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Survival Sunday: June 4, 2023

Happy weekend, friends!

Survival Sunday is a round-up of the week's news and resources for
folks who are interested in being prepared. This curated collection of
information is only available to email and Patreon subscribers.

Have a great week ahead!

Daisy

A PERSONAL NOTE

 

Good morning, my friends! I hope this week has treated you well. My time
in Varna ended, and I returned to Sofia last week.

It was a fairly uneventful flight, except a seat behind mine was double
booked, which delayed us for an hour. It was an interesting conflict in
that the two men didn't yell or curse. The man in the seat simply
refused to get up and the man in the aisle refused to go to another
seat. Both men stayed in their respective places, arms folded, while the
flight attendant worked to resolve the problem.

Nobody complained. Nobody shot video to upload to social media. Nobody
made a scene. I was struck by how different it would be back home as I
taught the friendly unaccompanied minor beside me to play tic tac toe to
pass the time and practiced my Russian with him. People here are quite
stoic. They also applaud enthusiastically when the plane lands.

I thought you might be interested in day-to-day life in Bulgaria. I have
an apartment in the heart of Sofia and compared to American prices,
things are very inexpensive. It seems like most folks walk instead of
driving and you often see the elderly out for a stroll with a rolling
cart to fetch groceries. I think this walking culture keeps people
healthy for far longer. It isn't set up for the disabled at all. There
are four steps to go up and down from the grocery store for example, and
I helped an older lady get her full cart down the steps and gave her an
arm when I picked up my own food yesterday.

Russian and Bulgarian are relatively similar and since my language app
doesn't have Bulgarian, I've been taking a concentrated Russian course
for the past six weeks. This has been immensely helpful as most signs
and labels are written only in Cyrillic.

Two days per week, I walk to the Women's Market, a 140-year-old farmer's
market about 8/10s of a mile from my apartment. It's called the Women's
Market because during the Ottoman Empire, ladies were not allowed to go
shopping anywhere but in the area of today's market, and then only on
Fridays.

There, I load up on incredible fresh produce and pick up a few readymade
meals. They also sell tons of plants and I've included some photos of
the varieties available.

Last visit, I got a container of bean, sausage, and vegetable soup and a
loaf of fresh bread that lasted for three filling meals for only about
$3 US. Since my kitchen is limited, this is far cheaper than I could
make it myself. Even restaurant meals are very reasonable, ranging from
the equivalent of $4-8 USD.

Twice a week, I visit the grocery store nearby. The grocery stores here
are far, far smaller than the ones in the US. I think that's because
there are so many fewer processed offerings. The veggies and fruits at
the grocery stores aren't very good ,so I don't buy any there. I get
staples like rice, beans, milk, and butter. This is also the place to
pick up household goods like toilet paper or laundry soap. Occasionally
I pick up something from the prepared food deli in the back of the store
to reheat later.

Nobody around here has dryers for clothing, so you hang out outdoors. I
have a teeny tiny balcony far too small to sit on, although I do like to
stand out there for a few minutes in the morning with a cup of coffee
and a view.

I love the laundry drying set-up for a small space. 5 Fiveods hanging
from the ceiling of the balcony and they are moved with a simple pulley
system. You can stagger the height of each line so that all your clothes
or linens have good air circulation. Things dry so much faster this way
than on a rack!

All over the city are free fountains with Bulgaria's famed mineral
water. Instead of buying water, most people go and fill up their
containers at these fountains, which is far nicer than the tap water
here. That being said, the tap water is perfectly fine for cooking and
making coffee.

Most folks take trash out daily. There are dumpsters on every city block
in convenient locations.

I rarely use any form of transportation besides walking, as each
neighborhood is pretty well-equipped with the essentials. I walk about
10-12 miles per week as per the tracker on my phone.

I calculated that, not including housing (which varies based on where I
am), I spend about $8 a day here to stay fed, clean, and hydrated. I
have an entertainment budget of $50 weekly to visit museums and
historical sites. There are loads of free places to visit such as parks
and quirky, artsy neighborhoods, where I love taking photos.

