if it's the last thing I ever do...

This is going to be a more grim post than is usual for this blog, but it's no longer about 'gardening' but about 'survival'. Skills, teachable and otherwise. I haven't quite gone full prepper, but certainly I'm looking to start preparing for the worst. The world is going down, and while I don't fear death I don't want it to be slow, and I want to be enough of a survivor to be able to help the community around me. That means brushing up on knowledge and being both someone with the knowledge, as well as someone who other people know have the knowledge and are willing to ally with.

Black swan events

· Unpredictable events that change things
I think it's a matter of 'when' now, not 'if'. These are the basics for my own household, but we'll be dealing with a lot of far less prepared people, too, so it could get sketchy. May need to work better at connecting with the neighbours, getting to know their skills and so forth.

More difficult than it sounds. We are instinctively self-involved with our lives and our little thoughts, and the belief that today, next week, next month, next year will all be the same as it was last year, last decade, last century. That is almost certainly not going to be the case. So I'm getting myself organised (in my head and in my house).

What black swan events are possible in the next decade?

• Flood
• Fire
• Earthquake
• Riot/government safety net failure
• Cut off electronic access to money (no card, electronic payments, only cash)
• Internet shut down (blockade, cutoff)
• Water cut off
• Power cut off

How to plan for them
There's only so much you can do, really. THe one that worries me most is fire - it's also one of the most likely, unfortunately. Fire through the area would leave us without a home, and no way to rebuild. That'll be the tough one to deal with. Flood is unlikely, quake/sinkhole also. Can't spend too much time preparing for what might never be. Government failure will be a slow descent. Electronic severance is going to be more of an emotional/psychological difficulty. Even if we're used to communicating and dealing with other people in meatspace, the ease of communications in this era is going to take a big hit if connectivity goes down. Water would be a real problem, and so would power.

1. Energy
• a. requirements
• i. Fridge and freezer
• ii. Computers/modem
• iii. When power goes down, what will we absolutely need?
1. Fridge
2. Freezer
3. Internet/charging
4. Cooking: Rocket stove & gas oven+stove
5. Warmth: gas heater (requires electricity) or manual coverings

Home battery for extra storage 20kwh/day?

1. i. Lithium ion (may not last long)
2. ii. NiFe - will last a long time, so expensive
3. iii. LFP (lithium iron phosphate batteries)

'Standard' battery would be the ones that are being offered right now. They're not very recyclable, but they're cheap. I'd like the Nickel-Iron ones that last for a long time, but apparently they don't do so well with solar panels? (Check with Nev.)

Do we want one for power? For longevity? For reusability (charging cycles?) Price?

2. Food
   • a. More sealable containers (anything in sealable rectangles? - what about the pool chemicals boxes? Do they seal?)
   • b. More pulses, grains - solidly sealed. Buy one extra soft package next time at store.

3. Water
   • o Water filter - purchase is looking at least a couple of thousand
   • o Better water storage (additional tanks/under house water storage?)

4. Can I pay off the house before it all goes down?
   • a. Yes, by selling stocks. However, it will leave us with no savings, and let's assume I won't be paid after July. B1 has useful healthcare and assistive skills, I have homesteading skills. We can live off what we have stored and can grow for a while, although it will not be be pretty.
   • b. Wanted to pay off B2's place as well. Not likely to manage that. Also B2 is having other issues with the costings of her apartment. She might need to take assistance from the parentals and damn the electric fence, even if that's not something she wants to do. But I'd help her get the apartment paid off, so that's one less thing she has to worry about.
   • c. The twins might be more able to hold their jobs: helping, assistive, "femme coded". Low paying, but still necessary and valuable.

Priorities?

1. Water filter for roof
2. Another water tank supply
3. Water bladder for under the house
4. Home battery (unless found cheaply before)
5. More dried foods

Thoughts: I better get the trees in this winter, bushes also. If they fail, they fail. At the least, I need to get them in and give them a chance - particularly the coffee bushes!