Remember all of those online webinar classes we offered that you wanted to take but simply didn’t have the time to do so?  Or worse, the class was being taught in a time zone half way around the world from you, making it that much more challenging?

Perhaps you recall enjoying some of the classes we’ve had in the past but wished for more complete written information as a follow-up, or more recipes, or more visual “show how.” 

I think the one we hear the most is from people who wish that we had it recorded so that they could review it again and again.

Well, we’re happy to say that you’ve finally got all of your wishes! Whew! And boy, are we tired! *grin*

As of October 1^st, we will begin to release our best and most requested training events in a prerecorded and a complete written format. We’ve expanded the written content to be more book-like, so that the training therein can stand on its own, and we’ve expanded the visual portion of the class so its more comprehensive and inclusive of some of the aspects that have gotten left out in the past webinars because we’ve run out of time.  Now with this new format all you have to do is get comfortable in front of your computer either by yourself or with family and friends, any time you want to learn about your most compelling preparedness topics! Even better, since the training is now broken down in chapters, if there is a portion which you want to bypass because of your existing expertise, you can easily do so without wasting your time or diluting your enjoyment.

Whether you prefer to watch a demonstration or read instructions, these perfectly combined packages of education will provide you the same quality of instruction you’ve come to expect from The Preparedness Pro with just a little exception—convenience! You can now watch the training as much or as little as you want and you can also read a complete synopsis of the training event PLUS additional written resources in print. And since we’ve chosen to embrace the world of technology in delivering these courses to you, there are no shipping costs! Yeah! While I must say I’ve been exhausted trying to put all of this together and keep up with the blog, my health and the health of a very dear friend, I have to say I’ve been so EXCITED! Every time one of you has e-mailed me expressing disappointment that you were going to miss a date of an event, or that you wished there was more written content etcetera, I just knew this had to get done.  In fact, it’s actually better for us all this way. I can take a vacation if I want (ha! Like that will happen) and you can enjoy it at 3:00 a.m. or 3:00 p.m. I love that your family and busy schedules no longer need to be sacrificed just so that you can get complete Preparedness Training.

Additionally, since I’m no longer restricted by time restrictions or seat capacities, I’ve opted to provide detailed and fully comprehensive visual and written education of the most requested training events that have been offered in the last 2 years PLUS the ones that you guys keep hollering for. By revamping previous courses and creating some long-overdue ones, I’m confident that this venue of training will over-deliver and exceed your expectations every time. I’ve added a lot more content into the video portion of the classes, and gone to the expense of editing both the visual and the written portions.  Neither you nor I are restricted any more by a “reasonable amount of time to expect someone to sit through a class” or those “bladder breaks” we’ve experienced during the training. *grin*  YOU get to decide when that takes place with the push of the pause button. 

There’s even better news too. Thanks to the pool of talent I’ve encountered during the first step of assembly for these products, I can now provide you with some of the classes that you’ve been asking for that don’t portray themselves very well in a Powerpoint and voice presentation. This means, yes, you will now have access to Pressure Cooking and Making Wheat Meat in a video format! Yeah!! And did I mention that there are also a lot of great recipes? Yup. I know there will be a few of you excited about that. Each recorded visual presentation will provide you with a quality learning experience, complete with a detailed resource guide for you to reference again and again. This new development means no more cutting corners on a vital topic just because of time restraints. No more getting up early on a Saturday morning just so you can make a class halfway around the world! And no more missing the classes you want but just can’t seem to find time for. Enjoy these highly educational topics at your own pace and in accordance to your own interest. Simply slip into your most comfortable set of clothes, curl up with some munchies, and enjoy this vital training anytime, anywhere, you desire.

I love that the folks in both coasts of the U.S., South Africa, Norway, and Scotland can ALL enjoy this now. I’ve been trying to get it done for what seems like forever, but now it’s really here! Excuse me while I whoop!

Just be aware that we’re not going to release them all at once. And even though we’re spending some bucks to try and make them as professional and thorough as possible, we’re going to price them modestly. It’s more important to me that you have the training but not at the cost of other vital preparedness items.

So what I’ll be doing is as soon as I get a class ready for  the final editing stages, I’ll announce a pre-release of the course about 30 days prior to its official launch date. Any persons who purchase the class during that pre-release time frame will get a substantial discount. Even better, for this first pre-release, those of you who have already enjoyed the live webinar version of the two classes we’re prelaunching  will receive the new, more complete one, but with a $7 credit  towards your purchase! In othe words, if you paid  for The Wonderful World of Wheat in the last 12 months, you’ll be able to purchase at the pre-release price of $20, and then we will credit you $7.  My husband isnt’ too keen on that cause he knows how much info I provided in the first place. But he’ll get over it. hee hee.  (We wanted to do a full credit of your previous class, but the logistics of that were a nightmare since we had so many different prices over the last year. *sigh)  Anyway, I like offering a little something extra cause I’m so excited about the launch!  This way you get the best of both worlds without having to pay for it twice at full price!  Remember, the previous tuition credit will be credited to applicable purchasers after you’ve made the purchase and the offer is only good during the pre-release period which ends after the first 50 purchases. So don’t delay if you want that extra savings.

Now I realize that there are some of you out there who are a little technically challenged. To be truthful, I’m probably one of the worst. But I assure you that viewing these classes this way will be super easy. All you need is your computer and an internet connection and you can enter a world of professional, detailed, and accurate preparedness knowledge!  Remember, this isn’t just audio. This is a visual class presentation PLUS the written resource as well. You can even save the materials to your own computer to view at your leisure.  No matter what you choose to do in your preparedness preparation, I believe I’ve still managed to create some fun, professional, and upbeat classes that will really help you be prepared in many different areas. The fun, professional and upbeat style of The Preparedness Pro will expertly steer you in each of your preferred topics.

So are you ready for the first batch of pre-released classes? Here they are!

Due October 1^st, 2010—“Enough and to Spare” Coupon Training Boot Camp

This 4+ hour training will expound on every possible coupon saving strategy so that you can get the most out of this important financial strategy. Not only will you save literally hundreds of dollars a month using this training, but you’ll also be quickly putting together your preparedness supplies for free or cheap!  Unlike previous education opportunities, this class now comes with the exclusive book “Enough and to Spare” written by Kellene Bishop. You will find out where to get all of your coupons, how best to manage them, when to use them, where to use them, and how to stay on top of them without feeling overwhelmed!   There are literally hundreds of people who have taken this class and have loved it—even those who were already couponing! This particular class impacts 7 out of 10 of your Principles of Preparedness, so it’s definitely not one to miss!

Regular Retail price Oct. 1^st is a steal at only $45 but the Pre-Sale Special Price is only $30!

Next:

Due October 1^st, 2010—“The Wonderful World of Wheat”

I’ve been teaching this class for over 10 years now and it’s continued to develop and expand. Now I’ve got all of the aspects of wheat combined in one class—complete with valuable written information that you can reference at any time. For a more detailed description of this class, just go to this link.

Regular Retail Price Oct. 1^st is only $30, but the Pre-Sale Special Price is only $20!

More Classes Coming Soon! I’ll be sure to let you know when they are coming out and give everyone the pre-release price opportunity as well. Look forward to these classes coming your way soon!

Pressure Cooking Galore!

 Solar Oven Success

 Neanderthals in the Kitchen

 Integrating Essential Oils

 UNDERWhelmed in Food Storage

 Food Pantry Makeover

 Financial Velocity

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If you would like to host a preparedness party for your business, community, or church group, please contact Vicky at vicky@preparednesspro.com

For any questions or comments on this article, please leave a comment on the blog site so that everyone can benefit!

Copyright Protected 2010, Preparedness Pro and Kellene Bishop. All Rights Reserved. No portion of any content on this site may be duplicated, transferred, copied, or published without written permission from the author. However, you are welcome to provide a link to the content on your site or in your written works.

By Kellene Bishop

I have SO much that I’ve got building up that I want to share with you guys! When I don’t write regularly, I feel like I’m ready to explode with information and insight. So, you may be inundated this week with info if I can find enough time to write. For those of you who have inquired, my friend is definitely in a battle for her life, but I feel very, very confident that she will be victorious. Thank you all for your kind comments and prayers on her behalf.

I’m also busting at the seams because I have not one, but TWO great announcements to make this week! I’m so excited I’m definitely having trouble sleeping. Fortunately though, in spite of a lack of sleep, I’ve still been able to keep up with my schedule requirements, so I guess a little excitement won’t kill me.

So, one of the things that I really wanted to share with you all is my experience a few weeks ago that ended up being what I call Coupons on Steroids! Not to discourage anyone, but I spent about 2 ½ hours in one store. Why? Well, because there were SO many deals, and I was being very meticulous, that it simply took me that long to go from one aisle to the next. Yes, I went through EVERY aisle. Yes, that’s uncharacteristic of me, but I assure you there was a method to my madness. Unlike my normal store excursions, I didn’t take a master shopping list this time. The reason being is that the store was offering a special coupon promotion; they would double, triple, even quadruple any coupon you had up to $1 dollar.  So, if you had a .20 cent coupon off of Hunts Ketchup, then the store would increase it to $1 off of Hunts Ketchup. When you take such circumstances and combine them with the fact that every store has thousands of un-advertised sales and clearance prices, that no “coupon shopping service” can ever know about, then you can do several months worth of shopping all in one fail swoop. Everywhere I turned I was able to get something I wanted or needed for free or cheap! The real excitement comes when you realize that this was the SECOND time I was able to do this kind of shopping at this grocery store in a 4 week period of time! After doing this for years, I have to say that this was by far my best coupon adventure. (And I haven’t gone back to a store since then as I have satisfied my retail therapy need for at least 4 weeks. *grin*)

So, in an effort to help you guys literally SEE what I did, I want to go through a lot of this with you blow by blow—at least as it relates to this particular haul.  For those of you who still have not taken our Coupon Training Boot Camp, I strongly recommend that you do so this Saturday, August 21st.  There will be some significant changes coming about for our webinars effective after this Saturday, so I recommend you take advantage of this while you’ve got it. I won’t share more than that with you right now, but you won’t be able to say that I didn’t warn ya. Hee hee.

