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https://www.telegraph.co.uk/business/2022/05/20/world-has-just-ten-weeks-worth-wheat-left-ukraine-war/

Other areas are not far away from harvest but it's not going to be in time to completely prevent issues.

https://www.wnd.com/2022/05/india-2nd-largest-wheat-producer-bans-exports-amid-food-supply-concerns/

Buy your flour now. Freeze it for two weeks and then seal it up.

I am planting my garden to full capacity (for the first time) this year. That's a 1600 square foot plot. I'm planting it in order to give it away to neighbors and friends this summer. This is mostly to build neighborly relations in general but also if (when?) things go to shit. And it's already working. My two neighbors have already volunteered that "If you ever need anything..."

I have extended the invitation to my garden to friends as well and will be extending it to my landscapers (a useful and hard working lot).

Inventory:

2 regular tomato plants
2 cherry tomato plants
3 cucumber plants
3 watermelon plants
5 bell pepper (2 green, 2 red, 1 yellow)
4 yellow squash
175 corn (that would be 350+ ears at harvest)
175 green bean plants (companion planted)
150 snow pea plants

Fruit:

5 peach trees absolutely loaded with baby peaches ("buds") right now
1 apple tree, still small, loaded
1 crab apple tree, still small, loaded
1 grape vine (I stopped counting at 60 little baby bunches)

Herbs:

Sage
Italian oregano
chocolate mint (mint, but tastes like chocolate mint)

Planned additions for this summer:

2 more regular tomato plants
5 more bell pepper plants, sprouted from seeds saved last year
1 cantaloupe plant, sprouted from seed
4 eggplant plants, sprouted from seed
one catnip plant, just because I have a cat
2 black birch trees if I can get the seeds to sprout (good for wintergreen oil)

Cantaloupe and eggplant are from seed because no one is selling that shit this year.

I still need to get a yard/garden toolbox-whatever-it's-called to put shears/scissors in, plastic bags for people to use so they don't rip shit off the plant. I still need to print and laminate and then mount some signs identifying plants and noting when they should be ripe, how to tell if.

Edit: I'm using blossom set on all of it. It is a plant hormone that forces flowers to produce. All of them. Faster, larger.

Edit edit: For those curious, I have included in my soil prep:

A layer of mulch to amend the soil, hold in moisture, block weeds
Eggshells for calcium (prevents blossom end rot)
Bone meal
Blood meal
Potash

I know a couple of you here and there know about my truck while most of you couldn't care less. I figure I'd give a quick update all the same.

I got tired of the original windshields (there's one for each side) what with the glass ever so slowly cracking and fogging and some previous owner idiot getting dirt, etc. on it and just using the wipers to clear it off (which scratched it so bad that driving into the sun was nothing but glare) and replaced them. It was a pretty easy job, all things considered and was only the third easy repair/upgrade I've made to the truck.

I replaced the rear gladhands for the air hose attachments and straightened the attachment "covers" (no idea what the proper name is). These are on the rear of the truck and are used for air hose attachments as well as any air brake systems trailers might have. It came with one of the two back there all fucked up and it had been annoying me. A few minutes with a mallet and a vice straightened up the thick-gauge metal easily.

Flasher/blinker relay blew. The hardest parts of that was diagnosis and reaching my arm inside the engine compartment while also reaching under the fender.

I also added a quick charge USB port and 12 volt "cigarette" plug port with a switch. Electrical shit makes my eyes glaze over like a bimbo so I'm actually pretty satisfied with that. The truck is a 24 volt system but wired to the first batter so it only draws 12 volts with the engine off. It has a voltage readout which I though would be handy but also allowed me some actual numbers so I could tell that the generator ("alternator") is indeed working and it's just the dash gauge that isn't working. So that's a win. About the hardest part of this was drilling the holes in the steel dash panel. One was a hole that was already there so instead of buying a tool I'd use only once, I just drilled a fuckton of smaller holes in the right circumference, pulled off the bits with pliers, and just ground it smooth with a drill and grindstone. So now I have power to the cab with a split to the bed for electrical (I have plans for that later).

I mounted a cell phone mount to the windshield frame. Had to fabricate a metal mount piece that the cell phone mount itself is attached to but I didn't have to drill holes in the truck. Ran a high capacity USB C cable down through the dash to pop out for the plug further down. Have to secure it in a couple of places but that's a nothing in my book.

Replaced an air line under the dash. No more leaks. That's a good thing since that actuates the brake master cylinder (which is hydraulic) - no air means no breaks. Instead of the air pressure staying at around 90-100 now, it holds steady at 120 PSI. Pulling the old air line out, it's a wonder it hadn't completely blown so now I need to check all of the rest of the air lines to make sure they have aged better or just replace them as a matter of maintenance.

