Most homesteaders make the same mistake when they think about earning money from their property. They grow what everybody else grows. Tomatoes. Peppers. Zucchini. Maybe some eggs, honey, or firewood. There’s nothing wrong with any of those. In fact, they’re proven products. But if you're already putting in the work, there may be a smarter question to ask: What can I produce that people want but few local producers are supplying? That is where things get interesting. You don't

When the SHTF or the modern economy finally hits a wall, what are you actually leaving the next generation? A fading bank account? A mortgage on a tract house? A pile of plastic gadgets that will end up in a landfill? If the grid goes down or corporate supply chains vanish overnight, a stack of fiat currency won't teach your grandchildren how to put food on the table. Real generational security isn't about a trust fund managed by people who hate your values. It’s about buildi

When the grid goes down, pharmacy shelves will empty in hours. If you’re relying on store-bought ointments to treat cuts, burns, scrapes, and rough working hands when things hit the fan, you’re already behind. Real preparedness means self-reliance, and that includes mastering field medicine using what you can grow, harvest, and process yourself. Enter Calendula (Calendula officinalis), an absolute powerhouse of a medicinal herb that belongs in every serious prepper’s homestea

If you've been prepping for a while, you've probably got plenty of gear. Water. Food. Flashlights. Batteries. First-aid supplies. Maybe a radio, tools, and enough equipment to make a Boy Scout jealous. But here's the problem: an evacuation isn't a camping trip. When you're told to leave, you may have minutes—not hours—to get out. Your destination may be a friend's house, a motel, a shelter, or somewhere you've never been before. Roads may be jammed. Cell service may be unreli

If you’ve spent enough time around a farm, acreage, or hunting property, you’ve probably encountered one: a gray, long-snouted creature shuffling through the darkness, raiding the feed area or wandering beneath the porch. Your first reaction might be, “Get that thing off my property.” But before you reach for a trap, consider what you’re looking at. The Virginia opossum is North America’s only native marsupial, and despite its rough appearance, it can actually provide some us

Preppers are taught one fundamental rule: don’t blindly trust a system you haven’t examined. That principle applies to food, water, communications, firearms, fuel—and medical decisions. A recent Natural News article makes an extreme claim that mRNA vaccines amount to a “bioterrorism distribution platform.” That allegation goes considerably beyond what has been established by mainstream medical evidence, but it raises a question worth taking seriously: How much should ordinary

There was a time when throwing away a perfectly good pair of pants because of a torn seam would have seemed foolish. People owned fewer clothes, took better care of them, and repaired what they could. A needle, some thread, and a little know-how could keep a favorite shirt, work pants, socks, boots, pack, or piece of outdoor gear in service for years. Today, we're accustomed to replacing things. That's convenient—until the store isn't available, money is tight, you're miles f

Most of us over 50 have spent decades learning how to handle problems. We know how to change a tire. Fix a leaky faucet. Deal with a dead battery. Keep a pantry stocked. Maybe we even have enough food, water and equipment to ride out a serious disruption. But there’s one kind of emergency that doesn’t give you time to prepare. It’s the crisis that happens while you’re simply going about your day. You’re getting lunch. Sitting in a restaurant. Walking through a parking lot. St

Colorado’s bears are running short on the food they normally find in the mountains, and that is sending more of them into neighborhoods, businesses and backyards. The reason is simple: the wild buffet isn’t producing like it normally does. Drought has dried up grasses, while berries and other natural foods are scarce in parts of Colorado. Gambel oak trees, which normally provide bears with a valuable supply of acorns, are also producing a weak crop in some areas. That matters

There was a time when a family could sit around the dinner table without somebody checking a phone. If you wanted directions, you looked at a map. If you wanted to know how to fix something, you asked somebody who knew—or figured it out yourself. Recipes came from cookbooks, grandparents, handwritten cards and experience. And when the evening got quiet, you were expected to live with the quiet. Technology has made plenty of things easier. I'm not interested in pretending othe

When the power goes out, the grocery store closes, or a storm knocks out the local water system, most men instinctively start thinking about food, fuel, batteries, and security. There’s another problem that deserves to move to the front of the list: Water. You can go quite a while without food. You cannot do the same without water. And during a serious emergency, the water coming from your faucet may not be available—or may not be safe. For a man who takes responsibility for

For most of my life, I've watched America become more convenient—and, at the same time, less capable. We've traded practical know-how for apps, subscriptions, and the false comfort that someone else will always provide what we need. That may work when everything is running smoothly. But history has a way of reminding us that grocery shelves empty, supply chains break, and hard times arrive without asking permission. The good news is that raising self-reliant kids doesn't requ

