WEBVTT 00:00:00.040 --> 00:00:03.940 Join us on Now We Consume. Take in the knowledge. 00:00:04.080 --> 00:00:07.240 Take in the laughs. Indulge in the topics with 00:00:07.240 --> 00:00:10.839 us. The Now We Consume podcast will take you 00:00:10.839 --> 00:00:13.160 through the parts of your day you normally dread. 00:00:13.900 --> 00:00:16.579 Why suffer through the existential crisis of 00:00:16.579 --> 00:00:20.120 life alone when you can do it with us? And now 00:00:20.120 --> 00:00:23.800 we consume. This is not meant to be a conspiracy 00:00:23.800 --> 00:00:25.879 episode or podcast, but we make over some topics 00:00:25.879 --> 00:00:27.120 that dance that line like a toddler dances on 00:00:27.120 --> 00:00:29.440 their mother's last nerve. This podcast is rated 00:00:29.440 --> 00:00:32.509 I. for immature audiences only. Welcome to the 00:00:32.509 --> 00:00:35.170 Now We Consume podcast, everyone. Tonight, I'm 00:00:35.170 --> 00:00:38.929 your host, Pip, and I am flying solo. Gibbles 00:00:38.929 --> 00:00:42.329 and Gibbs are dealing with some life issues. 00:00:43.070 --> 00:00:47.049 Gibbs is trying to not be a fleshlight to Snowmageddon 00:00:47.049 --> 00:00:51.170 2 .0, and Gibbles is just dealing with some general 00:00:51.170 --> 00:00:55.789 life shenanigans. So tonight, you've got little 00:00:55.789 --> 00:00:57.810 old me, and I'm going to try to not just sit 00:00:57.810 --> 00:00:59.210 here and yell into the microphone for the next 00:00:59.210 --> 00:01:02.210 hour and try to keep this as enjoyable as I can. 00:01:02.869 --> 00:01:06.230 So previously on this show, we have discussed 00:01:06.230 --> 00:01:09.969 the housing crisis and the need for being prepared 00:01:09.969 --> 00:01:14.989 for disasters of varying scales. And the overall 00:01:14.989 --> 00:01:17.549 sense of impending dread that a lot of Americans 00:01:17.549 --> 00:01:21.030 feel day in and day out is kind of an overarching 00:01:21.030 --> 00:01:25.640 concept that we... kind of play on and talk about 00:01:25.640 --> 00:01:27.659 in one form or another in all of our episodes. 00:01:28.620 --> 00:01:31.780 But tonight I'm going to touch on some of the 00:01:31.780 --> 00:01:35.879 reasons why that is, and I'm sure that some or 00:01:35.879 --> 00:01:41.500 most of you even can relate. So right now in 00:01:41.500 --> 00:01:47.280 2026, there's about a 2 .8 % cost of living adjustment. 00:01:47.799 --> 00:01:50.739 That little bump feels like a participation ribbon. 00:01:51.439 --> 00:01:54.500 while groceries and utilities lap it around twice. 00:01:55.540 --> 00:02:00.219 The dollar is tanking to four -year lows, imports 00:02:00.219 --> 00:02:04.140 are getting pricier than ever, and a lot of people 00:02:04.140 --> 00:02:07.400 are not choosing to go off -grid just because 00:02:07.400 --> 00:02:11.560 it's a feel -good move. It's wallet survival. 00:02:13.300 --> 00:02:16.919 Here in Ohio, and some other rural spots all 00:02:16.919 --> 00:02:21.080 around, I'm seeing things like solar panels and 00:02:21.080 --> 00:02:25.560 alternative energy sources going up more than 00:02:25.560 --> 00:02:28.939 I am subdivisions. But there's a little bit of 00:02:28.939 --> 00:02:32.500 a twist on that. The costs that are pushing people 00:02:32.500 --> 00:02:36.199 to unplug, they're being curtailed by governments 00:02:36.199 --> 00:02:39.379 that are cracking down on the very folks that 00:02:39.379 --> 00:02:42.879 are trying to make it work. So once again, you've 00:02:42.879 --> 00:02:46.319 got big daddy government saying. We're going 00:02:46.319 --> 00:02:48.240 to make it impossible for you to survive, but 00:02:48.240 --> 00:02:52.219 also impossible for you to thrive. So everyone's 00:02:52.219 --> 00:02:55.659 favorite conundrum. So we've got a little bit 00:02:55.659 --> 00:02:58.460 of an economic squeeze, and it's coming down 00:02:58.460 --> 00:03:03.300 to necessity, not choice. The Social Security 00:03:03.300 --> 00:03:07.939 Administration has a 2 .8 % cost of living adjustment, 00:03:08.020 --> 00:03:11.520 like I just mentioned, and it's adding roughly 00:03:11.520 --> 00:03:17.229 peanuts, about $56 a month on average. versus 00:03:17.229 --> 00:03:20.949 real spikes like food and energy up about six 00:03:20.949 --> 00:03:24.969 to 10 % overall housing, about 12 % year over 00:03:24.969 --> 00:03:28.050 year in some spots. Now that's more in some less 00:03:28.050 --> 00:03:33.550 than others. The dollar is down roughly 9 % from 00:03:33.550 --> 00:03:38.229 2025. Well, that was in 2025, excuse me. And 00:03:38.229 --> 00:03:40.629 even more already in 2026. And we're only two 00:03:40.629 --> 00:03:46.330 months in, uh, inflation. We all know, we've 00:03:46.330 --> 00:03:48.550 all felt it. Our grocery bills are up higher 00:03:48.550 --> 00:03:50.430 than ever, and we're getting less and less in 00:03:50.430 --> 00:03:56.849 our carts. Here in Ohio, we have a slight