SHTF Food Blog

Survival Dollssurvival doll

One of the more interesting things I've found on the net are 'survival dolls'. Rag dolls that have empty heads and bodies, sometimes arms and legs that can be filled with survival supplies. I decided to make my own and it was a lot of fun. Arms and legs were filled with beans, dried peas, or rice, while the clothing can have a dual purpose as a pillow, water filter, sun bonnet. Safely tucked inside the head are items like fire starters (matches, flint), a folding knife, medical supplies, water purification pills, and more. The dolls hair is made of paracord. In a SHTF situation maurauders may steal your backpack but will they take your chld's home made rag doll? On top of this it can be a comfort for your child to have a toy in stressful circumstances.

Waders

If you're going to be doing much hiking - either to get to your bugout location, to catch food, or scouting the property one item you'll find invaluable is a pair of waders. They'll keep you dry even if you have to ford a river or ditch on the way to your location - and dry means you can avoid hypothermia. A good pair of waders can double as pants or go higher....so it's something you really shouldn't be without. Even in an emergency flood situation they will be invaluable as you wouldn't want to wade through deep water unprotected. The new neoprene ones also have some insulating value and will float in deep water (should you fall out of a boat).



Pillow Prepping

One of the ways preppers are prepping is to hide food and supplies in unanticipated ways. Pillow prepping is a great way to prep and store rice, beans, or other dried goods along with cloth supplies. I suppose you could take this to even bigger levels and do a futon mattress or otoman! This person has taken it to a new art form! Stuff your preps in pillows and hide them in plain sight!

The 7 Comfort Foods of Food Storage

When you store foods, you really want to have a variety of things your family will eat in a stressful situation. Comfort foods fit the bill. Comfort foods are those foods YOUR FAMILY loves the most, not what is packaged in those 85 meals in a box kits. Often it will be the things you remember from childhood lunches or special occasions. Comfort foods are foods that evoke good memories. Here are my choices:

1. Coffee - unless you aren't a coffee drinker - then choose hot chocolate. Both evoke warm feelings, and force you to slow your mind down and relax. A good thing in a stressful SHTF situation.

2. Chocolate - not just candy, but brownies, cake mix, cocoa. You might want to add other flavors your family likes as well - almond and other nuts. Foods that qualify as "munchies" are also in this category.

3. Ice Cream - of course you can't store it long term, but with an ice cream maker you'll be the most popular person on the block. The ultimate comfort food for kids. Some powdered mixes and canned milks and you are in business.

4. Soups - again, warm and slow to eat so they are filling. A full stomach is a happy stomach.

5. Spices and condiments - for your favorite recipes. Depending on your heritage that can be spicey or just salt and pepper. But get SOMETHING...beans and rice get pretty boring without it.

6. Family favorites - in our house it's Mac & Cheese or Spagettos. You need kid-friendly foods that they will eat - now is not the time to introduce them to Ramen Noodles and MREs. I guarantee you, get a lot of this stuff as it will be what they'll want the most.

7. Koolaid or other water enhancers - you'll get pretty sick of plain water after awhile and will like trying other "flavors". Well water can have a 'funny' taste to city folk too. Get a variety - these are lightweight and compact. Store a few of the flavors you aren't big on right now anyway. If you've been drinking cherry koolaid for months lime is going to sound like a welcome break.

Freeze Dried VS. Home Stored

It's always the first question I'm asked...do you go with the pre-prepared freeze dried foods or do you just store regular groceries because that's what you eat. My response is ... depends... If you have young children, it's best to try out the freeze dried foods before storing too much. A lot of them are quite tasty, but little kids are known to be quite picky when it comes to freeze-dried gourmet! Most would rather eat mac and cheese. Your money may be better spent buying some cheese powder and stockpiling macaroni.

