Drew | Being prepared today

October 18, 2023October 18, 2023

Dangers of power outages and how you can prepare

Numerous sources today predict rolling power outages and shortages of electricity worldwide not to mention disasters or other scenarios in the coming years. The extreme push towards clean renewable energy and away from fossil fuels will only put a strain on this situation. The threat of war and conflict puts strains on economies, so, thankfully there are many options and products to help you Be prepared for these events. Investing in a few things to defend your home and livelihood from power outages will pay off in the long run.

Training your brain to think in terms of preparedness is no easy thing. Try to think about all the situations that could happen and ways to mitigate, then gather supplies and practice putting skills and interests into use. Changing your lifestyle can either be a chore or a growing experience. I personally choose the latter.

Why would power outages happen

Its important to pay attention to what’s going in our societies and culture and as much as some people hate it, like politics, government and local conflicts even. There is a saying: You may not take interest into politics but politics will always take an interest into you. Meaning you need to participate in voicing your opinion and let your representatives know how you feel because if you don’t, others opinions will be the policy makers and become law whether you like it or not.

Tensions are escalating between countries and world superpowers. Everyone’s picking and supporting/supplying sides and issuing warnings to each other. As a result, the reality of an EMP or other devastating attack is becoming more and more likely.

The constant showcasing of bickering and conflict between the two so called political powers in America, the Democrats and Republicans and the crappy policies they propose and pass are destabilizing the economy of today. To top it off, our government seems to want to force us into clean renewable energy without having proper technology in place.

Wind, solar and hydroelectric alone without fossil fuels as a backup, are just flat out unsustainable at this point in time. Technology has not gotten that far. They are mostly unreliable.

With more children being born and people immigrating to the land of the free, the population is increasing and so is the need for housing, electricity and energy.

Dangers from power outages

Lack of electricity or energy has the potential to be devastating to life. Not only in the sense that our advanced medical and research technology would come to a screeching halt but also that exploration technology would cease as well. The systems that control and safeguard Nuclear power plants from failure would go down and all communications too. Water treatment plants would no longer function and provide clean water. But, I digress into worst case scenarios……I think you get the point of this one.

We’ve all seen or had that relative or friends relative that is bed ridden or on life support at home or in the hospital. If that equipment fails from a power outage, even for a few seconds in some cases, it could be devastating. Gas pumps do not work without electricity and neither do ATMs. Damage could occur to some appliances from flickering power and computers are the most susceptible to damage from power outages, surges or flickering energy.

A freezer full of meat or other goods needs to be kept frozen right? Also the central heating and air conditioning in your home would not work. To say the least even creature comforts would be inconvenient. These are just some of the more obvious examples of things that could happen.

Ways to prepare

Thankfully we have not given ourselves over to complete dependence of electricity, so things like candles do still exist! Have a few flashlights stored away too, even cheapies will work in an emergency. Batteries, I think, are an obvious. Gas and/or battery lamps come in handy as well.

Knowing how to can or jar foods for storage and having a sufficient food storage will be invaluable in an extended power outage.

candles/lighting/ batteries for light or radios
have a backup or a way to run your fridge or freezer to keep food for about 48 hrs
alternate power or connection for your furnace/ AC dependent upon season
charging capabilities for phones or computer

There is a pretty handy little trick that I learned of a few months ago. A clay flower pot of decent size flipped open side down and supported over a lit candle can supply a meager amount of heat for a bedroom sized area. There are dangers with this though as you don’t want to use too many candles and get it too hot. You will inadvertantly start a fire.

Some prepared minded people will have their AC and furnaces installed with an option to be able to plug it into a generator. Ya know, just in case. A 2000 watt generator with 2 plug in points is recommended as a minimum size. This will possibly provide enough power to run both your furnace and refrigerator, depending on the size of each.

Sufficient power generation

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Conclusion

Whatever your reason for being prepared, it is a good idea. There are so many skills, techniques and processes that have been lost to history because of technology. Lifestyles and ways of doing things that worked so well for its time. We should not let ourselves become too dependent on electricity and other energies because of complacency. Even the current system can be unreliable at times and if even that is taken from us…..It will be hard times for us indeed.

Thank you for reading. I hope this article was helpful or informative.

If you have any comments, questions or input please do so in the comments.

May 16, 2023May 16, 2023

financial self-sufficiency: how self-sufficiency effects personal finances

Many times people find themselves unprepared for an event that puts a strain on their bank account or ability scrounge up funds to pay for even some basic things. At times like this we think to ourselves “I wish I could do something differently so that I could save some money on this or that”. Learning financial self-sufficiency requires changing one’s thinking and maybe even living habits or daily rituals so that money can be saved, obligations or emergencies covered, stress can be relieved and life lived.

