Wednesday, January 31, 2024

Want a great hobby that could help you survive?

By Tim Gamble

Hiking is a hobby every prepper and survivalist should take up. It is great fun, terrific exercise, provides an opportunity to test out your gear, lets you practice various skills, and can be a great learning opportunity. 

Regardless of your reason why, rather for fitness, to practice bugging out, to develop new skills, or just to have fun with family and friends, I urge everyone to take up hiking this new year. Its easy to do, doesn't require expensive shoes or gear, and you don't need any special training to get started. 

Never hiked before? Worried about not being in shape? Start slowly with easy hikes around your neighborhood, city, and nearby local, state, and national parks. Stick to easy daytime hikes on well-marked trails until you get some experience and confidence. You can slowly work your way up to longer and more difficult hikes. 

Many areas have hiking clubs and organizations, where you can meet other hikers and get lots of tips and guidance as you start your new hobby. You might also want to check out the website for the American Hiking Society.

Have fun with your new hobby!
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Monday, January 29, 2024

4 Reasons Survival Requires Community

By Tim Gamble

Community - it is a hot topic on many survivalist-type forums. Many preppers, survivalists, conservatives, and religious folks are looking to form communities to foster their prospects for long-term survival. This may mean building an intentional community from scratch, or simply creating a community of like-minded friends and neighbors for mutual assistance. 

Community building is a great idea. However, there is still resistance to the idea of community by those folks who seem to favor the lone-wolf or isolated family-retreat modes of survival. In this article, I want to explain why I think forming or creating a larger community is the better path to survival.

The first reason is that humans are social creatures. We are designed (by God or by evolution, depending on your worldview) to need interaction with other people. This is why solitary confinement is considered such a severe form of punishment. We suffer mentally and emotionally when we are cut off from other people. Loneliness, depression, and mental illness will result from long periods of isolation, whether as individuals or even in very small groups. 

As proof of this, just look to the lockdowns and isolation of the Covid plandemic. Even mainstream sources and experts talk about the loneliness, depression, mental problems and sharply increased suicides that resulted. Many of us, including me, may fantasize about leading the life of a Grizzly Adams hermit. But if we actually adopted such a life, most of us would quickly find it to be torture. We need other people, whether or not we want to admit it. 

The second reason is the reality of physical limitations.  We get tired. We get sleepy. We can typically only do one task at a time. Some tasks actually require more than one person, or even several people. And there are time factors to consider. Security, for instance, will require your full attention. You are not going to be able to pull security duty AND work in the garden or do other chores at the same time. You are not going to be able to pull 12-hour security shifts for any length of time. Try to do so, and you will become tired, distracted and ineffective. And there are some tasks you will never be able to do alone. 

The third reason is limited skill sets. A truly self-reliant group will need a large variety of skill sets. Yet, we all have a limited number of skills as individuals. In worst case scenarios, there will be no outside help of any kind - no fire departments, EMTs, police departments, hospitals, grocery stores, pharmacies, Amazon-delivery, pizza-delivery, electricians, plumbers, mechanics, or repairmen of any kind, except for that which we have within our community. We will have to provide for all our needs ourselves. Of course, we should all work towards becoming as self-reliant as possible as individuals, but no one person, no even one family, will ever be able to truly do it all.

The fourth reason is safety in numbers. The idea many of us have is that a family in an isolated rural area will survive by hiding. But reality tells us something different. Fernando Aguirre, in his book The Modern Survival Manual, writes about what actually happened during the economic collapse in Argentina during the early 2000s. Far from being safe, those small isolated farms were actually hunted down and targeted by well-armed gangs. This experience has been mirrored in other historical, real world examples, such as during the Bosnia War in the 1990s.  A small retreat with only two or three adults to provide security will be an extremely tempting and easy target for large, well armed groups during a collapse in the USA. No, I wouldn't want to live in a large urban center, but small retreats aren't 100% safe either.

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Saturday, January 27, 2024

The Way, Issue 12 (Spiritual Preparedness for Believers)

By Tim Gamble
Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me." -- John 14:6
Precepts of Biblical Survivalism

10- The traditional family unit is the building block of civilization. This includes traditional monogamous marriage, traditional gender roles, sex only within marriage, honoring your father and mother, etc.