edge 00:03:56.849 --> 00:04:00.689 over some other states. For example, the cost 00:04:00.689 --> 00:04:03.349 of living here is roughly 8 % below the national 00:04:03.349 --> 00:04:07.370 average. But some of the rural folks are hit 00:04:07.370 --> 00:04:10.150 hard on things like fuel and utilities, because 00:04:10.150 --> 00:04:14.909 why not? We've got this weird little thing where 00:04:14.909 --> 00:04:17.230 it feels like the dollar kind of went on a diet. 00:04:17.430 --> 00:04:20.129 So it looks slimmer, but it's kind of hangry 00:04:20.129 --> 00:04:23.490 and taking it out on your grocery bill. So now 00:04:23.490 --> 00:04:26.329 keeping all this in mind, remember that it's 00:04:26.329 --> 00:04:31.029 not luxury minimalism. It's families and homesteaders 00:04:31.029 --> 00:04:35.129 kind of ditching the grid dependence because 00:04:35.129 --> 00:04:37.870 traditional housing is more and more out of reach 00:04:37.870 --> 00:04:41.649 for so many people. And this is starting to echo 00:04:41.649 --> 00:04:45.149 the over. overarching national housing crisis. 00:04:45.709 --> 00:04:50.449 First time house buyers are at record lows. Homelessness 00:04:50.449 --> 00:04:53.410 is starting to see record highs in a lot of areas. 00:04:54.089 --> 00:04:57.410 It's starting to track out of the major cities 00:04:57.410 --> 00:05:02.089 and into the suburbs. Multigenerational houses 00:05:02.089 --> 00:05:05.550 are starting to become popular again, but not 00:05:05.550 --> 00:05:08.430 out of the old belief systems that used to kind 00:05:08.430 --> 00:05:11.389 of encompass all those. It's out of a need for 00:05:11.389 --> 00:05:16.959 survival. and more and more people are not just 00:05:16.959 --> 00:05:19.839 getting together to be a multi -generational 00:05:19.839 --> 00:05:23.939 house. It's friend groups. It's just sets of 00:05:23.939 --> 00:05:26.600 people who are able to scrape together and pool 00:05:26.600 --> 00:05:29.240 together their resources, buy a couple pieces 00:05:29.240 --> 00:05:33.639 of land, and setting up essentially a small homestead 00:05:33.639 --> 00:05:35.740 so that they can all just survive and thrive 00:05:35.740 --> 00:05:41.079 together and get by as a small group. And that's 00:05:41.079 --> 00:05:43.319 becoming more and more popular. all across the 00:05:43.319 --> 00:05:46.980 country where it's allowed and that's that's 00:05:46.980 --> 00:05:49.899 kind of a really weird concept you would think 00:05:49.899 --> 00:05:54.079 here in america allowed is just kind of a given 00:05:54.079 --> 00:05:57.720 in most places but that's not the full picture 00:05:57.720 --> 00:06:01.560 kind of touching back on that yeah family compounds 00:06:01.560 --> 00:06:08.240 like i was just saying the the idea that you 00:06:08.240 --> 00:06:11.300 can get a large tract of land and then divide 00:06:11.300 --> 00:06:14.199 it among families, or like I said, just friends, 00:06:14.279 --> 00:06:18.480 and multiple houses can be built on that, there 00:06:18.480 --> 00:06:20.819 are more and more regulations coming down that 00:06:20.819 --> 00:06:23.800 are keeping that from happening. So it's getting 00:06:23.800 --> 00:06:26.839 harder and harder to make that happen. So you 00:06:26.839 --> 00:06:31.000 can have a primary house on attractive land, 00:06:31.160 --> 00:06:33.759 but if you don't divvy out the property so that 00:06:33.759 --> 00:06:39.819 John has X acres and Betty Sue has X acres, then 00:06:39.819 --> 00:06:42.100 you're going to start getting into a lot of really 00:06:42.100 --> 00:06:45.620 bad gray areas and red tape, depending on your 00:06:45.620 --> 00:06:50.339 state, which kind of tracks into the whole federal 00:06:50.339 --> 00:06:52.920 overreach and state rights kind of issues that 00:06:52.920 --> 00:06:56.579 we've had for a while. But I think personally, 00:06:56.680 --> 00:06:59.079 a lot of that's going to start changing if things 00:06:59.079 --> 00:07:01.819 don't get better and you start seeing more and 00:07:01.819 --> 00:07:04.920 more stuff like this kind of taking off. So let 00:07:04.920 --> 00:07:10.829 me touch on that here in a second. So the surge 00:07:10.829 --> 00:07:14.149 of the unplug, um, there's, there's some stats 00:07:14.149 --> 00:07:17.410 that I want to kind of touch on off grid searches 00:07:17.410 --> 00:07:23.970 have been up roughly 150 % just since 2020. So 00:07:23.970 --> 00:07:28.230 of all the searches that go on, on the internet 00:07:28.230 --> 00:07:31.569 day in and day out, people are searching for 00:07:31.569 --> 00:07:35.850 ways to go off grid more and more for the last 00:07:35.850 --> 00:07:38.819 six years. So let that sink in for just a second. 00:07:39.959 --> 00:07:43.839 You've got homestead starts that are booming 00:07:43.839 --> 00:07:50.579 roughly 60%. And that's tracking with the inflation 00:07:50.579 --> 00:07:56.259 that has been occurring since COVID set in. The 00:07:56.259 --> 00:08:00.779 2026 tech that has become available is helping. 