Deron and I learned early to be prepared for what might come. Even when I was a child my parents had lots of extra food, medicines, extra everyday items, in our homes. I was taught to carry a coat in the Spring and Fall because of weather changes.

Deron and I used to be Sled Dog Racers and Campers, we cycled 100's if not 1000's of miles, and we have Backpacked many miles. We knew what to have, carry, what to use in an Emergency.

We moved to a rural area in N WI and so we always carried coats and blankets (even in the Summer you need a jacket and blankets at night) as well as water and other items in our trucks. Here in NW SD we live even further out, what I call "further than rural", and the weather is very severe here, so we carry items with us all year. We also drive older vehicles and you never know when they might just quite working. Deron carries tools and parts for just that purpose.

We live waaaaaaay out on the, what can be very muddy prairie, that we can not get out of when it is wet. So on top of the extra food we would normally have, we have even more so that if we got stuck here, we can, as well as our animals, eat.

Every day survival for us. Nothing new. Nothing has changed.

Now comes the Prepper Movement........

If you think some sort of life changing event is coming then you should be getting ready for it.....as best you can. There are many websites devoted to what a person should have on hand, including FEMAs site. If you live in the City you might want to have a "Bug Out" home of your own. Remember, all land belongs to someone. You can not just "go to the woods". There is/are no "in the woods", it belongs to someone and you might just get shot setting up there.

Think about this. We all hope nothing changes, we all hope that life goes on as we know it. We all should be praying for our Country and it's Leaders. And if nothing did go wrong and it all remained the same, it is still a good idea to be prepared for whatever might come our way. Even a Weather Event. But imagine if something did happen, like it has in so many other countries around the world in resent days, and you were not prepared. Just what would you do? Do you have a family depending on you? How much food is in your home? How much gasoline is in your vehicle right now? If you do nothing else, keep food in your home and keep your gas tank filled.....prices could skyrocket tomorrow.

No one loves you like your mommy loves you. Period. Your parents and grandparents might tell you that you are The Best. Mommy might tell you that your are the Smartest, Fastest, Most Clever and that you are the Prettiest. But you know what? To the rest of the world you are just another person. No one loves you like your own mother. So do not think that other's will care for you in a Life Changing Event. You can not just show up at your friend's homes and expect them to share with you and your family what they have worked for. I hate to think about such things, I do. But if things became really bad, you could become a target.

Wouldn't it be nice if a storm were coming you did not have to run to the grocery store to buy food for your family? What if there were an emergency or you were in an accident, would your family have food in the home? What if today you found out you lost your job?

If you buy a little extra, long shelf life foods, each time you go to the grocery store, you too can be prepared for whatever comes your way.....and still eat a good meal. This is just COMMON SENSE BUYING! This is something they should teach kids in school. This is something my parents always did and I learned it from them. We never ever worried about food in the house.

Stock up on long shelf life food. We put these beans into washed out and thoroughly dried juice bottles. We used to buy the same premixed beans in small packets to make soup. The small packets we used to buy, of the same bean mix, come with little flavor packets. We will buy flavor packets to go with these, have these around in case we can not get to the grocery store, and will be able to eat a high protein meal, that per severing, is not very expensive. This is just one little thing you can do to insure you will eat if something goes wrong or the system breaks down. It is just like buying insurance, you hope you never need it, but you will have it there if you do need it one day.

I say again. EVERYONE, no matter where or how you live, should have extra food in their homes. If or when the weather gets nasty you will not have to worry about feeding your family. The same goes for any animals you own, have a bit of extra food for them around always.

If you have any doubt that life in the USA and World is changing, watch the Evening News. Now take that news and compare it to History. If you do not see the parallel, you need to rewatch the News and reread History again and again. Use the Holy Bible for a good history book with all the answers. See how countries stocked up on food, fortified their cities in peace times, were ready and willing for what ever came their way.....with the help of God.

If a disaster comes you way, be like a Boy Scout and Be Prepared/Be Ready. Have a Backpack packed with necessary items already to go. If you are caught unprepared, grab your child's backpack or even a plastic (doubled) grocery bag and grab some items and get out. If you are told to leave the area, get out. Tooooo many people have died because they have stayed when they were told to get out. And don't blame the rest of the world or think the rest of the world "owes you" if something happens like this. GET READY, BE READY, GET OUT!

So what should you take? Well? Where are you going and for how long? Are you camping out? Plan on food for sure. Food and a way to cook it. I have a long list of what a person needs for backpacking that fits this bill on my www.workinggoats.com site on the What To Take Packing page. I won't repeat the list here.

If you have an animal that can also carry a Backpack, train it. You can not, let me repeat, you can not, should not, just that day slap a heavy bag on your poor pet and think it should just come along with you like that. Train, take hikes in pack, reward good behavior. THEN you will be able to carry up to 25% of that animals weight more items with you when you go. However, remember that those pets will need food too.

If you are leaving on horseback make sure your horses are ready for what is ahead of them. A spooky equine could be worse than being on foot. Grazers, can eat what is out there if you are headed somewhere where they can graze. Dogs will depend on you for food.

There is a world of information out there on the web about "Bug Out Bags", you might want to read it. Weather around the world is changing and more disasters are happening. Be prepared to care for you and your family if you must leave your home.

Deron and I have lived a "more than rural" life since 1999. We live way out and have lived without electric, phones, running water and most others luxuries people today take for granted. Deron and I have animals that both work to make our lives easier and produce eggs and/or meat. Deron and I know what it is to be COLD, without heat for weeks in extreme cold weather, and HOT, in the Heat of Summer, without air conditioning. We know how to shoot, hunt, plant, can, make candles, build shelters, camp, cook over a campfire, build and maintain equipment, fix our own vehicles, train animals, and we learned all this from "hands on" experience. We also make all sorts of survival gear, we have been making our animal equipment and camping items for well over 25 years.

Deron and I are set up and live far out.

Now there is this "Prepping/Prepper Movement". With all the unrest in the World and our own bigger and bigger Government, people are starting to think about War on our Shores, Government Take Overs, Terrorists in our Cities here in the USA, Hyperinflation, Gas Shortages, EMP Bursts, Weather Catastrophes or other life changing problems that might occur..... Now they are thinking....what if it happens to me (them)? So now Deron and I are hearing how folks, many we hardly know, are going "to come out and stay with us". Really? And how much food will you be bringing with you? What kind of skills can you offer we need? How much money have you sent us to continue to set up this place here? Just why do you think, after all these years of Deron and I planning and working on this place for he and I, BECAUSE WE LIKE THE ANIMALS AND LIVING LIKE THIS, that it is ok for you to TELL us your plans to invade us in your time of need? Why is your emergency, or more than that, your poor planning, our problem? Just what are you offering us in return?

At first when people were saying this, while I did not like it, I never really gave it too much more thought. But now it seems that while Deron and I are working to make our lives here better and be ready for what might happen, others are just planning to live off what we are doing. Really?

I. Don't. Think. So!

I read a tag on a guys email post that said "If you want what I have, do what I have done/am doing."

-- The Far Out Living Team
Wed, 06 Feb 2013 13:17:42 -0500