Panicking college-student seeking advice!

Make choices sprung from inspiration not from fear.

Originally posted by SolarE-Souljah
...Also, I am sorry to say, but your good looks in a SHTF situation will only draw attention to yourself, maybe from bad people who wish you ill intent.

You should definitely learn some self defense...

This is a really good point that had never crossed my mind. There really is some merit in the idea that part of women's SHTF preparations should include ways to minimize their attractiveness. It would be a liability in the lawless free-for-all should infrastructure collapse. Some ideas that come to the top of my head:

-Scissors to remove long pretty hair
-Color pack to dye hair to a boring brown
-Dirty up your face. Artists know tricks to enhance good features...I am sure the concept could be reversed to minimize nice features.
-baggy, straight clothes, maybe a messenger bag well on the side to add bulk
-Keep with groups, don't stray out alone.

Interesting problem I don't have to deal with. I am large guy. My potential issue would be being targeted as threat over others based on my stature.

Originally posted by blamethegreys


Interesting problem I don't have to deal with. I am large guy. My potential issue would be being targeted as threat over others based on my stature.

Large guy?? Hmm.... youre not safe either. Get a few hungry ones and they will be fighting over your choice cuts big guy.

reply to post by Seekingmyself


One way is to get out a note pad some morning when you wake up, and note every action/thing you would normally do. Now subtract all forms of electricity or power useage from all of that day's activities, and carefully analyze any effects due to lack of same, and how you would get any or all of those routine or ordinary tasks done. It's just one formula in the survival scenario, but worth considering.

We talking about a **real** survival scenario??
Didnt I read she already said she couldnt or wouldnt shoot/kill someone to ensure her own survival?? She has already lost the battle of survivability if so... IMO. She could be prepared out the wazoo.. and if someone wanted to they could kill, rape, eat, rob her at will to ensure another day or so of their own survivability. She'd also be a liability to anyone who would carry her along with them as she will not protect you, your gear, or herself.

Hypothetically of course.

I was waiting for everyone to get it out of their systems……….. I am surprised someone didn’t recommend a nuclear powered armored personnel carrier.

Try to prep for what you are most likely to face. Flood, fire, earthquake, snow storm, or power outage. Those supplies will be of the greatest value to you and your family in any situation.

Basic things…… Do you and your family rent or do you own your house/houses? Renting will limit what you can do, or store because of safety laws. Fuel storage ecec…..

Take full stock of what your family/boyfriend has. You do not need to get stuff that you already have available.

If you don’t have a functional pantry, get one started. It is a good idea for anyone. In my opinion, at minimum, you should have enough non perishable food on hand to last a week. If you have plenty of room, then slowly fill it out for a month worth of supplies. Canned food, and boxed food. Use what you stock so you can keep the old use up, and replenished with fresh. Modern canned food usually has a “use by” date on it. The ones with the least amount of time left, should be used first.

Cost, about 60 cans of food per person to last a month. Cost around $60 per person.

Do you have well water, or city water? Do you live in a desert region or in a wetter region of the US? Do you live near a flowing river or lake? If you live near a fresh water source then water supplies are less of a concern because you can get water and boil it for drinking/cooking any time you want. If you live in a dry area. For water storage, you can use water bladder storage tanks to store a clean supply of water for cooking and drinking. You can store them in the basement or loft. Wash and refill them every so often to keep them from going rancid. Chlorine will help keep the water sterile. They can be had in many sizes.15 gallons is enough drinking water for a month per person. Add 10 or so for cooking and you will have about 25 gallon per person to last a month. Or 25 gallon will last 4 people a week.

Cost, about $20 to $40 per person.

A jug of bleach(chlorine) will do wonders for making water safer to drink. Kills a lot nasty bacteria.

Cost about $4

Do you have an LP/natural gas/electric cook stove?
If you have an LP tank, try keep it above %40.
Don’t rely on natural gas service, it will fail in an earthquake.
If you don’t have an on site fuel supply, buy a little Coleman propane/fuel stove, or one of those sterno butane stoves. Find out how long one fuel canister last you doing normal cooking. Keep enough fuel on hand to cook the food you have on hand. Add a little more for boiling water if you need to. Most canned food can be eaten cold if you are short on fuel. If you are short on fuel, save the fuel for boiling water and cooking the boxed/dry food.

Cost, one stove $30, fuel for a month, about $60

Do you live in a area where it gets really cold?
If you do, try to keep a stock of heavy blankets on hand. A person can handle -10 degree weather just fine if he/she has enough blankets to stack on them.
Cost $100 or so.

