Weekend Homesteaders build their own off the grid cabin

This is the story of how two middle-aged city dwellers became weekend homesteaders, and how we bumbled our way through planning and building an off-grid survival cabin. Top to bottom, the project took about two years to complete, working only on weekends. We started out naïve but ambitious, and learned everything as we went along.

Weekend Homesteaders

Free Download: Food Shock

Preparing for the worst is exactly what this 33-page book is about. The book is not shy to say so. On page four we read the following:

At some point in the very near future, home gardening may no longer be just a hobby; for millions of Americans, it could become a necessity.

Excerpts:

Darfur for the Simple, China for the Prepared

“Hunger today is not people starving in the streets, but it’s people choosing between food and rent. It’s parents going without food to feed their children. If safety net programs are further eviscerated, we are going to see Depression style hunger, Darfur style hunger, Calcutta style hunger happening here in New York.”

Estrangement from the land

“Never before in history have so many people been divorced from the production of their own food. Our estrangement from the land could prove to be our undoing … unless we take action now and reclaim that relationship.”

Plugging our ears when we hear "personal responsibility"

“Most people don’t want to hear about taking greater personal responsibility, or becoming more self-reliant. It’s no secret that many Americans, in general, have a sense of entitlement. A huge segment of the population expects that somehow, the government will come to the rescue.”

Hundreds, Thousands Earned on Food

A home garden can save at least $600 in food costs. Many gardeners save much more.

Housing Taking Away Farm Land

We lose, on average, one acre of U.S. farmland every minute. Most of this loss is due to the conversion of farms to industrial and residential uses. Between 2002 and 2007, 4,080,300 acres of farmland were converted for development. This is roughly the area of Massachusetts. This is just part of a long-term trend.

Prepare for the Worst; Download this Book

“In our just-in-time economy, we aren’t used to planning ahead. We think food will always be available, 24/7, whenever we need it. In most parts of the world, that’s simply not the case. Someday soon, that could be the case here in America as well.
Gardening isn’t hard, but it takes time … and timing.”

The book is available for download here and here.

If you don't want to go the Food Shock route (like me), or can't, then you can go the Alpha Strategy way. For those who just want to stock up, and learn how to do so effectively, download the Alpha Strategy here.

The Alpha Strategy (Free Book)

January 12, 2012 Update: The old link no longer works. The old link is still below but the new leak is right below the old link. Thanks to the person that commented.

This book is probably the most informative book on inflation (and how to prepare for it) than any other book available. It is written with the layman in mind. It is only 99 pages long and available in PDF form.

The book was written by John A. Pugsley in 1980. In 1981, it was on the New York Times bestseller list for about nine weeks. It contains some of the same material covered by Peter Schiff in his 2007 and 2009 "Crash Proof" series.

Peter Schiff is a great financial commentator, and I'd trust him as an economic adviser, but Pugsley's book is a steal. Why get a book for $15+ when you can get the same information for free.

Well, maybe it isn't completely the same.

The Alpha Strategy talks more about the history of inflation, its causes, and how to prepare for it.

Crash Proof seems to be tailored toward those who are already investors and includes more recent information on the housing bubble, the stock market crash, and the underlying causes of the recent financial meltdown.

If you could care less about the history of inflation, the fractional-reserve banking system, and myths and facts about the causes of inflation, and you want to go directly to the investment strategies, skip to page 59, where Pugsley talks about the solution.

But if you want to know about the causes of the problem, which is equally important as the solution, then read The Alpha Strategy from the beginning.

Then share the book with a friend.

It is available for download here:

New Link: The Alpha Strategy: The Ultimate Plan for Financial Self-Defense for the Small Investor

Old Link:The Alpha Strategy: The Ultimate Plan for Financial Self-Defense for the Small Investor