The Prepper's Philosophy (A Hot Chocolate Moment)

A Quiet Sunday Morning

I'm taking a little break this morning from more intense posts. No links, no lists, no "here's what you need to buy." Just me, my hot chocolate, and some deep thoughts on a quiet Sunday morning.

Yes, hot chocolate. I know, I know — I'm probably the only prepper not surviving on pure caffeine, but you do you. Now where are my marshmallows?

The Industry Gets It Wrong

Here's something that's been on my mind: a lot of companies trying to sell to preppers are convinced we're all running for the hills at the end of the world. That you need to buy a million little lightweight things to stuff in a bag and run off.

Run where, exactly?

The reality is that in 99% of all disasters, you're staying home. You're bugging in. You have all of your supplies where you are, and carrying them with you would be nearly impossible. That one bag of lightweight gear? That's a last-ditch effort to survive, not your first or BEST attempt.

Keep that in mind when you're stocking up. Obviously, if you're running for the hills, you're not taking your six months of food with you. So decide what your focus actually should be.

But Have a Backup Plan

Now, that's not to say things are ever straightforward. There are always backup plans to backup plans.

Do you have a place to run to if you need one? Do you have a cabin, a friend's house, grandma's house in the woods somewhere? (Very Little Red Riding Hood, I know, but hey — grandma's house might be the plan. And come to think of it, the wolf in that story was a loner and look how that turned out for him.)

Have you considered spreading your preps around a bit? Keeping most of it in your home, but stashing some at your brother's place nearby, or your mom's, or your best friend's?

What if your house burns down? Something to think about.

The Good News About Bugging In

Despite all this, I'm going to guess that for most of us, the main focus is building a safe supply in our homes and having what we need on hand.

The good news? When you do that, you can actually USE your stuff. You can rotate it. It serves a purpose right now. You're not just putting it away for the end of the world — you're using it for camping on the weekends, making snacks with your kids when you freeze-dry, or gardening to have great fresh food.

That's the gift of preparedness. Not fear. FREEDOM.

The Lone Wolf Fantasy

A lot of people talk about being lone wolves. Here's the thing: lone wolves usually die.

Even among actual wolves, they don't do well on their own. Wolves thrive in packs. For some reason, all the survival and disaster rhetoric forgets that along the way.

Also, have you actually watched zombie movies? Basically any horror movie ever? Wandering off alone gets you killed. Never leave the group. This is a cardinal rule — never leave the group or you die in a horror movie. Just saying. (This was so important every SCREAM movie featured it. And no. I did NOT watch them all.)

Yes, you can board up your doors for the zombie apocalypse if it makes you feel better, and there's a time and place for that. But the reality is, under most disaster circumstances, you need each other.

Community IS a Prep

When you look at disasters — hurricanes and other major events — it's when communities come together and pool resources that things actually get better.

Our neighborhood came together during the hurricanes. We shared resources. We checked on each other. We helped clear debris together. On Sunday morning, we made hot chocolate for the kids.

Normal. Calm. Almost peaceful, despite the chaos outside.

Should you be trained in operational security and thinking this way? Yes, absolutely. Should you be helping your family and neighbors prep? Also yes. Quietly and subtly, but yes.

Here's the strategic part: The more people you help get prepared now, the fewer will be showing up at your door expecting you to share yours.

The Bunker I'll Never Have

Look at countries like Switzerland, where everybody is required to prep and quite honestly have a bunker. Which is really cool.

Why can't I have a bunker? I want a bunker.

Okay, okay, I'm in Florida, and if I had a bunker it would fill with water in like fifteen minutes. But still. I want a bunker.

The Point

What's important is that you give some real thought to what you're actually prepping for and where you'll be in those circumstances.

My point is: don't fall for the hype. Yes, there's some advantage to certain ultralight things for that last-ditch possibility of a bug-out bag. But if I ran for the hills along with everybody else running for the hills, my chances would be very poor.

Instead, I'm focusing on building up my home, training my family, and building my community.