Like the illusion of Wall Street, with its vast and powerful investment banks, now shuttered, China too is an illusion perpetuated by the Globalists that gave us the 15,000 mile Caesar salad, poisoned cat food and lead based paint on babies' pacifiers. Like the illusion that money would come from thin air to always push housing prices higher, China has spent a generation pursuing its illusion. Pursuing an unattainable dream to be like the West, while 6000 years of its carefully shepherded top soil blows into the sea.
Hi: I'm a new poster here and have known about Peak Oil for only a few months. I wandered about in a daze for the first fortnight after I realized the implications. Then I decided to look on it as a challenge, and have found that it has really given me something to work for. I want to gently break the news to my children and stepchildren, who all have young families. My husband and I have talked about it, but only a few times, as I get the strong feeling that it makes him depressed. I'm reading up on methane digesters, solar water-distillers, bamboo growing, and have planted my first (salad) garden. I try to keep the whole scenario in my head at all times, and try to follow my thoughts wherever they lead. I try to keep from panicking and to force myself to adopt a middle-of-the-road attitude. Since we live in the suburbs, I'm rather worried about the worst-case scenario that I sometimes envision in my scared moments. I want to have all my plans formulated before I call a family pow-wow.
Posted: Mon Jul 12, 2004 10:48 pm Post subject: Laurasia, bad news
The realization of the implication of peak oil let themselves into you mind a little at a time as your are prepared to get over the tragedy.
At first you don't really believe, then you think of all the substitutes for all this stored hydrogen in the form of trees and oil and coal, yet there are really no reasonable substibutes, so then you start thinking of how you will survive with less in some little nitch, but it is all overwhelming. What is the likelyhood that any human form will survive this horroble collapse? What is the likelyhood that your progeny will be the sole survivor, or part of the small group of sole survivors?
I've known for a very long time that our way of life and population weren't sustainable.
I didn't know which would get us first, food shortages,pollution, water or fuel shortages.
Now it looks like fuel shortages will start the slide down to 1880 or earlier.
I was stuck in a trailer near San Jose California untill I received an enheiritance that made it possible to leave. :D
I chose a small town near the ocean in Oregon because it had a mild climate, plenty of water, good soil and it's electricity is mainly generated by hydorpower and nuclear.
My home is small and well insulated and the windows face SW.I did have to replace some of the drafty windows and doors with new double paned insulated glass, I've weatherstriped the doors and in anticipation of high gas prices- a recumbant trike. :D
My car is a small gas efficiant 1991 Honda CRX. :D
I have a garden planted and am working to enlarge the garden space so I can grow a more diversafied crop. :D
All my tools are hand tools including a scythe.
My raspberries are doing well and you cannot beat the flavor of a ripe red raspberry!
I also have several apple trees and have planted two cherry trees that I have to defend against the hungry Robins.
I'm a old lady now living alone.I hope not to be around WTSHTF in earnist.
I feel sorry for the young people just starting out.They have known nothing but the oil age and all the convienances it has brought us, fast,comfortable transportation, heat, light and airconditioning at the flip of a switch, instant communication to anyplace in the world.
It's a very comfortable life for most of us but it's about to change, for the worse.
I'm preparing as best I can with my limited resources and I'm sure the rest of those on this site are doing the same.
It's hard to convince others that our way of life is ending when things seem so 'normal'.
This winter could change a lot of minds because the stock of fuel oil and natural gas is low.
Natural gas is declining in both Canada and the US and California is buisy building a lot of natural gas generators but where will they get the gas to fuel them?
I also bought a gun because if things go downhill faster than expected, I might have to defend myself against looters.
Of course when prices start their serious rise, people will conserve and prices may then stabelize again-for a while, but with a still growing population, it will rise again and keep rising.
Our government may attack another country to seize it's oil, like they have with Iraq.
The Saudi monarchy may fall cutting off the export of their oil bringing on a sudden crisis in energy.
We cannot antisapate what will happen or when it will happen but it's important that we make our plans to be as self sufficiant as possible and to defend the assets that we'll need to survive.
