We’ve all heard the saying “The struggle is real” until it’s become a joke. I’m thinking that’s going to stop be so funny soon.
I don’t see anything that tells me our economic issues are going to get better in the near- to mid-term. In the “prepper press”, that doesn’t surprise me. Disaster and doom get clicks and sell merchandise. Generally, I take the volume of doom from those sources and turn it down by 75% when I’m trying to build a picture of what we’re up against.
When the mainstream media types start talking disaster and doom, my ears prick up, because they’re usually days to months behind on such things. But I’m seeing news from these sources, such as economists at big banks, predicting that supply chain issues and inflation will last until mid-2023 at least.
I don’t have a crystal ball to tell me the future. All I have is all too fallible me. I read and listen to all the different sources I try to keep up with and make my best judgments. Right now, my best judgement is telling me that I really wish I was living in back of beyond up in the mountains, sitting on a pile of food, medical gear and ammo.
Not going to happen. By the time I could get all involved to agree with the decision, it would be far too late. So, I’m looking at making the best of the situation where I am.
Overall, we’re good for about 6 months excluding water. That assumes that the rule of law is still more or less in force. If that ceases to be the case, I would guess on our chances would deteriorate quickly. Although we live in what is a good location for our immediate area, we’re still in the wrong place if things get really bad. I’ve known that for years. I’m in no worse position than most folks, and better than many.
Still, I’m going to continue trying to improve our chances. I’m looking for ideas and resources that can improve our position, if only a little. Oddly enough, for some reason the YouTube algorithm started puking up videos on “struggle food” last night. I kept bypassing the suggestions, but eventually I had to click on this guy’s video.
I watched this, and while I could live without the carrots, it’s not a bad recipe-or a bad idea. Inflation at the grocery store is really starting to kick in. So we’re going to have a new post category, The Struggle is Real, and this is the first post in it. I’ll try to keep simple and cheap ideas coming. While any given one may not work for you, some will, and you might be able to adapt others to your specific situation.
As my hillbilly family always said, “Every little bit helps.”
We grow some of our vegetables and either can or freeze them. Meals can be made pretty cheap, depending what you like – potatoes, cabbage, carrots, beans, peas, beets, cheap cuts of meat. Stews or casseroles, like the one in the video, just change a few things for variety; I add a milk sauce and a slice of cheese to sausage, potatoes, onions, and cabbage.
We re-use and re-purpose as much as possible. Craigslist has a free section that’s been useful for us. My husband make things out of old metal tubing, copper pipes, pvc, old tools, hose fittings, etc. He has the machinery – lathes, drills, welding – and the skills to do it.
We collect rainwater off the gutters for watering the gardens. This could be used as emergency water for washing up if necessary, just need to filter it and boil it.