http://ferfal.blogspot.com/2008/10/thoughts-on-urban-survival-2005.html
Worth a relink. Some fantastic information on the Argentina situation. Especially, considering recent events such as the bank bailout and the state of the US economy since the post was originally written in 2005.
Surviving in Argentina: Mistakes survivalists make
Make the most of the resources you have, don’t go hide in the middle of nowhere and GET OUT OF DEBT!
Organic farming ‘could feed Africa’ - Africa, World - The Independent.
Found the link at TheOilDrum.
George Ure over at UrbanSurvival.com posted this link on his site, today.
http://www.abysmal.com/LDS/Preparedness/Preparedness.pdf
A quick scan revealed some nice lists and articles for food storage and other areas of preparedness. And the price is right.
Surviving in Argentina: Small producers and their situation after the crisis.
These folks worked all day just to barely feed themselves and buy the basics any person need to live (one of the guys mentioned clothes, shoes, maybe a toy for the kids once in a while).
The Oil Drum: Australia/New Zealand | Terra Preta: Biochar And The MEGO Effect.
Good article at TheOilDrum on using charcoal for soilrestoration. The bits about discoveries of ancient beds of this stuff in the Amazon are fascinating.
The post title says it all. I just happened to stumble upon this gem of a post:
Low-cost Wood-gas (Gasifier) stove - BEST STOVE
Potters in India are making non-electric wood-gas stoves out of clay! The wood-gas camping stove I have is very cool, err hot. And I love using it. But for sustainability how can you bit clay and sticks? No need for batteries, etc…
Now this is exciting technology!
Edit: A friend pointed out that it wasn’t a true wood gas stove. Oh well. It is an interesting design for increasing efficiency. Tough to get away from the tall chimney without an electric fan.
David Blume at www.permaculture.com reported achieving yields of “8 times what the USDA claims are possible per square foot” in this response to a writer questioning the ability of permaculture to replace industrial ag.
Wondering if you’ve got enough land to feed your family?
On the subsistence agriculture level, we permies regularly have designed productions systems around the world, which feed everyone living in a given house within a 50-foot radius of the house. This rule of thumb holds pretty well because the more folks who live there, the bigger the house, the larger the surface area, so no more than 50 feet is really necessary.
In North America, most people I observe live by a very dangerous assumption. It’s not surprising since the generation that we call the Baby Boomers are currently our private and public leaders. And I doubt any other generation in the history of humanity has ever had the luxury of this assumption.
By the title of this post you’ve probably guessed the assumption I’m talking about is continual access to abundant food supplies. Imagine how many generations of our ancestors understood that they couldn’t take food for granted. We live as if it’s a normal state of affairs. What a unique period of human history we inhabit! And the reason we have this luxury is due to our exploitation of oil.
Try this little exercise. I did it with a friend, recently. Get a map of your bioregion. Trace the flow of food produced within a few hundred miles of where you live. From field to table. Now imagine what would happen if diesel was so expensive that truckers quit driving. (Remember, it’s happening right now in other parts of the world.)
Kind of scary? Even if the truckers keep driving, food is guaranteed to be more expensive to cover their costs. Way more expensive. If it gets to your local grocery store at all.
The next step was to look for the least energy intensive routes for food delivery. Trains and waterways, primarily around here. Tracing along those paths I found an interesting opportunity. There were cities perfectly positioned to be first in line for the food after it left the farmer’s fields.
And that, my friend, is a starting point for food security and opportunity in a fast approaching new world. For both you and your grandchildren.
Later, I’ll review some books I’m reading about edible forest gardening. A form of permaculture with amazing productions yields on small acreages. Just the thing for generating surplus food to trade in the gateway cities of the future.
Sure has been a while since this blog has even been available hasn’t it? Sorry for the interruption. Events both near and far required a dramatic shift in my life.
Where are we at now? Well it’s gotten really interesting hasn’t it? I’m not at all optimistic about continuing Business As Usual for the next 20 years. Energy in the form of cheap liquid fuel for transportation is such a foundational requirement for the functioning of our society. And that’s just going to get more and more expensive and hard to find. Add climate change to the mix, and, well….
What I am optimistic about is the ability to make the most out of the changes that are on the way. And that is what I would like the main focus of Self Sufficient Family to be from now on.
Critical areas to focus on at this blog:
Mindset - Getting yourself as much clarity regarding reality as possible. And, no, reality is not different from person to person. The perception of reality is what differs.
Energy - Using less and finding alternatives to oil. Which means alternatives to the automobile. Housing is part of this, too.
Food - Without food everything else is meaningless. A worry most in North America have not had to concern themselves with in decades. That’s about to change.
Business and Finance - Trade is a part of human interaction. Always has been, always will be. If you ever see a point where people have stopped engaging in trade that’s the sign that humanity has gone feral. Complete social and cultural breakdown. Bloody, violent mess.
I advocate learning to spot opportunities to take part in the economy without a job. Small part time business at the very least. It’s a vital part of surviving the multiple messes we are beginning to find ourselves mired in.
And with whatever is coming, opportunities for trade and business will definitely be part of the future.