(From the article: Precepts of Biblical Survivalism.)

Scripture Readings For This Week

Exodus 18:1 - 20:23
Isaiah 6:1 - 7:6, 9:5-6
Matthew 19:16-26

Proverbs and Psalms

Try to read one chapter a day from both Proverbs and Psalms. 

Scripture Memorization For This Week*

Continuing the memorization series on the Ten Commandments, from Exodus chapter 20. This week features the Fifth Commandment:

Exodus 20:12 "Honor your father and your mother, that your days may belong upon the land which the Lord your God is giving you."

* The above is from the NKJV, but feel free to memorize using whatever version you are comfortable with. 

Remember: You Only Fail When You Give Up

Missed a day (or several) reading your Bible? Got busy with life and forgot to pray yesterday? Having a hard time with the memorization? Don't sweat it! Just keep trying. Remember, you only fail when you give up. 

--------------------------
Two of my favorite and most often used Bibles: 

The NKJV, American Patriot's Bible, The Word of God and the Shaping of America - One of my favorites, the New King James Version is literal, accurate, and easy-to-read for most modern folks. The American Patriot's Bible "shows how the history of the United States connects the people and events of the Bible to our lives in a modern world. The story of the United States is wonderfully woven into the teachings of the Bible." Lot's of articles and study notes showing the importance of God and the Bible to our nation's founding and subsequent history. Available on Amazon

The Scriptures - This new English translation includes Genesis through Revelation, and restores the Name of our Creator to the text in each place it occurs. This new version in English is a literal translation by Institute for Scripture Research, overseen by Dr. Chris Koster. New in this 2009 edition: Improvements to the text - seeking a yet closer equivalent to the literal meaning of the original language. Quotations / Allusions from the Old Testament are in bold type in the New Testament, and are accompanied by the text references - aiding your understanding of the original contexts, and how they influence the writers drawing upon them.  Available on Amazon

Thursday, January 25, 2024

Urban Survival - Dealing With The Busybody Neighbor

By Tim Gamble

Whether they are just overly nosy or actually malicious, the Busybody Neighbor seems to exist in every neighborhood and community. Who is the Busybody Neighbor?
  • Constantly watches you and your family from their window
  • Asks overly personal and inappropriate questions
  • Constantly makes critical comments about you, your family, home, or yard 
  • Constantly complains about everything you or your family does
  • Spreads gossip about you or your family
  • Snoops around your trash, mailbox, or yard
  • Reports you to the HOA or local authorities about whatever they disapprove of, no matter how small...
These are only a few of the possibilities of a Busybody Neighbor. Busybodies can be anything from mildly annoying to outright dangerous. So, how can you deal with the Busybody Neighbor?

1) Ignore them. If they are just being nosy or mildly irksome, simply ignoring them my be your best option. 

2) Make friends with them. Many people, particularly the elderly and shut-ins, become busybodies out of sheer loneliness or boredom. Spying on you makes their lives a bit more interesting. Try making friends with them.  Besides, an extra pair of (friendly) eyes watching your home when you're not there could be a good thing.   

3) Politely, but firmly, refuse to answer personal or inappropriate questions. Just being neighbors doesn't make you friends, and its okay to point that out to them. "I'm sorry, I don't talk about my finances/politics/religion/whatever with acquaintances" is a perfectly valid and acceptable response. So is a polite "That's really none of your business."  

4) Politely confront them. Let them know you know about their bad behavior. "Please don't snoop in my mailbox again, or I will report you to the post office." When they angrily deny it, simply smile and say "Then you have nothing to worry about. Just remember, my cell phone takes excellent video." Then walk away from them. There is no need to extend the confrontation.

5) Practice OPSEC. Operational security is mostly about taking commonsense measures to protect your privacy. Shred sensitive documents (bills, etc) before throwing them away. Keep your curtains closed at night. Don't carry on loud conversations of a personal nature within earshot of your neighbors (keep those conversations indoors). For much more on OPSEC, see my three part series (Part 1Part 2Part 3).