The reflectors (all 8 of them) had no more life and didn't reflect shit so I started replacing those. Some of the bolts holding those on were rusted, ALL were covered by that old school CARC paint which needed to be ground off first. That paint is hella fucking hard. I have two left that I will probably have to grind the bolts off for since they're on the bed and exposed to the elements and they didn't respond to any solvents or even a socket wrench on one side with a mallet and impact screwdriver on the other.

I replaced and doubled down on the foam liner for the glovebox. That old shit was a stiff, cracked mess.

I mounted a truck toolbox to the bed in the back. Replaced the weather seal on that, caulked up the holes, seams, etc. The bed is far too wide for a proper fit so it's bolted directly to the bed floor with some stout rubber lining that you use on the bottom of your garage door to protect both the bed and the toolbox.

That's about it so far. All that's left, repairwise, is to fix the generator meter. I should probably replace the mirrors because those are fogged as shit. Other than that, I think it's time for me to move on to building my camper shell on the bed. I have plans for that including a large fuel transfer tank, water tank, water collection, and solar. I have the previous solar array that was attached to it and here in a week or two, I'm going to give the components a once over and start studying and learning the electrical needed to make that work. I might have to buy a marine battery charger because I have the three deep cycle batteries and you have to charge those in a specific way from what I see or you can damage them. I'm probably wrong because it's electricity so whatever.

One of the things I still had on my list of preps was lighters. I bought a 50 pack of crack lighters for $30 at the flea market last week. Not as good as bic, but it was a good enough deal I did not want to pass up. I will continue buying more as I find them.

Lighters will be useful for bartering. Stock up.

Two years ago, my groceries cost about, eh, $150 to $175 every 4 to 6 weeks, depending on what I ate, how busy I was, etc.

Today, for 3 to 4 weeks, my grocery bill is anywhere from $300 to $400. This does not include pet food and meat for the pets (I have a puppy and a cat and both get meat and high quality food daily).

Fuck. That.

I have enough groceries to last me a year, give or take, and have been building my stock for the last 4 years with the help of my garden (at 1600 sq. feet). I originally stocked up in case of unemployment and topped that up in the event of a collapse. I'm firmly of the opinion that we're now watching a global collapse in slow motion and that in a year I will have far more pressing concerns than whether or not I should get more groceries.

So, after I came back from visiting family over Christmas, I ordered my final batch of groceries, topping everything up and stocking up pet supplies like a motherfucker. Close to $600. Two years ago, it might have hit $400 and that was only if I added some expensive "luxury" items.

By the way, nearly every store where I live is out of canned cat food of any quality and it's starting to be completely out of stock on chewy.com as well. Sure, they have stock but it's easier to find "out of stock" than "in stock." At least this past week anyway.

Being the time efficient moron that I am, I have my groceries delivered. The first shopper who went for just cat food said they were out. This was Costco. She went asking around and the replies were "We've been waiting and waiting but it's still sitting out in the middle of the ocean!" Cue Biden "I did that" sticker.

If you've been thinking of stocking up your pantry, it's not too late but it will now cost you dearly.

Edit: I've also gone ahead and ordered a few expensive things I've been putting off including a replacement phone (the one I'm using is 6 years old and starting to have hardware problems).

This is the heater

This is the general way to make one (Not my video) though I'll leave out for now largely useless details like whether or not to use glass or an acrylic pane ($76 for the size I needed but the price drops rapidly as you get smaller) and so on.

Mine has a little bit more and a bit more attention to detail. For example, silicone caulk and metal tape, reflective insulation board, two 12 volt solar panels to panel 2 12 volt CPU fans to push air a little more. $20 per panel, $12 for 4 fans though I only used two ($6 total).

Total cost was definitely less than $200 since I had most of the parts lying around anyway but I don't have a solid price on how much I spent since it's been a "back project" I piddled with for the last 4, maybe 5 years. This spring I kind of kicked it into higher gear - call it a gut instinct plust tired of it taking up so much space in the workshop - and now we're looking at a much higher cost for natural gas (at least) this winter which is what heats the main part of my house.

Using an extremely scientific and not-prone-to-errors meat thermometer, the temperature air I get out of it is between 150 and 160 degrees. The fans kicked on and provide a bit more push on the air than I initially expected and this doesn't seem to lower the temperatures any since it's still outputting about the same heat as smaller units you see people showing you how to make. The benefit I hope for with a larger unit is to still put out more heat in colder weather with less sunlight than smaller units can handle because I'm using this to heat living space and not a greenhouse or workshop.

The solar panels aren't as sensitive to light as I'd really like but I still get about 6 hours of push out of them and by the time the light is dim or not direct enough to power them, it's not really heating the cans inside either so that's fine. The fans kick on around 10 AM and cut off around 4.