00:08:01.240 --> 00:08:04.079 You've got solar efficiency that has started 00:08:04.079 --> 00:08:08.600 to go higher and higher. batteries and all the 00:08:08.600 --> 00:08:11.300 tech that's associated with that is getting cheaper 00:08:11.300 --> 00:08:14.899 and more reliable. That's helping to cut energy 00:08:14.899 --> 00:08:19.079 costs where it can be put in place by up to 70%. 00:08:19.079 --> 00:08:21.939 And I say where it can be put into place because, 00:08:22.000 --> 00:08:25.720 again, our wonderful regulations and the overlords 00:08:25.720 --> 00:08:28.240 that come with it are saying, no, you can't do 00:08:28.240 --> 00:08:30.819 that unless you have certain people and pay us 00:08:30.819 --> 00:08:33.460 our fees and get your permits and do this the 00:08:33.460 --> 00:08:36.679 right way. the people that are in charge of this 00:08:36.679 --> 00:08:41.299 stuff are going to regulate survivability out 00:08:41.299 --> 00:08:44.480 of existence. If the people don't speak up and 00:08:44.480 --> 00:08:48.360 say something. So I, that's why I said, I really 00:08:48.360 --> 00:08:51.220 think things are going to change if things don't 00:08:51.220 --> 00:08:57.440 get better quickly. So the off grid units and 00:08:57.440 --> 00:08:59.019 the supplies, like I said, are becoming more 00:08:59.019 --> 00:09:01.659 available and more reliable. And that's an important 00:09:01.659 --> 00:09:04.740 thing because People are having to make their 00:09:04.740 --> 00:09:08.659 dollars stretch further. We all know that. And 00:09:08.659 --> 00:09:13.320 if you're going to dish out the money for a piece 00:09:13.320 --> 00:09:17.580 of tech, that's going to help make your life 00:09:17.580 --> 00:09:20.879 easier. It's got to last. It's got to be worth 00:09:20.879 --> 00:09:23.340 the juice has to be worth the squeeze, you know, 00:09:23.340 --> 00:09:29.559 and as much as I hate to say it. The stuff that 00:09:29.559 --> 00:09:31.820 we're seeing coming out of China and some of 00:09:31.820 --> 00:09:35.320 these other smaller countries, it's getting harder 00:09:35.320 --> 00:09:40.519 to compete with American made stuff because cost 00:09:40.519 --> 00:09:43.899 versus performance, their quality is getting 00:09:43.899 --> 00:09:49.039 better. And I hate saying that, but if it's on 00:09:49.039 --> 00:09:52.980 the shelf and it's a good purchase, I mean, you 00:09:52.980 --> 00:09:57.279 got to do what you got to do. Some other perks 00:09:57.279 --> 00:10:00.039 that are showing up on a state -by -state basis, 00:10:00.399 --> 00:10:05.000 rural land is becoming more and more affordable. 00:10:05.240 --> 00:10:10.159 In some areas, it's down as low or lower than 00:10:10.159 --> 00:10:14.299 $5 ,000 an acre. I know some of my friends have 00:10:14.299 --> 00:10:16.720 been kind of poking around in some areas. Out 00:10:16.720 --> 00:10:20.500 west, in some states, you can get hundreds of 00:10:20.500 --> 00:10:24.460 acres for a few hundred thousand dollars. So 00:10:24.460 --> 00:10:27.769 it's not terrible. These pieces of land do exist. 00:10:29.570 --> 00:10:33.409 There are homestead exemptions that exist in 00:10:33.409 --> 00:10:37.389 many states, but the zoning will vary pretty 00:10:37.389 --> 00:10:42.690 wildly by county and by state. There's a bit 00:10:42.690 --> 00:10:45.710 of a national contrast. States like Colorado, 00:10:46.009 --> 00:10:49.750 Oregon, and Texas, and some others, are seeing 00:10:49.750 --> 00:10:53.909 crackdowns on, get this, rainwater collection. 00:10:54.639 --> 00:10:58.559 or even tiny homes, especially van life and RV 00:10:58.559 --> 00:11:03.659 homelessness. That's being criminalized by as 00:11:03.659 --> 00:11:07.519 much as a 60 % jump, more so in the big cities. 00:11:08.019 --> 00:11:11.480 They're trying to ban it outright. They're towing 00:11:11.480 --> 00:11:15.759 people's essentially homes at that point, trying 00:11:15.759 --> 00:11:18.740 to instill heavy fines just for people trying 00:11:18.740 --> 00:11:21.960 to live and get by in whatever means they can 00:11:21.960 --> 00:11:24.960 afford. Now, Personally, I think that's extremely 00:11:24.960 --> 00:11:29.740 fucked up. If you're only able to afford a van 00:11:29.740 --> 00:11:32.399 that you can convert into a house, and don't 00:11:32.399 --> 00:11:34.620 get me wrong, I have seen some of the ways that 00:11:34.620 --> 00:11:36.799 people have done this. They put these things 00:11:36.799 --> 00:11:39.220 up on YouTube. Some of them are pretty fucking 00:11:39.220 --> 00:11:41.879 incredible. I mean, they have managed to turn 00:11:41.879 --> 00:11:46.220 every square inch into livable, usable space. 