Recently, because of some significant financial changes in our life (including moving halfway across country, one of us unable to find work and the other getting laid off, and then getting a job at 50% of the previous salary) we are no longer able to invest as we done in the past. However, because we invested in prepping prior to our sudden reversal of fortune, what would normally happen in this type of financial emergency merely became a financial irritant. Even without 75% of our previous income, we are still able to live well and continue our prepping effort, if only on a reduced scale.
There are several things that many of my non-prepper, and less well-to-do friends, say that prevents them from prepping. The top three excuses that I hear are:

1. I don’t know where to start
2. I don’t have enough money to invest in prepping
3. It’s too late to prep; if I haven’t done it by now, I won’t have what I need when TSHTF.

These are the responses our family gives to those who don’t believe they can, or should, prep:

1. Not knowing where to start is no excuse. Every person knows what he or she will not eat. Every parent knows what their children’s favorite foods are. Get your kids involved to let them pick their favorite foods and give them a chance to learn about food storage along with you.
2. Start a list of what your family likes to eat. Pick favorite meals, treats, and drinks.
3. Then create a customized list of items that it would be useful to have extras of in your home in an emergency.
4. Use your customized list to check for sales and coupons at the grocery store, focusing only on those items that are 1) on your list and 2) on sale at that time. Buy only the sale items that on your list, and only buy items on your list when they are on sale. This will save you a lot of money over the long term.
5. Start small. If you normally purchase groceries for only one week, then use the sales to purchase extra to create an additional week’s worth of food in your home. Once you have an extra week’s worth, then go for a month’s worth.
6. Take a week’s worth of lunch savings and pick up plastic tubs or boxes at yard sales, thrift stores, or on Craigslist. Ask your local grocery store deli for any food grade buckets and lids they are normally throw away.
7. Stock your extra food purchases in the buckets and prominently label and date the contents. (We use a lot of plastic “shoe” containers for under the beds at our house. Not only does that prevent the kids’ toys, clothes, and junk from getting shoved under the bed, but storing the items in airtight containers under the bed keeps them away from light and extends their storage life.)
8. If space is limited, try these ideas in order to store these items. You can then create a shelf unit with the buckets as separators between the shelves, or stack the buckets and put a round top (cut out of plywood) on them to create a side table which is covered with a large round table cloth to hide the fact they are now storage.
9. Remember to rotate your stored food. When you buy new items for your food storage, place them at the back of the storage area, and refill your regular pantry area with items from the front of your storage. This will ensure that your food doesn’t go bad and you don’t lose money. Failure to use your food storage through a rotation process has cost many a prepper lots of money in waste.
10. A final note on not knowing where to start: If you are in debt, make an honest effort to pay off your debts before investing a huge portion of what you have in lunchtime saves in food storage. If you can avoid using credit cards, do it. If you can invest your sack lunch savings into paying extra, do it and get those credit cards down to a zero balance. Once you have done that, you will find you have a lot more money to invest in prepping. As I stated earlier, we have recently lost 75% of our previous income. However, the first thing we did as a couple was to pay off all debt – that included college loans and credit cards. We paid off our car loans and did not replace them with newer or fancier models. We were fortunate to pull our investments before the last big drop and use the money to pay off our home; without a $1,500 mortgage payment, we were able to transition to 25% of our former income. That and our three month food storage supply were great comforts while we were both looking for work.
11. Prepping doesn’t have to cost a lot of money. There are ways to make your dollar stretch if you really want to prep.
12. As I stated earlier, we have had a significant change in our income levels, and added an additional mouth to feed. However, because of our preparations we have stopped purchasing (temporarily) bulk food storage from online vendors and have been exploring the following food storage methods, and have had some very positive results!
13. If you go out to lunch every day at work, take just two days and bring a sack lunch. Depending on where you eat, that will save you $10-to-$30 dollars per week that can be used to invest in prepping. (Now that we are down to a quarter of our previous income, with only one of us working, we avoid eating out at all, and bring lunch to work every day. This has cut our food bill by easily $100-150 per week between the lunches at work and going out to dinner twice a week. Not only that, but we’ve eaten better than we used to eating out and lost weight, which is a complete win-win in my book.)
14. Take half the money saved by bringing lunch and spend an hour or two each week couponing and sales surfing. Hit the grocery stores during sales and with coupons, where you can buy the normal things you eat in bulk at the same amount you would normally spend on just one or two items. The 10 for $10 aisles are a great place to shop for food storage as well.

I saw a lady at the local grocery store just this weekend buying huge amounts of items using the weekly mailer from the store. She had 10 boxes of spaghetti, about 20 cans of soups, even more canned fruits and vegetables, a bunch of boxed meals like Hamburger Helper, boxed side meals like Rice-a-Roni, and a large amount of powdered drink mixes in her cart. As I waiting in line behind her, I watched her grocery bill go back to normal with each coupon she handed to the cashier. Between the 10 for $10 and couples, her shopping cart – piled high with stuff that every family eats – cost her about $40 and change. That’s some good shopping!

1. Take the other half of the money you saved by brown bagging it and shop the Dollar Stores. You can buy personal hygiene and cleaning supplies, sewing kits and patches, crackers and cereal, bottle water and juices, hard candies and travel toys (comfort items), first aid and over the counter medicines, and spices and seasonings (including bouillon) for a huge discount.
2. Once a month, take the money you’ve saved from your sack lunches and invest it in thrift store shopping. Purchase camping gear, gently used warm weather clothing and shoes, backpacks and bags, blankets, pots and pans, and used books. We have been able to buy excellent travel bags in a variety of sizes. These bags have been used to create custom first aid kits, 72 hour kits for our vehicles, emergency kits for kids to carry in their backpacks at school (which were great when they were stuck sheltered in place during local emergencies), and barter/charity bags for use when TSHTF. Other awesome finds were a pressure cooker and a seal-a-meal, which we have been able to use to do home food preservation.
3. Use the resources available on the Internet. The SurvivalBlog.com has great prepping information, as does LDS.org and many others. Find your local agricultural extension groups and web pages, where they can help you identify the best local produce, growing seasons, and methods for preserving local foods. These web sites can also help you find information on local wild foods, good recipes, and other helpful bits of information to make you better prepared, even if you are completely unable to spend a dime on purchasing food storage at this time.
4. It’s never too late to prep. Even if you are only able to afford to spend $5 a week, or $5 a month, the extra supplies you have on hand may just be the thing you need in an emergency. If you cannot afford to spend an extra dime, the knowledge gained from internet research can help you be more mentally prepared in the case of emergency. This can include where to find local wild foods, learning first aid, learning canning and food preservation, and other information that will be necessary to do more than just endure in an emergency.

We now live in a tornado prone area. While we are fairly safe in a sheltered zone (most of the tornadoes touch land around our area), we still have to contend with power outages, lack of water, and sewer shut downs. While these have only been of a two or three day duration, having ready to eat foods stored (prepared using canning how-tos found on our local agricultural extension web site), enough water stored to last for three days, and emergency hygiene capability (I love the bucket potty and doody-bags found on beprepared.com) makes for a much more comfortable temporary emergency.

Even if you don’t have an emergency based upon natural disasters, there are other types of emergencies that can hit. Epidemics (or pandemics) can strike, where quarantines may occur. Temporary illnesses, such as a bad flu or strep throat, or even injuries can happen that may prevent the adults in the family from working, going grocery shopping, or even cooking meals. Having a supply of easy to prepare food in your pantry or 3-month storage will make it easier for you family to eat. Having extra hygiene products (including formula and diapers if you have infants and toddlers) will enable the sick/injured adult(s) to rest and avoid going to the store.
In this economic downturn, financial crises and emergencies are rampant. Many people are losing their jobs through no fault of their own, being forced to survive on unemployment or on part-time jobs. Having a one to three-month supply of food is a wonder safety net to have when this occurs. Having a full year’s supply of food is even better, but for the first time prepper or for those who need to prep for less, even a week of extra food may be the lifeline that is needed during a crisis.
Remember:

1. Prepping doesn’t have to been done by someone with a “Ph.D. in Prepperology.” Using basic common sense practicality to identify foods that your family will eat is the first step in getting started. Using free tools available on the internet, the library, and at local agricultural extensions will help even the newest prepper learn the basics and beyond.
2. Prepping doesn’t have to cost an arm and a leg. There is no point in getting into debt to prep. Using practical approaches to saving money to use on prepping is the best approach, as is shopping sales, dollar stores, and thrift stores. Craigslist free pages are also a good place to look, as are local yard and estate sales.
3. It is never too late to prep, unless you are dead. As long as you are alive, you can and should prepare yourself and your family for tough times. It doesn’t take a major SHTF scenario for your preparedness to be useful. Many times your preps become a major benefit to you and your family during a simple illness, injury, or layoff. The time to prep is now, no matter what your circumstance.

Dear Mr. Rawles,
My letter today was prompted by an email I received recently about UPC codes and country of origin.  It stated that one can determine the country of manufacturing origin by looking at the first three digits of the Bar code.  More specifically, it stated that bar codes beginning with the digits 690 through 695 are from China while those with 471 are from Taiwan.  Products with codes from 00 to 13 are from the U.S. and Canada.  This seemed like a handy way to tell which products came from where.  You could buy a product with some assurance that it was made in the US.  The truth of the matter is somewhat more complicated.  An example of the e-mail I received can be seen in this link.

What are those little lines? First you must understand that there are two primary barcode systems, the Universal Product Code (UPC) which is used in North America, and the UK, Australia and New Zealand, and the International Article Number (EAN)--formerly called an European Article Number--which is used in most other places on the globe.  Whereas the UPC uses 12 digits, the EAN uses 13. However, the UPC can be read as EAN because you would just put a “0” in front of the UPC to convert it.  All the numbers encoded in UPC and EAN barcodes are known as Global Trade Item Numbers (GTIN).  The first three numbers of the GTIN represent the country in which the manufacturer is registered.  Please note that this does not mean that the product was made in that country.  For instance if a company called “Swiss Guns” is registered in China then it will carry a prefix of 690-695.  If however the guns were manufactured in Bulgaria the code would still be 690-695 and not 380.  You can find the complete Wikipedia listing of country codes.

Is there a way to get more information about a product from the bar code?  I found this web site to provide additional information.  The web site is GS1 who on their web page self-describe as “GS1 is an international not-for-profit association with Member Organisations in over 100 countries.  GS1 is dedicated to the design and implementation of global standards and solutions to improve the efficiency and visibility of supply and demand chains globally and across sectors. The GS1 system of standards is the most widely used supply chain standards system in the world.”  GS1 is the body that creates the standards defining the GTIN.
They have a tool that will provide information based on the GTIN code.  For example, I entered the following code for my Newman’s Special Decaf Keurig: 099555080513 and it told me that the company was:

Green Mountain Coffee Roasters, Inc.
VT
33 Coffee Lane

05676 

Waterbury
United States

It also included phone numbers to the company.
Please note that it does not indicate the country of origin.  The box indicates that the product is packaged, made and printed in the USA.  Some searching on the GreenMountainCoffee.com web site reveals that this coffee probably originated in Guatemala.  They write, “In 2003, Nell Newman traveled with us to Guatemala to meet coffee farmers in person.”
The takeaway: You will need to do more than look at the UPC/EAN/ETIN code to determine the country of origin of a product and this is especially so for products grown in one country but processed in another.

Thanks as always for your hard work on Survivalblog and may the Lord bless and keep you.
 
Respectfully, - Mr. Bennington in Pittsburgh

I have been guilty for years of talking about preparing verses actually putting forth the effort and taking the necessary steps to prepare for my family.  I began my prep life back pre-2000 Y-2K bug times.  I began to read about the potential time bomb that was ticking as it pertained to the technology crash back in 1995.  I had subscribed to a homesteaders magazine called Countryside (highly recommended) and began to study what impending danger that our nation and world was faced with.  As did many, I did not want to face the facts that this could actually happen to the good ole USA and like many laughed it off.  As the end of 1998 came closer we lived on a historical farm in central Ohio and I began to take serious the issue at hand.  I became very convicted  that if there was even a small chance that this “bug” could paralyze our society and send us back to the stone age then I at least needed to protect my wife and children.  We all chipped in and began to prepare.  To say I went over-board would be very mild.  We put in a 100’ x 100’ garden (our first) and proceeded to plant everything that came in a seed packet.  I went to the garden center and looked down at the very small tomato plants and thought to myself “how much can one small plant produce”?  So I proceed to buy 52 tomato plants!  Guess what we did all summer long!  After fighting massive amounts of weeds and a wife that resembled Lisa on the old television show “Green Acres”; we had put away over 500 quarts of tomatoes, carrots, beans, okra, cherries, apples, pears, salsa, pickles, soups, sauerkraut, jellies, jams and other various garden goodies.  Farmer wife even entered canned goods into local county fair and won a few ribbons.  Not to bad for a couple of rookies.

Now that we had our food supply secured we concentrated on water storage and after a 3 day winter ice storm, installed a direct electric hook-up from our well to a portable generator.  Now we felt like we could supply the much needed water to our family and the 30 feeder calves that I had purchased to supply our family and friends with beef.  Again going “overboard” and never having raised cattle before did I ever realize how much free fertilizer 30 head of baby calves can produce when they get to be 800 pounds!  Securing a independent water supply is critical when you have livestock, especially 30 head! We made every mistake imaginable but along the way we were learning very valuable survival skills.  Learning how to care for cattle, horses, and chickens is something that will definitely come in handy again. As our pantry, water and meat supplies had become secured we turned to our home.  Our 200 year old farm house had three non-working fireplaces so my next goal was to provide heat in case the “lights went out” during the winter or for an other reason.  Yes, we had the small portable generator but we needed more to heat our old home.  We then worked on the fireplaces to secure our heating source by installing a wood pellet stove.  We then bought pallet full’s of pellets for a years supply.