I’m looking forward to introducing you to the products, services, courses and books I’ve been gathering. You’ll find something, I’m sure, that will help you provide for the one’s you love regardless of what comes down the road.
Let’s see. We narrowly avoided wiping out every plant in North America. Anyone concerned, yet? Didn’t think so.
This deserves a new Category. Corporate Insanity.
A Biological Apocalypse Averted
Insane. Kelp anyone?
Research Credit: A Biological Apocalypse Averted (For Now)
Looks like BYU found some foods are lasting longer in storage:
http://www.providentliving.org/content/display/0,11666,7797-1-4222-1,00.html
“Doomsday Seed Vault” in the Arctic
Ughh. Read the story at the link to see why the “Ughh.”
First control the government by controlling the creation of the money. Next, control the people by controlling the food supply. Only took ‘em a century to achieve total global domination. Not bad.
Wonder if anyone cares?
The key to getting around this one? Learn to eat what other people don’t consider food. Start with “weeds” and bugs. Go from there.
Feed your mind so you can feed your body.
Your mind. That’s step 1. And I figured out how to take step 1 a couple of days ago. (Granted I’ve taken steps 2-5 already. But if I had to do it over again ….)
Clear out junk and clean up the clutter. I’ve got 5 bags of various bit of paperwork headed for the recycling bin.
Organized my books Put everything in it’s place. At least the area by the nightstand and half the office. Now, I feel like I can get started on this month’s assignment from Jay Abraham. Yeaup. I signed up with the Master to be part of a 1 year group coaching program.
What’s that got to do with self sufficiency?
Linking supply and demand. Being creative and finding opportunities to create win/win deals.
I doubt, you’re not going to be holed up in the cabin forever, if ever. People are designed to work in groups. And groups have historically traded with each other.
Learning how to create mutually beneficial deals, including some masterful barter tips, is becoming part of my tool kit. Works today and should work in the future. It’s certainly not inexpensive. But quality usually isn’t.
Feeding your mind, now, is an important part of being ready to solve some tough problems. So clear out some clutter and make some space for the future.
Next, the file cabinet (yeah all that paperwork headed for recycling was just the start) and the old electronics.
“They” are saying 2008 will make 2007 look like the good ol’ days when it comes to foreclosures. Of course, now we hear about some kind of deal to freeze mortgage rates. Meaning, I’m sure, that the banks will be able to put off the day day of reckoning in a way that will maximize their profits. (See How banks make more money on foreclosures than on good borrowers.)
So, really, we can expect the pain to just keep going. And I just love how people worship the free market. Yet, most don’t realize we don’t have a free market. If we did the banks would be allowed to suffer for their bad decisions. Instead we get a bankruptcy law to protect them from having such lenient practices dogs and two year olds can qualify. And we get the sub-prime bailout.
This whole thing wouldn’t be such a thorn to me we were honest about all this. We are a socialist country if you’re a large corporation. Bailouts, lenient laws of all kinds, etc … Small business owners understand that risk is called risk for a reason. If things don’t work out you lose, sometimes big time.
All right. I’m done. Time to move one.
With people having to downsize there will be lots of opportunity in your own town (affiliate link.) Where in the world will they put all that stuff they’ve been buying and storing in their basements? Moving from a McMansion to a 1 bedroom apartment is going to create some serious cramping of space.
Come moving day they are going to discover they need to unload a whole bunch of “junk.” Here’s the opportunity. They have a problem they need solved NOW. They aren’t going to wait to run a garage sale. You can be ready to help them (affiliate link.)
Personally, I believe the keys to economic prosperity in the years to come are going to be radically different from today’s thinking. As insecure as jobs are now, we haven’t seen anything, yet. Can you see value in someone else’s “junk”? If you can you could build up an impressive inventory for bartering with down the road.
Learning to see value and link supply and demand is going to be crucial. Offer value. The economy will grow more regional as energy prices continue their relentless climb. Can you bridge supply and demand with neighboring regions? Or even between neighborhoods in your own town?
This report (affiliate link) has a great method for turning “junk” into cash. I mean for 10 bucks what more do you want? Of course, you actually have to DO the work. And it is work. But it is doable.
And that is what a free market is really all about.
From A DIARY OF THE ONSET OF THE GREATER DEPRESSION, By Carolyn Baker
Some sleight of hand the ruling elite have accomplished since 9/11, namely, that while Americans were pondering the color of the government’s daily terrorist threat assessments, that government and its corporate cronies was taking them to the cleaners, picking their pockets, swindling, cheating, extorting, defrauding, hustling, ripping-off, double-dealing, conning, hornswoggling, hoodwinking, fudging, gouging, bamboozling, scamming, screwing, shafting, and let’s not forget bilking the American middle and working classes. Hey, look over there-see the Italian spider climbing up the wall-or Osama hiding under your bed? And while you look, we’ll steal you deaf, dumb, and blind!
Some of these timeless skills (affiliate link) will come in real handy. Learn to be an ethical opportunist. Learning to pick over the carcass and sell what you find may keep your kids from starving. Maybe pay for your homestead? Might even make you very wealthy in a collapsed economy. It’s up to you. It’s one of my core references.
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