Blacksmithing, engineering,wood workers, and farmers will all be in high demand in the future. :D
We will need people who can build modern windships for fishing and transportation.As oil declines, we will need more craft peoples and shoe makers, leather workers,clothers and other skills now done by machine.
It's true that someday, a lot of people will die for lack of fuel and food, but I hope that's a long way off and that many of us will survive to start a new, sustainable civilization. :D _________________ Live like there's no tomorrow
sheilach,
I am working in much the same way you are to prepare as I can. I think the future, as you described, could be a wonderful thing - small sustainable societies. But the road getting there will be a rough one. I only hope that I survive long enough to see the other side of the transition. The article, How Cheaply we could Live," is a great scenario. It makes one look forward, instead of being so pessimistic about how awful things will be. To me, it's like an incredible challenge. But if we prepare, and are willing to make the sacrifices necessary, the other side of the hill could be very good indeed. Changed beyond what we can envision now, to be sure, but nonetheless very good.
I asked my husband to do one thing for me for my birthday this year - I asked him to pick any skill that he thinks would be a potential income producer, or at the very least, useful to us once the SHTF (like blacksmithing, for example), and to learn it well. As you said,
Quote:
Blacksmithing, engineering,wood workers, and farmers will all be in high demand in the future.
We will need people who can build modern windships for fishing and transportation.As oil declines, we will need more craft peoples and shoe makers, leather workers,clothers and other skills now done by machine.
Not only do I hope to be prepared in our immediate family, but I also want to be able to contribute in some way to the rebuilding and maintaining of a sustainable community as well.
I'm glad to know that there are others, scattered as we are now, who are thinking, planning, and feeling the same way.
Kathy
Hi Carlin, One thing gets my ire up is how for decades I and many others have been trying to get people and "our" representatives to accept that we are overpopulated and need to not only stop population growth by reduce our numbers through family planning and birth control.
Nobody wanted to hear that, they would tell me there is a LOT of unuesed land available for humans to live on and we have lot's of surplus crops, not to worry.
I tried to explain that the reason you can fly over the US and see so much "empty" land is because people CAN'T live there, no water, bad soil or it's being used as forest,timber, and watershed to catch rainwater to fill resevores and aquaferes.
No one listened.
Now we face having our excessive population reduced the way a dumb bacteria has it's population reduced when it's food runs out or it's poisoned by it's own waste.
Now we have to contemplate turning away or worse the desperate hords who will finally be forced to leave the uninhabiable cities.Let's hope they wait untill fuel becomes unavailable.
The transition times will be very nasty indeed!
"Load your shotguns and sharpen your shovels, things are going to get nasty" _________________ Live like there's no tomorrow
Posted: Sat Aug 14, 2004 3:09 pm Post subject: Water
IT occurred to me over the weekend that a different approach to the collapse of our technologically based civilization is called for because the situation will NOT be that which existed before things started downhill. So I began to think about what an individual could do to 'hedge the bet" so to speak, in trying to survive, regardless of the circumstances to be faced. This immediately produced the thought "water and food".
Going further I realized that having the means to insure the supply of water to oneself was the first order of business. This has several possible answers; geographic location, remaining operative simple technologies and new technologies that take into consideration the new situation.
It turns out that it would be of overwhelming advantage to live in a semi tropical location, on an ocean coast, near a present day large city.
This allows for the exploitation of a large number of possibilities that may become available according to how events develop. However the base
condition is the capability to gather and store condensed water in the form of dew. The simplest form of getting water into oneself is to drink dew directly off of leaves or any other similar condensing medium.
This line of thinking is a direct illustration of what I mean by a different approach. Assumed in it is the understanding that only the most fundamental means can be used to meet human needs, but it is also coupled to the idea that if it can be, it SHOULD be acomplished with the simplest means, in order to keep human impact on the environment down to its lowest level. All of this is in the service of the concept that one major historic reason for the coming eventualities is that there was no concern give to the consequences of human action taken for survival and that without this as a part of general and individual consciousness, there will, in the end, be no human survival.
