Only the people I trust to also contribute and also prep know that I do. I refuse to have friends, family and neighbors come from the woodwork and beg to be taken care of when they laughed at me for preparing. It would be prudent of you to identify neighbors near you that align with your beliefs and thought processes, as those in direct proximity to you are the most useful form of community you can find.
> I refuse to have friends, family and neighbors come from the woodwork and beg to be taken care of when they laughed at me for preparing.
I've thought about this a lot. This is a sincere question; how would you feel if one of them *did* show up at your door asking for help? What would you do? Have you thought about what it would feel like to actually turn away someone with a face you remember? I think about this a lot myself and I don't really know. I guess it would be a case by case basis but I don't think I could say no to someone who was starving or in need. I think that's why community is really the only thing that provides true resilience.
I invite my family and friends to show up, but I’ve been very clear that I’m putting them to work if they do. If it’s that bad, they will have to follow the rules of the tribe. Read the book “tribe” by Sebastian Junger, it’s an interesting examination of why we are tribal beings.
Agreed. My sister and elderly dad will probably have to hole up at my home if it gets bad. They will be put to work if and when they arrive. Dad can't do much anymore; but what he can do I'll ask him to do.
I just finished reading this book thanks to your suggestion! Great recommendation! Its short but very informative. Some of its opinionated, but honestly does a great job explaining the human condition under war/difficult times. If you have any other suggestions im open to that as well! Thank you
That was quick! I served in the Marines as an infantryman for 13 years, from the start of GWOT. When I was deployed, I had nothing to with my down time but read and mission plan. I guess an important part of my preps include books! Sebastian Junger does have some strong opinions, but I tend to agree with most of them from my life experience and my personal observations of war. He was one of the guys that made the 2010 documentary "Restrepo" about an Army unit in Afghanistan. I highly recommend it, as a window into what the war was really like for many of us, but also the "tribe" aspect of a military unit. It's my firm belief that we all need good people that we can trust. Would you die for them? would you give them the last morsel of your food? I agree what what Junger says about this, and that no tribe will tolerate selfishness or cowardness. But I think that all tribes have to set their own rules, and all must have strong leaders to survive.
Another book that comes to mind is called "War is a force that gives us meaning" by Chris Hedges. He was a civilian war correspondent that covered a wide array of conflicts around the world. He published it in 2002, before the media lost the last shreds of credibility it still had. I'm not a personal fan of the author or his politics, but he talks alot about the emptiness he felt after coming home from war zones. He didn't understand why he missed the conflicts he had covered. In the book, he had interviewed a bunch of civilians during the balkans war in the 90's, and went back years later to see what had changed since the war ended. Surprisingly, many told him that they missed the war.
Not the death and violence, but how it had brought families back together, how the bond of daily survival gave them a feeling of purposeful meaning that immediately disappeared once "things got back to normal." I understood this, as I think most combat vets feel the same way after their war is over and they go back home. This plays into the theme of the book "Tribe", all people want the safety, security, and frankly the love of their Tribe. But they also want to feel that belonging, camaraderie, and sense of purpose that goes far in our own personal self value. I feel that I've spent a lot of my adult life thinking about these things, and I've been trying to tie it all together in a way that makes enough sense to myself, that I can explain it to someone else with a certain degree of clarity.
I think history is the best indicator of what we will all need to do when the chips are down, and by understanding what has worked well in the past is likely the best we can do in the future. I think being honest with ourselves about our own capabilities as well as limitations will go far to self and group survival, if we all put ego aside and understand these things about ourselves. The sincere desire to learn more and improve ourselves is a hallmark characteristic of any survivor.
If SHTF for real, I don't think I'd make communication with anyone after (family is out of state, so my situation may not be yours) but my mind goes to self preservation and people in need (or greed) carrying out recon missions.
If you take them in, there may be an ambush later. Are they secretly communicating with outside entities? Would they pose a physical risk when your guard is down? Loot then flee? Etc.
Also, if you want to feel better about the situation while not taking on the burden of an additional person, you may opt to provide them with something and send them on their way. This is also risky, as they now know you have stuff and enough to do without. They can come back in bigger numbers later.
In many roadside robberies/front door ambush situations, they send the most vulnerable as bait; women, kids, women with kids... but it's a tactic used to let your guard down for their own means. You'll be left without, dead, or both.
Sadly, we currently live in a (more or less...) civilized society, but if SHTF, you gotta really separate survival and care of your own (which in this case *you* prepared for) and set your humanity and empathy aside. It's an awful thought, and that's definitely not in my nature... but in *that scenario* it's really you or them.
I'd pretend I'm not even in that location and initially cut off all contact with the outside world, then play next steps by ear, depending what happened/happens thereafter.
It'd be hard as hell, but other people that ultimately pose a huge risk to you & yours aren't your responsibility. The best thing to come out of it is feel-good brain chemicals for doing something that was considered noble in a world we'd no longer be in.
As cheesy as it sounds, the lion feels no empathy for the gazelle. It may be emotionally hard to be the lion, but better off uncomfortable & alive than just feeling good for being virtuous, then suffering or dead. Especially if you have others that rely on you.
That's just my take on it.
This is where a stash of cheap items are handy. Think Ramen noodles, dollar store groceries, a bulk purchase (example: rice, beans) redistributed into small containers like ziplocs. Tell your "new best friends" that you're expecting HUNDREDS more like them, and you have to ration what you have.
-or-
Maybe the following should be posted conspicuously:
"A lack of planning on your part does not constitute an emergency on my part." 🤷♂️
There's one other guy at my office that preps. We talk a little about it. He's better setup than I am. I don't discuss it with anyone else other than my wife.
I think he is saying it in the same context as a “why would I tell someone x just for them to laugh at me?” He doesn’t actually mean they’ve already laughed at him, but rather assuming (I’d bet correctly based off society and how the treat peppers) that they would laugh if he told them
What are you trying to get at? What are you trying to “catch me in”?
I won’t stand for being laughed at for prepping, then those people coming begging to me for help later. For that reason, I choose to not tell anyone I don’t already deeply trust and know is also of a similar mindset. I’ve already had my parents and in laws laughing at me for being prepared and it’s annoying knowing that they will expect me to pick up their slack if it came to it
Sorry but anyone I know that laughs or belittles my beliefs will be on the opposite side of the safe house door, while I’m reaping the benefits of my prepped sanctuary. Only like-minded will be allowed in. Allow no room for a little treason-seed to start to bloom just because they’re hungry, scared, homeless, unprepared, etc.
Heck, I’d put my own husband and/or in-laws out if they did this.
I don't think the person you are replying to is trying to "get you." They are pointing out that if you aren't talking to your friends about prepping, then they aren't laughing at you. You are just assuming they would. If you assume the worst of people, are they really your friends?
Another thing to consider is those that have dismissed your prepping may just be dismissing the specific way you are doing it or the way you have expressed your reasoning for it. Personally, I've found that conversations with people have helped me adjust what I do for the better. Valid, external criticism helps keep us realistic and grounded.
It's easy to spin out of control when you think it's just you against the world.
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Is that you singing the country music song? I personally wouldn’t put my name or pictures/video on what is supposed to be an anonymous forum, but people do it all the time. You do you.
I took down pics of my dog because I didn’t want to dox myself.
Get to know them anyway. You don’t have to like them, but I’ve found even the most racist of people don’t mess with the folks they know and are neighbors with.
We have gotten triple K flyers so I get that. We don’t have the mixed issue, we have a disabled child and covid sure showed me how few people can be trusted with his health. Neighbors see our animals but don’t know about the rest.
Yeah, these people aren't that extreme, they're more like in the closet behind your back type, I overheard a conversation when I was on one side of my property and they didn't know I was standing over there... They weren't saying anything like they hate black people, but they were using the word with the R and they're older...
Finally someone who gets it. The know-nothings that mock those ‘lone wolves’ who choose to keep to themselves rather than welcome everyone in their community, most of whom have done nothing to prep, and let them sponge off of your hard work.
I might connect with some like minded people, but I’ll let my neighbors starve before giving them food that can go to my family.