After securing food, water and shelter we turned our attention to our finances.  I might mention that during this time of preparation I reduced my income by 50% and started a new career in finance.  Bad timing just two years prior to 9-11!  As I continued to read about the impending danger of Y2K, I began to visit pawn shops and flea markets buying “junk” silver dollars.  At the time I paid $7 for each Morgan Silver Dollar (not too bad return on investment--as they now sell for $30+) and began to accumulate quite a bit of silver and some gold as well.  During a very tough financial time in our lives we were sacrificing a lot to prepare for something we had no idea if it was going to happen or not.  Yet there was something inside that said there is enough warning signals to prepare and to protect your family.

FAST FORWARD:  January 1, 2000 came and as we went to bed fully stocked and prepared to meet the new world, everyone woke to a new year and almost with an arrogant sigh the media and naysayers began to ridicule anyone that had prepared sighting their extreme behavior as crazy and naive.  Remember this is the USA nothing can touch us!  I must admit that there was something also inside me that almost wished that the Y2K bug would have brought this country to its knees and humbled us a little.  Just think if we had went through that pain, how much better we would be today.  Just think if Facebook would have not come about how better our society would be. Technology can be good such as this web-site and others for educational purposes but too much of a good thing is dumbing down our country.  I could write an entire article on my thoughts concerning technology and how vulnerable this country is to a cyber attack.  Take away cell phones and the Internet and our economy will certainly collapse.

Okay, everyone knows where this is going.  As many, we fell back into our comfortable lives laughing at all the fuss and chasing the all mighty dollar.  We moved from our historical farm, sold all the animals and off to the city we went where we proceeded to fall back into the “world” and all its enticements.  I started my new business in a new community and weathered the economic storm of 9-11.  We built our business and became “successful” in the eyes of many.  We bought a big home, spent mucho dollars adding and renovating, and even bought a yacht.   Yes, life was good and remember this is the good ole USA, nothing can keep us down.  We continued to buy into the hype and then 2008 came and nearly put us out of business.  We borrowed more to get us through (sound like any country you know) and made it out the other end. 

Then I got my copy of Patriots. I began to read  about a scenario that haunted me in my dreams. I read more and more about how many were prepping for something that reminded me of what I did back in the late 1990s but much, much worse. The funny thing was that even when we “back slid” into the world did  I ever stop my subscription to my homesteading magazine and always felt like we had made a mistake in our abandonment of the simple life on the farm.

WAKE UP CALL!  Well it seems like light years ago that I was worried and preparing for something a small as the Y2K Bug!  Our country has seen more negative change and has more challenges than all the previous 75 years.  We stand at the brink of financial bankruptcy and our government continues to deny the critical nature of our country’s financial house.  We owe hundreds of trillions of dollars of debt, we have unemployment over 12% (don’t believe the media), a housing market that has collapsed, we are nationalizing health care, bailouts a plenty for those corporations that have the right politician in their pocket, sky high oil prices, food costs and quality out of control, job sectors that will never return to this country, government regulations killing small business and finally a moral corrupt society that is more interested in who won “Dancing with the Stars” or who is the next “American Idol” than the downward spiral of this once great society! We have Iran threatening us, a 20 something old man-child in North Korea with nuclear weapons and China is threatening to cut off our life support.

So what does this article have to do with survival?  I can tell you the juices are flowing again and thanks to this great survival blog, Mr. Rawles best selling books, patriotic leaders like Chuck Baldwin, and other great writers, preppers and good loving Americans; I have found my old self and have once again put my family and friends into a much better place to weather a much bigger storm that is coming.  People need to heed the words of so many not only on this blog but the hundreds of thousands that believe this country is headed for times we can’t even imagine. 

Yes I have stored the food (two years at least for just for the two of us), yes I have secured heat, (wood burning stove) shelter and water.  Yes, we not only have the gold and silver we kept from back in the late 1990s we now have substantially added to our supply which we believe one day will be worth substantially more than the worthless fiat dollars we have depended on for some many decades.  We now have, thanks to books like: "Patriots" and "Survivors",  added a substantial supply of guns:  AR-15, .30-30 Winchester, a .243 and .30-06 with scopes for longer range, two .22 rimfire rifles and a .22 pistol. My sidearm is a .45 Auto and the Mrs. has a .380 Auto.  We have two .410 shotguns for small game, a Remington 870 20 gauge pump and Remington 12 gauge automatic. two more .38 Specials and a .25 automatic. We have over 20 thousand rounds of all types of ammunition and feel we need more.  We have secured medical supplies, books, and survival gear from various suppliers including Amish items from Lehman’s non-electric store out in Ohio.  We have accumulated a dozen or more hurricane lamps of various sizes and have an ample supply of lamp oil.  We have purchase bulk wheat, sugar, salt and beans along with all the necessary non-electric tools to begin to live off the grid if needed.  We have prepared our home best we can and also have friends and family that are starting to become believers and want to learn from us.  We even have folks that want to start groups to discuss coming together to defend a small community.  “Strength in numbers”!

If you think that our society is due for a real “wake up call” than I highly recommend you visit Lehman’s web-site to see how the Amish live and when the SHTF this group of Americans won’t miss a beat and will actually flourish as the masses scramble and sell off everything at pennies on the dollar.  When we look back at history during the Great Depression, it was simple farm folk that already lived a simple sustainable life that weathered the storm and came out the other end better than most. Wake up people, and remember the old adage that says:  “If we don’t learn from history then we are doomed to repeat history”.  This could never be more valid than it is today.

In closing, if you have read the many articles, blogs, books and information that has described how many have seen the impending danger signs and you have not started to prepare; and you are still waiting for a sign than I say:  good luck!  The clock is ticking and like myself you may not get a second chance to prepare for the inevitable.  Oh by the way we are selling all the toys and using the money for the many supplies I mentioned above. I thank God for second chances!

I pray that you heed the warning signs and not wait a any longer.  Your first step is the hardest!

Post collapse barter has been a hot topic for as long as I have been lurking around the Survival Community. Yet each time I read the offerings on the subject they have left me feeling like the whole story is not being told. This is an attempt to tell that story.
 
Post collapse barter is often presented in romanticized ways of a simpler and happier life such as depicted by Eddie Albert playing the role of the Persian peddler “Ali Hakim” in the Rogers and Hammerstein musical “Oklahoma." He went town to town peddling everything from perfume to frying pans with his horse and wagon. A Spartan life to be sure but he was the model of happiness. After all, he had a girlfriend in every town! Or the notion of an impromptu open air market in the town square where people gather to fellowship and trade.
 
This type of commerce probably will commence in time, after the crash, but from my vantage point there is a whole lot of turmoil and violence between “here” and “there.” When the “free stuff” stops flowing to the entitlement class we are not all going to “just get along.” Surviving to the point of peaceful open air markets is not going to be for the faint of heart or the unprepared.
 
In this essay I will address:
 
The two problems with barter
The two fundamental questions of barter
The two logistical issues with barter
A few examples where I think barter will occur in the short run.
 
My credentials are that my family and I are long term, serious, God fearing, Christian preppers who own and live on our rural retreat full-time that we refer to as our “sanctuary homestead." The retreat has been built up in such a way that with lots of hard work, a bit of good luck and the favor of God mixed in, we can provide food for many in a grid down scenario pretty much indefinitely. That retreat is located in the American Redoubt. Also, I have a degree in business economics from a major university and have worked in finance for 30 years at both the corporate and small business levels.
 
I hope the fact that I have “one foot in both worlds” so to speak, will give a perspective on this subject that is at least worthy of consideration.
 
Two Problems:
Commerce is technically described as “bringing together a willing seller and a willing buyer in an arms length transaction." The “arms length” part means that both parties are looking out for their own economic best interest. This isn’t charity. For example if grandma gives you a ten thousand dollar car for changing out her broken light bulb. That would be the inverse of an “arms length transaction." Mediums of exchange such as currencies make this process easier which is why they are used so universally. Yet in a post collapse world such as depicted in “Patriots” the currency of the land is useless as it is worthless.
 
That brings us to Problem #1: absent a recognized societal medium of exchange to conduct commerce you still need to put that definition together of buyer, seller and arms length. On the buyer-seller side of the equation, that means that you have to find someone with something you want, that they are willing to part with, who want something you have, that you are willing to part with.
 
Problem #2 is the “arms length” part. Our current economy of commerce is very efficient. If you walk in to a hardware store to buy a splitting maul the price to the buyer from the seller is not influenced by whether it’s going to be your only splitting maul or your 50th one (“satiated demand” in economic terms).The price doesn’t change due to the mood of the cashier or what day of the week it is and so on.
 
In a barter system the “price” of an item is extremely subjective and influenced by a whole host of variables. If you have to cut and split wood to cook and stay warm, trading off one of your 50 splitting mauls is going to be much easier to part with, and you’ll require much less in return for it, then if you only have two of them. So, those types of pricing considerations for both the “buyer” and the “seller” in a barter transaction are much more exaggerated than when money is used.
 
So to affect one barter exchange, five things have to align.
 
1) You have an item
2) They want that item
3) You are willing to part with that item
4) They have something to give you in exchange for that item that you want.
5) Agreed upon valuations of both items by both parties.
 
Agree on 4 out of the 5 and there is no deal. Putting deals together like this can be at best a nuanced dance or at worst a nightmare that engenders division between the parties. That is why so many barter clubs and societies have failed over the years.
 
If you are thinking "Well, we will be fine because we have those silver coins and some items that we think will be in high demand." That’s fine but you still have to find someone who wants those items (probably fairly easy) who have things to trade you back that you want (the harder part, more in a minute) and you both have to agree on the “value” of both items where the use of “comparable sales” are non existent.
 
This is not to say that barter is impossible because we know that its not. The point is to illustrate that barter is more complicated than many make it out to be. If you are thinking that no matter what the possible pitfalls of barter are, you would rather be holding some tangible assets that you believe will be of value for trade in a post collapse world rather than holding worthless dollars. To that I say, I agree. But are those your only two choices?
 
Fundamental Questions:
 
The most common writings on post collapse barter inevitable get to “the list” of items people plan to lay in to trade away. Many times those lists have plenty of common sense items but there are times when you guys come up with things that sound, well, crazy to me (Viagra?)
 
Question #1: Do I have the cart before the horse? Is it prudent to focus on what other people, known or otherwise, might be wanting in a crunch? Or should I think about what items I will be in search of in exchange for what I have laid in for trade? Put another way, what do you want to attain in trade for your barter items? Since this is a “for profit” endeavor as apposed to charity that’s the business model, not where do I want to begin (your list) but where do I want to end up.
 
 If your reply is that we don’t really know what we will want/need because it will be “situationally dependant," to that I say maybe. Prepping really is not that “situationally dependant” though. Food, water, shelter, heat, light, security, first aid, good clothing, etc. are what we have on hand for any and all calamities, large and small.
 
If you have utilized the resources available on SurvivalBlog in terms of what to do to get ready, make lists and so on you should have at least some ideas of where you stand.  Where you are strong and where you have holes. I agree that there are items that “you can never have too much of” but really it’s the holes that you would presumably be trying to plug with barter. The question then i.: Am I more ahead to use resources to plug holes and strengthen our prepping position today, as opposed to using those same resources to lay in tradable items? Your answer may be different than mine but the questions should be asked because..
 
Question #2: On the one end of the spectrum most people do not prep. Those of us who do are in the extreme minority even today when it is much more visible. So that vast majority of people out there living pay check to paycheck in the land of mammon…by and large they have nothing to trade you that you will want or place much value on in a collapse. On the other end, we, the choir, the serious preppers who have followed the advice of Mr. Rawles and the contributors to SurvivalBlog,  are in pretty good shape to weather the coming storm. So,we have extra everything so you really don’t have anything that we need and certainly nothing that is mission critical that we would trade high value items for. Oh, sure if you show up with a 55 gallon drum of fresh kerosene we can talk and probably put a deal together but we wont “sell the ranch” for it because it's icing on the cake for us. The pool of potential barter mates just shrunk a lot.
 
Logistical Issues of Barter
 
No matter how far along you are with your preps when the balloon goes up those instantly become priceless. If you have a thousand dollars of stored food and TSHTF those stores could be the difference between life and death. You will trade no amount of money or precious metals for them at that time because you can’t eat those. If you have $100,000 worth of stored supplies and the crunch is on, someone could offer to write you a check for a hundred million dollars and you would have no part of it. Your survival stores would then be your most valuable asset in spades (that nobody should knows about). Thse are survival items that people would be willing to kill you for, and that we are prepared to defend with our lives.
 
Most people that I know with retreats and designated bug out locations. When the balloon goes up they simply want to roll up the draw bridge, help their neighbors out where they can and be left alone to rely on themselves to provide for themselves and then, maybe, be meaningful participants in the re-build if God wills it.
 
Logistics issue #1: In order to conduct barter exchanges you would need to leave your selected “safe” location in order to do commerce. Or someone in your group would. That then would mean you are potentially out in “it” rather than safely behind your line in the sand and your absence means that the security of the retreat is reduced. If you are ready to start a “road show” of barter exchange early on what does that say about the depth and breadth of your preps? If you are well prepped there is nothing out there in “barter land” that comes close to the value of your preps at home
 
Logistics issue #2: If for those reasons you decided not to leave your safe location to barter exchange but you still have the itch to trade. That means your “customers” would need to come to you. Is it a good idea that in a time of desperation and starvation to potentially tell the watching world that you have excess? (That not only do you have enough stuff stored to cover yourselves (when most people don't) but you have extra such that your in a position to trade away?) If that word gets out it will spread like wildfire and you should prepare to have whole lines of beggars at your gate and “authorities” wanting to talk with you about your illegal “hoarding."
 
