You have probably asked yourself: Just how much food should I store for my family’s long term storage needs? There is no single best answer to that question since everyone’s personal situation is different. Still, it is nice to have a set of guidelines from which to start.
Today I would like to introduce you to The LDS Online Food Storage Calculator. Using this calculator, you can determine the amount of food your family will need to store away for a given period. All you need to do is enter the number of adults and children in your family. Press “Calculate” and like magic, the recommended amounts by category appear on the screen.
The amounts you will be presented with are for a year – buck heck, that is a lot of food to purchase if you are just starting out. My suggestion is that you take that amount and divide it 12 to get a monthly amount or by 52 to get a weekly amount. Why? I don’t know about you, but for most people, putting together a monthly supply of provisions is far more manageable than looking at the requirements for one year.
So how much food would 2 adults need for 30 days?
Three weeks ago if someone mentioned a CME was on its way I would have looked at them with a raised brow and a questioning look, not even pretending to understand. For the uninformed – as I was until a week ago – CME stands for Coronal Mass Ejection. In simplistic terms, this refers to large plasma ball full of charged geomagnetic particles that is emitted by the sun.
So why should we care?
Well for one, by the time you read this or shortly thereafter, a large strike will hit earth with the potential to disrupt our daily lives in an unpredictable manner. You see, from what I have discovered, scientists are now anticipating if not predicting a high-consequence, low-frequency event. Or, what, in layman’s terms, we call a 100 year storm.
NASA astronomers report that the sun is entering the most violent period of its normal 11-year cycle. This interval of high activity, called the solar maximum, is expected to peak in 2013. Will 2013 be the 100 year event? Who knows. What we do know is that in the meantime, we are starting to experience the precursor to the big event now and that scientists expect this latest solar burst to trigger one of the most violent geomagnetic storms ever recorded.
One the major components on any serious prepping effort is having adequate facilities for cooking outdoors. In my case, I have a fancy stainless steel gas grill but that was not going to do much good if there was no propane or the fuel line that delivers our propane was destroyed. I also have a cook-ready fire pit that utilizes wood but that is large an bulky (even though it looks very cool in my back yard).
The practical answer was something portable that could burn charcoal briquettes or, in a pinch, kindling, twigs or other pieces of wood found out and around the wilderness. After doing some research, I set my sights on the Volcano II Collapsible Stove and purchase once directly from Emergency Essentials. It arrived in three days even though I ordered the standard shipping. I was impressed. But alas, with other obligations, I did have have a chance to use it until this week.
Here is the scoop.
The Volcano II is collapsible. And when I say collapsible, I mean it. It measures about 5” high and 13” across in its collapsed state. The whole thing fits nicely in an included pouch that appears to be very sturdy and although this is a heavy sucker, it is completely transportable.
The complete kit includes:
The Grill
Two grates: and upper grate for grilling and a lower grate for charcoal
Heat Deflector Plate
User manual
Carrying case
There is also an option as well as a kit that includes a propane attachment but since my intent was to use this as a survival grill, I did not bother with the extra expense.
This week I would like to explore some of the special preparedness needs of the senior and elderly members of our families and communities. At first blush, you may be saying, “Yes, I understand that there are elderly people but how would their needs be any different than mine?”.
That is a great question and certainly one that I have asked myself. But consider this: the elderly are less mobile and far less likely to be able to evacuate on their own. Their eating habits may be more finicky and, for health reasons, restricted. The need for life-sustaining prescription medications increases as with age, and perhaps most difficult of all, the sense and of fear may result in profound depression as the familiar and comforting world around them has changed.
For those embarking upon the family preparedness lifestyle, it is important to consider the special needs of elderly adults and to help educate and assist them now, before they experience a true SHTF situation caused by a natural, man made or economic disaster.
The checklist below is designed to be shared one on one with members of our older adult population (our moms and dads, grandparents, and neighbors). Review this list and use it as a guideline for initiating a discussion with these important members of our community.
This is the year of the Prepper. Or so it seems. For the first time, the Prepper is coming into respectability. No longer is the individual or family putting a…