Prudent Prepping: We Are Safe And Sound

The dust has settled and the First 72 Hours have passed. Follow along as I build a long term plan via Prudent Prepping. 

I got some groceries, some peanut butter,
To last a couple of days
But I ain't got no speakers, ain't got no headphones,
Ain't got no records to play

-- Talking Heads, Life During Wartime

It's been a weird couple of weeks around the house. Two people here are locked down, one is working almost full time hours, and I am getting extra pay per week, more vacation days if I get sick, and any overtime is getting counted as double time. The old guy scores again!

While dealing with all this, We have all been trying to keep a level head and not stress anyone or ourselves any more than necessary. There has been a lot of house cleaning, closet reorganizing, shelf rearranging, and cooking, lots and lots of cooking. You have to understand that this is driving my friend's girlfriend crazy: she is a driven woman, used to being in control of what is going on, now at home for almost 3 weeks. She is used to working a minimum of 5 days a week and at least 8 hours a day. Stress is here, and it needs to be recognized and not ignored.

What To Do
Don't ignore your feelings. What you feel may be different from your neighbor, but your feeling are your feelings and they are valid.

• Talk it out with your friends. They want to hear from you and, more than likely, would like a friendly ear also. 
• Figure out what you can do while obeying your local regulations.  Everyone needs to do what they feel comfortable doing. Get some exercise, just don't paddle board in Malibu or your equivalent hot spot for ticketing.
• Eat properly. My last two trips through the grocery store have seen me get 90% of the food items I wanted to buy. Pasta was available, most cuts of meat, and all the fruit and veggies you might want. Yes, we are supposed to be prepared for a disaster, but fresh food is available so ignoring normal items is foolish.
• Protect yourself. If you do need to go out, cover up as best you can. Unless you had a stash of masks pre-virus or were lucky to buy something as they became available on Amazon, you'll need to improvise. I'm not in a position to show anyone how to do masks, but there are many folks on YouTube to watch. Gloves are in short supply too, so wash your hands all the time.
• Shop and take care of other chores for friends or family that might be at risk.

Recap And Takeaway

• I'm not doing anything out of the ordinary; my work gets me walking on average 2 miles a day, and I am getting outside as often as I am able and as the weather allows. 
• Food isn't a problem and paper goods are holding up so far. 
• Nothing exceptional was purchased or planned for this month, but that can change overnight.
• Be smart and safe. Things could get silly.

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Love In the Time Of Quarantine

I recently asked a question in the BCP Facebook group, and I received the kind of wonderful answers I've come to expect from our readers. The answers were so good I felt like they deserved to be compiled here.

The question was "A couple friends of mine got together right about the time this quarantine really kicked off. It's making dating a bit more difficult for them, as all their normal activities have kinda dried up. So, I want to put together a list for them. Let's call it Love In the Time Of Quarantine. Give me your best ideas for dates in this strange time."

• My first idea was Netflix and Chill, for whatever your definition of "chill." I'm a movie buff and kind of a homebody, so that one is right up my alley, and got a few recommendations in the group. There was also a recommendation for Netflix Party, which allows you to watch movies in sync even when you're not together. Even without a quarantine, this is a pretty cool trick.
• A few folks suggested board games. This can be incredible, or incredibly dangerous. Be sure you know your partner well, and pick safe board games. Quarantine is not the time for Risk or Monopoly.
• If it's safe and legal in your area, go enjoy a park, maybe even take a picnic. Conversation should be nice, because traffic will probably be far lighter than usual.
• Similar to the board game suggestion, burning an evening in multiplayer video games can be a blast. Again, it's very couple-dependent, as my wife and I have very different taste in games, making this idea a non-starter for us.
• Several folks brought up cooking dinner. This can be way more fun than it initially sounds: Turn on some tunes, break out the pans, and make something awesome! You've got an activity keeping you going for 30 minutes or more, and when you're done you have food. Everybody wins!
• If you don't have a park or hiking trail, maybe just go for a drive. You're in your car, so you're not at risk of contracting anything, and car rides are great for both scenery and conversation. Some of my best dates even in normal times have involved long rides.
• Cartoon Rewind. Make it Saturday morning any day of the week! Between YouTube and streaming services, all of the great cartoons of all our youths are available on demand. Forget being adults for a couple hours and embrace your inner children.
• Throw a two-person party. Pick a decade, pick a movie, pick a theme. Bump the tunes, rock the appropriate wardrobe, and get down with your bad selves.
• Probably my favorite suggestion on the list, from a fun and practical standpoint, is "act like teenagers that got grounded." Make phone calls or Skype while hiding under the covers for some extra amusement.
• The suggestion I fell most in love with was to write each other letters. Not emails, but pen, paper, and postage letters. I'm a hopeless romantic, and this sings to me. I was a prolific letter-writer for many years because I had a relationship that involved a lot of letters -- not because of distance, but because the romance of it appealed to both of us. It worked for our grandparents and some of our parents, and it really is something special.

