Fuck.

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Goddamnit, there are a LOT of mass shootings occurring in the fucking United States these days. There was the beauty salon rampage in LA a couple of days ago - 8 dead, 1 wounded to date. There was the Quarry rampage in the South Bay a few days ago - I think 7 people were shot. As I've previously mentioned, there was the Carson rampage a month or two ago, with about 8 dead. And that's just what I can remember off the top of my head, locally. For fuck sake! This shit has become normal. Let me repeat that: This crazy shit has become normal. Get it out of your head that it is all an anomaly, and we will be back to "safe-and-sound" soon. No, this is the path we are on, and it diverged from the American Dream some time ago.

Let me list the bumps in the road we are on: overpopulation, dwindling natural resources, peak oil, climate change, the growing global food crisis, the death of the oceans, impending ecosystem collapse, the drying up of the planet, the ever-increasing likelihood of global pandemic, ocean level rise, economic collapse, social collapse, increasing numbers of mass murders, the threat of world war, the ongoing demise of the US dollar, the continued disintegration of nation states, the rise of stateless cartels and multi-nationals, and the shrinking of the middle-class.

If you are not a survivalist by now, you are nuts, but there is still hope. You still have the chance to look around you, take stock of the world, and become sane by beginning your journey towards self-reliance.

Am I an expert on this shit? Fuck no. Do I pretend to be? Fuck no. Am I intelligent, observant, abreast of world history and world affairs? Fuck yes. Do I really give a shit if you are black, white, straight, gay, a hippie, a redneck, foreign, domestic, vertically challenged, a human centipede? No. What I care about is spreading the message so that it sticks. Wake up and get off your ass if you haven't already done so. Take stock of your life. Learn to garden. Arm yourself. Network. Get an emergency kit together. Pay off your debt. Increase your practical knowledge base. Realize that the best thing you can do for yourself and everyone around you is to stop relying on the systems that keep us afloat, because those systems are breaking or broke.

Your mission is to figure out how to rely on yourself.
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Shots

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"Emerald City"

"Forest"

"Moonshot"

Smartphones take good low-rez, pixilated photos.
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Notes

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Re-potted 2 dwarf citrus trees and an avocado tree yesterday, in large pots with quality hand-mixed soil and organic plant food. Also pruned them lightly and moved them into more sun. Am hoping they spring back and start to produce.

Gonna re-plant the wine barrel potato garden soon. 24 potato pieces next time, as opposed to 6 last time. Potatoes seem to grow vertically without branching to the sides. No reason to let any container space go unused, then.

Also, need to weed out the nettles in another wine barrel, as they have a white blight/mold on them. Will replace them with onions.

Time to pull all the strawberries and tomatoes, which will leave me with empty earth boxes and a whole lot of empty pots.

Mmmmph.

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Franklin Armory

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Ooooh, neat. There is a strange, new me-kind-of-weapon in town: The CA-compliant Franklin Armory XO-26B. It is a crafty and innovative little beast, available in 5.56mm, 7.62mm or Bushmaster .450. It has an 11.5-inch barrel, flash suppressor, forward and rear pistol grips, and no stock. The real catch is that it is sold as a single-shot weapon, ie: it has a zero round sled mag, meaning that the magazine is a spring-less dud with 1-round capacity. The action is standard though, and does cycle when fired, ejecting the round just like a normal semi-auto. Note: The magazine is held in place by a bullet button. The version pictured below must not be CA compliant, as it has a 20-round magazine (or more probably, a 10/20 mag). The version I saw in a local store had the zero round sled mag, which was virtually the same size as a 10-round mag.

Of particular interest is the fact that this weapon is neither legally a rifle, pistol, OR Any Other Weapon (AOW) ... for some reason it skirts the definitions of all the above weapon classifications. Yet, it is still CA legal, "as long as its total length is at least 26 inches and it is not actually concealed on the person".

This weapon appears to be well constructed, with a fully operational charging handle, forward assist and (breech) dust cover (unlike some 22LR assault rifles). The components are name brand and high quality. The rear pistol grip has an internal storage compartment for a cleaning kit or other gear, and the forward grip is hollow. The rear piston tube is padded and meant to be placed alongside one's cheek when aiming. It appears, however, that it could be butted up against one's shoulder, like a stock ... I don't know if that would actually work, or if it would be CA legal. I DO know that firing the Bushmaster 450 this way would bruise the living **** out of your shoulder, though. That is one hot round.

If I owned this puppy, I'd fashion a cap for the bottom of the forward grip, and store survival gear inside both grips. I'd attach a loop-sling to the rear of the receiver, and hang the weapon over my right shoulder. Don't know how I'd carry ammo.

Note that this weapon does not come with any sights. I am informed that iron sites run about $80, but have not verified that. A red dot sight is always an option.

Here's to a CA-compliant weapon that very closely resembles a modified submachine gun. It must be fun as hell to play with.

Happy hunting, Californians!

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Container Harvest

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Planted 6 potato eyes in a 1/2 wine barrel last November-December. Barrel was 1/2 full of soil. Mounded more soil around the plants as they grew up, til the soil level was raised 8 inches above the rim of the barrel (held in place by a ring of copper sheeting). Photo above shows the total yield after 10-11 months. Potatoes are unwashed because they will keep much longer this way. This year's yield is 2-3 times last year's yield. Next year's yield should be 3-4 times bigger than this. The key: Plant 24 eyes to begin with. And, increase soil fertility with compost.

Made lunch soup with some of the above potatoes and some homegrown onions (also with purchased organic produce). Yum!

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Mendo Fugitive Killed

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A sad end to a riveting, 2-month crime spree/manhunt. Aaron Bassler -- very armed and VERY dangerous -- certainly deserved the end he met, but he was a tragic figure nonetheless, long the victim of undiagnosed/treated severe mental illness. His death is as tragic as that of the 2 men he killed last month. I hope to read a book or see a movie about this incident in the coming years, as many of the themes in this story -- cultivating illegal plants on other people's land in Northern California, untreated mental illness, dropping out of society and living off the land, evading and eluding law enforcement for extended periods of time, foraging and stealing for survival -- are very interesting indeed.

Prayers for all who passed away - may their souls be at peace.

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Bug Out Bag revisited

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Got the new DRAGO BOB, and it is everything the positive reviews said it was. Not too big, but just big enough. And definitely not too small.

Here's the kicker: Want to see a man get all riled up? Watch him pack his BOB. Holy shit, it's a rough row to hoe. What will fit? What won't? What is necessary? What is imperative? What is fluff? What is the point of a BOB? What is it supposed to do?

Man, the new BOB is half the size of the old, so I am leaving a lot behind and doing a lot of switching down. Realizing it is really a true SHTF bag, basically to keep me alive and that's it. I'll post more when I get this thing wired tight.

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