6) Keep your house doors, car doors, garage, and fence gates locked. You can even get a lockable mailbox, if that is a concern. Just remember, locks don't work if you don't lock them. 

7) Install privacy barriers. Put up a fence to keep people off your property. Get a dog to further discourage trespassers. Put up a privacy fence to block snooping eyes. Plant roses or other thorny plants outside your windows. 

8) Live in an apartment? Your options may be limited, but you still have some: Put up blackout curtains or blinds and keep them closed to block peepers. Always keep your door locked, even when you're home. Get a small yip-yip dog and they'll let you know when someone is snooping outside your door or windows. Don't talk too loudly when discussing personal matters, even when you are inside. Keep your WiFi secured with a hard-to-guess password. Document any problems you are having with neighbors, then let the landlord or building manager know about it.

9) Get the police involved if its serious enough. If you are concerned about the safety of your family, absolutely contact the police. If someone has crossed the line and become a stalker, if they are making threats, if they may be engaging in illegal activities, or if they are repeatedly coming onto your property without you permission or good cause, keep careful record of their activities (log times & events, get eyewitnesses, photos or videos), and report them to the police. 

10) Install an alarm system and/or security cameras. A multi-camera CCTV system with DVR recorder can be had for under $200 (here's one such system on Amazon).

!! One last bit of advice:  Never threaten or retaliate. In sports, it seems like it is always the player who retaliates that gets caught. If someone threatens you with physical harm, that is a crime. If you threaten them back, that too is a crime. "They did it first" isn't a legal excuse. Get the authorities involved if things become bad.

*** This article is a reprint, with a few minor edits, of an article I originally wrote in 2018.
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Wednesday, January 24, 2024

WCH: 6 Ways to Keep Your Lungs Healthy

***This work is reprinted here under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License and is available for republishing and use as a Free Cultural Work.

6 Ways to Keep Your Lungs Healthy

World Council For Health (WCH) - Originally posted on their website 4-5-2022 (Link)

Keeping your lungs healthy makes you feel more energetic, has been shown to improve mood, and is great for your entire body. Our lungs are amazing organs that are integral to our daily functioning—from the moment we’re born and take our first breaths, they never stop working.

The health of our lungs influences a lot about our lives. Every breath we breathe ultimately reaches every single cell of our bodies. While it’s clear they’re very important to us, we often take them for granted and don’t focus on keeping them healthy as we do with other parts of our bodies. Let’s explore six things you can do to keep your lungs healthy.

1. Keep active

Regular, moderate exercise is great for your lungs, heart, and mood. You should aim for at least 20 minutes per day—but more is even better! What you’re looking for is physical activity that causes you to breathe deeper. Deep breathing while engaged in cardio exercises like swimming, cycling, and dancing will strengthen the muscles around your lungs—and in the rest of your body!

“Regular, moderately intense activity is great for the lungs, and when you increase your daily activity you get three things done at once: healthy lungs, a healthier heart and a better mood,” respiratory therapist Gagan Singh told Rush.

2. Exercise your lungs

We don’t have to get our entire body moving to exercise our lungs. Breathing exercises help control and strengthen the lungs by using the diaphragm. This helps them to work efficiently. You can do this by focusing on lowering your diaphragm when you take deep breaths. 

Deep breathing helps you get closer to your lungs’ full capacity because it expands your belly, allows your ribs to open (like wings!), and lifts your chest. Deep breaths strengthen your lungs and help clear out toxins that may be stuck inside.

Try this:
Inhale, fully and slowly. Focus on lowering your diaphragm as your belly and then your ribs expand. Next, allow your upper chest to expand and lift upwards. Hold here before exhaling completely. Be mindful of the way your ribs, stomach, and diaphragm change as you push out all of the air.

You can expand your lung capacity by making sure you’re breathing evenly throughout your entire body. Count out loud as you inhale and be mindful of taking just as long to exhale. Consider adding a count to challenge your lungs once you’ve become comfortable with this practice. The goal is to make the exercise process easy without causing discomfort or strain.

