Saturday, May 29, 2010

Questions from a Reader...And a Long Answer

I received the following email from a reader recently...

" I wanted to get my house ready for a possible disaster. You never know what
can happen. A bunch of my friends have been talking about the possibility of
something really bad happening in 2010. I wanted your take / advice as I
really enjoy your blog.

1. What should I do with my cash? I have it in the bank and do not
necessarily need to have it there. Should I buy a safe and put in that?

2. Should I buy a shotgun?

3. My wife and family are vegan and was wondering what the best food
solutions should be for our 5 person family?

4. We live by the beach? Should we be concerned about water?

5. What about gasoline? Should I get a generator?

I am 39 years old with little kids and our house is not paid for. We have no
debt and live fairly cheap. Let me know your thoughts as I really trust you
and want to put something together this summer. B.P."

These are common questions when prepping. Below are my answers but the readers are welcome to add their two cents in the comments section below because if I know anything about preparedness, it's that everyone will probably have different answers to the questions above.

#1. With my money, I like diversification. I have cash that I carry with me every day (usually $200-$400), cash in my home safe, cash in four bank accounts (four different banks) linked to debit cards which I use like Visas instead of using actual credit cards, gold, investments in mutual funds, a Roth IRA, a 401k, land, equipment (tools, guns, and other things that hold value fairly well), and businesses. I would never say to buy all gold, all guns, or put all of your money under your mattress because you just never know what will happen. If the stock market implodes, I will be out some of my money but the gold and equipment will see me through. If someone robs me, I may lose the cash I carry but will have other cash and resources to fall back on. It is the same with the diversification of your money--you want a little bit in a lot of places instead of all of it in one place...just in case.
#2. Depends. While I am a fan of gun ownership, I don't think everyone should own guns. I like shotguns for both hunting and home protection. Whether or not you buy a shotgun, or any weapon for that matter, will depend on a number of factors. What does the wife think? How do you both feel about having guns around your children? Do you know how to care for a firearm and most importantly, would you practice regularly? How would you feel about killing someone with a firearm? Firearm ownership is a very real responsibility that shouldn't be taken lightly. Should you decide to buy a shotgun or other weapon, I would suggest taking a class or two on firearm use, maintenance, and responsible gun ownership, then trying out as many models at the range as possible so you will be able to find the type of firearm you like before doling out your hard earned cash for it.
#3. Again, diversification is the name of the food preppin game. In my pantry, I have 50 pound bags of rice and 25 pound bags of dried beans and other grains. You will want to look into food items that can give you the protein you need (nuts? peanut butter? soybeans?) and have a good shelf life. Most vegans are heavy into being able to acquire fresh produce regularly which may or may not be possible post SHTF. Can you grow some of your own fruit and vegetables? Forage for edibles (plants, mushrooms)? Make your own bean sprouts? Food is something that I plan for somewhat (about a three to six months stockpile) but don't stress over unnecessarily. If it really came down to it, I believe people will do what they need to do to survive (I'll eat bugs or rats or whatever if absolutely necessary but it is not something I consider on a regular basis).
#4. Everyone should be concerned about water. Near a beach means...saltwater? If so, that would not be a viable source of drinking water. Again, I store some water, maybe enough for a month or so plus have a rain catchment system which I use to water the garden, but I also know where all of the lakes, streams, and rivers are in my area and I have enough bleach stored (plus the ability to boil water if necessary) to strain and treat what I will need.
#5. I store some gasoline and rotate it though our vehicle but I maybe only have 30 gallons stored. I also don't have a generator because #1 based on past experience, we are never without power for more than a day or so, and #2 if you do need to use a generator long term, you will need to be able to fuel it (plus the unsavory types that hear your generator running will know that you have something they want...no need to draw attention to yourself...).

I may be one of the lesser hard core preppers that you know. I make my prepping decisions based on a couple of important rules: is what I have/need/do based on an actual need or a pie-in-the-sky, Rambo-inspired vision? Am I doing the basics before going all out on the very expensive/probably never going to use/could become a liability type-things?