It turns out that it would be of overwhelming advantage to live in a semi tropical location, on an ocean coast, near a present day large city.
I think that would be a very bad idea, it leaves you vunerable to the hords living in that nearby city to overwelm any survival strategy you might have built up.
As for licking up the dew on the leaves they have a better way of collecting dew in Chile, they a small mesh net over a frame above a metal,bamboo or plastic gutter and the fog is trapped by the netting and drips into the gutter and thence into a storage system by pipe.
You can collect a lot more water that way with less work.But it cannot collect enough for thousands or millions of people.
The last place you want to be post peak is in or close to a big city!!
Even post oil, humans, someplace will be surviving. :D _________________ Live like there's no tomorrow
Interesting question. I've had suspicions about Peak Oil for some years; I expect the economy to muddle through to some degree - the SHTF scenario may occur in some places, but in my opinion will be somewhat mitigated for those in North America and Western Europe.
I suspect that financial assets will continue to have value, although inflation will tend to exceed the returns available in low risk instruments. I like a few stocks, especially those oriented to gold and silver mining and oil. Quality debt issues (high grade bonds, CD's, money market funds) can serve as a parking place.
I have some gold, partly in coins, partly in jewelry. The jewelry is portable, and that is, I think, important. I also have a number of firearms (members of the local swat team are envious, and I live in a large city! :D ) Self defense isn't a problem; and, if all else fails, I'll go hang out with the swat folks.
I own my house - a modest house in an inconsequential neighborhood - and, given where I live, I could survive year round without electricity. An excellent supply of water is within walking/biking distance. I've got 3 months food at full rations - but, if it came down to it, I could go for 6 months.
Other posters have pointed out that education is important, and I agree. I've invested in my own education. It's served people well since Roman times.
The real trouble - and hence, the greatest suffering - is likely to occur in India, China, and the third world. I anticipate mass famine there, along with general warfare that may include low-yield nuclear exchanges. This is, in a way, good for the U.S. - the dollar will serve as a safe haven, and money will flow into the U.S.
We have another advantage. We're getting better internet connectivity - Europe is ahead of us - so we can engage in economic activity without travel. This has been a problem because jobs have migrated to India and China; however, if those places become unstable, the jobs will migrate back to the U.S.
I've also been building my contact list. Police, doctors, retirees, owners of small businesses. It costs nothing, except a smile and a kind word. But I'm building a group of people who can (potentially) help me - and who I can help. I think that's the real key to making it. And, worst case, I've still developed friendships with some really nice people.
One last point; we speak of a shrinking economy. That's true, but it isn't the whole truth. Parts of the economy will shrink into oblivion; others will survive (barely), and still others will grow. Airline pilots may have a tough time; carpenters, on the other hand, may do rather well. Someone able to produce food - or to prepare it, for example a baker - may do OK. Those able to supply entertainment - i.e., musicians and storytellers - will be in demand.
Build your contacts, educate yourself, and keep your eyes open to opportunity, and you'll do better than survive. You'll prosper.
Malevil by Robert Merle - post apocalyptic, in France
Out of stock/print
Use the intra-library loan to get these, or buy them and take the deduction after giving them to your local libray.
Different scenarios, confrontations and difficulties in each. Some with preparations in place, some with none.
A potentially idea prepartion scenario would be for each of us to meet certain local provios to meet up to level 2 or 3 of a 5 range hit-the-fan scale. Gardening, better use of consumption, etc.
When the 3+ or 4 level is hit, a remote location to withdraw to for weathering the storm. Most of the books have the hero/oine in a remote mountain valley, or a watered bordered area or a medieval castle (talk about luck).
This is not unlike the monasteries of the Dark Ages. Keeping the flame of civilization alive during the tempest.
The difficulty is the coordination of peoples to build the remote redoubt. This would take a combination of dedication and res$ource$. A patron would be nice (Lucifer's Hammer). Otherwise, each of us are placed in the position of duplicating all the resources and skills necessary to meet a certain level of civilization on our own. Its gonna be tough.