00:11:46.940 --> 00:11:50.519 And honestly, some of these things have a bigger 00:11:50.519 --> 00:11:52.779 footprint in them. than some of these apartments 00:11:52.779 --> 00:11:57.980 that are available in New York. So that's A, 00:11:58.080 --> 00:12:00.320 kind of pathetic, but B, kind of awesome too. 00:12:01.379 --> 00:12:05.299 I know there's some people and places that are 00:12:05.299 --> 00:12:07.740 taking things like U -Haul trucks and converting 00:12:07.740 --> 00:12:11.919 them into essentially mobile houses. It's not 00:12:11.919 --> 00:12:18.600 a terrible idea. Old buses, old campers and such, 00:12:18.759 --> 00:12:21.200 I mean... Literally anything that can be converted 00:12:21.200 --> 00:12:24.179 into a house and made livable is being done. 00:12:25.000 --> 00:12:28.080 But you've got these cities saying, no, we don't 00:12:28.080 --> 00:12:29.740 want that here because it makes the city look 00:12:29.740 --> 00:12:33.159 bad. Okay, what makes the city look worse? And 00:12:33.159 --> 00:12:35.340 this is a question that I'd love some feedback 00:12:35.340 --> 00:12:39.600 on. A bunch of empty, run -down houses sitting 00:12:39.600 --> 00:12:43.960 everywhere, or maybe some lots that are filled 00:12:43.960 --> 00:12:49.190 with people's cars, trucks, vans, buses. that 00:12:49.190 --> 00:12:51.929 are taking care of everything and just getting 00:12:51.929 --> 00:12:56.549 by because they can afford that. But they can't 00:12:56.549 --> 00:12:59.309 afford these million dollar houses that are the 00:12:59.309 --> 00:13:02.769 size of an egg carton. So I don't know. Y 'all 00:13:02.769 --> 00:13:10.750 tell me. You know, I had some jokes in here, 00:13:10.809 --> 00:13:15.129 but they just don't hit right. But let me let 00:13:15.129 --> 00:13:19.919 me ask you this. Do you guys feel that if you're 00:13:19.919 --> 00:13:24.519 in the right position is unplugging more of an 00:13:24.519 --> 00:13:26.659 empowerment move or a symptom of inequality? 00:13:27.779 --> 00:13:32.940 Because when the system is kind of rigged and 00:13:32.940 --> 00:13:36.080 I'm talking like taxes favoring higher orders 00:13:36.080 --> 00:13:40.779 or low income pay, you know, going off grid is 00:13:40.779 --> 00:13:44.220 more about survival and less about rebellion. 00:13:45.059 --> 00:13:48.149 But there are some people who feel like. Going 00:13:48.149 --> 00:13:51.070 off grid and just unplugging from the primary 00:13:51.070 --> 00:13:54.769 grid and whatever is a form of sticking the finger 00:13:54.769 --> 00:13:56.350 to the government and just saying, you know, 00:13:56.350 --> 00:13:59.230 fuck you, I'm going to do this on my own. So 00:13:59.230 --> 00:14:05.169 I'd love some feedback on that. But as I had 00:14:05.169 --> 00:14:08.889 said, there's some government crackdown that's 00:14:08.889 --> 00:14:11.850 coming in the form of outright punishment of 00:14:11.850 --> 00:14:16.649 what amounts to just basic survival. And there's 00:14:16.649 --> 00:14:21.210 a bit of irony in that. While costs are forcing 00:14:21.210 --> 00:14:24.429 people to unplug, the regulations are starting 00:14:24.429 --> 00:14:27.809 to tighten on just simple living. You've got 00:14:27.809 --> 00:14:32.129 zoning ordinances that are keeping people from 00:14:32.129 --> 00:14:34.049 being able to do the things that they want to 00:14:34.049 --> 00:14:36.629 do, like putting up solar panels in their yard, 00:14:36.909 --> 00:14:42.470 rainwater collection systems, farm animals on 00:14:42.470 --> 00:14:45.419 their property, chickens, ducks, whatever. All 00:14:45.419 --> 00:14:46.820 these things that will help make their lives 00:14:46.820 --> 00:14:49.639 easier, they're trying to ordinance their way 00:14:49.639 --> 00:14:52.419 out of them or allowing them to have happen. 00:14:54.360 --> 00:14:57.240 They're criminalizing RV and van dwellings, like 00:14:57.240 --> 00:15:02.480 I said. There are over 140 cities that ban vehicle 00:15:02.480 --> 00:15:06.200 sleeping currently. States are expanding this 00:15:06.200 --> 00:15:09.779 into overnight bans so you can live there through 00:15:09.779 --> 00:15:11.159 the day. You just can't sleep there during the 00:15:11.159 --> 00:15:17.259 night. So what good does that do? Tiny homes 00:15:17.259 --> 00:15:20.860 on wheels are being restricted, so it must be 00:15:20.860 --> 00:15:23.580 a permanent dwelling in many spots, and you have 00:15:23.580 --> 00:15:26.480 to have utility hookups, so they want you on 00:15:26.480 --> 00:15:30.879 that grid teat. So there goes the whole green 00:15:30.879 --> 00:15:33.340 energy thing that they push for left and right. 00:15:36.139 --> 00:15:40.080 Rainwater rules. Septic and compost toilet fights. 