Practicing breathing exercises each day can improve your health in more ways than one. It is also recommended to practice things like yoga and meditation as they incorporate a focus on the breath into our daily routines. 

You can also have fun while exercising your lungs. Sing every day and give a new instrument a try. You might even find yourself laughing at your newfound hobby, and, as it turns out, laughter is also great for the lungs. “Laughing is a great exercise to work the abdominal muscles and increase lung capacity,” Singh says. “It also clears out your lungs by forcing enough stale air out that allows fresh air to enter into more areas of the lung.”

3. Up the antioxidants and focus on your diet

Eating the right foods keeps your body healthy in many ways. Antioxidant-rich foods, like green vegetables, garlic, onions, turmeric, and cayenne pepper are great for your lungs. Unfortunately, invisible toxins in the air around us can cause oxidative damage in our lungs. We can counter this by increasing our antioxidant intake. 

Be sure to not go overboard on sugar, refined flour, processed foods, beef, dairy, poultry, and fish as excessive amounts can affect the quality of your blood as it travels to your lungs.

Green tea has a lot of antioxidants and beneficial poly­phenols. Epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG), a polyphenol found in green tea, helps lung cells. Green tea also contains theophylline, a bronchodilator that opens up the airways. 

4. Detox

Another way to battle those pesky toxins is by detoxing. Our entire bodies are affected by toxins, not only the lungs. A detox from heavy metals can reduce your risk of heart disease, improve memory and cognitive function, and improve immune function. 

5. Hydrate, hydrate, hydrate!

Drinking plenty of water keeps your lungs—and the rest of your body—healthy. It’s important to hydrate properly so your body gets the most out of what you’re putting into it.

Our lungs work better when we’re properly hydrated because our respiratory system stays moist and the mucosal linings of the lungs stay thin. As we have all likely experienced when sick, thick mucus can make breathing less effective and more difficult. 

“Staying well hydrated by taking in fluids throughout the day helps keep the mucosal linings in the lungs thin,” Singh says. “This thinner lining helps the lungs function better.”

6. Breathe clean air

Long-term exposure to air pollutants can increase your risk for respiratory diseases like asthma, chronic bronchitis, and pneumonia. That’s why it’s important to consider the quality of the air that we breathe every day.

Quit smoking (or don’t start)
Smoking is the main cause of lung cancer and COPD. It can narrow the airways and makes breathing harder. It can also trigger chronic inflammation which can lead to multiple problems, some of them serious. Remember, it’s never too late to quit smoking. Not smoking or quitting improves the quality of life and has numerous health benefits.

Vaping and using e-cigarettes have been commonly thought of as a safer alternative to smoking. Unfortunately, there is growing research linking vaping to lung injury and disease. 

Protect yourself from unhealthy air
Some work environments can be hazardous to human health, especially the lungs. If you’re working in a risky environment, be sure to take all the necessary precautions to keep your lungs safe including using protective equipment like dust masks and respirators. 

Improve the air around you
Unfortunately, most indoor air is full of toxins. Second-hand smoke, chemicals at home and at work, and radon can all make people sick and irritate the lungs. You may not think you’re exposed to chemicals at home, but the components used to manufacture clothing, furniture, paint, and more degrade over time and leech harmful toxins into the surrounding area. 

Houseplants are a great way to clean the air in your home. They help clean the air by absorbing toxins and filtering toxins. Consider adding a spider plant, peace lily, boston fern, bamboo plant, or aloe vera to your home. You may also consider purchasing readily available air filters for your home.

Have your home tested for radon, especially if in an area where it is common, and make sure that your home has good ventilation and open the windows as often as possible to encourage airflow (even in the winter!). You can also keep on top of keeping the air clean by vacuuming, dusting, washing linens, and regularly replacing air filters. When cleaning, be sure to use natural products and don’t rely on air fresheners that contain harmful chemicals. Keep your home and vehicles smoke-free, not only for you but also for your guests.

Minimize exposure to air pollution
When you’re going to exercise outdoors, consider checking the air quality index where you live. When outdoor air quality is poor, exercise indoors instead. 

