changing gears on preps
 

I finished my last 6 pails today. Most of the stuff I have stored is not stuff we eat on a regular basis. Beans , rice wheat berries and a lot of Mountain House type stuff is not on our regular diet. I'm OK with the money I have spent on stuff we will hopefully never use. Its all well preserved and if it looks like we don't need it in a few years it will make a nice donation to the food bank.

Now with inflation hitting the Grocery store at a very depressing rate I am going to start seriously stocking things we do eat. I have never been one to stock or hoard food but Grocery prices are rising so fast its silly not to.


I bought another 5k in gold and silver last week and now its time to stop feeling so pressured, fearful and manic and just take this day by day.

None of us know what the future will bring and although fear has its place in motivating complacent people like me its not a state I want to live in. At this point I want to enjoy my kids, live life and turn the rest over to God. I have done all I can in the way of preparing and at this point I feel spiritual preparation for whats coming is just as important as the rest.

edited to add thank you to the people here for all the help they gave me when I first came. I must have asked a zillion dumb questions under my former incarnation. I was very needy and people here are very patient... :)

Re: changing gears on preps
 

Good, this is an excellent place to be. As time moves forward though you will come across little things that are a good deal. I found $14 candles being lquidated at Wallyworld for $2 after Xmas. Just keep your eyes open. Things will present themselves

Enjoy your day!!

sb :s9:

Re: changing gears on preps
 

You bring up a very necessary step in the right direction. Stock up on the things you already use in your diet or home. Y2K brings back memories of people with fears. The one thing I told people who ask me, was to only stock up on what they already used. I remember one couple bought a couple hundred flashlight batteries, then when nothing happened, they had to convince the store to take them back. I think the only thing we over bought was rice, it's finally all gone. Now, because of the shortage(?) of rice, I'm getting the feeling we should go buy more.

Another thing, and to me more important is to place trust in God. Our greatest efforts will be wasted, if our priorities are messed up.

Oh, and welcome back to GIM:wink:

Re: changing gears on preps
 

Good Morning, "Avalon"!:wink:

I'm almost in the same position you are, despite getting such a late start. We already have a moderate stash of metals, and this weekend Mom and I finished our stockpiling of basic foods: enough food to last four people one year (there are only 3 of us right now, but who knows what the future holds.) We wouldn't eat "well" on what we've accumulated, but we would eat. We concentrated on the basics: flour, cornmeal, bisquick, pancake mix, sugar, rice, beans, dried peas, lentils, barley, salt, spices & herbs, yeast, vinegar, syrup, honey, peanut butter, baking soda, baking powder, instant potatoes (canned), pasta, canned spaghetti sauce, coffee, tea, dry milk, and canned meats. I purposely didn't get any canned fruits because we planted fruit trees a few years ago that should start producing soon, and didn't buy canned vegetables because we can grow them in the yard. As I told my son, having the food stash somehow makes me feel so much safer.

Now that we've finished with the food basics we want to concentrate on toiletries, paper goods, gardening seeds, first aid and health care items. It shouldn't take us too long, since these items are fairly inexpensive, and we have already accumulated a few of them.

One of the things I'm actually enjoying doing right now is garage saling for items that would be useful or necessary in the event of a severe economic breakdown. Saturday I hit an estate sale where I picked up a food canner (with the rack), the grip to lift hot jars in and out of the canner, and four dozen quart-sized canning jars... all for $3.00! Garage sales and estate sales are also great places to pick up large decorative cans (like pre-popped popcorn comes in). The cans generally hold 2-3 gallons, have a tight-fitting lid, and many have handles attached. I pick these up for 25 to 50 cents apiece, wash them out, dry well, line them with a kitchen garbage bag, and pour in the food I'm stockpiling. They fit perfectly into the freezer for a few days (to kill any vermin, nits, insect eggs, etc), and after a few days can be transferred easily to my pantry shelf. A self-sticking label on the outside tells me what the can holds and how much (Rice - 25 lbs).

Having our basic foods on hand is comforting, so I feel like the pressure is off of me somewhat. I agree with you that we need to concentrate on enjoying life and nature, on taking pleasure in friends and family, and in seeking peace through our relationship with our personal diety. I think that those of us who do this will be happy and content no matter what the future holds. In the long run, God will matter so much more than guns, and our personal relationships with others will be more valuable than gold.

P.S. Welcome back.

Re: changing gears on preps
 

If anyone stores pancake mix make sure you rotate.

Pancake mix is one thing that can make you very sick if you eat it when it is expired.

M

Re: changing gears on preps
 

Thanks, I'll remember that!

Re: changing gears on preps
 

Any idea why?

sb

Re: changing gears on preps
 

SB, I love a good sale and you scored on the candles!!!!
I do feel like I am in a good place with this. I will continue to pick things up but a lot of the panic I was having is gone. I really have turned most of this over to my higher power now that I feel like I have done what I was directed to do.

LT Dan, you are right and its easy to lose sight of trusting God in this process.

Shirley, I'm glad you are feeling more peaceful these days too. :)

I'm curious about the pancake mix too!!!

Re: changing gears on preps
 

DALLAS -- Eating outdated pancake mix could be fatal, health officials in South Carolina said.

They said a 19-year-old who suffered from a mold allergy died because of an allergic reaction to pancake mix that was two years old.

Parkland Emergency Medicine Dr. Paul Pepe said the danger arises when mold spores grow on stale pancake mix.

"If a person, an individual, has specific allergy to certain molds, then this could be something that could not only be, make them real sick, it could actually be lethal in certain cases," Pepe said.

The cause of death, he said, can be anaphylaxis, or swelling that occurs in the lungs, throat, face, skin, lips and tongue, as well as "dramatic breathing problems."

Experts advise consumers to avoid pancake mix that has a strange smell or taste. They also said that mix sold in a cardboard box and that is not sealed in wrapping is more likely to be exposed to mold spores.

"A lot of the molds that might develop in a pancake mix, for example, are more likely to be things that are kind of like bread molds or wheat molds that may occur. It's more likely to happen in an environment that may have exposure to humidity or dampness," Pepe said.



This stuff has been going around the internet for a while now, this is the original link, it is about a possible MOLD that can develop in a pancake mix that is stored in a humid enviroment and it is only deadly if you have a specific allergy to that mold:


http://www.hoax-slayer.com/mold-pancake.html

Re: changing gears on preps
 

Rather than storing a pre-made pancake mix like Bisquick, you can always make pancake batter from scratch the old-fashioned way. I came across a recipe called "Wallet Pancakes" (because the author stores the recipe on a little piece of paper in his wallet, so he can make it wherever he might be), that I read about at Esquire Magazine's website, of all places.

I tried the recipe one day and was absolutely blown away. They were the best pancakes I'd ever had. :bear_w00t:

Here's the article:
http://www.esquire.com/features/food-drink/pancake0907

Try it some day in place of Bisquick, and you'll probably stop buying Bisquick. :D Not to mention, it's made from common ingredients (flour, baking powder, sugar/salt, eggs, milk, butter).