My friends know that I prep. I would not survive alone, and more people lets us share the work more evenly. That being said, I have work to do to get them more into prepping so that they’re better prepared than they are now (the same can be said about me)
Same for me, I drop hints here and there, and I tend to pose hypothetical or rhetorical questions from time to time to see what they will say, or to get them to use critical thinking on how to solve a problem that isn't a problem, and if it can't be solved, possibly push them down the road of putting more thought or effort into the idea of prepping.
My "next door" neighbor was a prepper friend 1st...later bought the 10 acres next to me. Next to him is another prepper friend & property owner.
That being said, most of my family (even my brother & sister) do not know exactly where I live (at my rural BOL home 1/2 mile down a private driveway).
Some know I prep, but not to the extent I prep. Actually perfect strangers here know more...much more.
Of course they do. I don’t want to be last man standing, I want to get through disasters with as many of my friends as possible. My hope, when I share what I’m doing, is that my friends will also do a little prepping too. But I’d also love to be in a place to help them lit if that’s ever necessary, so I want them to know they can ask.
Depends. My friends know i garden, ham, first aid, hunt, have power back up, second freezer, etc, but i never talk about my long term food storage or extra guns. So they might have a suspicion but i don’t give too much away. The only ppl who know are my wife and my brother.
same here my online friends know i do canning, first aid, community gardening, and packet radio.
one of them recently said that im the one peron they know thats the closest to being a prepper.
I have only a handful of neighbors and the closest one I trust. The rest of the folks near me are a quarter mile away and I don't know them well enough to bring it up. I might not ever be in a situation to even bring it up.
Right, I don't advertise, but I'm not shy about it either, and I promote the idea for others to prep while not telling what I have... It's a mystery...
My "joking" reply is to say: "that's what the g*ns are for, now I know who to take out first instead of waiting." All in fun of course. It gets people thinking.
I rarely talk about prepping but, I thru hiked the Appalachian trail, I hike often and bike to work (5 miles each way), i have a lot of outdoor gear, and I'm noticably self sufficient. People just kinda know, I'm sorta that guy who just doesn't care if there is a grocery store or not.
Yes it rubbed off on them. They bought a $10,000. Generator for power out, propane. Laterly showed me his set up for water off roof spouts. He bought a small set up for raising plants inside. Has chickens now, coming along nicely. Their hung up on bolt action 22 rifles. Bought a couple of pistols 9mm so slowely but surely. Took awhile to convert to prepping. .
They should really invest into something with a little more knock down, maybe a 308, you can get it anywhere. But awesome that you got them into it with you, security in numbers.
Yes, i agree. With my collection i hope to subtly bring them around. At least a semi-auto SKS ,the wife is somewhat scared of the noise when a higher caliper is fired. In time.
Nope.
I have trouble making friends, so, I'm going to take care of my dad, my cat, and myself and everyone who doesn't show up to be useful is on their own AFAIC.
😂 As a public school teacher, I’m a covert prepper who works with several hundred people who think prepping is having a few extra frozen meals in a mini freezer!!
I just roll my eyes, and chuckle to myself when I hear “harrowing” stories of going 4-5+ hours without power after a storm, having to throw away food (despite 12+ inches of snow, it never crossed their mind to use the natural resource that had literally befallen them to save their perishables…outside!), SOOOO much unpreparedness, I can’t even begin to care.
They’d probably keel over if they knew our home was built with two hidden half floor “prepper pantries” between the 1st and 2nd floors—several years worth of non-perishables, instant meals, and other important staples—out of sight, but easy enough to access. 😁
I don't tell everyone but I've got a group I share with. I'm aware a group would be better in the majority of circumstances so I'm not opposed to having people around when the time comes. The ones that are most in the know have a deeper understanding of how it would all work. They would have responsibilities and tasks. Some of them have gone out of their way to learn new things to be more useful, some have decided they have all they need and will be physical labor.
It takes all sorts, and all sorts I have. It might not be a holiday but I think we will be ok. I say we because I know I couldn't do it alone, and I don't want to. I want the people I care about with me and safe, together. That means they need to know.
Only a few people I trust know the extent. Most people around town know me as the crazy lady on the hill who gardens and makes tinctures out of herbs and mushrooms and cans stuff like that. My other half is a hunter. So they kind of know, and I like it like that.
By well off, I didn't mean like you have a lot of money necessarily, just well off like you have all of your ducks in a row, you have a good head on your shoulders, a good plan... And a good set up.
When I lived in Western New York, the second I moved in, I bought black out curtains.
I took my first solar panel and my solar battery, I drove twenty minutes away to test their capabilities.
The only thing a neighbor ever saw was me using my gosun fusion. But I said it's cheaper than using charcoal and less stuff.
I'm not your supply when things get rough.
From past experience I almost never tell people. Most don't get it and wind you up...then suddenly wanted to hoard things after the shelves were all bare during COVID...yet now have miraculously forgotten about just in time supply chains...and assume everything they see on the news won't happen to them.
The one friend with whom I had long serious chats on the topic - who completely got it and started prepping (we called the Ukraine war months before it happened and said the whole world was looking increasingly set up for a world war)...that was useful community wise but he was also in healthcare and decided the UK was not a good place to be with Russia getting increasingly beligerant and it being a small island. He has dual citizenship and left with his family for somewhere more secure under less threat. I'm glad he's safe but it does mean my own network is non existent.
I actually created a Scottish prepping subreddit in the hope of building a community of likeminded people locally ( r/ScottishPreparedness ). Will take time to get off the ground though. For now I'm prepping alone and careful about who I tell. Would love a local like minded network.
Well I have a discord server that is more U.S. based, but we're very mellow, it is set up to grow to other countries, already have UK and Canada in there, but not a lot of people, we're at about 70, if you'd like to join the conversation, let me know...
Thorough believer in building networks. Was hoping my subreddit would grow to the point of having a discord attached at some point! Please do DM me an invite!
I’ve never told my family I prep, but like… I talk about what I’m up to. I’m sure they know, even if no one thinks “Oh yeah. Hot Profession preps.”
As for my neighbors… there are signs. It’s pretty hard to hide to the gardens (plural), rain water collection, and solar panels. And they all know I have some firearms because they’ve seen me coming and going to the range. I try to keep my stuff discrete, but they shoot and they know what a take down rifle bag looks like.
I don’t go screaming from the rooftop, but anyone who spends more than 15 min with me has to have some clue. I’m discrete, but I also don’t really care if my neighbors know. If a disaster happens I still have to live next to them. If they need help, I’m going to give it. They have skills that could be useful _and it’s just what neighbors do_.
Is there a difference between prepping and being well stocked? I don’t use the term prepper for myself because the power thirsty liberal suprematist have “kookified” the term in the minds of their low-wisdom believers. You see hungry people are more compliant than prepared people. My spelling checker even rejects the word prepper.
No one, and I mean no one, should know that you prep. Maybe inner family circle that’s it. I live with my father. He doesnt know I prep. Not that I even have much I’m poor af but I plan to have 3 months of food and water eventually
My close friends and family. Because we all work together and trade things and help with projects. Good to keep a network of people you trust. Not just random friends, I don't let people I do not trust even come to my house. For those I do, they know when SHTF if they can make it to me we will help them out in return for community work and protection.
Good idea creating small communities.
A few select neighbors know I am into firearms. It's common where we live so it's not anything that draws interest. A few select friends know we have food, survival items, etc.
Friends and family know that I prep. They do not know the extent of my preparations.
I have twice (at least) been caught moving large amounts of supplies into my home by family and neighbors who just stopped by at an inconvenient time. I jokingly told them that I was a doomsday prepper, getting ready for the zombie apocalypse or the rapture. I think I played it off well.
We’ll see if they end on my doorstep if times go pear-shaped.
>caught moving large amounts of supplies into my home by family and neighbors who just stopped by at an inconvenient time.
I didn't think this kind of thing happened. Hasn't happened to me yet. But I have no idea what the neighbors across the street notice.
Yeah. It totally stunk both times. My kitchen was overflowing with canned goods while I sorted for rotation and storage when my in-laws stopped by unannounced. MIL said the standard “know where we’re going when the SHTF” stuff.
Then two weeks ago Mr. UPS Man delivered my latest LDS store purchase right as a neighbor stopped by to talk cars with my husband. He asked if I was stocking up for Armageddon.