Healthy lungs = happy you!

Keeping your lungs help will help keep your entire body happy and healthy! Every breath we take powers everything our bodies do. While it’s easy to take them for granted, we hope these six tips help you build up the strength of your lungs so they increase their capacity and resiliency to keep powering your cells for years to come.

***This work is reprinted here under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License and is available for republishing and use as a Free Cultural Work.
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Dystopian Survival focuses on self-reliance, resilience, preparedness, and building  community, in order to survive our dystopian future (which has arrived). It is more concerned with helping people survive modern threats (such as world wars, economic collapse, and a technocratic police state) rather than surviving bear attacks and getting lost in the woods. Never miss out on future articles by following Dystopian Survival by email.

How To Avoid Looking Like a Victim

By Tim Gamble

One dystopian survival skill we all need to develop is the ability to not look like a victim. This is different than situational awareness and being the gray man (blending in), although all three are related skills.

Your quest to not become a victim has two main tactics. First, you must avoid looking like an easy target to the bad guy. Second, you must avoid looking like a rich (high value) target to the bad guy.

1) Avoid looking like an easy target to the bad guy. What can make you appear like an easy target?
  • Not paying attention. Most people simply don't pay attention to what's going on around them. They are focused on their phones, engrossed in their I-Pods, or simply walking about absorbed in their thoughts, rather than paying attention to their surroundings. This makes them appear very vulnerable to the bad guy.
  • Lack of self-confidence. People who lack self-confidence give off an obvious vibe. They slouch, keep their heads down, rarely look right at people, never make eye-contact, and seem to purposely ignore their surroundings. They just want to be unseen, which ironically makes them highly visible to the bad guy. 
  • Looking unable to defend yourself. Whether you have physical infirmities, appear grossly overweight & out-of-shape, or simply carrying an armload of  packages while wearing high heels, if you look like you cannot defend yourself, the bad guy will notice.
  • Loners. To the bad guy, a lone pedestrian or shopper looks like a much easier target than someone with a group of people. 
  • Cover of darkness. Darkness, whether the literal darkness of night or the metaphorical darkness of an isolated or hidden place, gives the bad guy great confidence that they can "get the drop on you" and get away without being seen by other people.
Here are some things to do:
  • Learn and practice situational awareness (read this article please)
  • Don't get distracted by your phone or anything else (pay attention)
  • Walk confidently, head up, and make it obvious you are looking at your surroundings
  • Take a self-defense course (it will improve your self-confidence)
  • Improve your health & fitness
  • Wear practical shoes, clothes
  • Travel, walk, shop in groups
  • Park in a highly visible, well-light location near the entrance
 
2) Avoid looking like a high-value target to the bad guy. What makes you appear to be a high-value target?
  • Observable value. Are you wearing flashy or expensive clothing? Wearing an expensive watch or jewelry? Driving an expensive car? Live in an expensive neighborhood? The bad guy will take note.
  • Observable behavior. Did you just visit an ATM? Or walk out of a bank? Then the bad guy may assume you now have some extra cash on you. Did you flash a wad of cash while paying for something? The bad guy took note. Think about your actions, what you are actually doing at the moment, and how those actions may appear to a bad guy.
Here are some things to do:
  • Don't wear expensive clothing and accessories, especially when noticeably nicer than what other people are wearing around you. Try to blend in (gray man)
  • Don't drive an expensive car, especially in or near bad areas of town
  • Be careful to not let others see how much money you have on you (especially true whenever you take out your wallet to pay for something)
  • Pay special attention to your surroundings when you are at or just left a bank or ATM, or after getting cash back at a store (watch especially for people who may be following you)
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Monday, January 22, 2024

Urban Survival - Dealing with Government Intrusiveness

By Tim Gamble

A big problem for urban survivalists is government intrusiveness (as well as that of landlords and homeowners associations and other self-appointed authorities). No one has a moral right to prevent you from being self-reliant, practicing self-defense, or being prepared for an emergency. However, many politicians, bureaucrats, and other busybodies think that they should have that right, and in many urban areas they have given themselves the legal ability to do so. 