This allows me to save up to rent a place when I get back home since I
got priced out of the market at my old place in North Carolina.

You can find more photos on Instagram.
<[link removed]>

 

Speaking of money, I wanted to thank those who have donated to The OP
fundraiser. It means the world to be able to keep this ship afloat!

I wrote yesterday about how the website was defunded and how the
government paid for it
<[link removed]>, and
because it was an article as opposed to a personal letter, I didn't talk
much about how it affected me personally. I always hesitate to share
things like this because I feel like I'm whining. But some friends told
me I should talk about it with you, so here goes.

When we were first defunded, I was determined to sue the pants off
everyone who was involved. I hired an attorney, and very quickly,
despite his best efforts to get them to the table, they'd buried us in
paperwork. I rapidly went through my entire personal savings account
which had taken years to build up. It only took a few months before I
was broke. Their plan to destroy the business I had built was working
all too well.

At the time we were defunded, I had seven employees. Now we're down to
one part-time employee and a fabulous group of freelance writers who
have stuck with me despite a period of late payments as I struggled to
rebuild what the censors had torn down.

Then I was hit with depression. This is something that I have struggled
with my entire life and a couple of periods have been worse than others.
This bout was pretty intense. Not just was I dealing with the chemical
end of it, but I was also watching my life's work be destroyed, my
credit get ruined, and I was selling things off to continue to keep
afloat personally. I didn't pay myself for almost a year and just eked
by selling the things I owned. I took on freelance work myself to make
ends meet, and I was working almost nonstop. First, there was the extra
work, and secondly, not only had I let go of my staff, but I was
covering their tasks.

It was very grim, and I was incredibly unhappy. Being broke and
depressed is very lonely. I know that a lot of people like to scoff at
terms like depression or anxiety, but these issues are very real, and
they're debilitating. Most of the time, we have no choice but to keep
going and push through. So that's what I did.

When I got the notice that my lease renewal was increasing by nearly
$600 a month for my apartment, initially, I felt absolutely sick. How on
earth would I be able to afford to spend even more money when I could
barely make ends meet at the previous rent?

Then I thought, what's keeping me here, in this place? I loved living
near my daughter but I just couldn't keep struggling to pay this cost of
living. I decided to put things in storage for about $100 a month and
take off for a while. The decision to be mobile is actually more than a
thousand dollars a month lower than living at my previous location. It
probably sounds frivolous to be gallivanting around Europe, but
actually, it's such a financial relief that I cannot begin to tell you
how much better I feel.

I can't tell you what comes next. My first concern is keeping The OP
afloat, and I'm working hard to develop some cancel-proof streams of
income. Meanwhile, if you can help the website, even with just a $2
donation, I would appreciate it so much.

Here are two ways you can support The OP:
* **You can grab a PDF copy of The Seasonal Kitchen Companion here with
any one-time donation of $2 or more.**
<[link removed]>

*

* You can subscribe to our Patreon here to provide ongoing support.
<[link removed]>

If you've read this far, thank you for doing so. It's really difficult
to write about these things. Feelings. Ick.

Make a one-time donation here
<[link removed]>


WHAT I'M READING, WATCHING, AND LISTENING TO

Here's some content you may find interesting.

* Doug Casey on the Bankruptcy of the US Government
<[link removed]>

* Bank Bailout Facility Usage Hits New Record High As Money-Market Fund
Inflows Soared Again Last Week
<[link removed]>

* June 30, 2023 Historical Turning Point for the Global Financial System
<[link removed]>

* When Your Own Government CONFIRMS It Paid Censors to Silence You...
<[link removed]>

* 9 Necessities for Backpack Hunting
<[link removed]>

* Symbolic Gift Ideas for Loved Ones
<[link removed]>

* Grow Your Own Groceries Summit - FREE online
<[link removed]>

**Friday, June 9th at 9:00 a.m. CST to Sunday, June 11th at 11:59 p.m.
CST**

* 100 Survival Items You Forgot To Buy
<[link removed]>

* Making SPAM Great Again.
<[link removed]>

* What's Inside The Debt Ceiling Deal?
<[link removed]>

* An Entire Month That Is Going To Show Exactly Where Everybody Stands
<[link removed]>