Most important to me about one of the coups I pulled off last month was that I took a girlfriend with me who had taken my class.  She actually did better than I did in the savings percentage—which is simply the result of her purchasing more “free” items in ratio to her total number of items purchased which increased her percentage of savings overall. Ok. So first of all, here are the pictures of my most recent endeavor—the one I did without my friend.  I like to go late at night when the kids aren’t around and the aisles are mostly empty. The one thing I do detest though is when the store turns off half of their lights at 10:00 p.m. with some nonsense about saving energy—forget the fact that they make their shoppers feel like they need to leave the store 2 hours before they actually close. Anyway, here’s a picture of that evenings haul. At first blush, it may seem uneventful to you. One of the items that’s not picture was the $20 worth of Ribeye steaks that I got for free. How did I get them for free? I’ll be happy to tell you.

First of all, the store was having a clearance on the meat because it was nearing expiration. So they had a special, buy one get one free.  Secondly, I had $10 worth of “store money” that I had received because of my purchases last month. In other words, I bought enough of some items that the coupon/catalina machine spit out two coupons worth “five dollars off of my next purchase.”  I had two of these and could combine them with any purchase. I selected exactly $20 worth of meat, minus my $10 off in coupons, plus the buy one, get one free, I ended up getting them for free. I used them specifically on a meat purchase earlier in the day so that we could have a yummy, carnivorous meal. After I was suitably nourished for some marathon couponing, I went back to the store later that night. The picture is what I came home with.

Do you see the bottles and bottles of Old Spice Body Wash as well as the 8 containers of Old Spice Deodorant?  These items are regularly priced between $4.99 to $5.29 at the grocery store. However, tonight, thanks to the perfect storm, I obtained ALL of them for FREE! Here’s how. First of all, as with all coupon purchases I make, the products were already marked down to a great sale. The body wash was on sale for $2.99 (The deodorant wasn’t on sale, but I still got them for free. You’ll see how in a moment). I had a coupon for $3 off of two Old Spice Body Washes.  I also had another coupon for buy one body wash, get one free.  Remember, the rule of thumb is you can only have one manufacturer’s coupon per item. Ok. So I have a price of $2.99 and I have one coupon that gives me $3 off of two items, right? So I’m now at $2.98 for two body washes ($2.99 times 2 minus $3= $2.98) So then I also apply the other body wash coupon that is buy one, get one free.  The two coupons end up cancelling each other out and I end up getting both of the body washes for a negative two cents at the check out.  Are you with me so far? Next, I have yet another coupon for a FREE Old Spice deodorant when I buy 1 body wash. Well, am I buying one body wash? Yup. Lots of them.  If I had more of these free deodorant coupons, I could have purchased 20 FREE Old Spice deodorants. But alas, I only had 8 of the coupons left, since I used so many of them the month before. Ok. So I now have 28 coupons, and I have 28 items (20 body washes, and 8 deodorants). This is permissible couponing so long as I do not have more manufacture coupons than I have items, and it’s obviously highly beneficial to your bottom line. I purchased all of the Gillette Body Washes the same way—combination of buy one, get one free coupons PLUS $3 off coupons. When you purchase two items, the two coupons cancel each other out, combined with a sale price just below $3, and you’ve got FREE product.

Obviously, these body washes and deodorants went into their designated 4 gallon storage buckets in my basement and we have plenty for our own personal use, helping of others, and even some nice gift baskets for mens’ birthdays.

Ok; on to the next strategy. This may not be a big deal to those of you who aren’t fanatical about skin care like I am.  But you’ll learn something from the strategy nonetheless.  When you have a coupon, it’s not the picture on the coupon that determines what you use it on; rather it’s the WORDS on the coupon. For example, I had several $3-off coupons for any Olay Regenerist Product. Now, for those of you who don’t know, Regenerist is the hoity-toity line of Oil of Olay and the products usually cost anywhere from $15 to $30 each. That’s why that particular coupon was such a high value coupon. However, Oil of Olay also has facial wipe cloths as a part of that Regenerist brand. This particular item is not as expensive as the other Regenerist products at a regular retail price of $7-$10. However, as with all coupon strategies, the Regenerist Wipes were marked down to only $4.52.  Once you apply a $3 coupon, it makes a high value product irresistible, and even giddy in the purchase. 

But wait, it gets better!  I also had coupons for a FREE Oil of Olay cleanser/Moisturizer product when I bought any Oil of Olay moisturizer or cleanser. Is the Regenerist Wipes Oil of Olay? Yes. Are the Regenerist Wipes a moisturizer or cleanser? Yes, indeed, they are, as stated right on the packaging. So, not only did I get the Regenerist Wipes for only $1.52 each, each one of the moisturizers I purchased gave me a FREE Oil of Olay moisturizing or cleansing product in their basic line.  Color me clean, happy, and independent even if there is a water shortage now, folks! Unfortunately, I had purchased a lot of the Regenerist Wipes a couple of weeks before and they were dwindling in supply at the store. So I did some mix and matches and ended up with what you see in the picture—mostly to the left. I ended up getting 24 high end cleansing and moisturizing products for only $18.24. But keep in mind that negative 2 cents I was on each dual body wash purchase previously.  The store didn’t give me back 2 cents. They applied it to my total purchase, thus making a dent in my Oil of Olay purchase as well. So did a few other items.

Obviously, items like this will be helpful in the event that there is a water shortage. I’ll still be able to feel human.  But they actually are products that I am already using and in love with since I can’t stand going to bed without washing my face, but sometimes, I am just too lazy to do a whole facial. Regenerist Wipes to the rescue.

Ok. You see the small packets of Tide?  I get these all the time at the end of the month. Proctor and Gamble puts out coupons for $1 off of any size Tide. These Tide packets are sample/travel sizes and are usually only .97 cents. Voila. You have free laundry detergent that you can take with you on a road trip, camping, or may be great for bartering in the future, rather than trying to measure out a cup or two from large bottles. 

The same holds true on the Head and Shoulders, the Olay soap bars, and the Pert Shampoos. All of those items were free because the coupons permitted use on any size of that item. I always wait until the end of the month to use them though because you never know when a coupon like that can end up getting you a full sized item for free or cheap. So I wait until they are ready to expire before I use them to purchase sample sizes.

Next, see all of the Crest Toothpaste and Oral B toothbrushes?  They were ALL FREE—even the higher end Oral B toothbrushes with motors and the refills.  It all boils down to sale prices combined with manufacturer coupons. Crest Toothpaste is typically one of the more expensive brands, but Proctor and Gamble frequently sponsors store sales down to a dollar. That’s when you jump on it and use your $1 off coupons. When you have a buy one get one free coupon AND a $1 off kind of coupon, you can end up getting a lot of items for free or cheap that way as well. Again, you simply have to keep the rule that you can’t have more manufacturer coupons than you have items.

The Bounty Paper Towels were 9 cents each thanks to the store’s everyday low price of $1.09, combined with a .25 cent off coupon, which was quadrupled into $1 off.

Smart Balance Milk was negative .50 cents when combined with a high value coupon and a manager’s clearance sale. We’ll drink it fast enough, and besides, it’s like bending down to pick up two quarters to me.

The pretzels were free thanks to a sale price of .97 cents and a .50 off coupon which was doubled to $1.

All of the Soft Soap bottles were free thanks to a $1 clearance price and a .35 cent off coupon that was increased to $1.

The KY was negative $1 when combined with an unrestricted high dollar coupon of $2 off, and a $1 trial size price.

The Herbal Essence Shampoo was probably my hardest decision of the night. I was struggling because I knew I would actually have to pay for shampoo. But I actually like the Herbal Essences, and since there was a sale price when you purchased 10 of them, plus a .50 off coupon that would be increased to $1 each, I ended up paying .99 cents for each of them. Fortunately the KY and the milk would help eat into some of my out of pocket cost there.

All of the Mentos gum (one of the few I chew) were free thanks to a .55 cent off coupon that was increased to $1 combined with a sale price of $1 each.

Febreeze Noticables were only .35 each and they were a scent I really liked. I’m particularly grateful for them this past week as we have inherited a young kitten abandoned by its mom. Whew!

The Johnson First Aid kits were free thanks to an unrestricted $1 off coupon. The kits are considered travel size and were only .97 cents. The Miracle Whip ended up being only .75 each thanks to sale prices and coupons. The Huggies Wipes were only .40 each because I paid attention to what the WORDS said on the coupon, not the picture. It was a high dollar coupon for ANY Huggies Wipes, so that included the Winnie-the-Pooh travel series. The Kleenex were only .50 a box—and I was running out at home. And the storage bins were free because I received yet another $5 off coupon when I purchased the Miracle Whip. So I made a separate purchase and got some storage boxes that were on sale for only a dollar. Lastly, the pineapple was only .17 cents each thanks to the sale price and the doubling of coupons. So I bought as many as I had coupons.

In closing, I realize that there will be some of you who bemoan that you don’t have double coupons anywhere in your area. Or that you “only eat organic foods” or that “your store doesn’t do coupons.”  I can assure you that YOU are not the exception to coupon success. If you have a store, they take coupons. If you have a store near you, they also have sales. Even if you don’t have a newspaper that carries coupons, you still have no excuse not to save at least 70% regularly on your groceries and household supplies. And if you haven’t noticed it, what you eat has only about a 30 percent impact on most grocery budgets, as it’s the detergents and paper goods that suck up all of your money each month. No one; and I mean NO ONE has come to me that I couldn’t help significantly—even those on food stamps and a fixed income! The girlfriend who went with me last month was just shopping for her and her husband. She was still able to save NINETY-FOUR percent on her grocery budget, and that’s even taking into account that she had to buy Bounce Dryer Sheets, a can of beans that was only slightly on sale, three gallons of milk and a couple of battery packs. In spite of all of this, her total out of pocket was only $41.22 for over $409 worth of groceries!  So, how about you let me help you too with what YOU want in your preparedness supplies?

