ on it (like a wood stove).
- guns. lots of them. and lots of ammo.
- a mean (to them) dog with lots of teeth. or multiple dogs.
- living in the country
- a neighborhood plan for security
- bicycles
- a way to board up your windows. Folks in Hurricane country know all about this. I had a neighbor who had 1" plywood sheets cut to shape for all the windows in his house. Won't protect you from bullets much, but will stop folks from throwing a molotov cocktail through your dining room window or smoke bombs or whatever, and also protect you from prying eyes at night if you have your own power.

******
things that will probably get you killed during an extended outage:
- a little gas generator running all night when no one else has one. You can hear them for miles during an outage when there are no other sounds. Like an invitation to criminals: "we have power! come kill us and take our stuff!" Remember: only 10% of those crimes got punished.
- getting in the middle of a crowd to protest......anything. avoid crowds. Goes for long gas lines, and anywhere else folks gather. avoid it.
- an anti-gun sign in your yard. what that sign really says is: "Easy pickings".
- an ongoing spat with neighbors. don't make people hate you before or especially during an outage. tensions are going to be really high.
- bragging about how much food you have stored and how prepared you are. Just shut up about how much better off you are. Listen a lot, don't say much when in unknown company.

Holy carp. Most wouldn't ever think something like that could go down here in 'Murica.

yup. and it's not some backwater town - we have 200k+ residents.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2011_Super_Outbreak

[Wolfwoman]

I haven't purchased this book yet, but it has some good info, from what I've heard.
https://www.amazon.com/First-72-Hours-C ... 141&sr=1-1

[Perched Eagle]

I still refer back to an old document called "Words from a Bosnian Survivalist" (you can search it out. I tried to attach a PDF but I guess it's too large). It's a man's experience of going through the Bosnian war with his family and it has a ton of interesting, real life examples of surviving through a hellish experience. He discusses is how lighters were one of the best bartering items, as everyone needed fire and they are small and easy to carry. He also talks about how sanitation and medical supplies were extremely valuable as well as skills like knowing how to suture cuts. There is a lot in it. Anyway, it's an interesting read...

many years ago, a guy was posting on a site I visited about his experiences in surviving the collapse of Argentina. I copied off alot of it. He later wrote a book on his experiences. His viewpoint is very practical and very much aimed on how things proceed from the moment that an economy begins to collapse and through the panic etc. I don't have his book, but I would guess it's much more detailed than his posts were.

The one tip that really struck me deeply was that he said "people migrate to water". If you take a moment and let that sink in, it could cause you to rethink the entire scenario. People won't stay in their homes if water is too far away. (no power means no water in about 95% of cities today) Backup generators don't last long if they can't get fuel. I live in a small rural area and when the power goes off, the water tanks for the area are drained in about 8 - 12 hrs. The wells stop pumping.

https://www.amazon.com/Modern-Survival- ... 9870563457

FalFilesForums? I liked stuff on that site.

[Fred]

If one is not ready already, you better get on it as time is running out. 72 hours is nothing. Get out of the city. You can buy an older camp trailer of large 5th wheel trailer for cheap. Self contained. Raw land is cheap. You won't want or need any government pipes or wires attached to it. The farther away you get, the safer you are. Put some chickens in a fenced area so predators don't get them. Bury an old non working refrigerator on it's back with door at ground level. You can store many things all year long. If the climate is extreme, you may have to put a few bales of straw on top of the door. Work every day to get what you will need. You can trade with locals for most anything.

[BigT]

The Bosnia guy: https://www.silverdoctors.com/gold/gold ... in-bosnia/

[mudflap]

If one is not ready already, you better get on it as time is running out. 72 hours is nothing. Get out of the city. You can buy an older camp trailer of large 5th wheel trailer for cheap. Self contained. Raw land is cheap. You won't want or need any government pipes or wires attached to it. The farther away you get, the safer you are. Put some chickens in a fenced area so predators don't get them. Bury an old non working refrigerator on it's back with door at ground level. You can store many things all year long. If the climate is extreme, you may have to put a few bales of straw on top of the door. Work every day to get what you will need. You can trade with locals for most anything.

Agreed, but I'm going to do a "yeah, but" here:

yeah, but I don't think you actually have time anymore. It's almost too late to get out of the city. I think it takes years to build up a good relationship with neighbors. Also, I don't know about y'all, but everyone I know is $500 from bankruptcy at this point. As it is, EVERYTHING is eating us up - gas, utilities, car repairs, food, insurance. I actually got a raise at work this year (better than last year), but then insurance went up $200/mo, and so I ended up with a PAY CUT. lol. That's what a "J.O.B." is, though, right? : "Just Over Broke". Yup. you never get rich working for someone else, but working for someone else is usually more stable than contracting - at least for the first 5 years of contracting.

