My Take on Extreme Prepping

When I was visiting my parents recently in Alaska, I had the opportunity to watch some television.  Normally, I don’t do this because we don’t get reception where I live and I’m too cheap to spring for cable.  Once I bought rabbit ears so I could tune in to local stations.  Only PBS came up (very fuzzy, I might add) and it was my bad luck that they were having a “Thomas the Train” marathon.  I took the rabbit ears back to the store since they were basically useless–unless I was four years old and then I would’ve been in something akin to heaven.

So, back to my original story.  I watched some episodes about extreme preppers.  I have to say that out of all the crazy reality television shows, this one was the most entertaining.  I saw episodes where one guy dug a fox hole that he could disappear into if an invading army came his way, the family that was obsessed with some kind of flu epidemic and the guy who was going to ride out the hard times on his sailboat.  I especially enjoyed the episode of the man with the vineyard that he planned to protect with extreme prejudice.  There were many other stories, too many to mention, but all brought up a few questions in my mind.

First, why would someone who was prepping for the end of the world want to go on television?  Don’t their neighbors already think they’re one brick shy of a load anyway?  Why would they want an entire nation to have the same sentiments?  And–why would they want to broadcast what they have and how “prepared” they are?  If they are prepping because they don’t trust the government, won’t this put them on some kind of list?  If they’re on television, won’t their neighbors and friends recognize them immediately?  “Hey, there’s Dave.  Cool, I know where I’m going if anything happens.”

Second, I noticed these same “preppers” obsess about only one aspect of prepping, like the family that believes there will be an epidemic so they practice donning their protective gear (gas mask, protective clothing and rubber boots).  They never take into account that the chances of actually needing it are one in a million.  If something like that were to happen, I’d probably want to go outside, inhale very very deeply and get the pain over with straightaway.

Third, if you’ve watched the show, you’ll notice how defensive these people get when they get their scores back.  It’s usually low because they can’t protect themselves and live in an isolated bubble without outside interference.  If you’re locked inside a bomb shelter, sooner or later you’ll run out of food and supplies and will have to come out.  There will most likely be someone waiting for you when you open the door and re-enter the world again.  Also, if you haven’t taken your community or neighbors into consideration, all your preparations are pretty much useless.

My thoughts on the subject:  There is absolutely no way to protect yourself completely from every inevitability.  Although you can do things that will help you get through tough times, like store a little extra food, sooner or later the masses will come–either in an armored vehicle or on foot, they will come.  Also, I’m not sure I could exist with any form of security or happiness in a “Water World” or “Mad Max” situation.

It’s probably more important to prep for everyday life–find ways to save money for a rainy day, get out of debt, and learn to garden so you don’t have to eat poisoned, genetically modified, pesticide-filled food and you aren’t dependent on others for your food source.  I’d also want a little extra food as insurance so I wouldn’t have to stand in long lines waiting for rations if something did happen–like if a truck strike stopped deliveries for any length of time.  Along those lines, you may want to find ways to get as healthy as possible.  If something were to happen, you’ll want to face whatever problems you have with as healthy of a body as possible instead of a broken one.  So if this sounds good to you–get prepping.

Remembering Victory Gardens and World War II while fighting my own War in my back yard.

Did you know that “Victory Gardens” during World War II produced about 40% of the nation’s vegetables?  Gardens were planted in spare lots, local parks, yards-large or small and even rooftops in the cities.  The US War Department felt that if the people planted their own gardens it would lower the price of vegetables needed to feed the troops.  Another factoid from this period of time is that America experienced a food shortage because the forced interment of Japanese-Americans.  About 40% of the vegetables in California were grown by Japanese farmers.  When they were forced to leave their farms, they left about 200,000 acres and the land was transferred to European immigrants or “Oakies” coming into California from the “Dust Bowl.”  Since these newcomers weren’t familiar with the California climate, they couldn’t match the production of the Japanese farmers, thus resulting in a food shortage.

I’ve kept all this in the back of my mind as I’ve tried to ready my ground for my own Victory Garden. I call it my Victory Garden because I need one–I need a victory from being in a slump, from the drain of high food prices, or just for something nice to happen.  But before I can plant, I have to go to war against the waist high weeds in my garden area.  I realize I’m a month late in getting started because of the trip to Alaska.  But instead of letting it go and fighting two years of weed growth next year, I decided to go ahead and put it together anyway.

