Category Archives: Uncategorized

Arbitrage

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Arbitrage is the simultaneous purchase and sale of the same asset in different markets in order to profit from tiny differences in the asset’s listed price. … Arbitrage exists as a result of market inefficiencies and it both exploits those inefficiencies and resolves them

A market inefficiency like….a Walmart in a populous region that doesnt have a large percentage of the population that does canning winding up with a shelf full of canning lids…..and a Walmart in a rural region where people are known to do quite a bit of canning and be survivalists that has no canning lids in stock.

There’s an opportunity there.

Someone who knew I was interested in lids texted me. The conversation was like this:

Them: Im in a WalMart and they have canning lids…
Me: All of them
Them: They have….
Me: All of them.
Them: How many do you….
Me: All. Of. Them.

(And bring me all your bacon and eggs while youre at it)

And in todays post:

More buying….

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6,000 55 gr. FMJ bullets take up about the same space as a big city phonebook. (Remember phonebooks?) What’s really trippy is that in many markets, the small rifle primers needed for these are worth more than the bullets themselves.

I’ve a Dillon RL1050, literal buckets of .223 brass and carbide .223 dies. Time to get busy.

Changing of the seasons

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I really like the fall/winter seasons. When the days are bright, cool, and clear…and the nights cold and brisk…that’s my fave. And, of course, that weather change makes some part of my lizard brain kick into gear and want to make sure things are ‘in order’ for winter.

Probably my biggest concern this winter is that fuel and electricity prices will take a big jump up. Between inflation, commodity prices, short-staffed power generation plants, parts/supply issues for same, and the remote-but-still-possible chance of malicious hacking, it could wind up being an expensive (or difficult) process to keep the heat on this winter.

Fortunately, I have a couple things going for me. First and foremost – I keep a cool house. I usually keep the thermostat around 63-65 in the winter. Additionally, my local utility averaged my heating costs and bills me an average amount of the course of a year. This irons out the ‘hills and valleys’ of my heating bill. I can budget and plan on the same amount every month for the year.

And, of course, I have a goodly supply of kerosene and kerosene heaters to cover me in case something does happen and utility service goes on hiatus for a week or two. Absolute worst case scenario, isolate the house to one bathroom and bedroom and only heat those two rooms. Turn off the water to the rest of the house to avoid pipe issues, and just live in those two rooms.

But I don’t foresee this winter turning into that. Oh, I’m ready in case it does, but it’s not what I’m expecting. What I am 99.5% certain will happen is that winter will be just like it usually is but with higher fuel costs. Fortunately, I’ve the resources to handle the increased heating costs if necessary.

Other winter things? Well, time to put the shovel and other unstuck-gear in the back of the truck. There’s already a sleeping bag and other essentials in there. (And, by the by, here’s the epic series on winter vehicle stuff.) And for getting unstuck, traction sand (or cat litter) and a good shovel go a long way….but not as long a way as a good length of rope, some snatch blocks, tow straps, and clevis. But, whatever your choice, at least have something to work with to get you out of that icy ditch you slide into sideways.

And, of course, it’s time to take the Filson wools out of the closet. I have, over the last few years, amassed a pretty impressive collection of Filson. It’s all wool so it repels cold, wind, and evil.

I expect this winter will see me doing not much of anything noteworthy except getting caught up on reloading, spending far too much time in my trading portfolios, and perhaps working on getting the place looking a little more Home & Garden and less Field & Stream.

On the other hand, we could all be isolated in our houses as the Chinese ‘accidentally’ release another ‘not a weaponized version’ of the flu and our economy sinks further into Third Worldism. :::shrug::: Who knows?

 

3-gallon bucket/lids

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One of the problems of survivalism is that once you feel you’ve reached ‘prepvana’ (that nirvana-like level of enlightenment preparedness where you no longer feel the need to to continue with that particular prep item) you lose sight of potential improvements. Let me give you an example. Lets say that when you were preparing for Y2k you laid in a stock of top-of-the-line MagLites and SureFire flashlights. You tucked them away and patted yourself on the back. You have plenty, so now you’re done. And you move onto other projects that need your attention, the whole time thinking you’ve settled the flashlight issue. And, twenty years later, your Y2k flashlights, with their Xenon bulbs and battery-draining designs, are stone clubs compared to todays crop of LED flashlights that sip power from batteries by comparison. But…you wouldn’t have known about the potential benefits and upgrades because you had no reason to track flashlight developments….you’d settled the flashlight issue years ago.