Meanwhile I currenlty live on 5 acres 45 minutes from my work (hate the commute). We have 2 mares in foal, 1 gelding, a filly and a pony (Mongols ate and milked their horses). The whole family rides. We are too close (IMHO) to the local metro. There are a couple of overpasses that could be blown to provide some remoteness from casual population movement. We have the typical small/large game of our area. My wife is a RN, I'm a systems engineer (computer tech/handy man). We have fruit trees planted, with four more coming in the spring (peach and crab apple) always in pairs for pollenation.
I have plans to put in a 3/4 height brick/rock wall in the back to enclose a large patio with raised beds and pond, off of the glassed in porch. Will be siding and extra insulation in the spring. Lastly will be putting in a fireplace insert.
Have .30-06 with scope, a .22 bolt with scope, looking into a pump shotgun (12 ga.) and a set of revolvers (.357/.38/.22). Going to round it out with a bow and cross bow. No assualt weapons or bazzokas, although I have plans for a trebuchet.
I have prepped one acre with lime, sand and manure (stupid red clay) in readiness for gardening. Currently compost manure, hay and lawn clippings. Usually have a winter's worth of wood on hand for the fireplace.
Have a gas powered generator/welder for use in the grey times. A chainsaw, tractor and mess of hand tools. Looking to gather smithy tools and a small forge.
Also might want mention cold & hot pack pack canning. Grow it in the summer and store for the winter. Otherwise dry it out. Don't forget root cellars and ice houses.
I saved my old patio doors for use in a solar food dryer I'm building. The collectors will also be used to heat the sun room on the back porch.
As to barter, I have extra fish hooks, needles, string, rope, stuff thats nice to have but will be gone, etc. Can't eat gold or silver.
Meanwhile I would suggest getting to know your neighbors. These are the folks that will packup with you for the trek to the remote hideaway or turn you in for hoarding. And since there could very well be potential marauders "lurking" the forum, be careful what you disclose concerning your location.
Did I mention my dogs Rusty and Zuzu? Regular walking alarm systems.
Yes, I’m a new poster. I have been lurking around here for a couple months and this site seems to have the most levelheaded people around. I hope I can add meaningfully to the discussions here…
Assessment: We are all in deep dodo. Yes, I believe the Stuff is going to Hit The Fan. It could be tomorrow if Saudi Arabia falls to extremists. If that happens, expect marshal law in the US(perhaps one of the reasons the troops are being pulled from Europe and South Korea?) I believe the outcome of Peak Oil will be the worst in the US as we are the most dependent on imported oil and our society is the farthest from self sufficiency.
Our political system is so entangled with big business and special interests that you cannot expect anything except lip service(energy bill, farm bill, hydrogen power, etc.) from the government until it’s too late. It’s shocking to me that the government has not put more emphasis on renewables. It’s also extremely unreasonable for me to continue with a way of life that can only be sustained through the death of thousands(perhaps millions) of people through energy wars.
In the last few generations the US(and much of the world) has lost an unbelievable amount of basic survival skills and subsistence living infrastructure(local grain mills, local production capacity, local farming, etc.). As reserves run dry or are held back for defense purposes, you can expect to see those angry, hungry mobs at your doorstep. In other words, my assessment is the worst-case scenario.
Plan:
I haven’t done this yet but I plan to put down on paper what I would do if Saudi Arabia fell, what I will do to become more self sufficient short term and long term and what I would do if the angry mobs show up on my doorstep. I’ve seen lots of good ideas on this web site(provisioning, intentional communities, defense, how to handle strangers) and I’ll be incorporating this information in my plans(you guys are amazing!).
Education – I will try to pick up as much information about basic survival skills as I can. I worked on a factory floor in a woodshop so I have a good start there. I’ve worked on old cars for many years and I do my own house repair so tool use shouldn’t be a problem for me.
For the last fifteen years or so, I’ve kept a small garden. This is the first year I started some plants from seed. I tried red hot pepper plants from seed and so far, I haven’t had a pepper from them. It’s been a strange growing season but that can happen. Every year, I till in leaves and manure but it’s pretty scary how little I really know about all of this. I need to spend time on a farm with a farmer to boost my knowledge of this critical area.
