The US is a Pressure Cooker. Stay Positive But Prepare for Tough Times

There is panic in the air about the war in Iran, the closing of the Strait of Hormuz, and the inability of the U.S. to get fertilizer for farmers. I have personally seen the big-box stores carrying less inventory. Yes, they are still filling their shelves with merchandise, but many of the items they used to carry are simply not there.

People have been warning everyone, with all kinds of hysterics, about the system crashing as far back as 2015, and it hasn't happened yet. As a matter of fact, the stock market has had a good run for a long time. So let’s hope that whatever mayhem the war in Iran brings, our nation will navigate through any choppy waters with minimal trouble.

However, it is my belief that while it's important to remain positive and hopeful toward the future, it is also smart to take precautions in case things do go awry.

I have just finished my Inflation Busting series, and I wanted to end with a few tips about what we can do to prepare for the worst, should that happen. If the grid goes down or the economy crashes for a time, it helps to think about "camping." The worst conditions will throw us into a situation where we will be forced to live like campers for a while.

Below is a list of practical things to keep in mind, along with items to purchase ahead of time or keep on your emergency shopping list.

Water, Sanitation & Hygiene

Water Essentials

Daily Supply: Every person needs at least one gallon of water per day. At the first sign of trouble, fill all bathtubs and have several empty soda bottles on hand to fill with water as a backup.
Storage Buckets: Purchase 5 to 8 food-safe 5-gallon buckets and fill those with water as well. These buckets can also be set outside to collect rainwater if difficult times stretch on.
Filtration: Look into gravity-fed water filter systems (such as Alexapure, ProOne, or gravity systems with NSF/ANSI-certified ceramic filters) so you can safely process rainwater or alternate sources.

Sanitation & Hygiene

When municipal water or power fails, sanitation becomes an immediate health priority:

The Two-Bucket Toilet System: If municipal water fails or sewer lines back up, convert standard 5-gallon buckets into emergency toilets. Line one bucket with a heavy-duty trash bag for liquid waste and one for solid waste (covering solid waste with sawdust, peat moss, or kitty litter after each use to control odor).
Off-Grid Laundry Supplies: Stock extra liquid castile soap (like Dr. Bronner’s) or heavy-duty laundry detergent, a washboard or manual plunger-style washer, and a heavy-duty clothesline with clothes pins.
Hygiene Essentials: Keep plenty of heavy-duty contractor trash bags, baby wipes, hand sanitizer, isopropyl alcohol, and feminine hygiene supplies on hand.

Power, Lighting & Communications

Portable Power Options

Generators & Power Stations: If you have a built-in generator, that is ideal. If not, consider a sizeable portable power bank, such as a Jackery 300 or Jackery 1000. A Jackery 300 can power lighting and a laptop, while a Jackery 1000 paired with solar panels can keep a small refrigerator running.
Small Solar Banks: Beyond larger power stations, keep a few handheld 10,000–20,000 mAh power banks fully charged for smaller USB devices and cell phones.

Lighting & Keeping Informed

Rechargeable LED Lighting: Stock up on USB-rechargeable headlamps and lanterns. Headlamps keep your hands free for cooking or working in the dark.
Emergency Weather Radio: A hand-crank or solar-powered AM/FM/NOAA emergency radio ensures you receive critical news updates if cell towers and internet infrastructure go offline.

Food Supplies & Off-Grid Cooking

Protein & Staples

Canned Meats: Learn to home-can chicken, pork, sausage, and beef. If you prefer store-bought, stock up on canned tuna, chicken, and sausages. Canned food is a safe investment because a grid outage won't cause it to spoil.
Complete Proteins: Stock rice and beans, or lentils and wheat. Paired together, these combinations create complete proteins.
Pantry Must-Haves: Watch for sales on peanut butter (look for Buy-One-Get-One offers) and stock up on powdered dry milk.
Local Sourcing: Connect with a local farmer who sells fresh milk, eggs, and meat directly.

Budget-Friendly Meal Stretchers & Planting

Fillers: Keep plenty of pasta, rice, and potatoes on hand to stretch meals for larger families.
DIY Convenience Mixes: Research and assemble homemade versions of Rice-A-Roni or Hamburger Helper using basic pantry ingredients.
Planting Seed Potatoes: Buy several organic potatoes to keep on hand for planting in your garden or container pots. Non-organic potatoes are often sprayed with sprout-inhibiting chemicals that prevent "chitting," whereas organic potatoes will sprout naturally and yield a new crop.