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For any questions or comments on this article, please leave a comment on the blog site so that everyone can benefit!

Copyright Protected 2010, Preparedness Pro and Kellene Bishop. All Rights Reserved. No portion of any content on this site may be duplicated, transferred, copied, or published without written permission from the author. However, you are welcome to provide a link to the content on your site or in your written works.

by Kellene Bishop

One of the things that I teach in our Coupon Training Boot Camp is about price points.  A price point is essentially the price you’re willing to pay for a particular item. For example, when I first began using coupons, my acceptable price point for toothpaste and deodorant was $1.00. I stuck with that price point and I would not deviate from it regardless.  I had to have faith in what I had initially been taught to believe that $1.00 for toothpaste and deodorant was realistic. But as I continued in my couponing efforts, there were many opportunities which came up in which I was able to obtain toothpaste and deodorant for about .40 cents each.  As such, the .40 cents became my new benchmark for a price point, thus enabling me to get my money to work for me 60% harder.  I have learned that once you are able to purchase an item at a particular price point, it’s very, very likely that it will come around again to that price. So when the items I wanted would go on sale, I would stock up on them and subsequently store them in one of my four gallon square buckets, labeled appropriately.

Nowadays, I never spend anything other than sales tax on items such as toothpaste, soap, shampoo, deodorant (except for one particular brand), dental floss, and candy. In other words FREE has become my new price point on several items.  (In fact, FREE is the only price under which I allow myself to purchase candy nowadays—no matter how tempted or what kind of a mood I might possess.) I do this for two the following two reasons.

Your Personal Wall Street:

When you’ve stocked up on a particular item, you don’t need to pay anything more for it than you’re best price point.  For example, in spite of the fact that it was decades ago that .25 cents was the standard price of deodorant, it has still proven itself to be a realistic price point today as well. As I shared with you in the “Time Traveling with Coupons” article, the bloated advertising budgets of today will frequently manifest prices for items that even your great grandparents didn’t have on regular staple products. So the strategy is to stock up when you get a great deal only so long as it aligns with your set price points—and then you have the luxury of waiting to purchase again when the price is right.  This means you don’t an item until it’s the price YOU want and YOU are willing to pay because you have plenty.

Now think about this strategy. Doesn’t this sound a bit familiar to what you would expect a big shot trader to do on Wall Street?  I assure you that after Warren Buffet makes money at a particular percentage and under particularly favorable terms, he uses that experience by which to judge any other stock investments he makes in the future.

Having plenty of money so that you can wisely wait until the next irresistible smart deal comes around is not a strategy that only the wealthy get to use. Consumer’s have much, much more power than they give themselves credit for nowadays.  They are consistently ignoring the ability to compound the value of their money by 100% while they sit around and complain about inflation. And yet, I’m sure that everyone would love to see their money work harder for them. Wouldn’t you? Then look at this first strategy as if you are creating your own personal Wall Street world for your household. I always say “It’s not what you buy so much as it’s what you pay for it.” (Presuming, of course, that you’re only purchasing that which is needful.) What I mean by that is consider that your household budget is the trading client. Your job is to eek out the best return possible for it and to make time and smarts multiply it as best as possible. Start looking at returns in terms of a percentage instead of set dollars—just like traders do.  For example, yesterday I had access to a crazy, awesome, “Christmas came early” kind of shopping scenario. One of my local grocery store chains announce a week long special in which they were allowing any manufacturer coupon that was less than a dollar to be doubled, tripled, or even more so—up TO a dollar. In other words, a .25 cent coupon was now worth $1.00.  A .75 cent coupon was worth $1.00.  As a result, I was able to increase my purchasing power substantially on great items for my household.  When all was said and done, (two trips) I purchased over $368 worth of household goods for $95! That’s just under a 75% increase in buying power overall. Many items I purchased such as I mentioned earlier did indeed fall under the 100% – 200% plus increase in buying power! Not to mention the fact that I received a .15 cent gasoline discount on 100 gallons of fuel and several other “free” coupons on items that I will purchase in the future. Now those are kinds of numbers that even Warren Buffet pay attention to.  Sure, it’s not turning dollars around by the millions, but every household whether large or small, can benefit by this strategy.  In fact, the smaller your family budget, the more profound the affect will be on your household.

This kind of strategy doesn’t just apply to items at the grocery store. It also can apply to your entertainment expenses, your expenses at the hardware store, and nearly every other aspect of your life—including state and federal taxes.  When I see a component of my annual budget that doesn’t seem to have much “give” to it in terms of increasing the buying power of my money, I put in a little research and in almost every scenario am able to find a way to at least keep up with inflation, but usually kick it’s butt several times over. Tuesday night, for example, my husband and I wanted to escape on a little date. So we went to a local Mexican grill restaurant that I love, Rubios.  Hubby got a loaded steak burrito with chips, I got a grilled mahi-mahi burrito, loaded, enchilada-style, with beans, chips, and a Dr. Pepper. We paid a total of $1.70 for this very satisfying dinner. (Can’t do that for a month now though thanks to yesterdays’ challenge. *grin*) Then we went to the movies to see the new Karate Kid showing at 6:55 p.m. Normally I refuse to go to the main show times because it’s costs me about 40-50% more. But we were going for free, courtesy of the theatre chain.  Total date was still $1.70.  Yeah, perhaps I wanted a lobster and steak dinner more than Mexican. But part of being financially savvy is learning to fully appreciate what you have and making the most of it. Personally, it was one of the more relaxing dates my husband and I have been on because we had no reason to be stressed about the money we were spending.

Run A Household Like a Corporation

The second reason why I stick to my price points like is because I am then able to take full control of stabilizing my prices.  Stabilizing prices is a critical step that large corporations take in order to stay in business.  For example, auto manufacturers don’t simply purchase their metal and rubber as they need it. They purchase millions of pallets worth at one time so that they better control their profits and their out-of-pocket expenses. This same strategy can be applied to your “corporation”—your home. When I stock up on a particular item I am literally stabilizing my costs of that item for as long as that item will store or be used by me. Which of you wouldn’t love a 75% raise in income?  Have you ever heard of a cost of living increase?  A cost-of-living increase is supposedly a raise which is just enough to help you keep up with the inflation in the cost of living. It’s not really a raise, per se, it’s simply a way to keep you at the current level of living.  Well, by stabilizing your costs so dramatically as I’ve laid out for you, you’re not just keeping up with inflation, you’re getting WAY ahead.  Let’s just say for now that inflation is at 3%.  When you are able to excel your buying power regularly to 75% on your groceries, it has a real and noticeable affect on the rest of your spending power. Essentially, by stabilizing my costs on necessary items which consume a large chunk of my monthly spending—such as gasoline, groceries, vitamins, medical supplies, and household items—you get to GIVE YOURSELF a well-deserved raise that you would never expect any employer to hand over.

When I purchased 11 containers of ketchup yesterday for .25 cents each, then even a year from now when I grab one of those containers my ketchup will STILL be only .25 cents. It won’t matter if there is a drought of tomatoes, an unexplainable run on Wall Street, or if the Federal Reserve conspires to jack up the inflation rate again, my costs remain consistent.  Several months ago, 5 gallon buckets of my preferred powdered milk went on sale from $85 down to $25. The sale lasted a week. During that week, every time I got paid by a client and had a little cash on hand, I returned to the store and purchased another bucket.  As a result, I’ve stabilized  my purchasing power WELL BELOW the national average for the next 15 years on this product.  What I love is when the timing of a purchase is so pronounced. For example, if you live near a Sonic Drive-In you know that they have a “Happy Hour” from 2-4 p.m. in which all of their sodas and slushie drinks are half off. That means that at 1:59 p.m. my money is worth X and then at 2:00 p.m .my money is then compounded by 50%. Any CEO of a Fortune 500 company would LOVE to be able to do that with any of their necessary costs. (And yes, sometimes a slushie IS necessary—it’s cheaper than Prozac. *grin*)

To wrap all of this up, I strongly suggest that you set very specific price points for your spending and STICK TO THEM.  Yesterday I could have purchased bottles of some good barbecue sauce for only .39 cents. While that may sound good to some, it’s simply WAY too much for me because my price point on such an item is .12 cents. While some may say “what’s .27 cents more?” I see it as paying several times over.  If it’s not ok to pay several times over for my house or my car, why would it be ok to do for a bottle of barbecue sauce that doesn’t have near the shelf-life as my home or car?  Sticking with your price points is critical to your financial savvy.  They will continue to adjust as you get better and more experienced, but whatever you do, set them and then stick with them.

Like I’ve said a hundred times, couponing is not what it was even 5 years ago.  In my opinion, it’s not just a hobby anymore, it’s a necessity. To take it further, I feel that when such a viable, easy option is available to increase one’s investments in their household so substantially, I feel that it borders on just plain foolishness to not embrace it.  I realize that I may ruffle some feathers by saying so, but when it’s not necessary to pay several times over for an item, how is that foolish act any different than someone using an entire roll of toilet paper on one trip to the bathroom, or running a car all night long just so it’s toasty warm in the morning?  Obviously these are ludicrous examples of wasting money. Well, in my opinion, when there’s as much as a 200% increase laying on the table and not being used, it’s also just plain ludicrous. Bottom line, in my world, it’s simply unacceptable to pay full price for anything. I pray that I will never become so detached from reality that I think that I have treat my household budget any less responsibly than a serious Wall Street trader or business CEO. I hope that I’ve opened a new perspective to stocking up for some of you and perhaps given you some incentive to consider the use of all of your available resources in order to give you a significant increase in your buying power.