Its probably obvious at this point that we have not put a great deal of stock into the concept of post collapse barter in our preps, but I will acknowledge that it has its place for some people and I said at the outset that it will occur. Our approach to preparedness has been three pronged with regard to laid in assets.. First step; fully prepped for our family for a year. That means everything. Next, lay in extra to be in a position to accept someone to the group who is under or not at all prepared such that it does not seriously compromise the preps of the immediate family/group. Primarily we are talking relatives and close neighbors. Finally utilizing the industry standard (if you will) of the Rawlesian approach to charity and stocking up accordingly, to do just that. I believe that for most people, because of the challenges listed above, provisions for barter should be made after those three core goals are met.
 
The Post-Crash Barter Landscape
 
1) The world’s oldest profession will skyrocket. What will be in demand to trade for those “services”? Food, mind altering substances and security.
 
2) Rural residents who already have trusted relationships with neighbors that have grown over a span of years have a good chance of barter trading during the crunch. Especially amongst the homesteader types, many of them have been barter trading with each other for years at this point. This does not mean throw OPSEC to the wind though as we are reminded by the Bible that times can come where “neighbor against neighbor and brother against brother” occur.
 
3) Lone Wolf: This type of person is a very small minority of the prepper world but they do exist. They are the Lone Wolves with bug out bags at home and in their cars. They plan to “get out of Dodge” and “head for the hills” and become invisible at least until things settle down. For most of us that would be a good way to end up starving or dying of exposure or both. These are not the “wannabe’s” without any other option than to try to make it from a metropolis to a state park some place. This is the real deal that most likely can survive this way and are not fooling themselves.  These guys typically have military experience including survival school; they are proficient with weapons as are their “hunter gatherer” skills. They are in good physical shape or have the capacity to get that way in short order. They are well versed in caches and probably have more than one already stashed.  Ironically they “get” what a group survival retreat is about better than some members of group survival retreats. It’s just that they are not “group” types, they are Lone Wolves.
 
Their plan is to lay low and remain invisible for six months or so. During that initial period, as time allows, they will conduct reconnaissance to find survival group retreats and functioning homesteads. When the time is right they plan to approach the group in a non threatening manner and offer their services to the group. Those “services” including providing intel of what’s what in the area or region. They could magically “show up” about the time that trouble was brewing or they could be sent out on search and acquire missions. For example lets say that battery charge controller on your small solar system went out; they could be sent out on a mission to acquire one and bring it back to the group. Primarily what they would want in return is food, ammo, clothing or clothing repairs and maybe even a hot shower every now and again. It would take some time to build the trust but under the right circumstances this type of person could do pretty well in a barter world.

I have been prepping for over two decades now, although some would say I have been prepping my whole life. Both sets of grandparents instilled into my parents the need to be prepared, and in turn they did the same for my siblings and me. I am the only one of my siblings who has taken it to this high a point, even though they are probably more prepared for a major event then 99% of the rest of America. My definition of prepping is, I think, a little different than most. I define my families prepping as being prepared for anything, not just TEOTWAWKI. What I mean is if we had a hurricane, tornado, a major illness causing loss of income, or whatever the world has to throw at us, we are ready for it. Now I know you can be ready for everything, but you can be prepared to handle the aftermath!

Both of my grandfathers were true craftsman. My maternal grandfather lied about his age to get into the U.S. Navy at age 16 during World War II; he was a mechanic on the USS Texas, after the war he stayed in the same field working on large diesels for the railroad then for Ryder Trucks. My patriarchal grandfather worked for the railroad from the age of 17 until he retired as a carpenter. He had a back injury from a car accident as a child that caused him to be hump backed, disqualifying him from the war; however he was an avid hunter, fishermen, and a phenomenal carpenter. My father is a structural engineer, self-employed, and a Vietnam Vet. I grew up around all of these strong Christian men to grow up around, spending alternating summers in the hills of North Carolina and the woods of East Texas staying on the gulf-coast of Texas during school.
The women in my life were also very influential I remember my grandmothers praying over me when I was sick before ever calling a doctor or getting me a Tylenol for a fever. They also taught me to “put up” food, when I was younger I loved being in the kitchen with them after taking in a bushel of something from the gardens. They would put a side what would last without spoiling and start whatever process was need to store the rest. They always taught me, “Whether for us or others God has a plan for this food.” I learned to make homemade biscuits and other breads, how to grow spices and dry them, and most of all how to make what you had last. It still amazes me to think back at the huge family meals we had, all from their cupboards.

It has been my family’s goal to never have the worry of need. If the worst where to happen we would not need to go to a store or barter for close to three years at this point. And then includes my family of 5, our parents 4, and our siblings their spouses and children 10. We do have some long term freeze dried food, but at least half of what we have is canned or prepared by my family.

Now in our version of prepping we are not talking about just food, we all know the “Bs” I would say three but there have been so many added to the original trinity of prepping “Bs” that I cannot even remember them all. We have enough medical supplies to stock a nice hospital emergency room, enough arms and ammo to keep all of our family from being liberated of our items, and we are currently building our retreat including a completely off grid setup.
In everything we store, stock, or purchases for our lives we try to find things that can be truly multi-purpose and last for a long time; for example we stock large quantities of grain alcohol as it can help clean for medical reasons, help start fires, and help warm the soul if need be.
Now to the point of this whole thing, I have read Survival Blog for years now, and have seen small articles or quick mentions of tools here and there, and I wanted to go into a little more detail and thought into prepping your tool shed.

First and foremost, buy quality! Yes you can go pick up four screwdriver sets a Wally World for what one quality set cost you at Sears, but truth be told most of us would not pick up four sets, and when you are on a roof, under the car, or even under fire and your tool breaks, it doesn’t matter you could have picked up four sets. All that matters then is you have a broken cheap tool.
Don’t judge quality by a life time warranty. There are a lot of tools out there that come with a “life time” warranty, but most of those do cover our stupidity of using a screwdriver as a chisel, and most of those require you mail the broken product off and wait 90 plus days for them ship you a replacement. We all know the Craftsman hand tool warranty, bring in the broken tool and they will give you a replacement. I do have to warn you though there are some poorly made Craftsman tools out there, so be sure you handle the tool and check it out. I have even been known to do some research online to check out the reviews before purchasing.

If it is important, get more than one. Like I said earlier if you are on the roof and your hammer breaks, it would really bite to have to go to the store, if you can, to get another one. Even though modern tools are more durable than they use to be, they can still break. Put enough force on those modern fiberglass handles and they will break. I broke a shovel handle, by having a cinder block fall two stories on to it. The falling cinder block is a whole other story, but the point is the shovel handle broke. I have multiple shovels, hammer, screw driver sets, chisels, wrenches, pliers, etc. I even have extra handles for my tools, and some quality lumber stored that I could turn into a handle if need be.

Figure out what you are going to do when the power is out. When buying power tools be sure you don’t have to fully rely on plugging them in. First with hand power tools, if you are without power you are pretty much out of luck. That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t have them, it just means you should be ready to be without them. Be sure you have a couple of different handsaws, hand drills, hand planes, pretty much any powered hand tool you get be sure you have a backup. I was lucky to inherit both of my grandfather’s tools; it was amazing to find tools from my great-great grandfathers tools mixed into these that still worked and sometimes did a better job than any new tool. As for battery powered tools, these can be a good alternative, but not the only backup. You could setup a fueled or solar generator to power the tools or charge the batteries when need be, but the system could break down, so don’t have these as your only backup. Be sure you have plenty of extra batteries and extra cells. By cells I mean inside of each battery pack there is a group of smaller cells, which most look like C-Cell batteries, but note they are not. Do a little work on Google and you will find the replacement cells for your battery pack. When one of the batteries fail it usually only a single cell or two inside the pack that have actually failed; it is a simple thing to replace one of the cells if you know how to check them and solider in the new one.  When it comes to power tools, both plug in and battery powered try to stay in the same brand. Sometimes there are parts that could be interchangeable if one breaks down, and if you stay with the same battery types it will save you a lot of headaches of dealing with multiple chargers and batteries. It is so nice to only worry about one battery. Finally stand tools. There is nothing nicer than having a good table saw, band saw, chop saw, and drill press, but what are you going to do when the power is out? During my summers in North Carolina, there was an old water powered mill. It was the most fascinating thing to see all these pulleys and belts humming all over the place. This has always been in my head when buying stand tools. Be sure the system is a pulley and belt and not a direct drive type; if need you can convert the power source from the electric motor to some alternative input. I have done a little experiment with a windmill and my table saw. After figuring out the gearing and going a little slower that I am use to, I was cutting ¾ inch plywood smooth and clean. Buy extra brushes, cords, and any other serviceable parts for all of your power tools. As with in other prepping put some thought into, so you can get the life you need out of.

Figure out what else you can do with it. Multi-purpose should always be thought about. One of the best examples I could ever give is back to my shovel. We were about to dry our clothes, when we found a wind storm had broken one of our clothes line poles the night before. For a quick fix, since we had wet clothes. I stuck the shovel in the ground and tied the clothes line off to it. Don’t ever look at anything as a single purpose item; of course this doesn’t mean miss use a tool, like a gun butt does not make a good hammer, but always be aware of your tools how they work, and what else you can do with them. Clamps have a 101+ uses, maybe this will be my next letter, screw drivers in a pinch can be used a wedge, pliers can go from the garden to the car to your mouth if need be. A drill can power things from a coffee grinder to an ice cream maker, or a meat grinder to a water pump, I have even powered a chicken plucker with a hammer drill before. There are even now power tools that have interchangeable heads. The one I purchased has a drill, jig saw, electric hammer, socket driver, sanding pads, and cut-off blade; there was also a battery powered version that used the same batteries as my other tools. So with two tools I have 6 tools both plug-in and battery powered so really 12 different tools.
If you can’t find your tools you might as well not have. You shouldn’t be without is a good toolbox. Now I am not talking about a little portable hand tool box, which you should have a few of as well, I am talking about a large multi-drawer/cabinet toolbox. Have a nice place to put your tools. Be sure to keep some desiccant in the drawer to try and keep moister down. I know the cost of these can be high, but a good quality nice looking toolbox, make you proud of your tools, and in turn helps you want to keep them organized, clean and put away.

Take care of them and keep them clean. I remember my grandfather taking is air-tools apart cleaning, greasing, and oiling them. I also remember him wiping down and oiling his hammer, screw drivers, wrenches. I know some of our tools today are made of products that will not rust, but most just have some coating or covering on them and when scratched can start to rust. A simple wipe down with oil will help the metal will last for a lot longer. Furthermore if you are storing some tools stock, just like your guns, keep them oiled, when you go to use them it could be the difference in a quality tool and a wrench so rusted to slips around the nut. In the tools I inherited from my grandfather there where some of the first Craftsman power tools, the old chrome ones, which still worked! There were hand tools with their original boxes that if the cardboard wasn’t yellowed you would have had no idea they were well used. A good tool taken care of will last several life times.

Don’t forget the big guys. Now let’s talk about a few big items I don’t think we should be without. One of the most important big tools, in my humble opinion, is a diesel welder/generator. This item covers so many bases I think there are too many list, but luckily I also think it is self-explanatory. Now the welder/generator should not be your primary generator, but a backup one that can also weld. Next would be a compressor. A single compressor can power a huge amount of air tools, as well as just having the high pressure air to clean, feel tires, and more. With the compressor be sure to have extra hoses and fittings. I also love the Shop-Smith multi-tool; however I do not own one. I have recently used a newer one and was very pleased with its performance, my only two complaints were one it was a little cumbersome to switch between tools and two if it breaks down all your tools are out of commission. For the amount of room it took up compared to the tools it replaced I think it might soon be an addition to my shop. As for the compressor and Shop-Smith they both can be powered by alternative power from wind and water, to solar or fueled generator, so be sure you have a backup to power them.

Know your tool, know your environment. Make sure you have the proper place to use your tools. A lot of tools create a lot of dust or fumes, be sure you have a well ventilate place to use your tools. Be sure you have a secure safe place to use your tools. And most important be sure you know how to properly use your tools. I have watched so many "reality" shows that by the end I am amazed the people are still alive. Read the manuals, know when and what to oil, how to sharpen, how to change accessories, what and how to wax, and most important simply how to use it.

In my opinion all of what I have said is just common since, but sometimes you just have to hear it or see it, for to sink in. Being prepared for anything includes being able to fix a squeaky door, level a floor, or performing a head job on your truck. Whatever it is you will need the right tools and in working order. Put some thought into and the end game will be just that much easier. 

An aspect of survival preparedness that is easily overlooked and sometimes ignored is the utilization of a home-based small business as a means of financial preparation as well as a method of acquiring and stockpiling survival necessities.  It appears likely that some level of collapse and restructuring of our financial and monetary system will take place in the near future.  Establishing your own business is a good way to protect against a financial system catastrophe and prepare for other disastrous events. 

Starting and growing a small business may seem a daunting task for many, however, it can be done with very little start-up capital by utilizing resources you may already have.  Some intangible principles needed for any business start-up should be familiar to most readers of this blog.  They include:  goal oriented planning, hard work, resourcefulness, ethics, sacrifice, and a good team to work with.  As a business owner, I can confirm that if you plan to start a business, be prepared to work many long, hard hours if you expect any measure of success.

Before considering starting a business, look in the mirror.  Define your core competencies.  In this country, business opportunities are endless so you must carve yourself a niche based on your strengths.  Everyone is unique and holds particular skills and talents.  It is essential that you identify and take advantage of these strengths not only in business, but in all aspects of life.  Know yourself.

The clichéd idea of goal setting is actually a very useful and essential tool in both prepping and business.  For many people, making a simple list is the most effective way of setting and executing goals.  I have found that it is important to keep two sets of goals at all times:  long term and short term.  A list of goals should be periodically updated as part of an ongoing assessment of your current and projected situation.  Without clearly defined goals it is easy to fall into a state of complacency and lose your direction.  To avoid becoming overwhelmed, start with smaller, more attainable goals.  Achieving these short term goals will facilitate the execution of your larger long term goals.  The satisfaction of achieving goals can become a genuinely strong motivating force.