Local laws and regulations, taxes and fees, zoning restrictions, licensing and permitting procedures, homeowners association rules, and even difficult and intrusive landlords, can heavily impede your preparedness efforts.

Working Around The Impediments

You will have to be clever to work around the impediments they place in your way. Although I would never suggest anyone do anything illegal, there is a saying "Its easier to get forgiveness than permission." You have to obey the laws and rules whenever possible, but you don't have to sacrifice yourself or your family to those laws and rules.  You have to decide where the lines are for yourself.

This is where operational security (OPSEC) comes in - what they don't know, they can't complain about. Don't make your prepper activities obvious. I've written a three part series on OPSEC (Part 1Part 2,
 Part 3) you might want to read. Besides, once the infrastructure breaks down post-SHTF, there will be no one in charge to tell you to take down that clothesline or to not have some "pet" chickens.  Or, if there is anyone in charge, they'll be too involved with real problems to deal with your outlaw garden.  

Choose your battles wisely. Don't make everything a contest of wills between you and the authorities. They have rigged the game in their favor.

Example: Self-Defense
 
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Buddha Beads
If your city has banned guns, don't carry one. Instead, find other ways to defend yourself. Use situational awareness to avoid trouble. Use your local knowledge o avoid bad neighborhoods and dangerous areas. Be a gray man so that you don't stand out or make yourself a target. Take a class in non-lethal self-defense. Take up a martial art. Carry pepper-spray if it is legal in your area. Consider carrying a tactical pen or a self-defense necklace (aka Buddha Beads). Consider carrying a metal baseball bat in your vehicle. Of course a gun is a much better option. The point is that the authorities may be able to limit your options, but they cannot stop you from exercising your right to self-defense. You just have to get a bit clever in how you do it. 

Finally, let me politely suggest this, even though it upsets some people: If you find where you live too restrictive and controlled, consider moving elsewhere. You don't have to move to the deep country if you don't want, but perhaps you can find a less restrictive city or even a small town to your liking.

*** This article is a minor rewrite of an article I wrote in 2018.
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The Mini Farming Bible: The Complete Guide to Self-Sufficiency on ¼ Acre - This book, by Brett Markham, contains detailed information on: Composting, Seed Starting, Pest and disease control, Selecting and saving seed, Raising chicken for eggs and raising chicken for meat, Cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower, parsnips, and other veggies, Weed control, and much more, all geared towards urbanites and suburbanites with small yards of ¼ acre or less!   

Saturday, January 20, 2024

The Way, Issue 11 (Spiritual Preparedness for Believers)

By Tim Gamble
Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me." -- John 14:6
Precepts of Biblical Survivalism

9- There is but one race - the human race. All humans, regardless of the shade of their skin, belong to the same family, the same race - the human race. All people are descended from Adam and Eve, and later through Noah and his wife. There are ethnic and cultural differences that have developed over the centuries, of course, but there are no racial differences. Races and racism are worldly (Satanic) concepts.

(From the article: Precepts of Biblical Survivalism.)

Scripture Readings For This Week

Exodus 13:17 - 17:16
Judges 4:4 - 5:31
Matthew 14:22-33

Proverbs and Psalms

Try to read one chapter a day from both Proverbs and Psalms. 

Scripture Memorization For This Week*

Continuing the memorization series on the Ten Commandments, from Exodus chapter 20. This week features the Fourth Commandment:

Exodus 20:“Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all your work, 10 but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord your God. In it you shall do no work: you, nor your son, nor your daughter, nor your male servant, nor your female servant, nor your cattle, nor your stranger who is within your gates. 11 For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and hallowed it.

* The above is from the NKJV, but feel free to memorize using whatever version you are comfortable with. 

Remember: You Only Fail When You Give Up

Missed a day (or several) reading your Bible? Got busy with life and forgot to pray yesterday? Having a hard time with the memorization? Don't sweat it! Just keep trying. Remember, you only fail when you give up. 

