MEGATØN
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Karma: 44 |  | Cool list of valuable PA skills
« Thread Started on Feb 3, 2011, 12:44am » | |
Just came across this. Looks like a pretty good list of skills to try to hone before the apocalypse.
http://f4fs.org/10-skills-needed-to-thrive-in-a-post-collapse-world/
Their list is:
1. Organic Gardening and Seed Saving: Skills involving food production will be the most valuable in a post-collapse society. Learning to grow your own food is a must. Obviously, it is necessary to feed your family, but you will also be able to trade your abundance for other items. Additionally, learning to save seeds will also provide another excellent means of trade.
2. Food Processing and Preservation: Learning to process and preserve foods will be another huge skill in a post-collapse world. Taking seasonal abundance and preserving it for future consumption or trade will be vital. Remember, learning to do this with limited electricity is a must. This can also include learning to brew beer, mead, vinegar, or other alcoholic beverages from meager ingredients.
3. Hunting, Fishing, and Gathering: Learning to fish and hunt is essential to survival. Having the proper gear and training will be priceless after the collapse of modern civilization. Having reference guides for edible plants in your region, repairing weapons, trapping wild game, and fishing are great tools to have if you haven’t the time to learn them now. In regards to weapons, your ability to use them also gives you the skill of working security.
4. Animal Husbandry: Notice the first four categories are related to food production. It’s that important. Just gaining knowledge of one of these categories will give you an invaluable skill to thrive in a post-apocalyptic world. Knowledge of animal husbandry can provide endless amounts of sustainable meat, eggs, and milk to you and your tribe.
5. Construction: Construction skills will be very important in a shattered civilization. These skills, especially without power tools, are not something you learn overnight. If you have some basic skills it may be worth learning a few techniques for building small structures with crude hand tools. There are many books teaching anyone how to build basic cabins, sheds, and composting outhouses.
6. Alternative Energy and Fuels: Having the knowledge to implement alternative energy systems will make you a wealthy survivor in a “dark” world. You can learn to build your own alternative energy systems, or you can purchase back up solar generators in preparation for emergencies. There are also small fuel refinery systems available like the biodiesel Fuelmeister, and the new invention from Japan that turns plastic into oil. Knowledge of how to create energy would be invaluable when oil is scarce.
7. Water Purification: Since it’s difficult to pump well water without electricity and with surface water likely to be contaminated, clean water will be in very limited supply. Learning to purify waterwill allow you thrive during this time. You can also purchase water filters for your go-bag that will last weeks, and you can have back-up tablets should you need them. However, the skill and knowledge to purify water should be the goal as that can never run out.
8. Basic First Aid and Natural Medicine: This is another skill that can take years to develop and learn, but that will be crucial when supply lines of pharmaceuticals are cut off and hospitals are over-run. Knowledge of growing herbal gardens for making medicine at home will prove to be very important. Learning basic procedures for stitching wounds, CPR, and more will also be of great assistance. Being the tribe’s shaman with a natural medicine chest is a prestigious position
9. Mechanics: Mechanics for cars, motorcycles, tractors and other machinery will likely be in high demand. In addition, bicycle mechanics will also fair well in world where fuel is very expensive or hard to come by. These are also skills that are not learned over night, but it will be wise to at least have access to books or how-to videos.
10. Soap and Candle Making: With long supply lines decimated and electricity on the fritz, soap and candle makers will provide a valuable product. Clearly some preparation of storing raw materials may be needed to achieve trade-able levels of these goods. Even if you just had the knowledge to make soap or candles just for your immediate tribe, you will be much better off for it.
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King of the Wastes
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GTFO MY PORCH [F4:PA_Earth][F4:KingoftheWast e]
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Karma: 23 | | Re: Cool list of valuable PA skills
« Reply #1 on Feb 3, 2011, 1:30am » | |
Good find Megaton.
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autumn
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Karma: 8 | | Re: Cool list of valuable PA skills
« Reply #2 on Feb 3, 2011, 3:59am » | |
Being able to turn your own pee into fresh water helps. I know there is a water purification point, but this is more specific.
Making shelter is also about the most useful skill you can have if you're not planning on staying in your house.
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Feere
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Karma: 8 | | Re: Cool list of valuable PA skills
« Reply #3 on Feb 6, 2011, 5:33am » | |
Soap makers will die an early death... that is a tedious tedious tedious TEDIOUS process.
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Are you sure you'd want to be alive after something like that?
Of course! Cause I'd be the freaking king! Come in, come in, have some fresh food and water and grab a gun!
Convo between myself and my English teacher. |
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autumn
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When the Nuclear Summer passes...
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Karma: 8 | | Re: Cool list of valuable PA skills
« Reply #4 on Feb 7, 2011, 9:06am » | |
Persuasion and people skills. The best type of a fight is one that you can talk through.
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bushido
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Karma: 0 | | Re: Cool list of valuable PA skills
« Reply #5 on May 17, 2012, 8:21am » | |
I picked up bee keeping as a hobby last year after volunteering for three years to learn the skill.
Great skill as each hive produces about 150 pounds of honey and a large sum of wax.
I also started to make mead this year (honey wine) so that is going to be a great bonus for keeping bees. 
I think bee keeping will be a very valuable skill in a PA world.
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QuietGrave
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Karma: 5 | | Re: Cool list of valuable PA skills
« Reply #6 on Jun 3, 2012, 1:06pm » | |
If you plan on using guns AT ALL you need at least level one gunsmithing and basic chemical knowledge so you can make your own ammunition. I'm minoring in Chemistry in college and majoring in cooking (Not exactly the best outdoorsman skill, but at least I'll know how to butcher the meat I kill.) I'm also going to do some of those "Survivorman" lessons that this national forestry association offers at one of their forest ranger outposts. (Found him online) I suggest getting to know the plants in your area (along with what Megaton said, Organic gardening) because those'll most likely be the plants that you're going to be farming, whether you like it or not. I am currently growing (Don't laugh at me) Banana yucca and other yuccas as well as indian tobacco and potatoes. I'm trying to get the materials to build a chicken coop, but people in the inner-city tend to look down on clucking in the middle of the morning. Also, on the topic of fallout foods, Don't just try to eat the entire Barrel cactus fruit or the entire Prickly pear fruit, because they will most likely give you horrible intestinal distress.
Read up on your local plants, and what parts can be eaten! Try and grow things with Carbohydrates, they are good filler-vitamins~!
Another good Habit of getting into is getting along with your neighbors, they might live through the apocalypse and they might be useful down the road, so stay friendly~!
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mountedantman
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Karma: 1 | | Re: Cool list of valuable PA skills
« Reply #7 on Jul 26, 2012, 10:55am » | |
Another great survivor skill: Dowsing
No need for water purification
Jus dig your own well where the two wire witching sticks cross!
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