Once you have defined your goals and core competencies, the actual process of starting a business is quite easy.  Most states have a web site that can assist you in forming your business.  Online legal services like LegalZoom.com can make it easy to do all of the proper filings.  Your lawyer can also guide you in the right direction.  Legal and state filing fees vary from state to state, but expect to spend at least $500 on this process.  Depending on your business and the state you are in, there may be insurance requirements as well.  It is important to consult a lawyer and accountant when considering starting a business.

I am a carpenter by trade, so start-up of our remodeling company for my partner (brother) and I was relatively inexpensive.  We already had trucks, tools, computers, etc., so it was really a matter of organization.  I have an associate’s degree in business and my brother has a bachelor’s degree in advertising, so we did start the venture with some business background.  We both also had extensive backgrounds in construction.  However, continuing education through books, trade publications, and classes has been and continues to be an invaluable resource for us.  Continually developing your skills and knowledge goes hand in hand with the growth of a business.  Whatever field of business you choose, it is important to not only have business skills, but to become an expert in your field.  There is no substitute for experience, so identifying and developing your core competencies is crucial.

We started our remodeling company in August of 2008, which was the start of the worst period ever for remodelers and home builders.  We worked out of my garage and the back of my Ford Ranger for the first year or so, and it was not easy.  However, because we started with what we had, and avoided the trap of heavily leveraging ourselves, we have seen consistent growth each year.  Our sales have doubled every year since start-up, we have one company vehicle (soon to be two), a 3,000 square foot shop in which we are building a 400 square foot design/sales center, one full-time employee and one part-time employee (in addition to my brother and I), a network of clients, suppliers, and reliable sub-contractors, and virtually zero debt.

You might be wondering what growing a remodeling company has to do with survival preparedness  Any business provides its owner(s) with an opportunity to acquire things they want without having to pay for them directly while providing a tax shelter.  I certainly don’t suggest doing anything illegal, so always consult a lawyer and accountant with any tax or liability questions. 

Our shop has a modest, but growing stock of lumber, hardware, fasteners, electrical and plumbing supplies, tools, kerosene heaters, cleaning supplies, and various other supplies and equipment that are handy for home repair and improvement (or future barter/trade).  The best part is that, through reinvestment of profits, we acquired all of this stuff without coming out of pocket.  Also, because these items are business expenses, our tax burden is decreased each time we acquire them. 

Another less obvious advantage to business as it relates to survival prep is the networking opportunity.  Our growing group of clients, suppliers, and sub contractors is a resource rich network of people that otherwise would’ve never been presented to me.  For instance, one of our sub contractors has a rural property that could potentially make an ideal bug out location.  We have actually performed some barter work with this individual, so future trade/barter lines have already been established.  He also has some heavy equipment (backhoe, bulldozer) which is always a valuable resource.  One of our clients is a local jeweler who also deals in coins.  I’ve been able to purchase silver coin and bullion from him at below market premiums.  He is also open to paying us in silver or gold for our work.  He maintains a reasonable stock of gold and silver and has the ability to test and meltdown metals as well.  Needless to say, this is a good contact.  Our main plumbing supplier regularly alerts us to future fluctuations in price for things like copper and plastic pipe and fittings allowing us to stock up on these items before price increases.  Having a large stockpile of copper pipe and fittings prior to a major currency devaluation would certainly not be a liability if SHTF.  Developing relationships with clients, suppliers, and sub contractors is an excellent exercise in survival prep as it is important to take advantage of all available resources before and after a SHTF event.

The survival prep principles and ideas that I’ve outlined as they apply to my business could apply to any business you could imagine.  I was at my local (locally owned) gun shop/range yesterday with some friends honing our shooting skills and realized that the patriots who own and operate this shop certainly have an excellent resource base for a post SHTF scenario.  I had actually done some remodeling work at this gun shop roughly seven years ago when the current owners took over, and they have really made strides in growing their business since then.  Their stock includes hundreds of guns and tens of thousands of rounds of ammunition as well as tactical gear, knives, and other accessories.  They also offer training courses in shooting and self defense, and have a very nice indoor range.  The point is that this group of entrepreneurs identified their core competencies (guns) then set and accomplished some goals.  Now they have a large retail stock of arguably one of the most valuable post-SHTF commodities that you could imagine.  Not to mention, it must be pretty cool walking into work every day and seeing an Armalite AR50-A1 .50 BMG caliber rifle sitting on the shelf with a case full of shells the size of bananas.

There are countless way to go into business for yourself that could give you a major advantage as you prepare for whatever is coming.  If you love fashion and clothing, start a dress shop.  Seamstress skills and equipment will be extremely valuable post SHTF.  Do you love to cook?  Open a diner or restaurant.  It certainly wouldn’t hurt to have a bunch of food and cooking supplies on hand.  Do you love the outdoors?  Start an online outfitter’s retail site.  Selling camping and survival gear is a great way to supplement your own survival needs.  Are you a talented writer?  Start a survival blog web site and publish books that contain invaluable information needed when considering preparation for any type of disaster.  On second thought, maybe you shouldn’t do that last one.  The bottom line is that almost any business endeavor you can imagine can provide some practical advantage to the prepper lifestyle.  You just need to apply some basic principles that you already have.  The gratification and independence achieved by building your own business can help you prepare for whatever happens in life in more ways than you might think.  Independent entrepreneurship is what made this country great, and I believe that that spirit is what will drive us through the hard times ahead.

Recently, due to financial considerations, we decided to end our garbage collection service. It wasn't a large expense, but our budget is tighter than ever these days and with some planning we realized that it was actually a luxury, not a necessity. Besides, those of us who are preparing for the likely future of a breakdown in society shouldn't really expect to have convenient curb waste disposal services, now should we? How were you planning on handling that day when it comes? You have 500 trash bags and you're just going to stack bags of trash in some out-of-the-way corner of the barn for vermin to sort through and spread health hazards? What about sanitation? When your water service cuts off and your toilet won't flush you can pump or haul water, or maybe you have plans to dig an outhouse. Let me propose some better solutions to you.

Now, I live in a rural area, in the unincorporated area of a county and not within any city limits, so much of what I propose is applicable to my situation here and will not apply to city dwellers. You need land to be sustainable in any real sense. Over years of living a preparedness lifestyle, I have realized that in the long run preparedness blends into sustainability. I have solar and wind power, a wood stove, a biofuel vehicle, a large garden, and now a composting toilet not because I'm an extreme environmentalist, but because the less I depend on the infrastructure of society, the less it matters to me whether it's there or not. If/when “something bad happens”, I don't have to do anything special. My fuel supplies stay stocked, my food supplies are rotated constantly as part of “normal life”. If the grid goes down suddenly the extent of my panic will be to turn on the shortwave and scanner to start collecting news. However, in this article I will try to contain myself to discussing the subject at hand, which is waste management.

The first step to dealing with “waste” is mental. You need to adjust your thinking to realize that hardly anything is truly “waste”. Almost everything can be reused or recycled, and then it's not “waste” any more, it's useful. Also, on the front end the less packaging and non-recyclable items you bring into your life to begin with the less you'll have to deal with on the back end. As our family lifestyle became more sustainable over time, I was amazed at the reduction in volume of “trash” that we had. I'll now cover each disposal method in turn.

First, there is burning. Let's say you just pulled out a frozen dinner to eat, or a new product from the package. Most likely the package was either paperboard or corrugated cardboard, perhaps wrapped in plastic (we'll get to the plastic). Let's start with the obvious: paper and cardboard burn very well and fairly completely if given sufficient oxygen. In our house we have a wood stove, and I use waste paper and cardboard as kindling to light it. Now that we're in the heating season I can dispose of quite a lot of paper waste this way. Several months before heating season starts I begin stockpiling all the paper, paperboard and corrugated containers, newspapers, and non-glossy sales circulars so we will have sufficient kindling all winter long. A note to stove owners: newer catalytic stoves are picky about what you feed them. Check your owner's manual for information about burning paper, because you don't want to poison the stove catalyst. My understanding is that if you stick to non-colored paper such as office paper this should be okay even in catalytic stoves. The rest of the paper and combustible waste I burn in the burn barrel. My wood stove ash gets used to make lye, and then lye soap with, so I try to only burn clean materials without brightly colored inks or glossy paper, as these could contain undesirable chemicals. The remaining depleted ash has less potassium content but is still a useful fertilizer, so I spread it on the lawn and around trees. A side note: I once calculated the fuel value of the paperboard container of a package of macaroni and cheese. It's easy enough to weigh the empty box with a kitchen scale, and the resulting weight is pure dry carbohydrate biomass, with an energy content of 4 Calories (that is, kilocalories or 4184 J) per gram. I discovered the box had about 200 Calories of energy! If you burn the box, that's less Calories of food energy you have to consume in winter to stay warm. Think of all the extra heat you're missing, just lurking in everyday “waste” products....

Now, the old familiar burn barrel has been well known ever since shortly after the introduction of steel 55 gallon drums. It suffers from low combustion temperatures and limited oxygen, leading to dirty and incomplete combustion. I have constructed a “turbo” burn barrel with a few simple modifications. I took an old rusty open-top drum and cut a 4-inch round hole in the side just above the bottom. This is easily accomplished with a power drill and jigsaw with a metal cutting blade. Even this one improvement will go a long way toward making the barrel burn better since air can now flow in the bottom, but this wasn't all I had in mind. I then attached a length of 4-inch aluminum flexible duct, the kind that's used on clothes dryers, and a small blower motor. I had a bathroom vent-type blower left over from another project, and it handily fits onto a 4 inch flex duct. Now what you have more closely resembles a blacksmith's forge than a regular burn barrel. Of course, for true off-grid use you'd need a DC blower instead, but I have about half a dozen different ways to generate AC. For 12 VDC, I'm sure a salvaged automotive ventilation blower could be modified to fit the bill, or perhaps even a computer-style axial fan, some of the larger ones can move quite a bit of air.

Regardless of the air source, you now have a burn barrel that breathes much better and will combust materials much more completely. It's perfect for disposing of any combustible waste materials including paper and yes, most plastics. If you look at the recycling symbol found on most plastic packaging you will learn what it's made from. Here's a quick guide:

1 - PETE (polyethylene terephtalate), combustible
2 - PE-HD (high density polyethylene), combustible
3 - PVC (polyvinyl chloride), non-combustible
4 - PE-LD (low density polyethylene), combustible
5 - PP (polypropylene), combustible
6 - PS (polystyrene), combustible
7 - Other (often polycarbonate or ABS), non-combustible

Remember that plastics are made from oil. Most forms of plastic, under proper high-temperature combustion with adequate oxygen, happily just melt and burn like oil. The problems with plastics are the ones containing chlorine in the formulation somehow. This includes plastics like PVC. If these are burned, hazardous chlorine compounds are formed. If no other means of disposal is available, these plastics will have to be given the second disposal method, burial or landfilling.

I am not technically qualified to offer advice on landfilling, but US Army Field Manual 21-10, “Field Hygiene and Sanitation” does offer some guidelines. Some items will have to be landfilled, such as the ash left over from the burn barrel, and those plastics which are not safely combustible. Currently, I am still able to drive to a nearby town and pay for disposal by the pound, so right now I am not having to landfill anything.

The next disposal method I will cover after burning and burying is composting. Any organic material can and should be composted. Composting is nature's own recycling mechanism, capable of turning waste back into useful materials and neutralize a wide variety of harmful substances! A properly built compost pile will heat up to sterilizing temperatures and not only kill bacteria and other harmful organisms but also neutralize many harmful chemicals too. All kitchen scraps, yard and garden waste, dead small animals, waste oil and grease, and other organic materials should go in the compost pile. Yes, many compost experts have long advocated the “don't” list of forbidden materials in the pile, normally including things like meat, fats, and pet and human wastes. At this point let me stop and strongly advocate that you go and read “The Humanure Handbook” by Joseph Jenkins. It's available free online, or you can buy a printed copy inexpensively from the usual sources. I can't recommend this book highly enough. In it the author does a thorough job of debunking many of the compost myths. He quotes a long list of sources and research studies to prove his points. In fact, most of the book is about composting in general, not just the title topic. Please do yourself and your family a favor and read this book.

[JWR Adds an Important Caveat Lector: While some of the advice given by Jenkins in his Humanure Handbook is good, I soundly reject his assertion that "humanure" can be used in vegetable gardens in all climates and at all times of the year. Outside of the tropics, in three seasons there is simply too much risk of disease transmission. Unless all of the waste from carnivores and omnivores gets above the viability temperature for bacteria, then it is a biohazard. If you must use "humanure", then use it only for flower beds and shrubbery. And for that, be sure to use a separate, dedicated set of spades and buckets that have their handles marked with red tape. Never use those tools in your vegetable garden!]

After reading the book, I constructed a three-bin compost system similar to the one shown in the book. Each bin is about 5'x5'x4'. You start constructing a pile by laying down a foot or more of absorbent organic material as a buffer. In my case, I had numerous cubic yards of wood chips left over from other projects, so that's what I used. Then on top of that you start building your compost pile, adding to it a little at a time as materials become available. The active materials stay covered with a thick blanket of dry high-carbon materials (think hay or straw) on top to retain heat. A long-stem compost thermometer is a useful tool to tell you how your pile is doing, and within days mine had heated up over 120 degrees. Most days it hovers between 120 and 140, and this is even with the arrival of fall weather and cooler temperatures. All known gastrointestinal pathogens die within 24 hours at temperatures of 120 degrees..