Author’s Note: As of today there is only 1 more day to register for the Coupon Training Boot Camp class. To register please see our Schedule of Events. If you are unable to attend this one, then be sure to register for one of the upcoming events.  You simply will not think of purchasing items the same way again.

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Copyright Protected 2010, Preparedness Pro and Kellene Bishop. All Rights Reserved. No portion of any content on this site may be duplicated, transferred, copied, or published without written permission from the author. However, you are welcome to provide a link to the content on your site or in your written works.

By Kellene Bishop

Here’s your emergency drill. Can you handle it?

As you know emergencies can never come at an opportune time.  They are always sudden. No music lingering in the background to tell you that they are just about to pounce on you, right? So here you are, having an ordinary day, when some lady on the internet tells you “Ok. It’s time for you to put on your big girl/boy pants and see just how serious you are about preparedness.”  So, are you ready?  Can you commit? Can you lengthen your stride and see just what kind of a mental, physical, and tangible state of preparedness you are in? Don’t worry though. This particular challenge will only affect that food area of your preparedness efforts. Ready?

Thirty days. No restaurants. No deli food. No pre-made stuff to purchase. Oh, and stay out of Costco’s sample section. You’ve got to cook it all your own based on what you’ve got right now? Ok. Ok. I’ll give you ONE day to prepare—but that’s it!

Are you scared? Are you yelling and swearing at the computer screen right now telling me there is NO way you’re going to do this?  If not now, then WHEN?  You have all of the rest of your comforts in life still.  You still get your car, electricity, Facebook, etc.  All you’re doing is living off of what you’ve got ready for yourself right now.

Here’s how you will benefit from this challenge.

1)      You will use what you’ve got and help cycle through it.

2)      You will force yourself to be creative and use what you’ve got on hand to make great meals.

3)      You will better learn the art of “waste not” living.

4)      You will learn what physical strength you need to monitor so that you have the strength to plan and cook each day.  Keep in mind that during this challenge you’ll still have access to a microwave, etc. So let’s not start whining yet, please.  But you will realize just how much physical energy it takes to have every morsel of food received come about only because of work.

5)      You will learn whether or not you’ve been storing items in which your family can actually live and thrive.

6)      You’ll learn the reality of the need for comfort foods and a variety of foods. I can’t stress this lesson enough. So many folks tell me that they have a years supply and then they tick off staples that you nor I would ever eat for a week, let alone  year—at least not if there was a Baskin-Robbins open.

7)      You’ll be more wise in the future in what you stock up on and you’ll learn that you can’t afford NOT to stock up when a good deal/sale comes your way.  This experience will definitely put things in their proper perspective.

8)      You’ll learn how to better organize your foods so that they are accessible and require the least amount of physical effort as possible or realistic. I find it strange that one of the first things people think about when they think about survival is oft times the most inaccessible supply to reach.

9)      Your family (particularly the little ones) will learn the value of “work to have” instead of just asking for it and “Voila! It’s there.”

10)  Lastly, you’ll learn “I can do it!” and that’s a lesson that no one else but yourself can teach you.

So why am I kicking up a new challenge for myself for the next 30 days? I know it won’t be easy, but I’m positive that it’s necessary. Here’s why I’m doing this for my own good.

My blasted health challenges have been annoying lately—to say the least. Additionally I’m married to a man that loathes to cook—even if it’s a box of macaroni and cheese. As a result of the two scenarios combined, I feel like we’ve been spending way too much money going out to eat. Even last night, when he got a steak burrito and I got a yummy mahi-mahi burrito, chips, beans, and a soda all for only $1.70 (thank you, coupons) I still felt guilty. I know that eating out isn’t healthy—no matter how great the food may be. Each time a person eats out they increase their chances of getting the “flu du jour” by over 50%. While that may seem like a safe bet to some, I don’t like the odds.

The other aspect that’s bothering me is that it’s likely that regardless of what survival scenario may ever come my way, I doubt I’ll be feeling any better than normal. So then what’s a girl to do? How will I eat when I’m married to “Lucille Ball in the kitchen”? I decided I didn’t like that vulnerability. It’s VERY likely that the primary caregiver in a family will get ill or injured at some point in a troubling time. For goodness sake, I burned my hand doing something that I do all the time and that about sent me over the edge. Yet burns, accidents, injuries and illnesses are much more pervasive in a “disaster” type of scenario. As such, I decided I had to engage in some Mental Preparedness and draw a line in the sand.

So, design this challenge to fit your needs, but don’t be wimpy about it. Worst case scenario make yourself refrain from non-do-it-yourself- foods all but once a week. Whatever you do PLEASE make it a REAL challenge. It shouldn’t be that hard knowing that you can go back to normal at the end of 30 days. You could just do a trial run and see just how long you could manage with what you’ve got on hands. If you are willing to give the trial a go, but run into an obstacle, go ahead, fix the problem and then proceed. Keep a list of what you run out of and when. Then you have a new hot spot to focus on in your preparedness efforts.

Here are my personal rules for this challenge. I will be independent in my food preparation and supplies. I will cook for myself over the next 30 days strictly from what I have on hand. And my Prince Charming is actually on board with me on this too (because he loves saving money more than he hates cooking—hee hee) and he has agreed to take care of some of the load as well. I will  have to live off of what I’ve got right now.  Yup. Right at this very minute I will create meals based on what I’ve got on hand and nothing else. So yes, that means when I’ve got company coming next month, I’ve got to get creative and confident so that I can feed them, too, the old fashioned way, for the entire time they are here. But isn’t that what I’ve been planning to do in my Food Preparedness efforts anyway?  So why not start now?  One caveat I will be giving myself however. Since I believe in working while the sun shines, I will still be making purchases via coupons—however, I am not allowed to use my purchases to accomplish this challenge AND I can only purchase items that are 75% or better off for this entire 30 days.

Some time ago we did a 14 day challenge similar to this.  But I think it needs to go longer—to be more of a push and a strengthening challenge.  After all, if I believe in preparing for a year, wouldn’t it be a good barometer reading to make sure that I can handle 30 days?

Keep in mind that this means no morning coffee or soda from the gas station. No bakery or deli items purchased at the store. And no free hot dog for the promotion at the car dealership either. *grin*  Use what you know is safe, is cooked properly, and is the best bang for your buck.

So, who’s going to give this a shot?  Think of this as taking control rather than giving up things that you think you love or need right now. Think of this as another step in reaching your goal of independence.  Oh, and did I mention that there’s a prize for one of you?

On July 25^th we will be taking all of the persons who made comments regarding THIS CHALLENGE on our blog or on Facebook and entering them to win one SUPER prize! What is it?  Its unlimited access to any of the live webinars I teach for the next 3 months!  –However many you want on whichever topic you want.  So feel free to let the rest of us know how the challenge is going for you because the more you comment, the more chances you have at winning. But know that the best prize is that which you will personally gain by going through this experience!

Onward, ever onward in our efforts of preparedness!

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For any questions or comments on this article, please leave a comment on the blog site so that everyone can benefit!

Copyright Protected 2010, Preparedness Pro and Kellene Bishop. All Rights Reserved. No portion of any content on this site may be duplicated, transferred, copied, or published without written permission from the author. However, you are welcome to provide a link to the content on your site or in your written works.

By Kellene Bishop

When I’m teaching my coupon boot camp class, one of my rules of thumb is to only cut a coupon if you would purchase that item if it was free or cheap. Since I don’t have children or cats that has eliminated my need to mess with coupons that have anything to do with either of those categories. However, for nearly a year now, I’ve been ignoring that advice in some respects, and the results have felt wonderful.

A couple of months ago, I accidentally clipped a coupon for cat food. I filed it in it’s respective section in my notebook thinking that it was a coupon for the dog food I used. A few weeks later I was in the pet aisle of a grocery store and noticed my error.  So I decided to peruse the cat food just to see if there was an ‘equal opportunity of savings” between one species and the other. As it turned out, the store was having a sale that week on the brand of cat food that I had a coupon for and combined with the coupon the cat food was free. I must admit, I found myself a bit excited to think that once again I could get something for free.  And then, of course, I pinched myself back into reality, chiding myself about the rules of the coupon game.  But then I remembered that my local  Humane Society had been advertising for donations of food, cat litter, and toys for the pets they were presently holding.  So, without thinking any further, I decided to get the free cat food, and then on my way home drop it off to the Humane society.  The organization was appreciative of the donation and also gave me a receipt for the donation so that I could use it on my taxes if necessary.

Recently I had the occasion to fall head over heels in love with three very adorable brothers who had been placed in my sister’s home for foster care.  The littlest one, 18 months, was nearly at death’s door when the authorities took him out of the home.  He and his two other brothers, 4 and 6 years old, would be locked in their room for weeks on end with nothing but pop tarts and water to live off of. The mother would allegedly go on multiple day drug and alcohol benders and leave the three boys to the “care” of the 6 year old.  After falling in love with these three boys, I couldn’t help but wonder what they were in need of the moment that they were taken into custody.  Juice boxes?  Pull-Ups?  A comforting stuffed animal?  This last week I got Capri Sun juice boxes for only 98 cents each. I got some Pull-Ups for only $1.50 for a pack of 6, and I also got a free toy from Target courtesy of their own store coupon and the manufacturers.  Clearly the need of mothers, children, and families do not occur just at Christmastime. They occur all year round.  I have to say that I’ve grown to love my couponing habit as much for what it can do for others as for what it can do for my own home.

Last August, the newspapers and stores were going crazy promoting back to school sales of school supplies, clothes, etc. As the founder of Women of Caliber, I tend to be a bit more aware of the domestic violence that goes on in my community. Growing up as the daughter of a single mom of five kids, I know that there were some really tough times for my mom.  But I can’t ever remember not having the school supplies we needed.  I can’t imagine how horrific it would have been for her if she wasn’t able to provide for us in this manner.  But I do know that there are several families in this very situation all throughout the year.  As a result, I took great delight in loading up my shopping cart with all of the free school supplies I could get my hands on (with the help of my coupons, of course) and then took a quick trip over to the Women and Children Center to drop them off. 