Off-Grid Food Preparation

Cast Iron Cookware: Skillets and Dutch ovens can sit directly over charcoal, camp stoves, or open fire pits without damaging the pan.
Manual Kitchen Tools: Keep non-electric backups for daily prep: a sturdy manual can opener, a hand-crank grain mill (essential if storing whole grains), and a manual eggbeater or whisk.
Thermal Cooking: Save stove fuel by bringing soups or stews to a boil, then placing the covered pot inside a thermal insulated bag (or wrapping it tightly in heavy blankets) to finish cooking off-heat over several hours.

Financial Readiness

Cash Reserves

Keep a few hundred dollars of physical cash on hand in small bills ($1, $5, $10, and $20). If banking systems or power grids experience temporary outages, electronic card payments and online banking won't be accessible.

Security & Community Connection

Local Maps & Contact Information

Print physical street maps of your local city and surrounding counties. Maintain a physical address and phone book for family, friends, and trusted neighbors rather than relying solely on cell phone storage.

Community Support

Emergency preparedness is easier with a network. Connect with trusted local neighbors now to learn who has practical skill sets—such as gardening, mechanical repair, medical training, or carpentry—so you can support one another during localized disruptions.

Closing Thoughts

When the grid or power fails, we are essentially thrown into a temporary camping scenario. The internet may go down, electricity might be out for several days, and cell networks could be temporarily unavailable.

Keep an eye out on Facebook Marketplace, Nextdoor, and seasonal store clearances for affordable camping gear. Look into picking up a small tabletop barbecue or camping stove—preferably one that accepts charcoal, twigs, and small branches in addition to fuel canisters.

Gather plenty of matches, flashlights, extra batteries, and fuel canisters. And remember: you can never have too many 5-gallon buckets!

Inflation Busting #10 – How What Is Going On Geopolitically Can Be Seen on Store Shelves

Inflation Busting #10 - Establishing Local Farmer & Rancher Sources

I've done research and have streamlined that research so, hopefully, you can absorb what is going on in a five-minute scan. Many of you may be tuned out of politics and what is going on with Iran, China, Russia and the rest of the world and how this may or will affect inflation, food production, and truck deliveries going forward.

Normally, tuning out of politics would be seen as a good move and could even be interpreted as rage management. Younger adults who are establishing themselves in a career and/or working and raising a family don't have the energy or bandwidth to keep track of what is going on. I'm retired, so I have a bit more time than many of you. I wanted to end my 10th Inflation Busting Series with a suggestion of how what is going on right now may affect us as consumers and family members going forward.

I believe, and you can give this whatever weight you deem fit, that we have entered a stage where there are now signs that the standoff between the US Government and Iran regarding transporting oil and other container ships through the Strait of Hormuz is already causing problems locally.

The big box stores are filling their shelves with old merchandise or inventory that they normally keep in the back of the store because the goods are now beginning to dwindle. After shopping a few days recently, I saw every other place on the shelf empty and a bit more space between the products. Walmart had aisles filled with extra large container boxes that I know they would normally keep in their back room inventory. These are the first real signs of the problems we may face as we got forward.

We're not just facing this escalating inflation, but now I'm seeing signs of a reduction in general inventory.

The purpose of this last Inflation Busting Segment is to introduce you to the idea of buying food and meat from local farmers and ranchers. Once you establish a relationship with these local suppliers, you will have a safety valve against the chaos that may occur in the local grocery stores if the eggs stop showing up, or the milk is two weeks late.

How a Crisis in the Strait of Hormuz Affects Store Shelves in America

When news headlines talk about geopolitical tensions in the Middle East, most people assume it only affects the price of a gallon of gas at the local pump. But the reality is far more wide-reaching.

The Strait of Hormuz—a narrow waterway handling nearly a quarter of the world’s seaborne energy and almost half of its global fertilizer exports—is directly linked to the shrinking package sizes, higher prices, and patchy inventory appearing on store shelves in towns across America.

Understanding how a bottleneck thousands of miles away ripples down to local store shelves reveals why taking control of your family’s food supply is one of the most effective ways to build personal independence.

The Domino Effect: From Ocean Waterway to Local Grocery Store

The connection between a shipping narrow point and local store shelves isn't immediate, but it follows a predictable four-stage chain reaction:

1. Canceled Marine Insurance and Escort Backlogs

When conflict or military friction rises in the Strait, maritime insurance companies pull back war-risk coverage or raise premiums by astronomical margins.

The Reality on the Water: Commercial cargo fleets and container ships cannot legally or financially operate without active insurance coverage.

The Freight Stall: Ships are forced to anchor outside the choke point while waiting for costly military escorts or re-route entirely around Africa’s Cape of Good Hope, adding 10 to 14 extra days to travel times.
The Domestic Result: These delays absorb container availability, spike ocean freight rates by 30% to 65%, and cause delayed shipments at major U.S. distribution hubs.

