This tip comes via my wife and two year old daughter. At first, I was a little turned off by the idea. However, I have come to see it as a very wise move. We use the Bum Genius brand. They’re not like in the old days where you had a square of cloth that [...]
Monthly Archives: November 2008
Surviving Deflation
Last week’s CPI (-1.0%) and PPI (-2.8%) confirmed what many economists feared - the financial market crash and economic slowdown was triggering a period of deflation (falling prices). Deflation is bad because it can cause an economy to come to a grinding halt. It works through a number of insidious pathways. Consumers defer purchases because [...]
Posted in Economics and finance 2 Comments
Prepare for what exactly?
This sounds like a simple question, but let’s give it a little thought. Prepare for the unexpected, obviously, but recognize that (unless you’re extremely wealthy) you have limited time and resources to apply towards your preparedness plan. Don’t focus on “end of the world”, “collapse of civilization”, “Armageddon” type scenarios. Focus on unexpected events that [...]
Posted in The Homefront Leave a comment
Some really troubling economic signs
Last week, the unemployment rate rose to 6.5%, the highest it has been since early 1994. However, that’s not the big story. The big story is how fast it’s rising given how early it is in the current recession. The last recession ran from March 2001 through November 2001. The unemployment rate started rising two [...]
Posted in Economics and finance Leave a comment
Kerosene Heaters
Emergencies that take place during the winter months in the northern climates present a special challenge - keeping warm. Kerosene space heaters provide a simple, safe, cost-effective solution. They are indeed quite safe, contrary to the opinions of some who have never used them. Unfortunately, they seem to be falling out of favor in the [...]
Posted in Uncategorized 4 Comments
Stoves
In the event of a disaster, you’ll want to make sure that you have some means of cooking the food that you have hopefully stored.
The good news is that, if you have a natural gas connection to your house, your natural gas stove (and outside grill if you have one) will continue functioning just fine. [...]
Posted in Food storage and cooking 4 Comments
Generators
With the winter season approaching, and the possibility of downed trees and power outages picking up, getting an emergency generator is a very good idea.
Before you rush out and buy an el-cheapo from the local big box store, there are a few questions you should answer to help make an informed decision.
Do I want a [...]
Posted in Power 2 Comments
Living off-grid versus de-gridding
One of the recurring themes of this blog will be optimizing your dependence on the grid. In most cases, this means lessening your dependence on the grid, but still maintaining some level of dependence where it makes sense. There is an inverse relationship between efficiency and reliability. Efficiency simply refers to how much of an output you [...]
Posted in Economics and finance Leave a comment
Essential Kits
Today’s topic is kits. Different kits serve different purposes, so there are a few listed.
First is the Bug Out Bag or the 72 hour kit. The idea is to keep this bag handy should you have to evacuate quickly in an emergency. It’s designed to keep you going for up to 3 days as you [...]
Posted in The Homefront 1 Comment