Americans are great at planning and apocalyptical scenarios. However, based on my experience, the people I know who have "survived" a broad range of disasters are often the third world poor who may or may not even have shoes! What they have, however, is a will to survive, as good a health as they can muster, a sharp mind, and a creativity/flexibility that allows them to respond to whatever disaster may strike (everything from a flood to machete-wielding invaders to being driven out of their own countries).

Here's the top ten prep tips I give to just about everyone:
  1. Live below your means.
  2. Be debt free.
  3. Always have a BOB ready (only what you can carry may be all you end up with no matter how much food/gas/supplies you have stored).
  4. Be as healthy as possible (this will impact your survival-ability immensely).
  5. Be flexible. If your car won't start, take the bus or ride your bike to work. Some people, when things don't go their way, just shut down. Quick thinking and flexibility in your attitude are very important in a disaster.
  6. Flex your creative muscle. If you can't afford a (name some item), how would you make due? Could you trade for it? Make it? Use something else for the same purpose?
  7. Stock supplies if you normally use them or they would be extremely important to your survival. Stock bottled water and rotate it with the bottled water you normally use. Have camping gear that you would normally use (if you don't camp, you should do so at least annually as it is good practice for rustic living), stock food supplies that you can rotate into your normal everyday meals, etc.
  8. Get educated. I would rather be a highly trained shooter that can use any gun, than someone who has a stockpile of weapons yet never even practices with them. Take advantage of any and all education opportunities that come your way (community CPR class, a science project with your kid that teaches YOU something valuable) etc.
  9. Invest in your social relationships--the social relationships you work to develop today could prove to be very useful in the future. This includes the time spent strengthening your family relationships (do you do things with your kids or let them hide in their room with their computer every day?), chatting with/doing favors for neighbors who would then be inclined to help you out when needed, etc.
  10. Don't stress about the future. Stress will kill you but disasters, statistically, rarely do. I am all for being reasonably prepared but not at the expense of continually stressing about what might happen, spending the kid's vacation money on MREs, or building a bomb shelter unless there is a clear and present need. Since I was a child, there have always been people who say an apocalypse is just around the corner. Only it hasn't happened yet, decades later. What does happen, though, is continual change which we all need to be prepared for and react accordingly to. You may lose your job tomorrow. You may lose your spouse tomorrow. You may lose your home or your country tomorrow. Would you be able to handle these blows and keep on going? If not, what could you do today so that you would be better able to handle such drastic change? Now do those things.

Wednesday, May 26, 2010

Orient Yourself to a New City in Five Steps

I am out of town at a conference this week. I am also in a new city that I had previously only passed by for airport connections in the past. Here's a few quick ways to orient yourself to a new city:
  1. Get a pass for the transit system and use it to explore the city. This is much easier than driving and finding parking, and you really don't get lost this way.
  2. Skip the tourist areas and get into the neighborhoods. Usually these places have great food and local (interesting) bars.
  3. Ask the locals. When I am looking for Chinese food, I head to the local Chinatown (most big cities have these) then ask a local where their favorite restaurant is. Another way to find great food it to look into the restaurant windows and find a place that is packed with locals--usually a sign of great food and great prices.
  4. Before you get to your destination, do a bit of research. Aside from the usual tourist guides (mostly outdated by the time you read them), I usually Google for "things to do in X city" and I also usually post a question about things to do in my destination city on the AskMetafilter site which tends to generate copious responses from the locals.
  5. Walk. It is hard to find out interesting things about your destination if you are zipping by at 60 miles per hour. Hop off the bus/subway and walk around a bit. It's good exercise and gives you a local eye view on the city.

