Hoping for Best, Planning for Worst

Having a homestead means a lot of different things to different people.  For me, homesteading is all about self reliance.  I also see it as a viable way to provide the Fam with options.

By growing some of our own food, I spend less at the grocery store/farmers market and therefore, I don't have to work full time.  I get to choose what crops I grow and how I grow them.  I can preserve a variety of items to line the shelves of my pantry.  I guess in a nutshell, homesteading to me equals freedom. 

Another common idea among a lot of homesteaders is preparing for future.  I'm not one of those who believe the world will end on 21 December 2012.  Nor do I think our country is on the verge of a major social upheaval which will plunge us into some sort of Mad Max barbaric free-for-all.  I do think global warming is a real concern.  I think this will impact us more deeply than most realize.  With droughts come fewer commercial crops.  Between that and the high fuel costs, food and goods prices will increase exponentially.  This is the future I am preparing for.

Another issue I am preparing for is the possibility of a major electrical grid shut down.  My Hubs pointed out how antiquated and venerable our grids are.  Believe me, when Hubs points something out, I listen. He's not into 'prepping' at all! 

And last but not least, I live in Tornado Alley!  We have serious thunderstorms every Spring, Summer, and Fall.  In the Winter, we get ice storms.  We get tornadoes, floods, crazy heat waves, and ice almost every year. Oh, and let's not forget earthquakes.  Yup, we get earthquakes in Oklahoma. Don't you wish you lived here? 

One ice storm can knock power out for weeks.  Believe it or not, so can a heat wave.  Even if our house doesn't get hit by a tornado, the neighborhood can and we could again be without electric and possibly water.  Heck, we may not even be able to leave the neighborhood due to fallen trees and debris. 

So yeah, hoping for the best and planning for the worst is just dealing with reality.  If we have a tornado, ice storm, or heck, a zombie apocalypse, at least I know my family be prepared.