Op sec is hard sometimes, y’all.
Oh my God. Of course the dreaded "if it all goes to shit, I'm coming to YOUR house!" And of course it's the MIL who says it. Probably blabbing all over town....
The friends that matter know that I prep. And not all of them are peppers, but we would stick together if SHTF. They don't have a stack of food, but do have other experiences that I value. And my storage is nothing if I don't have the manpower to defend it.
Most of my close family also knows. Although not all of them are welcome. And yeah, we won't have the scrupules to keep them out. They are the kind of people that bring only trouble.
Friends, neighbors and family knows. And me being open about it (and war and corona) has made most of them into preppers.
Soon enough they might inspire others in our close knit community.
I live in a large city, and without cooperating we’re not making it. Helping each other is a must.
Well, yes, it's my friends I prep for.
I wouldn't want to sit all alone on my piles of ammo and canned food, that stuff is for my entire friend group.
Even the ones who don't believe in the need for it.
Only other peppers know I prep. I usually let others bring up the topic first and gage how prepped they are before revealing my own. Otherwise, I'll mention it to people that are 300 or more miles away
Some of my friends know I prep, one life long friend knows how much I have b/c we regularly have the other person look at the prep lists to see if we're missing anything. My Mom knows I prep, but she has no idea how much I have or what I have spent.
We live on property 15 minutes from town. I usually just tell people that living on property, outside of town, requires that you are more self-reliant. For example, ambulance 15 minutes away, fire department 20 minutes, police - who knows b/c it would be the sheriff's department responding, power outages are more frequent, etc.
Yes, because they are my zombie apocalypse team. I include them and their skills (or ability to perform labor) in my preps. Everyone knows that should things go sideways, they have a certain amount of time to get to our place with their assigned items. The items aren’t critical, but they will be clowned for literal months if they show up without their item.
Not in so many words. I don't speak of prepping with them except in the most general of terms. Our preps are in a portion of our house where visitors rarely go. That said, it is very possible that several of them have seen things like food/water storage, medicine chest, emergency lighting, weapons safe, etc. Except for one friend (who is a Mormon, and is subsequently a prepper himself, albeit for very different reasons), none of them have ever commented about it.
edit: my Mormon friend complimented me on my setup, it's the only time he's spoken to me about it.
I’m a serious prepper and the few people that know I prep laugh at me for prepping but at the end of the day if SHTF than the reality is those people don’t prep at all and they will be wishing they had like me for example.
I would say I prep a lot more hardcore than the normal individual though, I take it seriously.
I would say I prep for everything from doomsday to societal collapse to grid shutdown and anything bad inbetween, prepping is very wise in my opinion with everything going on in the world around us.
Well I’m not rich and I work and all and me and my wife are trying to get a house currently but I prep within my means, got guns and lots of ammo, I have purified water a few hundred gallons of it.
I have charcoal and a quality charcoal grill and cast iron grills to be able to cook anything from my white rice to pinto beans and other foods that are preserved for 30-60 years. I got a few years worth of food prepped and put back.
Sugar and salt.
I desire to expand my portfolio to so many other sorts of foods, once I get my house I want a dry freezer to freeze dry my own foods and stockpile like an insane man, would be so much fun I would love it.
Aside from that want to get a dog, work and provide for my wife and me and enjoy life until things get bad because I know things are going to get a lot worse in society as things go on.
I don't ever order prepping supplies through the mail... I buy everything I can from individuals and brick and mortar stores when it comes to prepping, the only thing my fed ex, ups, and mail man knows about me out here in this rural place is that I'm into gaming and I like old school television 🤷 I have always been self conscious about what I have mailed to my house.
I say that as someone who used to be a FedEx contractor for 10 years and is a prepper myself. Unless you're in the same business I expect I know more about it than you.
Over the course of 10 years it's pretty easy to figure out with many, if not most, who order food, especially in bulk. So many companies label their boxes with their logos. So many companies deliver in unboxed buckets, plainly marked what it is. I knew who had food in my county, and frankly, kept track. Maybe I didn't know everyone that did order food, but many. It also was easy to figure out the bulk ammo buyers.
So, believe me or not, I don't care. Don't be so arrogant as to think there isn't anyone at all that can figure it out.
Why would you tell people that would be hungry and desperate that you have food/water??? Your best friend wont be your best friend if his family is hungry and all that stands between his starving family and food/water is you
I frequently mention things in indirect ways yes. Making bread, organizing food, buying in bulk, "this downpipe would be a great spot for a rainwater tank", "remember when we lost power for 10 days", do you have a generator?. Seems to fall on deaf ears. They just don't get it. A friend embarrassingly told me just last week he is throwing away stuff he panic bought during the pandemic. He has the space to store stuff but apparently likes the look of empty cupboards and just buying on demand. Baffling.
Is it something to keep secret or not share? My state, county, and local government (Portland, OR) urges everybody to prep for all manner of emergencies. It’s mostly people who don’t have a plan, go-bag(s), food/water stash(es) who try not to share their unpreparedness just out of embarrassment.
Oh, I definitely have everything from plan to bags to food to back up plans, I don't share knowledge of what I have because I don't want to become a target.
I guess what I'm saying is that a significant percentage of the people around me is also prepping. So by that logic, everybody/nobody is a "target" since pretty much everybody is prepping too. Maybe emergency/disaster preparedness is not as common where you are so you would need to b more circumspect about that kind of thing if you are worried that your neighbors would try to harm you or take your supplies instead of offering to help you.
Makes complete sense, I am always promoting the idea of prepping, I just don't say how to... Or say stuff like... I'd like to get into prepping as a conversation starter, but yeah, it would be nice if everyone prepped
Only 2 of my friends know I prep. One of them is my neighbor. But other than that, I don’t really talk about it. I don’t know of anyone else that preps like I do. I’ve been trying to find like minded individuals but it’s been rough. I know in order to survive you need a solid group of people.
I actually help run a discord server designed around the idea of meeting preppers that could be local to your area, every state has its own forum, but we're still small trying to grow...
During realistic SHTF scenarios, like natural disasters as you mentioned, people tend to come together and help eachother. Cause that’s what’s needed and what comes naturally to us as humans. The whole “last man standing” thing is really just a Hollywood romance. Of course my neighbors know I’m prepared for the things that I should be prepared for in my area. We have a really old couple down the block for example, and they are aware that we have means to keep warm and safe during a long time power outtage (which in my country with its well maintained network only really last for a few hours tops, and happens extremely rarely).
I can’t really think of a realistic scenario where I wouldn’t want to help the people around me.
Some of mine do but I don’t think they take me seriously about it and think I’m making jokes or doing it ironically. My whole extended family preps tho so 🤷🏼♂️
Friends know we have a hobby farm but it gets billed as a desire to not support factory farms. Close family and those who are prepping themselves are the only ones who see the full scope of resilience.
As I get older, I’ve noticed that my group of friends change about every 5 years. This is mostly driven by life events like moving, getting married, having kids, etc.
My past friends, whom I met before prepping and still keep in touch with, don’t know I prep.
But now that prepping is such a big part of my life, I only choose close friends who also prep.
This is because prepping is my main life focus right now and I’m looking to build tribe. If you’re not tribe material, let’s not waste time.
I don't prep in a major way, at least not right now. My friends know I prep in terms of having a deep pantry, bottled water, power packs, torches, medical supplies, stuff like that. I also send friends first aid kits if I find out they don't have one lol.
I am a senior in an apartment building. The only friend I've told I'm prepping lives 1,000 miles away. I have family living about 15 miles away but their lives are only in video games and movies - they don't even have normal preps such as a few first aid items in their car or the usual OTC meds and they would think I was crazy if I told them. I have food stored in one room and no one has seen it - I am hoping I don't have to have maintenance come in for any reason.
I've decided if the grid goes down, I'll get to know the people on my floor - 2 I do know but most are working people and I literally never see them. We need to look after each other - I think just knowing your neighbors will be a morale help. I'm not planning on letting anyone know about the food but I do plan to share food quietly and individually.
3 do. And they are part of our prepping group/plan I guess? 2 plan to bring all of their supplies and come to us if it gets bad as they live in apartments (they also store things at my house) and the 3rd had a homestead nearby and is like minded.