Last winter, I took a blacksmithing class at a community college. The class time was three and a half hours, two nights a week for three months. I don’t see myself making a living as a blacksmith. Towards the end of the class, it took me a couple of classes to make a hinge. It amazes me how much practical knowledge there is to learn in just one specialization.
I haven’t decided on my next skill to learn. I have an interest in metal casting and I’ve found a book that describes how to set up a small smelter and casting operation at home.
Although not as effective as practical knowledge, I will try to accumulate books on every topic I can that relates to self-sufficiency and survival. There is a good list somewhere on this site that lists many of these skills.
Community - I think that becoming part of a diverse community of like-minded individuals in a remote location will be key to long-term survival. The skill sets of the individuals can be combined for the good of the group. This will prevent everyone from having to be an expert in everything.
I’m currently getting my house ready for sale. I hope to sell it soon(before the housing market crash). I probably have enough funds to put a down payment on a farm or acreage even before the house sells. I plan on relocating out of this area as the property values in the location I’m looking at are about half of what they are in Western, NC.
Employment – this is the troubling one for me. I’ve been a self employed, work at home, computer consultant(AS/400 programmer) for about seven years. I can’t compete in the global marketplace with people that will work for two thirds less than what I charge. If I had it to do over again, I would get a mechanical engineering degree but it’s too late for that. I have to plan for multiple possibilities but my party is already over.
Joined: Sep 05, 2004 Posts: 205 Location: Washington, DC
Posted: Wed Sep 15, 2004 9:26 pm Post subject: things to do
I'm not very sure what to do - because trying to predict the future in human affairs is a nearly hopeless business. Mostly I will try not to over-react... BUT if things got REALLY bad in the US, I would find some way of moving to Belarus where my wife's family lives - even if I have to swim... they have no oil now and survive very very well, they own land there and have a wonderful garden. Good thing I am studying my Russian.
Short term I am just working on eliminating debt (mostly from college and grad school), getting money out of 401Ks (I'm only 27 so these will be worthless) and moving it to gold and silver, selling lots of meaningless things ebay and amazon to reduce the amount of "stuff" around here, helping my wife finish her degree, investing in paintings as a secondary store of value... seeing as much of the world that i can now, while travel is still cheap... avoiding buying a home or taking on a mortage... learning to pickle veggies, and learning to make wine. Also, working on getting work in a field away from the auto industry. My wife and I are holding off on having children for a few more years until we feel ready to live post peak. Also, I need to figure out a way to approach the rest of my family about this, which I think is going to be a very difficult series of conversations. Finally, I am taking action in the workplace and trying to spread knowledge about this as best as I can to co-workers...
Finally, I am, in a strange sort of way, very interested to see what will happen during my lifetime... good or bad, I think we will live in amazing times... and it will never be boring.
Posted: Fri Sep 17, 2004 6:23 am Post subject: Dig your own well.
While new to this forum I've been pretty much self-sufficient for most of my 60+ years.
As I read these posts, it's clear many are concerned with obtaining a reliable source of potable water as well they should be. Here's one way which has worked for me...dig your own well.
For most, the thought of digging your own well conjures some poor guy with a shovel down in a hole about 5 ft. in diameter sweating not only from the labor but with the worry of whether he'll first strike water or suffer a cave-in. Wells HAVE been dug this way in the past and will probably be dug this way as long as there are humans and shovels. Fortunately, there's a better way and it's using what is called by some an
"earth auger".
The earth auger is a hand-rotated device with what could be described as two "scoops" on the end of a 5 ft. or so length of standard 1-inch water pipe and with what is usually a removable wood "handle" on the other end. All farms years ago had at least one of these items and prior to the wide-scale development of the tractor-mounted 3-point post-hole digger, the earth auger was used mostly for digging holes for fence-posts. The earth-auger is probably still available through farm and ranch suppliers but I've seen them in antique stores for less than $25.00 over the past few years.