Some folks see challenges with the current social environment, and they're not wrong. Doing anything social is very tough right now, but challenges also provide opportunities and rewards for folks who are innovative and creative.

Lokidude

Social Distancing Week 3: Online Socialization & Learning

Not actually Erin.

Picture by KJ Photography

& is used with permission.

Hello preppers! I'd ask how you are all holding up, but I've seen your Facebook posts. Those of us who are introverts are likely doing well, but our extroverted friends are likely not okay with all this.

But fear not! There are ways that extroverts can get their "people fix" without breaking quarantine. Additionally, if you're tired of reading books or watching Netflix, there are online courses you can take which will not only keep you entertained but also teach you useful prepping skills.

Online Socialization
Because I'm a nerd I play a weekly game of Dungeons & Dragons. Because I'm an introvert, I know more fellow D&D nerds online than I do in real life, so for the past 8 years I've been playing with friends across the country. Now some of you are using Zoom for telework and school, but I have no experience with that; I use Discord, which is a free chat service which works in both a browser tab and as a downloadable app. With Discord, a speaker and a microphone you can have group calls; you can also type in chat as if it were an old-school IRC channel or chatroom, drop in links to webpages, post pictures, etc. You can even have video chats, although the last time I tried that it was still awkward and limited. Still, I feel that Discord is best combination of voice and text conversation I've ever seen, and if it works for hosting a game of D&D then it'll work for chatting with your friends.

If you're playing an online game like D&D, then there are still some hurdles to be overcome: dice rolls, character sheets, and mapping with tokens. While it's tru that Discord has various dice-themed programs (called bots) which you can invite to your channel, I've found that I get my best results with another online service called Roll20. This is completely free to join and use, although there are subscription tiers which unlock additional features (I use the $5/mo service and have found no need for anything greater) and you can purchase things like maps and token in their Marketplace.  Using Discord for voice and text and Roll20 for maps, dice, tokens and character sheets meets all my needs as a D&D Dungeon Master.

If you aren't interested in role-playing games, there are still ways to have fun with friends:

• Board Game Arena, like the name suggests, allows you to play board games online. 
• Similarly, Playing Cards allows you to play, you guessed it, card games like poker, Go Fish, etc with your friends. If you're a fan of Cards Against Humanity, then check out Remote Insensitivity, which is an online version of CAH using a Creative Commons license. 
• If you're more skilled with a computer and have a Steam account, check out Tabletop Simulator, which is a 3D physics engine that allows you to do whatever you want. If you hate playing online chess because you can't flip the board in anger, then this is the game for you!

Online Learning
If you want to make your time in isolation more productive then I recommend Outdoor Core, and online learning hub where professionals teach you skills in the following topics:

• Archery & Bow Making
• Blacksmithing, Knives, & Metalwork
• Disaster Preparedness
• Leatherworking
• Navigation & Orienteering
• Outdoor Business
• Plants/Trees Uses & Identification
• Ropework & Knots
• Slingshots & Slingshot Shooting
• Throwing Sports
• Wild Crafting
• Wilderness Survival

You can find course listing here. Not only are these classes very affordable, once you've bought a course it's yours forever and you can go back and re-watch it any time.

What's more, Outdoor Core is offering a 14-Day Quarantine Outdoor Skills Summit which has 14 separate 30-minute courses on such topics as

1. Urban Net Weaving: How to Make a Bottle Sling [Instructor, Joel Graves]
2. How to Back a Wooden Bow [Instructor, Dave Mead]
3. Eating Wild: How to Make Tough Cuts of Game (Venison) Tender [Instructor, Stacy Lyn Harris]
4. Stone Tools: How to Make a Slate Arrowhead [Instructor, Creek Stewart]
5. Animal Track Casting & Track Identification [Instructor, Craig Caudill]
6. Urban Cordage: How to make a drop spindle and spin cord from plastic bags [Instructor, Hank Gevedon]
7. Black Nail Knots Ashley Book of Knots (ABOK) #785 Knife Lanyard [Instructor, Mandy Clinnch]
8. How to Make a Leather Altoids' Tin Belt Pouch [Instructor, Kevin Luebke]
9. Knife Etiquette & Knife Handling Skills [Instructor, Maximilian Neukäufler]
10. 3 Tips to Draw from Observation [Instructor, Brandy Klindworth]
11. Nails to Knives: How to make a knife from a nail [Instructor, Nathan Summers]
12. How to Make a Wooden Burn Bowl + Rock Boiling [Instructor, Hutch Hutchings]
13. Foolproof First Bow Drill Fire Kit - How to Make a Bow Drill Kit at Home from Junk and a Shot Glass [Instructor, David Polczynski]
14. Painting with Pencils [Instructor, Andra Jensen]
15. FREE BONUS COURSE! Rescue: 2-Pole Flip Winch [Instructor, Creek Stewart]

All for a discounted price of $43.

Note: Neither I nor Blue Collar Prepping are at all affiliated with Outdoor Core and we have received no compensation for this. I am just a big fan of Creek Stewart and anything he teaches. 

Hang in there, everyone. We can get through this!