Category Archives: Foundational

The area of self-reliance covering the most basic needs necessary to sustain life, as well as the transition into more secure living.

Thoreau on delegating our work to others

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Lest you think from my previous posts that I find little of value in Thoreau, I present this passage that struck me today:

There is some of the same fitness in a man’s building his own house that there is in a bird’s building its own nest. Who knows but if men constructed their dwellings with their own hands, and provided food for themselves and families simply and honestly enough, the poetic faculty would be universally developed, as birds universally sing when they are so engaged? But Alas! we do like cowbirds and cuckoos, which lay their eggs in nests which other birds have built, and cheer no traveler with their chattering and unmusical notes. Shall we forever resign the pleasure of construction to the carpenter? (From “Walden”, Economy)

I have not built my own house. I, like the cuckoo, live in a “nest” that has been thrice inhabited. But I have built a backyard shed and a playhouse with my own hands and, with some temporary exceptions, found the process invigorating and enjoyable. I certainly have a better appreciate of the work that went into my own house (and, in some cases, better recognize the cheap corner-cutting that went into some parts of it).

I do not advocate throwing off our responsibilities and learning to do everything ourselves. But I do think we are benefited when we develop at least some cursory skills in various other “trades”, such as construction. The joy of honest labor and the satisfaction of a job well done (or at least completed) are potent emotions.

And simply knowing how to do something should you ever need to is always a solid investment. Whether drying your own fruit or jerky, sealing and freezing produce from your garden, or changing the oil on a car, those who know how have more options than those who do not. Waiting for periods of need to prepare yourselves is a recipe for failure, as we’ve been told by Aesop’s “The Ant and the Grasshopper” since the cradle.

It is an interesting note on the period Thoreau lived in that he, an intellectual, still knew at least rudimentary carpentry and root-crop storage. How many of us could pick up and move into the forest with any hope of survival? While I would never advocate it, I suspect we may someday be required to endure at least somewhat significant changes to our way of life that we would do well to be prepared for. Intellectual and philosopher or not, if that day comes, I’d want Thoreau around.

Don’t forget to exercise

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Sorry that posting has been light lately. Part of the reason is that I’ve been doing research for this blog. The other is that I’ve been very busy, and very stressed. I won’t go into all the stressors I’m dealing with because it would be pointless. Probably about half of you would think “What’s the big deal, wuss!” and the other half would think, “Oh, you poor man!” The reality is that we each have things that really stress us out that others would hardly bat an eye over, and vice versa.

Anyway, in my case the load built up to the point it was making me sick–on the very day I had an important interview. After spending most of the morning trying to sleep it off I finally decided to make myself go exercise. It did the trick. I put in about twenty minutes of rigorous (for my current physical state) exercise, and then went to take a shower. I felt much better. The interview went pretty well.

I’m still working on a complete list of areas in which one can be self-reliant, but emotional self-reliance is on that list. We need to have the tools–and the discipline to use them–to help us maintain emotional balance. Exercise is one of those tools for me and for most people. Don’t forget to exercise regularly.

 

Survival Tips from Popular Mechanics

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The weekend’s earthquake in Chile, following so closely on the heals of the Haiti quake and a lesser publicized quake in Japan, really emphasizes the importance of emergency preparedness. Popular Mechanics has been tackling this issue for awhile now, and has prepared a special section full of interesting articles. Go there to learn how to Survive Anything.

Glenn Reynolds, one of my favorite bloggers, has long been an advocate for emergency preparedness as well, and recently wrote this piece for Popular Mechanics.

 

It’s 10:00. Do you know where your personal records are?

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Keeping track of personal records is one area that is very important, but usually overlooked. Nothing makes this more clear than a house fire, but anyone who has ever applied for a mortgage has also experienced the panic that comes from not being able to find key papers that were “right there, I know it!” Or has even gone to the emergency room with a minor injury and had to admit you don’t remember when your last tetanus booster was.

