Many of us dream of getting back to our roots, of leading a simpler life. A life not bombarded by the chemicals that billow from car exhausts and a life where the constant electro-babble from televisions and computers is a thing of the past. We dream of life in the boon-docks, living off-grid and growing our own food, fishing in the lake and snuggling in front of the open fire at the end of the day. Electricity would be generated by my log-look solar panels on the roof…no smelly fuel guzzling generators for me!

I’ve thought about this a lot and I’ve decided that great as it sounds that it’s highly unlikely I could actually pull it off, there wouldn’t be enough hours in the day…well there would be, maybe, if I worked non-stop from early morning until late at night and that really doesn’t sound like the ideal life-in-my-cabin I envisioned.

Thing is, none of us may have a choice. Let’s have a quick look at Venezuela. The price of oil, their main export drops and the wheels fall off the country. People queue for hours to get a loaf of bread, electricity is rationed in some places and a distant memory in others. The government opened shops where prices were fixed…but they are broke as well and these stores operate on a when it’s gone it’s gone basis, hence the queues.

Think it couldn’t happen here? Oh yes it could – quite easily and there are a number of things that could cause us to find ourselves in such a dire situation.

• War
• The Sun throws a wobbly and sends a flare/CME our way
• Massive economic crash
• Pandemic
• Government enforced military rule
• Natural large-scale disaster
• Major terrorist attack such as EMP
• A nuclear accident

Any of those things could tip the balance and put us in a position where life as we know it changes almost overnight and I’m pretty sure that it would not be as easy to cope with an off-grid and off everything else lifestyle in a town or city as it would be in my cabin, and that would be hard enough.

Part of this is the mentality of the situation. If you relocate to a cabin in the woods you know you life is going to see a big change, you knowthat everything is going to be hard work and to some extent you have mentally prepared for it – though I still feel the reality would be a huge shock to the vast majority of people. Finding yourself in this position unexpectedly would be a waking nightmare in my humble opinion.

Now the little hideaway in my minds eye has pristine clean fresh water…the lake I mentioned, which will also supply the bulk of the protein I need to keep everyone healthy and I am surrounded by ample fuel for my stove…the woods I mentioned. The soil is fertile to grow the food I mentioned, but even with all of these things in place the reality is it would be f*&@ing hard work.

Imagine waking up and finding this is your new reality when you live in the middle of town, or worse a city and the chance of getting out – if you had anywhere to go to – has passed.

Things you need to think about

• Water: That goes pretty soon after the electricity gives out. Think drinking, cooking, hygiene and laundry. That’s a lot of water. Where are you going to get it and how are you going to store it?
•  
• Cash: It should be out of the bank by now and at least 50% of it converted into tangible assets such as food, clothes, manual tools, silver, gold or anything else you lack. If it’s not think about the fact that a major financial crisis may well mean that you will never see your money again.
•  
• Food: If you have cash and the shops have food great but anything that disrupts the just in time food supply we have means that you can have a barrow full of cash and possibly have nothing to buy with it.
•  
• Garden: Know anything about gardening? You should. Even a window sill or two and a few pots can provide a small but useful amount of fresh greens, especially if you plant cut and come again varieties. If you really don’t have anywhere to grow you can still grow bean sprouts and a variety of other sprouts in a jam jar.

This is a VERY basic list and is intended to make those new to prepping consider what is actually involved in a societal breakdown. The cause of that breakdown fades into insignificance when you are trying to survive everyday.

Think about the things you do in a day. Start with waking up and list your activities, end the list when you go to bed. You need to think how you would complete those tasks if you were living in a different reality. It’s harder than you think to solve these problems on paper let alone in real life and this is the very reason  they need to be thought about ahead of time, not at the point when a catastrophe befalls you.

When you look at the list you’ve made you will be surprised how long it is, how many issues you will need to resolve in order to have a life with even a semblance of normality about it.

Take each item on the list and look at it, research it, find the best fit for you in your situation. Some things will work for you, others won’t be suitable. Without looking into the options available you won’t know what’s out there.

Every step you take on your preparedness journey is one step nearer your goal.

Take care,

Liz