This ties in naturally with my next topic, sanitation. As part of my long-term sustainability plans I have a rainwater collection system and a large cistern, but if I lose my utility water supply my quantities of water will be very limited. Even with a modern efficient toilet, flushing water is still a major demand. I had been researching for a long time to find better alternatives when I learned about the humanure handbook and got an education in composting. However, my plans for a “plan B” got accelerated when my old gravity flow septic system started having problems. I won't describe all the details, but now we are at the point where it barely works and the choices are either to dig up and replace the drain field at huge expense or decommission it. Enter “plan B”, front and center. My old farm house already had a gray water drain connected to the clothes washer, but now I have rearranged the plumbing so the kitchen sink, dishwasher, and shower drain into it as well. Thank goodness for an old pier and beam farmhouse, and a generous crawl space, that makes retrofits like this possible.  For the toilet, I constructed the "lovable loo" according to the plans in the book.  You can also buy it pre-made online if you don't like woodworking.  It uses 5 gallon buckets as the collection receptacle, but all the composting happens in the large pile in the yard where it can be done efficiently at high temperatures.  It's amazing, but just adding some dry high-carbon material to the bucket to cover after each use keeps the contents aerobic and completely stops odor, flies, and other problems traditionally associated with portable toilets and outhouses.  Sawdust, leaves, straw, newspaper, finely shredded mulch, all work perfectly well.  It just needs to be relatively dry (to offset the moisture content of what's going in the toilet) and have a high carbon/nitrogen ratio (to offset the high nitrogen content of what's going in the toilet).  What else can I say?  It works.  Read the book.

Another aspect of sanitation is feminine hygiene. Instead of stockpiling large amounts of necessary products ahead of time, we found it made more sense to just go sustainable instead. Plans are available on the internet to make your own feminine pads, but for the time involved I think it just makes more sense to buy instead. Many thanks to the folks at Naturally Cozy, we can testify to the quality of their products. That's one less thing to have to worry about. For actual washing, we have a number of options but normally choose to use the spin-type pressure hand washer from Lehman's for small amounts of soiled articles like this that you might not want to mix with your regular loads of laundry. This works for future off grid use as well, since it's hand powered. More or less the same should apply to families with young children in diapers too. It doesn't make sense to stockpile the large quantities needed, and then to have a waste disposal problem on the other end. The best way to dispose of waste is not to have it in the first place.

For large-scale clothes washing in a grid down situation, we should still be able to use our electric washer (but not dryer) since we have several ways to generate electricity. We have two generators, one truck with a beefy inverter, and a large 120 Volt AC inverter on the solar power system. Any of these should run the washer at least occasionally. We have a significant stock of detergent and a very nice clothes line. For return on dollars invested on renewable energy improvements, you can't beat the good old fashioned clothes line.

Okay, we have dealt with the combustible trash and plastics, but what about metals and glass? Currently there are recycling centers close by, and some of these materials can even put a little money back in your pocket, but in the future these will need to be dealt with differently. For aluminum, probably the best “disposal” method is melting and casting. I am not currently equipped to do this, although it is one of the next areas of preparedness/sustainability I plan to tackle. A small furnace can easily reach aluminum melting temperatures. In fact, my turbo burn barrel can probably reach aluminum melting temperatures. Hmmm, use trash to dispose of trash? Now there's an idea...

I have not seen much in the way of glass melting and casting/blowing information, but I know that people do this for a hobby so information has to be available. Reusing existing glass bottles, jars, and containers as much as possible is probably the best interim solution, but what do you do with extras, or broken pieces? Being able to turn them back into useful goods would be much better than landfilling.

After all that has been dealt with, there is still hazardous waste. Broken electronics, batteries, chemicals, and other things we don't want to mess with. For now it usually possible to turn these in at special hazardous waste collection centers, or at special “collection drives” that our local governments sponsor a few times a year. When this is no longer possible, encapsulation and storage will probably be the only option. I should also note that any very old painted wood could possibly contain lead-based paint, which should not be burned. It probably shouldn't be landfilled anywhere except in a properly designed landfill either, so if you have some, get rid of it now or you may be stuck with a problem. Computers can be parted out into components and the remaining circuit boards take up much less space. There is nearly a pound of aluminum in an average hard drive, and one or two really useful rare earth magnets.

A disclaimer: we don't live completely off grid for electricity or water. We have a 600W photovoltaic array and small wind turbine that together run a 900 Ah battery bank and Sun Frost 12 Volt DC refrigerator and SunDanzer 12V freezer. The rest of the house is on utility power. If the utility goes down, the food stays cold even without me having to start the generator. I designed the system for 12 volts instead of 24 so I can recharge the battery bank from a vehicle if necessary, or even jump start a vehicle from the constantly-charged battery bank. Likewise, we use utility water but I can throw two valves and in a matter of minutes run the house plumbing from a 10,000 gallon cistern with rain water. The pumps (two, double redundant) can be run directly from the PV system, and the water goes through 5 micron filtration and a Sterilight UV sterilization system. In other words, the grid is still “Plan A”, but I can implement “Plan B” very rapidly and have tested it.

Living off grid doesn't have to be onerous. In most cases it's more work than the convenience of living on grid, but then what do you do when the grid goes down? Besides, the work is mostly good exercise and enjoyable. I like cutting and splitting wood. I love the warm radiant heat of the wood stove. I love the security of having my own power company, my own water utility, and my own gas station. Most people just rent their lifestyle month by month, but I own mine outright. Take away either the monthly income or the infrastructure, and “plan A” ceases to work rather rapidly.

I've been a faithful reader of SurvivalBlog and several others for several years. I have downloaded the archives onto my Kindle and am about halfway through those, too. I am simultaneously fascinated, entertained, and horrified by what I have read. I have learned a lot, been totally confused/overwhelmed by everything electronic, amused and entertained by the fascination with firearms and ammunition, and all over the scale on 1,001 other issues. Can anyone ever be "fully prepped?" Probably not, but we are all working on it or toward it. This article is about how you can simultaneously help other "survivors" while helping yourself. Let's take a different direction and make you an entrepreneur for TEOTWAWKI. (This is going to be a point-counterpoint style article--I'll take some heat, for sure, but debate is always good. And, we're going simple with this article--It seems to me that simple is generally better than complicated).
 
A little bio first. I am not a kid. In fact, I am certainly older (65) than most of you reading this. Same wife (prettier than ever, confuses me even more today than the day we married) for 43+ years. Two grown and awesome sons, one a military academy grad/serving O-5, the other a major corporation marketing executive. (Even though I love to brag about them, OPSEC says stop now).
 
My military (23 years active/reserve commissioned officer, US Army) and civilian background (independent consultant) is leadership, operations, tactics, strategy, and senior executive staffing (and flying helicopters. I earned an MBA from a big-deal business school--you need one of those in my business for the credibility--but I believe I learned more about life as a tactical flight instructor at Fort Rucker than I have in business or graduate school). I know ("used to know" is more accurate, I guess; most of my weapons knowledge is dated, for sure) a lot about things that shoot (Infantry OCS--"Benning School For Boys"--grad in the 1960s, Vietnam combat vet, qualified on everything from the .38 revolvers to 81mm mortars and the 106mm recoilless rifle. I don't think anyone has written about that last weapon in this space--It would be very useful against the "Golden Horde" WTSHTF, wouldn't it? The last of those are somewhere out west on avalanche-suppression duty). I am not a "gun guy," but respect those of you who are. And, I hope (and predict) you won't get a chance to exercise those skills WTSHTF. More on that in a minute.
 
I am a long term prepper. Guess what got me started? I have been a coin collector since I was a kid. Believe it or not, when I was a teenager (if you were very lucky and looked through enough rolls of pennies), you could find 1909 S-VDBs and 1914Ds in circulation. If anything will raise your awareness of the value of money/decline in the value of the dollar, coin collecting will do it. Watching the metals markets and buying/selling coins and metals have consistently made me money and continue to do so today. (Even with the recent "haircut" we have taken in the metals market, as my bullion dealer, who lost a lot more money than I have said: "A loss isn't a loss until you sell." Hold on to your gold and silver; the prices will certainly come back. Watch for the dips and add more as you are able. Jim--My pile of nickels is getting big).
 
Here's a little "detour" on the subject of "junk" silver coins (I really dislike the term--They are a long way from junk, but we're stuck forever with the inaccurate handle), but it relates to post-TEOTWAWKI commerce, so this is a good place to mention it. I'll try to stay out of the weeds here. The U.S. Mint switched over to copper clad coins in 1965 (only a few collector [proof] coins have been made of silver since; these generally carry a numismatic premium over the "melt" value--too complicated to worry about here. Also, please do not ding me on the [latter] 40% silver halves. You and I know what they are, but why confuse the rest of the audience?), so you want pre-1965 dimes/quarters/halves in your survival stock. The metal changed, but the design of the coins did not--Roosevelt dimes, Washington quarters, and Kennedy halves are still being minted today, but in the debased (copper clad) metal. This gives you several choices. You can stock up on the old (pre-'65) silver coins in these designs or easily go one design back on the dimes and halves. Given the choice (and for a small premium over the Roosevelts/Kennedys), select "Mercury" (technically, "Winged Liberty") dimes and "Walking Liberty" halves for your survival stock. When the time comes to "spend" (or accept) them, the older designs will be more quickly accepted (they exist in silver only, not clad); the others will need to be more closely examined (to make sure they are silver, not clad). If you are putting away silver quarters, you are more or less stuck with Washingtons, which replaced "Standing Liberties" in 1932--those are pretty scarce, have more numismatic residual value, and probably not as useful for trade (again, a little too complicated). I have purchased gold and silver for many years from Gold & Bullion Reserves of Panama City, Florida. Larry Lee (PNG member) is a class guy and they sell for less of a premium than many other firms. If you go for halves, you can generally purchase "Franklins" for the same price as Kennedys. I think the Franklins are the better choice, again because of the confusion associated with the Kennedys (silver, 40% silver--Why would anyone want those? Worth less than a silver quarter, takes up twice the space, and confuses everyone--or clad, worth roughly nothing). Enough on that. This little detour on silver will probably generate more arguing and quibbling than the rest of the article.
 
I got serious about preparing for disaster with Y2K, as I worried about the possible meltdown of every way money moves electronically. Like everyone who prepared seriously, I felt a little foolish after the non-event, but I also learned lessons that have served me and my family well, as we have faced several "glancing blows" and one direct hit of hurricanes since. We have wasted almost nothing we stocked--There are still a few odds and ends in the garage, but I have used almost everything over the years. I actually used a Y2K replacement toilet flapper in the last week (nothing to expire there). The emergency food we had stocked--a full year's worth--made a nice contribution to the Rescue Mission (and tax deduction for us) after the fact. This provided a yearly model we continue to follow today--Win/win/win for the mission and freshness rotation/tax deduction for us. (Important record-keeping side issue: If you tithe to your church and you exceed this with additional contributions to other charitable organizations, be prepared to defend every dollar you have donated. The IRS is amazed and skeptical when someone gives away ten percent or more of their income. I have been audited every year for my charitable contributions since 2000. Save every receipt from every purchase and be sure to back this up with the charity's receipt and your itemized list. This has managed to satisfy the Feds every year). 
 
Let's set the stage for an opposing view of what I believe a "Post-TEOTWAWKI" U.S.A. will look like, at least around here. I see more order and goodness than many others who have written in this space. I believe the basic American instincts, beliefs, and attitudes of freedom, patriotism, fair play, charity, entrepreneurial spirit, and love of God and country (not necessarily in that order; rearrange as you see fit and continue with your own list) will ultimately trump the darker forces of chaos, violence, and evil--at least outside the major metropolitan areas and especially outside the Eastern "Megalopolis." By my mind, those cities and suburbs are already lost beyond retrieval; God help you and your family if you live there and you have decided to "bug-in." Nothing good is going to happen between Richmond and Boston.   
 
I live in a small metro area extremely conservative in nature, adjacent to a small military installation. I estimate there are several times more guns in my county than there are people--We have lots of "polite" people. If any community will organize itself to survive a societal meltdown, this will be the one. Even our power plant could be disconnected from the eastern grid and last for quite a while (even though their coal pile is limited by state law to 90 days' supply). So, my perspective in this article is primarily for folks living in and around smaller and conservative cities, not the big ones. (Side message for those of you reluctant to move because you are clinging to "wonderful" schools around a major metro area--We bailed out of one of those "top" school districts in Dupage County, Illinois (a Chicago suburb) with young children 25 years ago. Both sons did well in the local school system. Our older son went to West Point. Our younger son recently finished his Executive MBA and was an academic scholarship and college soccer player as an undergraduate. It's clear to me that the standards parents set at home are a lot more important than those prevailing in the local school system. Your kids will thrive, too, if you stay involved with them--set higher personal academic and behavioral standards than the local school system does, keep them busy and involved with the church, find and encourage them to participate in team sports, monitor their friends, and so forth. My mother used to tell me you can predict how well someone will do with their lives by measuring the quality of their friends. Members of our church used to tell us they wanted kids like ours--I told them we didn't do anything that they couldn't do. Helping your kids stand up to peer pressure is probably the toughest task parents can face--but the payoff is high).
 
Here we go. "It"--some sort of meltdown--has hit us: Here we are several weeks into some world-changing catastrophe. It seems to me the cause of the disaster matters very little; there are plenty of causes to bring about the crunch. Major cities on the East Coast have rioted/burned, thousands/millions are dead, survivors are hungry and streaming to the countryside. They are a long way from us. If a few stragglers make it here, they will almost certainly be absorbed (resort community with lots of absentee-owner condos--we are a "bug-out" location for preppers located in several major southeastern US cities), run off, or killed (there are plenty--plenty--of combat veterans here. This is a military and veteran community, remember? If you are still in the process of selecting a bugout, retreat, or relocation site, add that possibility (owning a summer resort condo as bugout location) to your calculations. (I recall from the SurvivalBlog archives someone predicting bad things potentially happening around military installations because of all the "under-employed" troops hanging around. I see no way "bad" things could happen--Anyone believing that has absolutely no experience in the character of young enlisted people currently serving (it's high)--Our former and retired NCOs and officers will feed 'em, lead 'em, and put them to work protecting us).
 
