Are there any other platforms, like Pixelfed or Peertube, hosted under the same umbrella as lemmy.world? I wasn't able to find anything referenced about this on lemmy.world, but perhaps that's just my newness to the defederated universe.
For whatever it's worth, I'd love to have multiple instances housed under the same roof. I lack the technical skills and time to set one up myself, and most of the ones I've looked at appear relatively deserted or poorly moderated.
I was about to pull the trigger on a set of Schwalbe Johnny Watts, but they seem to be out of stock everywhere. My backup plan is to get a pair of Schwalbe Marathon Plus Tour. But in doing my research, I've read multiple people say that although they stand up really well to thorns and other trail nasties, they're a mild pain to take on / off due to sidewall stiffness.
Everything I've raid suggests Schwalbe is a pretty solid brand. Before I pull the trigger on these, are there any other brands I should be considering?
I'm riding an ebike mainly on rail trails. Some are paved, most are packed dirt or well-packed pea gravel. Sometimes I'll hit a small mud patch but I don't really go mudding. Once in a blue moon I'll hit single track or railroad ballast, but that's rare. I want something that's going to be reasonably quiet and smooth on paved but that won't shred itself when the terrain gets a little rougher, and that won't fly out from under me if I hit a mud puddle.
If you spend any amount of time on just about any prepper forum, you'll see terms like "bugging in" or "bug-out bag". There is a TON of bad information out there, so I wanted to take a second and make a no-nonsense, plain-language primer for anyone just getting started on their preparedness journey.
Put simply, when people talk about "bugging out", they mean rapidly evacuating an area (usually their home) in an emergency. This can be due to things like natural disasters, chemical spills, civil unrest, war, or getting a call about a sick family member at 3 AM. Bugging out can be, but doesn't have to be, permanent.
You'll also see some people talk about "bugging in". This means that instead of evacuating, they stay at home in an emergency. There's merit to this approach as well: you already know your home and community, and all your supplies are (hopefully!) already there. This is especially appropriate in emergencies that are either very short in duration (like a two-day power outage) or very extreme in scope (like natural disaster making major roads out of your area impassible).
Whether it's better to bug out or bug in depends on your needs and circumstances; there is no "best" answer that applies equally to everyone in every situation. But there are a few things you can do in advance to help you decide:
When the time comes and you decide to bug out, review your plans in light of whatever the actual circumstances are at that time. Is your destination still unaffected? Can you get there safely? Is your family (including pets!) able to travel safely? Just because you planned to bug out (or bug in) doesn't necessarily mean you have to do so. Always stay flexible. Unyielding adherence to plans is a fast path to failure.
Finally, you'll see a lot of people talking about a bugout bag ("BOB"). This is basically a pre-packed backpack or duffle bag that you can grab on your way out the door. There are lots of good guides on building one, and I can make another post going into more details later (feel free to beat me to it). But a basic checklist includes:
Feel free to add your own items below. I'm sure I missed some but this will be enough to get you started with a functional, balanced bag. I see a lot of people in various prepper forums building up their BOB like they're going to ride out WW3. That's not what a BOB is for; a BOB is to get you from point A to point B. And don't feel like you have to buy some special "tactical prepper backpack"; that old Jansport tucked in the back of your closet is fine, and secondhand laptop backpacks can give you tons of organization for very little money.
In an emergency I simply will not be able to function without coffee. But I was surprised to learn that many people don't know how quickly coffee loses its flavor.
Ground coffee starts to flatten out almost immediately upon being exposed to oxygen. Typically you can expect it to hold its flavor for a few days, maybe two or three weeks at the most. After that it will still resemble "coffee" but the flavor will be significantly weakened. Storing it in mylar with an O2 absorber may help somewhat, but the flavor breakdown is already underway by the time you seal the bag.
Roasted coffee beans will last roughly a year stored at room temperature, away from direct sunlight. Storing them in mylar (with that O2 absorber) should stretch this out somewhat. I'm going to fill and seal two small bags out of my next purchase, and test them at the 3 and 5 year marks.
I see people recommending green (unroasted) beans for long-term storage, but there are two problems there. Roasting isn't an exact science; you'll want to make sure you're a seasoned roaster before you ruin your stash. And when you do roast, that wonderful smell will be travel far and wide. In a SHTF situation, that's a powerful motivator for someone to come pay you a visit.
I'm saying this as a coffee snob who hates instant coffee: instant coffee is the best way to go for long-term storage. There are special "prepper" brands of instant coffee out there but the truth is as long as the container is sealed, it's going to hold its flavor for many years. Go to your local supermarket and buy a few jars of whatever floats your boat, write the purchase date on them, and tuck them away in the back of your pantry. At the minimum they'll be good for many years, probably at least a decade.
@RandomPancake
@lemmy.world