00:15:40.940 --> 00:15:43.220 Camping bans on your own land in places like 00:15:43.220 --> 00:15:46.600 Colorado. It's your land. You're supposed to 00:15:46.600 --> 00:15:48.919 be able to do whatever the fuck you want. So 00:15:48.919 --> 00:15:53.039 why can't you camp on it? A lot of places, people 00:15:53.039 --> 00:15:56.100 will buy a piece of land, set up a camper, and 00:15:56.100 --> 00:15:58.039 build a house on it. They'll live in the camper 00:15:58.039 --> 00:16:00.379 while the house is being built. That's no longer 00:16:00.379 --> 00:16:05.100 allowed in many places. So where's the justification 00:16:05.100 --> 00:16:11.019 for that? In Colorado, there are county battles 00:16:11.019 --> 00:16:14.620 over off -grid homesteads. That's something to 00:16:14.620 --> 00:16:16.820 keep an eye on because I think when those play 00:16:16.820 --> 00:16:19.379 out in court, it's going to kind of set the precedent 00:16:19.379 --> 00:16:24.779 for a lot of other places. Some specifics that 00:16:24.779 --> 00:16:27.720 I was able to pull here for Ohio, we have some 00:16:27.720 --> 00:16:31.279 zoning that varies county to county. There are 00:16:31.279 --> 00:16:34.120 some counties in the southern part of the state, 00:16:34.200 --> 00:16:35.720 just because they're a little more economically 00:16:35.720 --> 00:16:38.080 depressed, they're a little bit more relaxed. 00:16:38.600 --> 00:16:42.679 But building codes demand at least 950 square 00:16:42.679 --> 00:16:47.279 foot. For permanent homes, tiny homes are often 00:16:47.279 --> 00:16:52.019 wheeled only. So you can have a tiny home, but 00:16:52.019 --> 00:16:57.059 it has to be mobile in some manner. So what some 00:16:57.059 --> 00:16:59.279 people are doing is they're putting them on trailers 00:16:59.279 --> 00:17:02.539 and just kind of making the trailers stationary 00:17:02.539 --> 00:17:05.279 -ish. So you can just have the wheels on them, 00:17:05.299 --> 00:17:07.539 but the trailers are secured to the ground. So 00:17:07.539 --> 00:17:12.619 they're getting around that somehow. Let's see. 00:17:14.349 --> 00:17:18.630 Permits for solar and electrical as well as septic 00:17:18.630 --> 00:17:22.609 are pretty common, but there's no statewide ban 00:17:22.609 --> 00:17:27.490 here. But local law enforcement can enforce grid 00:17:27.490 --> 00:17:31.710 ties. So they're saying you can basically own 00:17:31.710 --> 00:17:36.769 a gun, but they collection bigger than the house. 00:17:40.589 --> 00:17:44.279 But try the composting toilet. without paperwork 00:17:44.279 --> 00:17:47.180 but you yeah you can own a gun collection bigger 00:17:47.180 --> 00:17:51.559 than my house but a composting toilet you better 00:17:51.559 --> 00:17:56.099 have your paperwork so yeah sorry i i had that 00:17:56.099 --> 00:17:57.380 one written in there and i want to make sure 00:17:57.380 --> 00:18:00.500 i said it but it was split so yet again i i dropped 00:18:00.500 --> 00:18:07.299 the ball on that uh so are these actually safety 00:18:07.299 --> 00:18:10.980 regulations or Do you guys feel like they're 00:18:10.980 --> 00:18:12.880 just kind of targeting the desperate people? 00:18:13.720 --> 00:18:18.180 So when folks really can't afford grid life, 00:18:18.339 --> 00:18:22.220 I personally feel like they're punishing the 00:18:22.220 --> 00:18:25.099 off -grid setups and they're widening the gap 00:18:25.099 --> 00:18:28.220 because it's starting to be privileged for those 00:18:28.220 --> 00:18:31.180 who actually can comply versus fines and jail 00:18:31.180 --> 00:18:36.539 time for those who can't. So there's an old book. 00:18:37.630 --> 00:18:39.890 I can't remember the name of it, but they essentially 00:18:39.890 --> 00:18:42.210 first make a criminal and then punish them for 00:18:42.210 --> 00:18:48.329 being a criminal. So, and something that I had 00:18:48.329 --> 00:18:50.190 kind of put in here, this was just kind of a 00:18:50.190 --> 00:18:55.309 hypothetical. What if Ohio's rural counties or 00:18:55.309 --> 00:18:59.269 even other states similar to Ohio became more 00:18:59.269 --> 00:19:03.059 or less unplugged havens? freedom versus isolation 00:19:03.059 --> 00:19:05.440 you've got a lot of states that are bigger than 00:19:05.440 --> 00:19:10.200 ohio that have the room to offer people the ability 00:19:10.200 --> 00:19:15.660 to do this more so out west but if these states 00:19:15.660 --> 00:19:18.779 kind of open up their regulatory requirements 00:19:18.779 --> 00:19:22.799 they can more or less set the definition and 00:19:22.799 --> 00:19:29.420 the tone for all of this The unplugged mentality 00:19:29.420 --> 00:19:32.079 and kind of allow people to just start coming 00:19:32.079 --> 00:19:35.880 in, help set the framework, help set the baselines 00:19:35.880 --> 00:19:39.019 and help people decide what needs to happen, 00:19:39.079 --> 00:19:42.000 what should happen and what could happen. So 00:19:42.000 --> 00:19:44.819 it's kind of a, you know, if you build it, they 00:19:44.819 --> 00:19:47.220 will come kind of mentality. They're showing 00:19:47.220 --> 00:20:00.250 my age there. Quote that movie. So practical 00:20:00.250 --> 00:20:04.289 reality check that needs to happen as well as 00:20:04.289 --> 00:20:12.529 a little bit of hope. And I know that we've