Have any of you ever quit prepping? I have.
I started researching prepping a few years ago but stopped because the information that I had found on the subject made it seem ridiculous and, worse, impossible for me.
Fat Guys Playing with Guns
On my first venture to learn about prepping, the only information I found was about guns and ammo, stockpiling food, guns and ammo, barricading your home, guns and ammo, stockpiling paper products, guns and ammo, living in the woods, guns and ammo, how to fortify your home to withstand a SEAL team assault, guns and more ammo…. I guess I watched one too many videos of some fat guy on a target range acting like he’s training to be a SWAT cop at the same time he is carrying more darn weapons than any Texas Ranger.
I got the impression that prepping was paintball with real bullets. I’m 90% sure these guys have never been in a real fight and they have no comprehension of the reality of one which is why they carry more weapons than they have appendages. No wonder people make fun of preppers. Some of the most vocal seem ridiculous to me.
Sig Sauer 556XIR, Folded
Multi-Level Marketing Preppers
Then there was another group for whom prepping resembled multi-level marketing. They talked about the “prepper lifestyle.” Are you kidding me? I like my lifestyle and my wife would put a sudden halt to anything that resembled what some of these people advocate.
It’s one thing to have cool camping gear; it’s quite another to completely dork-out. I don’t want to look like they do. I don’t want to sound like they sound. I don’t want to use their lingo any more than I, like, want to listen to some Millennial, like, totally explain why college education to be totally free, ‘cause it is time we all be woke! Urgh….
These MLM type preppers sell stuff and beg for donations. It’s kind of like the homeless people on the corners of busy intersections, except preppers make horrible videos and then ask us to give them money. They peddle their “tactical” gear. They sell tactical flashlights, tactical pants, tactical watches, tactical belt buckles and even tactical shoe laces. I’m pretty sure that someone has a tactical can opener in development. I’d buy their tactical pen if they would let me stab them in their tactical eye with it. Again, I quit the idea of prepping because I’m one of the cool kids, and preppers seemed like a bunch of weirdos who unified around a common theme that incorporates some cool guy elements (like guns).
Bunker Buddies
A few years ago, I bought a new house. We had a tornado come through and I realized I had not created my safe zone/room/shelter. I was distracted by life. We were not affected, but it highlighted that I needed to start prepping again for my new location.
Again, I researched prepping for the purpose of securing parts of my home. The bunker mentality was (and still is) in full force and effect. I just didn’t like the options and they didn’t make any sense to me. You invest a bunch of money and defend your “fortress.”
Well, my home burned down March 25, 2005. I learned how vulnerable all homes are that are built using sticks and bricks. I would be surprised if there are 20 houses in Dallas County that can defend against me, and I’m not a criminal who thinks about this stuff.
Furthermore, I’ve been in the construction industry. I’ve been a real estate appraiser for years. I work for one of the largest homebuilders in the country and I know what is being built in most regions of the county. I can tell you empirically that the talk doesn’t match the walk. It is as though a vocal group of preppers seem to recite from the same book full of erroneous information.
Why I Got Back into Prepping
It was the need to create a better tornado shelter in my home. Hey, if I am going to fortify a room in my home to withstand a tornado, why not fortify it against bullets, too? If we get hit by a tornado, what will I need to remain comfortable and fed? Can I get this stuff small enough to store in the tornado shelter? What other things would I want to have if I am stuck in that room with my wife and toddler? There is a group of people who have figured all of this out. All roads led me back to prepping.
This time when I researched prepping, I decided to overlook the things that I found annoying and instead search for those who seemed more like me – normal, but prepared.
They were among the quieter and, therefore, harder to find. And, I did find a bunch of them. Everyone here at 3BY seems pretty normal and reasonable albeit with the shared quirk of being preppers. I found a bunch of interesting and knowledgeable people at prepperforums.net. All of the sudden, prepping seemed possible.
Then Came the Bad News
I thought I was somewhat prepared. I ran across the concept of an EMP. I knew what they were, but I had no idea how vulnerable our systems were. I searched for months trying to find an authority on the subject to verify if the claims were true.
Homeslice sitting in his basement with a Don’t Tread On Me flag on the wall and an AR-15 in the background doesn’t qualify as an expert in my opinion. I eventually found the information I needed and I, unlike Homeslice, posted links to videos with the US number one authority on the subject (you can find a link to some of the videos here). I thought I was prepared for a regional disaster, but I began to learn that I’m not anywhere near what I would consider to be prepared given what I now know.
Then Came the Good News
I found some people like Salty, Spice and Paranoid Prepper who know more than me, have thought through more of this stuff than me, face some of the same challenges, and they are willing to help others. I mentioned to Salty some of the challenges I’ve had as a prepper and wished there was an easy to follow an achievable structure to prepping that someone like me could copy. That’s what Prepper 101 is supposed to be, but I fell down on the job. Life got in the way, and I ran into some challenges.
The thought occurred to me that the stuff that is happening to me are EXACTLY the same things that others will go through in real time. Maybe that would be beneficial for people to hear or see. Instead of just showing one long string of events placed in an artificial sequential order, maybe it would be good to see how things change. Why they change. What happens when I find yet another hole in my preps. How I hide my stuff from my non-prepper wife. NOTE: I don’t lie about it, but I don’t advertise it either.
Candidly, I’ve had more prepper failures than successes. At the same time, I am in a much better prepper position than I ever dreamed of being when I started.
Let Salty or Spice know what you think or what your preference is. I will continue to flesh out the Prepper 101 series so that you have a good framework to follow.
Be well, and I’ll see y’all on the other side.
