Strawberries

Spotted the first strawberries of the season at my local store and that is always a good moment (not to be missed). I might grow some myself this summer, that would be pretty nice. I will put it on the to do list.

(My shot of said strawberries)

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Preppers Delight

The time has come for a proper update on the prepping front and that means that I will double down on preparations and at the same time consume what has been in storage the longest. Today I had a package of Goulash Soup with some salty crackers for lunch and it was delightful. Six months overdue according to the marking, but I just ignored that. Should not be a problem in this case. Sure, I will have to ditch some of the stuff, time has a tendency to slip by, but most of it is OK. Also, within 60 days, it is time to do some gardening, and I will certainly make an effort on that front as well. Prices are certainly going up, we can all see that. So the stuff that I will replace now was way cheaper as I purchased it months or even years ago. That cycle will probably repeat itself, so I think this is common sense on every level now.

(My shot of todays lunch, straight out of storage)

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Where Is This Going?

I see a lot of crazy people out there. Warmongers. You have to be pretty insane to risk escalation and possible nuclear conflict. Nobody has the right to take us to Armageddon. This is pissing me off no end. 50 years ago, when the Vietnam war was on, horrible images of death and destruction was seen in media every day. Where is the coverage now? Just asking. Glad to see that a peace movement is starting to grow now in spite of this. This needs to stop, sooner rather than later.

(My shot, taken at an aviation museum in Ope, Jämtland County)

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Peace

The war lobby is getting on my nerves. The songs of yesterday seems more important than ever, “War Pigs” and “Heaven And Hell” by Black Sabbath, “Child In Time” and “The Battle Rages On” by Deep Purple, “Can´t Happen Here” by Rainbow, “Mutually Assured Destruction (MAD)” by Gillan etc etc. Enough is enough. This shit has to calm down and it has to happen now. I want to see some common sense here because we are in big trouble as it is even without the war. There should at least be talks and ideas for solutions on the table and the lack of this really is a problem. Just think of the mental stress that we have put on the kids, first C-19 and now this. Not to mention the all prevailing doomsday talk from the greens/globalists that wants us all to eat bugs and be happy. Pretty sad that we have reached such an all time low. At least the cards are on the table and I still have hope that sanity will prevail.

(My shot of a Swedish military vehicle from the early 1970s I think – museum piece)

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Every Preppers Dream Home

Visited family a while back to see their new place in the countryside and I was blown away with how well this house was planned. Smack in the middle of the house we have this beautiful fireplace/stove which takes care of heating and food preparations if need be. They also have running water at all times, no matter what. As a prepper I have to say that I was impressed. You rarely see this kind of thing these days. What a wonderful sight. If you are looking for a place, this is what you need. No question about it.

(My shot from said property)

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And So The Seasons Change

Fall is here and I will have to prepare for the winter months in the next few weeks. I harvested the last potatoes a week ago and they were fine. I have noticed that people are buying firewood like crazy. Who knows what lies ahead right now? There is a creepy feeling in the air for sure.

(My shot of the first signs of change)

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Good Day As I Harvest My First Potatoes

Well I harvested my first potatoes this morning and it looks good, meaning I can now expand this project next year. I harvested one of the two boxes and I will pick up the rest when it gets to be a little colder (I will follow this advice from my good friend Staffan as it makes perfect sense). So how much did I get out of the first box then? Well we planted nine potatoes in each box, and if you look at the pictures above (the ones in the pot that is cooking and the ones in the top right image), you can see what I got out of todays harvesting. Clearly, this can be done in a small way and produce good results, not taking up too much space. As I cooked my first potatoes today I have to add that there is a feeling of pure joy to be able to eat something that you have produced yourself in the backyard. The prepper in me is also very happy about this, as it represents a tiny first step towards securing a better general situation in which a certain amount of self reliance is key. In these times it is just common sense to do a bit of gardening, if one can. Should have done this last year really, but at least I am up and running now. You can find two earlier posts about this project, “Good Day” (June 8) and “Progress Report” (July 3).

(My shots from earlier today, thank you Staffan for you help and advice)

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Hard Times Ahead

The energy crisis is here and it has the potential to bring our way of life to a very uncomfortable stop. Just an hour ago as I write this, I saw that a major company that produce paper here in Sweden, Lessebo Paper, has stopped the production. The energy bill for the company is through the roof and this is happening now, as the summer is coming to a close. Just one worrying report of many that points to hard times for industry. There is also talk about upcoming energy bills for ordinary citizens that will leave precious little for anything but the essentials. I can already see people sell their houses as a result of the previous winter and the bills that surprised the hell out of everybody in the southern parts of Sweden. If you look at industry, how many companies that are essential for us (food production etc) is in jeopardy even as we speak? The side effects can be way worse, and happen way faster, than we think. Emmanuel Macron, the President of France, just said that the good times are over. Everybody I follow and trust in media and elsewhere is saying the same thing, we are going down and it is too late to stop it, to reverse it. My conclusion is that even if things change for the better in time, we are now heading for hard times in the short term (a few years maybe). It is what it is and my advice is that everybody looks at this and prepares as well as one can. Storing up food is just common sense, prices are already up if you compare with earlier this year. If they cut out the power for a few hours (and I have seen that plans exists for such measures if need be), you may want to have lanterns in your house that recharge with sunlight during the day (I have blogged about that and you can still find it). There are things to do, things to consider. Now is the time to get prepared, and to talk to family and friends. The hour is late but there is still a window of opportunity. I will cover this up to a point as it unfolds (the Prepping-tag has always been there), as this will have side effects that will reach just about everything, not least the entertainment industry. I will stay out of the politics, others are doing a good job covering that side of things. But yes, this is getting serious now and we can only hope for the best as we ride this out.

(My shot of happy looking 1970s LP, contrasted with prepping literature)

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Visiting Trangia

Visited the shop/museum of the Trangia brand in Trångsviken (Jämtland County) the other day. The actual factory is located close-by, but this is for people that want to check out some history and purchase some portable kitchen gear on sight. They also sell stuff cheap if it has a slight dent in it, I bought an entire set for half the price that was fully functional in the store from that particular shelf. This Swedish company was established in 1925 and they clearly belong at the top if you ask preppers and outdoor enthusiasts. I enjoyed the visit. Here is some snapshots.

(My shots from said museum/store)

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The End Of Swedish Neutrality?

2022 will go down in history as the year when everything went south bigtime. I was quite surprised when I saw the Swedish government send weapons to Ukraine, it seemingly happened with very little debate and then suddenly it was announced that we should join NATO. Sweden and Finland is on the fast track now, ending decades of neutrality. Unless we are blocked by Turkey, it would seem that the old days are gone forever. I would have preferred that we had kept the strong defence we had 30 years ago, but that did not happen. Now it is panic stations. I suspect that our politicians chiefly think that Sweden will get help if we are attacked. It would have helped if NATO had not expanded into the old Eastern bloc as they have, and as they promised that they would not, not that long ago. Same with the EU, it looks ever further east. Nobody seems to care about the risks involved in all this. Every prepper on earth knows that we are now in the beginning stages of a SHTF situation. We now look at tipping points for energy, food, maybe even for world peace. Never seen anything like it. We are looking at power games being played out and it is a ruthless game. Reckless. Winston Churchill once said, “Surely if a sense of self-preservation still exists among men… the prevention of the supreme catastrophe ought to be the paramount object of all endeavour”. Not exactly what we see now is it?

(My shot – symbolic)

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