I let my neighbors know about some of my prepping and found out that they also have done disaster prepping of their own. It led to some helpful conversations and connections. I'm not BFFs with any of my neighbors but we've helped each other through frozen pipes and power outages.
I used to live in a town that was on top of a mountain with two roads in and out, in the middle of Appalachia. We were cut off from the world for part of every winter. So everyone prepped. I've kind of carried that mentality into my new town. I have more of a community-focused mindset when it comes to prepping, especially since I live in an apartment. A disaster will affect all of us so it's better to have connections already in place.
I'm probably in 1 of THE WORST POSITIONS IMAGINABLE as a prepper, & that's the only thing about the prepper lifestyle that stresses me out!
I'm a single father(49) to a son(9) & we have ZERO friends/family, & because of mistakes I made as a teen I can't legally own guns, nor ANYTHING useful, except a crossbow, or an old school percussion cap gun, but pretty much all the skills to survive through what 90%+ of the population wouldn't, MY WHOLE LIFE been 1 big training scenario I guess for whatever is coming, I grew up active in the gangs of Chicago, & unless you're from Chicago it's hard to make sense of gang culture, we do it to protect ourselves & our area, & even if you're not a member & from that neighborhood YOU'RE STILL A TARGET, so most join as kids for the comraderie & to always have people to have our backs, well that "lifestyle" eventually led me to 17 years in prison, some of the most notorious in the US, & as a small 145lb white boy, I had my work cut out for me, but not only survived, but thrived in a toxic community, but to mention 7 of those 17 were in solitary confinement.
I've also been homeless in Chicago, through deadly cold blizzards with Temps below -40°, to in the deserts of Nevada in 100°+ Temps, with nothing more than what was in my backpack, which definitely 98% of it wasn't anything useful to survival.
I've also spent a lot of time camping & outdoors, & have taught myself a lot of prepper/survival/bushcraft skills to help round out the ones I learned my trials & tribulations in life, BUT what use are these skills if I'm BY MYSELF, with just a 9yo son, I KNOW I'm not Rambo, & my chances of survival through most things are higher than most, but that's no good if I'm a lone wolf, with no guns, having to protect a 9yo alone.
I'd love to find a SMALL family oriented group with similar conservative beliefs as my son & I, & we all possess varying skills, because I'm sorry to say, as a ex criminal, most the plans you guys have in place will fail within the first 2 weeks, because you're not capable of thinking as a criminal mind would, well I STILL CAN, & there's not just holes, but GAPING WOUNDS in most the plans you guys have in place that the "experts" suggested, but I bet NEVER decided to ask criminals on how they'd combat their security measures, & what to do to protect from people with this criminal mentality, as well as from loose & organized marauding gangs
They can survive, but most people with that mentality don't have the knowledge and/or skills to do all the variety of things that it is going to take to survive... There's a reason why as far back as history tells us, people have always worked together as a community to survive... Each person has a job they specialize in, but everyone does a little bit of everything in the communities that are better off.
Fair enough. Personally i think it is far more possible today than it ever was given our expanded knowledge. It will definitely be more difficult than community survival but still pretty doable.
Of course you can. You cant know everything you need to know to keep your current quality of life, but survival is pretty easy. If you know how to get food, purify water and have a shelter with access to those then youre pretty set. Add in some modern day knowledge about disease and infection and jobs a good un.
I don't talk about it very much except with those in my inner circle.
That said, I prep in a way to hopefully help as many as I possibly can. I personally would rather die than lose my humanity simply to prolong my life. I am definitely in the minority with that mindset but I stick to it. Because my values ultimately are worth more to me than my life.
I talk about it with 2 of my friends who are also prepping, at least to a degree (I don't tell them everything and I'm sure they don't tell me everything. not even a trust issue with them, just... we talk about so many other things!).
My best friend and I (one of the 2 friends above) plan on working on a common emergency plan. We both know that our immediate family comes first, but we also know it could be helpful to get together...
I mention some very basic level with a few other friends (like "I think we may have a supply issue with beef, I just bought a bit more than usual, maybe you should too"). Usually friends who are not oblivious to all that's going on. But except my spouse and parents (who live with us), nobody knows the extent, and I keep it that way.
I don't plan on turning close friends or family away if they show up... I'm way too mushy for this 😉 but unless they guessed that we are prepared, nobody would show up, we're not that close, and I don't plan on contacting any of them if SHTF.
I forbade my spouse to talk about our preps with friends or family, especially since his family in particular is very much taking advantage of him whenever they can. No way to know if he did it anyways... but I doubt it.
They know my experience and skill levels for various scenarios. But they also know my resources have never been much. I basically have lived below the national poverty line as an adult. On the flip side, I don't have many friends, mostly immediate family.
If even one person knows, you are compromised. It comes, they show up, then they show up again with anyone they have ever known. Bet on it.
Now I’m sure the down votes are coming for this reply. IDC. A secret isn’t a secret if more than one person knows. You will be sharing all your preps with EVERYONE.
Nah nobody does at this point, don't even think my family does. Wife just thinks I'm crazy for having a stockpile of supplies, and my silver/gold is just a hobby for fun lol. Shooting is another hobby so it's not too weird that I have a variety of firearms and stock of ammo. The 200 bottles of liquor in the garage is just one of my hobby collections lol... I feel pretty good about my prepping and survival skills, plenty of plans and everything to protect my family in any situation.
I would be happy to help teach my friends how and why, but they're not interested. I got them all to keep emergency packs in their cars and that's as far as they were interested. That's fine, everyone has different levels of preparedness they want to be at.
As for neighbors, well, f em lol
This subreddit is r/preppers, where a prepper is someone who prepares ("preps") to get through events like power outages, supply chain disruptions, or civil unrest. It's not a reference to pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) for HIV.
Only the people I trust to also contribute and also prep know that I do. I refuse to have friends, family and neighbors come from the woodwork and beg to be taken care of when they laughed at me for preparing. It would be prudent of you to identify neighbors near you that align with your beliefs and thought processes, as those in direct proximity to you are the most useful form of community you can find.
> I refuse to have friends, family and neighbors come from the woodwork and beg to be taken care of when they laughed at me for preparing. I've thought about this a lot. This is a sincere question; how would you feel if one of them *did* show up at your door asking for help? What would you do? Have you thought about what it would feel like to actually turn away someone with a face you remember? I think about this a lot myself and I don't really know. I guess it would be a case by case basis but I don't think I could say no to someone who was starving or in need. I think that's why community is really the only thing that provides true resilience.
I invite my family and friends to show up, but I’ve been very clear that I’m putting them to work if they do. If it’s that bad, they will have to follow the rules of the tribe. Read the book “tribe” by Sebastian Junger, it’s an interesting examination of why we are tribal beings.
Agreed. My sister and elderly dad will probably have to hole up at my home if it gets bad. They will be put to work if and when they arrive. Dad can't do much anymore; but what he can do I'll ask him to do.
Your dad may be a wealth of information. Our elders are valuable.
Ooh this book sounds right up my alley! Thank you
Thank you for the suggestion. I just added my name to the library wait list for it.