If you live in a cold area do you use LP/natural gas/electric for heating?
If you have LP, get a direct vent convection heater in the main room. You can run it without power. If you have natural gas, you could get one of them for normal power outages but don’t rely on it for your only backup because during earthquakes, natural gas service will fail. If you have natural gas or electric you want an alternative heat source. Wood, or kerosene. If your house is outfitted with a wood fireplace, good. If it isn’t, then you need to get a kerosene heater and keep enough fuel on hand to keep you from freezing to death for at least a week. If you are heating one room, you should be able to get by with 3 gallons a day using a small heater. You are talking 20 gallons of fuel.

Cost, about $200

Does your boyfriend/other friends have other heating methods available?
At worst case, your family could crash at their house in case of problems during winter.

Cost, $0

Gasoline.
Don’t assume that something will happen when you have a full tank in your car. Do you have any close relatives in your state or neighboring state that you could flee to if the situation required? You want to keep enough at home in cans to make it to those people, with a little to spare. At minimum, you want to keep 5 or 10 gallons at home.

Cost, $30 or so.

A good AM/FM/shortwave radio with extra batteries. If the situation is localized you will still be able to hear AM and shortwave stations for information.

$50 to $80

If any of your friends/family have them, a CB, FRS or MURS radio with spare batteries.
Cost $20 to $50

Light…….
Candles, oil lamps, or even Coleman lanterns. Keep enough candles, or fuel for the others to last you a week or a month.

Cost candles under $40
Cost lamp $15 kerosene lantern $30 fuel 5 gallons for $20
Coleman propane lantern $40 could share fuel with stove.
Coleman fuel lantern $60 could share fuel with stove.

Matches, and lighters
Cost $10

Do you already have a generator? If you have LP furnace for heat and well water then the generator can keep you in light, heat, water and food refrigeration. Keep enough fuel on hand for a week of intermittent running. Or better yet, use a generator that will run directly off the LP tank.

Cost……. Varies ………

Do you live close to the houses of other family/friends that could take you, your sister, dad .. exc.. in if one of your houses becomes damaged to the point that it can’t be lived in. If not, a camping tent or tents may be a good thing to have.

Depending on your situation……..
Best case 10 gallon of gas, and a box of candles and a radio may be all that you will need. Cost $120

Worst case……. For six people……. Way over a $1000.
In that case, prioritize…… Try to build up a working stock of canned/boxed food, get a little cook stove with some fuel. A couple economy boxes of candles. Get some bottled water or a water storage tank. Some heavy blankets to avoid freezing to death, and/or a small kerosene heater with 10 gallons of fuel, And try to keep your car at least half full of gas. All that should be manageable at a cost of less than $100. As more money becomes available, you can build up your stock and other supplies.

Why don't you start easy and slow and inside the boundary of sanity?

www.redcross.ca...

www.ready.gov...

Originally posted by Aeons
Why don't you start easy and slow and inside the boundary of sanity?

www.redcross.ca...

www.ready.gov...

You're absolutely NO fun whatsoever.

Besides, even a high schooler should know that stuff.. Id assume a college student could figure out such simple steps in preparation for disasters and such. Zombie apocalypse or alien invasion or illuminati invasion and martial law revolutions... not so much.

reply to post by Seekingmyself

hey ya SeekingMyself...here's the overall view, i have great faith in the God that's in the bible...but i'm an outdoorsman, and explorer of this great western half of the USA. so, we don't have to be worried about a bugout situation, but a meeting place and a plan are smart!...a muster point!...for the family and their friends.
why we don't have to worry about crisis...it is written that we do not...AND we were told in the writings that "see, I have told you beforehand"...but us country boys have the advantage being somewhat already prepared on certain items and skills.

Originally posted by SolarE-Souljah
...Also, I am sorry to say, but your good looks in a SHTF situation will only draw attention to yourself, maybe from bad people who wish you ill intent.

Again, using a balaclava to hide your identity will be best. Shave your hair as close as possible. Less to get in the way. Balaclavas will prevent TPTB from recognizing who you are and will not cause sexual discrimination.

Also, do NOT listen to the other guys! Do not carry radios! Don't carry anything electronic. TPTB will pinpoint you then send out an Apache Longbow to find you on FLIR, and make you into brain slushies.

Originally posted by Aquarist
Also, do NOT listen to the other guys! Do not carry radios! Don't carry anything electronic. TPTB will pinpoint you then send out an Apache Longbow to find you on FLIR, and make you into brain slushies.

