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“Hey, let’s watch this!” I said to my husband as I flicked through the channels and landed on the National Geographic Channel’s “Doomsday Preppers”.“No, that’s not something I want to watch”, he replied with a look of disgust on his face. My sixteen year-old daughter voiced her agreement.“Why not?” I asked in utter amazement.“Because we don’t want to watch crazy people building bomb shelters and storing food. That’s just crazy.” This remark was from my daughter.
I reluctantly changed the channel to ESPN and quietly pondered her comment. My fears were right. They would consider me certifiably insane and have me locked-up in a padded cell if they knew just how much food I have stored away, and continue to store. Once again I can’t open a dialogue with them regarding my fears of an impending societal collapse. Once again I can’t tell them I am one of those “crazy people”.
After all, they have other reasons to consider me slightly crazy. For example, one day, as casually as possible, I mentioned that I would like to have a chicken coop with two chickens. The resounding, “you’re crazy!” convinced me to keep my mouth shut about my other prepper ideas. I wouldn’t want to add more fuel or evidence of my “craziness.” Therefore I prep quietly, secretly without telling anyone. My two cats and dog are the only ones who have seen my secret store. And I don’t think they will tell anyone.
I have been storing food for a relatively short period of time, but store I do. I have even begun the process of researching other prepper staples such as water filtration systems, bug-out bags, MRE’s, medical supplies, etc. I follow the “Rule of 2” when I do grocery shopping – one for using and one for storing. This has greatly increased my stores. I have a secret room in the basement of our home which was once used as a root cellar. Shelves and a perfect room temperature make this room ideal for my prepping. Besides, no one goes into that room.
Will I ever show my secret to my husband and daughter? I think, for now, I will continue to secretly prep. When “shtf” and they begin to panic, I envision telling them to calm down and follow me. I will proudly show them my prepping and they will finally be glad they have a “crazy person” in the house.
V.M.
16 Comments
Prepper Chronicles · April 5, 2012 at 9:15 pm
I am right there with you. My wife and my youngest son think I am crazy. Little do they know I have started a serious cache at another location. I do plan to start a sizable cache in our own home shortly. And they can think I am crazy all they want.
vlm0325 · April 5, 2012 at 9:53 pm
I’d rather be crazy and prepared than “normal” and looking for hand-outs. Thanks for commenting on my piece. It’s comforting to know I’m not the only one who is a secret prepper.
Renee · April 5, 2012 at 10:49 pm
Ohhhh i love this. My hubby and dear daughter are already reserving me a room at the local funny farm…..they are sure my only two remaining active brain cells have headed south……. oh look there is another case of F-D fruits and veggies at the front door. 🙂
Renee
Kelly · April 6, 2012 at 12:11 am
My husband now knows, my “extreme couponing” is prepping. I am grateful for the show Doomsday Preppers it opened up our conversation. Then my beloved niece called after seeing the show. She asked me, “are you a prepper”? I told her yes and why. She listened and hopefully I’ve opened her mind. I tried to talk to my sister (her mother) about it. But I soon found out not everyone is as open to the idea of preppers. For now I am grateful to have my husband and niece with me. For my husband it was the money I saved (couponing, gardening, everything else I’ve learned for Kellene), now he understands the necessity of not putting things off.
Lynn · April 6, 2012 at 7:15 am
Good for you!!! Keep on “prepping”. Your family will SO be blessed and so grateful that you did, when the time and need arises. For whatever that reason may be. Even a job loss, or power outage.
vlm0325 · April 6, 2012 at 10:00 am
Thank you, Why are we considered “whackos” if we plan for the worst? Why wouldn’t you want to be prepared? To me that is “whacko” thinking. It’s good to know there are like- minded people out there. 🙂
Rachael · April 6, 2012 at 10:46 am
I loved this post! For a year or more I was a secret prepped and my husband and in laws would stumble upon my plans and think I was certifiable. Thank God over time, I have slowly exposed them to enough “news” and reasons why they themselves began asking “what are we gonna do when the shtf”…thus the door has been opened and now my husband has included a section in our monthly budget to acquire the things we still need. 🙂 You keep prepping secret mom! How better of a parent and wife can you be than to truly prepare to protect and provide for your family! 🙂
Paul · April 6, 2012 at 11:41 am
I too am a “secret squirrel”. My wife just doesn’t get it. When she sees 11 5 gallon water containers in the basement she asks “What is that for?” I explain that the Red Cross says you should have a 14 day supply of water per person (1 gallon per day) so for the four of us that is 56 gallons. She says “that’s stupid”. I now have my supplies shipped to a UPS customer center about 30 minutes from our house. I get a call when it arrives. This avoids some of the conflict but I have to admit it is both sad and pathetic that I have to do this.
vlm0325 · April 6, 2012 at 11:14 pm
“Secret Squirrel” – I love this! Thank you for reading this and sharing your experiences with me.
Lydia · April 7, 2012 at 4:01 am
Love it! Way to go V.M. Keep up the good work!
Kathy · April 7, 2012 at 4:34 am
Yep! That is what is best in life. The look on their faces when they see security instead of chaos.
KS · April 8, 2012 at 12:30 am
I couldn’t have said things better myself! I too, have to secretly “squirrel” things away (about half of my meager supply is hidden at my parents’ house). My husband honestly doesn’t think much about preparing, and is the type who gets rid of anything he’s not using…it actually irritates him to have things kept around for “just in case”, or “maybe someday I’ll need it again”. He has even told me to get rid of some of my preparedness things, “before he does it”. So instead, I keep peace in my marriage by not making everything known to him. I love and respect him, but I feel it’s important for me to continue what I’m doing. I hope that someday he’ll see the value of the things I’ve worked so hard to gather, even if just to validate that I really wasn’t crazy all along! 🙂
Good article VM! Keep working hard so you can take care of your family’s future needs!
vlm0325 · April 8, 2012 at 12:05 pm
What I don’t understand is men are supposed to be the “hunter/gatherers”,.so why do so many of us women have to secretly prepare for worst case scenarios? Thank you for commenting on my piece. I’m amazed at how many of us have to prepare on the sly. To think, when I submitted my entry, I thought my situation was unique.
vlm0325 · April 10, 2012 at 8:02 pm
Please vote for me!
vlm0325 · April 15, 2012 at 1:16 pm
Please, please vote for me!
L R Bates · April 25, 2012 at 1:42 am
I vote for you because you are a “kindred spirit”.
Comments are closed.