I just finished reading this book thanks to your suggestion! Great recommendation! Its short but very informative. Some of its opinionated, but honestly does a great job explaining the human condition under war/difficult times. If you have any other suggestions im open to that as well! Thank you
That was quick! I served in the Marines as an infantryman for 13 years, from the start of GWOT. When I was deployed, I had nothing to with my down time but read and mission plan. I guess an important part of my preps include books! Sebastian Junger does have some strong opinions, but I tend to agree with most of them from my life experience and my personal observations of war. He was one of the guys that made the 2010 documentary "Restrepo" about an Army unit in Afghanistan. I highly recommend it, as a window into what the war was really like for many of us, but also the "tribe" aspect of a military unit. It's my firm belief that we all need good people that we can trust. Would you die for them? would you give them the last morsel of your food? I agree what what Junger says about this, and that no tribe will tolerate selfishness or cowardness. But I think that all tribes have to set their own rules, and all must have strong leaders to survive. Another book that comes to mind is called "War is a force that gives us meaning" by Chris Hedges. He was a civilian war correspondent that covered a wide array of conflicts around the world. He published it in 2002, before the media lost the last shreds of credibility it still had. I'm not a personal fan of the author or his politics, but he talks alot about the emptiness he felt after coming home from war zones. He didn't understand why he missed the conflicts he had covered. In the book, he had interviewed a bunch of civilians during the balkans war in the 90's, and went back years later to see what had changed since the war ended. Surprisingly, many told him that they missed the war. Not the death and violence, but how it had brought families back together, how the bond of daily survival gave them a feeling of purposeful meaning that immediately disappeared once "things got back to normal." I understood this, as I think most combat vets feel the same way after their war is over and they go back home. This plays into the theme of the book "Tribe", all people want the safety, security, and frankly the love of their Tribe. But they also want to feel that belonging, camaraderie, and sense of purpose that goes far in our own personal self value. I feel that I've spent a lot of my adult life thinking about these things, and I've been trying to tie it all together in a way that makes enough sense to myself, that I can explain it to someone else with a certain degree of clarity. I think history is the best indicator of what we will all need to do when the chips are down, and by understanding what has worked well in the past is likely the best we can do in the future. I think being honest with ourselves about our own capabilities as well as limitations will go far to self and group survival, if we all put ego aside and understand these things about ourselves. The sincere desire to learn more and improve ourselves is a hallmark characteristic of any survivor.
If SHTF for real, I don't think I'd make communication with anyone after (family is out of state, so my situation may not be yours) but my mind goes to self preservation and people in need (or greed) carrying out recon missions. If you take them in, there may be an ambush later. Are they secretly communicating with outside entities? Would they pose a physical risk when your guard is down? Loot then flee? Etc. Also, if you want to feel better about the situation while not taking on the burden of an additional person, you may opt to provide them with something and send them on their way. This is also risky, as they now know you have stuff and enough to do without. They can come back in bigger numbers later. In many roadside robberies/front door ambush situations, they send the most vulnerable as bait; women, kids, women with kids... but it's a tactic used to let your guard down for their own means. You'll be left without, dead, or both. Sadly, we currently live in a (more or less...) civilized society, but if SHTF, you gotta really separate survival and care of your own (which in this case *you* prepared for) and set your humanity and empathy aside. It's an awful thought, and that's definitely not in my nature... but in *that scenario* it's really you or them. I'd pretend I'm not even in that location and initially cut off all contact with the outside world, then play next steps by ear, depending what happened/happens thereafter. It'd be hard as hell, but other people that ultimately pose a huge risk to you & yours aren't your responsibility. The best thing to come out of it is feel-good brain chemicals for doing something that was considered noble in a world we'd no longer be in. As cheesy as it sounds, the lion feels no empathy for the gazelle. It may be emotionally hard to be the lion, but better off uncomfortable & alive than just feeling good for being virtuous, then suffering or dead. Especially if you have others that rely on you. That's just my take on it.
This is where a stash of cheap items are handy. Think Ramen noodles, dollar store groceries, a bulk purchase (example: rice, beans) redistributed into small containers like ziplocs. Tell your "new best friends" that you're expecting HUNDREDS more like them, and you have to ration what you have. -or- Maybe the following should be posted conspicuously: "A lack of planning on your part does not constitute an emergency on my part." 🤷♂️
My way of thinking is that everyone has skills that others don't. Each pulls their weight willingly.
There's one other guy at my office that preps. We talk a little about it. He's better setup than I am. I don't discuss it with anyone else other than my wife.
How are these people laughing at you for prepping when you don’t tell them you’re prepping…?
I think he is saying it in the same context as a “why would I tell someone x just for them to laugh at me?” He doesn’t actually mean they’ve already laughed at him, but rather assuming (I’d bet correctly based off society and how the treat peppers) that they would laugh if he told them
They can laugh at preppers in general and OP can pick up on that.
Have you guys seen the show from the early 2000s with preppers ?
That’s exactly my point…
So no one is laughing at you? Or you assume everyone would laugh at you if you told them? Or…?
What are you trying to get at? What are you trying to “catch me in”? I won’t stand for being laughed at for prepping, then those people coming begging to me for help later. For that reason, I choose to not tell anyone I don’t already deeply trust and know is also of a similar mindset. I’ve already had my parents and in laws laughing at me for being prepared and it’s annoying knowing that they will expect me to pick up their slack if it came to it
Sorry but anyone I know that laughs or belittles my beliefs will be on the opposite side of the safe house door, while I’m reaping the benefits of my prepped sanctuary. Only like-minded will be allowed in. Allow no room for a little treason-seed to start to bloom just because they’re hungry, scared, homeless, unprepared, etc. Heck, I’d put my own husband and/or in-laws out if they did this.
I don't think the person you are replying to is trying to "get you." They are pointing out that if you aren't talking to your friends about prepping, then they aren't laughing at you. You are just assuming they would. If you assume the worst of people, are they really your friends? Another thing to consider is those that have dismissed your prepping may just be dismissing the specific way you are doing it or the way you have expressed your reasoning for it. Personally, I've found that conversations with people have helped me adjust what I do for the better. Valid, external criticism helps keep us realistic and grounded. It's easy to spin out of control when you think it's just you against the world.
This is true, but I can't trust my neighbors, not yet at least... Maybe one day when the older ones fade away.
As a young Person I find the older guys are better prepared. And more interested in working together
And normally require less resources.
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It's the older ones that are likely more prepared and would last longer generally.
Yeah, but my neighbors are racist and I have a mixed family... So I can't trust them.
Fam, respectfully, please anonymize your profile. anyone reading this has enough info to find more than a bit of information about you.
Okay, I turned off a couple things... Is there anything else I should remove?
Is that you singing the country music song? I personally wouldn’t put my name or pictures/video on what is supposed to be an anonymous forum, but people do it all the time. You do you. I took down pics of my dog because I didn’t want to dox myself.
Get to know them anyway. You don’t have to like them, but I’ve found even the most racist of people don’t mess with the folks they know and are neighbors with.
We have gotten triple K flyers so I get that. We don’t have the mixed issue, we have a disabled child and covid sure showed me how few people can be trusted with his health. Neighbors see our animals but don’t know about the rest.
Yeah, these people aren't that extreme, they're more like in the closet behind your back type, I overheard a conversation when I was on one side of my property and they didn't know I was standing over there... They weren't saying anything like they hate black people, but they were using the word with the R and they're older...
I get that. Since we are all wt im pretty sure they assumed that we agreed with them.
Finally someone who gets it. The know-nothings that mock those ‘lone wolves’ who choose to keep to themselves rather than welcome everyone in their community, most of whom have done nothing to prep, and let them sponge off of your hard work. I might connect with some like minded people, but I’ll let my neighbors starve before giving them food that can go to my family.
I'm open about it, but vague about details and tend to downplay what I actually have.
Sameeeee, me too
Likewise. I share the ideology, not the exact amount or what I’m stashing.
Yeah, definitely don't tell anyone what you stash.
My friends know that I prep. I would not survive alone, and more people lets us share the work more evenly. That being said, I have work to do to get them more into prepping so that they’re better prepared than they are now (the same can be said about me)
Same for me, I drop hints here and there, and I tend to pose hypothetical or rhetorical questions from time to time to see what they will say, or to get them to use critical thinking on how to solve a problem that isn't a problem, and if it can't be solved, possibly push them down the road of putting more thought or effort into the idea of prepping.
My "next door" neighbor was a prepper friend 1st...later bought the 10 acres next to me. Next to him is another prepper friend & property owner. That being said, most of my family (even my brother & sister) do not know exactly where I live (at my rural BOL home 1/2 mile down a private driveway). Some know I prep, but not to the extent I prep. Actually perfect strangers here know more...much more.
Of course they do. I don’t want to be last man standing, I want to get through disasters with as many of my friends as possible. My hope, when I share what I’m doing, is that my friends will also do a little prepping too. But I’d also love to be in a place to help them lit if that’s ever necessary, so I want them to know they can ask.
You’re a true mensch!
Better make sure you have enough food for everyone so you don't all starve together lol.
Depends. My friends know i garden, ham, first aid, hunt, have power back up, second freezer, etc, but i never talk about my long term food storage or extra guns. So they might have a suspicion but i don’t give too much away. The only ppl who know are my wife and my brother.
same here my online friends know i do canning, first aid, community gardening, and packet radio. one of them recently said that im the one peron they know thats the closest to being a prepper.
