The 1st US related bird flu death is here. 5 years ago I wrote these posts with Covid-19 in mind. A lot of this information is still true today. Norovirus is raging across the US, people are battling the flu from all fronts, AND the 1st bird flu (H5N1) death has triggered alerts to all Americans from the CDC and the federal government. One thing I learned about prepping in the last pandemic is stay ready so you don’t have to get ready. I had plenty of vitamins, food, and water at my house when the lockdowns happened. I was even able to skip the initial crowds when the lockdowns were first announced just because I had enough food, water, and other supplies to not have to leave my house until I knew more.
I don’t think we have another lockdown looming in the distance, but I do think we as a community have to start preparing ourselves for things beyond our control. As I type this, I’m watching homes in LA burn due to a raging wildfire. I’m also watching Dallas be hit with a snowstorm (that's heading my way). I’m currently prepping my house for -10 degree wind chills and an impending ice storm. Just a few months ago, I saw a hurricane hit Florida, cross over my house laying down trees and lifting roofs on the way, then dump so much water in the North Carolina mountains that it washed away whole towns, leaving only the river bed left in its wake. We as a people must be prepared to hunker down or get the fuck out if shit hits the fan. It is no longer an option.
I will never forget this quote that I read on Twitter awhile back (can’t find the author but I will never forget their words):
“Climate change will manifest as a series of disasters viewed through phone screens with footage that gets closer and closer to where you live until you’re the one filming it”
We are in the midst of this. I used to watch stuff like this on Youtube. Now it’s happening in places I visit and frequent. And it’s also happening in my backyard. Hurricanes hitting NYC and North Carolina causing catastrophic flooding never seen before. Snow storms are harassing places like Dallas and Atlanta. Extreme heat up north in places it never gets above 85. We are in for a lot of rude awakenings as a society. We must stay prepared to stay alive. To stay alive isn’t enough, we must thrive. And we intend to!
So back by popular demand, here is my THAT PREPPER LIFE: Part 1 + 2.
(THIS POST WAS ORIGINALLY RELEASED 3/1/2020!!! COVID IS NOT NEW! DO NOT BE ALARMED!)
PART 1 (written March 20, 2020)
I’m not here to alarm you. I just want to inform you & help you live a better life….
That Stacker life. So... for those of us that don’t live under a rock like Patrick Star… you’ ve probably heard or read about the “coronavirus” pandemic, real name: COVID-19. Major symptoms include fever and a dry cough.
Per the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the name is broken down below:
Co = Corona
Vi = Virus
D = Disease
19 = For the year it was first identified, 2019
Now you’re probably asking yourself, what does this have to do with stacking? I gotchu.
In the last 48 hours… The NBA season was suspended, as well as the NCAA March Madness tournament, MLB spring training, F1 races, Champions League, MLS, and the list literally goes on for days… no but seriously, check it out here… it’s mind blowing.. Now travel through certain countries is being restricted. Italy is on a complete lockdown with over 1,000 reported deaths due to covid-19. Large events are being canceled by the dozen. I can go on but we watch the same news so you know what’s up.
Some people think this is nothing but the flu (NOT TRUE, IT IS WORSE THAN THE FLU).
Some people have a 22 page essay on how this was created by the government.
Some people think this is THE zombie apocalypse. Whether you fall into any of those categories or not…. There is ONE thing you NEED to be…PREPARED. Be ready to handle just about anything. ALWAYS. It’s not always possible to be ready for everything… but every little prep counts. Whether it’s a hurricane, or a snowstorm, or your car needs major repairs, or maybe there’s a pandemic and you need to stay home from work for a few weeks… or months.. Having a plan is imperative.
There is no “one plan fits all” when it comes to being prepared. However there are a few things that you can do to always be ready for… a storm, financial strife like losing a job, or a pandemic that requires self quarantine:
EMERGENCY SAVINGS - I will keep preaching this until I die. Then I’m just going to haunt you later and still preach it. Figure out how much money you need to pay your expenses each month (living comfortably) then multiply that by 3. Put that to the side just in case something happens. Aim for 3 months. Then 6 months. Then a year. If you have to quarantine for 2-3 weeks and miss work, this will come in the clutch. This may be hard for my Stackers just starting their financial journeys. Just remember.. every little bit counts. Saving $100 is better than saving nothing.