I don’t tell you any of this for a pat on the back.  I tell you because I think that the charitable aspects are yet one more way that we overlook the impact that coupons can have in our lives for good. Not only can others benefit, but we benefit as well—financially (with the tax write-offs), emotionally, and spiritually.  Getting involved in our community in this manner also emphasizes the human-ness of all of those around us and reinforces the fact that when the chips are down, only the persons who are aware and prepared to act will protect the lives and well-being of others.

I can’t afford to help all of the people or animals who need it.  But I firmly believe that I can do my part by keeping my eye out for how my couponing can add to the efforts of others. I say that because last year when I wrote a couponing article on this blog, one of the readers took exception to the whole “couponing nonsense” asserting that she had no need for anything other than organic in her life. She was quite adamant that the couponing effort was a waste of time and made little or no impact in her own life.  When I suggested that she think about the potential needs of others and what the future might bring in a time of great trial, my suggestion was dismissed as “out of touch” and unrealistic.  Well, my thought process for such coupon actions may not seem necessary or realistic to someone such as that, but I can tell you that the smiles and tears that I’ve seen from others in need have been very real indeed.  And I’m very, very glad I can help with very little effort on my part.  I hope that some of you may consider doing the same.

(Be sure that you register for one of our upcoming Coupon Training Boot Camp classes. Check our schedule of events for details for live and webinar classes)

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For any questions or comments on this article, please leave a comment on the blog site so that everyone can benefit!

Copyright Protected 2010, Preparedness Pro and Kellene Bishop. All Rights Reserved. No portion of any content on this site may be duplicated, transferred, copied, or published without written permission from the author. However, you are welcome to provide a link to the content on your site or in your written works.

by Kellene Bishop

While I’m recovering from one of life’s unpleasantries, I’m conjuring up some fun and exciting things to share with our Preparedness Pro readers.

For starters, I’ll be giving away TWO of the 6-packs from Blue Chip this month–retail value $75-$85. I’ll provide you all with the 4-1-1 soon.

Also, after receiving an enormous amount of enthusiastic feedback and I’ve revamped and improved the popular Coupon Training Bootcamp class. I’ve added extensive pictures to help with the learning curve as well as two additional sections that are useful in folks who are experienced or new to the couponing process. I’ll be offering one in a webinar format and one live (face to face) in the next four weeks. To put it unabashedly, I’m delving much deeper into the hows, whys, and whats of couponing than anyone has ever done before in order to eliminate any and all excuses for folks not to take advantage of this amazing way to help others, help yourself, learn the true value of money, strengthen independence in at least 5 of the Principles of Preparedness, and maximize the value of your paychecks. This is too value of a resource for folks to ignore, and so I’m trying to cover every possible aspect in order to overcome the myths, insecurities, lack of enthusiasm, and any other obstacles that may be preventing folks from couponing. If you don’t embrace couponing after this boot camp with more enthusiasm than you had previously, then I’m convinced you’ve been given only days left to life and thus temporal things simply don’t matter to you anymore.  *grin*

Last, but not least–are you ready for this–we’re nearly finished with a special project I’ve been working on since last fall.  I’ll soon be releasing the the Preparedness Pro Mastery Course.  It’s literlly the most extensive training effort in the world of preparedness that has ever been attempted previously.  It contains 60 hours of educational DVDs, plus a 400 page Resource Guide full of original content, special webinars, customized/personalized action plan to hep you personally enhance your preparedness efforts–and that’s just the tip of the iceberg. Seriously, this has been a massive undertaking that has never been done previously by any persons in the preparedness world.  It’s been a challenging labor of love and passion and I can’t wait to share it with everyone!  In spite of the challenge, I have to say that I’ve loved it greatly as it’s pushed me to do better, learn more, and hone my teaching skills.

Well, that’s enough torment for one day, I think.  Sleep well. hee hee

by Kellene Bishop

Today I’m going to share with you one of most powerful financial aspects of using coupons AND I’m also going to share with you a couponing tip that will make anyone who’s using coupons, ecstatic!

A couple of weeks ago I taught the first ever live broadcast of my Coupon Training Boot Camp (also known as “Enough and to Spare”).  We received great feedback from the attendees—some of who were even experienced couponers that simply got recharged. Frankly, I even got recharged as I was teaching one of the most powerful financial benefits of using coupons.  Although it was a 3.5 hour webinar (without any breaks, because I simply forgot to give everyone time for such—bad Kellene!) I felt like the time flew by because we got to talk about something that was fun, truly makes a big impact on a person’s cash flow, and fills our pantry in no time!  (Perhaps it didn’t fly by for anyone who had a full bladder, and for that I do truly apologize. *grin*)

Anyway, I felt it was important for me to share with you what I believe are the primary reasons to get involved with couponing. (Please see my previous posts for my debunking of couponing myths).

Are any of you old enough to remember paying only 5 cents for a loaf of bread?  Nowadays they are anywhere from $1.50 (on sale) to $4.49 for the heartier, hoyty toyty kinds.  How about when you paid only 10 – 25 cents for a good sized candy bar? Now they are regularly priced at $1.39.  Aye Yay Yay!  And yet my research as of late shows that our incomes have no where near caught up with that kind of escalation.  But since we all require food (or “food-like” sustenance i.e. peanut M&Ms) then we can’t really accomplish much with our grumbling. Nor can we do much in any act of protest. We’re pretty much stuck. Sure we can be more careful about what we buy, but careful doesn’t get you a loaf of bread for only 5 cents…or does it?

I remember in the 1980’s my step-dad was in charge of buying the groceries every week for the family. At that time he had 5 persons in the household—three of which were ravenous teenagers. I remember being shocked when I visited him and discovered that their grocery budget was only $75 a week!  I even went shopping with him just to see for myself that it could be done.  I was amazed that he was able to feed so many with such a small budget.  I realize that small is a relative term, but I know that the $75 Dad spent was carefully calculated in terms of how many servings of food it would deliver as well as packed lunches. During that shopping trip, I remember Dad telling me that he still couldn’t get over the price of groceries.  He claimed that he remembered when he and his family lived an entire month on only $50 worth of groceries in the late 60’s and through the 70’s.

Now, let’s fast forward to 2010.  Just recently, my sister made her way to Target with her action plan and her coupon notebook in tow.  She was so accustomed to doing this, that she didn’t pay close attention to the amount of items she was putting in her cart. Instead she was focusing on her couponing list which indicated what she should be buying and stocking up on because it was freely, cheap, or even less than free. When she got up to the check out stand and her items started crossing the scanner, she began to panic a bit. She purchased a plethora of items in addition to her groceries such as hair color (yup the secret’s out now, Sis), household cleaners, clothes for the kids, and a few toy items that would be great for birthdays and such throughout the year.  She found that she had stopped breathing as she observed the register show a total amount of $386 dollars! My sister was a bit taken aback as she was knocked into reality for a moment. At that second she doubted her sanity and was a bit panicked thinking that she may have gone too far beyond her couponing powers this time around. She wasn’t sure for a moment that her coupons were going to be able to make up enough of a difference to keep her out of trouble with her budget.  As the cashier started scanning her coupons, the numbers began to decrease bit by bit.  The result? She went down from $386 to $112 and she also received $50 worth of Target gift cards to use the next time she came back!  Essentially, she was able to benefit from all of the food, chemical, manufacturing advancements of 2010, but at 1970 prices!  So tell me folks, is there another aspect of your financial life that you can do that with?  Can you get gasoline at 1970 prices? I’ve never seen gasoline sales, so I’m going to say nope, but if you use coupons you can qualify for gasoline discounts. Even better you get credit for your purchase BEFORE the coupons kick in, resulting in you getting gasoline prices from 2 to 8 weeks previous.  Now you may know why I call my coupon notebook my time machine!  The other day I bought 3 loaves of bread, 8 AAA Energizer batteries, and 2 pounds of butter, 5 pounds of steak, and two boxes of Post Raisin Bran all for less than a dollar—total!  I’m thinking that in this case, I may have gone back to the early 1900’s.  hee hee  In my opinion, coupons are the only real time machine presently available to us.  But it works every time and there’s no need to worry that you’re going to get stuck back in time either. *grin*

So, there’s that thought for you, now let me share with you another great way to get your hands on coupons.  How would you like to be able to purchase JUST the coupons and not the newspaper? Would you like it if you could get THREE POUNDS of the printed coupons (Smart Source, Red Plum, and Proctor and Gamble) every month for only $33 a month?! I know I would.  So, here’s the deal; the cost is $33 a month. You’ll receive 3 pounds of original, printed coupons. You’ll receive at least 2 of each coupon, sometimes as many as six.  The coupons will be from the last 4 to 6 weeks.  They remove the junk pages from the coupons slicks and also are mindful of any expired coupons. If there are expired coupons, then they throw in more to help compensate for that. You’ll have more Smart Source coupons than the Red Plum or Proctor & Gamble. In order to get this deal, you will have to CALL or EMAIL American Consumer Services. No, they don’t have a website. Their email is americanconsumer@comcast.net or you can call them at 1-866-790-5088.  Place your order with your credit card/debit card and the following week they will send out your order.  Now, this is a small company. Very nice. They still answer their own phones etc.  Don’t feel like you have to rush to get this special. In fact, the owner was a little bit nervous about me sharing this with you because he knows that we have 90,000 + readers each month. Whew. Oh, and also, if you mention Preparedness Pro, you’ll get $3 off of your first month’s subscription. Also, you can cancel your subscription at any time if you’re not satisfied.

Happy & Giddy Couponing, folks! Be sure that you dress appropriately for your time travel.

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For any questions or comments on this article, please leave a comment on the blog site so that everyone can benefit!

