Preparation Basics and More with sound

PreparationThe Basics and Beyond: 

Preparation The Basics and Beyond Getting Ready for Whatever May Come Tom Caron February, 2010

About the author: 

About the author Tom Caron recently retired from a 24 year career in wireless telecom infrastructure (i.e. cell phone network) engineering. Before his engineering career he worked in the automotive repair field both as manager and technician. He has bachelor’s and master’s degrees in mechanical engineering. His related interests include financial market analysis, self-sufficiency, alternative health care, bio-intensive gardening, alternative fuels, solar and wind energy, camping, back country travel by foot and off-road vehicle, personal computers and internet communications. You can contact him at anytime at preps@teleshine.com or getready@bfsplus.com

Overview: 

Overview

Plans and Planning: 

Plans and Planning It has been said that in the midst of a crisis plans are quickly discarded. This may be true. The process of planning however, may prove to be indispensible.

Why Prepare?: 

Why Prepare? It’s Biblical A prudent man sees danger and takes refuge… PR 22:3 The ant… stores its provisions in summer and gathers its food at harvest. PR 6:8 If anyone does not provide for his relatives, and especially for his immediate family, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever. 1Ti5:8 Relatively easy and inexpensive…now May help you help others in to the Kingdom I tell you, use worldly wealth to gain friends for yourselves, so that when it is gone, you will be welcomed into eternal dwellings. Luke 16:9 Later may be …. too late …but the simple keep going and suffer for it. PR 22:3

When to Prepare? Now: 

When to Prepare? Now Food prices going up – wholesale up now, retail likely to soon follow Stability appears to be decreasing: Stock market – will there be a sustained recovery? Banks – many failures already, more predicted 25 in 2008, 140 in 2009, 200 predicted for 2010 Unemployment People’s patience wearing, e.g. Tea Parties Natural disasters increasing, e.g. Haiti earthquake

Wholesale Food Prices UP^: 

Wholesale Food Prices UP^

US Stock Market – an economic leading indicator: 

US Stock Market – an economic leading indicator Are we recovering or getting ready to relapse??

Unemployment: 10, 17 or 22%? (1933 Great Depression peak was 24.9%): 

Unemployment: 10, 17 or 22%? (1933 Great Depression peak was 24.9%) The SGS Alternate Unemployment Rate reflects current unemployment reporting methodology adjusted for SGS-estimated long-term discouraged workers, who were defined out of official existence in 1994. That estimate is added to the BLS estimate of U-6 unemployment, which includes short-term discouraged workers.

OK, but how do I do it?: 

OK, but how do I do it? Part 1: Basic Preparations to Preserve Life – Yours and Others Part 2: Evacuation Considerations Part 3: “Home Improvements” for Better Lodging in Place Part 4: Information Security Part 5: Preparations to Preserve Wealth

Part 1: The Basics: 

Part 1: The Basics

What to Prepare? Start with the BasicsCould I stay home for 30 days if I had to?: 

What to Prepare? Start with the Basics Could I stay home for 30 days if I had to? Your Heart and Ears Shelter Water Food Medical Security

Heart PreparationJohn 10:27 My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me. Can you hear His voice? Are you His? If not, come now!: 

Without this “prep” all others are for naught - without Me you can do nothing John 15:5 Should guide all other preparations Stay in His Presence – Keep worshiping Be open to “hearing” via Scripture, other mature believers, eyes, ears, intuition, etc. Be open to new connections with others – divine appointments vs chance meetings Heart Preparation John 10:27 My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me. Can you hear His voice? Are you His? If not, come now!

Shelter preparations – if you die of exposure the rest won’t matter: 

Shelter preparations – if you die of exposure the rest won’t matter Problems Loss of power and/or heat or A/C Structure damage from earthquake or whatever Solutions “Indoor camping” Sleeping bags - 4 season if possible Firewood – how much is enough – 1-2 cords/mo? Tents: backpacking style, store in car(s) Tarps for structural damage Make sure your window screens are good – A/C may not be available but bugs will be! Friends  - preplan cooperative arrangements

Water Preps – if you die from water-borne disease the rest won’t matter : 