If that is the case, with all the radios and electronics I have, then I will probably have the entire 2nd infantry down my neck.

reply to post by Mr Tranny

Haha, yeah, I don't know if it's possible to track radios, but I wouldn't doubt with TPTB they have a RFID chip in it. I'm just a little paranoid about anything electronic if SHTF. I'm leaving all my electronics at home, and going offline somewhere in the mountains, probably.

reply to post by Aquarist


I wonder if they could track the set of 4CX250 tubes I have?
Or the nice set of graphite plate tubes in the linear amplifier?… When I am rag chewing…. They start to glow a nice cherry red…. It warms the room up really nice in the winter……

I don’t have a full size AM broadcast transmitter as some of the people have. But I do my best to warm the airwaves.

Sadly, I think most of my big radio equipment was made long before they had RFID tags.

But finding me shouldn’t be much of a problem. If you are on the east side of the US, Just tune to the 80 meter band and you will probably hear me…. Along with over 600,000 other oddballs idiots jaw jacking all day long.


If you want to hear us idiots…… Just listen to a few online receivers tuned to the ham bands.

www.smeter.net...

www.smeter.net...

www.smeter.net...

reply to post by GogoVicMorrow


I'm as much a pervert as every other guy on the entire planet. Do you think I invented prostitution? You need to get real. If we are talking about a real life situation, tough choices are going to be made. You do what you need to survive, if that is your goal, and I thought that's what we were talking about.

Originally posted by Seekingmyself
reply to post by SolarE-Souljah

 

I enrich my brain rather than killing brain cells by watching Jersey Shore. (seriously, I can't believe people watch that). I think I can maintain my femininity just fine while figuring out how to survive a catastrophe...haha.

Ha ha, I dont want to start a Jersey Shore thread....but...I do enjoy watching those young co-eds waste their life away. It makes me feel so much better about myself and my accomplishments in life lol, to all you of that want to feel accomplished...every Thursday at 9 on MTV it airs...caution: it will lower your IQ too though...

Another thing you should do is focus your preparations based on your local environment and possible SHTF situations. For example, I live on Long Island so tornadoes and earthquakes are not really a concern. Hurricanes (and their aftermath), and internal disturbances (riots, crime waves, etc) are the primary concern for myself.

Different areas have different threats and you should be prepared to meet those unique threats.

Originally posted by rushunt
A faraday cage can be as simple as a shoe box covered in tin foil and shoved under the bed I for one want my ipod working after a solor storm of that magnatuded or even an emp attack (both are quite possible even if not probable)

Your iPod? Really? and how you do intend on charging it after the initial battery is our of juice?? Just a thought.. Know the place you want to go to first. this will at least give you a target destination. Have a Backup location and a back up to the back up... Just in case.

I think there has been quite a bit of good advice on here. I'm very fortunate to live in what I would term a favorable area under favorable circumstances. I live in Northern Maine and although it does get cold here most of us are prepared for it. Most of us have woodstoves and 1-2yrs worth of wood. I would recommend trying to get yourself set up to burn wood if at all possible. As far as being able to cook I would recommend a propane coleman type stove and at least a couple of 20lb cylinders( Gas Grill size) of propane. Also get a nice water filtering device like a berkey ( Does not require power) or something similar. And as far as survival blankets I recommend wool it's the only fiber I know of that will keep you warm even when it is wet. Beside that I would say store up some staple types of food. Ingredients for simple breads would be handy. Most of the world subsists on some type of simple bread type food. Tortilla's and flatbreads etc. Basically flour of some type and oil preferrably olive oil. In fact you can make a very simple and tasty bread with Barley flour ,Olive oil and Honey. Also as others have mentioned some basic vegetable seeds would be nice to have on hand. And get some basic kerosene lamps. I think that's about it. btw I'm praying and believing that 2012 (or sooner) will prove to be deliverance and not destruction we need righteousness and peace to reign on this earth for a change.

reply to post by SeenMyShare


Good point, gardening is hard work. It takes practice and patience and daily attention, it can be a real pain. Weeding sucks. Canning is time consuming and sometimes something goes wrong in the process and all your jars leak and the food is ruined and that's frustrating. Freezing your food works fine if there is electricity to run your freezer. Just because you put a seed in the ground doesn't guarantee it is going to grow.

reply to post by Seekingmyself


Have you picked up a Geiger Counter yet. Now might be a good time. Just in case...