Sunday, May 23, 2010

25 Post SHTF Food Sources

When TSHTF, one of your top concerns will be finding enough food to sustain you until regular food distribution channels get back up and running. Here's where to find the food you need:
  1. The food you have stored in your house.
  2. The food you have stored in your car and other locations (ie: bug out shelter)
  3. The food in your office.
  4. The food in other offices in your building/neighborhood/city (bring a crowbar).
  5. The food running around near your home (squirrel, possum, rabbits, etc).
  6. The wild food you can gather (berries, cat tails, apples, nuts, etc).
  7. The larger food in the forest (deer, elk, bear, etc).
  8. Larger food on local ranches (pig, goat, cow, etc).
  9. Food in water near your home (fish, shellfish, seaweed, etc).
  10. Food on local farms (vegetables, grains, fruit, etc).
  11. Food in grocery stores.
  12. Food in warehouses/cold storage warehouses.
  13. Food in institutions (ie: food banks, schools, hospitals, etc).
  14. Food in local restaurants.
  15. Food in vacation homes and homes where people have left.
  16. Food in your yard (dandelions, vegetables and fruit you have grown, etc.).
  17. Food on the way to its destination (shipping containers, refrigerated trucks, etc).
  18. Food you can create (quick growing vegies and meat supplies).
  19. Food provided by relief organizations.
  20. Food that any other day you wouldn't consider food (rats, bugs, pigeon, etc).
  21. Food you can have brought in (ie: a contact from an area not hit that could bring you supplies).
  22. Food that others may overlook (honey from bees, maple syrup from trees, snakes, etc).
  23. Food that takes concerted effort/materials/equipment to get (ie: whale, other deep sea fish, mountain goat, etc).
  24. Food that freegans would love (search dumpsters, garbage cans, garbage dumps, etc).
  25. Food that isn't people food (dog food, cat food, animal food stored in grain silos, etc).

Obviously most of these sources have drawbacks. Some sources may mean you need to break the law to get at it, some sources have a decided ick factor, and some sources mean you my end up fighting over it with others who are equally hungry. Also, once you acquire food from the aforementioned sources, you will need to hide it/guard it/protect it.

Thursday, May 20, 2010

Link Round Up: Related to Yesterday's Post

After writing yesterday's post, I then proceeded to cruise the internet and found a whole slew of related links from US News and World Report:

And then I came across THIS ARTICLE which kind of sums up much of what I have been hearing. Scary.

Wednesday, May 19, 2010

My Minimalist Response to the Current Economic Crisis

My last post outlined my ranty take on the current economic situation. Now there's plenty of reasons (and methods) to complain about what is going on but it really doesn't matter how much people rant about a situation, if you don't take steps to deal with what is happening then you are just expending your energy but not changing your outcome. Here are some things I am doing which I hope will help me deal in a positive fashion with the current economic situation:
  • I don't use credit cards. I opted out of the "live beyond your means" game a while back. I paid off and cancelled my credit cards and now if I want something, I pay cash for it. I'm guessing my credit score is about 0 and I am quite happy with that. Thanks Dave Ramsey.

  • We have one vehicle. For nearly 20 years we had up to five or six cars for two (!) drivers plus the random kid that would come back home to visit. About the time that gas rose to $4.50 per gallon a couple years ago, I realized that I could continue and play the game or not. While I didn't entirely opt out of the car ownership game, I stacked the deck in my favor to the point where we use much less fuel than before, we don't have a loan or a "fleece" on a vehicle, and we pay much less for insurance than in years past.

  • We would like to sell our house which is too big for just two people and buy a smaller place with cash. This will help in a number of ways: owning the place you live free and clear rocks and a smaller place costs less to heat/furnish/maintain/cool/etc. Now some people take the minimalist concept even further and live in an RV, rent a uber-cheap place, or even trade living accommodations for services such as maintenance work or house sitting. I don't intend to go that far. Unfortunately property values are declining, but fortunately if we don't sell, it won't be that great of a problem since the house is on its way to being paid off. I just don't like heating a big house but I guess I will just have to deal with it.

