Practical Prepping Protocol even if Poor

How did you minimize the shock of cold water bathing? Asking for a friend.:)

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I "localized" the shock.

I sat on the edge of the tub and used a bbucket, washcloth and soap to wash one leg foot to knee...then filled a pitcher of cold water to rinse it.

Well, the cold shock on a small part of you ain't that bad.

Then the other foot to knee...then one thigh at a time.

The last thing I did was shampoo my hair...then I would actually get in & turn on the shower to rinse my hair out.

By that point, the rest of my body was used to the cold...so it really wasn't much of a shock.

Funny thing was how clean I got!

You just don't wash that thoroughly in a normal shower.

I didn't heat up water on the stove and add it to the bath...but if it had gone on longer I probably would have tried that.

I just hate baths.

I'm a big dude...so only half of me fits in the tub.

I can have my lower half in the water...or upper half...but not both :)

And when I get my upper half in the water...my legs are going straight up the shower wall.

So it ain't too often I bother with a bath.

However, nothing you could carry in a BoB is going to last very long so you have to plan on another way to get food very soon, whether fishing, hunting, foraging.

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I do keep fishing line & hooks in my BOB...as well as some snare wire for small game (squirrels/rabbits).

But look at the fires they had in california...they had to bug out & the most important things they could have taken was their ID and check book/credit cards.

Always pay close attention to the circumstances of the moment...they will always be different.

Another thing I threw into my BOB was a broken VCR tape.

Miles of strong cordage to build a shelter, very light weight and compact in the bag!

I'm not a big lady, neither tall nor wide, but I had exactly the same problem with a galvanized feed-store washtub. It took me some months to get the hang of it. Sure, I could have got a bigger one but that's a lot of water to have to haul back out the door, and water the garden with. I had to watch having to suddenly put my foot on the cold floor for balance. Mostly I stood, scrubbed and had some warm water ready for bending back down to rinse off - if you continue standing up to rinse, water's going to go all over the floor.

And sometimes, unbidden, in the midst of my struggles, some ridiculous song from childhood would pop into my head - you know that 'watching' part of your mind with a nasty sense of humor - like this one from Galway Bay:
See her drinking sixteen pints at Pat Joe Murphy's
The barman says, "I think it's time to go."
Well, she doesn't try to answer him in Gaelic
But in a language that the clergy do not know.
On her back she has tattooed a map of Ireland
And when she takes her bath on Saturday,
She rubs the Sunlight Soap around by Claddagh
Just to watch the suds go down by Galway Bay.

And sometimes, unbidden, in the midst of my struggles, some ridiculous song from childhood would pop into my head

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Rubber ducky you're the one...you make bath time lots of fun :D

Now you put me in the mood to go hear that again

But we have to have some bizarre too, so here's a short Ducky creepypasta, narrated by Nordic Vampire, lol

[link to www.news.com.au (secure)]

This is bad news and likely preparation for war.
Thread: Putin Orders Internet Shut Off

I'm not sure what to think after reading that. Have you heard about this from anywhere else yet? I don't have TV - it's not on there yet, is it? sigh...nobody at all has called me today: our signals are too sucky in the high winds. You're quite right in that we should take more than a 'wait and see' approach, just in case, for there's one thing we can be sure of: our own government isn't going to tell us shit.

They're mentioning in the article what China did too, with its own internet-iron-curtain but Russians are not Chinese and don't do the same things for the same reasons - Putin sure wouldn't. It's why the EU poofters hate him; he thinks for himself. I wonder if he's having trouble with China and it has nothing to do with us, and if he is, maybe we have trouble with China too. Not a pleasant speculation.

It could be dire warning and it could just be Russia wanting to keep their own national lines open for in-country communications in case some hostile persons or nations try to mess with them from outside. They have to create and test new in-country lines so they won't be cut off from each other if an attack happens. Yes, maybe they have something to hide too, but if a nation doesn't have anything to hide, it's probably because they don't have anything worth protecting either.

With so much globalism, trade agreements with foreign powers and shared digital territory, we in the USA could afford to be as paranoid as the Russians are now. Why should somebody in another country be able to sabotage say, my ability to communicate to websites or persons here in the USA, or eavesdrop on my communications either? And I'm perfectly sure that happens a lot already! Maybe it happened to Wells Fargo too? The timing of this is interesting.

Looks like putin wants to unplug from the internet to test their cyber-defenses...hopefully.