Water Preps – if you die from water-borne disease the rest won’t matter Plan for hydration and sanitation Budget 1gal per person, per day for hydration, add more for cooking and sanitation – sorry, bubble baths not included Water heater may have 40+ gallons Filter and treat other water: pools, streams, ponds, etc. Heat to 150F and aerate to improve taste, or use Regular Bleach 8-20 drops/gal Excellent filters available Gravity fed, removes parasites and toxins Travel & Home models available $30-$250 Dogs & cats are fine with puddles, really

Food Preps: 

Food Preps Got Calories? 1400 (librarian) - 4000 (lumberjack) per person per day http://www.freedieting.com/tools/calorie_calculator.htm Food is relatively cheap now … get some extra Strategies Just buy more of your usual diet: easy but costs more Buy kits online – may store well but could be expensive Buy staples: e.g. beans & rice much cheaper but boring Costco: $17 for 50 lbs. white rice, 500, 150 cal servings, 3.4 cent @ Aldi has staples e.g. beans in smaller packages for benevolence Don’t forget the soy sauce  Comfort food for barter and uh, comfort Supplement vitamins & minerals

Medical Preps: 

Medical Preps Best prep is a strong immune system Avoid refined sugar – it depresses the immune system Get some powdered vitamin C – works on bird flu Can you stockpile crucial Rx’s or have an alternative plan? Do you have paper scripts for when the online pharmacy goes offline? Can you stock up on OTC items including e.g. medicinal teas? Do you have a basic 1st aid kit? In the house? In each car?

Security Preps: 

Security Preps Pray for specific guidance Do you know your neighbors? Who could you trust if you had to work together to keep the neighborhood secure? If you have a gun, do you have ammo and training? Some ammo is becoming very hard to get If a gun is not for you what about pepper spray? Do you have a meet-up places and communication plans for friends and family? Don’t count on cell phones! Most cell sites have very limited battery backup. Set up facebook and twitter now, tell your loved ones.

Texting Twitter (40404) to keep in touch during instability – Facebook has similar capabilities: 

Texting Twitter (40404) to keep in touch during instability – Facebook has similar capabilities Twitter Limit is 140 characters

Takeaways for Part 1: Starting with the Basics: 

Takeaways for Part 1: Starting with the Basics Have a “prepared” heart and ears Shelter: sleeping bags, firewood, tarps and tents Water: 1gal/day/person, heat to 150F or use plain bleach 8-20 drops per gallon Food: budget calories, beans & rice are cheap Medical: Rx, OTC, Vitamin C, 1st Aid kits Security: Pray about it, have plans, pepper spray Have a meetup plan: socialize facebook and twitter now Consider a “dress rehearsal” some weekend – e.g. turn your power and water off for 72 hours

Part 2: Evacuation: 

Part 2: Evacuation There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven ECC 3:1

Part 2: Evacuation?Why would I have to leave?: 

Part 2: Evacuation? Why would I have to leave? Civil Unrest – Rodney King Riots Natural Disaster – Earthquake or Hurricane Man-made Disaster, e.g. nuclear incident Ordered by military – e.g. Cass County, MO Civil War “Order Eleven” – leave or be shot on sight Do you have “bugout” bags? What is the Holy Spirit saying?

Bugout Bag/72 hour kit – one per car : 

Bugout Bag/72 hour kit – one per car Enough food, water and basic supplies to last for seventy two hours 4 litres (1 gallon) of water or more per person per day Non-perishable food water purification supplies. Cooking supplies Cutlery and cups/dishes. A first aid kit Fire starting tool (i.e. matches, ferrocerium rod, lighter, etc.) A disaster plan including location of emergency centers, rallying points, possible evacuation routes etc. Professional emergency literature explaining what to do in various types of disaster, studied and understood before the actual disaster but kept for reference. Maps and travel information. Standard camping equipment, including sanitation supplies. Weather appropriate clothing (poncho, headwear, gloves, etc.) Bedding items such as sleeping bags & blankets. Enough medicine to last an extended evacuation period. Pet, child and elderly care needs. Battery or crank operated Radio. Lighting (battery or crank operated flashlight, glow sticks). Firearms and appropriate ammunition. Crowbar (weapon, building and vehicle entry, etc.) Cash and change, as electronic banking transactions may not be available during the initial period following an emergency or evacuation. Fixed-blade or folding knife.

