Old Fashioned Skills for Barter

Recently a group of online workers were asked what skills they had that they could barter with in a post-TEOTWAWKI world. Most answers reveal a practical understanding of old fashioned skills that will be valued. Unfortunately, there were a couple answers that caused some concern.

Answer 1: “I am a licensed psychotherapist. I am trained in crisis intervention counseling, Critical Incident Stress Debriefing, grief counseling and PTSD treatment. I believe I would be able to barter my services to help calm people down and reduce distress-related reactions which could otherwise be catastrophic.”

My Response: It is very unlikely that people who are scrambling to survive will have the time to sit down for counseling. Any type of therapy would have to wait until things settled into a semblance of normalcy…and that could take a long, long time.

Answer 2: I am able to get things I want by charming them with my charm. I would be able to get shelter and food by charming the locals, as well as using my intellect to convince them it is better to keep myself around than to not.

My Response: Male or female, this person is in for a rude awakening! Charm is NOT a skill; it is an excuse to avoid learning to be useful to society, which just makes such a person nothing but a leech. In a post-TEOTWAWKI world, such leeches will either find themselves on the back end of a shovel digging latrines or flat on their back being used in a less-than-charming way.

My advice would be to consider developing old fashioned skills that would be worth something and make you a valuable asset to any group.

Pet Disaster Preparedness

As a responsible pet owner, there are a few things you can do towards pet disaster preparedness. There are 72-hour survival kits available for purchase designed specifically for either cats or dogs.

They come complete and can be stored in the closet, so that should an evacuation order come, the bag is ready to go. These disaster preparedness kits contain those items necessary to your pet’s survival; food, water, first aid and shelter.

Here’s what can usually found in a 72-hour pet disaster survival kit: Food, water, blanket, light sticks, bowls, 50’ rope, collar, leash, poop bags, chew sticks, can opener, first aid kit, and pet’s individual information often in a 3-gal plastic bucket with lid.

Pet disaster preparedness kits cost between $40 and $75. However, you can create your own version for much less. For under $20 I was able to create a well-stocked kit from items I had a home or picked up at the dollar store. I put it all in a large bag (black diaper bag) that I picked up at a garage sale for $1.

Now I can rest assured that survival preparations have been made for my dog.

Go to http://www.survival-homestead.com to learn more about disaster preparedness for you and your entire family.

Most Valuable Skills Post-TEOTWAWKI

In a post-TEOTWAWKI (aka: the end of the world as we know it) world, people may find that hobbies and interests that were just ways of passing the time or relaxing when the world was “normal” will suddenly be what helps then survive or contributes to the survival of others.

Here are just a few hobbies that you might want to learn something about:

Basketweaving
Soapmaking
Candlemaking
Gardening
Weaving
Knitting/Crochet
Moonshine/beer/winemaking
Hunting
Fishing
Hide tanning/leather working
Trapping
Welding
Blacksmithing
Gunsmithing
Pottery
Woodworking
Metalworking

With a little thought you will begin to look at your hobbies as something that could be a survival skill or something with which you can barter for food and other goods. If you have a hobby that currently is dependent upon electricity is there a way that it can be done without power? Is it a skill that in the past was actually a living skill, such as weaving and blacksmithing, that you might need to learn more about to be able to do it without modern conveniences. For instance, if you weave, do you know how to build a loom or a spinning wheel?

If you know how to shear sheep for their wool, do you have the tools to do it if the power goes out? Those that raise sheep, might want to consider how you are going to sheer those sheep to retrieve that valuable wool if you don’t have those electrical clippers.

Just a few things to consider.

Most Useless Profession Post-TEOTWAWKI

What current profession or occupation will be totally useless in a post-teotwawki world? If “the end of the world as we know it” should occur (“when” might be a better word to use) do you have a profession or occupation that would be absolutely without value?

Since the focus would be on survival, it is very unlikely that professions that currently deal with money, entertainment or law would be much use. Also jobs that are dependent upon electrical power would be “dead in the water”.

Here are just few that I came up with.