Still...it's a bit disconcerting.

Most businesses today (even in russia) depend on the internet. Those businesses stop functioning without it.

Good catch Pooka!

Last Edited by Mental Case on 02/11/2019 10:57 PM

Russia has threatened to cut the undersea fiber optics to stop communications in a huge way.

China and Russia have become great buddies when it comes to America, unfortunately. Of course they will each do what seems most advantageous to the individual country, but at this time they are in agreement against us in Venezuela, a country hot in more than climate currently.

At this time, I trust no-one but God, and certainly never, ever a politician. I am simply watching events, one day at a time, and feeling quite uncomfortable about all.

Last Edited by Pooka on 02/11/2019 11:36 PM

They will maintain communications within their country, but prevent any other country from reaching in. That's why it sounds like war preparations to me - and to isolate themselves from the rest of the world in that manner seems a very strange thing to do without compelling reason, reason that reaches the magnitude of war plans and war. They will lose trade with other countries entirely, unless coming directly from Putin's office. That is not a step taken lightly and will make life much harder for the people, unable to access items normally imported and in the stores.

Just seems like a very strong action to take, and one we need to carefully watch over the next little bit.

Russia has threatened to cut the undersea fiber optics to stop communications in a huge way.

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That would be an act of war and I have no doubt we would respond in a harsh way...which would get russia to respond in a harsh way.

But man...every business uses the internet in one way or another.

Grocery stores order inventory over the net...banks check if you have money in your account over the net, credit cards are verified in real time over the net...bank to bank transfers, alot of phone calls are now VOIP, hospitals and pharmacies...the list goes on & on.

If under sea cables were cut...that could be a really big deal!!!

^^^^

all of that another great reason to have cash at hand in your house. Lots of small bills!

I remember ..not good at years, but over a decade ago, we had a black out in new york for a few days. No electricity. We had no cash. We had no food in the house. Without being friends with someone who owned a store, we'd have been fasting.

If the cables are cut, things could be a little messed up for some time.

Adding to the distress of the Russia communication news, here is more.

[link to www.youtube.com (secure)]

It's time to be watching behind ourselves, as well as in front and to the sides. None of this is good, and this video puts the poop frosting on the fertilizer cake.

Got preps?

That needs to be our byword: Got preps?

So right - not in the bank but in our hands. Small bills - twenties the largest but plenty of fives and tens. Coins too, especially quarters and dimes.

Time to be serious, folks - this could be a passing threat, or could blow up -

I think cash in the house is good even without a threat. The black out was no threat or something to be planned for, but it happened.

I would also have plenty of ones!

If you want something for $2 but only have a $5 and they can't/won't make change, you're either paying $5 or doing without.

Excellent point, my dear - ones as well! Just nothing larger than a twenty, I would think.

I keep some cash in my bug out bag...especially ones and change.

Even if all hell broke loose, vending machines would still be working (as long as we still had electricity).

Things to do with oatmeal! Can get very many ideas how to jazz up plain old oatmeal with food combinations for both tshtf or cheap eats that are good for you now.

I bring you.....

drumroll please...............



The Oatmeal Artist

[link to www.theoatmealartist.com]

Last Edited by godblessya! on 02/12/2019 11:24 AM

[link to www.theoatmealartist.com]


Savory Butternut Squash Oatmeal
Posted on January 15, 2013 by Lauren Smith

It’s been a while. I haven’t posted a savory oats recipe for months. I’ve been meaning to do it for a long time, too. Every time I update my recipe index and see that one wimpy savory oats recipe, I feel a surge of motivation to give it a companion, but alas, it would never surmount to anything.

Until now!

butternut-squash-and-greens-oatmeal-8-

Have you ever had butternut squash risotto? That’s what this reminded me of. It was pleasantly creamy, yet savory. The oatmeal was an excellent vehicle for the butternut squash, which is truly the star of the recipe.

butternut-squash-and-greens-oatmeal-12-

The recipe calls simply for “greens.” I used spinach because it’s what I had on hand this week, but I know that both chard and kale pair beautifully with winter squash. Spinach is thin enough that you can just throw it in at the end of the cooking process and it will wilt enough from the heat of the porridge, but chard and kale will need to be cooked more than that. You could possibly just throw them in at the same time that you add the squash, but it would color your oatmeal green, and I personally don’t like boiled greens. For that reason, I would personally saute the chard or kale separately in a pan with onion and/or garlic and add them to the oatmeal in step 5. Either way works. Let me know what you try and how it works!


