Rudy!  Why would you say such a thing?

Because it’s true.  Sure, you’ll be able to survive on your food storage if the power goes out for a week.  But for any sort of scenario where there is widespread disruption of any significant duration, you’re up a creek without a paddle.  Unless you do just a little bit more.

Don’t get me wrong.  That library and the binders of printed out material will be critical factors in your survival.  But without having actually practiced things and acquired necessary skills, even at a basic level, your chances of pulling though any sort of major issue go way down.

Have you ever cooked from wheat?  Do you eat wheat on a regular basis?  The bleached flour from the store doesn’t count.  Do you know how to sprout wheat and other grains?  Having a blog article HOWTO printed out doesn’t count.  Have you actually DONE it?

Do you have a garden in your back yard?  If you’ve never had a garden I’m guessing you have no idea just what can go wrong or how hard it can be.  Did you know that different types of vegetables need different types of soil?  Probably.  Do you know how to PROVIDE those different soil compositions to your plants?  Have you done it?  I hope so, otherwise that can of heirloom seeds you have stored away might as well be bird food.

The list goes on and on.  The bottom line is that you can’t rely on just book knowledge alone.  You need to be familiar with and actually have some hands on experience with the basics.  Have a garden even if it’s just a few oversized flower pots on an apartment balcony.  Try sprouting wheat or other grains.  It’s actually pretty darn tasty.

I’m really not trying to be alarmist, I promise…

It’s not realistic to be an expert at everything, or even to have tried everything.  But that’s where two things come in.  Friends and knowing the basics.  If you have some basic hands on experience with something then you’re far better equipped than most to do some of the more specialized tasks in that area.  Better yet, have a friend who is an expert that can teach you if need be.

Go get training.  Get CPR training.  Take courses at your local colleges agricultural extension.  Attend seminars.  Play around, try things out.  See something online that looks neat?  Try it out for yourself.  I’ll try to document some of the times I do that so you can see that I’m practicing what I preach but also to provide you with ideas of what you can try yourself.