My aim in this article is to help with advice and direction in others’ journey to this destination of financial self-sufficiency through planning, budget, self-control, action, being proactive and thinking ahead.

Defining financial self-sufficiency

Let’s define practical thinking: It is defined as; ways to adapt to your environment or changing your environment to fit you, so that you are able to pursue a goal.

There are a few different ways to define financial self-sufficiency. One way I would define it is changing your financial environment to fit to you and your financial needs, such as not needing a lot of money to have the necessities of life and be happy. Living frugally, keeping your own personal cost of living down and providing as much as you can for yourself such as I have touched on some of these topics in other articles here on Being Prepared Today.

An Entrepreneur is one example of financial self-sufficiency. Finding new ways to actively generate or make money work for them creates Financial self-sufficiency. By doing so, they do not depend on a company, corporation or the government for their well-being or social survival. They are supporting themselves.

Educate yourself on various topics so you have the know-what and know-how to get things done. I have linked here in the picture, a book called The Ultimate Self-Sufficiency Handbook. It will be of immense help in any goal to be educated in certain areas of getting things done for yourself, your family and your self-sufficiency.

Frugal living and penny-pinching can help financial self-sufficiency

Cutting unnecessary spending, eating only home-cooked meals and leftovers as much as possible as well as saving any extra money as often as you can will lead you to this frugal lifestyle that is a staple of financial self-sufficiency and independence.

Growing a garden every year and learning how to store, can and jar foods will save you some money in the long run.

Buy certain non-perishable foods when they’re on sale and have a rotating food or cold storage.

That doesn’t mean to live like you’re broke by any means. It means to live smart, not beyond your means and build a lifestyle that suits you while at the same time having everything you need.

Be debt free – save first spend after. Even if you need to take out a loan or borrow money, pay it off as fast as possible. You will save money on interest by shortening the length of your loan payments.

Set goals or objectives. Take action so that your actions become habits. This is by far one of the most effective moves you can make towards being effectively financially self- sufficient.

Living off the land

This is one that a lot of people think of when the term ‘self-sufficiency’ is spoken. It is also another very effective way towards that goal of independence.

Growing your own food is effective because you not only save money on food from the grocery stores, you know where that food came from and how it was treated. Or rather, not treated with harsh chemicals and poisons. It can be a clean source of wholesome foods for you and your family.

Hunting game and raising animals such as chickens, cattle or pigs provides meat and eggs and usually doesn’t cost outrageously to keep them fed. Nor do you need tons of land to do it. So many people choose to raise Hens in their backyard because of the price of food and eggs inflating to ridiculous heights. Check your local laws concerning this however!

A lot of people here in America are still living off the land as much as possible and an increasing number of people are learning to grow food for themselves. There is a movement happening now, as folks want to be food secure.

Farmers and homesteaders

Homesteaders are ultra efficient in their methods because most have had the traditions passed down in their family for generations. Don’t let that discourage you as you can always learn for yourself and from others!

Food prep for winter is a skill that you can definitely start practicing. Plenty of people still jar and can their own foods from their gardens for winter and even all year ’round use. Pickling and preserves/jams are the most common but you can also do salsa, tomatoes, fruit and pie fillings too. Smoking and curing meats is a skill that some have perfected into an art form. Myself, I love smoking meats and making jerky on my smoker.

There are markets called farmers markets or town markets. Some participate in markets to bring in cash to support the rest of the farm/homestead as outlined below. They produce or craft wares that will be sold at these local farmers market

Small business and entrepreneur

Small businesses support can their lifestyle by selling or bartering surplus of goods, whether grown or handcrafted. Doing the small business thing if you have surplus of items, you will even bring in a bit of extra cash if there is a decent demand for what you are creating.

There are plenty of ways to bring in a supplemental income online as well by e-commerce, drop shipping and even affiliate marketing. This requires some measure of creativity and ambition so check it out and see if you have what it takes! you could open the door to so many possibilities.

financial self-sufficiency — Farmers Market

Families or homesteads will participate in farmers markets, own nurseries for trees and plants as well as buy and sell livestock and animals. They are the backbone of communities and can be the ultimate example of independence and self-sufficiency. A lot of times you will buy products that you never knew were produced by families or small businesses like these.

My Conclusions

This shouldn’t intimidate or overwhelm you or make you think ‘Hillbillie’ or anything like it. If anything you gain an appreciation for the natural cycle of the world and of life in general. You will learn quite a few cool things about self-sufficiency along the way and be knowledgeable in these areas.

There are plenty of other ways to save money and cut back on costs of various things such as biking or walking whenever you can, saving and recycling aluminum and other metals as well as line drying clothes and composting. All these things if done right, will save money and help you provide for yourself and your family. Whatever choices you make, with commitment, a little hard work and forward thinking your path will lead you to the independence you seek.