  • I am continually educating myself. This does not include taking out massive college loans. In fact, every time I hear of a new graduate who owes nearly six figures for a degree that may or may not get them a good enough job to even start paying back Sallie Mae I cringe. With a good education (not necessarily from college), the ability to figure things out, a wide variety of skills, and the desire to "hussle" in order to make a living, you can earn money just about anywhere. That is why I take all educational opportunities that come my way--community ed classes, university classes if they meet very specific needs, and even a class at the local Y--not only does having an expansive education make you a more valuable commodity in the workplace, it provides you networking opportunity over a depth and breath of industries which is unparalleled. People who think they can train very narrowly for a job then do that job for the rest of their life will be very disappointed when a) the job simply goes away, b) someone comes along who does the job better, or c) the job changes to the point that your skills are no longer useful.

  • We are minimizing our possessions. Having a ton of possessions ties you down both literally and figuratively. We are to the point now where all of the most important things we own can be carried with us or stored in a safe deposit box. If we want to travel the world for a couple of years, I would have no problem simply locking the door to our house and leaving what minimal possessions we have behind. The less stuff we have, the less we will be worried about guarding it, protecting it, insuring it, etc.

  • We are working towards "self insurance" for many of the items noted in the previous post. Healthcare, unemployment, Social Security...the things that people let guide their life, determine what job they will have, and where they will live, is another game I wish to opt out of. I plan on fully funding my own retirement so if Social Security goes away, it won't be a major crisis for me. This is done in a variety of ways including cash savings, having minimal expenses, investing in a variety of areas, and continuing to work in some form because I think I would be bored silly if I just decided I wanted to stop working all together and sit home collecting a tiny check from the government. Unemployment is, well, a non-issue for me as I am self employed and have been so for nearly my entire life. If I lose a client, I go find another one, if my product isn't selling, I find another product to sell, if the market totally changes, I better change right along with it. Plus, if I need some quick cash for a major expenditure, I am not above hiring myself out for the right price to the right company. This is the "hussle" I talked about above. People can make money, they have just forgot how with the "working for the man, do what you're told, collect your paycheck" mentality that is ground into people from the day they start school all the way up through retirement. Blech. And, while I realize that healthcare is a big issue which impacts people differently, I am fortunate that I have good, nearly free, health insurance. I am doubly fortunate that I use it maybe once every few years. My grandmother, from the time she had her last kid until the time she was close to death which was a period of over 50 years, saw a doctor exactly twice in that period. She preached keeping herself healthy and avoiding the medical establishment like the plague which is kind of my theory as well. Other options I will consider if necessary include trading services for care with a few doctors I know and traveling overseas to have pricey procedures done if for some reason my health insurance should go away.

The bottom line is that life is a game. Much like Monopoly, you can kind of keep track of who is winning the game by looking at the other's player's status'--are they running low on cash? Do they own appreciating assets or depreciating "assets"? Do they have the wits to pull themselves out of tough situations and not rely on someone else (like the government) to do it for them? And unlike the game of Monopoly, life is one of those games where you can actually make up your own rules if you like.