Perhaps the most important step in preparing for emergencies is to locate the most critical documents and put them together in a single, easy to grab repository–a binder or small box, perhaps. This way you know what to grab if you ever need to evacuate your home in an emergency. But good management of personal records goes way beyond dealing with personal disasters. It’s an ongoing process that takes some time and effort to begin with, but becomes almost effortless the more you get into it.

Managing (including risk management of) personal records is a favorite topic of mine. I’m starting a series discussing it in more detail over at Taxidrivermom’s collaborative blog, The Knot in the Rope. Rather than post in two places, I’ll post each installment there, and link to it from here. Meanwhile, check out Knot in the Rope. It’s got a little of everything if you’re interested in personal preparedness and self-reliance.

 

Keeping sufficient gas in your car

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To continue on the theme of the last post a bit, I believe it was the same person who first taught me about disaster kits who told me that you should always keep at least half a tank of gas in your car at all times. The reasoning, he said, was that in an evacuation you don’t want to have to stop to fill up. Even if you are not in any physical danger at the moment, you could encounter long lines at the gas station of those who do need to gas up.

It’s better, he said, to keep at least half a tank in your car. That way you can drive quite a distance before you really do need to fill up, and that should usually be enough to get you out of the area of danger. Gas stations farther away will not be as busy, as well.

I have always tried to heed this advice, at least most of the time. But thinking back on it, is it really necessary? Is it over-thinking things? Like the disaster kit it’s something that doesn’t really make sense until suddenly it does. But then, how many disasters are going to require that you drive 100 or more miles to escape?

What do you think? Is keeping half a tank of gas in your car a sound practice, or just needless fuss?

Disaster Kits

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Some people may question whether or not you need to stockpile food and supplies enough for long periods of time, but very few will argue that you don’t need a disaster kit. Disaster kits are portable supplies of food, water, clothing, and other essentials to last about 72 hours, or three days. That is usually the amount of time it takes to restore basic services in the event of a disaster.

Disasters can take on many forms. For example, the area where we live is known to have earthquakes. There is also the possibility of severe winter storms. Add to that, we live about a quarter mile from a major road in one direction, a quarter mile from a rail line in the other direction, and about half a mile from a major freeway. We are also not far from several industrial areas. An accident resulting in a chemical or oil spill could easily result in our evacuation.

Of course unless a disaster is very large in scope very few will be in a position where they cannot simply go stay with friends or family. But even then, if you catch them unprepared it may be better to have at least some basic supplies for yourselves.

What goes in a disaster kit? A lot depends on you, but Jodi and Julie over at Food Storage Made Easy have a good page dedicated to the topic of disaster kits. They also discuss different approaches to getting a kit here. The main thing is to get one. We bought small plastic totes and put together a tote for each member of the family. Once a year we go through them and rotate the food and make sure the clothing still fits. We have three children, aged nine and under, so we should probably update our kits more often than that.

Waterproof things when you can. During one recent inspection we found that a can of liquid had rusted through and leaked into one tote, making a stinky, sticky mess. Several other items were ruined by the moisture. If it is absolutely essential that some items be dry (such as matches, candles, or important documents) it’s worth putting them in a sturdy zip-lock bag, or even sealing them in durable plastic with a vacuum sealer.

Another very important factor is location. Disaster kits should be stored where you can get at them quickly during or immediately following an emergency. If you had ten minutes to evacuate, would you be able to get everything you need into your family vehicle in time? Store your kits near the most likely escape route from your home. Ours, for example, are right next to our garage door. I can have them loaded in the back of our mini-van in the time it takes to get all the kids into the van and buckled in.

It’s true that disaster kits take time and money to maintain, but if you ever need them they will be valuable beyond estimation. Just ask anyone in New Orleans during Katrina, the Indonesian tsunami, or the Haiti earthquake. Three days of basic supplies can literally be the difference between life or death.