Most earth augers I've seen range in diameter from 6 to 8 inches and their use is simplicity itself. Just decide where you want your borehole, place the auger on the soil, and start turning. Depending on the consistency of the soil, the auger will start boring into the soil and when the scoops are full, the auger is removed from the borehole and emptied of its contents. The result is a nice, clean borehole, the diameter of the auger and as deep as you decided to dig the first time.
Depending on the soil, digging goes pretty fast. If it's hardpan, don't expect to go very fast. In this case, you'll probably need to use a crowbar to "chisel" the first layer so you can penetrate a foot or two, and then you'll probably want to pour in a gallon or so of water so the next few inches are softened overnight for cleaning out the next day. If the soil is reasonably "good", you might be able to go down the first five feet in an hour or less. It just depends.
When the auger is down almost to the handle, it's time to add an "extension". The handle is un-screwed from the end of the auger and a standard plumbing coupling together with another 5 ft. section of pipe is added to the tool. The handle is then screwed back on and you now have a 10 ft. auger. Once you go through 10 ft., another 5 ft. section is added, etc. .
Needless to say, once a person gets 10-15 ft. of pipe on the tool, it becomes somewhat heavy to withdraw from the borehole, not to mention somewhat unwieldy to manage once it's pulled from the borehole. However, for the most part, until 20 ft. is reached, a reasonable sense of balance will make the operation go fairly smoothly. After this, a tripod or some form of balance mechanism for the long string of pipe will be needed...IF you haven't struck water by then which is most unlikely if you're going to be successful with this method at all.
Which brings us to the question of water level.
It comes as a surprise to most people to learn most water in the world is located less than 100 ft. below the surface. In fact, depending on where a person lives, much of the water in the U.S. is found less than 50 ft. below the surface and in most cases, relatively close to the surface. In the case of the last well I dug using this method, water was found at 14 ft. and I continued to dig down to 27 ft. where a section of small rocks about the size of potatoes made further progress using the auger difficult. So I quit there and had an excellent, shallow well which produced clear and clean potable water. I think this level is typical for much of the U.S. but, of course, there are certainly local exceptions.
This well was lined with a tube of common 4 in. Schedule 40 white PCV pipe which I installed by hand. Three 10 ft. sections were coupled together using standard PCV cement. The lower section was slashed at intervals using a common hand-saw so water could penetrate from outside and fill the pipe and the pipe was lowered into the borehole. I'd previously capped the pipe at the bottom using a standard pipe cap and by firmly pushing on the outside of the pipe itself, the tube was forced down as far as possible. I probably could have driven a well-point and string of 2 in. standard iron water-pipe down another 10 ft. or so but had a good well with what I'd already done so left it as it was. Once down as far as I could push it by hand, I cut off the remaining 2 ft. or so about a foot above the surface and this became the well-casing.
This shallow well was fitted with a standard suction-type pump which cost around $150.00 brand-new. This pump was fitted with a central suction pipe of 1" PCV with foot-valve at the bottom of the tube. It primes easily and pumps well. The main well tube (casing) was sealed using gravel down to within about 5 ft. of the top and the rest sealed with concrete for a good, sanitary seal.
This well produces a total of 60 gallons of water each day during the worst drought times of the summer. This isn't much compared with a well which is sunk professionally, I certainly admit. However, the well recovers overnight and that 60 gallons is there day by day and is plenty for the average family whose main intent is survival. The water is absolutely pure and if a person wanted to increase production, they could do so by boring several wells to the same depth within 20 ft. of this one and have all the water they wanted when the wells were connected in a "manifold"-type manner.
The beauty of this system is twofold. First, it's something the average person can do. Thus it's empowering. Secondly, it's cheap! The whole affair from auger to final pump costs less than $250.00. An electric pump is not needed, of course, and if desired, an old-fashioned hand-pump will raise all the water this well is capable of producing day by day.
This cost will be appreciated by those who've contacted local well-drillers for a price on a new well. These run about $5,000.00 in our area for a 100 ft. well...not including the permit! Needless to say, "boring your own", if done discreetly, entails only a "self" permit.
Following the heat of summer when the water-table again rises, this well produces more and more until during the winter months, it's practically impossible to pump it dry.