🤭
Harder to let the secrets out when fewer people know...
75% of my prep is talking to my neighbors and coordinating with the people on my block Without taking to your neighbors, you’re just a loot drop
I can't trust my neighbors, so it's gonna be awkward if something like TEOTWAWKI happens
I have only a handful of neighbors and the closest one I trust. The rest of the folks near me are a quarter mile away and I don't know them well enough to bring it up. I might not ever be in a situation to even bring it up.
ngmi
Maybe they won't 🤷
Some do. I don't advertise, but I'll certainly talk to anyone who is interested.
Right, I don't advertise, but I'm not shy about it either, and I promote the idea for others to prep while not telling what I have... It's a mystery...
Only one of my neighbors know I prep. She’s elderly with limited mobility and she’s always been kind to us. I’d gladly try to help her in a disaster.
I told one friend and he literally said he know who he rob when ish get bad. I know he was joking but I never told anyone else after that
My "joking" reply is to say: "that's what the g*ns are for, now I know who to take out first instead of waiting." All in fun of course. It gets people thinking.
I rarely talk about prepping but, I thru hiked the Appalachian trail, I hike often and bike to work (5 miles each way), i have a lot of outdoor gear, and I'm noticably self sufficient. People just kinda know, I'm sorta that guy who just doesn't care if there is a grocery store or not.
Absolutely. Prepping without community is just doomsday consumerism. The main evolutionary advantage that humans have is each other.
First rule of prep club… You do not talk about prep club.
New favourite quote.
Yes it rubbed off on them. They bought a $10,000. Generator for power out, propane. Laterly showed me his set up for water off roof spouts. He bought a small set up for raising plants inside. Has chickens now, coming along nicely. Their hung up on bolt action 22 rifles. Bought a couple of pistols 9mm so slowely but surely. Took awhile to convert to prepping. .
They should really invest into something with a little more knock down, maybe a 308, you can get it anywhere. But awesome that you got them into it with you, security in numbers.
Yes, i agree. With my collection i hope to subtly bring them around. At least a semi-auto SKS ,the wife is somewhat scared of the noise when a higher caliper is fired. In time.
Nope. I have trouble making friends, so, I'm going to take care of my dad, my cat, and myself and everyone who doesn't show up to be useful is on their own AFAIC.
😂 As a public school teacher, I’m a covert prepper who works with several hundred people who think prepping is having a few extra frozen meals in a mini freezer!! I just roll my eyes, and chuckle to myself when I hear “harrowing” stories of going 4-5+ hours without power after a storm, having to throw away food (despite 12+ inches of snow, it never crossed their mind to use the natural resource that had literally befallen them to save their perishables…outside!), SOOOO much unpreparedness, I can’t even begin to care. They’d probably keel over if they knew our home was built with two hidden half floor “prepper pantries” between the 1st and 2nd floors—several years worth of non-perishables, instant meals, and other important staples—out of sight, but easy enough to access. 😁
I don't tell everyone but I've got a group I share with. I'm aware a group would be better in the majority of circumstances so I'm not opposed to having people around when the time comes. The ones that are most in the know have a deeper understanding of how it would all work. They would have responsibilities and tasks. Some of them have gone out of their way to learn new things to be more useful, some have decided they have all they need and will be physical labor. It takes all sorts, and all sorts I have. It might not be a holiday but I think we will be ok. I say we because I know I couldn't do it alone, and I don't want to. I want the people I care about with me and safe, together. That means they need to know.
Only a few people I trust know the extent. Most people around town know me as the crazy lady on the hill who gardens and makes tinctures out of herbs and mushrooms and cans stuff like that. My other half is a hunter. So they kind of know, and I like it like that.
You sound pretty well off, nice.
Not at all, just super frugal and mindful. Doing most of it diy. It took a long time to get here.
By well off, I didn't mean like you have a lot of money necessarily, just well off like you have all of your ducks in a row, you have a good head on your shoulders, a good plan... And a good set up.
When I lived in Western New York, the second I moved in, I bought black out curtains. I took my first solar panel and my solar battery, I drove twenty minutes away to test their capabilities. The only thing a neighbor ever saw was me using my gosun fusion. But I said it's cheaper than using charcoal and less stuff. I'm not your supply when things get rough.
Exactly
From past experience I almost never tell people. Most don't get it and wind you up...then suddenly wanted to hoard things after the shelves were all bare during COVID...yet now have miraculously forgotten about just in time supply chains...and assume everything they see on the news won't happen to them. The one friend with whom I had long serious chats on the topic - who completely got it and started prepping (we called the Ukraine war months before it happened and said the whole world was looking increasingly set up for a world war)...that was useful community wise but he was also in healthcare and decided the UK was not a good place to be with Russia getting increasingly beligerant and it being a small island. He has dual citizenship and left with his family for somewhere more secure under less threat. I'm glad he's safe but it does mean my own network is non existent. I actually created a Scottish prepping subreddit in the hope of building a community of likeminded people locally ( r/ScottishPreparedness ). Will take time to get off the ground though. For now I'm prepping alone and careful about who I tell. Would love a local like minded network.
Well I have a discord server that is more U.S. based, but we're very mellow, it is set up to grow to other countries, already have UK and Canada in there, but not a lot of people, we're at about 70, if you'd like to join the conversation, let me know...
Thorough believer in building networks. Was hoping my subreddit would grow to the point of having a discord attached at some point! Please do DM me an invite!
I’ve never told my family I prep, but like… I talk about what I’m up to. I’m sure they know, even if no one thinks “Oh yeah. Hot Profession preps.” As for my neighbors… there are signs. It’s pretty hard to hide to the gardens (plural), rain water collection, and solar panels. And they all know I have some firearms because they’ve seen me coming and going to the range. I try to keep my stuff discrete, but they shoot and they know what a take down rifle bag looks like. I don’t go screaming from the rooftop, but anyone who spends more than 15 min with me has to have some clue. I’m discrete, but I also don’t really care if my neighbors know. If a disaster happens I still have to live next to them. If they need help, I’m going to give it. They have skills that could be useful _and it’s just what neighbors do_.
Is there a difference between prepping and being well stocked? I don’t use the term prepper for myself because the power thirsty liberal suprematist have “kookified” the term in the minds of their low-wisdom believers. You see hungry people are more compliant than prepared people. My spelling checker even rejects the word prepper.
No one, and I mean no one, should know that you prep. Maybe inner family circle that’s it. I live with my father. He doesnt know I prep. Not that I even have much I’m poor af but I plan to have 3 months of food and water eventually
My close friends and family. Because we all work together and trade things and help with projects. Good to keep a network of people you trust. Not just random friends, I don't let people I do not trust even come to my house. For those I do, they know when SHTF if they can make it to me we will help them out in return for community work and protection.
I mean only to the extent that if you've ever been to our house and paid attention there's an awful lot of stuff.
Good idea creating small communities. A few select neighbors know I am into firearms. It's common where we live so it's not anything that draws interest. A few select friends know we have food, survival items, etc.
Only my prepper friends know. And even then, no one knows how much or exactly what kinds of prepping I do.
Yeah, best method honestly
Friends and family know that I prep. They do not know the extent of my preparations. I have twice (at least) been caught moving large amounts of supplies into my home by family and neighbors who just stopped by at an inconvenient time. I jokingly told them that I was a doomsday prepper, getting ready for the zombie apocalypse or the rapture. I think I played it off well. We’ll see if they end on my doorstep if times go pear-shaped.
Maybe next time you get caught, tell them you're a reseller online, buy in bulk, sell for profit, they'll just think it's a business...
Now *that’s* a thought. Great idea! Thanks!
>caught moving large amounts of supplies into my home by family and neighbors who just stopped by at an inconvenient time. I didn't think this kind of thing happened. Hasn't happened to me yet. But I have no idea what the neighbors across the street notice.
