Imagine my surprise when I looked over at Utah Preppers Website today and saw information from an e-mail the poster had received that was the same e-mail I had also received from my best source (Mom). I checked with my best source, and even though I know that I have mentioned this at least one other place on the internet, she doesn't care if everyone knows that she's from Utah, so the proverbial cat is out of the bag--my best source lives in Utah. Thing is, she belongs to a food storage group, and I get their e-mails through her. Then, when I see something that I need, she adds my order to hers, keeps it at her house until either we visit my parents or they visit us, and everyone wins. (OK, let's be honest, in this case, we, the out-of-staters, are clearly the winners in this scenario.) Since we only buy the really long-term storage items this way, our order can sit at their house indefinitely, hypothetically, but usually that's not the case, though sometimes it does take awhile. Keeping our unwieldy food storage at their house for extended periods of time...family's good that way. :)
The food storage group mentioned is a great resource for those who want to stock up on food storage--because they order in bulk, the prices are lower, and since so many people are ordering, there are more people in their area that are prepared in case of an emergency. What if you don't have family, as I do, that belongs to such a group, or don't live in Utah? Did you know that there are other state prepper's networks on the internet that could help you with emergency preparedness? The ones that I am aware of are:
The Texas Prepper's Network
The Kentucky Preppers Network
Some of the information may be general, and not specific to these particular geographical areas, and that information is helpful to everyone. Some of the information may be specifically helpful for residents of said states, and may help you and/or your family if you live there, and may be especially helpful if you think that you're alone in your emergency preparedness activities. You're not. And some of the information might not apply to you, or may include activities that you are not interested in--find the things that you are interested in, and use them to better your preparation and supplies. Not everyone eats/drinks the same things, but everyone eats and drinks, and you have to have supplies to do so if you have an emergency situation arise.
Do you live in Texas, Kentucky, or Utah? If not, perhaps you can start a network of your own for your state. I have considered (oh so verrrry briefly, and it was more of a fleeting thought, really) starting one for my state, but if you haven't read my disclaimer on not being an expert lately, look to the right....and down.... I really don't think that I am the best representative for my state, and I know there are other bloggers out there from my state. I do hope that eventually there will be more and more state blogs out there so that people in the same area can help and strengthen each other before and/or in case they have an emergency. One of the things that I love about the internet is that now I feel like I have friends from all over the country, and the world, who are also trying to get prepared for any situation that might happen, and I learn from reading their blogs and the information and techniques they are willing to share. Everybody wins.
After all, there is strength in numbers. United we stand.
11 comments:
Maire, thanks for letting everyone know about the Kentucky Preppers Network, we need all the readers we can get. We, along with the other preppers networks are trying our best to keep people informed and prepared. And, the world is probably smaller than you thought. I also post as The Scavenger on another blog that you are kind enough visit often.....hehe!!
OK, this loses us a lot of business ... but--at this point--I think it's more important that folk get prepared, whether or not we make money.
Canned goods from the grocery store will store FAR longer than the "Use By" dates state. For proof, see http://www.internet-grocer.net/how-long.htm
100+ year old food canned found to be OK.
Best regards,
Bruce
Bullseye--OK, I did not see that one coming--wow! That means you are even busier than I thought. Can't say that I'm surprised that you're helping other people prepare--your family is among the people that I consider most well-prepared. Yeah, still didn't see that coming... :) Thanks for spreading knowledge about preparedness even farther!
Bruce--Thanks for the heads-up on longevity--while I tend to be the kind that follows expiration dates very closely, you never know what will be available during times of emergency. Let's hope that everyone gets prepared and learns as much as they can about what they store and its longevity--thanks for your comment!
If I may aske, where are you located? We live close enough to the stateline that I keep hoping someone in Missouri would start a group. But your reason is the same as mine, I never considered myself a prepper just a mother with a tight budget who didn't want to end up at a refugee center in bad weather. It was a surprise to find that there are many others with a similiar mindset 9 thank you internet. I am not LDS but have been asked by several people who cannot get past the idea that being prepared is for everyone. "Sooner or Later"...