talked 00:20:12.529 --> 00:20:16.309 about some of this stuff on the show before, 00:20:16.410 --> 00:20:21.430 mostly in some of our episodes dealing with like 00:20:21.430 --> 00:20:26.190 general preparedness and disaster planning. The 00:20:26.190 --> 00:20:29.559 messed up thing is. That when you're planning 00:20:29.559 --> 00:20:33.039 for a disaster, that can actually get you further 00:20:33.039 --> 00:20:35.839 ahead in life. If you need to pivot your lifestyle, 00:20:35.940 --> 00:20:40.940 like in an overarching sense as well. So here 00:20:40.940 --> 00:20:44.279 are a few tips. If you want to kind of dive into 00:20:44.279 --> 00:20:47.299 that mentality or anything else to kind of set 00:20:47.299 --> 00:20:50.099 yourself up a little bit, you can start small. 00:20:50.619 --> 00:20:53.259 Like we've said before, there are some solar 00:20:53.259 --> 00:20:56.910 kits out there. Now, it sounds pricey, but the 00:20:56.910 --> 00:21:00.970 overall kind of baseline, it's not. It is, but 00:21:00.970 --> 00:21:04.190 it isn't. They range between $2 ,000 and $5 ,000, 00:21:04.450 --> 00:21:07.210 but if you spread that cost out a little bit, 00:21:07.289 --> 00:21:10.690 there are various options. It's well worth it, 00:21:10.710 --> 00:21:14.369 especially when you need it. I mean, in an extended 00:21:14.369 --> 00:21:19.089 blackout emergency, you will be so glad that 00:21:19.089 --> 00:21:23.349 you spent that money when you did. I, for one, 00:21:24.029 --> 00:21:30.130 I have a three kilowatt solar system that I bought 00:21:30.130 --> 00:21:34.750 to run my wood shop because rewiring my garage 00:21:34.750 --> 00:21:38.569 was going to run, I think they quoted me 17 .5. 00:21:39.369 --> 00:21:44.109 And the solar generator that I got is the battery 00:21:44.109 --> 00:21:46.670 unit and two solar panels. And it's on wheels, 00:21:46.829 --> 00:21:49.789 the battery kit. This thing runs everything I 00:21:49.789 --> 00:21:53.160 need. It runs all my wood processing tools. I 00:21:53.160 --> 00:21:55.019 can take it with me anywhere I need. I can run 00:21:55.019 --> 00:21:57.920 appliances in the house if I need to. I can take 00:21:57.920 --> 00:21:59.720 it camping. I can take it, put it in the car, 00:21:59.880 --> 00:22:04.779 go anywhere I need. This thing is awesome. And 00:22:04.779 --> 00:22:06.259 for what I paid for, I was able to get it on 00:22:06.259 --> 00:22:10.539 sale at Lowe's and it's a, it's a Jackery kit. 00:22:11.940 --> 00:22:15.039 The list price is well over three grand, but 00:22:15.039 --> 00:22:21.319 it goes on sale routinely for half that. So I 00:22:21.319 --> 00:22:30.339 got it when it was on sale. The kit I have has 00:22:30.339 --> 00:22:35.259 an RV hookup. So I haven't tested anything like 00:22:35.259 --> 00:22:38.140 220 because none of my stuff is set up for it. 00:22:38.559 --> 00:22:41.980 But I think the next step up will run the 220 00:22:41.980 --> 00:22:45.500 or you can do two of these units that I have 00:22:45.500 --> 00:22:49.519 and get 220 that way. But there are other options 00:22:49.519 --> 00:22:52.880 for that as well. Um, but this thing has a lot 00:22:52.880 --> 00:22:54.920 of power reserve. It's like I said, it's three 00:22:54.920 --> 00:22:57.920 kilowatt system. So, so that's one. And, and 00:22:57.920 --> 00:23:00.559 that's just a Jackery one. There are anchors, 00:23:00.559 --> 00:23:02.960 a good brand. Um, there's a lot of stuff out 00:23:02.960 --> 00:23:06.880 there and that's just solar kits, wind. Uh, you, 00:23:07.000 --> 00:23:09.759 you can tie in other things to get, uh, wind 00:23:09.759 --> 00:23:13.119 and whatnot. Water is becoming more and more, 00:23:13.220 --> 00:23:17.539 uh, accessible again. The tech is out there and 00:23:17.539 --> 00:23:22.650 it's starting to proliferate even more. Uh, rural 00:23:22.650 --> 00:23:25.210 grants are becoming more and more available. 00:23:26.490 --> 00:23:30.150 There's a lot of exemptions that are being made 00:23:30.150 --> 00:23:33.890 available to the public as well. So poke around. 00:23:34.009 --> 00:23:36.009 If you're interested in this stuff, see what's 00:23:36.009 --> 00:23:39.369 available in your area and reach out to other 00:23:39.369 --> 00:23:42.250 people that are doing this stuff. There are prepper 00:23:42.250 --> 00:23:46.910 communities left and right that have an ungodly 00:23:46.910 --> 00:23:52.990 amount of information on this stuff. milk them, 00:23:53.069 --> 00:23:56.730 you know, they will share the information because 00:23:56.730 --> 00:24:00.130 it's good for a lot more people to have this 00:24:00.130 --> 00:24:03.109 stuff than for them to just kind of hoard it. 00:24:05.069 --> 00:24:09.630 Uh, one other thing I highly suggest this, um, 00:24:09.849 --> 00:24:14.589 research the mental toll of isolation because 00:24:14.589 --> 00:24:17.890 going down that path and trying to prepare for, 00:24:18.049 --> 00:24:24.109 uh, Surviving alone. That's not for everybody. 