Although there's nothing wrong with that if it's what you prefer.
I'm no expert, but I'm willing to share what I know and hope you'll do the same.
As I've pointed out before-- and plenty of others have pointed out throughout history-- skills will get you through a time of no stuff better than stuff will get you through not having skills.
I'll probably never run out of ammo-- at least I'll probably never shoot it all up. But what if it is stolen, destroyed, or I am forced to abandon it? And what if there is no more to buy? What if cases, bullets, primers, and gun powder are not available? Can you make black powder (and do you have guns which use it)?
You can watch YouTube videos to learn how to make black powder. Will you remember the recipe and the steps if videos are no longer available? If your black powder guns are percussion guns, can you make percussion caps?
What about filtering and sterilizing water? Do you know how to do it if your high-tech filters are gone?
The list of skills you might need goes on and on. And you can't know exactly which skills will end up being essential. Maybe ammunition will be plentiful, but drinkable water will be impossible to find. If you don't have the skills you need when you need them, you're screwed.
Now is a good time to use the resources available to learn any skill you might need. As you watch videos, write down the steps and any tips. Even if you lose your notes, the act of writing them down will help you remember.
Learning new skills can be fun and empowering. It's not a drudge unless you make it one. So get out there and start adding to the video library of skills between your ears. It will never be a bad idea!
One of the more fun things (to me) that qualifies as prepping is stocking up on ammo.
While prices are better now than they have been in a while, I was still having to travel an hour and a half to find prices that made sense. Locally, ammunition was 2 or 3 times the price that I could pay in the bigger city 90 miles away.
Fortunately, that situation has recently changed, but I found a great way to deal with it before the change, and I'm sticking with it, too.
It's a business called Ammo Squared. You sign up and subscribe for a set dollar amount and they set up an ammunition account for you. Then you can have it shipped to you.
If you use my link-- https://ammo2.me/dullhawk --and spend at least $20 in the first month, both you and I get $25 in free ammo. That's a pretty good deal. Then, after you've set up your account, you can share your own link with your friends and both of you can get free ammo the same way. It's kind of awesome.
If you wait until you have an account value of over ...
Every little bit adds up.
Due to medical situations, I've found myself without money to spend on larger projects such as firewood-- which might be a problem-- but there's always something you can do to prep.
A recent project for me was getting all my oil lamps ready to go. That's not the only alternative lighting I have, but it's my favorite.
I checked and changed the wicks (where needed), cleaned off any dust that had accumulated, and topped off the kerosene. You may prefer liquid paraffin since it stinks less, but I have gallons of kerosene on hand. I only broke one chimney, and I had a spare. (Note to self, keep an eye out for more chimneys at thrift stores and yard sales.)
I also decided to try to address a minor problem with the lamps. If you have oil lamps that you don't use all the time you'll know that the oil evaporates. This time I did something I hope will slow that process.
I covered the wick slot (don't know the technical name, but look at the photo) with aluminum foil I had...