Thanks for linking to us (Utah Preppers), and even more thanks for actually reading :)
I was the one to post, and then met your mom when I picked up my stuff. Funny thing is that I hadn't heard of her service before, but a couple of the other authors had. I had bought from somebody she does business with out of state though, now I'm happy I can buy from a local, without extra shipping.
As for networks, just start one, even if it's just saying "I'm a prepper blogger from my state". Get others you know to do the same, and viola, you have a network. It's a great way to help each other out. I know I'm no expert, I'm just a geek behind a desk most of the time, but I know that since starting this blog, I've had friends coming out of the woodwork asking questions about how they can do more to be prepared. So do whatever you can, and you just might help somebody else be ready, and that's worth it.
I so agree with you that it is AWESOME to be able to talk to people all over the world to discuss food storage and preparedness. Even though I'm from Utah (land of the prepared) I still feel so inadequate with my knowledge. I love talking to other novice people and sharing what we learn together. Fun fun. Oh and I love the Utah Preppers site!
Stephanie--I wasn't planning on disclosing it, but if it will help more people get prepared, I'll put it out there that we live in Idaho. I know that there are more people in this state that are more knowledgeable about preparedness than I am, and it might help more people if we put a network together. Preparedness is for everyone who wants to put themselves in the best possible situation before/during/after an emergency situation, and everyone who eats, so that means preparation is for....everyone! Just like you said. Thank you for your input and comments--I appreciate the knowledge that you share in comments.
Jayce^--Sorry if I wasn't clear--my mom is not the one who is in charge of the whole thing, though you may have met her if she was picking up some of her stuff at the same time. She does put out the word far and wide about the food group though, and I am on the lengthy e-mail list for notices that she sends out to everyone in her vicinity. Isn't it wonderful what word of mouth can do?
When it comes to starting a blog for my own state--well, I've already said it's Idaho--I wouldn't really know where to start. I don't even know how you get a blog in place that allows multiple authors, although I have seen on some blogs that there are "team members." Perhaps if I could figure out how that works, and find some fellow Idahoans that would be willing to contribute, I could see what I could do. My biggest interest is to help as many people prepare as possible, which often includes linking them to the blogs of people that are more knowledgeable than I am. I think that it's great that there are at least 3 states with prepper's networks--thanks for setting a good example!
Jodi-- I love finding out new things that people share on the internet, and especially the things that make my own preparation easier. Even when it isn't exactly easy, I still need to learn about/how to do preparation activities, however... :) I think that resources like the Utah Preppers website are extremely valuable, as well....thanks for your comment!
Don't bother worrying about setting up another multi-user blog (though you can easily with blogger or others when you need it). Get started just just by doing what you're doing. Say, I'm an Idaho Prepper, and link out to others that are, identifying each other.
Utah Preppers only started as a multi-user blog because several of my prepper friends were interested in helping me start it, others just want to read, or have me link to their blogs and content.
As we've started, we've begun to find more local, and hope that we can each just point to each other to start.
From there, well, we'll decide as we talk to each other :). But to start, just help promote each other is all you need to do.
Jayce^--That sounds even easier than what I was thinking--I could just put a list of Idaho blogs off to the right side of my current blog under my other lists if people just want to be linked. I don't know how much interest there will be. I mentioned on today's (12/22) post that I could start a separate page if there was enough interest, but I guess we'll find out if just a blog list will do or if it will get bigger (hopefully) soon enough. Thanks for suggesting an easier way!
We're just starting the same, so we'll see how many are interested :)
But as soon as you have a page listing any, we'll link to it in our blogger networks.
Heck, when I lived up your way, we used to just joke about Idaho just being North Utah :)
I laughed, but my husband, who has lived in Idaho way longer, was not as much amused... :) There seems to be some kind of competition between Idaho and Utah with certain people, I've found, but it's all in good fun. I do hope that there will be more state networks out there, if it will help more people get prepared. I think that I'm going to add another list to the side of my blog, and hope that it gets longer... :)
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