Some families have a food storage day where they test out and taste new freeze dried meals to see if they would fit into their SHTF food storage plan. After all, why buy it if no one likes it? Yeah, if you're starving you'll eat anything - but in a SHTF situation morale is a big factor in surviving so you'll want foods your family is familiar with and will EAT. Some of the best military food is served in the worst situations (submarines, ships, come to mind) because morale is important and food is a big factor in morale. While adults can adapt to most anything, little kids aren't quite as accomodating or as easy to reason with. It pays to buy the better freeze-dried meals from companies such as Mountain House because they have been tested on countless wilderness campers so you know they're good. My suggestion is have a bit of both...a nice canned good collection, a full freezer and also some freeze dried meals which can be stored almost indefinitely just in case.

During a long term SHTF survival situation, food will be a premium and a luxury. One problem is how our society looks at food. We go to a buffet bar, load our plates with what looks good, eat half and and throw the other half away. Most people raised in a modern culture probably do not give throwing food away a second thought. After a disaster, parents will need to pay close attention to how much, and how often their children eat and come up with creative ways to use leftover food.

If you didn't think it was bad enough to prep...here are a few good reasons...

  • Today, more than 40% of all jobs in the United States are low income jobs.
  • A staggering 48 percent of all Americans are either considered to be "low income" or are living in poverty.
  • One recent survey found that 77 percent of all U.S. small businesses do not plan to hire any more workers.
  • According to the U.S. Census Bureau, 18 percent of all homes in the state of Florida are sitting vacant
  • 19 percent of all American men between the ages of 25 and 34 are now living with their parents.
  • One study found that approximately 41 percent of all working age Americans either have medical bill problems or are currently paying off medical debt.
  • If you can believe it, one out of every seven Americans has at least 10 credit cards.
  • The United States spends about 4 dollars on goods and services from China for every one dollar that China spends on goods and services from the United States.
  • The retirement crisis in the United States just continues to get worse. According to the Employee Benefit Research Institute, 46 percent of all American workers have less than $10,000 saved for retirement, and 29 percent of all American workers have less than $1,000 saved for retirement.
  • According to a study that was just released, CEO pay at America's biggest companies rose by 36.5% in just one recent 12 month period.
  • 37 percent of all U.S. households that are led by someone under the age of 35 have a net worth of zero or less than zero.
  • Child homelessness in the United States is now 33 percent higher than it was back in 2007.
  • Today, one out of every seven Americans is on food stamps and one out of every four American children is on food stamps.
  • A staggering 48.5% of all Americans live in a household that receives some form of government benefits.
  • If Bill Gates gave every single penny of his fortune to the U.S. government, it would only cover the U.S. budget deficit for about 15 days.
  • The U.S. government has now accumulated a total debt of 15 trillion dollars. When Barrack Obama first took office the national debt was just 10.6 trillion dollars.
  • The six heirs of Wal-Mart founder Sam Walton have a net worth that is roughly equal to the bottom 30 percent of all Americans combined.

If you think people will continue indefinitely like this, think again. When the system crashes we are only 4 days away from no food in the stores. Time to prep is now.

Those odd little things you didn't think you'd need...

When SHTF you never know just what you'll need because mainly, you never know what kind of emergency could cause a SHTF situation. So in my opinion, you need to be prepared for almost anything - natural or manmade. I've made a list of some of the more unusual items you might want to stockpile in your bug-out shelter. These items can be used for barter, repairing things that break, and will just make life easier when you are slammed into the 1800's again. Never underestimate the power of books - the Internet may not work and having a way to find out "how to do stuff" is invaluable. As we get more dependent on the Internet, even our books are being downloaded on Kindle, so what if the Internet goes down (or is pulled down?). You'll need books that tell you how to grow, fix and build many of the items you'll need for every day sustenance.

When the SHTF you won't have a local hardware store to run to when you need to do a quick fix so items like wire, crazy glue, and duct tape might be handy. Household items also may become hard to find and you'll be glad to have a darning egg to mend socks or a kelly kettle to heat food and water using less energy.  Stock up on motor belts and hoses for your vehicles and any appliances you can't live without.