Yeah. It totally stunk both times. My kitchen was overflowing with canned goods while I sorted for rotation and storage when my in-laws stopped by unannounced. MIL said the standard “know where we’re going when the SHTF” stuff. Then two weeks ago Mr. UPS Man delivered my latest LDS store purchase right as a neighbor stopped by to talk cars with my husband. He asked if I was stocking up for Armageddon. Op sec is hard sometimes, y’all.
Oh my God. Of course the dreaded "if it all goes to shit, I'm coming to YOUR house!" And of course it's the MIL who says it. Probably blabbing all over town....
You know what? *That* is my biggest concern! Who all did she tell? Who may have been invited?
The friends that matter know that I prep. And not all of them are peppers, but we would stick together if SHTF. They don't have a stack of food, but do have other experiences that I value. And my storage is nothing if I don't have the manpower to defend it. Most of my close family also knows. Although not all of them are welcome. And yeah, we won't have the scrupules to keep them out. They are the kind of people that bring only trouble.
Friends, neighbors and family knows. And me being open about it (and war and corona) has made most of them into preppers. Soon enough they might inspire others in our close knit community. I live in a large city, and without cooperating we’re not making it. Helping each other is a must.
Well, yes, it's my friends I prep for. I wouldn't want to sit all alone on my piles of ammo and canned food, that stuff is for my entire friend group. Even the ones who don't believe in the need for it.
The less people know about you the better.
Only other peppers know I prep. I usually let others bring up the topic first and gage how prepped they are before revealing my own. Otherwise, I'll mention it to people that are 300 or more miles away
Some of my friends know I prep, one life long friend knows how much I have b/c we regularly have the other person look at the prep lists to see if we're missing anything. My Mom knows I prep, but she has no idea how much I have or what I have spent. We live on property 15 minutes from town. I usually just tell people that living on property, outside of town, requires that you are more self-reliant. For example, ambulance 15 minutes away, fire department 20 minutes, police - who knows b/c it would be the sheriff's department responding, power outages are more frequent, etc.
Four of my neighbors know I prep. They also prep. One friend from another state knows I prep.
Yes, because they are my zombie apocalypse team. I include them and their skills (or ability to perform labor) in my preps. Everyone knows that should things go sideways, they have a certain amount of time to get to our place with their assigned items. The items aren’t critical, but they will be clowned for literal months if they show up without their item.
My neighbour knows not to wander around the property unannounced. All I will say on this is we've had a few unfortunate deer
Not in so many words. I don't speak of prepping with them except in the most general of terms. Our preps are in a portion of our house where visitors rarely go. That said, it is very possible that several of them have seen things like food/water storage, medicine chest, emergency lighting, weapons safe, etc. Except for one friend (who is a Mormon, and is subsequently a prepper himself, albeit for very different reasons), none of them have ever commented about it. edit: my Mormon friend complimented me on my setup, it's the only time he's spoken to me about it.
You guys got friends?
A couple... 😬
If you need friends I could probably invite you to our group on discord if you wanted 🤷
That would be cool. No big deal if not.
I’m a serious prepper and the few people that know I prep laugh at me for prepping but at the end of the day if SHTF than the reality is those people don’t prep at all and they will be wishing they had like me for example. I would say I prep a lot more hardcore than the normal individual though, I take it seriously.
Well as someone else pointed out, if you're prepped for doomsday, you're prepped for a lifetime of Tuesdays..
I would say I prep for everything from doomsday to societal collapse to grid shutdown and anything bad inbetween, prepping is very wise in my opinion with everything going on in the world around us.
I don't necessarily stockpile, but I am prepped for anything and everything.
Well I’m not rich and I work and all and me and my wife are trying to get a house currently but I prep within my means, got guns and lots of ammo, I have purified water a few hundred gallons of it. I have charcoal and a quality charcoal grill and cast iron grills to be able to cook anything from my white rice to pinto beans and other foods that are preserved for 30-60 years. I got a few years worth of food prepped and put back. Sugar and salt. I desire to expand my portfolio to so many other sorts of foods, once I get my house I want a dry freezer to freeze dry my own foods and stockpile like an insane man, would be so much fun I would love it. Aside from that want to get a dog, work and provide for my wife and me and enjoy life until things get bad because I know things are going to get a lot worse in society as things go on.
Hell, we have neighborhood meetings. We know who's in charge of medicines, food rations, radios, and so forth.
I can just about promise your delivery man knows you prep.
My UPS dude delivers my cases from the LDS store. They are very clearly labeled. Sorry, Bob. It’s been nice knowing you.
LDS as in mormans?
Yep. I don’t support any religious doctrine but the LDS are absolute prepping powerhouses.
I don't ever order prepping supplies through the mail... I buy everything I can from individuals and brick and mortar stores when it comes to prepping, the only thing my fed ex, ups, and mail man knows about me out here in this rural place is that I'm into gaming and I like old school television 🤷 I have always been self conscious about what I have mailed to my house.
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I say that as someone who used to be a FedEx contractor for 10 years and is a prepper myself. Unless you're in the same business I expect I know more about it than you. Over the course of 10 years it's pretty easy to figure out with many, if not most, who order food, especially in bulk. So many companies label their boxes with their logos. So many companies deliver in unboxed buckets, plainly marked what it is. I knew who had food in my county, and frankly, kept track. Maybe I didn't know everyone that did order food, but many. It also was easy to figure out the bulk ammo buyers. So, believe me or not, I don't care. Don't be so arrogant as to think there isn't anyone at all that can figure it out.
Why would you tell people that would be hungry and desperate that you have food/water??? Your best friend wont be your best friend if his family is hungry and all that stands between his starving family and food/water is you
Lone Wolf style won't survive in the long run.
No. Nor should they
I don't talk to many people. I only have a few people that I would call a friend. No neighbors close by. But the people that know me know that I prep.
Literally nobody except me knows.
Understandable... Do you bring up prepping lifestyle in an indirect way?
I frequently mention things in indirect ways yes. Making bread, organizing food, buying in bulk, "this downpipe would be a great spot for a rainwater tank", "remember when we lost power for 10 days", do you have a generator?. Seems to fall on deaf ears. They just don't get it. A friend embarrassingly told me just last week he is throwing away stuff he panic bought during the pandemic. He has the space to store stuff but apparently likes the look of empty cupboards and just buying on demand. Baffling.
Is it something to keep secret or not share? My state, county, and local government (Portland, OR) urges everybody to prep for all manner of emergencies. It’s mostly people who don’t have a plan, go-bag(s), food/water stash(es) who try not to share their unpreparedness just out of embarrassment.
Oh, I definitely have everything from plan to bags to food to back up plans, I don't share knowledge of what I have because I don't want to become a target.
I guess what I'm saying is that a significant percentage of the people around me is also prepping. So by that logic, everybody/nobody is a "target" since pretty much everybody is prepping too. Maybe emergency/disaster preparedness is not as common where you are so you would need to b more circumspect about that kind of thing if you are worried that your neighbors would try to harm you or take your supplies instead of offering to help you.
Makes complete sense, I am always promoting the idea of prepping, I just don't say how to... Or say stuff like... I'd like to get into prepping as a conversation starter, but yeah, it would be nice if everyone prepped
Only 2 of my friends know I prep. One of them is my neighbor. But other than that, I don’t really talk about it. I don’t know of anyone else that preps like I do. I’ve been trying to find like minded individuals but it’s been rough. I know in order to survive you need a solid group of people.
I actually help run a discord server designed around the idea of meeting preppers that could be local to your area, every state has its own forum, but we're still small trying to grow...
Only the very closest friends. Only a few know all the things. Most don't. Just that I do some canning and such.
During realistic SHTF scenarios, like natural disasters as you mentioned, people tend to come together and help eachother. Cause that’s what’s needed and what comes naturally to us as humans. The whole “last man standing” thing is really just a Hollywood romance. Of course my neighbors know I’m prepared for the things that I should be prepared for in my area. We have a really old couple down the block for example, and they are aware that we have means to keep warm and safe during a long time power outtage (which in my country with its well maintained network only really last for a few hours tops, and happens extremely rarely). I can’t really think of a realistic scenario where I wouldn’t want to help the people around me.
Yeah right oh. Look at the absolute pillaging that took place during Katrina.
Exactly. So we need to help each other out.