Every year I come to the garden with high hopes of a great harvest.  Memories of various years come to mind.  One year, I had a bumper crop of tomatoes.  It was beautiful.  Tomatoes everywhere–what more could a gardener want.  Then our friend came by for a visit.  I’m going to call him “Tom” just for the sake of giving him a name.  Anyway, Tom came by and “dumb me” invited him to the back yard to see my bumper crop of tomatoes.  He was impressed and I was very proud.  Then Tom wanted a favor.  He asked me if he could pick a few of my tomatoes.  Since I had plenty and some to spare, I agreed–after all, sharing is a good thing.  I went in the house and about twenty minutes later, here comes Tom with bags and bags of tomatoes.  “Thanks,” he said.  “I’m planning to make some salsa.  I’ll be sure and bring you some.”  I was taken back.  He’d picked EVERY SINGLE TOMATO.  Then he said, “Oh, by the way, I took some of your peppers too.  I left a couple since they were too small to pick.”  A few days later, he came back and handed me a “pint” sized jar of salsa.  It was unbelievable.  Instead of getting to enjoy my harvest, I had a measly little jar of salsa for my efforts.  That was the last time I had a good harvest of tomatoes.  I’m hoping one day I will have another bumper crop–then maybe I can look fondly back on the summer that I had bags and bags of tomatoes instead of thinking of Tom.  I need new memories.

My goals this year include devising a plan to take care of general weed control in the pathways and surrounding the garden without using herbicides.  It seems like if I turn my back for one minute, like errant children, it will take over and waist-high weeds are followed by copperheads.  I would like to spend time weeding my actual vegetable garden instead of the pathways into and around the garden.  So, here’s to a new year, and hopefully new memories and successes.

Take care, All

By the way, our book is up and ready.

Back in Tennessee

I’m back in Tennessee.  It was an eventful trip.  While I was in Alaska, my father passed away.  While it was expected, it was still hard.  I was grateful to be there and be able to say goodbye though.  I did get to see many friends who stopped by to pay condolences.  One friend, a chef-and quite a good one at that, stopped by for dinner.  I had marinated steaks all day from a recipe on the internet that promised the “very best steaks on the planet” and then found out when I was about to cook them, we didn’t have any propane for the grill.  I ended up cooking them on a George Forman Grill.  They turned out all right, but it is very intimidating cooking for a chef.  The weather there was said to be one of the coldest springs for Alaska and I believed it.  It actually snowed the second week in May-not just a light sprinkling, but a full-blown snow storm.  It was very disheartening as I was looking forward to spring.

The trip home was a disaster, which was also expected.  Of course, I packed too many clothes in the first place.  I didn’t need quite so many since I spent the majority of my time in my pajamas–as one should.  When it came time to pack to go home, of course I came home with more than I’d left with.  I did the sitting on the suitcase as I was zipping technique, but still had to resort to a second suitcase.  Then, because the zipper broke, I ended up duck-taping around it several times.  I believe that will be the luggage’s last trip.  In the end, of course I looked like a “hillbilly”–just one more humiliating experience to add to my repertoire.

The trip home was eventful.  Halfway through the long flight from Anchorage to Minneapolis, the guy in the seat behind me kept shoving my seat forward so that it felt like we were experiencing constant turbulence.  I would’ve been annoyed, but since it’s a given that we’re all going to be shoved into the plane like over-sized sardines in a small tin, I let it go.  Now I’m glad I did.  It turned out he was having medical problems-some kind of seizure.  The flight attendants came over the intercom and called for a doctor (preferably one with a license to come to the back of the plane).  When we landed, everyone had to remain seated until the paramedics boarded and helped him off the plane.  The next flight was delayed for 2 hours because one of the flight attendants had a family emergency.  The new flight attendant suggested, over the intercom, that since we were so happy she came, we could leave her $5, or preferably diamonds if we chose as we exited the plane.  But she was so curt and bossy during the flight, I doubt anyone would’ve wanted to-despite being saved after a 2-hour wait.  I’ve come to the determination that flying is never fun.  So, in a way, I’m glad to be back–but on the other hand, I left quite a few loved ones behind and I was sad to go.

Take care, All

Back in Alaska and saying goodbye to my father.

I left a beautiful spring to head to Alaska to experience breakup.  Anyone who’s been in Alaska in the spring time knows and loathes”breakup.”  It’s the time of year when weather vacillates between warm and freezing temperatures.  Snow melts, then freezes, then melts again, turning the yard into a giant mud puddle.  It’s usually this time of year when Alaskans bet on exactly when the Nenana River ice will break.  The contest started in 1906 and is still a big deal around these parts. 

