Tips(?) and Quips: pre-Apocalypse

Everyone has to make their own financial decisions. I am not advocating any position, just explaining potential outcomes and potential outcomes. 

As a thought exercise inspired in no small part by Alas Babylon, a cold war novel about surviving nuclear war in America. I would never have thought about many of the following things had I not read that book as a child. 

All eventualities barring nuclear Armageddon, are pointing at a Great Reset. Pretty much inevitable. I'm not talking about that. Assume for whatever reason it happens, what now?

1. Your old life is gone, never to return. Those who cannot accept this do not survive. 

2. Civilization & normal human behavior is gone when people have no power, no food, no water (in a worst case - EMP/cyber/nuke/terror strike). 

If in doubt, refer to step 1. 

3. If there is a civilizational collapse (water, power, etc), only things you can touch will remain. Mortgages, student debt, taxes, lawsuits, car loans. Bank accounts. Savings accounts. PayPal. If it's electronic, it will likely disappear. 

Ask Cyprus, Greece, Iceland and China. Poof. Gone.

4. Until parallel economies are set up, it will be everyone vending for themselves. The decrease in shared morals over the last 10 years with increase the brutality. 

5. Barter & Trade: what do you have? If you have a particular skill or product that everyone will need - eggs, vegetables, whatever... You can become a trading post for lack of a better term. 

What can you produce or make? Something that might have value in a world that won't be fully re-electrified for 10 years? It might be a great time to dust off any of those old farm and hand tools. 

6. I have personally moved as much as I could completely out of the market buying assets. You need a mix. ALL CASH in the house (no ATM works!) should be spent within the first 2-4 hours. It will be practically worthless after that.

Crazy to imagine, but true. That's why it's called fiat currency. Hopefully you've already thought ahead and have a basic bug out box - if there was a fire, or whatever ...- and you have either gold, silver, copper, platinum for "money". 

What else can you do? Think about the people you might be around. What would they want. Coffee, Tobacco, Alcohol, fuel, medicines & med supplies, sugar, salt, honey.... Those are the new commodities. 

And it's going to be a much more brutal world than any of us are prepared for; except the most battle hardened, scarred veterans.

HYGEINE products. If you need those things. They also function well for penetrating wounds. Not kidding. 

Fuel. If you have multiple cans of propane, fill them now. Kerosene? 

If you have the space, a 55 gallon drum of gasoline without ethanol & a stabilizer and/or same with diesel. 

Do you have a way to cook with fire? Do you have a plan for dealing with waste if there is no sewer?

Look around you right now in your own house. How many half-done or 'going to get to' projects do you have around the house? Take money out of bank. Finish strategic projects. Insulate house, etc. Buy assets that will appreciate even faster than inflation because of scarcity. 

The mental & emotional satisfaction you will feel from just getting those over and done with us worth the 20% hit if you are under 65. If there's no financial hit, the risk/reward has to be considered individually. There is no one Right answer. 

Plan a co-op.

I want to find someone with livestock who can sell to individuals. We get some hunters together that know how to clean animals and people can trade anything for organic local meat. Anything that somebody wants, that is. 

What assets do you have that can be physically touched within a reasonable few minutes? 

What do you have that others do not? Can you get/make more?

Whatever that thing is for you, invest in that now. It's a hobby at worst that is good for you. 

Learn how to grow vegetables. Get heirloom seeds - traditional, organic, no genetic patent crap. The biggest and best cherry tomato plant I've ever grown was next to my house in a subdivision.

Potatoes are RIDICULOUSLY simple. When they start growing those little bud things in your potato bin? Cut them into individual pieces and plant them in soft soil. I've seen them grown in piles of hay. Easy to do. Why wouldn't we? 

Figure out how to preserve food. Have a few canning jars that you can cycle thru at worst for short time preservation. Salt will become really important. Where can you get salt from that isn't a store? 

Water is a big thing. A few good solar panels and a good battery for minimum house activities would be a great idea. Ask electrician for a transfer switch to disconnect from grid and switch to solar. 

Anyone with a Toyota Prius should buy lots of gasoline and a 4000W inverter that you can wire into your Prius. You have the most efficient home backup generator system I know of. That is your commodity. You are the electric company. 

Tobacco is going to be a big deal eventually. I don't know anyone who grows it, so you'll definitely want to find someone like that. Said person would also make a good trading post.

Get to know your neighbors by their names. Whether you like them or not. You don't have to be friends. 

Hopefully you see that some of these are "after something has happened" or "before". 

Medical knowledge is a commodity. 

Being able to make "concoctions" - like soap or lotions, balms, vitamins, like I have with my "brand". 

This is just my first pass at this. But I'm curious if there are any questions, comments or snide remarks about this?