2. The Diesel Fuel Spike and Transportation Surcharges

Over 70% of all goods and food products transported across the United States travel in diesel-powered semi-trucks.

Fuel Costs Surge: As crude oil prices react to Middle Eastern instability, domestic diesel prices jump significantly.
Trucking Contract Rejections: Independent carriers paying significantly more at the pump are forced to pass those costs directly onto retailers and food distributors.
Delayed Store Deliveries: When delivery costs soar, shipping routes are consolidated or delayed. Instead of receiving daily or bi-weekly deliveries, stores face stock gaps while waiting for consolidated loads to arrive.

3. The Nitrogen Fertilizer Shortage and Crop Yields

The Persian Gulf is not just an oil hub; it is the source of 40% to 50% of the world's exported urea, the primary nitrogen fertilizer required for growing modern crops like corn, wheat, soybeans, and rice.

Fewer Inputs, Lower Harvests: When fertilizer exports from the Gulf stall, international urea prices jump. Farmers across North and South America are forced to reduce their fertilizer application per acre due to exorbitant costs.
The Feed and Meat Connection: Lower crop yields mean less feed available for domestic livestock, pushing up feed prices for commercial cattle, poultry, and pork operations. This cost feeds directly into higher retail meat prices with a 6- to 12-month lag.

4. Petrochemical Bottlenecks: Shrinkflation and Packaging Delays

Middle Eastern refineries produce crucial chemical base ingredients—such as naphtha and ethylene—which serve as the building blocks for global packaging materials, synthetic fabrics, craft supplies, and food containers.

Packaging Delays: When raw plastic resins and packaging materials are delayed or throttled at the factory level, food manufacturers cannot bottle, box, or wrap finished products, creating manufacturing backlogs.
Shrinkflation: To absorb soaring freight bills, rising packaging costs, and expensive agricultural inputs without scaring off consumers with $10 price tags on basic items, manufacturers shrink package sizes while keeping prices the same or slightly higher.

How to Protect Your Household: Local Meat and an Ingredients Pantry

Relying entirely on long, fragile corporate supply chains leaves family budgets exposed to international trade disruptions. Building resilience does not require drastic lifestyle shifts—it simply means making a few intentional changes to how you buy and store food:

Establish Direct Relationships with Local Ranchers and Farmers:
- Buying beef, chicken, pork, and eggs directly from local agricultural producers bypasses ocean shipping delays, corporate packaging markups, and diesel surcharges.
- Purchasing fractional shares (an eighth, quarter, or half beef share) locks in a set price per pound and secures high-quality meat directly in your freezer.
- Above are two screen shots of two websites you can start with. The one on the left is called BeefMaps.com, and this website will allow you to choose your state and you can zero in on ranches and farms close to your home. This one has a nation wide directory.
- The screen shot on the right is from a website called Ranch Route, which allows you to buy direct from the farmers and they have boxes and customized orders.
Another Farm and Rancher director is called Eat Wild. They have a website, a directory and they seem to have a lively community. Many of you will find it easier to order online and many of you will like the idea of getting to know the farmers and ranchers in your area.Many local ranchers have posted several YouTube videos complaining about how the lifting of the tariffs will crush their businesses. These ranches and farms have been in their families for generations. It's important for us, as Americans, to support our ranchers and farmers.

ANOTHER STRATEGY FOR INFLATION BUSTING - The Ingredients-First Pantry

As we begin to see certain products delayed or not making it to the stores in time, it can cause stress and even fear. While we still have time, make a slow switch to becoming an ingredients first pantry. Buy flour, yeast, dry milk, baking powder, corn starch or EZ gel, & sugar in bulk and put together your own cake mixes, pancake mixes, bread mixes. This will allow you to ride the wave above the panicked and chaos-driven shopping in stores that don't seem to have enough.

While things are still stable, go see what kind of spices the Dollar Tree is offering. With about 20 spices, you can make any spice mix you need such as Taco seasoning, chili seasoning, sloppy joe mix, Asian stir fry, gravy mix, etc.

DON'T FORGET FACEBOOK MARKETPLACE & NEXTDOOR.COM

Keep your eyes peeled for mason jars, pantry organizers, baking mix recipe books, anything that will help you slowly switch to an ingredients-first pantry.

By equiping yourself to make pantry kits, you can take advantage of the BOGO sales on pasta or peanut butter. You will begin to see each product as an ingredient and how you can make 2 packages for the price of one stretch your grocery dollars!