So for those who might want it, here's a system which I've found to work fine for me.
At this point, most will probably wonder how to learn the best place to get shallow water. Once a person begins to think about it and look around an area, one begins to "feel" where a good place to dig would be. Local vegetation is a good place to start. Also, the level of local ponds, lakes, streams, etc., is a dead giveaway. Plus, many counties now have a watermaster or water department where records of well depths and locations are recorded. Probably the best information can be obtained from local well-drillers. Of course, some people seem to have a knack for finding water as evidenced by the prevalence of dowsers within the community. One gal I know about "sensed" water in a certain area on their property and told her husband. He was busy, somewhat skeptical, and told her if she was so sure about it to take a shovel "out there" and dig for herself. She did so and completely to his surprise, struck an artesian spring less than 3 ft. down. They cleaned it out, lined it with rock, covered it, and now have an abundant source of clear, clean water. Needless to say, he now respects her "instincts" about certain things much more than before! So water is where you find it but for the most part, you don't find it until you start looking.
In any case, I hope this brings peace of mind to some who might be concerned about getting good water during upcoming times of crisis.
Joined: Jul 09, 2004 Posts: 71 Location: Sunny San Diego
Posted: Fri Sep 17, 2004 9:07 am Post subject:
Mountain Mike, thank you for that lengthy post! I printed the instructions and will add them to my 'imperative information' box. Im in San Diego and w/o the means to get out of dodge, water is my #1 concern. I have ideas (resources) for a HUGE and secure area for a gigantic container garden. About 34,000 square feet on the top of a building. With 365 day/year growing capacity and a building to scavange for parts, my idea is good. (Fast crash scenario only, of course, all tenants bk and building abandonded by owners) But water....that's my weakness. I was talking to a salesman yesterday in a camping supply store and he said "put water in containers now!" His fiance works for the water dept, and she's not having a lot of confidence in the water supply to southern california staying solvent.
Thanks again!
I'm expecting anything and planning for everything.
Trip
This is an interesting thread. Now that I've had time to think about it, I suspect my whole life has been an inadvertant great big preparation for Peak Oil and its aftermath. How many folks here have lost a job due to layoff? I've lost two. How many have had to relocate due to a lost job? I have. How many have had to declare bankruptcy, get a car repossessed, and live in someone's basement, working two low-paying jobs in order to survive? I have. How many people have taken a wildeness survival course? I have. Or a series of first aid/CPR classes, including wilderness first aid (which is a whole lot different from urban first aid - there is no 911 in the wilderness)? I have. How many have spent a night in the wilderness without tent or sleeping bag? I have. How many have been lost in the mountains or forest, using only "primitive" navigational tools (i.e. - no GPS, a partial map and compass only) to find your way out? I have. How many have had to run from enemy soldiers chasing you down? I have. How many have spent hours, maybe even days, alone and far from civilization, and actually enjoyed the experience? I have. So, if TSHTF, at the very least I'm mentally ready to survive, since I know I've done it before.
As for physical or current preparations, I'm currently working a second job to pay off all my debt. Hopefully we'll still have a couple of years left before things turn to sh!!, and by then I'll be debt free. Also, I'm in training to become assistant manager at a convenience store, so after my finances are in order, I'll quit my high-tech job as a programmer to manage a store. That will make me much more employable in a recession - I could go back to programming if IT jobs start migrating back to the states, or I could work in or manage a store.
I've also been reading what I can about wilderness survival, first-aid, and navigation. That serves two purposes - first, if TSHTF and we go to a Mad-Max scenario, I can survive, alone if I have to; second, one of my hobbies is mountaineering, and these skills are essential to success in the mountains.
Finally, I've recognized the importance of maintaining good physical condition. This serves several purposes. If there is no more fuel for vehicles, at least I'll be capable of bicycling and/or walking anywhere I need to go (work, etc.). Next, eating right and being in shape keeps you healthy, and you surely don't need to be sick if TSHTF. Finally, I would be able to help others a whole lot better if I'm physically capable of doing so.
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