Random Thoughts

From the Desk of John Rourke – October 4th, 2017

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Thank you for the recent article sharing on social media. As I try to expand the presence of 1776PatriotUSA.com and the multitude of messages and beliefs I promote I certainly cannot do it alone. Certain aspects of publishing can be somewhat automated – at a cost. One of the largest ways to reach more people is via readers sharing content with their friends and followers on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, etc. If you are connected on any of these platforms and are willing to share I appreciate it.

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I recently heard from Panhandle Rancher and he sent in a fantastic article for me to publish. This will go live within the next two weeks. He has been missed.

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The pathetic montage from Jimmy Kimmel on Monday night calling for more gun control and blaming Republicans for the shooting has led me to continue what I have done as a result of the NFL “kneeling” situation – boycott. While I am not a watcher of Kimmel’s show I am now not a user of any products from Kimmel’s sponsors.

You can view and contact his sponsors HERE.

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Antifa continues their plan to disrupt this country and cause Trump/Pence to leave Washington on November 4th. While I do not take Antifa very seriously with the ability to disrupt the entire country those who live in the areas they will be protesting should pay attention.

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In early 2016 I set some goals related to the Presidential election. Due to concerns over the country after the election, I wanted to be well-situated prep-wise. Well, we know how November turned out. I’m looking at my overall prep’s again. Focusing on several areas:

  • Food/water
  • Communications
  • Cache’s
  • Pre-staging stuff at bug out locations
  • Getting out of debt

 

Have a Kindle or an Amazon Fire tablet? You could literally go years without ever buying a book to read as there are thousands of free eBooks available. Don’t have a Kindle or Fire? Not a problem. You can download apps for most any cell phone or computer completely FREE! No excuses!

Today’s Freebies

Prep. Pack. Go.

Survival Medicine Beginners Guide

Grow Fruit Indoors

Survival Pantry

Campfire Recipes

NOTE: If you see a free preparedness eBook that you’re interested in get it now as prices can change quickly.  If it lists a price or says “read for free” or has a price for Prime members the book is not free anymore. Visit FreePrepperEbooks.com and sign up for more free survival & preparedness related ebooks.

 

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10 Comments

  2. Clark says:

    Your list of priorities matches mine! But then there inlines the biggest problem I try to face and balance as a prepper every single day, yet I never see anyone discussing this “contradiction” to prep… or not to prep, that is “the” question.. let me be more clear, as world events unfold, and everyday we see more and more reasons to get ready, what if? What if it doesn’t happen, none of us are getting any younger, so my question is if it doesn’t hit the fan, do you have a plan to retire, will we be selling our valuable preps off for pennies on the dollar to pay for our medical needs, what happens when we can’t work and the world still turns, don’t get me wrong! I’m the guy spending it all on preps, the old beans and bullets being worth far more than their gold and silver, but as I do this, I sacrifice putting that away for the “other” possibilities… like paying off my debts, investing in the future of normal.. my long drawn out point is, likes rourke’s List of goals, we must also try to balance our life’s between the two possible worlds to come, the one we hope to live in is not lost, not yet, being prepared must not be a singleare point, we can’t have tunnel vision on one possible outcome, there’s many, bad, bad, possible good… like I said, this is my biggest struggle, and preparing ALWAYS wins, but we MUST find balance to be healthy. Anyone else feel this way?

    Reply
    1. JeanneS says:

      I prep for the things I know are likely to happen — losing a job, the plumbing breaking & being without running water for a day or more, my car getting totaled, needing to go on bereavement leave (without pay) due to a close family member dying, a bad winter storm preventing me from reaching the grocery store for days, an unexpected surgery & recovery keeping me off work for 6 weeks when I’m the primary income. The reason I say these things are likely? Because they’re all things that HAVE happened to me in the last 10 years.

      Paying off debt is my #1 priority (after having a week’s worth of water and a month’s worth of food for my household, which has always been mandatory since I live in earthquake & volcano country!). Paying off debt means fewer financial burdens down the road! Deciding how much simplicity and self-sufficiency I want to strive toward is next, and that also adds to less financial expenses I’ll have in the future. I don’t want to be like my neighbor down the street who has 3 vehicles plus a boat as well as 2 houses — that’s way more expense just in property taxes and insurance than I ever want to put up with!

      I’m not worried about how I’ll manage if/when TSHTF, because it already hit my fan when my daughter died of brain cancer at age 22 a couple years ago. So I’ve already lived through the worst thing I’ll ever have to face, and let me tell you that priorities become a lot simpler, clearer, and easier to figure out when a doctor tells you your child won’t make it to Christmas.

      Reply
      1. Lightning says:

        Dear Jeanne S. My heart goes out to you-I do not believe there is anything worse than a parent losing a child-no matter what the age.
        You are a seasoned survivor and very sensible. Hugs, Lightning

        Reply
        1. JeanneS says:

          Thanks. I keep hanging in there. Luckily I married my best friend and we’re still crazy in love even after 18 years. My daughter was 7 when he & I fell in love, and he stepped up and truly became her daddy (my previous husband, her father, died when she was a baby). Now that we’ve finally been able to buy a house, we’re working on making our future brighter. Thank YOU for doing what you do! I really enjoy your blog and recommendations.

          Reply
    2. SingleMom says:

      Yes, Clark, every day. For me, it’s a little easier, I think. Courtesy of a bad divorce and some terrible investments by my former employer, I have no retirement. Because of the economy and that original job loss, I have little savings and generally struggle to keep the bills paid. As a result, all possibilities for “the future” are lumped together, because I know I can never retire and will eventually reach a point where I also can’t work a 40-hour week. I’m trying to pay off the rest of my debts while stocking up on long-term everything towards that time. I’ve had some moments recently when I asked myself why I was bothering. The kids are going their own directions, there are no plans for grandchildren, and the extended family has completely disintegrated over the last decade. What exactly am I prepping for? Why am I wasting my time? If I die tomorrow, everything I’ve stored would wind up in a dumpster somewhere because the kids don’t have the life experiences yet to realize that these things have value. So, I wound up taking my available cash and bought myself a nice selection of what I consider to be luxury items. I stopped focusing on trying to plan for the family’s hell-or-high-water survival and just took some time to pamper myself. Within a couple weeks I was on a more even keel than I’ve been in a long time. I’m back to prepping, thinking about my non-retirement, but also focused more on living for today. That was something that I’d been forgetting to do. It’s hard doing anything on a fixed income, but I think as long we can maintain that very important balance we’ll be okay.

      Reply
      1. JeanneS says:

        I’m pretty much in the same boat you are. My younger daughter died at 22, my older one is 28 and vehemently opposed to having kids, so I’ve been trying to resign myself to never being a grandma. I see my younger sister enjoying her grandkids and it stings. But I joke that I’ll always have the cats counting on me, ha ha. Just bought a house in August and I’m hoping the compost pile I’ve got going will help me have a great vegetable & herb garden next spring. You’re not wasting your time, you’re being prudent. And good call on the luxury items! It’s important to pamper yourself now & then.

        Reply
  3. Lightning says:

    Rourke- the photo shown now is intense.Makes me smell the many burning fires
    and pollution.
    Happy that I was picking apples today and tomatoes under a clear blue sky this morning.I am praying for all the victims in Las.V and for all those w/o food and water in PR etc.
    Lightning

    Reply

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