Mental health workers (psychiatrist/psychologist/psychotherapist) – some of the first people to die in a TEOTWAWKI event will be those without the internal, mental and emotional, stamina to adjust and survive. The ones that do survive will be too busy scrambling for survival, to seek professional help.

Politicians – I would advise all politicians to keep their previous profession a secret as there will be many people looking for a scapegoat.

Lawyer
Real estate broker
Mortgage broker/Banker
Actor/Actress
Car sales
Computer programmer/software designer
Stockbroker

Anyone with these professions would be advised to take up a hobby that would translate into a skill that would contribute to survival either directly or as a barter skill to obtain those things you might need to survive.

Most Valuable Profession Post-TEOTWAWKI

Have you ever stopped to think about whether or not you have a profession or job that would enable you to survive in the event of a TEOTWAWKI (aka: the end of the world as we know it)? Such an event would result in a complete loss of power, which means: no computer, no gas, no refrigeration, no communication…

Here are just a few that I came up with:

Doctor/Nurse/EMT – anyone with medical training will be extremely valuable
Veterinarian – both for animals and humans
Dentist
Teacher – children will still need to be educated
Farmer/Rancher – anyone with the ability to grow food
Hunter/Trapper
Cook
Seamstress
Barber
Herbalist
Mechanic
Plumber
Botanist

If you are in one of those professions or occupations you may want to consider what you can do now to get prepared for such an event. Are there additional skills you need to brush up on to allow you to continue to perform your job without the use of electricity? Are there some tools you should have on hand in case the power goes out?

Think about it…I am.

Medicinal Plants, Part 3

Here’s the third installment about these common garden and backyard medicinal plants.

Oregano leaves and stems when used in an infusion can be used as an expectorant, to treat colds and coughs.

Rose hips are an excellent source of vitamin C and as such can be used to treat colds, flu and bladder problems. Two or three of the hips dried, chopped and steeped in boiling water are an excellent source of vitamins A, B3, C, D and E.

Rosemary leaves help preserve meats, can be used as a digestive aid. An infusion of the dried leaves will treat headaches and low blood pressure. It’s an astringent, antibacterial, antispasmodic and aids circulation.

Spearmint/Peppermint leaves and flower tops make as excellent tea that can treat indigestion and morning sickness. The leaves can also be rubbed on your clothes to ward off bees.

Thyme like rosemary can be used to help preserve meat. An infusion of the leaves can be used to treat cough, emphysema and headache. It has antifungal and antispasmodic as well as antibacterial properties.

Whether you are at home or in the wilderness there are a multitude of plants that you should know how to recognize and use. In a survival situation where medical help may not be possible, you need to know how to treat a number of physical ailments using the plants in nature’s pharmacy. To learn more about plants that and cure illness, click here.

Medicinal Plants, Part 2

Here’s the next installment about these common garden and backyard medicinal plants.

Dill seeds can be mashed and steeped in boiling water to create an infusion for treating indigestion, urinary tract infections, e. coli and some suggest even high blood pressure. The seeds can be chewed to freshen the breath.

Fennel seeds in an infusion treat gas, acid stomach and aids digestion. The seeds can be powdered and used as a flea repellant. There is an estrogenic effect from the seeds which caused them to be used to stimulate menstruation and post-birth milk production.

Garlic juice can be applied to skin infections. One medium clove of garlic is equal to penicillin for some uses. When treating an infection use 2 – 3 cloves a day. To treat high blood pressure eat 3-10 cloves per day. (This mainly works for HBP that is aggravated by people…eating that much garlic pretty much guarantees that everyone will stay far FAR away!...kidding). It’s also be used to treat: athlete’s foot, fungal infections, diabetes, stomach cancer, lead poisoning, worms, insect bites and as an antibiotic. To get rid of “garlic breath” chew parsley or fennel.

Iris roots and rhizomes can be used to treat abscesses, painful infections, swollen lymph and thyroid glands, excessive salivation and constipation.

Marjoram leaves and flower tops have been used to treat menstrual cramps and to aid in digestion.

Marigold flowers can be used in a poultice or infusion to treat chilblains, burns, scalds and stings. It also has antiseptic and antibacterial properties and has been used as an anti-fungal and to treat impetigo.

Click here for more information about medicinal plants.