* Govt. Nudge Units Find the "BEST" Ways to Manipulate the Public
<[link removed]>

* The WHO Will Have Authority To Mandate Vaccines Globally
<[link removed]>

* Futures Rise After House Passes Debt Deal, Europe Boosted By Weaker
Inflation
<[link removed]>

* 4 stories that show your ESG score resistance IS WORKING!
<[link removed]>

* Stockman Slams Speaker McCarthy's 'Rotten Deal'
<[link removed]>

**"you can't borrow 7.3% of GDP every year from now until eternity and
get away with it..."**

* June 1st, tens of millions of Americans will become felons because the
ATF doesn't like a plastic part that helps guns shoot accurately
<[link removed]>

* How to Stockpile Medication
<[link removed]>

* How to Dry Can Beans and Rice for 20+ Years Shelf Life
<[link removed]>

* Getting WORSE! Priced OUT of Growing Food!
<[link removed]>

* Gardening on a Budget: How to Grow Food Dirt Cheap
<[link removed]>

* Zero Young Healthy Individuals Died Of COVID-19, Israeli Data Show
<[link removed]>

* The Plan: WHO's Ten Years of Infectious Diseases (2020 to 2030),
Leading to World Tyranny
<[link removed]>

* The Pandemic Is Officially Over... But What's Next?
<[link removed]>

* The Bankruptcy Caravan Is Now Arriving: Time to Pay for the Easy Money
<[link removed]>

* The Great Student Loan Nonpayment Boondoggle Is Over And Household
Spending Is About To Collapse
<[link removed]>

* The Suffering Is Off The Charts
<[link removed]>

* Grow Pole Beans on a Bean Trellis for Easy Picking and Preserving
<[link removed]>

* Honey's Health Benefits and Why You Need It In Your Medicinal Pantry
<[link removed]>

* Visiting The MIgardener Store.
<[link removed]>

* 11 Signs That Global Conflict Could Soon Spiral Completely Out Of
Control
<[link removed]>

* 'The Official Truth': The End of Free Speech That Will End America
<[link removed]>

* Political Persecution: How the US Govt. Is Silencing the "Domestic
Terrorists" of the Opposition
<[link removed]>

* Prepper Camp with Rick Austin
<[link removed]>

* Fall Of American Empire & Descent Into A New Dark Ages
<[link removed]>

* 5 Ways Small Homes Can Save You BIG Money
<[link removed]>

* 'Kevin Caved': McCarthy Savaged Over Debt Ceiling Deal
<[link removed]>

* The best way to honor sacrifice...
<[link removed]>

* Ghost Jobs: An Economic Illusion That Harms the Unemployed
<[link removed]>

* Emergency Radios (Handheld Radios)
<[link removed]>

* Emergency Preparedness For People With Disabilities
<[link removed]>

* This Is The End Of A Mega-Cycle
<[link removed]>

* Most Important Medical History Lesson We Must Never Forget
<[link removed]>

* Total Farce: Real Spending Under Debt Ceiling Deal Actually Goes Up
Next Year
<[link removed]>

* 20 Foods That Will Double In Price This Summer
<[link removed]>

* 'Kevin Caved': McCarthy Savaged Over Debt Ceiling Deal
<[link removed]>

* The best way to honor sacrifice...
<[link removed]>

* Ghost Jobs: An Economic Illusion That Harms the Unemployed
<[link removed]>

 

Stuff You Might Find Interesting

 

 

Be Sure to Visit Prepper's Daily News <[link removed]>

Each morning, we curate the day's top headlines for preppers to be aware
of on this website.

 

The Only CBD Products We Use <[link removed]>

We only use and recommend Organica Naturals CBD oil products.
<[link removed]> which are 3rd-party tested.
Read more about how CBD might help you.
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Prepping and Survival Digital Bookstore
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Check out our PDF books on a wide variety of preparedness and survival
topics. Learn what you need to know to survive.

 

Join the conversation in our forum →
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LutherCompany LLC
1740 Dell Range Blvd.
Suite H13-49354
Cheyenne, WY 82009
United States

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