(TargetLiberty.org) – Lockdown may limit where you can go, but only you and your resources limit what you can do while you’re safe at home. If you’ve been told by the government to restrict your travels, things have gotten serious and it’s best to respond accordingly. This means planning for them to get even more dire. If you’ve noticed any gaps in your necessary skills, now’s the time to fill them.
Home Cooking
Some lockdowns allow you to leave the house for fast food or groceries, or get either of those things delivered to you… at least temporarily. That may not always be the case though. Even if you don’t actually cook at home right now, it’s a good time to start. Learn how to do simple tasks like making your own yeast, brown sugar and self-rising flour. Find substitutions for recipe staples like milk and eggs, because you may encounter a shortage at some point. Learn the difference between preparing wild game and cooking meat from a store. Pro tip: salt is your friend. Stock up on it and learn how to use it for more than flavor in your cooking.
Home Defense
How adequate do you feel about defending your home right now? Can you handle a weaponized break-in, hack or the latest scam? Even if you think you have it under control now, in times of distress, people really start acting desperate and reaching new depths of depravity.
Today, someone might stop and see if they can use your phone because their car “broke down.” When you send them packing, you might have eluded the issue for now, but they’ve likely assessed the situation to plan whether they’ll be back for another shot, later, when things get worse.
- Beef up your observation abilities as well as minimizing what outsiders can observe about you and your home. All you really want them to see is that you don’t have much to offer and what you do have comes at a greater price for them than they really want to pay.
- Learn to hide what you have. Use decoys so it looks like you don’t have much, and don’t make it obvious when you get more.
- Practice being aware of your surroundings, like never before. Help your family practice, too. Make changes around the house and challenge them to notice, increasing their awareness skills. Time everyone getting through the house in the dark.
- Weaponize the property. Maybe you don’t have access to traditional weapons. Now’s the time to learn how to use anything as a weapon and to strategically place what you do have.
- Work on physical and mental home defense. This means more than just being able to fight. What do your kids do if someone comes knocking while you’re in the backyard? How well do you carry yourself so that would-be intruders are motivated to go somewhere else? These are the things you can work on and practice with your household before there’s an actual need for them. Something as simple as learning how to project your voice can help get rid of intruders.
No matter what home defense skills you choose to develop, practice them often, with changing circumstances and new challenges.
Finding Supplies
Depending on the level of lockdown, securing supplies can mean different things. Do you know how to hunt, trap, garden or forage? How are your barter and trade skills? If the situation becomes so drastic and you don’t have the means and/or ability to get to the store or hire services, you still need to be able to eat, make home repairs, tend to medical needs and perform maintenance as needed.
Start by assessing what you have of value that you can trade, then do your best to conceal it as part of your home defense plan. Don’t stop with your scrap wood pile, either. Learn how to use the plants and animals in your environment. Practice your CPR skills, learn the difference between treating a puncture wound, cut, and/or broken bones. You might even have members of your household present you with signs of illness as a learning opportunity to determine what’s available onhand as treatments and what you need to get.
You can take any one of these sections just as far as you are able. If you know how to hunt, learn how to use all the parts of the animal. Maybe you know how to grow plants, but need to learn how to harvest seeds. Whatever you know now, it’s a great time to build on that knowledge and even add something fresh and new to it.
Remember, a lockdown can either end or tighten up, and you need to be prepared for either outcome.
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