I hope you have found this article to helpful and informative. If you have any comments, questions or input please do so in the box below.

Thanks.

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December 21, 2022December 21, 2022

What is the purpose of expiration dates?

Understandably, a fair amount of people will cross examine food that is past the expiration dates by several times even. And even when it still seems good, you question it again. The reality is that most foods will be good still, long after the expiry date stamped on the side of the product. It is really unknown how much perfectly good food is thrown away on an annual basis because of expiration dates.

Be aware, however, food is not the only things that expiration dates are applied to. Things like infant car seats and construction hard hats have expiration dates as well where the age of the product will impact the safety or usablilty of that item.

Arbitrary expiration dates are also applied to product coupons, credit cards and promotional offers. In these instances the date is chosen for security reasons or, most often the case, business reasons rather than any food safety concern. I have decided to present here the history, purpose and reality of expiration dates.

History of the expiration dates

Al Capone, an American gangster and businessman, fought to have an expiration date of some sort, or sell-by dates put on milk bottles. Supposedly he was moved by a relative becoming sick after drinking milk that had expired.

Expiration dates first started to appear in 1950 at a store called Marks and Spencers. However it wasn’t until 1970 that ‘sell-by’ and ‘best-by’ tags were added to most supermarkets. In the 1970’s grocery shoppers made quite a stir asking for more information about the quality of food on supermarket shelves. Under pressure from activists, including the distribution of pamphlets deciphering sell-by codes, food makers began to put dates on their labels.

In February of 1973, the New York Times ran an article stating that – Food dating is found to please customers and reduce losses. The piece pointed to a study conducted by the USDA and the Consumer Research Institute, a group backed by food manufacturers, which concluded that open dating had slashed the number of complaints by consumers buying stale food or spoiled milk, in half.

To this day, Expiration dates are not required on food items with the exception of infant formula which is required to have a ‘use-by’ date. It seems it is purely by consumer request and manufacturer concession.

Purpose and reason for expiration dates

There are two terms used by different countries and companies for and by operation of law and liability reasons. The legal definition and usage will vary between countries and products categories. Different terms may be used for products that tend to spoil like milk and those that are shelf stable like dried foods.

The term use by is often applied to things such as milk or even meat that are very likely to spoil and become dangerous or deadly to those eating them very shortly after that date. Products labeled as such should NOT be consumed past the date shown.

The term best before is applied to things that may deteriorate slightly in quality but are highly unlikely to become dangerous on or shortly after the date. Things like dried bulk foods, boxed foods and spices etc… These products can be eaten on or after their best before date at the discretion of the consumer. Storage and handling will affect whether and when an item will go bad or spoil, so there is inherent variability in expiry dating.

Open dating is the use of a date stamped on the package of a food product to help determine how long to display the product for sale. This benefits the

consumer by ensuring that the product is of best quality when sold. An open date does not supersede a use-by date, if shown, which should still be followed.

The ultimate purpose of the expiration date system is dual in nature. To protect the consumer as well as the product manufacturer. Most U.S. expiration dates are used as guidelines based on normal and expected handling and exposure to temperature. The USDA has a webpage about food product dating as well.

The reality and my experiences

In all frankness and reality, I have personally eaten canned foods that are years past the ‘best-by’ date. I believe, in these instances, it is all a choice of the individual, based on smell and observation of the food when opened as well as the type of food itself. I believe also that an individuals health will be a major factor in deciding if something is dangerous to eat. For instance, certain stomach ailments or diseases which wont allow proper digestion and also immuno deficiencies.

The smell test tells a lot. If it reeks or makes your nose curl its obviously bad. If it gives you pause, I still wouldn’t trust it. There will be some weird smells that are deceiving but the food may still be good. Experience will tell you what to look and sniff for.

Canned foods and dehydrated foods will last quite a long time and dry bulk foods like beans, rice, oats, flour, sugar and pastas could possibly last up to 25 years when stored properly. Even meat that is jerked and stored properly will keep for quite a while, however the sniff test is guaranteed to keep you safe on that one.

Plastics like hard hats and child car seats are probably good for a very long time. Much longer than the expiration date that is on the product will lead you to believe.

At your discretion

While here I am not telling you that it is ok to eat a can of food that is 20 years old, I am trying to keep you informed on the reasons, causes, uses and history of the expiration date system that has been developed. For the most part the ‘use-by’ dates are the red flags that should trigger caution and a further look into the quality of the food your looking to consume.

The ‘best-by’ dates are dates that are telling the tale of freshness that may be bygone times after that date but will most likely still be good.

All-in-all it is at the discretion of the consumer to determine whether or not they want to take that chance. I WILL say that if a can has swollen up it is bad!

I hope the information and opinions in this article was helpful and informative. If you have any comments, questions or input please feel free to do so in the box below.

Thanks

Author: Drew