- By pairing dry, shelf-stable pantry staples with fresh, locally sourced meats and dairy, your kitchen becomes an independent hub, protecting your family’s dinner table regardless of what happens across international waters. This is more of a return to village living.

MY NEXT NEWSLETTER SERIES - COVERTLY UNPLUGGING FROM THE CORPORATE GRID.

In next month's newsletter, I will begin to organize and offer tips on becoming self-sustaining; quietly unplugging from the government and corporate grid that is currently squeezing us in every way they can. If you haven't signed up for my newsletter, click below to join now.

Audiobooks Course – Learning to Narrate, Edit, & Launch an Audiobook

Course Curriculum: "Audiobooks Unlocked"

I recently finished recording my two audiobooks. One was a short store entitled Writer's Block, which was easy and went about as smoothly as it could have gone for a complete newbie!

Next, I took on the narration of my first full-length novel, Murder in the Sanctuary. I'm an asthmatic and the hardest part of doing the long novel was my breathing. It is exhausting for me to talk a long time, especially when I can't flub a word here or there! However, if I did not have breathing issues, it would have been just as easy as the short story.

I worked back and forth with Google Gemini, as well as watching videos on YouTube about mastering the Audacity software, and I took notes the entire time. I have organized those notes, curricularized them, and am writing this course to help those who would like to do their own narration.

PLEASANT SURPRISE: One pleasant surprise I learned was that when you need to read every word without flubbing, you catch all the mistakes. Even when my books are edited by a wonderful editor, small typos and name swaps, etc. can get through. But when you need to narrate it and listen back as you edit, those errors are all caught.

So as a writer, I envision doing the audiobook right before I publish any book so that I know I have combed the book in the best way to check for every last error.

THE GOAL OF THIS COURSE

I hope to guide all self-published authors step-by-step, through setting up, recording, editing, mastering, and publishing a professional audiobook using free software (Audacity) and home recording techniques.

There is a learning curve to learning how to use Audacity, but this course will focus specifically on everything you need to know to conquer any confusion in the process.

Module 1: Planning & ACX Technical Standards

Before pressing record, authors must understand the rules of the road for retail platforms. All of the Audiobooks will need to pass muster on ACX.com. So from the moment you set up your recording area, you are arranging things to pass ACX standards, rules and regulations.

Lesson 1.1: The Audiobook Anatomy & File Requirements
- Core ACX Specifications:
  - File format: MP3 (Constant Bitrate of 192 kbps, Sample Rate 44,100 Hz, 32-bit Float).
  - Individual file size limits: Under 120 minutes per file and under 170 MB.

When recording in Audacity, the audio will be saved as a 'project'. This will save it as a .aup3 file. This is the raw audio that is saved as a file that only Audacity recognizes. ACX requires .mp3 uploads. So the pathway is to save the project as an .aup3 file when you are working on it in audacity. When it is edited and finished, you will need to export it as an .mp3 file.

NOTES FROM MY WORKFLOW: Once I opened audacity, I recorded the chapter and saved it in a folder entitled BOOK-TITLE-Audacity-raw-files. I used the same naming standards as are required on ACX. For example: Intro, Chapter1, Chapter2, etc., Outro.

Once I edited the audio file, I tested it with a plugin to see if it would pass with ACX. Then I exported the final audio into a new folder entitled "BOOK TITLE-Final-Files. These files are exported in the .mp3 format which is a requirement on ACX.com.

- Required Track Sequencing:
  1. Opening Credits: Title, Author, Narrator.
  2. Front Matter (Optional): Introduction, Prologue, or Dedication.
  3. Body Chapters: Each chapter uploaded as a separate MP3 file.
  4. Back Matter (Optional): Epilogue or Author's Note.
  5. Closing Credits: Wrap-up and Copyright log (© for text, ℗ for sound recording).
  6. Retail Sample: A 5-minute standalone snippet for potential buyers.

Lesson 1.2: Crafting Your Audio Scripts

Opening Credits Script: Using my short story as an example, an opening credit script sounds like this: "Writer's Block, written by [Author Name], narrated by [Narrator Name]."
Closing Credits Script: "This has been Writer's Block, written by [Author Name], narrated by [Narrator Name]. Copyright [Year] by [Author], Production copyright [Year] by [Publisher/Author]. All rights reserved."
Chapters: At the beginning of each chapter, you will enumerate what chapter it is. For example: Chapter 1, leave a few seconds, and then begin to narrate the chapter. Only allow up to 3 seconds of silence before you state the chapter number. At the end of the chapter, only leave about 5 to 8 seconds of silence.
Outro Calls-to-Action: Directing listeners to your author website.