Here are my predictions: The county Sheriff's Department--augmented with plenty of volunteers, reservists, and community watch groups--has the violence tamped down and under control. It didn't take long at all for a county-wide ad hoc system of emergency radio to replace the 911 system (FRS, CB, ham, and so forth). Cell phones are working for local calls. (Another side issue: In hurricane territory, you keep at least one "hard-wired" phone in the house--Phone service is sometimes uninterrupted when the power is down. Cordless phones stop working when the power is off. I also have a satellite phone for backup communications with the kids). Looters and violent offenders--there were a few--were shot. Somehow, that served as a useful deterrent. Several school buses parked across the roads into town/bridges into the county have controlled and limited access from the outside. Our very polite/well-armed deputies manning the roadblocks are letting all residents and property owners through (those absentee condo owners with proof of it). Others have to have a sponsor to vouch for them and come and get them--friends, relatives, and so forth. Those not making the cut are given modest rations of food, water, and fuel along with good directions down the road.
 
Stores are mostly closed/shuttered. Law enforcement is still functioning and robust. There are armed guards securing "Big Box" stores. We have a large marine gasoline terminal (delivered here by barge on the Intercoastal Waterway); also armed guards there. Some service stations are still operating on generator power (cash only--silver is best; prices are inflated), but no one seems to be driving much; the roads are almost deserted. There was some sporadic looting downtown ('bad" neighborhood) and at a few isolated C-stores in the rural areas. Neighborhood watch groups organized pretty quickly, with neighborhood entrances manned and blocked. The churches were also quick to act, opening their food pantries (evidently, there was a lot more prep than anticipated and we learned important lessons on refugee feeding from Hurricane Katrina) and their kitchens. Our people are taking care of each other.
 
So. The situation is more-or-less stable ...at least temporarily. We are living off stored supplies. Help is obviously not on the way; the feds and the state have their hands full elsewhere, big time. Imagine one of Malcolm Gladwell's tipping points--Which way will this one go? Chaos or civilized adaptation?
 
If you believe (as I do) that commerce is one of mankind's great civilizing forces--and, that it's pretty hard to stamp it out--it seems to me that all preppers have an important additional duty of using their entrepreneurial skills to help tamp down possible violence, help the less-prepared survive the crisis, and all the while improve their and everyone else's chances of surviving (even prospering) from the turmoil. I think a great way to do this would be through organizing your thoughts and actions now to operate a modest retail operation for barter, trading, and sales of useful and essential items for the general population. Let's call it your "Micro Store." Any prepper should be able to do this at some level.
 
My initial thought was to create a modest "template"--sort of a basic stocking list--of essential stuff in reach to just about every prepper, probably a footlocker or two of inventory that would be easy enough to move around by cart or hand truck and that would provide a rate-of-return of about five times the investment required to put it together, all the while helping out those who need what you have put away (and would be willing to pay for what they need).
 
I've looked at lists, lists of lists, made my own list and lists of lists. Thought about/thrown out lots of ideas. I decided to approach this as I would a project for one of my consulting clients.
 
I also consult for other consultants and have learned that elegant, complicated recommendations to clients often wind up in the bottom desk drawer and unexecuted, so I decided to (try to) keep this modest analysis as simple and as easy to execute as possible. The answer to the first question is actually the toughest. At the high end extreme, you would be the WTSHTF version of a Wal-Mart--not very practical--space, transport, security, costs, and so forth push us to smaller, more conservative strategies . At the low end extreme, you would have a few extra items--things you overbought/excess to personal needs--from your prep stock to trade for things you forgot or used up. With some analysis, we can obviously do a lot better than that--You are an entrepreneur as well as a prepper, remember?
 
Even though you might ultimately develop into a post-TEOTWAWKI retailer (as an ongoing business), I am not going to try to chart a path to that; that would be far beyond the interests of most of us and this article. Instead, I see several other things we might accomplish with a barter strategy (in no particular order--assign you own weights to these)--
 
--Through individual leadership, add to community/neighborhood stability. Trading is one of the key human behaviors separating us from the animals. Along with farming, trading helped civilize the world.
 
--Help other people. However well/poorly your neighbors have prepared, there will be things others need that you can stock up on now to exchange (sell/trade/barter) later. In a voluntary exchange of any goods, both sides receive utility. More on this later.
 
--Leverage your position and help yourself. For the entrepreneur, you have the opportunity to sell/trade goods for more than you paid for them. We call this entrepreneurial gain. Typical retail markup is 100-150%. In a SHTF situation, your potential markup will be somewhat higher than that, but beware of price-gouging; it could undue all the goodwill you have created.
 
The leadership issue is an interesting one. Who will be first to set up a trading table out at the wide spot on the highway? You will, if you are prepared. Customers will come and other traders will follow. Competition is good, not bad. Remember the story of the two lawyers in town? One lawyer starves, two prosper. (Before anyone challenges me on the security issue: Yes, I believe in securing both yourself and your stock. I will do that, too--I have the firepower--but that's a subject for someone else. This article is about trading, not security). Once we have a little trading area established, it should gather momentum to everyone's benefit.
 
Let's start breaking down how to leverage your "wealth"--shooting for your entrepreneurial gain--without trying to replace Wal-Mart, remember? What do we want to sell, trade, or buy? Again, several thoughts--
If you really want to attract customers, I suggest you should think about selling and trading and buying--all three. Here's why--
 
--Selling generally means accepting some sort of currency for your goods/services. Let's assume paper currency has lost its value. You have silver coins (if you are a regular SurvivalBlog reader and don't have some pre-'65 silver at this point, you can stop reading), but your neighbors--customers--probably do not have much of it. So, be prepared to buy something from them and pay them with your silver. This will start the money circulating process that will lubricate the wheels of commerce we are hoping to achieve.
 
--Trading/Barter is also useful, but there are two ways to do this--one as a trader, where two people exchange things of equal value for personal consumption or use, the other for ultimate resale (keep thinking as an entrepreneur). The best example I can think of here is the used book store--The customer brings in two books to the store and the store trades back one. The extra book is your entrepreneurial gain. You can trade it again or sell it.
 
So, what should you stock in your little store? My selections might differ from yours, but it seems to me these are the important factors to consider what to "stock"--
--Small, compact items with high value/utility make sense: Useful, in demand, painful if you don't have it.
--Relatively inexpensive. I think small ticket items make more sense than big ones--You'll be less of a target of opportunity and will create less resentments among your customers. This strategy is about the little things, not about dealing in used tractors or horses.
--Limited amounts. You're not Wal-Mart and will need to haul this stuff to your sales location and haul it home at the end of the day. I will assume a "normal" inventory might be a footlocker's worth you can put on a hand truck or a garden cart (or maybe the bed of a pickup truck). You'll keep most of your inventory locked up somewhere else for economy, ease of transport, and security.
 
"The List." I have scratched my head for years to come up with this. No one has a monopoly on good ideas, though--Feel free to add to the list and disregard whatever you do not agree with--
 
1. Alcohol. Let's get the sin out of the way first. As a regular "Gentleman Jack" aficionado, I have a case (plus) in stock for personal use. Yeah, I know. They say a man's taste in whiskey, cigars, and women gets more expensive as a function of age. Big bottles take up too much space and they will be too expensive for regular commerce, so I think a case or two of miniatures (like you see on the airlines) makes more sense. If we can get these into circulation, I think some will use them as money. Pick your poison. My local liquor store was willing to sell me a case of regular Jack Daniels minis for $138 and a case of Absolut brand vodka (I think the ladies would probably prefer that over the Jack) for a few dollars less.

2. Coffee. Yeah, I know. The sooner I stop drinking coffee, the better (even if there are multiple, medically peer-reviewed studies illustrating clearly that drinking coffee in moderation is actually good for you. Whatever). I'll stop drinking coffee when I can't get any more, so my basic stock is a case of beans. Coffee has to be one of mankind's ultimate comfort foods and will be in high demand WTSHTF, whether it is addictive or not. You might want to put away a case or two of instant in small jars for sale/barter/trade, but I think some single service packages (the little pouches that will make one cup) make more sense. I've seen these in the warehouse stores--200 Maxwell House instant one-cup pouches per case for about $30. Get a couple of cases, at least. Sales price--three pouches/cups for a silver dime.

3. Tobacco products. I thought about leaving this off the list (because of the stigma and the general nastiness) but reconsidered after I recalled something from graduate school. This came from an MBA econ course: Do you know what the hottest, most in demand trading item in WWII prisoner of war camps was? It was cigarettes. Not chocolate, not canned food, not coffee. True, times have changed, but there are still plenty of smokers who will want their nicotine fix as long as they can get it. And, they will pay for their smokes. In the big cities, cigarettes are already being sold one or two at a time--This is the model I see post-TEOTWAWKI. A carton or two will be enough for you to stock. Sell two or three cigarettes for a silver dime. (You can store them in plastic bags in the freezer to keep them fresh if you want, but my sense of this is that stale or fresh won't make much difference to dedicated smokers.)

4. Ammunition. There is so much content concerning ammunition already on SurvivalBlog, anything I might add would be redundant or under-whelming, with one exception. We are loaded up with squirrels in my neighborhood--We jokingly refer to it as "Southeastern U.S. Squirrel Headquarters." (Hickory, oak, pecan, pine, and an invasive species the locals call "popcorn" trees--you should see those little suckers shuck the pinecones and the mess that makes when they go for the seed kernels--support a huge population). I have killed several hundred with my trusty single-shot air rifle--Good for making me feel better after I see them stripping the baby grapefruit off the tree--but not dependable enough for the stew pot. They replenish themselves faster than I can pop them. When I was a kid, I had a bolt action Mossberg .22 I could load up nearly a full box of .22 [CB] "caps" or about half a box of "shorts." I wish I still had that little rifle. Caps and shorts would be great for squirrel hunting in the neighborhood--safer than "longs" or LRs, a lot less noise, and less expensive, too. Why not put away a couple of bricks of those for trade/squirrel hunting (and the rats that will be eating everyone's garbage)?

5. Lantern mantles. I learned about this one the hard way from backpacking and canoeing trips--You cannot ever have enough of these (if you have propane lanterns) because they are so fragile after you "burn them in" they are always disintegrating when you move the lantern around. And, there's nothing so frustrating as a lantern, plenty of gas, and no mantle to make it work. I've probably used a hundred or more over the years and can detect absolutely no difference between the no-name cheapies and expensivo Colemans--They all work the same and they all break the same. Wal-Mart has cheapies for $.44/each. Get 50 or so, sell for a silver dime each in your store. (At the current rate of about 24:1, that's a good one for you). You might also want to stock a couple of dozen lamp wicks.

6. Miniature bottles  (1/8 oz.) of Tabasco sauce. We are very likely going to be eating a little differently when TSHTF; Tabasco will make about anything that isn't sweet taste better (or at least cover up/camouflage the taste of raccoon or possum or whatever was in the trap). You could buy a case or two of the little bottles sold at the grocery store, but miniatures are a better choice. Here's a great example of how a little research can make a huge difference in the price of your inventory. Google "Tabasco miniatures" and you'll get over 100,000 hits, ranging from $1/bottle to case prices. I found my best price for the 200 piece case at www.foodservicedirect.com (no personal financial interest in this; I've bought from them several times--Good service; extremely competitive prices). You might also want to stock a case each of mustard, ketchup, and soy sauce individual packets--All available at the warehouse stores; cheap. Sell two/three for a silver dime.

7. Toothpaste and dental floss. The little "travel" tubes are perfect for sale/barter, but they're too expensive to buy that way. I asked my dentist buddy to get me a case of each.

8. Beano. I love beans--every way you can think of, but especially homemade soup (navy beans cooked with ham left on the ham bone)--but starting with the second day, I am deep into intestinal distress and paying the price. Big time. So, I generally stay away from beans--I even get double rice instead of the refried beans when we eat Mexican. When TSHTF, we (you, me, and everyone collectively) will be eating a lot more beans than usual; my guess is that there are plenty of folks who will suffer with the beans for a while, until their "systems" reset. Get at least a dozen bottles (and you might even split them up into smaller quantities).

9. Antacid tablets. My aging stomach needs a couple of antacid tabs before bed, or I risk a bout of acid reflux. On the bean/rice/squirrel/raccoon (etc.) diet, I'll be going through a lot of antacids and I'll bet your neighbors will, too. Load up on these--I suggest at least a dozen jumbo bottles of 200 or so per bottle. These are cheap; no need to go for the expensive Tums--the store brand is fine and costs much less. Repackage your tablets into 25 per baggie for a silver dime (three for a quarter). Yeah, you could go with a stock of Prilosec (now OTC), but these are a lot more expensive than store brand antacids.

10. Salt and pepper. Pepper we can live without (okay-we'll suffer, but we'll make it. Without salt--We die). Interesting observation here--Even those folks who think they live just fine without salting their food are getting plenty of it from processed foods. The cravings will get intense when we're all eating unsalted beans and rice. Recommendation here is to buy a case of the s&p picnic sets at the warehouse club store and a case of bulk packed (food service) salt. Tell your "customers" to bring their empties back for refill or just bring the household salt shakers.

11. Chapsticks. It's cold outside in the winter and everyone will be outside more. There is nothing more miserable than needing a chapstick and not having one. These sell for $10/dozen at Sam's Club. I think they would be worth a silver dime each post-TEOTWAWKI. Stick to the brand name on this one--I've tried substitutes, which have all managed to disappoint.