I’ve spent more than five decades watching the world change. I’ve seen good times and difficult ones, moments of stability and moments when people realized they had taken everyday comforts for granted. One lesson has stayed consistent through all of it: the people who think ahead usually handle uncertainty better than those who assume someone else will always solve their problems. Preparedness isn’t about fear. It’s about responsibility. When you’ve lived long enough, you lea

I've been around long enough to see a few things come and go. I've watched gas lines, recessions, supply shortages, natural disasters, and promises from politicians that somehow never seemed to solve the problems they promised to fix. If there's one lesson I've learned after more than five decades, it's this: no one is going to care more about your family than you do. That isn't cynicism—it's reality. Every generation faces its own challenges. Ours has watched the world becom

For years, Americans have been told that buying a home is part of achieving the American Dream. You work hard, save for a down payment, sign a 30-year mortgage, and finally have a place to call your own. But in many cities across the country, there's an unpleasant surprise waiting after closing: you're paying far more in property taxes than the neighbor across the street living in an almost identical house. According to a recent property tax study from the Lincoln Institute o

For years I've watched a steady stream of folks move to the country with stars in their eyes and a pickup bed full of feed store supplies. Somewhere along the way they were told the same thing: "Start with chickens. They're easy." Well, maybe. After more than fifty years of watching farms succeed and fail, I've learned that there are no shortcuts in agriculture. Livestock is livestock, whether it weighs five pounds or five hundred. Chickens deserve the same planning, respect,

A man learns a few things when he spends enough years working the land. You learn that fences need mending, tools need maintaining, gardens need tending, and every creature that walks, crawls, or flies across your property has a purpose. You also learn that sometimes a little prevention saves a whole lot of trouble. Skunks are one of those country neighbors that most folks would rather admire from a distance. They’re not looking for trouble, and they actually do some good by

After more than five decades on this earth, I’ve learned something important: time is one of the few resources you can never replace. Money comes and goes, possessions wear out, but a summer day that slips away is gone forever. That’s why I’ve never been a fan of wasting the warm months sitting around waiting for life to happen. Summer is a gift. It gives us longer days, better weather, and opportunities to work on the things that matter—our homes, our families, our skills, a

I’ve been cooking, gardening, and taking care of a household long enough to know that many things in life don’t need to be complicated. Somewhere along the way, we started buying special products for problems our grandparents handled with a little common sense, some elbow grease, and a clean kitchen sink. When it comes to washing fruits and vegetables, I’m not interested in expensive gimmicks or fancy bottles with impressive labels. I want something that works, makes sense, a

After more than 50 years of watching families work hard, raise children, and build homes, I’ve learned one thing: the little things we do every day often matter the most. Taking care of your family isn’t about making life complicated—it’s about paying attention, being prepared, and handling the basics the right way. One of those basics is protecting your home from carbon monoxide (CO) poisoning. Carbon monoxide is a silent danger. You can’t see it, smell it, or taste it. It c

When you've been around long enough, you realize one simple truth: life doesn't always go according to plan. Storms roll in without warning. Power goes out. Fires happen. Accidents happen. And while we all hope our children never face a dangerous situation, hope alone isn't a plan. As parents and grandparents, it's our responsibility to prepare the next generation—not to live in fear, but to live with confidence. Teaching children basic emergency preparedness gives them pract

For years, Americans have been told that quartz countertops are the smart, modern upgrade for their kitchens. They're durable, attractive, and available at nearly every big-box home improvement store. But beneath that polished surface is a question that deserves far more attention: What is happening to the men who cut and install these products? I'm old enough to remember when asbestos was considered a miracle material. We all know how that story ended. The lesson wasn't that

When you've spent decades working, raising a family, paying taxes, and learning to solve your own problems, you understand one simple truth: nobody is coming to rescue you as quickly as you hope. Whether you're working around the farm, hunting on public land, repairing equipment after a storm, or simply cleaning up after severe weather, your eyes, ears, and hands are your most valuable tools. Lose any one of them, and your independence takes a serious hit. That's why smart pr

Most people assume that clean water will always come out of the faucet. In normal times, that's a reasonable expectation. But storms, infrastructure failures, contamination events, and power outages can interrupt municipal water service with little warning. The problem isn't just losing water—it's relying on a single source. Preparedness is about eliminating single points of failure. If one system goes down, another takes its place. Water should be approached the same way. In

