Do it yourself for independence

One tenant of Survivology 101 is doing things yourself as much as possible then using those lessons to enhance other disciplines until it all comes together in a blanket of know how.   I am a machinist by civilian trade and I have a hobby machine shop in my garage.  This allows me to stay current in machine technologies as well as perform basic maintenance around the house.  Having that ability comes with a general knowledge of metals and their properties.  This can be used to gravitate into forging or casting replacement parts and then finishing them in the machine shop.  My artistic abilities as a tattooist, airbrush artist, sculpter and carving ability allow me to conceive and carve the blanks for casting.  Along with being a machinist there is a fair amount of mechanical ability that accompanies it.  This provides me the opportunity to trouble shoot problems and determine the faulty part in the first place.  Perhaps all this will come together and I may find a better way to make the part to limit wear and future breakage.  All of these seemingly unrelated skills combine in a package that allows me to step away from the normal support systems and provide for myself. 

The ability to do these few things provides one with a confidence to overcome problems and I will always attempt to fix things before I would even consider hiring a "professional".  Even in areas that I know very little about, I can usually make due because other skills bridge the gap and give me some room to figure it out.

I am not putting out a resume here I am just trying to make a point.  What we do for ourselves has a much greater value than just the money saved or the resource recovered.  It has a value in that there are always lessons learned that will relate to other things in our lives.  As an added bonus, in these times we can usually avoid the critical mistakes by researching our projects on the Internet. You must be cautious when doing this because I have made many a things work because I didn't know the rules and therefore had no preset boundaries in doing so.  Many great things have come from the imagination and ingenuity against the odds and against the rules according to the "experts".  So go forth and do great things and if you mess them up at least there was a lesson to be learned if you stop occasionally and reflect back on the experience.

I have included a couple of resources in the side bar to help you get a leg up on some future projects.
The web sites "Instructables" and "WonderHowTo"  are great resources from everything from crafting your own solar dehydrator to making a para cord bracelet.  Anything that you create will enhance your survivability in uncertain times.  You just might need an off the wall skill to get through a sticky situation.