P.S. If you like/eat cheese, feta would also be a great addition to this, methinks!



Savory Butternut Squash Oatmeal

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 5 minutes

Yield: serves 1

What you'll need:

1 clove garlic
2 tbsp chopped red onion
1/2 cup milk of choice (unsweetened)
1/2 cup vegetable broth, or water
1/2 cup rolled oats (I use Country Choice Organic)
1 cup butternut squash, cubed and roasted*
handful of greens (spinach, chard, or kale)
pinch of salt and pepper

How to make it:

Saute garlic and onion in some oil in a saucepan until onions are translucent.
Add milk and vegetable broth. Bring to a boil.
Add oats and reduce heat to medium. I also added 1 tsp. chia seeds (optional).
Add the cubed squash and stir. Add a bit of black pepper and a heavy pinch of salt.
While there is still some liquid left, turn off the stove and quickly add the spinach. (If you are using a heartier green like kale or chard, you will need to sautee it first to cook it down more.) Stir. The residual heat from the oatmeal should cook the spinach adequately.
If you'd like to add any extra ingredients (coconut oil, sunflower seeds, feta), do so now.
Once the spinach looks wilted, transfer to a bowl. Enjoy!

Welp, another day another 4 inches of snow :(

Got done plowing/shoveling an hour ago...man I'm getting tired of this!

This is the toughest workout my snow blower has had since the year that I bought it.

Thanks Godblessya :)

Nuttin' like a hug to warm ya up after being out in the snow!

Great post! Very useful stuff over there.

Well, that would be stupid of Russia and the USA to get mixed up in South American turmoils, lol. It's always 'hot' down there; I know, I spent a chunk of my 'formative years' there. There was some kind of trouble every two weeks. The only kind of government that keeps those people in line requires a degree of authoritarianism that scandalizes most Americans. Take the foot off their necks for a day and you have another insurrection and each faction right back to killing another.



Was it the one in August 2003? You may not remember the one in 1965, that was almost as bad, for New Yorkers, but didn't spread much from there. (we weren't so interconnected then, so if one went down, there'd be a domino effect, but now...) 2003 affected around 50 million people, to varying degrees, into Ontario and a bunch of US states on the Eastern Seaboard. It was the largest outage in U.S. history. You were caught up in that one? That scared me even in AZ, that such a thing could happen in the USA.

Thing is, unless I'm just imagining it, price-gouging during disasters is far worse than it was in the 1960s, even worse than it was in 2003. Maybe we don't punish people who engage in it as we used to do. I see that kind of crap online even when nothing disastrous is happening - I report them too - but do you remember Fukushima, what happened when preppers were trying to buy potassium iodide, and a 12 buck bottle of the tablets was being offered for 450 bucks?! How long's your cash going to last in those circumstances?

So, that taught me a lesson: if I have to go out and dig holes for food caches, that's what I do. If I have to make holes in my walls, floors, ceiling and patch them over discreetly to hide food in there, that's what I have to do. If I have to get accustomed to the care and use of weird-looking plants used in other parts in the world, that no American thief would recognize as food and steal, then I have to learn that too. Because if I don't, whatever 'cash' this senior on a widow's mite can get, isn't going to feed me for a week.

WHOOPEEE - and let us all remember the health benefits of oats, which we will certainly need in the stress of the situation.

That was the one. It was terrible. We didn't have much in the way of local gouging. NY has severe penalties for it. But I remember what happened after 911 and people trying to buy gas masks and all sorts of things and how prices for everything shot up. Consequently I bought many many things for my entire family/circle like water filters, iodide, etc, food bars, etc, in the good times as I know at one point they will be very expensive and then just gone. Of course everyone thinks I'm loopy and I was the butt of some jokes, but no worries lol.

well, I am going to try for at least one meal a week, eating only prep stuff recipes and seeing how palatable i can make them, and I'll likely focus on oatmeal as I have a lot of it because it's so dang cheap...mine is not rolled or steel cut like many recipes call for, so the cooking times need to be modified, but I think I'm gonna try this one first...using canned salmon, and putting the oatmeal in for the last couple minutes of cooking.

[link to www.pbfingers.com (secure)]

^^^ me

dunno why i keep getting logged out!