Copyright Protected 2010, Preparedness Pro and Kellene Bishop. All Rights Reserved. No portion of any content on this site may be duplicated, transferred, copied, or published without written permission from the author. However, you are welcome to provide a link to the content on your site or in your written works.

Counter Commodity Security

By Kellene Bishop

To be completely forthright, I wanted to write this particular article first in this particular series. However, I knew that it wouldn’t have as much of an impact if the foundation hadn’t been laid out properly with the previous articles. So think of this article as the cymbal clash that follows your drum roll.

As I’ve shared with you previously, preparedness is not about being ready for an “end of the world” type of scenario. It’s about independence of everyday scenarios.  I am positive that if we are prepared to handle everyday scenarios head on, then even when such scenarios are compounded into more alarming, widespread scenarios, then we will also be ready for those as well.

 I’m going to assume that most of the world would agree that we are reliant on others for our food sources. Very, very few persons in the world nowadays have the skills or the wherewithal to produce all that they and their family consumes in terms of nutrition.  As such, we are reliant on the grocery stores to stock what we want, we are reliant on our paychecks clearing the banks in a timely manner so that we can purchase the food we need; we are reliant on the health inspectors to ensure that we don’t die or get violently ill as a result of the food we eat; we are reliant on the Federal Reserve to make sure that the money which we pay for our foods has sufficient value to buy enough of what we need; we are reliant on transportations flowing smoothly so that we can get our food delivery; and we are reliant upon Mother Nature to nurture and grow the foods that are planted and harvested each year. Frankly, an interruption in any of these areas will not only affect our personal food supply, but because such a snag in a constantly tenable situation would be so widespread, it would also bring with it some dire domino consequences.  As you can see, food preparedness is very closely tied to many other areas of preparedness including physical, medical, and financial.  This is exactly why I’ve attempted to lay a better foundation for you relative to understanding how tenable the financial world in on an international basis. Because you need to understand that are in order to understand why an imminent true-blue food shortage is about to change your financial world as you know it.

 No, I don’t say the words “worldwide food shortage” lightly.  I don’t believe in fear mongering, inducing panic, or chaos.  That kind of emotional manipulation only helps the retailers of “emergency preparedness” supplies.  But what I do believe in is education.  If you are able to see the scenario we have before us in it’s proper light, then you are able to calmly, deliberately, and strategically prepare for a more serious scenario.

Food Shortages photo c/o www.foodshortageusa.com

 FOOD SHORTAGE—the two words that initially bring about distrust, disgust, and denial in most persons who hear them. And yet even our government officials are blatantly sharing food shortage information with us on the USDA website. The disturbing thing is though that the USDA has such food shortage information on the exact same page in which they are predicting a bumper crop scenario this year.  In addition to the USDA reports, there is unlimited, credible, and undeniable information that there will indeed be a food shortage for 2010.  Even the mainstream media has dared to share information of the 450% increase in pricing on some standard produce such as tomatoes and green beans due to weather related harvest shortages.

So, why are we sure to experience a food shortage this year?

1)      Mother nature has wreaked havoc in several key areas of the world—including in the farming capital of the world, our own Midwestern states.  Our spring last year was so wet, causing many farmers to plant later in the year.  Unfortunately, the water continued to wreak havoc on the farms as they attempted to harvest their crops. Over 30% of all of our key crops in the Midwest went unharvested due to the wet soil conditions (as in the Mid-west and the South), record droughts (as in Texas) or unexpected freezes (as in Florida). Click here to see article.  We are already playing things close in our food supplies this last harvest. We really couldn’t afford a 30% hit.  

Tie this in to how it plays out in the financial world, it means that there will be less supply of food in spite of increasing demand.  Larger demand for something in short supply requires higher prices. At present circumstances, you food budget may purchase as little as 30 percent less food than it did before but as much as 400% less food than it did before—yup, that means you’ll be in the negative.

2)      Several key exporting food nations have experienced the same kinds of shortages who have been some of the key exporters of wheat, rice and other grains. Unfortunately, these nations are having to rely on food IMPORTS this year.

The tie in to this problem as it relates to the financial aspect is the same as #1, except that it pinched not just the pricing, but the plain and simple availability of food.  In which case, money won’t make a bit of difference if you don’t even have the commodity around to purchase it.

3)      2009’s early financial crisis.  Farmers could not get credit to run their farms properly and certainly not in response to the additional help they needed in the face of adverse weather conditions. As a result, there was drastic drop in the number of crops that were planted.

This means that they are, at the very least, behind one harvest season—and that’s assuming that they were able to make it through this past one in spite of a lack of financial aid.  This inhibits the farmers from being able to get ahead by planting enough to make up the financial difference.  Unfortunately, the further behind one gets financially, the less likely they are to qualify for financial aid. A lack of farmers definitely means a lack of foods. According to David Miller, Director of Research for Iowa Farm Bureau, as of December 2009, the net farm income was down by one third! He predicts that the drop in income will continue during 2010 as well. In other words, once the farming industry gets behind on food production, it’s unlikely that they can catch up.  Our population is ever increasing in the U.S., not going down. Thus the need for food will continue to increase as well. We’re in a vicious downward cycle right now.

fusarium head blight or scab, photo c/o www.ars.usda.gov

4)      New insect enemies have begun to infiltrate entire wheat and soybean crops that we do not yet have a suitable weapon for. Officially called a fusarium head blight or scab, it’s more commonly  known as “tombstone” because of the white tombstone-like appearance it has on the dead crops. It’s a toxin-infecting fungus that attacks the wheat flowers. The cooler and more moist the growing environment, the more the scabs flourish.  Unfortunately the cool, wet weather we’ve had in our crops the last two years have been an expensive weather pattern. The way to combat this problem is to develop wheat strains that are resistant to this disease. Obviously, discovering such requires more than one harvest, and historically requires 4 harvests to be sure.  With the present food crisis we have in the world, I’m not sure we have the luxury of waiting through four harvests to get back on our feet.

In addition to this, many parts of the country experienced a dearth of grasshoppers consuming their hay reserves for their livestock. (South Dakota and Wyoming, for example)   Considering that many farmers only yielded one-sixth of what they typically do, this was a traumatic setback for many.

 Again, the financial consequences of this affect the supply and demand in our food market.  Wheat, corn and soy are king in nearly everything we consume in one way or another. Meat needs the nutrition of quality feed and plenty of it. Without proper feed, every aspect of our meal get formidably expensive.

food recall photo c/o lunchbox.hospsrvc.ttu.edu

 

5)      The last two years have brought about the largest number of food recalls ever.  And merely 4 weeks ago, we experienced the largest food recall in American history with the salmonella discovered in the manufacturing plant in Las Vegas. This plant was the largest producer of hydrolyzed vegetable protein, which is found in nearly every processed food on the market. As a result, our market got hit with a massive food recall, which also impacts profits of grocers and cash flow for them to be able to provide additional food for their shelves.

 Can you see the financial consequences on this one?

 6)      Gas prices are on the rise again.  I don’t know about your neck of the woods, but fuel has risen over 30 cents per gallon in the last two weeks where I am.  When I see fuel rising I immediately think of food costs. It takes fuel to harvest, transport, clean, and process food, Folks.  With unemployment at record high numbers, accompanied by abysmal inflation, that’s a recipe for a lack of access for many folks to purchase food. If food can’t assuredly be sold off of the shelves before it spoils because folks are having to be more cautious in their spending, then grocery stores will pull back on how much they stock on their shelves so that they don’t have to take the financial hit for spoilage.

7)      The wheat and other food reserves have already been exhausted or are inaccessible.  China has long bragged that they hold an enormous wheat reserve of over 150 to 200 million tons (2009). But news articles over the last 5 years account for China reducing that reserve is far in excess of what they claimed to have stored.  No one can verify today that there is any wheat in reserve in China.

India, which has a burgeoning population growth long bragged about their wheat reserves. Unfortunately, such reserves have been completely exhausted due to stark poverty and agriculture problems and replaced with low quality, rotting wheat instead. Under India’s FCI act, the government is required to purchase all of the wheat, regardless of the quality. Thus, in an attempt to keep up with export contracts, India had to raid their stores of quality wheat and replace them with their poor quality, disease-ridden wheat instead for their own people.

As you know, the U.S. no longer has any wheat reserves. The fact that the dollar has been so soft, makes the importing of U.S. wheat by other countries very attractive as their own currencies remain strong against the U.S. dollar. (See, even they understand that “stuff” is more important than money.)

 Argentine dock workers going on strike has made worldwide access to the 3^rd largest supplier of soy useless as the soy harvests simply sit in the port until concessions can be made. (A particularly uncomfortable problem for Europe, which is already experiencing a soy shortage due to the South American crops yielding less than normal.)  Oh, and did I mention that Argentina is experiencing unusually heavy rains so far this year?

 And the financial consequences continue…

 Food shortages have many financial affects, including triple digit food inflation numbers.  But it’s an impact that very few persons can avoid because we all need to eat, right?  The evidence shows that not only will food cost substantially more in 2010, but there will plain and simple be the elimination of food in many aspects.

food harvesting photo c/o www.extension.iastate.edu

The production of food is cyclical. We rely on harvests. Much of our food has been destroyed and thus we cannot create more until the next harvest cycle.  Since the U.S. and most other nations have eliminated their “just in case” food supplies as a result of the previous year’s weather and economic related problems worldwide, we simply do not have a back-up plan. That’s why some food will simply not even exist, even if someone did have the money to pay a higher price for it. In fact, it’s in part attributed to the USDA’s false prediction of a bumper crop for the past two years that the U.S. chose to walk the edge of the cliff when they got rid of their excess food supplies and sold them or donated them to hurting countries.  The USDA told them that the food they were exporting would be easily replaced by the next two year’s harvests.  In fact, they even went so far are to claim that we would have the “largest ever soy crop and the second largest corn crop. Well, here we are, two harvests later, and Mother Nature pulled a fast one on the USDA. In direct contrast to the suspicious predictions by the USDA, we experienced some of the WORST harvests of 25 years!