Monday, May 17, 2010

Some Thoughts on the Economy

Over the past handful of decades, things have remained fairly predictable. There were booms, there were busts, there were years of outrageous spending, and years of shortages. Back-to-the-landers have been in and out of style a few times in my memory as have been bell bottoms and shaggy haircuts for the guys. Many things, both in the economic sector and the social sector, I have seen coming (why people in recent years chose variable rate mortgages is beyond me seeing how well they worked out in the 70s) since I had seen these things come, cyclical fashion, before. However the current socio-political situation has me stumped.
Things are starting to look mighty bleak, in my point of view. Note:
  • The new "healthcare reform" is going to bankrupt our country. I don't see how it can not. You have a "guarantee" of health insurance now for the millions of people who before didn't have insurance because they couldn't afford it. Nothing has changed since then, in fact the economy has take a sudden and distinct downturn over the past few years, so if they couldn't afford it then, they certainly can't afford it now. There have even been major employers looking at dropping healthcare coverage in favor of just paying the fine for not having health insurance because it would save them many millions of dollars. The math just doesn't add up.
  • Property prices have grown stagnantly lower (I may be grumbling because I haven't sold my house yet) and people think nothing of walking away from their mortgages (which drives prices even lower) while banks talk about "readjusting" people's mortgages downward (where do we get in line for this? I would certainly like money just given to me). I have never seen a time when people didn't have pride of ownership in the land.
  • People now get 99 WEEKS(!) of unemployment. That's nearly two years of people being on the public dole. I can see some unemployment insurance for a few months so people have a bit of time to find a job, any job, and get back to earning an income but giving a handout for TWO YEARS is a disincentive to work. Without work there is no economy. And when people get used to entitlement program, that is the downward death spiral for not only the economy but for society in general.
  • Social Security is going to collapse like a house of cards in a breeze. If I had any graphic ability at all I would draw a picture of this, but sadly I don't. I do know, however, that Social Security worked fine when the Boomer generation was employed in full force and paying into the system to support those who retired before them. Now that the Boomers are going to be receiving Social Security in full force, there doesn't appear to be enough workers, earning enough money in which to tax, to support such a program. Again, I am not a math genius but I believe I have a handle on addition and subtraction.
  • The illegal immigration situation has no answer that I can think of. Human migration is a fact...it has been part of the human experience since the first people walked out of Africa. I don't hate illegal immigrants, in fact the ones I know are very hard workers and came to the US fleeing from all kinds of horrible situations (not just from Mexico but from Europe, Asia, and Africa as well). But with no way to control the flood of migrants (and the drug dealers/criminals/other riff raff that comes with them) since walls don't work (apparently no one pointed this out to the US government...you know, Great Wall of China, Hadrian's Wall, etc), I shudder to think what will become of our country. Our southern border is now a freakin war zone in some parts thanks to the drug cartels in Mexico (and yes I know, the drug users in the US).

Hopefully I will have a cheerier disposition tomorrow. If nothing else, I will have some ideas for dealing with these problems.

Thursday, May 13, 2010

Are You Ready for Summer? 25 Things to Do

Summer is an excellent time to kick your preppin' into high gear. Here's 25 things to do:
  1. Plan a weekend camping trip with the family...taking only your BOBs.
  2. Introduce the family to--or just help them brush up on--their shooting skills at the local range.
  3. Check out your community for survival-related events (outdoor show, fishing derby, HAM fest, free first aid classes, summer swim program, etc).
  4. Spend the weekend doing low-cost, preparedness related activities with the family. Make a bow and arrow or trap for small animals, sleep outside in the back yard, have a bonfire and make Smores, practice navigating with a GPS device or map and compass, etc.
  5. Have a garage sale. This will allow you to clean out your preps and rotate stock, get rid of stuff you don't need any more, and make some cash.
  6. Exercise! Do a community fun run, ride your bike, hike in the woods, etc.
  7. Dump out, restock, and update your BOB.
  8. Procure your own food--go to a u pick farm, grow your own garden, pick wild berries, go fishing, etc.
  9. Practice using the public transportation system in your area.
  10. Travel overseas.
  11. Learn something new. Go kayaking if you have never done so, learn how to use a HAM radio and get licensed, bake bread, etc.
  12. Get your home in order--service the furnace, clean the chimney, update your landscaping, ensure the roof is still in good condition, paint if needed, clean off the deck, etc.
  13. Start eating better. Change your diet to include lots of fresh fruit and vegetables, fish, and whole grains.
  14. Earn some extra money. Start a summer lawn mowing business, put an ad on Craigslist where you offer your services to help people move, develop an online business, etc.
  15. Do a home inventory complete with video.
  16. Hold a drill--fire drill, lock down drill, communications drill, etc.
  17. Try bartering.
  18. Get out of debt. Make this the summer where you work four jobs if needed and spend the absolute minimum in order to throw every extra penny at your debts.
  19. Minimize your possessions. The less stuff you have, the less you need to clean/maintain/insure/etc.
  20. Build family/neighborhood unity. Do projects together, hold a neighborhood barbecue, put together a CERT (community emergency response team) or Map Your Neighborhood group.
  21. Make sure your car is in excellent working order: tune up the engine, get the oil changed, check all of the fluids, replace the tires if necessary, check the car BOB, etc.
  22. If your kids are bored this summer, create your own "merit badge" program. Here's a list of Boy Scout Merit Badges for ideas.
  23. Set a big goal...and achieve it. Maybe a two week backpacking trip, a shooting competition, a business goal, or a "test yourself" goal like bungee jumping or doing something else that tests your mettle.
  24. Start prepping now for the fall: do you have enough fire wood? Do you need so many Christmas presents that starting now to put some aside every few weeks would make sense? Will your kids head off to college in the fall? Get ready now for big events that you know will be coming up later in the year.
  25. Enjoy doing nothing occasionally. Sit out in the sun, go fishing, take walks, hang out at the beach or at the mountains, etc.