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Two of my favorite and most often used Bibles: 

The NKJV, American Patriot's Bible, The Word of God and the Shaping of America - One of my favorites, the New King James Version is literal, accurate, and easy-to-read for most modern folks. The American Patriot's Bible "shows how the history of the United States connects the people and events of the Bible to our lives in a modern world. The story of the United States is wonderfully woven into the teachings of the Bible." Lot's of articles and study notes showing the importance of God and the Bible to our nation's founding and subsequent history. Available on Amazon

The Scriptures - This new English translation includes Genesis through Revelation, and restores the Name of our Creator to the text in each place it occurs. This new version in English is a literal translation by Institute for Scripture Research, overseen by Dr. Chris Koster. New in this 2009 edition: Improvements to the text - seeking a yet closer equivalent to the literal meaning of the original language. Quotations / Allusions from the Old Testament are in bold type in the New Testament, and are accompanied by the text references - aiding your understanding of the original contexts, and how they influence the writers drawing upon them.  Available on Amazon

Wednesday, January 17, 2024

Urban and Suburban Survival - Small Plot Gardening Tips

By Tim Gamble

Note: Unmarked tips are from me. Tips quoted from other sources are marked with a link to the original source. Unmarked tips are from me.

The point of this article is that you can grow at least some of your own food, even if you only have a very small yard. Even if you have no yard at all, you can grow some veggies and herbs in containers on a patio or balcony, or in windows.

1- With any type of gardening, it is important to plant crops that you and your family actually like and will eat. Planting foods that you dislike, no matter how productive, will simply be wasted space (unless you plan on selling or trading them, an unlikely goal for those with very limited space).

2- Tomatoes are probably the most productive crop you can grow. Since they are tall, however, you should take care not to plant them where they will shade the shorter plants in your garden. Tomatoes are a good choice because they are packed with useful nutrients, store well (canned, frozen, or dried) and are a basic ingredient used in many dishes.

3- Green leafy vegetables, such as loose-leaf lettuce, turnip greens, spinach, mustard and kale all make excellent choices for small plot gardening. You can grow a lot in a small space. And they are all highly nutritious. Loose leaf lettuce does extremely well in containers, in my experience.

4- "There are all sorts of herbs that can be planted in containers and moved around as you please. And a lack of space doesn’t mean that you can’t grow some fruit or berries. Try raising strawberries in a strawberry jar, plant a fig tree in a container, or grow a compact blueberry bush in place of ornamental shrubs." -- veggiegardeningtips.com

5- "Many vegetables, including peas, pole beans, cucumbers, squash, melons, and tomatoes, will naturally climb a support or can be trained to grow upwards, leaving more ground space for other crops. Support structures include cages, stakes, trellises, strings, teepees, chicken wire, or existing fences let your imagination take over!" -- Small Plot and Intensive Gardening

6- "Vegetable breeders have been emphasizing smaller plants for container and small plot gardening. Although some of the dwarf or mini plants produce smaller fruits, often a greater number of fruits are produced, yielding a good total harvest. Tomatoes, peppers, eggplant, and peas are just a few examples from the mini ranks. Some new cultivars of vegetables such as tomatoes and cucumbers have compact, trailing growth habits ideal for growing in hanging baskets." -- Small Plot and Intensive Gardening

7- Water less often but more deeply. Frequent light watering will result in shallow root development. When needed, water only once or twice a week but thoroughly enough to soak the soil down to at least six inches. This will encourage deep root growth.

8- Most small plot and intensive gardening techniques naturally discourage weed growth, but weeds are still likely to appear in your garden. Pull weeds as soon as you notice them. Weeds are easier to pull when young and pulling them earlier will help prevent them from spreading.

9- "For minimum maintenance and weed control, apply an organic mulch around the plants after the soil has warmed. A mulch also helps retain moisture in the soil. Grass clippings (3 to 4 inches), straw (4 to 6 inches), and sawdust (1 to 2 inches) are excellent mulches." -- Small Plot Vegetable Gardening

10- "Do not sow seeds too deeply or they may not germinate. Place carrots, radishes, and lettuce no deeper than 1/4 inch. Large seeds such as peas, beans, and cucumbers can be sown 1 to1-1/2 inches deep. Vine crops can be planted six seeds in a cluster or hill and then later thinned to four plants per hill." -- Small Plot and Intensive Gardening

11- "Thin seed rows to their proper spacing after the plants are 1-2 inches tall. Thin the plants with scissors rather than pulling them so you won’t disturb the other plants. Use the thinnings for salads." -- Small Plot and Intensive Gardening

12- Grow only a few varieties. Trying to grow a little bit of everything creates more work and yields less food. Since your space if relatively limited, try growing only a few favorites, or look to grow whatever costs the most at the market in your area.