Thats one of the risks of thinking youre ‘set’ on a particular prep and never revisiting it.

I’m sorta guilty of this. I was up at Winco when they first opened and, to my surprise, I noticed that not only did they sell 5-gallon buckets and GammaSeal lids in their food storage section, but they also sold 3-gallon buckets and matching GammaSeal lids. (Clarification: not actual GammaSeal brand but they appear to be identical and are made at what appears to be the same plant in the US.) I had no idea that such things existed for the smaller buckets.

The advantage? Well, it’s a heck of a lot easier for me to keep a smaller 3-gallon bucket of rice on my shelf ready to use than it is a 5-gallon bucket.

For comparison:

So the five-gallon buckets get stored away with the  other stuff and I now simply refill the 3-gallon buckets as needed and keep them in the kitchen where they’re a very handy thing.

And speaking of Winco, before the economy started it’s inflationary shenanigans, the bucket stash looked like this:

Not so much last weekend:

Fortunately, as I’ve mentioned, Home Depot not only selld food grade buckets, but the buckets are actually marked “Food Grade Container” So you know you’re getting the right ones.

 

Wealth

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It’s a lovely, warm, touchy-feely thing to say that the wealthiest man is the one that has love in his life…love of family, friends, etc.

Uhm..yeah. That and fifty cents will get you a round of .223. For now.

What does wealth look like at the moment? Well, for me, it looks like this:And this:

Because of this:

Ok, its actually a bit more complicated than that….the real damage hasn’t even started to show yet. But give it time…. this time next year $100 worth of groceries is gonna be a lot less bulky and heavy than you remember it being.

 

Not a HiPower

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This was brought to my attention and I am giddy over it. I hope they don’t screw it up.

It’s had many names in its century-old history and today, we reimagine this renowned design for modern use. Based on one of the most prolific and popular pistols in small arms history, the Springfield Armory® SA-35 gives today’s shooters a modern take on a revered design. Featuring subtle but significant upgrades to John Moses Browning’s original P-35, the 9mm SA-35 captures the appeal of the “wood and steel” era of arms making while offering the upgraded enhancements of today’s defensive pistols.

Made in the U.S.A., the SA-35 features rugged forged steel parts for strength and durability, improved ergonomics and enhanced controls, modern sights, an improved feed ramp design, and an increased 15-round capacity. Configured without a magazine disconnect for a drop free magazine the SA-35 features a factory-tuned trigger with a smooth pull and crisp, clean break.

Call it a legend, call it an icon, but whatever you do, don’t call it a classic.

IF it takes legacy magazines, and IF it takes legacy parts, and IF they keep the price comparable to new Glock…then Im in for five.

“They’re a high theft item”

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Did some running around today to pick up a few ‘nice to haves’ and to do some price checking. I was looking for 15-gallon blue barrels, NATO-style gas cans, and MagLites. Of those three items, you’d think the MagLites would have been the easiest. I mean, every Lowe’s and Home Depot would have them right? Well…you say that….

Turns out that Home Depot, Lowe’s, Murdoch’s, and a handful of other places that you would think would carry them…didn’t. I wonder if maybe MagLite did some sort of change to their pricing or distribution program and got dropped from the stores. Oh, sure…they’re available elsewhere but I really expected them in home Depot.

While I was at Murdoch’s the woman in line in front of me asked the clerk about canning jar lids. She said that their website reported they had three boxes of them in stock, she wanted them, but didnt see them on the shelf. The guy told her they keep them behind the counter because…”Theyre a high theft item.” Canning jar lids. High theft item. let that ferment in your brain for a minute. As someone opined to me after hearing that, “Youd think someone who would steal canning jar lids would be too lazy to can.”

As for the 15-gallon blue barrels I wanted…nada de suerte. Same for the gas cans. And, yes, they’re available online but I find it interesting that the local supply is picked over so thoroughly. Signs of the times, it seems.

In the course of my travels I also hit the restaurant supply place and while they had a pretty normal selection of stuff, some things were absent…certain cooking oils, large cuts of meat, etc.

For me, all the things Im after are just really gilding the preparedness lilly. I’ve got enough of pretty much anything that I’ll come out the other side of whatever happens just fine. But it’s interesting to see the evidence that theres a restlessness amongst the natives.