Tuesday, May 11, 2010

The Downsizing Survivalist

We have been doing some major downsizing in preparation for selling our house over the past couple of weeks. On the one hand, I want to be prepared for anything as evidenced by my massive set of tools/handguns/yard implements/etc. On the other hand, I don't want to schlep all of this stuff to our next place or end up putting it in storage for months on end if we decide to travel for six months to a year prior to finding a new home base in the states. So the idea is to reduce the amount of stuff we have to a manageable level yet still have enough stuff to cover all of our bases should TSHTF. Here's what I have done to date:
  • We now have one car to share between the spouse and I. Depending on our schedule, we either drive together if we will both be in the same general vicinity or one of us will take public transportation. I also enjoy walking or riding my bike to my destination if possible.
  • My home workshop has been completely revamped. I now have a basic set of tools that will allow me to do the jobs that I am lost likely to need done. I am selling/giving away a huge surplus of duplicate tools and specialized tools that I don't plan on ever using again. These days, if I need work done around the house I am much more likely to hire someone to do it. While I can snake out the mainline if needed, I simply don't want to which means I will happily hire someone to do this (and they can bring their own tools).
  • We now have a reasonable amount of emergency stored food (two to three months as opposed to the massive amount we had when all of the kids lived at home and I thought we needed enough food for the whole gang for a year). Needless to say, the local food bank and another non-profit were more than please to take all of the food we no longer needed. The rest of the canned/dried/packaged goods were rotated into our regular food supply and new food was stored in a (much smaller than before) area in the garage.
  • All of our backpacking gear is staying put. Two backpacks full of gear that can reasonably keep us sheltered/clothed/entertained/hydrated/etc. don't take up that much room (the other crates of old gear and various gadgets I picked up along the way were garage saled recently).
  • We are using down some of our supplies until they reach a more reasonable storage size. For quite a while, I wanted to keep enough stuff (paper towels, toilet paper, bleach, soap, etc) on hand to cover a year's worth of use. Now I will be pleased with only having enough to cover a two or three month supply.
  • I am getting rid of clutter and duplicate stuff. Over the years you tend to collect stuff--a half dozen suitcases, more linens that even a small hotel could use, a bunch of shovels and rakes...you get the idea. More stuff for our next garage sale...

Eventually I hope to find a happy medium between having enough gear/supplies/food/etc to see us through whatever disaster may happen and having SO MUCH STUFF that we are practically paralyzed by it. I have been on a minimalist kick lately and it is kind of nice. Not spending money on duplicates, triplicates, and quadruplicates of stuff that I may never use is a good thing. Being able to be more portable instead of worrying about my stuff /cleaning my stuff/insuring my stuff/storing my stuff is also a good thing. Knowing that I can use my creativity and ingenuity to make up for anything we don't have is...priceless.

