Past year pt 2

What is prepping? Prepping is a variety of things, can be as small as putting aside an extra couple of cans each week to growing your own food, from preparing through foods to preparing mentally and physically. Prepping also does not specifically imply getting ready for collapse, one can also prepare for natural disasters such as the flooding that affected the Northeast or snowstorms.

In a way it’s kind of sad that today we have to consciously make the choice whether or not to “prep”.  It’s not exactly like our grandparents called it a choice; it was just a part of life. Such is the way of first world life today, so be it. For us it wasn’t a hard choice, but the basics of prepping were already familiar to us from our upbringing, to others this may be a drastic change in lifestyle. Either way, for those of us in a first world country it’s often a choice, for now.

I wish I could say that my initial reaction to everything was smooth and calm, but really it’s more of the typical reaction many will have, kneejerk almost panic. It takes a while to absorb everything, and there is so much to learn that I found myself spending days just reading back through old threads, debating each discussion and deciding my point of view. Suddenly things like Coronal Mass Ejections became very important as did the need to acquire canning supplies, build a bug out bag, and evaluate whether or not I was a slow crash or fast crash doomer, which seemed to be really important at that moment. While I’m glad to say that like many, I’ve since calmed down quite a bit since then and just take the philosophy of doing what I can when I can and not worrying about what I can’t, there are plenty who never get past that first phase and, to borrow a very apt phrase, are essentially doom masturbators. They’re the ones that just somehow need to live it 24/7, constantly talk about doom, and revel within the throes of possible doom. I will admit, it can be fun sometimes to cheer on things, like hoping that Wells Fargo pops up one day one the FDIC Failed Bank List, and I will throw a massive party should Monsanto finally go down in flames, but I don’t live it constantly.

It helps, I think, to first evaluate what you already have, as it both gives a starting point and a bit of mental peace. For us, we were already avid shooters  and I owned quite a bit of hiking and camping equipment. We’d also both been exposed to canning as children and the idea of raising decent sized gardens. Every little bit helps.