Evacuation considerations: 

Evacuation considerations Have a “prepared” heart and ears – you may have to hear something you don’t want to Think about if you could not come back home again – hard to think about, but may be important Collect your important papers – put them in ziplock bags: birth certificates, passports, etc. Have a place to go – preplan with friends Have multiple back road routes to get there – avoid the “wide paths” – opt for the “Blue Highways”

Evacuation considerations: 

Evacuation considerations Pretest your route – go for a “Sunday drive” Make sure your car is in good repair and ready – oil, fluids, etc. Have a 72 hour kit in each car Keep at least one car topped off with fuel If you have to leave, go sooner instead of later – a few hours can matter a lot Have a meetup plan – don’t count only on cell phones, set up facebook, twitter, etc. now – tell your friends and family

Part 3: “Home Improvements”: 

Part 3: “Home Improvements” Being able to stay at home through whatever

Keeping your home livable and mold free: 

Keeping your home livable and mold free Does your sump pump ever run? Do you have a battery backup pump? What if the power were off for a few days? Do you know how long the battery would last before your basement flooded? Solar panels can recharge the pump’s backup battery $300 $300 $HOTEL & Cleanup$ Versus

Keeping your home livable ……..and warm: 

Keeping your home livable ……..and warm Does your furnace need electricity to run? Most do Do you have firewood? 1-2 cords/mo? Fireplace are good but woodstoves are much better, i.e. some can actually heat most of your house 30% Fed Tax credit for stoves & installation A woodstove could greatly your heatpump/furnace u$e Grate heat exchangers can help and cost a fraction of what a woodstove does How’s your Insulation??

Using your yard to supply food and water : 

Using your yard to supply food and water Every inch of rain provides 600-1000 gallons per roof You can set up rain barrels for $25-70 each Kits or finished barrels available locally www.BridgingTheGap.org Use “Square Foot Gardening” to easily grow vegetables: www.SquareFootGardening.com Key is making very fertile artificial soil: 1/3 peatmoss, 1/3 compost, 1/3 vermiculite Seed should be non-hybrid, open pollinated varieties – kits are available from www.seedforsecurity.com, www.everlastingseeds.com and others

Miscellaneous Items : 

Miscellaneous Items How are your window screens? With the power and A/C off will bugs be glad your windows are open?? If the internet and TV are off how can you get news? A solar/handcrank shortwave radio could help. Worship music is great on an ipod – keep it going with a solar charger

Summary Checklists for the Basic, Evacuation and Home Preps: 

Summary Checklists for the Basic, Evacuation and Home Preps Basics Can you hear Him?** 30 day+ coverage Shelter/sleeping bags Water/1gallon/day Food 1st Aid & Rx Security Got Friends? Evacuation Preps Places to go Docs ready Meetup plans Backroutes 72 hour kits Car ready Home Preps Power loss/Flood Protection Heat Rainbarrels Gardening Seeds? Screens OK? SW radio **John 10:27 My sheep listen to my voice

Part 4: Information Security: 

Part 4: Information Security

Areas of Concern : 

Areas of Concern Protection from Google Password security Wireless Routers Public WiFi use

Protection from Google : 

Protection from Google Google is a for-profit company All of their cool “free” services serve their purposes Their corporate motto is “Don’t be evil” – pray about this one! Services like gmail, 411 Goog and all the others can easily be used to build the most detailed personal profile of you Google search histories are linked to IP addresses Google is a big supporter of the current administration and may be willing to help in any way they can  Solutions Get google results without tracking with http://www.scroogle.org/scraper.html If you used Google directory assistance (“calls recorded”) – 800 466-4411 – press * to learn how to delete your history Look for other substitutes for google service Any email to gmail accounts adds you to the giant profiling machine

Password security: 

Password security (your first name) shadow summer desklamp portable Social Networks - be careful what you reveal could be used to guess and/or reset passwords Try a variations of the same word for different accounts The best passwords use lowercase and uppercase letters and numbers. Passwords should never be based on anything personal, or anything that you might accidentally mention on a social network. Never Use Common Passwords, e.g. Password 123456 Qwerty Abc123 Letmein Monkey Myspace password1 Link182