Saturday, May 8, 2010

Selling Your House? Here's Some Safety Tips

We are currently in the process of selling our house. We have had lots of showings but no (reasonable) offers yet. When a realtor shows your house, they like it if you are not there. That's fine with us, but we still take some precautions because we don't know who is coming into our home and, well, personal safety is pretty important to me. Here's what we do:
  • We have a realtor lock box on our home. The only way realtors can access the house is by using their computerized access to the key box. As soon as they open the box, a text message is sent to our realtor telling him who is entering the house and when.
  • The house is "staged" for showing. In addition to removing stuff to make the home look larger, we have put away many personal possessions which was suggested by the realtor since it allows the viewer to imagine their stuff in our house. I also think this is a good idea because I don't want everyone who comes into my house to see some of the things that people commonly display in their homes (ie: things that can identify your military service, your special skills, your accomplishments, your travels, your family members, etc).
  • All jewelry, firearms, mail, personal records (bank statements, investment statements), and other valuable items are put away, usually under lock and key. Again, this avoids the temptation of someone lifting your stuff and/or knowing too much about you.
  • Stuff that I don't really want people to see are disguised as well as possible (ie: I don't want people to know where my gun safe is, don't want them to know that I have about six months worth of stored food, etc.).
  • I have a half dozen computers in my home (all laptops) but I only leave one on display; the rest are put away. I don't want people who come to see the house to have any reason to come back and burglarize our place so our house is "staged" in a generically bland way. Obviously I'm not going to take all of the TVs off the wall, but other stuff such as the Wii, digital cameras, etc. are put away.
  • After the house is shown and we return, we always check all of the doors and windows to make sure nothing was left unlocked. I also take a cursory glance around to see if anything looks disturbed.

Some of this stuff may sound a little paranoid, but my main objective is basically to remove the temptation for people to steal or for them to gain any of our personal information. Just being careful...

Thursday, May 6, 2010

10 Things People Do Unintentionally That Can Impact Their Safety

People do a lot of things almost automatically that they often don't give a second thought to. Some things, however, can have a negative impact on your safety. For example:
  1. When you turn your car keys over to the shop or detailer, don't give them your whole key ring. They will end up with a key to your house AND your address from the registration in the glove box.
  2. When you move into a new place, always change the locks. It is exciting to get a new set of keys to your new place but the locks need to switched out ASAP because you don't know who else has copies of said house key.
  3. When you pick up your mail, don't leave it laying on your dashboard or on the counter in your kitchen. Mail such as bank statements and credit card bills can have personal information on them that is easy for others to steal.
  4. If you need to call your credit card company (or any other place that needs you to tell them your personal information) do so in private. I can't count how many times I have overheard people on their cell phones in public divulging personal information.
  5. Keep your private life private at work. It's fine to tell close friends about your latest drama but doing so at work can compromise your safety in a number of ways: clients can overhear you, a stalker can over hear you, co-workers can use details (like of your recent DUI) to torpedo you at work, etc.
  6. Keep your private life private online. I am not a fan of FaceBook and don't have a MySpace or FaceBook page because people share too much information on these sites which is then sent out to everyone on the planet. If I am going on vacation, I will tell my housekeeper and a responsible neighbor, but I won't tell the entire world I WILL BE OUT OF TOWN FROM JUNE 5 TO JUNE 17--that's just asking to be burglarized.
  7. Keep your windows and doors locked as a habit. I don't even think my grandparent's house had exterior door locks because no one back then locked their doors. These days, it is just a basic safety precaution to always keep your windows and doors locked to keep random criminals from coming into your home.
  8. Shred everything. Many people simply toss personal paperwork into the trash. A good detective or a bored dumpster diver can open up said trash bag and strike a personal info goldmine this way.
  9. Beware who you let into your home. If you are selling something on Craigslist, meet the person at a different location or in the garage instead of letting them wander through your home. Ditto for door to door sales people, repair people, etc.
  10. Beware of where you take your car. Cars can provide lots of information about your whereabouts via toll pass deductions, video surveillance cameras on the street, license plate readers, etc.