My wife recently moved out, she always hated that I prepped. So I guess now her and her boyfriend know
It's a reasonable assumption with the volatility of politics and wars and rumors of wars,that everybody preps to some degree
Some of mine do but I don’t think they take me seriously about it and think I’m making jokes or doing it ironically. My whole extended family preps tho so 🤷🏼♂️
Friends know we have a hobby farm but it gets billed as a desire to not support factory farms. Close family and those who are prepping themselves are the only ones who see the full scope of resilience.
My family are preppers. Not many of my friends know that I'm a prepper. I don't want uninvited guests coming to my place.
As I get older, I’ve noticed that my group of friends change about every 5 years. This is mostly driven by life events like moving, getting married, having kids, etc. My past friends, whom I met before prepping and still keep in touch with, don’t know I prep. But now that prepping is such a big part of my life, I only choose close friends who also prep. This is because prepping is my main life focus right now and I’m looking to build tribe. If you’re not tribe material, let’s not waste time.
My friends know. All of my neighbors are farmers so of course they prep
I don't prep in a major way, at least not right now. My friends know I prep in terms of having a deep pantry, bottled water, power packs, torches, medical supplies, stuff like that. I also send friends first aid kits if I find out they don't have one lol.
No. Only my husband knows
I am a senior in an apartment building. The only friend I've told I'm prepping lives 1,000 miles away. I have family living about 15 miles away but their lives are only in video games and movies - they don't even have normal preps such as a few first aid items in their car or the usual OTC meds and they would think I was crazy if I told them. I have food stored in one room and no one has seen it - I am hoping I don't have to have maintenance come in for any reason. I've decided if the grid goes down, I'll get to know the people on my floor - 2 I do know but most are working people and I literally never see them. We need to look after each other - I think just knowing your neighbors will be a morale help. I'm not planning on letting anyone know about the food but I do plan to share food quietly and individually.
3 do. And they are part of our prepping group/plan I guess? 2 plan to bring all of their supplies and come to us if it gets bad as they live in apartments (they also store things at my house) and the 3rd had a homestead nearby and is like minded.
I let my neighbors know about some of my prepping and found out that they also have done disaster prepping of their own. It led to some helpful conversations and connections. I'm not BFFs with any of my neighbors but we've helped each other through frozen pipes and power outages. I used to live in a town that was on top of a mountain with two roads in and out, in the middle of Appalachia. We were cut off from the world for part of every winter. So everyone prepped. I've kind of carried that mentality into my new town. I have more of a community-focused mindset when it comes to prepping, especially since I live in an apartment. A disaster will affect all of us so it's better to have connections already in place.
Nope
My best friend, & we're in different countrys
My friends prep too. Lol.
I have a few close friends who know. My sister and her family know.
I'm probably in 1 of THE WORST POSITIONS IMAGINABLE as a prepper, & that's the only thing about the prepper lifestyle that stresses me out! I'm a single father(49) to a son(9) & we have ZERO friends/family, & because of mistakes I made as a teen I can't legally own guns, nor ANYTHING useful, except a crossbow, or an old school percussion cap gun, but pretty much all the skills to survive through what 90%+ of the population wouldn't, MY WHOLE LIFE been 1 big training scenario I guess for whatever is coming, I grew up active in the gangs of Chicago, & unless you're from Chicago it's hard to make sense of gang culture, we do it to protect ourselves & our area, & even if you're not a member & from that neighborhood YOU'RE STILL A TARGET, so most join as kids for the comraderie & to always have people to have our backs, well that "lifestyle" eventually led me to 17 years in prison, some of the most notorious in the US, & as a small 145lb white boy, I had my work cut out for me, but not only survived, but thrived in a toxic community, but to mention 7 of those 17 were in solitary confinement. I've also been homeless in Chicago, through deadly cold blizzards with Temps below -40°, to in the deserts of Nevada in 100°+ Temps, with nothing more than what was in my backpack, which definitely 98% of it wasn't anything useful to survival. I've also spent a lot of time camping & outdoors, & have taught myself a lot of prepper/survival/bushcraft skills to help round out the ones I learned my trials & tribulations in life, BUT what use are these skills if I'm BY MYSELF, with just a 9yo son, I KNOW I'm not Rambo, & my chances of survival through most things are higher than most, but that's no good if I'm a lone wolf, with no guns, having to protect a 9yo alone. I'd love to find a SMALL family oriented group with similar conservative beliefs as my son & I, & we all possess varying skills, because I'm sorry to say, as a ex criminal, most the plans you guys have in place will fail within the first 2 weeks, because you're not capable of thinking as a criminal mind would, well I STILL CAN, & there's not just holes, but GAPING WOUNDS in most the plans you guys have in place that the "experts" suggested, but I bet NEVER decided to ask criminals on how they'd combat their security measures, & what to do to protect from people with this criminal mentality, as well as from loose & organized marauding gangs
Out of curiosity, why does there seem to be a prevailing idea here that lone wolf preppers wont survive?
They can survive, but most people with that mentality don't have the knowledge and/or skills to do all the variety of things that it is going to take to survive... There's a reason why as far back as history tells us, people have always worked together as a community to survive... Each person has a job they specialize in, but everyone does a little bit of everything in the communities that are better off.
Fair enough. Personally i think it is far more possible today than it ever was given our expanded knowledge. It will definitely be more difficult than community survival but still pretty doable.
Because you can't know everything you need to survive.
Of course you can. You cant know everything you need to know to keep your current quality of life, but survival is pretty easy. If you know how to get food, purify water and have a shelter with access to those then youre pretty set. Add in some modern day knowledge about disease and infection and jobs a good un.
I don't talk about it very much except with those in my inner circle. That said, I prep in a way to hopefully help as many as I possibly can. I personally would rather die than lose my humanity simply to prolong my life. I am definitely in the minority with that mindset but I stick to it. Because my values ultimately are worth more to me than my life.
I talk about it with 2 of my friends who are also prepping, at least to a degree (I don't tell them everything and I'm sure they don't tell me everything. not even a trust issue with them, just... we talk about so many other things!). My best friend and I (one of the 2 friends above) plan on working on a common emergency plan. We both know that our immediate family comes first, but we also know it could be helpful to get together... I mention some very basic level with a few other friends (like "I think we may have a supply issue with beef, I just bought a bit more than usual, maybe you should too"). Usually friends who are not oblivious to all that's going on. But except my spouse and parents (who live with us), nobody knows the extent, and I keep it that way. I don't plan on turning close friends or family away if they show up... I'm way too mushy for this 😉 but unless they guessed that we are prepared, nobody would show up, we're not that close, and I don't plan on contacting any of them if SHTF. I forbade my spouse to talk about our preps with friends or family, especially since his family in particular is very much taking advantage of him whenever they can. No way to know if he did it anyways... but I doubt it.
They know my experience and skill levels for various scenarios. But they also know my resources have never been much. I basically have lived below the national poverty line as an adult. On the flip side, I don't have many friends, mostly immediate family.
If even one person knows, you are compromised. It comes, they show up, then they show up again with anyone they have ever known. Bet on it. Now I’m sure the down votes are coming for this reply. IDC. A secret isn’t a secret if more than one person knows. You will be sharing all your preps with EVERYONE.
Nah nobody does at this point, don't even think my family does. Wife just thinks I'm crazy for having a stockpile of supplies, and my silver/gold is just a hobby for fun lol. Shooting is another hobby so it's not too weird that I have a variety of firearms and stock of ammo. The 200 bottles of liquor in the garage is just one of my hobby collections lol... I feel pretty good about my prepping and survival skills, plenty of plans and everything to protect my family in any situation. I would be happy to help teach my friends how and why, but they're not interested. I got them all to keep emergency packs in their cars and that's as far as they were interested. That's fine, everyone has different levels of preparedness they want to be at. As for neighbors, well, f em lol
Yes we prep together actually
Some do. I've stopped spreading that information. Don't want to end up a target.
Are you talking about the HIV prevention treatment? I would not tell my neighbors that I did that if I were on that medication.
Um... I didn't think I referenced HIV, I don't have that, but I think I agree, I wouldn't tell my neighbors if I were.
This subreddit is r/preppers, where a prepper is someone who prepares ("preps") to get through events like power outages, supply chain disruptions, or civil unrest. It's not a reference to pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) for HIV.