I've had it up three days by this point and the day/night temps finally got to a point where I thought I could get you some good numbers. The part of the house it's heating is the first floor, somewhere around maybe 1500 square feet (seven rooms total). The house is "L" shaped so one part of the house (study, living room, dining room) benefit more than the rest (kicthen, foyer, bathroom, 2 bedrooms) but the difference between the two parts stays at just 1 degree.

This morning, at 7 am, it was 27 outside and the heater had already kicked on for the morning schedule to heat the house to 68. I turned off the heater and did periodic temp readings throughout the day.

7 AM -> 27 outside, 68 inside

9 AM -> 36/66

10 AM -> no reading but solar kicks on and the heater is still off.

11 AM -> 44/66

12 PM -> 48/66

2 PM -> 52/65

5 PM -> 51/66

It would seem that at least for early winter, late spring, this heater is going to be very useful for holding the house temperature high enough that I don't need to use the house heater. This does not indicate that it will be as useful when temperatures are sustained in the 30s or lower though I suspect that as long as I have enough sunlight that it will cut into how much I need to use the heater.

I plan to insulate the output hoses with corrugated plastic pipes, maybe wrap it in some thin insulation as I do this though I'm not sure about that part. It's not permanently mounted to the house and the hoses go to a window frame insert for a portable AC unit which is basically thin but stout plastic and that is a source of heat loss that I could stand to insulate.

In any case, the heater allowed me to go all day without using the house heater. With natural gas and other heating fuel costs predicted to hit sky high prices this winter, I should be cutting a lot off of my heating cost.

The bastard might be ugly and people driving by might wonder "WTF IS that??" but it works.

Today, I'm focusing on the food part. Later, I'll post different preps. My hope is that we can discuss certain preps, why, and whatnot.

So... first up, my grocery store.

https://pic8.co/sh/v1r47Y.png

Carts are $79 to $120 depending on what model you get. Stocking it up was hella expensive but took place over the span of 2.5 years by buying two of everything I needed at any time and then buying extra of things I didn't normally stock. I have no idea how much I've spent on these groceries but I'd estimate maybe ... $1000? More? In any case, I have food enough to last me a year easily but I'm planning that in a bug-in scenario, I'll have a few people helping watch my back so I need to feed them too. Which means two more people drags that down to about 4 months. Also great if unemployment hits.

From left to right, we have:

1. Spices, condiments, juices, drinks, coffee, carton milk, gatorade, soda. Comfort foods go a long way in the mental department when things go to shit.

2. Canned food. Soup, veggies, pork and beans, and so on.

3. Baking and starches. Mashed potatoes, ramen, flour, sugar, pasta, and a few jars of freeze dried veggies, canned meat also.

4. Freeze dried goods and water. I have a freeze dryer. Things here range from freeze dried meat, shelf stable meat, freeze dried pizza, freeze dried fruit and veggies. Freeze dried ice cream and cookie dough are here too.

In the background and the next photo:

https://pic8.co/sh/RQsfzn.png

The battery for my solar backup. This will power most of the house for just shy of three days assuming it's dark and deeply overcast (not generating power). The can of soup is for size reference.

On to (some of) the frozen stuff...

https://pic8.co/sh/L8OCNg.png

Inventory (not shown) is on the freezer door

This is one of three units I have. This one is a freezer, the other two are refrigerators. This one is mostly meat, milk, bread with a few other tidbits. That top shelf there is almost exclusively steaks and hotdogs.

The second shelf is various other meats including pork and chicken.

The next shelf down is milk (4 gallons), chicken that I fucked up and bought twice as much as I thought I was (for a total of 20 pounds of frozen chicken), tomato juice from the garden, more meat.

Bottom, behind the grate: breads. Bagels, bread, english muffins, and so on.

Door: Meat, tomato sauce and home made spaghetti sauce, pork, cheese, read-to-eat biscuits, stocks and broths.

The next photo is a pic of the water I have stockpiled just for the toilet should the mains go down: https://pic8.co/sh/wm2vY1.png

You don't store drinkable water in milk jugs.

And finally, puppy tax: https://pic8.co/sh/sYE1Ua.png

She's a West German Shepherd and growing like a weed at 5 months old. I'm slowly introducing her to schutzhund training. In short, protection and guard work and many police and military dogs are not only West German Shepherds but also go through the same training. She likes long walks, sticks, her tennis ball, and is obsessed with feet. Sorry fellas, she's mine so go find your own lady. I've had to teach her to bark, bite. She picks up on most things I teach her in about 5 minutes (along with hand signals) but requires a lot of reinforcement on some of them. She's still too bitey and hyper to learn "down" but sit and "paw" are second nature to her now. Also gasp and "what's that" will get her barking. I'm training her "hide and seek" and when she finds me, she has to bark before she gets praise. This not only exercises her mind but teaches her to observe hiding places and alert me if people are present and staying still.

Edit: Fucking catbox. Updated photos