12. Rechargeable batteries. This is a good one. I remember this suggestion from Dr. Gary North's web site as we were prepping for Y2K (seems like yesterday): Buy enough rechargeable batteries for as many neighbors as you can afford (say four AAs and four AAAs each) AND a solar-powered charger for you. Here's the deal: Give away a basic set--charged up--to whoever wants one. You'll trade a freshly-charged set for a depleted set. That will keep your customers coming back and thinking about your "store."

13. "Free lunch." This is another good one. Consider this your "loss leader" and a promotional strategy to attract customers. As you get your "store" started (the first week, maybe), offer customers a "free lunch"--a tasty bowl of chili beans or spicy noodles and a drink of "bug juice" (that's the red Kool-Aid)--for the first 25 customers or so as a promo strategy. After a few days, you can transition to a paid lunch--a dime or quarter in silver (recycling some of that silver change you put into circulation by buying from other merchants and from your customers).

14. The "bug juice" is another good idea. The water we filter/boil/purify may not taste so good and a sweet drink will be big, especially with the kids. I just priced these at the grocery store--packages (unsweetened) of cherry Kool-Aid are $.27/ea. and make two quarts. I bought 100 packages (compact; takes up very little space for the value). Your post-TEOTWAWKI sales price might be a silver dime for three or ten for a quarter.

15. Butane lighters. These are so cheap at the wholesale clubs and so profitable to sell (probably in high demand, too)--$7.95/100--get a couple bricks of a hundred/brick. Sell individual lighters for a dime each or three for a quarter. These are in the cigarette "cage" at Sam's Club. The clerk told me they are one of the favorite purchases of "C-store" owners, because they sell for $1 each at retail (we wish we could get that markup on everything, no?).

16. Books. After all these years, I remember a great line from a book--I think it was from Pat Frank's novel Alas, Babylon--"Any book same as cash." This will be a guaranteed money-maker and/or barter item; people will be desperate for
reading material and will come to your store again and again if you keep plenty of books in stock. Trade two-for-one. Sell paperbacks for a silver dime, hardbacks for a quarter. The absolute best way to build your stock now (other than saving your already read books) is by hitting garage sales. Get your best deal by offering to buy all the books at a site--You'll get the best price that way. This strategy will probably work for DVDs, too (if your "customers" were smart enough to figure out how to keep their laptops charged up).

17. Pool shock. This might very well be your major contribution to saving the human race. As you might be aware, more people have been killed by waterborne disease than all the wars of history. In a grid-down situation, we do not lose just water purification, we also lose sewage treatment (and your neighbors will be polluting everything). This combination will be deadly. You have many options for purifying water, but a "belt and suspenders" approach will be the best bet to stay healthy--Use multiple strategies to protect yourself. "Pool shock" is calcium hypochlorite, a dry powder, sold in one pound packages for swimming pool sanitation. This chemical is remarkably effective at sanitizing water. "Recipes" I have seen online state that a grain or two will sanitize a gallon and that a pound package will treat 65,000 gallons (I'm not sure about that part--My pool is about 12,000 gallons and I use one package of shock/week. Use a fifth of a bag, then drink from the pool? Maybe not). In any event, you can buy this stuff at about any Big Box or pool store or online. I think I would give it away rather than sell it--A one pound bag is about $5. My last case (24 bags) was about $50 at Sam's Club. A case would be a great investment to help out the neighborhood. If you wanted to, you could easily repackage smaller quantities for sale in baggies for a dime a bag. (If you want to do something cool now, type out some simple instructions now on how to use the shock to sanitize water--you could easily fit a dozen of these on one piece of paper--then, print out 25 copies. Store your instructions with your shock "stock." When the time comes and you are ready to repackage shock into baggies, cut up the pages and put one set of instructions in each baggie).

18. Hand sanitizer. Another potential life-saver. With certain clean water shortages, hand sanitation will be a big issue and an important way to prevent the spread of disease and infections. This is a two-step sale: Purchase a bulk package of small hand sanitizer bottles at one of the warehouse clubs. Sam's has these--25 2 oz. bottles for $19.95. Your cost is $.40/oz this way. Sell those for a silver dime each (or maybe three for a quarter). Also buy several large bottles--two liter dispensing bottles of their private-label version (same stuff--thickened ethyl alcohol--as the branded product)--for $7.95. Your cost works out to $.118/oz. Use the big squirt bottles to refill your customers' little ones at two or three for a silver dime. This will be a great deal for everyone. (As I learned on the SurvivalBlog web site, this stuff burns like sterno. Even though I have plenty of other fuels to heat/cook/boil water, you couldn't go wrong by putting away a dozen of the two-liter bottles).

19. Mice/rat traps and poison. This one should be obvious--When the garbage piles up, the rodents will respond to the "stimulus," too. We fight a constant standoff with the critters in my neighborhood (can't seem to get to those that live in the woods--unlimited and undisturbed population)--and that's without the bags of garbage stacking up. We use a lot of the glue trays, but traps will last; the trays are single-use. Sales price--a dime for a mousetrap, a quarter for a rattrap. Poison is problematic--It will kill the rodents, for sure, but pets/kids, too, if they should get into it. I would leave poison to the professionals, to be safe.  

20. Sunscreen. Again, everyone will be spending a lot more time outside. Around here, even leathery beach people need sunscreen. This is a great dollar store purchase. Several of our local dollar stores have SPF 15 and 30 in six and eight oz. bottles for a buck. Get a couple dozen bottles; sell for a silver dime each. 

21. Bike tire repair kits. As soon as the gasoline supply chain fails, all sorts of old bikes will be dragged out of garages and basements. Many (most?) of these will have flat tires and few folks will have tube repair kits--but you will. Again, check the Big Box stores for kits--a couple of bucks each. You might want to get a dozen; sell for a silver half. Bring your tire pump to your micro-store and offer "complimentary" air.

22. Insect repellant. Living in near-jungle as I do, this one has special significance. I go through a number of Off spray cans every year working in the yard. With all the extra time we will be spending outside hauling water, gathering firewood, manning our Micro Store, and so forth, the bugs will be eating better than anyone. Check your local dollar store for deals on repellant. Price accordingly.

23. LED headlights (for your head, not your car). If you are any sort of camper and haven't yet discovered these, let me state for the record they are as cool as sliced bread. What an amazing supplement to the flashlight! Not only will they light the way around a dark, grid-down house, they also make great book lights. No flame, making them safe for everyone to use, anywhere. Here's the most interesting part-- most non-campers and non-preppers don't have any, for the most part. This makes them a great sale/barter item. I've seen discussions of different brands in this space, which mostly miss the point. They are now so cheap (check the dollar stores and buy a couple of dozen), you can throw them away when they break. I've got an expensive one and a bunch of Chicom cheapies; all work fine. The LEDs last forever (nothing is forever, but I've yet to lose even one to failure); the on-off switch looks like the first thing to break. I would stay away from the ones with "button" batteries and go for the ones that take AAs or AAAs. Depending on your cost, they would sell for about a silver quarter each or a quarter and a dime.

24. Sta-Bil or Pri-G. Consider this liquid plutonium. Get at least a dozen of the small bottles (treats five gallons of gasoline); sell for a [silver] quarter a bottle.

25. Hard candy. Another great promotion item--Get a couple of bulk jars at one of the warehouse clubs and give away candy to the kids (or to the parents to give to the kids) when they come to your store. These will bring everyone back sooner. A plastic jar of 200 "Atomic Fire Balls" was $6.95 at Sam's (the boys love these) and a similar size jar of Gummi Bears was $7.95.
 
Those are the most important items I can think of (remember our selection criteria and those things I think will move the best), but here are a few others. Seeds; you didn't need me to suggest that. 2 cycle oil (for the chainsaws). While you're at it, how about a fist full of files for chainsaw sharpening? Fishing gear. I didn't put that on my list, because just about everyone around here is already stocked for salt and fresh water, but it might be useful where you are--A little assortment of small hooks and such might be a good seller if you have some bodies of water around. Make up some little fishing kits in sandwich bags for a silver dime. Batteries. Candles. Condoms. Pain relievers (a big bottle each of store-brand aspirin, ibuprofen, and acetaminophen to dispense a few pills at a time as needed). Diarrhea tablets. Disposable razors.  I thought about adding P38 can openers--www.sportsmansguide.com actually has a case (100) of these for twenty bucks (and there are plenty of other sources, too). Notice I have gone light on the med stuff (outside my expertise; there are plenty of good suggestions elsewhere on this site), ammo, and food (I'll let my fellow traders take care of those).
 
Wrapping up. For several hundred dollars, any prepper can assemble and stock a "micro-store" that will help everyone survive until (or if) civilization recovers. Do it now. May God Bless you and keep you. Good luck with your entrepreneurial endeavors.

I've been a prepper for over 40 years, starting back when we were called survivalists. I still have the .22 rimfire AR-7 rifle and Ruger Mk. II pistol bought in the 1970s, as well as other gear. I've also always had a bug-out-bag (BOB) in my vehicles, and still do today, even though I'm retired to my retreat.

Over the years, the contents of the BOB changed as new items came out or old ones were discontinued (or discredited -- remember the Aqua Timer?). My BOB got larger, as I was now packing for two and my bug-out location got further away. I still unpack and examine it every year and replace what's needed.

I've also made BOBs for my wife and interested family members and friends. Since Hurricane Katrina, I've had more inquiries about my kit. When I show it to them, some are overwhelmed by the number of items, the complexity of some pieces and the amount of knowledge needed to make the BOB items work together. For instance, everyone knows hand sanitizer keeps your hands germ free; most are surprised to see how it can act as a fire starter as well.

I found that most people want to know what to pack now, but don't know where to start or what to get first. As an answer to them, I've come up with a five-level system for BOBs. This is based on many writings in books and online, as well as my own experience. There are other BOB-level articles and I've consolidated everything I've learned over the last four decades into this system.

This is a work of personal opinion, based on both study and practice. It is done from the perspective of an urban/suburban East Coast resident, living in the temperate Mid Atlantic region. Other areas might require for some modifications, but not many, I would think. I've include some explanation for items listed; I advise my friends to research further themselves. I've also taught skills for those interested (most recently, showing that you can boil water in a plastic bottle). For the beginner, this system hopefully breaks down BOBs into bite-sized chunks and lets them get geared up to a basic level quick. As is often said, any preparation is better than none.

THE SYSTEM  
Let's begin with some basic concepts. A BOB is intended to give you the tools and supplies you need to get from point A to point B. In its simplest form, it would be what you'd need to get home from work, school, or the store. A more intensive situation might see you having to evacuate from your home to a friend or relative's home. You might just have to flee a dangerous situation (think of the videos of New Yorkers fleeing the Towers as they collapsed).

In order to create our levels, we'll make certain assumptions, beginning with your transportation options. All the levels assume you are on foot. While you may not usually travel on foot, the difference between driving home and walking home may be substantial, and the likelihood of a vehicle breakdown, traffic gridlock, or the lack of fuel can't be discounted.

I don't list carry bags for the levels. Each level should have its own carry bag, the type and size depending on your situation and needs. You should assemble the items first, and then find an appropriate size and style case for them.

All of the levels are cumulative; each level assumes you have all of the lower level items with you.

LEVEL 1 -- EDC   
Any emergency kit begins with those items you want to have on your person all the times, referred to as Every Day Carry (EDC). These are the essentials you would never want to be without and they form the basis for all the other levels.

As numerous sources have stated, there are 3 abilities you will always need to have in a survival situation:
- the ability to cut things
- the ability to tie things together
- the ability to set things on fire

If you think about it, you could do all these things if you were set down in the wilderness with no tools at all. Rocks of certain types can be broken to form razor-sharp shards. Vines and bark can be braided to make cordage. And you really can make fire by rubbing two sticks together. The only thing you would need is knowledge and a lot of practice doing these things. Also a great deal of luck.

The knowledge part is crucial: you want to learn how to do these things, and others. Gear can be lost, broken, or stolen. Knowledge can't. Knowledge trumps gear, always.

These three basic actions, however, will be easier to do with some simple, small items you would always carry on your person.

The EDC level items are as follows:
- a knife;
- a butane lighter;
- paracord.

First, a knife of some type. It doesn't have to be big, it only has to be sharp. Depending on your situation, a good folding knife is likely the best choice. Pick one that has a blade lock. A multi-tool will work, as would a Swiss Army knife, although some models don't have a blade lock.

A butane lighter will provide you with hundreds of lights, and is much smaller than the number of matches you'd need to carry to light a fraction as many fires. They also are not as susceptible to moisture as matches. Matches are a 19th Century item; lighters are modern and better.

The best cordage you can carry is 550 paracord. Paracord has a core made up of 7 strands of nylon twine, and each of the 7 strands is made up of smaller nylon fibers. The outer sheath is a woven mesh of nylon fibers as well. A 5 foot length of paracord could be disassembled to make 30+ feet of twine, as well as hundreds of feet of small strings that can used as fishing line, dental floss, sewing thread, sutures and for repairing gear. The easiest way to carry it is as a paracord bracelet or fob attached to a zipper, your key ring, or your knife.

Once again, you should have your EDC on you every time you leave your house, no matter how short your intended trip.

LEVEL 2 -- CORE
The situation is this: you are on foot, trying to get home, which may take you a couple of days. You are in a civilized area; that is, you are in an urban, suburban, or populated rural area. Civil disorder is non-existent or minimal. Some businesses are open, and items and services can be purchased, although it is not business-as-usual. The weather is not severe and you are dressed appropriately. Water is available, but it will need filtering to be drinkable. You have nothing worse than minor injuries and do not need medical attention.  Basically, you need to walk home and can't/won't be able to get help doing so.

The Core level assumes you have your EDC items with you. Some of the Core level items you will also likely have on you as a matter of course, like a cell phone. Nonetheless, they are listed.