FOOD - ALWAYS KEEP SOME FOOD AT HOME. You don’t need to be eating out anyway. It’s Stack Season. Whenever you grocery shop, get in the habit of grabbing a few cans of food. Canned food has a shelf life of a few years when stored properly. Canned food is also pretty cheap. If you look out for the generic brand, most cost anywhere from 50 cents to $1 each. As long as the cans aren’t damaged, are kept cool, and in a dark place… they will last. Freeze and portion your meat, chicken breasts or thighs work perfectly for this. Other things to buy: pasta, rice, beans, and oatmeal. These are all things that can be kept in your pantry for a few months to a year with no worries about expiring. Also don’t forget the tea, coffee, hot cocoa, and spirits. They all boost your morale and help you stay sane when times get crazy. Oh…. AND BUY A DAMN CAN OPENER! If your local stores are sold out, check the mom and pop stores… Asian grocery stores, Spanish grocery stores…. They will have rice and beans and other nonperishables you can’t find in the bigger stores.
WATER - Deserves its own bullet point. The rule of thumb is “one gallon a day per person”.... It is recommended that you drink at least half a gallon per day. The other half gallon is used for cooking or other essentials. So if you live alone, and you want to stock up for at least 30 days, you need 30 gallons of water for drinking. Walmart sells pretty good 5 gallon jugs. Check Amazon as well. Space is always a thing when prepping and this takes up less space than half liter water bottles or one gallon jugs.
VITAMINS/HERBS - Keep these on deck always. Take them daily. Do your research on vitamin c, vitamin d, fish oil, echinacea, garlic, and turmeric. Plus… when your diet goes from sushi and steak to canned veggies and beef jerky… you will thank yourself for keeping your vitamins stocked up.
For my Stackers that don’t exactly have the extra cash to buy a stocked bunker (I don’t have one either)... just know… rice, beans, canned veggies, pasta, and oatmeal… are all pretty cheap and last for a long time. Get in the habit of picking up $2-$3 worth every time you go to the grocery store. After a few months… your food stash will be ready for anything.
Here are some GREAT resources I like to use as well.
r/preppers - Reddit community full of GOATS. Just read and google and thank me later.
r/prepperfileshare - Reddit community full of PDFs on survival, homesteading, farming/gardening, and a lot more.
The Prepared - Prepper community with free info and reviews on gear and plans.
Happy Prepper - How to get started prepping
PART 2 (written March 22, 2020)
I know some of you are asking yourselves, “How can I prepare when shit has already hit the fan?”. I won’t sugarcoat it. It will not be easy. However, look at these times as an opportunity to tighten up. Prepping is a ‘before’. ‘during’, and ‘after’ kind of thing. Kind of like stacking. Once you start, you don’t ever really stop. Once you have that nice, comfy emergency savings account, you never want to go back to not having one. So you continue to make sure it is there. Same goes for being prepared.
How Maintain that Prep + Stack Life while under lockdown:
Spend as little as possible. We are in a recession. Save your bread. That should be fairly easy because everything physical is just about closed. Don’t fall for the online shopping trap. Don’t hit those drive thrus just because they’re still open. Take note of your finances. Establish a budget. Grocery shop and stay off of Amazon. Plus the economy ain’t looking too good out here… so just to be safe, stash your paper.
Get fit at home. Ask yourself… Did I really need that gym membership? I’ve been doing push ups and pull ups every few hours, every day. I have also been trying every workout I’ve seen posted on Twitter to help people out through this quarantine. Bodyweight workouts + my resistance bands have me thinking ‘what gym membership’?. If you’ve been slacking on working out, yesterday (NOW) is the time to lock in.
Get better at grocery shopping and cooking. If you’ve visited a grocery store recently, you know it has been a little bit of a challenge to find everything you usually buy. I went to Aldi a few days ago and they had everything in stock pretty much except for flour. Weird. They even had toilet paper.. A part of staying sane these days is making sure you keep a balanced diet at home. This shutdown has exposed a lot of people. Either they don’t know how to cook or they only know a few recipes and will be miserable by week 2 of chicken alfredo for dinner. Don’t be these people. Get creative. Crack open those recipe books. Do your googles for new recipes using only the ingredients you have. USE YOUR CROCKPOT. This is the perfect time to brush up on your cooking skills. It’s also the perfect time to develop better grocery shopping habits. Pro tip: don’t forget to add that random bag of rice, beans, or oats to your grocery list. $2-$5 every other week and your emergency food stash will grow like crazy.
Organize your home and take inventory. Spring is here. Why not jump on some spring cleaning? I highly recommend cleaning and disinfecting your house from top to bottom anyway because winter is over and it’s just time for it. This also allows you to take inventory of everything you already have which is a very important prep itself. Check the dates on your cleaning products, clean out your deep freezers, and take stock before you shop. This saves you money because you only buy what you need.
Keep learning and growing. Now isn’t the time to slack off and Netflix all day. Read a book. Study something. Learn to speak a new language (Download DROPS in the app store & thank me later). Learn to code. Grab a free book off of For Stackers Only. The resources are endless out here. A LOT of courses and books are on sale as well. Take your pick and get to it. Just don’t sit in the house for a few weeks to a few months and come out the same at the end.