 

However, I’m not here to enjoy the crisp, unpredictable weather.  My father passed away the week before last, so I came to help out and say goodbye.  When I think about the life of my father, I remember him as a lucky man.  He really did live a full life.  He spent a lot of time exploring the Alaskan wilderness, leading a team of pack-horses into the back country, either hunting or taking in a group of Sierra Club members to experience Alaska at its best.  He spent time teaching art at remote native Alaskan villages, as well as in Old-Believer Russian villages.  He would tell us the stories of how he’d have to get permission to enter the Russian villages from the elders who were trying to preserve their culture in an evolving world.  After growing up hearing his stories and seeing the fruits of his life through his painting and carving, I would be hard-pressed to find another individual who’d lived a more exciting life than my father.  It’s my hope that I can enjoy my life as much as he did in his. 

 

Take care, All

P.S.  Our new book on how to build a solar home is on Amazon.  If you haven’t had the chance to check it out, you may want to.  We also included a step-by-step guide on how to build a compost toilet and rainwater collection system. 

Bombing versus the Balm of Gilead

The recent events of the bombing of the Boston Marathon has left me heart-sick.  Every time something of this magnitude happens, I feel a piece of my soul being chipped away and being replaced by an angry, unfeeling heart, intent on revenge.  I was contemplating the events of yesterday and how it brought about an effect that chased away any happiness.  I realized my soul needed healing from the thoughts of helplessness encompassing me.  The Balm of Gilead came to mind, an ancient herb used in healing a variety of ailments as well as is symbolic for the power to soothe and heal.  I needed some kind of strong medicine to combat the pure evil it takes to blow up a child.

 

Since the opposite of evil is decent,good,honest,moral, sinless,upright and virtuous, to combat the evils of society we can do something that would represent these terms.  So, today, if you feel overwhelmed by evils of society, do something decent and good for humanity.  Do one thing that will help relieve human suffering in some way.  This may take the form of donating to a good cause, gathering supplies for a women’s shelter or going to the rest home to visit someone who doesn’t get any visitors, reading them a book perhaps.  Just do something that will help wipe away the evil of the day.  Don’t let them win.  We will never be able to eliminate the evils of society, but we can do something to wipe away the tidal wave of negative feelings and fear they leave in their wake.

 

Take care, All

P.S.  I found out that many comments were being sent to the spam box–so I apologize for not posting your comments.  If your comments have not been returned on my blog, I’m very sorry I didn’t think to look in the spam box before now.

 

The New Book is up!!!!

Hi everyone,

My new book, “UNPLUG from the Grid” is finally finished.  This book should help you set up your PV (solar) system.  We’ve included quite a lot of pictures and diagrams to help with the process.  We’ve also included sections on how to build a compost toilet and a rainwater collection system.   You know that saying, “there’s more than one way to skin a cat,” well if you ask 10 different people how to do something, you’ll get 10 different answers.  This is just the way we did it–our answer.  Even researching for this book, I came across new ideas and learned new techniques in the off-grid lifestyle.  It’s my hope that our experiences might be helpful to someone trying to get off the grid.  If you come across something that isn’t in the book, let us know.  I’m sure that we will try and update this book over time, adding new technological information as it becomes available. 

On a personal note, I’m back in Alaska again.  I actually left 80-degree weather for freezing temperatures. Who does that willingly????? 

Take care, ALL.

 

Pajama-Mama and Her New Water Filter

I’ve uploaded a video from our latest venture–trying to make a cheap water filter.  Somehow, we didn’t do something right.  Please excuse the pajamas, they’re super comfortable.  In fact, I think we should be able to wear pajamas “all” the time.  Why save the clothing with the most comfort for bedtime?

http://www.youtube.com/user/hsbergeron?feature=watch

50:1 MAPLE SYRUP FUN

Hi Friends,

It’s been a few weeks since I’ve been on to update this blog.  In that time, I have put in any spare minute possible working on my Off-Grid Book.  While “Unplugged” is a memoir about my experiences, I’ve been getting a lot of feedback about how there wasn’t any “how-to” information in it.  I took the hint.  Bob and I have been working on “Solar Blessed–Building the Off-Grid Home,” for the past few months.  Since that time, we have put in anywhere from eight hours to sixteen hours a day, with the majority of our time near the sixteen-hour range.  Of course, this isn’t without some pain.  My upper back and arms, after spending hours bent over a computer, are strained to the point that for the past two weeks I have been in pain and had a constant headache.  It’s so bad, I actually had to visit my massage therapist friend.  Might I say, massage therapy is “AWESOME.”  I’m not over all my pain, but for one day, I felt like a normal person again. 