Tuesday, May 4, 2010

Would You Give Up Your US Citizenship?

My short answer is no, for reasons I will explain below. I have, however, noted quite a few recent articles about Americans choosing to do just that. Including this post, this post, and this post.
I am all for people becoming "citizens of the world". Living and traveling abroad, working abroad, and building friendships and relationships with people all over the world. However, there would have to be something fairly major, which I can not right now conceive of, that would make me want to give up my US citizenship.
Even though the US has problems (many), I don't know of any other country that would be "better". Some countries have better tax rates, other countries have better health care, and still other countries offer different freedoms than are available in the US. Being a US citizen, however, gives me a certain piece of mind despite the many problems that our country has.
I have looked into dual citizenship but have not been motivated to make an effort to do this yet.
Obviously some people may have compelling reasons to renounce their citizenship (taxes, as was pointed out in the articles), to have the same citizenship as their spouse and children, or to "escape" from the US, but none of these apply to me. Should I ever become a billionaire, I may reconsider.
For now, I will be content with my US passport as I travel around the world, always with the thought in mind of coming "home" to the US. For those times when I am comprehensively annoyed with particular problems in the US, I will continue to devise "work arounds" in which my needs get met with a minimum of BS from my government.

Monday, May 3, 2010

A Comprehensive Document List

One of the best things you can do for yourself is have all of your documents safely stored and ready to grab at a moment's notice. As has been made abundantly clear during the current flooding in Tennessee and beyond, people often don't have a lot of time to go around collecting documents AND they may not have a home to return to after the event. In disasters like these, you will need nearly all of your important documents in order to replace other documents, file insurance claims, etc. Here's the documents that you need (note that they should be originals or certified copies if at all possible):
  • Birth certificates for you, the spouse, and your minor children
  • Marriage certificates
  • Divorce decrees
  • Adoption records
  • Baptismal (other religious) records
  • Prenuptial agreements
  • Death certificates for immediate family members
  • DD214 (military records)
  • List of any arrests
  • Final disposition of any civil/criminal court cases
  • Copies of bankruptcy filings
  • High school diplomas
  • College degrees
  • Copies of insurance policies (life, health, auto, home, long term disability, etc)
  • Copies of tax filings for the past five years
  • Current health insurance documents (health insurance card, Medicare card, supplemental medical insurance card, etc)
  • Will
  • Medical Power of Attorney
  • Durable Power of Attorney
  • Living Will
  • Home inventory information
  • Copies of recent bank statements/bank account information
  • Copies of mortgages or Deeds of Trust
  • Stocks/bonds/brokerage account information
  • Retirement account information (401k, 403b, social security statement, IRA, pension plans, etc)
  • Debt statements (credit card information, auto loan, utilities, other debt information)
  • Property tax records
  • Passport
  • Social Security card
  • Copy of driver's license or state ID card
  • Citizenship papers (naturalization certificate, copy of permanent resident card, etc)
  • Car titles
  • Business incorporation papers and any other pertinent business info (creditors, contracts, etc)
  • Contracts/partnership paperwork
  • List of next of kin and their info (name, address, phone, email)
  • List of professional advisers (lawyer, accountant, executor, etc)
  • Medical information (doctor's info, dentist's info, allergies, major medical treatments, list of current medications, etc)
  • List of online info (online accounts, passwords, web/blog host info, etc)
  • Location of safety deposit boxes
  • Information on any death planning (funeral arrangements, cemetery plots, etc)
  • Appraisals for valuable items
  • Car registration (should be kept in the car)
  • Warranties
  • Trust documents
  • Employment documentation

Gathering all of this information can be quite the slog but having all of this information when disaster strikes will make recreating your life (and getting paid from the insurance companies) much easier.