The Core level BOB includes the following:
- a map of the area;
- a poncho;
- a lawn & garden trash bag;
- a filter straw;
- a cell phone, with charger or extra battery;
- a quart sized ziploc bag;
- a bandana;
- 10 coffee maker filters;
- 3 energy or candy bars;
- a packet of tissues, or toilet paper;
- 1 pair of socks;
- $150 cash;
- small first aid kit.

The Core level kit will fit into a small travel bag, or one of the many gear bags made for outdoors or the military. Many women could carry all these items in their handbag.

The poncho gives you extra protection if it rains or is windy. It can be one of the cheap disposable ones. The trash bag acts as a sleeping bag; get in it and put the poncho over it. Get the thickest mil bag you can find.

A bandana (not a handkerchief) can function as a dust mask, a triangle bandage, a filter for water, a cleaning cloth and many other things.

The coffee filters are used to pre-filter water. Pour the suspect water thru a coffee filter into the ziploc bag. Drink the water from the bag with the filter straw. Don't use the bag to collect the suspect water; get an empty plastic water bottle and use that.

Changing your socks if they become wet will keep you going better than trudging through with only one pair.

Cash will allow you to buy things, even if the power is out (although some stores may not even take cash without the electronic cash register to record the sale). No bills larger than a twenty, and primarily carry fives and tens. Coins can be carried; stick with quarters and dollars.

The first aid kit needs some band aids, a small mirror (something in the eye) and anti-bacterial ointment. You will also want medication, including 3-days worth of any necessary prescription meds, OTC pain relievers (aspirin, Tylenol, Motrin), stomach upset meds (Pepto), and an anti-diarrheal. Include a few safety pins, and 1 or 2 sewing needles.

LEVEL 2A -- CORE+
While not as essential, you would want to add the following to the Core level BOB as soon as you can:
- a compass;
- gloves and a hat;
- shoes;
- jacket/windbreaker;
- a weapon.

If your daily footwear isn't good for extended walking, you'll need to have a pair of broken-in walking, hiking, or athletic shoes. These can be kept in a small bag in your office and your car, so they are always within reach.

The inclusion of a weapon should be carefully considered. We are talking about a low-level emergency at this point. Police are still on the job and would not be expected to suspend normal enforcement of weapons laws. Guns likely require a permit to carry; knives are usually less-objectionable, if they have a blade less than 4 inches long. A fixed blade is stronger, but a good-quality folder will do the job. The knife can be the same as your EDC knife, if that one is big enough for defense. Chemical spray may be legal for carry, but this varies by jurisdiction, even within one state. A stick that functions as a cane or walking stick may not arose suspicion.

All weapons require training and practice. You should familiarize yourself with any weapon you put into your kit. If you have a gun, you would include enough ammunition to reload it once (total of two full load outs).

LEVEL 3 -- EVACUATION
At this level, you face a greater emergency, one that requires you to evacuate where you are. This could be your workplace, your home, or a public area. You are on foot, in a civilized area (not in the wilderness). Stores are not open where you are, but may be where you are going. The weather is not severe and you are dressed appropriately. You have no major injuries. You may be on your own for up to 7 days.  

The Evac level assumes you are carrying your EDC and Core level BOB.

 The Evac level BOB includes the following:
- the Core+ level additions:
            - a compass;
            - gloves and a hat;
            - shoes;
            - jacket/windbreaker;
            - a weapon;
- ID & essential papers;
- $150 cash;
- 3 changes of underwear;
- 3 pairs of socks;
- a N100 dust mask;
- goggles;
- a canteen with cup & cover;
- a metal spoon or spork;
- water purification tablets;
- additional food;
- paracord;
- 2-3 butane lighters;
- a radio;
- advanced first aid kit.

The items that were additions to the Core level BOB are now essential. You will need the compass to make sure you are following your map. This is a skill you should practice beforehand. All items listed are in addition to the prior levels items (i.e., $150 cash in addition to the $150 in the Core level).

Additional clothing will become important in a week's time. Extra socks and underwear will keep you healthy and clean, particularly if it is raining or wet. Goggles and a mask will help you get out of an area filled with dust or smoke.

You will want to have identification, including more than just your driver's license. You will want insurance information, a credit card, telephone numbers (not just in a phone that may die). These can be paper copies in a wallet; you might want to also have electronic copies encrypted on a small jump drive.

A military-style canteen with a cup can be had at any surplus store. The canteen should be filled with water and refilled every 6 months or so. Some covers come with a pouch for water purification tablets. The cup acts as a cup or a pot to heat water in.

More energy bars will help, but for a week's trek, you'll want more kinds of food. Include canned meat, coffee or tea, bouillon or soup mix. You want things that don't need cooking, just the addition of hot water. 

You'll want to have 25 ft. or more, of paracord.

You can add a couple of twenty's to your cash, and balance out the rest in paper and coin.

The radio should be a unit that gets AM, FM and weather channels. A radio that operates on several power sources (battery, crank, solar, 12v, 110v) is best.

The advanced first aid kit would include a triangle bandage, tweezers, scissors, scalpel blade, gauze pads, gauze dressing, tape, more medication (allergy, nausea, topical cream). You can buy a pre-made kit, but it should be augmented.

If you didn't bring a weapon in the Core level kit, you need one now. If you have chosen a firearm, include a total of 40-50 rounds of ammunition.

You will not be allowed into a public shelter with a weapon and may have to surrender your entire kit. It is unlikely you'll get it back. If you must use a shelter, hide your kit outside somewhere and hope it's still there when you leave.
 
LEVEL 4 -- WILDERNESS
We're now talking about staying alive completely removed from civilization. There are no stores, or houses, or any other habitation. You are on foot, the weather is variable. You have no major injuries. While this may seem unlikely, we have read in the news of such situations, usually involving stranded motorists, or people on wilderness excursions.

It would be reasonable for the wilderness hiker to have all of these items, and more, when heading out on an excursion. Most people who head out on long car trips, however, won't prepare as thoroughly. You should not make a trip through remote areas without these items.

The Wilderness level assumes you have EDC, all Core level, and all Evac level items with you.

The Wilderness level BOB includes the following:
 - a tent;
- a wool blanket;
- a sleeping bag;
- an axe, or saw;
- snares;
- a full fishing kit;
- a rifle, with 100 rds. of ammo;
- a fixed blade knife;
- 2 gallons of water;
- a firesteel, plus tinder;
- a mess kit;
- sharpening stone.

This level of survival will require you to live in the open for an extended period of time, perhaps weeks. You will either need shelter, food and water, or the ability to make or procure it. You will certainly struggle if you have not learned wilderness survival techniques and practiced them.

A small tent will keep you from having to create shelter every day if you are on the move. A wool (or other warm material) blanket and a sleeping bag appropriate for the climate will keep you warm inside the tent.

An axe will allow you to construct any sort of shelter or furnishings, given a source of wood. You'll need a larger knife, capable of handling tougher work.

Snares, or snare wire, and a fishing kit appropriate to your area, will give you the ability to gather food while doing other chores, or even while you're sleeping.

If you have chosen a handgun for your defense weapon at the Core + level, the rifle will function primarily to provide food, as well as signaling, and will also give additional protection. The rifle should be sized to the region you are operating in and the game available.

Two gallons of water will last a few days, and the container will allow you to carry more water, once you have located and sterilized it. Rather than using your filter straw, you should use the water purification tablets and boil any open water you find. A mess kit allows you to boil water, and cook and eat food.

A firesteel produces a shower of hot sparks, even in wet conditions. These are enough to ignite dry tinder. You may have to replace the tinder you carry with natural materials you find.

Regular use of your knives and axe will dull them, making them dangerous to use. Sharpen them regularly with a stone, steel or other device.

LEVEL 5 -- TEOTWAWKI
The End Of The World As We Know It (TEOTWAWKI). Too much to write out every time, even the acronym. Some refer to it as SHTF, for "Schumer Hits The Fan". I'll just use Fan" to describe this sort of event.

Most folks think of a fan event as the result of a nuclear war, an asteroid strike, or the ever-popular zombie apocalypse. A kit for this level doesn't actually exist. There is no way you can store, carry and maintain everything you would need to survive the rest of your life with no outside assistance. Of course, if life is (mostly) wiped out by a pandemic, there'll be plenty of stuff lying around. But if you made it, so did others.

In reality, a fan event would be incredibly intense, but local. Think of the hurricane in Haiti, the tsunami in Indonesia, or the earthquakes in Mexico, Turkey, or the Philippines. Extreme weather in the USA isn't a good example, as we are so large that help usually arrives within days, if not hours (Hurricane Katrina being the worst example). Your Evac, or Wilderness level kit would get you through that, at least in this country.

Still, there is the remote possibility of a global fan event that changes all the rules, for everyone. In that situation, there're few places to bug out to, and the idea of a Fan level BOB is silly. Still, in the event you have somewhere to go, and to keep this article complete, I'll give you my idea for a Fan level BOB. Basically, you have everything to survive in levels 1 through 4. To prepare for Fan level, you need tools that will allow you to evade, escape, or fight.

The Fan level BOB includes the following:
- BDUs;
- footwear;
- gloves;
- battle rifle, plus ammo;
- additional ammo for handgun;
- optics for the rifle;
- night vision device;
- suppressors for handgun and rifle;
- tools of a trade.

The military equipment and weapons will help keep you alive in a Fan event better than commercial available versions. Real military equipment and clothing is better quality and more rugged than what you get in the store. Our army doesn't wear khakis and sneakers into combat for a reason. Get real mil-spec clothing and equipment where you can.

Staying out of sight is a better option than trying to survive a firefight, however. Optics and night vision equipment will help keep you apprised of what's ahead (and behind) so badness can be avoided. Suppressors are legal now, and would allow you to take game without drawing attention.

Let's face it: if you're alone in this situation, it's a question of when, not if, you'll stop surviving. Your only hope is to join a group, the larger the better, and try and make a life for yourself. The skills you've learned preparing for levels 1-5 will be a start. Unless they already know you, an established group will likely only take you in because you have value to them.

Medical, construction, electronics, farming, you'll need to have some skill to offer to a community that's probably patched together from the remains of the surrounding area. Having a trade. and having the tools necessary to conduct that trade, will go a long way to making you a priority for inclusion in a community.

The even better answer is, of course, to start or join a group now. If you find like-minded folks, you can all begin learning the skills necessary, as well as acquiring the tools and equipment you'd need in a Fan event. That will give you the best chance of not just surviving, but living to an old age.

Last week I received disturbing news from a reader.  His physician was ready and willing to help him prepare for a protracted sailboat cruise.  He planned to be gone several months, and requested medicine to take along, just in case he or his family became ill – sounds reasonable to me. 

However, before the doctor wrote the prescriptions, the practice manager stepped in and vetoed the idea.  Turns out, the doctors were salaried, hence subject to the constraints of their employers.
In thinking back to my earlier article on SurvivalBlog (How to Get Your Doctor to Help You Stockpile Medicine), I did not address the issue of what sort of doctor is likely to help survivalists with their preparations.  However, this point is worth discussing, especially if you have been turned down.
The following are five things to consider in finding a physician to help you prepare for an uncertain future.

1. Age.  Young doctors are not thinking about the end of things. Their careers and family life are just beginning.  With medical education and residency extending to thirty years of age or more, even at forty doctors are still paying off loans and getting started with child-raising.  Psychologically, doctors (as well as patients) in this age group are little focused on a crumbling future.  However, doctors age 50 or more are more likely to see the American economy with some historical perspective, and are therefore much more likely to be genuinely concerned – and hence more likely to assist in prepping.
   
   
2. Faith.  If a person’s only acquaintance with Armageddon is via the movies, they probably have little understanding of Biblical prophecy.  Not that Christians are the only ones to see the writing on the wall, but a person who has studied the book of Revelation is more likely to believe the world may come to an end in our generation – the first generation with the capability of destroying civilization.  It’s not that difficult to know where your doctor stands.  Look for telltale wall hangings, or quotes, or magazines, or simply ask.
   
   
3. Independence.  More and more doctors are becoming salaried employees.  With this comes responsibility to the group, the corporation, the practice manager, etc.  The majority of doctors also have contracts with insurance companies, who audit their charts periodically.  (You may not know that your personal records are subject to these audits, but they well may be, whenever someone else is paying the bill.)  Independent fee-for-service doctors currently “enjoy” the most freedom to practice as they like (often at the price of decreased income).  Also, independent physicians are more likely to think independently.
   
   
4. Size.  Group practices are becoming the norm for many reasons, the largest being economic concerns.  Solo practitioners and two-physician partnerships are becoming non-viable, and doctors are selling out to larger corporations at a record rate.  However, there are still a few “dinosaurs” around, mostly doctors who have been in practice a number of years, and who are “riding it out.”  These docs may not be taking new patients, but it doesn’t hurt to ask, especially if you’re willing to pay cash. Solo practitioners are much more likely to be of the independent mindset, per above.
   
   
5. Politics.  What does your doctor think about our country?  Does he agree with you when you profess fear for the economy?  If not, why would he help you prep? Lots of doctors (at least primary care doctors) feel the economic pinch.  Those who don’t may not believe a crisis is imminent and hence be less sensitive to your concerns.

If your doctor is young, wealthy, and part of a group practice, odds are against a prepper mentality.  Look for someone with a few decades under his or her belt, maybe someone who drives a 10-year-old car, and goes to church.

Lastly, even if you have medical insurance, you are permitted to contract privately with your doctor for uncovered services (if your doctor is willing).  You would need to ask your doctor ahead of time about arranging a private consultation and paying for this apart from your insurance. (Editor's Note: Dr. Koelker is SurvivalBlog's primary Medical Editor, the author of the popular book 101 Ways to Save Money on Health Care. She is also the Editor of ArmageddonMedicine.net.)