Wireless Routers : 

Wireless Routers Wireless routers are great! About 30% are wide open – your router’s default configuration may be unlocked Make sure you lock yours! Away from home, using pubic Wifi at a coffee shop, airport, etc. puts you at risk

Public WiFi use: 

Public WiFi use Even legitimate public WiFi connections may expose your personal info because they are typically unencrypted In order to avoid this you need to use virtual private network (VPN) Either as provided by your employer, or Purchased from a vendor such as www.surfbouncer.com ($10/mo) There are rogue access points also – do not connect to these computer to computer networks even if they are called “Free Public WiFi”

Part 5: Wealth Preservation: 

Part 5: Wealth Preservation Keeping what you’ve earned

Preparations to Preserve Wealth: 

Preparations to Preserve Wealth Threats Bank Failures Interest Rate Hikes Deflation Stagflation Hyperinflation

Bank Failures: 

Bank Failures Return on your money versus getting your money returned  US Failures 2008: 25, 2009: 140, 2010: 200 predicted! Check your banks’ strengths at http://www.thestreet.com/bank-safety/ Consider using more than one bank All banks have FDIC but do you want to go through the process? US Treasuries are very safe (they can always print more )

Interest Rate Hikes : 

Interest Rate Hikes The World is loosing appetite to fund US Government and Consumers Interest rates will likely go up Indebted consumers slowing consumption and shedding assets to handle debt Deals may be available to those that have cash Note to self: get out of debt (No)

Deflation: the stuff you own is worth less: 

Deflation: the stuff you own is worth less House is in Florida not Detroit Hmm, should I buy a house in Florida or a new SUV or….. rice and beans?

Deflation: Has housing hit bottom yet?: 

Deflation: Has housing hit bottom yet? Ounces of Gold to buy the average US house Maybe not

Stock Market Instability“But I buy and hold Blue Chips”: 

Stock Market Instability “But I buy and hold Blue Chips” Subscribe to the MoneyAndMarkets.com free newsletter – they accurately predicted the October 2008 crash

Stagflation: 

Stagflation Inflation during a time of little job growth E.g. 2008 $4 per gallon gas Stock up when you can – e.g. food Cut down where you can – e.g. Starbucks Look for other income opportunities – my personal examples: www.teleshine.com and www.bfsplus.com

Hyperinflation : 

Hyperinflation “Printing our way out of debt” Some Examples:

German hyperinflation food impacts 1912-1923: 

German hyperinflation food impacts 1912-1923

Zimbabwe Hyperinflation: 

Zimbabwe Hyperinflation Prices doubling every 25 hours in 2008 Rev 6:6 …"A quart of wheat for a day's wages, and three quarts of barley for a day's wages, and do not damage the oil and the wine!“ That could never happen here, right? Without [finding] 0.3 grams of gold per day ($11.75) you won’t survive

US Hyperinflationary Policies: 

US Hyperinflationary Policies FED pumped money still in the system propping up bank ledgers

Hyperinflation Hedges: 

Hyperinflation Hedges If you aren’t holding it in your hand, it’s not yours Food, water (& purification) and seeds, the new gold? Other barter items for survival and comfort If you still have any money left, consider: Gold for easy portability, $100,000 weighs less than 7lbs You and a friend can carry $1M in gold coins easily Silver for barter – 1964 and earlier coins 13x face value – a dime is worth $1.30, a roll of quarters, $130 – gas up a car with a couple silver dollars?  Investing in the Kingdom – always an excellent return!

Summary Checklists Information Security and Wealth Preservation: 

Summary Checklists Information Security and Wealth Preservation Wealth Preservation Check your banks Get out out debt-get prayer! Sell/avoid sinking assets/bonds Stockup/Cutback Hedge hyperinflation Information Security Watch Google Pay attention to passwords Protect your wireless router Consider your public wifi use

For further study: 

For further study Shadowstats.com EndTimesReport.com SurvivalBlog.com WatchmansCry.com MoneyandMarkets.com SquareFootGardening.com BridgingTheGap.org How to Survive the End of the World as We Know It, James Wesley, Rawles, 2009

Parting Thoughts: 

Parting Thoughts John 14:27 Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid. Hebrews 13:5 … "Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you."