13- Most herbs do really well in small pots. The pots can be moved around to take full advantage of sunlight, and even taken indoors in the fall to extend their productivity. Some herbs to consider: parsley, chives, mints, basil, dill, oregano and thyme.

14- "To select your vegetable garden plot, consider what vegetables need to thrive. Vegetables and fruits need 6-8 hours of sunlight daily. The vegetable garden plot should be well-drained and convenient to water (vegetables require 1 inch of water weekly or 75 gallons per 100 square feet)." -- Preparing a Garden Plot (no longer available online)

15- "Soil that is loamy, well drained, and high in organic matter is ideal for your vegetable garden. Visit your local cooperative extension or health department and pick up a free soil-test kit. The ideal pH for vegetables is 6.0 to 6.5. The test tells you if your soil needs lime added (available at your local gardening center)." -- Preparing a Garden Plot (no longer available online).

16- Sweet potatoes are highly nutritious and filling, and I have found them easy to grow and to store for 6+ months (dark, cool place). They are highly productive, and you don't need many plants to get a lot of sweet potatoes. I typically plant 6-9 each year, and get plenty of sweet potatoes from those plants. 

*** This is an updated version of a 2017 article I wrote.
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The Mini Farming Bible: The Complete Guide to Self-Sufficiency on ¼ Acre - This book, by Brett Markham, contains detailed information on: Composting, Seed Starting, Pest and disease control, Selecting and saving seed, Raising chicken for eggs and raising chicken for meat, Cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower, parsnips, and other veggies, Weed control, and much more, all geared towards urbanites and suburbanites with small yards of ¼ acre or less!   

Tuesday, January 16, 2024

Prepare For An Event, Or Build For A Future?

By Tim Gamble

Are we preparing for an event, or are we building for a future? 

It seems like many folks within the larger community of preppers and survivalists are preparing for an event, be it a natural disaster (hurricane, earthquake, etc.) or a man-made one (war, economic collapse, tyranny, the next plandemic, etc.). Although these things remain frightening possibilities, and we should prepare for them, there is a problem with preparing for an event.

The event may never come to pass. Or it may happen one day, just not as soon as we might be expecting it. We expected the Russia-Ukraine War to quickly spill over into all of Europe. It didn't, at least not yet. We expected the Russians to use nukes, once it became apparent they were not going to achieve a quick victory. They haven't, at least not yet. We've been expecting China to attack Taiwan for years now. They haven't (not yet). We expected the war between Israel and Hamas to lead to quickly expand and lead to WW3. It really hasn't, at least not yet. I could make this a really long list of expected disasters that never materialized (not yet, anyway). 

Constantly getting ready for a disaster that never quite happens can lead to complacency. It can also turn some preppers away from preparedness in disgust over "wasted money, effort and time." The result being that when something finally does happen, we aren't actually prepared for it.

It also makes the prepper and survivalist community look like the Boy Who Cried Wolf. Folks outside of preparedness then write us off as "crazy conspiracy theorists" and totally dismiss the need for preparedness. In turn, this reputation can make it easier for authorities to label us as "dangerous" and to crack down on our efforts. 

I suggest a better way. Instead of preparing for specific events, we should be building for a future, no matter what that future holds in store for us. Building what? Building self-reliance, resilience, adaptability, community, and alternative systems. Of course, basic preparedness would be a part of that. As would mental attitude, health and fitness, and acquiring knowledge, skills, gear and supplies. But the driving factor wouldn't be a one time event that may or may not happen. Instead the driving force would be building a lifestyle that would give us the tools needed to survive whatever the future holds in store. 

Just something to think about.  

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