But yeah, if it's only about selling your place, taking the money + a loan to buy another place = just another headache when you lose your job, but in a new location. "Get out of the city, and do it Debt free" should be the goal, IMO.

Anyway, I don't need the headache (right now) of wondering where my next job is coming from (because the job is providing the funds to finish the cabin) - all of the focus is on "getting the cabin finished so we can move in". Moving in will eliminate 300 miles a week of travel to work on it. It will cut our utilities in half (even though it's bigger sq ft). It will provide a space to grow our own. And then I can focus on the J.O.B. situation, if necessary. It's work from home now, so living in the country (with Internet) will be fine. But getting out of debt means I don't NEED a high paying city salary - the gas station or chopping firewood or fixing lawnmowers or any number of other "small town jobs" will make ends meet comfortably.

Eliminating the mortgage is most folks #1 problem right now - and that's not a problem you can solve overnight.

I do like the fridge idea. that would be temporary until I build the above ground cellar out of earthbags or something....

[Fred]

If one is not ready already, you better get on it as time is running out. 72 hours is nothing. Get out of the city. You can buy an older camp trailer of large 5th wheel trailer for cheap. Self contained. Raw land is cheap. You won't want or need any government pipes or wires attached to it. The farther away you get, the safer you are. Put some chickens in a fenced area so predators don't get them. Bury an old non working refrigerator on it's back with door at ground level. You can store many things all year long. If the climate is extreme, you may have to put a few bales of straw on top of the door. Work every day to get what you will need. You can trade with locals for most anything.

Agreed, but I'm going to do a "yeah, but" here:

yeah, but I don't think you actually have time anymore. It's almost too late to get out of the city. I think it takes years to build up a good relationship with neighbors. Also, I don't know about y'all, but everyone I know is $500 from bankruptcy at this point. As it is, EVERYTHING is eating us up - gas, utilities, car repairs, food, insurance. I actually got a raise at work this year (better than last year), but then insurance went up $200/mo, and so I ended up with a PAY CUT. lol. That's what a "J.O.B." is, though, right? : "Just Over Broke". Yup. you never get rich working for someone else, but working for someone else is usually more stable than contracting - at least for the first 5 years of contracting.

But yeah, if it's only about selling your place, taking the money + a loan to buy another place = just another headache when you lose your job, but in a new location. "Get out of the city, and do it Debt free" should be the goal, IMO.

Anyway, I don't need the headache (right now) of wondering where my next job is coming from (because the job is providing the funds to finish the cabin) - all of the focus is on "getting the cabin finished so we can move in". Moving in will eliminate 300 miles a week of travel to work on it. It will cut our utilities in half (even though it's bigger sq ft). It will provide a space to grow our own. And then I can focus on the J.O.B. situation, if necessary. It's work from home now, so living in the country (with Internet) will be fine. But getting out of debt means I don't NEED a high paying city salary - the gas station or chopping firewood or fixing lawnmowers or any number of other "small town jobs" will make ends meet comfortably.

Eliminating the mortgage is most folks #1 problem right now - and that's not a problem you can solve overnight.

I do like the fridge idea. that would be temporary until I build the above ground cellar out of earthbags or something....

You are right. It does take years to get to know which neighbors to trust. But living in the city is a loser. City dwellers are dependent for everything. Even if they are smart enough to have food storage, they can't defend it. Death is just around the corner.

When I first got my place, I lived in a tent. With a wife and kid. Then I got a camp trailer. Then I built a building. Then I put solar panels on the roof. Then I bought water tanks so I can store a couple thousand gallons above ground. It took time. It was 13 years ago. I'm still working on it.

There is no future in the city. People that are already relatively prepared need help. I have a neighbor that needs help with his greenhouses. They are large and he has several. He gives literally tons of food to the food bank. But he will feed those that help him when tshtf.

Houses in Salt Lake went up a hundred grand last year. Same with lots of places. Sell it and get away.

We have had a hundred years of warnings. One of these days, it will be too late for sure.

[JK4Woods]

I haven't purchased this book yet, but it has some good info, from what I've heard.
https://www.amazon.com/First-72-Hours-C ... 141&sr=1-1

The issue here is this presupposes other regions outside of the disaster area can send in relief crews/supplies/stuff to help stabilize and then repair the affected society.

In a grid down scenario, help is countries away.

IE. if you live in the inter mountain west, and there is a significant western grid down event. Help would have to come from Missouri at the closest not effected area.

If a bi-national grid down (US & Canada) some border help from Mexico may help, but knowing the Cartel control of the southern land border, it would be minimal.

That book is all about hurricane or tornado or earthquake events, where 300 miles away are unfazed and can start helping.