00:24:24.529 --> 00:24:27.670 Trying to go at it and just survive the zombie 00:24:27.670 --> 00:24:31.289 apocalypse, you know, by yourself. Not a game 00:24:31.289 --> 00:24:37.569 you want to play. Chickens, they're great eggs, 00:24:37.650 --> 00:24:39.930 but they're terrible roommates. They will steal 00:24:39.930 --> 00:24:42.809 your food and judge your life choices. Anybody 00:24:42.809 --> 00:24:46.910 who's raised chickens can tell you that. Long 00:24:46.910 --> 00:24:50.930 -term sustainability. You can kind of use the 00:24:50.930 --> 00:24:53.690 off -grid stuff as a hedge against economic chaos, 00:24:53.750 --> 00:24:59.490 but the needs of community pushback, you have 00:24:59.490 --> 00:25:01.549 to find people that you can group together with 00:25:01.549 --> 00:25:11.230 and prevent overreach. So what can you take away 00:25:11.230 --> 00:25:16.890 from all this? Unplugging is not so much a trend. 00:25:17.869 --> 00:25:21.210 As it's more and more becoming kind of a necessity. 00:25:22.829 --> 00:25:27.130 It really depends on where you live. It depends 00:25:27.130 --> 00:25:30.049 on your personal situation, your family situation, 00:25:30.109 --> 00:25:39.829 and the needs of your environment. Costs, cost 00:25:39.829 --> 00:25:42.769 of living and everything, cost of survival are 00:25:42.769 --> 00:25:46.279 starting to crush buying power. The dollar is 00:25:46.279 --> 00:25:49.480 worth less and less every single day, and we 00:25:49.480 --> 00:25:54.400 all feel it. Governments started to crack down 00:25:54.400 --> 00:25:58.940 on survival setups. And honestly, that's not 00:25:58.940 --> 00:26:01.759 protection. It's punishment for people that are 00:26:01.759 --> 00:26:06.140 trying to adapt. All across the country, the 00:26:06.140 --> 00:26:09.200 real fix might be finding ways to ease the regulations 00:26:09.200 --> 00:26:13.680 so that folks can thrive instead of just survive 00:26:13.680 --> 00:26:20.339 in fear. Now, there are some grassroots movements 00:26:20.339 --> 00:26:24.660 that are starting to win in the off -grid communities. 00:26:25.799 --> 00:26:29.400 It's small and it's few and it's spread all around, 00:26:29.519 --> 00:26:36.539 but a win is a win. Take what we can get. So, 00:26:36.539 --> 00:26:41.779 if any of you guys are making any movements to 00:26:41.779 --> 00:26:45.859 unplug, or if you have faced any of the regulation 00:26:45.859 --> 00:26:49.440 bullshit, collecting rainwater and you've been 00:26:49.440 --> 00:26:54.099 hit with a fine or any of that stuff, I'd love 00:26:54.099 --> 00:26:56.160 to hear about it because that's the kind of shit 00:26:56.160 --> 00:26:58.519 that needs to be shared. The government should 00:26:58.519 --> 00:27:00.700 not be able to tell you that you cannot collect 00:27:00.700 --> 00:27:02.680 the water that falls from the sky on your own 00:27:02.680 --> 00:27:06.980 land. Period. Like, I run a well. I would literally 00:27:06.980 --> 00:27:10.420 have to collect the rainwater if anything like 00:27:10.420 --> 00:27:12.440 that happened, if anything happened to my well. 00:27:15.099 --> 00:27:18.720 You know, hit us up on the socials and tell us 00:27:18.720 --> 00:27:21.599 what you've run into or even like what's the 00:27:21.599 --> 00:27:24.799 dumbest regulation you've encountered. Do you 00:27:24.799 --> 00:27:27.680 guys have any plans to adapt your life to try 00:27:27.680 --> 00:27:31.460 and future -proof things a little bit? Or maybe 00:27:31.460 --> 00:27:33.380 even add some backup power supplies and food 00:27:33.380 --> 00:27:36.420 stores? Or if you already have, what kind of 00:27:36.420 --> 00:27:38.019 stuff have you found that works? What have you 00:27:38.019 --> 00:27:42.299 found that doesn't work? Like we're still kind 00:27:42.299 --> 00:27:47.019 of in the winter up here in Ohio and my pellet 00:27:47.019 --> 00:27:50.000 heater that I have, it's been great. I want a 00:27:50.000 --> 00:27:52.559 second one for my downstairs because my furnace 00:27:52.559 --> 00:27:56.799 kind of sucks ass. It's undersized, but replacing 00:27:56.799 --> 00:28:00.799 it is just too goddamn expensive. So I bought 00:28:00.799 --> 00:28:05.200 my pellet heater to kind of offset that. I've 00:28:05.200 --> 00:28:07.099 been looking at those little compact diesel heaters 00:28:07.099 --> 00:28:09.839 so that I can have heat out in that. wood shop 00:28:09.839 --> 00:28:12.519 of mine that's actually in the garage because 00:28:12.519 --> 00:28:16.039 my garage is not a fun place to be when it's 00:28:16.039 --> 00:28:23.440 17 degrees outside in the garage so um and and 00:28:23.440 --> 00:28:27.640 again if if you guys have any input on any stuff 00:28:27.640 --> 00:28:30.720 that i've talked about tonight we we would love 00:28:30.720 --> 00:28:34.099 to hear any of your feedback if you're seeing 00:28:34.099 --> 00:28:39.779 any of the stuff like uh Solar projects here 00:28:39.779 --> 00:28:45.160 again in Ohio, we just had a fairly sizable back 00:28:45.160 --> 00:28:49.119 and forth between some of the communities and 00:28:49.119 --> 00:28:51.380 some solar projects that are trying to go in. 00:28:52.839 --> 00:28:55.200 They're trying to keep solar from going in on 00:28:55.200 --> 00:28:59.519 farmland. Now, I'm kind of on the fence about 00:28:59.519 --> 00:29:02.000 stuff like that, and I would love to hear back 00:29:02.000 --> 00:29:05.799 from you guys on this because solar on farmland. 