There comes a point in a man's life when he stops being impressed by marketing hype and starts caring about what actually works. I'm in that stage now. After five decades of home repairs, raising a family, helping neighbors, fixing things on the road, and cleaning up other people's mistakes, I've learned a simple truth: the best tools aren't necessarily the fanciest tools. They're the ones you reach for again and again. That's why I believe every man over 50 should own a qual

For most of my life, I’ve believed that taking care of what you have is simply common sense. Long before people started talking about sustainability and carbon footprints, many of us were taught to fix things instead of replacing them, avoid unnecessary debt, and make the most of every dollar we earned. As a man in my fifties, I've noticed that some of the best money-saving habits are the same lessons our parents and grandparents practiced every day. They weren't trying to sa

May is Lyme and Tick-borne Illness Awareness Month, a time to highlight the importance of preventing tick bites to guard against the viruses, bacteria, and parasites ticks carry and can transmit. While most people have heard of Lyme disease, alpha-gal syndrome (AGS) is a lesser-known tick-borne condition that is becoming more prevalent in the region. Also known as alpha-gal allergy or red meat allergy, AGS is an allergic reaction to red meat, dairy, and other animal products

There is a recipe going around for homemade laundry detergent. Three ingredients, fifteen minutes, a few pennies per load. The version below comes wrapped in a lot of alarm about carcinogens and supply-chain collapse, and you can take or leave the chemistry. What you should not leave is the underlying point, because the underlying point is one of the oldest in economics and almost nobody states it plainly anymore. You have been taught that the things you use every day must co

Mobility training has gained recognition as a component of fitness that supports healthy aging, according to researchers and health professionals. A report by Ava Durgin on mindbodygreen defines mobility as “your ability to move your joints through their full range of motion while maintaining control and stability.” The report states that adults who maintain better joint mobility experience significantly lower rates of falls, fractures, and functional decline as they age. A r

Our lives are much easier today than when our forefathers fought for independence. While they strived to be independent and self-reliant, many Americans today increasingly rely on technology. Each new generation becomes a little less independent and a little more dependent on tools that won’t help them much if the grid goes down. Consider these alarming survey results from a 2017 poll: More than half of young adults were unable to tie a single knot, and 40% had never swum in

It was 10:30 A.M. I was getting the reports ready for the upcoming management team meeting, running through the last of the quarterly newsletter details in my head and eyeballing a file on my desk that needed attention. So I was both surprised and slightly annoyed when the President of the company (my boss) and a fellow senior manager walked into my office. It wasn’t like my boss to just walk in and initiate a meeting. If he wanted to discuss something, he usually emailed, t

Bartering is a way to exchange goods or services without using money. It has successfully helped communities thrive for thousands of years and may prove highly valuable during a crisis. Living in a “currency based” economy we may have lost this valuable skill. How do I prepare to successfully barter in a disaster scenario? To successfully barter during a crisis you must develop a set of basic skills, build physical resources, and develop good working relationships today. The

In the days of insurance, strict rules, and shortages, putting back a personal hoard of important medication isn’t as easy as it used to be. If you or someone you love has a required prescription, this article on how to stockpile medication is for you. Now, let me preface this with the disclaimer that all of these suggestions will not work for every single person with every single illness in every single situation. My hope is that you can find a strategy that works for you or

Whether you are prepping for the zombie apocalypse or the aftermath of a hurricane, self-defense is an important aspect of surviving any disaster. Everyone has their preference as to what qualifies as the best survival weapon. History has proven the rifle to be the best all-purpose firearm to face a variety of combat and self-defense scenarios. However, a rifle should only be part of what many preppers refer to as a layered defense system. It doesn’t matter if you are bugging

The basic gear I carry, regardless of season, is listed below. Clothing that fits and is proper for the environment you’re in. This includes a hat. Always have a change of socks. Firearm and spare ammunition. Every single rifle and shotgun I own has an elastic buttstock ammo carrier as well as a sling with ammunition loops sewn in. (Butler Creek makes a great sling with ammo loops.) I like these because accessing spare rounds is more convenient and it doesn’t require me to

January is more than the start of a new year. It’s also one of the most important months for preparedness, especially if you live in an apartment. Winter weather, rising utility costs, supply disruptions, and health risks tend to stack up early in the year. Preparing now can prevent small problems from turning into major emergencies later in 2026. Apartment preparedness looks different than prepping in a house. You have limited space, shared utilities, and rules to follow. Bu

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