There’s Never Been A More Important Time In History To Be Prepared
A good start at Prepping is to store enough food and supplies for and your family.
When I started prepping years ago, I had a learning curve. I had to check how I shopped, saved and grew the stock pile of both groceries and non-food necessities. I had to redefine assets, debt and financial out look. It is never too late to start stock piling, learn to budget and begin a garden. Even as our nation deals with the COVID-19 problems, other days are coming afterward. And those are the days to learn to better prepare yourself and family. Perhaps, this national emergency carries hidden lessons for all.
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| Prevent Hunger, Make Stock Piling A Priority |
- I struggled to buy enough food because I was on a tight budget
- I never had enough room in my house to store what I needed
- I’d buy food not really knowing whether it would keep or not
- I had no idea about how to properly rotate my food
Let's look at each obstacle, and how I chose to manage
As the familiar difficulty of a tight budget stressing many families, I addressed the situation. I re calculated my earning to debt ratio. Meaning, I found a gig at home, to supplement my paycheck. Everyone can create a gig. And as soon as that door opens, other opportunity follows. I made keeping more of my earnings and paying down debt my primary concern. Fixing what I needed on my credit reports, setting some on small payments and setting back the money not spent. Coupons and buying food seasonally became important. And learning that I qualified for help by the United States Department of Agriculture helped tremendously. One lesson learned by using Electronic Benefits or food stamps, to buy fruit baring seeds, plants and even fruit trees.
Needing room to store food, I looked into shelves and more cabinets for my kitchen. Knowing I do not use the under cabinets or the very top shelves in my kitchen, I set to washing them out. Four cabinets alone, provided me with 36 square feet of space each. Instead of expensive cabinets, I bought sturdy totes. One cabinet for canned meats, one cabinet for canned vegetables, one cabinet for supplies. The plan had come together.
Next I set in place reorganizing my shopping, adding to my set back every two weeks. To prevent spoilage I checked the dates on every can, jar and bag of food as I purchased. Sometimes by passing the front of the grocery shelf, reaching back to get items with later expiration dates. By cutting out waste in my regular shopping, I had more money to spend on the set back. Meaning more money to put away. In difficult times, surviving means not only food, but tradable items too.
Rotating and keeping track of my stock pile to prevent waste, spoilage and over purchasing was my mission. Money spent on unnecessary items in the pantry or set back, meant money wasted. Instead of a closet full of clothes, I cut back. Instead of expensive sports gear, I bought used. Instead of new furniture, I refurbished. Purchasing a $ 1 pack of garage sale price stickers, I put one on each can. Colors assigned by month. As I write this, the color of the month is yellow. Items with yellow stickers go into our meal plans. Items not used, but not expired, get the next color sticker on the chart, but stay at the front of the totes.
All the while, as I built my stock pile, I also built my garden. So many people do not consider the time needed. Or the amount of plant loss either from disease or other natural events. A garden means more work, than dropping seed on the ground. No garden grows with out work and time. And no garden grows too fast. The vegetables growing in my garden now, will produce green beans, peas, peppers, and cucumbers later this summer.
I am posting this, not to scare you. But to bring to light the options available. Being ready, means taking the fear factor out of daily living. At the end of the day that equates to survival.
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