00:29:06.480 --> 00:29:09.779 is both beneficial and kind of a bad thing, right? 00:29:10.440 --> 00:29:13.640 They have solar panels that will allow light 00:29:13.640 --> 00:29:16.359 to pass through them and still generate usable 00:29:16.359 --> 00:29:20.299 power, like good usable power. Also, they're 00:29:20.299 --> 00:29:24.359 finding that some of the fields that they put 00:29:24.359 --> 00:29:27.839 the solar panels in, some crops are growing better 00:29:27.839 --> 00:29:32.380 with higher yields because of the condensation, 00:29:32.380 --> 00:29:35.920 the moisture levels are rising. Because the panels 00:29:35.920 --> 00:29:39.059 are there. More shade. Some of the crops are 00:29:39.059 --> 00:29:42.339 doing better. Now, obviously, more research and 00:29:42.339 --> 00:29:46.160 whatnot needs to go into it. But a little bit 00:29:46.160 --> 00:29:51.339 of work will go a long way. So there are conversations 00:29:51.339 --> 00:29:58.380 that need to be had. As far as the homestead 00:29:58.380 --> 00:30:03.140 stuff, the van life, the conversion stuff, I 00:30:03.140 --> 00:30:05.630 mean... I'm sure you guys have seen that stuff 00:30:05.630 --> 00:30:09.069 too. But if you've run into any of those issues 00:30:09.069 --> 00:30:14.769 or seen any like just amazing renovations or 00:30:14.769 --> 00:30:17.430 conversion projects, share them. Those things 00:30:17.430 --> 00:30:21.009 are always good to share and pass along and everything 00:30:21.009 --> 00:30:25.930 else. But again, I just want to kind of emphasize 00:30:25.930 --> 00:30:28.769 before I wrap up the show because I didn't want 00:30:28.769 --> 00:30:34.069 to go into an hour plus rant on this thing. Um, 00:30:34.069 --> 00:30:37.450 like I said earlier, this is not something that 00:30:37.450 --> 00:30:40.589 people are doing because they want to people 00:30:40.589 --> 00:30:43.769 are coming together because the cost of life 00:30:43.769 --> 00:30:49.089 is just getting out of hand. Um, trying to work 00:30:49.089 --> 00:30:52.950 together, trying to find ways to cohesively live 00:30:52.950 --> 00:30:58.599 as a group unit. It's, it's tough. I mean, life 00:30:58.599 --> 00:31:00.640 is tough period. But when you're trying to bring 00:31:00.640 --> 00:31:04.220 in multiple households into the same, uh, close 00:31:04.220 --> 00:31:10.740 proximity, it's, uh, it's, it's tough. And you've 00:31:10.740 --> 00:31:16.920 got to find ways to work on your, um, uh, I want 00:31:16.920 --> 00:31:21.339 to say politics, but just trying to find ways 00:31:21.339 --> 00:31:26.200 to communicate and problem solve together. Um, 00:31:26.759 --> 00:31:29.680 When you bring that many people in that are from 00:31:29.680 --> 00:31:31.440 different households and different upbringings 00:31:31.440 --> 00:31:34.680 together, you're essentially forming your own 00:31:34.680 --> 00:31:36.740 little community and you've got to have ways 00:31:36.740 --> 00:31:40.160 to solve your problems, work out issues and work 00:31:40.160 --> 00:31:44.039 together no matter what, especially if things 00:31:44.039 --> 00:31:46.940 get worse. If we're into those disaster scenarios 00:31:46.940 --> 00:31:50.259 that we've talked about before, problem solving 00:31:50.259 --> 00:31:53.539 is a skill. I wish to hell they taught it in 00:31:53.539 --> 00:31:57.720 school, but. The younger generations can't problem 00:31:57.720 --> 00:32:01.039 solve for shit. I think we've all seen that. 00:32:01.400 --> 00:32:03.220 Some of them can't problem solve how to tie their 00:32:03.220 --> 00:32:08.819 shoes, but I mean, it's, it's up to us to kind 00:32:08.819 --> 00:32:16.000 of keep this stuff going. So, um, that's pretty 00:32:16.000 --> 00:32:20.839 much all I had for tonight. So if you guys want 00:32:20.839 --> 00:32:23.440 to share any of your stories, uh, we welcome 00:32:23.440 --> 00:32:28.309 them. And I think we're going to go ahead and 00:32:28.309 --> 00:32:30.910 call the episode there. So thank you all for 00:32:30.910 --> 00:32:34.650 listening. I hope you all enjoyed the show. And 00:32:34.650 --> 00:32:38.309 next week we should be back with a full episode 00:32:38.309 --> 00:32:44.990 with both of my co -hosts. Other than that, I 00:32:44.990 --> 00:32:47.650 love you all. Thanks for hanging out. And we'll 00:32:47.650 --> 00:32:48.289 see you all next time.