No financial security

Hi, I can empathize with a tight budget... been tight for a couple a decades now... and frankly, we have been so tight that when the economy tanked, we couldn't tell the difference.

First off, use the internet to get as much info as you can for free... read it, study it, practice it... say it again... practice it.

Secondly, get a decent knife... start with a pocket knife. You can buy a new one for 20-30 dollars... probably less in a pawn shop. Make sure it is a good one. This knife is a tool... carving, whittling, cutting rope and string, and peeling apples etc.

Then get a decent hunting knife/ Kabar Marine type Knife... you are not Rambo, but they are essential tools and weapons.
Again, you can find one or a like knife in a pawn shop relatively cheap.

Then a food dehydrator...saw one in a thrift shop for 10 bucks last week. Now you can buy reduced apples, peaches, bananas off the reduced rack...slice thin, and make your own dehydrated fruits... mix with some nuts from the "dollar store" and some cheap MnMs and you have a homemade trail mix that is full of energy and nutrition... cheap. Plus a good source for dried tomatoes, and even jerky( use the cheap reduced roast in the bargain section of the meat case)... all for pennies on the dollar.

So far, we are still less than 100 bucks and you have a knife tool, a survival knife, and a food dehydrator and source of dried long lasting foods.

Next, look around and find a good length of rope, and a couple of cheap tarps. At my store, we recently had 100 ft rope for 5 bucks, and 8x10 tarps...2 for 5 bucks.

While at the dollar store, get a first aide kit...relatively cheap, and use that to build on.

Then maybe a cheap fishing kit...hooks, line, weights, bobs, etc.

OK... so, if you shop wisely you could have all of these things and still have not spent 100 dollars.

At the very least, these are the basics. Throw in a cheap canteen, matches, and maybe an axe, and you have a basic kit. If you have not mastered these in their multiple uses... any more money spent is wasted... so learn to use these effectively.

As stated before, skill are the basis for survival. Too many people depend on high dollar toys and theory from a book... but never master the basic skills...and they will die.

Take only the above on a camping trip and see how you do... do it for fun at first and any problems or set backs use as a learning experience. Why couldn't you get the fire going? What couldn't you do with the above and what piece of equipment do you realy need... maybe a small pot, a can opener, or a cast iron frying pan?... flashlight? Did you have trouble reading the map....why?

From that point on, any additions will be gravy. When you see food on sale, buy an extra for the pantry. Do you have room for a small garden? Can you garden? How about container gardening?

Basically, make a list... prioritize the items, and set out to buy one item on the list each week or month... as you can. After 6 months, you should be well on your way.

As for guns... they are nice, but at this point, they are expensive and non-essential. To survive, you need to be mobile, defensive/passive, and invisible... once you have some essentials... lots of food, medicines, barter items,...then we can worry about guns. Besides, I would be willing to bet that if things got bad enough, you could pick one up off a dead body... yes, extreme but true.

Good luck.

Might I add U.S. Army Survival Manual FM 21-76

Its free online and has tons of info, I'm about a quarter of the way through and feel much more confident I can handle a survival situation (that and I've been through basic. I can, if needed, handle lots of things under duress).

Potatoes and tomatoes are pretty easy to grow, grab some containers as cheaply as you can ad some dirt/fertilizer (remember to water and have them in an area that gets some light).

Dehydrating food is a great idea. You want to preserve as much as you can for as long as you can.

Make sure you have ways to purify water, those tablets make the water potable, not necessarily pleasant

Having clean drinkable water is the most important thing, you can go weeks without food (they say) but water is needed almost daily (they say 2-3 litres a day unless you are in extreme climates)