Elevate Your Book Marketing: Professional Banners & Trailers by Stephanie Danielle

As an author, I tend to default to the DIY route for almost everything—from formatting to tracking down my design elements. But recently, a talented digital designer named Stephanie Danielle reached out to me on social media, and I immediately thought of newbie authors who needed a little help right after launching their books.

To show me what she could do, she put together this stunning 3D promotional banner for my book, Forewarned But Unheeded:

She put this together with just looking at the book cover and a description. She added the 75th birthday elements, and a few other things that I think are details that I don't see too often in book marketing graphics.

The attention to detail, the cinematic lighting, and the way it brings the mystery of the story to life is absolutely incredible. After chatting with her, I suggested she package her skills into official service tiers so other authors could easily level up their marketing.

If you are looking to give your book launch or promotional push a highly professional edge without breaking the bank, I highly recommend checking out her brand-new packages below!

Package Tiers	Package Details & Features
Basic Banner Package Price: $50	• 1 Premium 3D Book Promotional Banner • High-resolution image (1080 × 1080) • Commercial use • 2 Revisions • Delivery within 24 hours
Standard Banner Package Price: $100	• 2 Premium 3D Book Promotional Banners • Social media optimized • High-resolution files • Unlimited Revisions • Delivery within 24–48 hours
Premium Banner Package Price: $150	• 4 Premium 3D Promotional Banners • Amazon & Social Media Ready • Multiple design concepts • High-resolution files • Unlimited Revisions • Priority Delivery

How to Write a First Draft of a Novel Without Losting the Magic

Writing a Suspense or Mystery Novel? How to Organize Your First Draft Without Losing the Magic

When I first started writing, I used to sit down at the keyboard and try to fix every single grammar mistake, spelling error, and clunky sentence structure as I went. Big mistake! Gigantic mistake!

I learned the long and hard way that first drafts are their own animal. A first draft isn't about being perfect; it’s about getting the story down on paper. You are "blurting out the story" in broad strokes, and you can always massage the plot or deepen the characters on your second go-round.

But if you are writing a mystery novel—or any fiction with a strong thread of suspense running through it—"just blurting it out" can sometimes lead to a tangled mess of forgotten clues and broken timelines.

To keep from getting discouraged, you need a different kind of freedom. You don't need a polished manuscript right away, but you do need to get organized and I'm sharing my Eight Layer approach to novel writing that helped me remove all the stress, confusion, and restarts from the process.

Start with the Bare Bones

The secret to drafting suspense without losing your mind is to write out the bare bones of the crime or suspenseful event first. Don't worry about anything else yet. Forget the deep backstory, the descriptive settings, or the witty dialogue. Focus purely on the mystery or crime itself, and build a strict chronology of how the clues or revelations are dropped.

Think of it as building a Story Skeleton. When you strip away the extra noise, every great mystery or suspense thread needs these core anchor points:

The Story Hook: The moment you capture the reader's attention and curiosity right out of the gate.
The Inciting Incident: This is where the mystery officially begins (a body is found, the first mysterious clue arrives, etc.).
First Clues: The immediate evidence left behind at the scene of the crime.
The Suspects: Who they are, and exactly who fingers them.
Motives & Gains: What drives each suspect, and what they stand to gain from the mystery.
The Last Clue: The ultimate piece of evidence or realization that points directly to the real culprit.
The Climax: How the mystery ends—whether it's an ironclad clue, a dramatic confession, or catching them red-handed in the act.
The Resolution: How the main story wraps up and how your subplots finally end.

Once you have this skeleton locked in place, you can let your creativity flow during the daily writing sessions without the fear of hitting a structural dead end.

Get organized before you type page one! Grab my free tip sheet to help you map out your book layer by layer so you can write a stronger first draft with absolute confidence.

Tips to Keep You Moving Forward

Even with a strong mystery skeleton, writing that first draft requires the right mindset. Here are a few timeless rules to keep you on track while you flesh out those bones:

Don't stop to edit or revise. It is a complete waste of time to polish a scene that might get tossed later. You can fix the draft after you know the whole story fits together.
Leave notes to yourself. When you finish a writing session, make a quick note of where your mind is at and what needs to happen next. It makes finding your place the next day so much easier.
Take breaks and have fun. Don't sit and stare at the screen for hours. Get up every 20–30 minutes, stretch, and clear your head. Writing should be enjoyable, and if you're relaxed, your creativity will flow naturally.

If you want a deeper look at the general habits that will save your sanity during this phase, check out my older post, 10 Best Tips on Writing a Good First Draft, for more advice on setting up your writing space and pushing past the urge to edit too early.