 So, why did the USDA come out right and just plain LIE about the bumper crop predictions?  Well, our friends, the Chinese have a lot to do with this one. They are the most heavily invested in our debt and they rely heavily on the U.S. for the food supplies.  Remember, money is only as good as what it can purchase, right?  So if China relies heavily on our ability to export food to them, then it requires them to play nice with us, right?  So it’s important to the USDA anyway, that we keep up the pretense that our food supply is just fine and dandy and capable of keeping up with our own supply and demand as well as that of other nations which rely on us to feed them.  Oops. We’re about to be discovered real soon folks.  Not just by China (which latest numbers indicated that they own 25% of our foreign debt) but also by Japan, which is at 22% ownership of our foreign debt.

Zimbabwe inflation photo c/o stan.uio.no/

Here’s where the real crisis begins, folks. If China does not get their food needs met by their relationships with nations who are willing to export their foods, then China has no other choice but to DUMP their U.S. currency and debt back into the market so that they can reclaim their own currency (yuan or Renminbi) so that they can purchase “stuff” to feed their nation with instead of just having debt or currency sitting around.  What happens if China dumps their debt and currency back into the open market?  Our existing currency value will drop way, way down, due to an oversupply in our economic system.  What that then means is that the money which we rely on to purchase our own food, will simply not purchase as much as it used to.  (Think Zimbabwe—in which they had to brings BAGS of cash just to purchase a loaf of bread)

China drought photo c/o physorg.com

 To make matters worse, are you aware that China is experiencing the worst drought ever this year?  On March 19, 2010 one of the provinces worst hit by the drought , Guizhou Provice, released a statement claiming that the existing drought has affected 84 counties, cities and other areas within China, with a total affected population of 17.28 million persons.  Of that 17.28 million, the report claimed that over 3.1 million people are literally starving from a lack of food. This drought has affected the drinking water supply for over 18 million people as well, including the water necessary for about 12.5 million acres of crop and livestock farms.   They claim that over 2.9 million acres of land are already completely destroyed and unsalvageable.   So far, this drought has caused a loss of $2.85 billion (US).  The leader of the Yunnan Province, another province affected by the drought, told the Bejing News that local citizens in this area should “prepare for the worst.”  Does this put China in a vulnerable position in which they are likely to do something desperate in order to protect their greatest asset—their man-power? Of course it does.

 So, what does all of this mean to you?  It means you need to mitigate your risk of exposure to soaring food costs by purchasing smart NOW. Purchase food that has a long shelf-life with plenty of nutrition. (i.e. freeze-dried produce, whole grains, and canned meats).   Utilize coupons as much as possible. While a coupon may only be 50 cents off of an item, the items add up to a sizeable savings—as much as 110%!  Even the 50 cents savings on a $3 item is a better return than most of Wall Street is experiencing presently. And forget about the couponing stigma! No one would accuse Warren Buffet of being a “hoarder of stocks” would they? Just because he kept buying stocks that he recognized as being valuable didn’t make him some kind of a crazy, right? Well, the same holds true to those of you who take the initiative in purchasing a commodity that will still have it’s value 5, 10, or even 30 years from now—food. Food prices will NOT be going down. They are only going to keep rising. So mitigate your vulnerable position by investing heavily in quality foods now.  There’s a big difference between being a crazy food hoarder and stabilizing your grocery budget over the long-term. At least you can ensure that your money works for you today and years from now in that capacity of your life.  Remember, that’s what preparedness is about—eliminating your vulnerabilities and establishing independence.

 May your dinner table be independent for decades to come in spite of what Mother Nature or foreign nations throw at you.

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Copyright Protected 2010, Preparedness Pro and Kellene Bishop. All Rights Reserved. No portion of any content on this site may be duplicated, transferred, copied, or published without written permission from the author. However, you are welcome to provide a link to the content on your site or in your written works.

by Kellene Bishop

Do you have enough toilet paper in your storage? photo c/o scrapetv.com/

Yesterday I came across an “emergency preparedness blog” that was alarmingly incorrect. It was a basic topic, but it was addressed in a very misguided manner. The author wrote about what she plans to use in an emergency for her toilet hygiene—rags instead of toilet paper. So as not to risk educating anyone incorrectly, rather than providing a link to the article I will instead provide a few summations of the article which she posted on this national “preppers” site.

First of all, she was a big advocate of NOT using toilet paper during an occasion in which you had to rely on an outhouse, a hole in the ground, or some other such scenario. She labeled such a premise as useless, expensive, and unrealistic.  Instead she offered up a suggestion of using old rags and then storing the “used rages” in a lidded bucket filled with borax, bleach, water and laundry detergent.  She believes that such an option is “more eco-friendly” than toilet paper is.

While I read the article, I could sense the enthusiasm that this person had for sharing her knowledge with the rest of the world. I believe she was also trying to make the alternative solution as easy as possible for others. I certainly don’t believe that she was attempting to mislead anyone. However, I physically cringed while I was reading it, realizing that she was setting up herself and anyone else who bought into her instructions, for a major sanitation problem—even a deadly one.

To understand why planning on using a rag as opposed to TP or another like product, I think I should first point out a few things about feces and urine that some folks may not realize. First of all, sewer treatment employees receive HAZARD PAY because of the danger of their work. In fact, sewer treatment employees receive more “disaster prevention training” annually than police officers do to improve their firearm skills.  In other words, working with urine and feces is not a task to be taken lightly. The hazard in working with sewage isn’t just about the chemicals used to treat the sewers, but it’s also about working with the unavoidable—the waste itself.

Sanitation...a necessary preparedenss topic! photo c/o www.corecentre.co.in/

Urine contains compounded amounts of toxins, nitrogen, nitrates, and ammonia. As such, it is NOT recommended that it is simply thrown out somewhere uncontained or unprotected.  For those of you who are considering having two containers for solid and liquid waste in a worst case scenario, I beg you to rethink that plan. Solid matter actually needs the liquid to help it break down. Plus, it’s simply not realistic from a physiological standpoint to perfectly separate the two while someone is heeding a call from Mother Nature.  Separating the two compounds will only create more problems which I don’t have room to address in this post.

As urine and feces sit—especially in a heated environment—it develops deadly pathogens, dangerous combinations of microbes, bacteria, and viruses—including the well-known e-coli.  This compound attracts flies which feed on it and then spread it from one location to another. The point being that handling such a compound in any way is not a wise decision.  Staying away from it and disposing of it in all cases is critical.

Ye Old Outhouse photo c/o www.thegreenestdollar.com

Let’s also understand that a scenario that’s accompanied by the symptom of limited access toilet comforts that we’re presently used to is indicative of a serious scenario. Think about what would have to take place in order for a rationing of toilet paper to take place. (Other than the toilet paper shortage caused in 1973 by Johnny Carson jokingly telling his audience that there was a TP shortage. As a result, he actually CAUSED a shortage because millions of people cleaned off the shelves of TP that night. *grin*) Perhaps a natural disaster, a financial collapse, or act of war would cause such consequences.  Any of these scenarios would mean that we could no longer take our present state of sanitation for granted. 

One of most important aspects of establishing a society is to provide a community with reliable sanitation solutions. The reason is because poor sanitation can literally kill an entire community within a 50 meter radius in as little as 30 days. Bacteria, disease, and viruses are no respecter of persons, borders, or bank accounts.  Thus preventing the spread of such must be diligently practiced at the root of its origins. If sanitation is not practiced with the utmost of our capabilities during everyday or dire circumstances, then disease and death will speedily run rampant.  Remember disease is not easily curtailed to a specific environment. Disease is no respecter of persons, boundaries, or social positions Keep in mind that due to our easy methods of travel, disease can spread faster than it ever has in history.  That’s a significant statement considering that the Spanish Flu spread to over one-third of the earth in a matter of only three months—this prior to the availability of speedy international travel.

Anyone want a corn husk? Anyone? photo c/o thefuntimesguide.com

Preparing for alternative sanitation solutions can be practical, comfortable, and realistic.  The use of toilet paper should not be viewed as a luxury that can be easily dismissed.  While we should be aware of alternative options such as corn husks, phone book pages, or newspapers, it’s important that we recognize the need to provide us with a safe distance, minimal exposure, and safe disposal of our hazardous waste. Seaweed is also a good alternative as it’s got healing properties with it as well. The fact of the matter is ALL of these aforementioned alternative options are much safer options for you versus you planning on using rags and cleaning them as you go.

To be blunt, planning on using cloth or rags is not an ideal “plan B.” Just by nature of the rag method you are more prone to come into contact with the fecal matter. The longer it “hangs around,” being stored in buckets, being washed, etc, the more likely that contact is.  Additionally, the rag method requires storage of the fecal covered rags until you wash them. The storage—especially with any heat involved, will compound the hazardous toxins as the bucket of used rags sit. Something else I think we underestimate is that smells, especially unpleasant ones, strongly affect our morale. Unpleasant smells are not simply an affront on the senses. They are also an inhalation of dangerous microbes and airborne bacteria. If you’re storing the used rags, the smell lingers throughout your entire living environment. Instead it should be burned or broken down with something like Chemisan. It would definitely stink (excuse the pun) if you couldn’t enjoy the smells of sautéed garlic and onion because the wafting aroma of the outhouse overpowered it.

Use Thieves essential oil, or other essential oils instead of chemicals. photo c/o www.ylessentialoils.com

Lastly, in order to use rags for this particular hygiene care, most believe they need to use heavy chemicals such as borax or chlorine—neither of which are eco-friendly.  Where can you safely dispose of those chemicals?? If you absolutely HAVE to use rags, consider instead using essential oils to clean the rags with such as lavender, Thieves, and tea tree oil.  Exposing yourself to potential contact with fecal matter is such a bad idea, that even the reusable toilet wipe companies don’t recommend their product for use for anything else except straight urine. Additionally, it requires much more physical energy and water to take care of than does TP. You can never underestimate the importance of conserving physical energy and maintaining as much “normalcy” as possible during a crisis scenario.