 

Despite all the work on the new book, I was still able to take a few minutes of time and put in some lettuce seed and collect the maple sap from the trees we tapped last month.  We strained out the bugs, leaves and twigs and set it on the wood stove to boil down.  After burning the first batch, we resolved to make sure the second batch came out.  When it got down to a certain point, we set the kitchen timer in fifteen-minute intervals.  After three days, we had the sap boiled down enough to call it syrup.  Wow!!!  It was great!!!  Nothing at the store compares.  Next year, we will start earlier collecting the sap.  Since it boils down from a 50-to-1 ratio, I would like a little more than just a baby food jar.

 

Just a side note, the deer actually pulled one of my buckets off the tree and chewed on it.  

 

Take care, 

 

Hillary

 

 

 

Tapping the maple trees

Tomorrow should be a magical day.  We’ve had 30-degree nights and 50-degree days.  I’m planning to go out and tap the maple trees.  A couple years ago I ordered some spouts from Lehman’s.  I put them away in a drawer where they stayed.  Then last week, my friend called to tell me she’d been tapping her maple trees and had boiled down her maple sap into a syrup and had been enjoying eating it.  I realized, gee, I’ve got spouts sitting in my drawer, doing absolutely nothing.  So, tomorrow will be the day.  She said to use a 7/16 drill.  She also said she was planning to tap some other kinds of trees.  This friend is also the same one who built her own house and builds rock walls without abandon.  If I only had her energy, I might have been sitting on a gold mine of maple syrup by now.  Instead, I may end up with a whole cup, but I’m willing to take chances.   Wish me luck.

Take care, All. 

This is not American Idol and you are not Simon Cowell

Yesterday, when I went into town to do some shopping, we stopped by McDonalds to grab some lunch, using the McDonald’s card someone gave us for Christmas—it’s a very useful gift and we love it.  We supposedly have a storm coming in and we wanted to make sure we were completely covered in the supply department.  I don’t mind being snowed or iced in, but I’d like to do it with milk, eggs and gasoline for the generator-thank you very much. 

 

Anyway, there I was at McDonalds eating my chicken sandwich wrapped in lettuce with the television blaring in the background.  Since I don’t have regular TV at home, and only watch internet programs, I found my attention gravitating toward it.  A news program was on and we were watching a “live” police chase in Houston of a suspected bank robber.  As we watched the chase, Robert looks at me and says, “you realize we can’t leave now until we see the ending of this.”  I agreed.  So, there we sat our attention glued to the screen as the guy drove on the interstate, through back streets, his back right tire blown out.  I had to admire his tenacity.  He knew he was being chased by dozens of police cars, yet he just kept going.  I had to wonder, did he really plan this out?  Seriously, who chooses a mini-van as their getaway car?  What drove him to do this?  All these things were knocking around in my skull.  Then he finally pulled over, opened the car door and ran, still being chased by police cars and even one police officer on foot.  After he’d given up, even though he was one man laying face down on the ground surrounded by officers, some police men were still bolting toward the scene as if he may still be a threat.  One of our men in blue tripped on the curb and twisted his ankle.  I heard a collective groan from the people at McDonalds who were all watching this unfold.  “That’s gotta hurt,” I heard someone say. 

 

Then I thought, “this has got to be the best reality television show yet.”  It wasn’t baked up by some producer for optimum shock value, the reality stars weren’t vetted out with auditions, this was real-time television.  Another thought came across my mind.  This was actually entertainment for us?  Some guy, probably down on his luck robs a bank and we as Americans are sitting around critiquing his car chase and the police who chased him?  We as a society are now in a position to sit around and judge the actions of each other?  I thought about how I play the piano or organ at church and how many times people have commented on my abilities or inabilities, whether I played something well or not, as though I was a contestant on American Idol and they were Simon Cowell.  I have to admit that my first reaction isn’t to quietly take their criticism or critique in a good way and thank them for their opinion; my first thought is to tell them they are welcome to play the piano their damned selves.  This is the society of American Idol.  This is the society where we sit around and judge each others ability to perform and feel completely justified in doing so.  I’m not sure this American Idol society, coupled by reality television we’ve created is positive for humanity or advances our creativity.

Take care, All and remember to keep it real.