On the other side of the debate, toilet paper can easily be broken down or safely disposed of.  It can easily be burned or buried. My favorite method of breaking down fecal matter and TP is the use of Chemisan. Chemisan eliminates a great deal of the smell, deadly pathogens and breaks it down completely in as little as two weeks leaving behind the equivalent of a soil.

Portable toilets use Chemisan photo c/o www.fivestarpreparedness.com

Contrary to some opinions, toilet paper does not have to be expensive.  For over a year now, thanks to coupons, I have put my mandatory price point on toilet paper at 25 cents a roll.  I don’t pay any more than that, ever.  But when I get it at that price, I do purchase as much as my budget that week will permit me.  I also use that same strategy on anything else I purchase and bring into my home. I set a price point and stick to it. This means that I don’t have to choose BETWEEN having wheat or toilet paper. I get to have what I and my loved ones need for every anticipated event. Planning well everyday means that you don’t have to choose between one vital necessity and another. Knowing you have all of the bases covered means more mental strength for you to deal with the other aspects of a survival scenario which may test you.

Also as an alternative view of the blog I’m referencing, toilet paper is a multi-purpose product. It’s often used by cost conscious individuals in lieu of facial tissue. It’s also used by some as a source of cooking fuel (along with isopropyl alcohol)—a waste to me considering so many other cooking alternatives, but to each his own. And hey, TP has even been used by the US. Military as camouflage during the Gulf War!

The comfort factor of toilet paper should not be underestimated either.  Promoting familiarity during a crisis scenario is as important as your medical supplies. This is why a survey two years ago revealed that over half of all of the respondents said that they would choose food first, then water, and then toilet paper as their supplies on a deserted island. In other words, it’s more important to peoples psyche and comfort than perhaps this author realized. I suspect more people didn’t mention toilet paper simply because it was off their radar. Perhaps a gorgeous companion and their favorite rock band made the list instead. When there is any kind of an “ick” factor involved, it’s much harder to expect persons to change their habits, even in a survival scenario. Trying to do so will inevitably bring about stress. If you’re using moss and leaves right now everyday, then you won’t have any problem with those items in the future—unless you don’t stock up. Otherwise, having what you’re familiar with for such an inevitable part of life is critical to your mental health.

Bottom line, in the event of true emergency scenario, having ample toilet paper will NOT be the least of your concerns. It falls in line with the Physical and Medical aspects of preparedness which puts it in the position of priority number 3 and 4 out of the Ten Areas of Preparedness.  So, watch for the sales, know how much your family uses in a week, and plan accordingly.

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For any questions or comments on this article, please leave a comment on the blog site so that everyone can benefit!

Copyright Protected 2010, Preparedness Pro and Kellene Bishop. All Rights Reserved. No portion of any content on this site may be duplicated, transferred, copied, or published without written permission from the author. However, you are welcome to provide a link to the content on your site or in your written works.

Conspiracies--Fact or Fiction? photo c/o www.corrupt.org/

I’ve probably said this before, but one of my favorite bumper stickers of all time says “Just because I’m paranoid doesn’t mean they aren’t after me.”

I find that there is a dangerous and debilitating stigma in our international society.  If a proposed theory has anything to do with the fact that a person or group of persons has actually conspired, plotted, and planned to bring about the demise of another person, then the proposal is discounted as audacious and mentally deficient. “Conspiracy!” they cry—as if calling something a conspiracy eliminates the validity of any proposed belief of supposition.  Can I just ask a perfectly blunt question?  Why is that?  Why, when we have such an abundance of proven conspiracies is it considered a social and mental faux pas to propose that something is a conspiracy to do harm to others? I firmly believe that in doing so we are discounting the reality of danger. We are exposing ourselves as vulnerable as a fresh animal wound at night in the land of South Africa.  We are playing into the designs of bloodthirsty predators as their willing prey. To be naïve of the scope and determination of conspiracies, we make ourselves far too vulnerable and dependent, thus negating the maximum effects of our preparedness efforts.  Let me share with you why such a negative stigma against the reality of conspiracy is so illogical.

Al Qaida is an admitted conspiracy group.  I doubt that most of us would dispute that. But can I just say that the reason why we don’t dispute it is because it’s socially and politically acceptable for us to view them as crafty conspirators? Whether you look into their conspiratorial designs on the surface or in depth, they make no secret of the fact that they have truly conspired to do irreparable harm to all Christian nations.  Fortunately for us, the mainstream media feels that painting them as the bad guy is beneficial for their own designs of conspiracy and as such we are able to easily see them as “the bad guys.” As such, we are better able to swallow that they regularly engage in “conspiracy.”  But what if the conspirators are those who we otherwise rely on or trust?

USDA--can we trust what they say? photo c/o www.fns.usda.gov

Now, let’s talk about the USDA.  No upstanding American would portray them as conspirators, right? Oh, how I hope that we’re not really that naïve.  The USDA told us for months and months that we could expect a bumper crop this year. (Bumper crop, as in at least a 20% excess of what we need.) The USDA continued to post such information on their official website even well after the abysmal destruction of crops such as corn and soy beans commenced.  If you look hard for it, you will also find a report which concurs (finally) with the fact that as early as November of last year, the USDA granted special emergency fund approvals to various Midwestern and Eastern states due to “widespread crop damage.”  Just so you know, “widespread crop damage” is defined by the USDA as at LEAST 30 percent damage to a particular group of crops. 30 percent damage to our corn, soybean, and even wheat crops.  This, when we already have exported ALL of our wheat reserves from our nation.  In spite of this, the “bumper crop prediction” still stands front and center on the USDA website.

So the question is, WHY would the USDA and the mainstream media not be forthright in bringing this information to its proper light? Let’s continue to explore this.

Are you aware of all of the food items which rely on corn, soy and wheat?  If you ever eat out or if you ever purchase something prepackaged, then you have most likely ingested ALL of the above.  Every cake mix, loaf of bread, syrup, peanut butter, pasta mix, etc. is affected by these ingredients in some way or another. As such, we can expect the kind of financial increase in such goods as we shortly experienced in wheat and rice in 2007. The problem is also that since wheat, corn and soybeans are affected, we can also expect the price of rice to go up, as demand for it as a substitution will rise as well. We are currently looking at rising fuel prices, a diminishing dollar, tanking residential and commercial markets and oh, by the way, your food bill is about to double or quadruple.  Yup. We’re not hearing that.  Why?

Impact on Wall Street--HUGE photo c/o www.diversityjobs.com

Well, to put it plainly, it’s because the Wall Street markets can’t handle a hit like that right now and if there is a run on the grocery stores of only a 20% increase, then such a run and panic would trigger a domino effect that would impact Wall Street. Regardless of what end Wall Street is at on such a panic, they would crash.  Our administration can’t take the heat of such a crash right now.  The USDA is a government run entity. Our wheat, rice, corn, and soy commodities are some of the main backbones of the Market right now.

Let’s put the 20% run on the grocery stores in perspective for a moment. When a coupon comes out for a particular product, that product is cleared off of the shelves within the first day by eager couponers, in spite of the store attempting to anticipate higher demand for the product. Just so you know, couponing accounts for only 14% of all sales in a grocery store.  Whereas if you perpetuated the idea that there would  be an astronomical increase in wheat, soy, or corn based products, that could also trigger a demand…not a coupon euphoria either. A bona fide panic demand.  Even at only 14%, it would clear off of the shelves, and the panic would lead to a domino effect of most other products carried by the grocers as well.  The domino effect of a panic on food would be just as fast to disrupt and destroy your way of life as a police car simply pulled over to the side of the highway—complete stand still.

The bottom line is that the prevalent antagonistic programming that so successfully skewers anyone who has the audacity to claim “conspiracy” is effective. Many normal persons have hung their head in shame and embarrassment simply for asking a simple question. But keep in mind that it’s counter-intuitive to believe that conspiracies aren’t rampant and real in our everyday world.  Where there is virtue, there is selfishness. Where there is charity, there is thievery.  We simply can’t believe in people who have beautiful motivations and not believe that there are also people who are motivated strictly by greed and control.  Yes, I agree that conspiracy theories can be taken to the extreme. I’m just not sure we are fully aware of what that “extreme” is. After all, the private banking industry taking over our nation’s entire currency flow was pretty extreme if you ask me. Yet nearly a hundred years later, many still are in the dark about it, ashamed of being labeled as a crazy conspiracy theorist.

A smart move is to start paying attention to what goes on around you photo c/o www.usfirst.org

The point of me writing my article is to attempt to have more people shed the stigma of questioning what is going on around us so that they can see the real state of things–so they can be properly prepared.  The use of the word “conspiracy” has been, by design, altered to portray a stigma of the mentally deranged, paranoid, or irresponsible.  When in fact, the reality of those who would conspire to harm or destroy is truly abundant.  I think that questioning and researching and verifying the research is one of the smartest things one can do to properly protect their family.  I think newly discovering such conspirators is alarming, whereas understanding their presence and motives and planning on how I’m going to counter such plans gives me a great deal of peace.

As a parting, but somewhat disjointed comment, I just wanted to express the following. Forgive my somewhat ornery rant. What I don’t understand is this: why is it ok for the mainstream media to pummel us with a litany of meaningless murder, rape and robbery statistics, 95% incorrect weather predictions, the “five year anniversary of the floods in St. George”, Islamic New Year celebrations, and the latest string of lies and insincerity from political officials and yet they can’t share with us the kind of critical information that would actually HELP us to wake up and better prepare?  I don’t really like being manipulated.  And I loathe selfish panic control.  Et tu?

Copyright 2010 Preparedness Pro & Kellene Bishop.  All rights reserved.  You are welcome to repost this information so long as it is credited to www.PreparednessPro.com & Kellene Bishop.

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